Above: Flying high. HOBM wing Elisala Solea about to score his second try against MSP on Thursday. The Eagles will be hoping for more of the same when they host Poneke at the Hutt Recreation Ground on Sunday at 3.00 pm. The glut of rugby continues on Sunday with the third leg of the eight-day treble of Premier Swindale Shield, Senior 1 Harper Lock Shield and Senior 2 National Mutual Cup round-robin matches. Fans and supporters can't get enough, but for many of the teams and clubs directly involved, Sunday's sixth round is about a battle of attrition as much as anything else...More

Above: Up and coming referee Aaron Conlon at Rongotai College Aaron Conlon ?a 18 year old from Taihape, traded in the gumboots for rugby boots and a whistle. Aaron joined the Wellington Rugby Referees Association (WRRA) at the young age of 16 and has enjoyed every bit so far. In his short career he has already experienced a lot, "I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to take part in the Wellington HERTZ sevens, it was a great opportunity to spend time with more senior referees, observe international referees...More

Above: Tawa's Joketani Koroi scores the match winning try late in the match against Northern United, to the delight of his teammates and Tawa CCO Dion Waller in the background. The fifth round of the Swindale Shield Wellington club rugby on ANZAC Day today proved a thriller, with a series of heartily contested matches that went down to the wire or ?resulted in upsets. The Derby Day round of matches featured opening wins of the season for the Wests Roosters and Wainuiomata, a first-up defeat for the previous leaders Poneke and a match winning converted try at the end for Tawa...More

ANZAC Day rugby hits Wellington tomorrow, with the fifth round of Swindale Shield matches being played around the region from 3.00 pm. The midweek round of matches, also including a full round of Senior 1 and Senior 2 games, doubles as Derby Day with several mouthwatering match-ups predicted as teams not only chase valuable competition points but bragging rights against some of their closest rivals. In five of six Swindale Shield matches on Thursday the home team hosts its nearest neighbour, while the other match on show is the battle for Wellington Marist supremacy...More

Above, the Avalon Senior 1s just prior to kick-off on Saturday against MSP at Evans Bay Park. Avalon won the match 17-9 to register their fourth straight win of 2013.? There's a long season of tough, hard rugby still to be played, but has Avalon turned the corner? The early signs are positive. A glance at the lower grades after the opening four rounds of matches shows both Avalon's first and second XVs unbeaten and on top of their points tables. Heading into this Thursday's fifth round set of matches, Avalon are the outright leaders in both the Senior 1 Harper Lock Shield and Senior 2 National Mutual Cup competitions...More

Above: Petone's Hayden O'Toole (with ball) bursts forth against Rimutaka in their 91-5 win on Saturday. Poneke held off wave after wave of Tawa jerseys close to their line late in the match to hold on and win their top of the table Swindale Shield match at Kilbirnie Park this afternoon. In wet, difficult conditions for the first time this year and clinging to a 9-8 lead, Poneke repelled Tawa's late onslaught as the visitors threw everything at their try line to try and win the game...More

Saturday - Thursday - Sunday.The Wellington club rugby Premier Swindale Shield, Senior 1 Harper Lock Shield and Senior 2 National Mutual Cup competitions swing into top gear from this Saturday with the first of three rounds in eight* days. *Updated, on account of poor mathematical ability. ?This Saturday's fourth round set of matches is followed by an ANZAC Day round next Thursday and sixth round matches the following Sunday. The ANZAC Day round is also a Derby Day set of matches, meaning there will be love lost that afternoon in the battles for neighborhood supremacy...More

Faifili Levave bursting forth for Norths against Wainuiomata in 2011 Faifili Levave is just one of the many success stories to come out of the Northern United club; a club he has much love for and gratitude for. He began his rugby days at the junior club, the Norths Bulldogs, and fell into this great game by chance. "I stumbled across rugby, my cousin begged my mum to take me along to sign- up day. I started at under 9's and always played up a grade because I was too big" Levave laughed...More

Above the Wainuiomata Women’s team celebrating winning the second round title in August last year.The Wellington club rugby Senior Women’s competition kicks off this Saturday with the opening weekend of first round Fleurs Trophy matches.Six teams, representing seven clubs, will play each other once over five rounds between this weekend and the end of May to determine the first round champions. This will be followed by a short gap and some non-competition games and then the seven-week Victoria Tavern Trophy competition, which is a round-robin leading to semi-finals and a final and for many leading and aspiring women’s players is the stepping stone to higher honours such as the Women’s NPC at the end of the winter...More

Petone’s Nick Grigg has established himself as one of the most dangerous midfield backs in the Swindale Shield. He first caught the attention of Club Rugby in 2011 in his first year in the Petone Premiers when he scored a stunning 50-metre solo try against Norths, beating Alapati Leiua and others on the way to the try line. He’s already scored four tries in three matches this year (above crossing for his try last week against Tawa), after playing for the Hurricanes Development? XV in their charity match against Sydney Shute Shield club Northern Suburbs in March...More