Action from the 1996 Super 12 rugby union match of the Waikato Chiefs against the Auckland Blues at Eden Park. Photo / Andrew Cornaga, Photosport
A special Super Rugby season starts this week as the competition and its clubs, including the Chiefs, celebrate their 30-year anniversary. To mark the occasion, journalist Danielle Zollickhofer goes back to the Chiefs’ beginning.
The Chiefs are arguably as connected to Waikato as cows and beer – it’s hard to imagine them not being around.
However, when the first meetings about the Super Rugby competition and five New Zealand franchises took place, the initial plan did not include a Waikato-based one.
The reason there is one is former Waikato Rugby executive officer Don Shergold, 87.
“[The Chiefs] call me godfather,” he said.
When the former Super 10 competition format was restructured in 1995 to form what is now known as Super Rugby, the plan was to form five New Zealand franchises: Dunedin, Wellington, Christchurch, Auckland and North Harbour.
“Naturally we [Waikato Rugby Union] were upse t... mainly, because we hadn’t been asked [to apply to be a franchise].
“Of course, we were interested in being one of the franchises because of the number of people we were associated with.”
Shergold said Waikato matches had big crowds, in New Zealand and overseas.
He said the support for Waikato went so far that even when the team, alongside South Africa’s Sharks and Bulls, failed to qualify for the 1995 Super 10 competition, Waikato was invited to South Africa by the Bulls and the Sharks to play two matches there - separate from the Super 10 competition.
The match in Durban had a crowd of 33,000 and the match in Pretoria had 24,000 - the same as a regular Super 10 match would have had, Shergold said.
Knowing they had good arguments, the Waikato Rugby Union appealed to New Zealand Rugby for an opportunity to make its case about why it should be the fifth franchise and not North Harbour.
Waikato won.
“We were absolutely ecstatic.”
All five franchises comprised of players from areas represented in the national provincial championship (NPC).
The first Chiefs team included players from Northland, North Harbour, Thames Valley, King Country, Bay of Plenty and Waikato.
Naming the teams was no small feat, but in the end, all parties agreed on a “battle” theme.
The Dunedin franchise was inspired by the Scottish Highlanders, while Canterbury went back to the English Crusaders.
“Then we got to Wellington and we couldn’t think of ... a fighting name, so we called them the windies, because of the wind.”
This later became the Hurricanes.
Auckland had several name ideas, including the As, but, in the end, they were named after the colour of the jersey, similarly to the Australian team, the Reds.
Waikato initially wanted to be the Warriors but that was not possible due to the NRL team which debuted in 1995.
“So [after brainstorming] we came back with two names, one was Chiefs ... and the other one was Trojans, based on the ancient Greek fighters,” Shergold said.
“I had a university girl, Vanessa Williams ... working with me part-time.
“When I told her the two names ... she said ‘You can’t call them Trojans ... the university will take you to bits’.”
“Trojan” is an American condom and sexual lubricant brand, so the decision to go for the name “Chiefs” was easy.
Initially, all five teams included their region’s name, meaning the Chiefs were called the Waikato Chiefs.
The Chiefs’ logo ended up being an extension of the logo of the Waikato Rugby Union, an arm holding a traditional Māori weapon, Shergold said.
In the Chiefs logo, the arm is across the chest of a person, symbolising that even when they are beaten, they will never be defeated, he said.
In the first Super Rugby competition in 1996, there were 12 teams: five from New Zealand, four from South Africa and three from Australia.
The first match was between the Wellington Hurricanes and Auckland Blues, played at The Showgrounds in Palmerston North, with the Blues winning 36-28.
The Chiefs’ first match took place on March 3, 1996, defeating the Canterbury Crusaders 27–26 at Rugby Park in Hamilton.
The Chiefs were coached by Brad Meurant and captained by Richard Turner.
Shergold, born in Waihi, describes himself as being “sports-minded” since he was 5 years old.
He played softball and cricket and swam, but there was something about rugby, something he can’t quite explain, that made that sport more special to him than the others.
“I just am a rugby nut,” he said.
Over the years, Shergold has held several roles with the Chiefs.
He was the Chiefs’ first executive officer, before becoming operations manager and from 2010-17, assistant manager.
“[In between] I retired about three times,” Shergold said.
Now a life member, he is still very much connected to the Chiefs, and respected not only by the club, but also the players.
Shergold said he felt like he had become a “sounding board” for some players, to whom he often offered kind words of support.
“A couple of years ago, Sam [Cane] was given a bit of grief after a match.
“It’s not my place to say what they should or shouldn’t do.
“So I just sent him a message, [saying], ‘Look, it all doesn’t matter when you come home to your boy. He won’t care about any of it.’
“An hour or so later, Sam sent me a photo of himself, his wife and his son and said, ‘Thank you, godfather’.”
Shergold said he loved seeing the players develop.
“Seeing young players grow. The dedication that they put in is just [incredible]. They give everything.
“[The Chiefs] made some magnificent men out of boys.
“I don’t think you can get any more proud.”
The Chiefs have been Super Rugby champions twice, winning back-to-back seasons in 2012 and 2013.
He said the secret to the club’s strong fan base and sporting success was in the culture and the way the Chiefs play.
“The success of the Chiefs is on the paddock ... people come to see the way they play the game.
“You know you are going to see exciting rugby.
“People have known this then [in 1996] and now.”
This weekend, the Chiefs’ first game of the season will be against the Blues at Auckland’s Eden Park on Saturday.
The Chiefs have their first 2026 home game on Saturday, February 28.
Danielle Zollickhofer is the Waikato news director and a multimedia journalist at the Waikato Herald. She joined NZME in 2021 and is based in Hamilton.