The past few months I’ve been, once again, watching quite a lot of First XV Rugby. With the CNI competition now also being on Māori+ alongside the Super 8, several games of the South Island Boys’ Schools First XV competition being streamed on TVNZ+, and Sky Sport showing more First XV games, it’s possible to get a very good view on the state of NZ school rugby outside of Auckland (which, admittedly, is a very big blind spot).
So what were my main takeaways? Last year, after having watched a similar amount, I was not particularly enthused: I thought the level of rugby was often quite average and the top level of talent didn’t seem to be there. Those thoughts were largely confirmed in the Trans-Tasman games, where the NZ Schools’ side suffered historic thrashings at the hands of a, it has to be said, quality Australia U18 team.
Doomsayers grabbed hold of these results to further point to the death spiral in which NZR supposedly finds itself, with the talent vacuum expected to only grow and grow due to an increasing presence of league in NZ and a declining rate of participation in rugby.
I tend to disagree. I believe that 2026 should see a reversal in fortune for the NZ Schools side, as the rugby competitions outside of the 1A already possess enough top end talent to produce one of the better NZ Schools teams in recent memory. Before I delve into this claim, I’ll first share a starting XV which could potentially make up the NZ Schools side in ’26. (Of course, the final team will probably end up being completely different due to selection criteria and the availability of 1A players).
4 players from the Wellington Premiership, 3 players from the Super 8, 3 players from the South Island Competition, 3 players from the North Harbour Competition (all Westlake) and 2 players from the Central North Island Competition
A higher ceiling and more complete skillsets
The players from last year’s NZ Schools team were talented but often had very clear and obvious things to work on. A player like Nehemiah Su’a, a 12 from Palmerston North Boys’ High, had an athletic profile but a high error rate, often losing the ball in contact. Miln, the halfback from Kings, is an offensive dynamo but could lack patience in attack. Raviyawa, the Fijian No. 8 from Feilding, is incredibly skilful on attack but could neglect some of his work at the breakdown.
Matt Fleming, the Year 12 centre out of Westlake: skilled on attack and hardworking on defence. In the first two clips, Fleming uses his pace, fend and running lines to beat the Rosmini defence. In the third clip, Fleming wins a turnover. Throughout that sequence of Rosmini possession, Fleming had contested the defensive breakdown no less than 6 times
What is noticeable about the 2026 cohort is that there are a lot of players who have very few obvious flaws. Fletcher Cooper, the St. Pats Silverstream first five, can kick off both feet, can pass off both hands, can play a territory game and has the physical tools to beat defenders one-on-one and break the line. He’s also built like a midfielder.
Matt Fleming, the Westlake centre, can bust through gaps and offload but, at the same time, works very hard on defence, regularly sweeping up opposition line breaks as well as contesting the defensive breakdown. He’s got genuine pace and is over 1m90. Both Cooper and Fleming are still in Year 12.
While Mason Nicklin has built up a reputation for his ball carrying on attack, he’s no slouch at using his quick feet for putting in big hits either. His scrummaging isn’t necessarily a strength but certainly doesn’t appear to be a weakness either, already showing the ability to balance his feet after the engagement to support his considerable frame
The same principle is true for other players like tighthead Mason Nicklin, blindside Laifone Kamoto, No. 8 Z’kdeus Schwalger, second five Justin Prescott (another Y12), and Rotorua loose forward Te Ariki Rogers. All of these players have a combination of size, athleticism, work rate, leadership qualities and position-specific skills, which creates the possibility to make a very complete and potent team.
Kamoto’s teammate at Wellington College, Z’kdeus Schwalger, has perhaps received more attention but what makes them the complete package is their combination as a 6 and 8, both on attack and defence. In the first clip, Schwalger and Kamoto present a dual carrying threat, with Schwalger condensing the defence from a midfield carry off scrum, after which Kamoto uses his athleticism and fend to beat his defender and score. In the second, Schwalger and Kamoto combine on the try line as a defensive combo, holding up the Nelson College carrier over the line
Player to watch: Jay-Morris Rawiri from St. Johns College, Hamilton
Not all players are the complete package yet but some, like Jay-Morris Rawiri, have the physical tools to develop into something special. I first saw Rawiri play in the first round of the CNI, where St. Johns played against Whanganui Collegiate. The game was scrappy and Rawiri played scrappily as well, looking not at all comfortable at lineout time while appearing lost at times in general play.
Still, the raw tools immediately stood out: while a lot of locks in First XV rugby are massively undersized, the opposite is true for Rawiri. Looking close to 2m and with a frame that can easily add another 15 kg, Rawiri is one of the few locks running around with the dimensions for rugby at the highest levels. Just U17, Rawiri is one to watch for the future.
This past weekend, playing against Matamata, a lot of the early rawness seemed to have already disappeared. In a must-win game for his side, Rawiri was physically bullying his counterparts, making a mess of opposition breakdowns, clearing bodies well beyond the attacking ruck and stopping opposition attack in its track with dominant tackles.
Bullying Matamata: Rawiri, although raw, is already starting to use his considerable physical tools to good effect
Of course, Matamata College are at the lower tier of First XV rugby, so this physical dominance needs to be put in perspective. The main goal for Rawiri will be then to continue his development and start physically dominating across all games in the Central North Island competition. But from watching his performances against Feilding and Lindisfarne College, he already appears to be well on his way.
Problem areas
The fact that there are a number of very promising players in the team of course doesn’t mean that all positions have as much depth. Lock remains a worry in this sense: Hunter Weaver and Logan Platt from last year’s NZ Schools team are lock/6’s and most options in 2026, besides Rawiri, remain undersized. Luke Worsp, from Rotorua Boys High, is a quality player but a genuine tighthead lock, he is not.
The same is true for a position like hooker. I’ve picked Nate Werder, captain of New Plymouth Boys High School, because he is hardworking, skilled and rugged in contact. Still, he's not a particularly big bloke which might limit his effectiveness at the next level. But none of the hookers that I’ve watched really stood out to me unlike, for example, in 2023 when both Maua Letiu and Eli Oudenryn were running around.
The same is somewhat true for fullbacks. While last year’s cohort provided plenty of options at 15 – Havea, Etuale, Kennedy, Owen, Morey, and so on – the fullback depth is more limited this year. I’ve gone for Jerry Moce from Wesley College: while he’s mostly played at 13 this season, he has a lot of experience of playing at 15. Furthermore, he has excellent feet and is creative at the line, always looking for ways to put others or himself through the gap.
It is perhaps in these positions – hooker, lock and fullback – where the 1A can offer more depth. Or, if the NZ Schools team would turn into a genuine U18 side, players like Noah Rogers and Alapati Tusa Soagia would be an option at 15, seeing how they’re still 18 in 2026. But that seems unlikely to happen, at least in the near future. Then again, if the talent is as good as it is this year, perhaps that won't be needed.
Tl;dr
The New Zealand Schools team has had a few years to forget, losing at home in 2024 before receiving record thrashings in 2025 against Australia U18. While structural issues are undoubtedly still at play, a group of genuinely special talent is starting to form around the provinces. Characterized by the combination of athleticism, rugby intelligence, and work rate, there are players available to form a strong NZ Schools team in 2026.
What NZR needs to get right is to make sure these players can enter into a stable and productive rep environment, while also being given enough playing opportunities to turn into a cohesive group. If successful, those dark clouds surrounding NZR’s future should brighten up a little bit in the near future.