EDENS LATEST RUGBY PLAYER

TOM ROWLAND, the Captain of the Eden Lizards U85kg team has been selected to play for the NZ U85kg team.
Tom was born in England in 1998 and grew up in London. He started playing rugby
at the age of 6, playing for Brendon RFC in Bristol. He then moved and played for
Old Bristolians, going through the grades. While he was at Bristol Grammer School
Tom played in the 1st XV, switching from Back Row to Prop, for the 2015-16 season.
From here he was selected for the England U18 team.
In 2017 Tom played 3 tests against Wales, France and South Africa, at a
tournament played in Cape Town. On his return in 2018 he joined the Bristol Bears
Academy and as part of that Academy came NZ to play. He joined the Ponsonby
U20 team weighing in at 110kg. He played there for only 1 year.
In 2019 Tom went back to the UK to Bath University to complete his Commerce
degree. Covid stopped most rugby in the UK, so in 2021 he decided to come back to
NZ, the homeland of his Kiwi mum. With aunties, uncles, and cousins here, and
living with them, Tom started working for a local landscaper and met a current
teammate, Richard Reilly. In 2022 Rich convinced Tom to lose some weight and to
come down and play for the Lizards.
In 2023-24 Tom was selected to play for the Auckland U85 Representative team.
At the end of the 2024 season NZRU decided to select a NZ U85kg team for a two
game test series in Sri Lanka. Tom won selection as one of the Loose Head Props in that
team. The players were selected from the U85 grade covering North Harbour, Auckland, Counties, Waikato, Wellington, and the South Island. The team will be away in Sri Lanka for 12 days playing the two Tests and flew out on Wednesday.
Tom currently works in the Customer Service team at Mainfreight Ltd and loves his
Rugby at Eden and intends to stay in NZ for the foreseeable future.
We wish him and the team all the very best.

Winter's Here — But So Are We
There’s no denying it now — winter is well and truly here. The rain’s been steady,
temperatures are dipping, and the winter jackets have made their grand return. But
as always, rugby doesn’t stop — and neither do we.
We’re finally welcoming back Junior Rugby this weekend! The energy, the noise,
and the muddy boots are back — and it’s great to see the next generation of Eden
talent back out there doing what they love. Even better — the legendary Paul
Saggers Tuck Shop is back open!
Yes, those delicious hot chips, steaming pies, and proper flat whites and lattes are
ready to warm your hands and your spirit on the sidelines. Come hungry and support
the kids!

SENIOR RESULTS – ROUND 2
It was a tough Saturday across the board for our senior sides:
 Premiers went down to a strong Waitemata side, 10–36
 Premier 3 also struggled to find their rhythm, finishing 7–40
 U21s battled hard in a tight one, falling 17–26 to Pakuranga — a game of fine
margins, but a lot of promise from this young men, watch this space.
The big highlight came from our Women’s Development team, who put in a stellar
performance to claim a 38–28 win over Waitemata. A gritty, fast-paced effort — and
a real lift for the club!

EDEN SENIOR RUGBY GAMES SATURDAY MAY 3rd

What better way of spending your Saturday than to watch club rugby!

Premier Men vs College Rifles away at College Rifles Park 1 at  2:45pm

Premier Development Men 2 vs College Rifles away at College Rifles Park 1 at 1:00pm

Under 21's vs Marist away at War Memorial Park 1 at 1:00pm

Under 85kg Lizards vs  University Legends  at home on Gribblehirst Park 1 at 1:00pm

Presidents vs Ardmore Marist at home on Gribblehirst Park 1 at 2:45pm

Premier Women Development have a BYE this week.

EDEN JUNIORS 

We still have space available in some grades so if you know anyone who is still intending to play rugby this season, please encourage them to register as soon as possible.

• U9 Open Tackle  (Year 4)
• U10 Restricted Tackle (Year 5  weighing under 40kgs)
• U9 Girls Rippa (Year 3 or 4)
• U13 Girls Rippa (Year 7 or 8)
• U15 Girls Tackle (Year 9 or 10)
• U17 Girls Tackle (Year 11 or 12)

We would love to have more Little Rippa’s (Year 0/1s) as well out on the field wearing Black and Gold.

Please share the word with your neighbours, friends and on social media.

JUNIOR COACHES NEEDED

We need 2 volunteers to take on the coaching role for our U9 and U13 Girls Rippa Teams, we are opening this up to our wider Junior Family. For most of these girls it is the first time playing rugby and really need a helping hand to get them out on field.

We will be able to offer you support and answer any questions you might have,  please reach out to Mark our Junior Club Captain, juniorclubcaptain@edenrugby.co.nz

JUNIOR SEASON DATES

The season kicks off this weekend with 4 weeks of Grading and teams added to the draw. Then round 1 kicks off 8 June with the season wrapping up on 30 August.

No Games will be played on- Kings Birthday Weekend -1 June and the Middle Weekend of the holidays -5 July.

Games will be scheduled over Matariki Weekend 21 June and the first week of the Holidays 28 June.

If you have any questions please contact 

Junior Club Captain- Mark Peldmanis juniorclubcaptain@edenrugby.co.nz or 

Junior Delegate- Morganne Sale juniordelegate@edenrugby.co.nz

GO EDEN !
See you all at the game – or back at the club.

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