Wellington Orcas
Encyclopedia
The Wellington rugby league team are a rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

 team that represents the Wellington Rugby League
Wellington Rugby League
Wellington Rugby League is the local sporting body responsible for the administration of Rugby league in the Greater Wellington region. It is responsible for the local competition of the same name, as well as its representative team, the Wellington rugby league team.- Local Senior Competition :The...

 in New Zealand Rugby League
New Zealand Rugby League
The New Zealand Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. The NZRL was founded on the 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year....

 competitions. They currently compete in the National Zonal Competition
National Zonal Competition
The National Competition is the top level rugby league competition run by the New Zealand Rugby League. The competition replaced the Bartercard Premiership following a Sparc funded review and restructure of the New Zealand Rugby League. Seven teams compete in the competition each representing a Zone...

 as the Wellington Orcas.

Early years

Wellington played its first game on 24 August 1908 when they took on Auckland
Auckland rugby league team
The Auckland rugby league team is the team which traditionally represents all of the clubs which play in the Auckland Rugby League competition. The Auckland Rugby League team has traditionally been a powerhouse of New Zealand domestic rugby league...

 at Victoria Park, Auckland
Victoria Park, Auckland
Victoria Park is a park and sports ground in Auckland City, New Zealand. It lies on reclaimed bay land in Freemans Bay, a suburb directly west of the Auckland CBD. This origin of the land makes it very flat and level...

 in the first provincial game of rugby league in New Zealand.

The following All Golds
1907–1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Australia and Great Britain
The 1907–1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Australia and Great Britain was a tour made by a group of New Zealand rugby footballers who played matches in Australia, Ceylon, England and Wales between 1907 and 1908. Most of the matches were played under the rules of the Northern Union, what is today...

 played for Wellington in that first match: Edward Tyne
Edward Tyne
Edward "Hone" Tyne was a New Zealand rugby footballer who was part of the professional 1907-1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Great Britain.-Rugby Football:...

, Hercules Richard Wright
Hercules Richard Wright
Hercules Richard "Bumper" Wright was a New Zealand rugby footballer who was part of the professional 1907-1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Great Britain.-Early years:...

, Tom Cross
Tom Cross (rugby)
Tom "Angry" William Cross was a New Zealand rugby footballer who represented New Zealand in both rugby union and rugby league.-Rugby Football:...

, Conrad Byrne
Conrad Byrne
Conrad "Con" Augustus Byrne was a New Zealand rugby footballer who was part of the professional 1907-1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Great Britain.-Early years:Originally from Nelson, Bryne was a farmer by trade...

, Daniel Gilchrist
Daniel Gilchrist
Daniel Gilchrist was a New Zealand rugby footballer who was part of the professional 1907-1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Great Britain.-Rugby Football:...

, Daniel Fraser
Daniel Fraser (rugby league)
Daniel George Fraser was a New Zealand rugby footballer who was part of the professional 1907-1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Great Britain.-Boer War:...

 and James Barber
James Barber (rugby league)
James Barber was a New Zealand rugby footballer who represented New Zealand in rugby league.-Rugby Football:Barber originally played rugby union and represented Wellington...

.

During 1909, 1910 and 1911 Wellington continued to play a number of provincial games, and in 1909 defeated Auckland, in Auckland 22-19, the first of only five victories over Auckland in over 100 years.

In 1912 Wellington played in its first international match, losing to the touring New South Wales side
New South Wales rugby league team
The New South Wales rugby league team has represented the Australian state of New South Wales in rugby league football since the sport's beginnings there in 1907. Administered by the New South Wales Rugby League, the team competes in the annual State of Origin series against arch-rivals, the...

, 45-13.

They defeated Auckland 33-18 on 27 September 1913. It was not until 1988 that they were again victorious over an Auckland side. The 1913 side was: A.Anderson, B.Whitley, W.Kelly, A.House (Petone), G.Bradley (Athletic), K.George, J.Barber
James Barber (rugby league)
James Barber was a New Zealand rugby footballer who represented New Zealand in rugby league.-Rugby Football:Barber originally played rugby union and represented Wellington...

, J.Parker (Petone), J.Spencer
John Spencer (rugby)
John Clarence Spencer was a New Zealand rugby football player who represented New Zealand in both rugby union and rugby league. His brother, George, also was a dual-international.-Rugby union career:...

, T.Turner, A.Bensmann, L.Campbell (Newtown), W.Wilson (Athletic). Bench: H.McGuire, B.Childs.

Rugby League Cup

On several occasions Wellington has held the Rugby League Cup
Rugby League Cup
The Rugby League Cup is a New Zealand rugby league trophy that is currently contested between districts on a challenge basis. The trophy was originally known as the Northern Union Cup...

 (previously known as the Northern Union Cup 1910-1969) for interprovincial competition played on a challenge basis. Wellington won it off the West Coast in 1947 for the first time and held it for three years. Wellington held it last in 1990.

1990s

In 1990 Wellington defeated the touring Great Britain side
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....

 30-22. This was Wellington's first, and to date only, win over a touring side.

1994-1996: Lion Red Cup

Between 1994 and 1996, Wellington was represented by the Wellington City Dukes
Wellington City Dukes
The Wellington City Dukes were a New Zealand rugby league club that represented Wellington City in the Lion Red Cup from 1994 to 1996. In 1997 one of the two Wellington Rugby League sides that competed in the Super League Challenge Cup was also called the Dukes.-Season Results:...

 and Hutt Valley Firehawks
Hutt Valley Firehawks
The Hutt Valley Firehawks were a New Zealand rugby league club that represented Hutt Valley in the Lion Red Cup from 1994 to 1996. In 1995 there nickname was shortened to just "Hawks" and 1996 they were known as the Hutt Valley Dolphins....

 in the Lion Red Cup
Lion Red Cup
The Lion Red Cup was a New Zealand domestic rugby league competition that ran from 1994-1996 sponsored by brewers Lion Nathan. It was created due to the increase in public awareness of domestic rugby league due to the Auckland Warriors being accepted into the Winfield Cup. The competition was a...

. One player from the Dukes, Earl Va'a
Earl Va'a
Earl Va'a is a Samoan rugby union footballer. He plays as a fly-half.-Rugby league:Va'a started his career playing rugby league for the Wainuiomata Lions in New Zealand and in 1994 and 1995 he represented the Wellington City Dukes in the Lion Red Cup...

, later went on to represent Samoa
Samoa national rugby union team
The Manu Samoa is the men's representative side of the Samoa Rugby Union in both the 15's and the 7's for international competitions. The Samoa Rugby Union is owned by the affiliated rugby unions of Samoa. In Samoa, Manu Samoa is in honour of a famous Samoan warrior. From 1924 to 1997 Samoa was...

 in Rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

. Both teams folded along with the competition in 1996.
Team Season Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Position Finals
Hutt Valley 1994 22 9 0 13 458 489
18 Eighth N/A
Wellington City 1994 22 8 0 14 470 508
16 Ninth N/A
Hutt Valley 1995 22 13 0 9 544 443 101 26 Fifth Lost Elimination Play-off
Wellington City 1995 22 10 2 10 440 514
22 Seventh N/A
Hutt Valley 1996 22 11 2 9 444 469
24 Sixth N/A
Wellington City 1996 22 9 0 13 536 532 4 18 Eighth N/A

2002-2007: Bartercard Cup

In 2000 and 2001 the region was represented in the Bartercard Cup
Bartercard Cup
The Bartercard Cup was the top level rugby league club competition in New Zealand from 2000 until 2007. For the entire life of the tournament it was sponsored by Bartercard. The cup was administered by the New Zealand Rugby League...

 by the Porirua Pumas
Porirua Pumas
The Porirua Pumas were a team representing the Porirua region in New Zealand's Bartercard Cup Rugby league competition. The Pumas were one of two Wellington-based teams in the competition, the other being the Wainuiomata Lions. They were replaced in 2002 by the Wellington Orcas...

 and Wainuiomata Lions
Wainuiomata Lions
The Wainuiomata Lions are a New Zealand rugby league club based in Wainuiomata, Wellington. They compete in the Wellington Rugby League competition.-Noted Players:...

. However in 2002 it was decided that one team was needed in the competition. They narrowly missed out on a finals spot in 2002, being on equal points but with a lower For and Against than the Marist Richmond Brothers
Marist Richmond Brothers
The Marist Richmond Brothers were a New Zealand rugby league franchise that played in the Bartercard Cup. They were a joint venture between two Auckland Rugby League clubs, the Richmond Bulldogs and the Marist Saints. In 2005 the competition was reorganised and the club, along with the Mt Albert...

. Unfortunately this was a high point for the franchise with the team never making the play-offs.

The Orca nickname was adopted for the 2006 season, adopting the name from the Southern Orcas consortium - a group attempting to gain an expansion National Rugby League
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...

 competition license that was instead granted to the Gold Coast Titans
Gold Coast Titans
Gold Coast Titans are an Australian professional rugby league football club, based in the Gold Coast, Queensland. The club competes in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership. It is the newest of the sixteen clubs in the league, having commenced its...

 group. Previously they were known as Wellington Franchise.

Notable players included Ben Matulino
Ben Matulino
Benedict Andrew Matulino is a rugby league player who has represented his country. He currently plays for the New Zealand Warriors in the National Rugby League...

 and Simon Mannering
Simon Mannering
Simon Alexander Mannering is a New Zealand professional rugby league player who currently plays for the New Zealand Warriors in the National Rugby League competition...

.
Season Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Position (Teams) Finals
2002 16 9 1 6 547 449 98 19 Sixth (Twelve) N/A
2003 16 4 1 11 460 646
6* Eleventh (Twelve) N/A
2004 16 8 1 7 465 409 56 17 Sixth (Twelve) N/A
2005 16 5 3 8 418 459
13 Eighth (Twelve) N/A
2006 18 6 0 12 452 549
12 Seventh (Ten) N/A
2007 18 10 0 8 509 529
20 Sixth (10) N/A

*Wellington were docked three points for registration infringements.

2008-2009: Bartercard Premiership

Wellington Rugby League were awarded a place in the new six-team National Provincial Competition. The team plays its home matches at Porirua Park.
Season Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Position Finals
2008 5 2 1 2 146 138 8 5 Fourth N/A
2009 5 2 0 3 142 120 22 4 Fourth Lost Semi Final
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