Chiefs
1997 season
Head coachBrad Meurant
CaptainIan Jones
StadiumWaikato Stadium, Hamilton
Owen Delany Park, Taupo
North Harbour Stadium, Albany
Placing11th
RecordWon 4, Lost 7
Top try scorerAll: Eric Rush (6)
Top points scorerAll: Matthew Cooper (106)

1997 was a tough year for the Waikato Chiefs rugby team in the Super 12 Tournament. They won 4 of their 11 games and finished 10th overall on the table, this year the team was coached by Brad Meurant and captain by Ian Jones.

Standing

Pos. Team Pld W D L PF PA PD BP Pts
1New Zealand Auckland Blues 111010435283152850
2Australia ACT Brumbies 11803406291115941
3New Zealand Wellington Hurricanes 116054163141021034
4South Africa Sharks 1152432135029630
5South Africa Gauteng Lions 1151530234644628
6New Zealand Canterbury Crusaders 1151527223537426
7South Africa Free State 1150630132726525
8South Africa Northern Transvaal 1133526434278422
9Australia NSW Waratahs 1140725529641420
10Australia Queensland Reds 1140726331855420
11New Zealand Waikato Chiefs 1140727229523319
12New Zealand Otago Highlanders 11308299409110517

Coaching staff

JobName
CoachBrad Meurant
Assistant coachJohn Boe
ManagerSteve Gilbert
PhysioDennis Shepherd
PhysioChris McCullough
DoctorChris Milne
DoctorSteve Reid
TrainerPeter White

Results

Round 1 28 February 1997 Wellington Hurricanes New Zealand 18 23 New Zealand Waikato Chiefs The Showgrounds, Palmerston North  
Try: Jarrod Cunnigham,
Tana Umaga
Con: Jon Preston
Pen: Jon Preston (2)
Scoreboard[1] Try: Eric Rush,
Glen Osborne, Walter Little
Con: Matthew Cooper
Pen: Matthew Cooper (2)
Referee: New Zealand Colin Hawke
Round 2 8 March 1997 NSW Waratahs Australia 26 33 New Zealand Waikato Chiefs Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney  
Try: Matt Burke,
Richard Harry
Con: Matt Burke (2)
Pen: Matt Burke (4)
Scoreboard[2] Try: Eric Rush (2),

Errol Brain
Con: Matthew Cooper (3)
Pen: Matthew Cooper (4)

Referee: Australia Andrew Cole
Round 3 15 March 1997 Waikato Chiefs New Zealand 16 26 New Zealand Auckland Blues North Harbour Stadium, Albany  
Try: Scott McLeod
Con: Bruce Reihana
Pen: Bruce Reihana (2), Matt Cooper
Try: Joeli Vidiri, Zinzan Brooke, penalty try
Con: Carlos Spencer
Pen: Carlos Spencer (2)
Drop: Carlos Spencer
Attendance: 25,000
Referee: New Zealand Paddy O'Brien
Round 4 22 March 1997 Waikato Chiefs New Zealand 31 16 Australia Queensland Reds Waikato Stadium, Hamilton  
Try: Bruce Reihana, Dion Matthews, Matt Cooper
Con: Matt Cooper (2)
Pen: Matt Cooper (4)
Try: Ben Tune
Con: John Eales
Pen: John Eales (3)
Referee: New Zealand Colin Hawke
Round 5 29 March 1997 Canterbury Crusaders New Zealand 24 15 New Zealand Waikato Chiefs Fraser Park, Timaru  
Try: Daryl Gibson, Kevin Nepia
Con: Andrew Mehrtens
Pen: Andrew Mehrtens (3)
Drop: Andrew Mehrtens
Try: Paul Mitchell, Rhys Duggan
Con: Matt Cooper
Pen: Matt Cooper
Attendance: 8,500
Referee: New Zealand Glen Wahlstrom
Round 7 11 April 1997 Waikato Chiefs New Zealand 15 33 South Africa Sharks North Harbour Stadium, Albany  
Try: Glen Osborne, Glenn Taylor
Con: Blair Feeney
Pen: Blair Feeney
Try: Adrian Garvey (2), Cabous van der Westhuisen
Con: Gavin Lawless (3)
Pen: Gavin Lawless (4)
Referee: New Zealand Paddy O'Brien
Round 8 19 April 1997 Northern Transvaal South Africa 34 27 New Zealand Waikato Chiefs Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria  
Try: Graeme Bouwer, Jacques Olivier (2), Nicky van der Walt
Con: Casper Steyn (4)
Pen: Casper Steyn (2)
Try: Dean Anglesey, Glen Osborne
Con: Matt Cooper
Pen: Matt Cooper (5)
Referee: South Africa Ian Rogers
Round 9 26 April 1997 Free State South Africa 27 13 New Zealand Waikato Chiefs Vodacom Park, Bloemfontein  
Try: Hendrik Jordaan Kruger, Jan-Harm van Wyk, Rassie Erasmus, Wybrand Els
Con: MJ Smith (2)
Pen: MJ Smith
Try: Michael Collins
Con: Matt Cooper
Pen: Matt Cooper (2)
Referee: South Africa Tappe Henning
Round 10 3 May 1997 Waikato Chiefs New Zealand 47 9 South Africa Gauteng Lions Waikato Stadium, Hamilton  
Try: Caleb Ralph (2), Deon Muir, Scott McLeod
Con: Matt Cooper (5)
Pen: Matt Cooper (4)
Pen: Gavin Johnson (3) Referee: New Zealand Paul Honiss
Round 11 9 May 1997 ACT Brumbies Australia 48 34 New Zealand Waikato Chiefs Canberra Stadium, Canberra  
Try: George Gregan, Joe Roff (2), Mitch Hardy, Owen Finegan, Stephen Larkham, Troy Coker
Con: David Knox (5)
Pen: David Knox
Try: Aaron Hopa, Eric Rush (3)
Con: Ian Foster (4)
Pen: Matt Cooper (2)
Attendance: 13,742
Referee: Australia Stuart Dickinson
Round 12 16 May 1997 Waikato Chiefs New Zealand 18 34 New Zealand Otago Highlanders Owen Delany Park, Taupō  
Try: Caleb Ralph, Glenn Taylor
Con: Blair Feeney
Pen: Ian Foster (2)
Try: Doug Howlett (3)
Con: Simon Culhane (2)
Pen: Simon Culhane (4), Tony Brown
Attendance: 10,000
Referee: New Zealand Paul Honiss

Squad

The Chiefs Squad for the 1997 Super 12 Season were:

1997 Chiefs Squad

Props

Hookers

Locks

Loose forwards

Scrum-Halves

Fly-halves

Midfield

Wingers

Fullbacks

(c)

denotes team captain, Bold denotes player is internationally capped.

References

  1. "SA Rugby Match Centre – Wellington Hurricanes 18–23 The Chiefs". South African Rugby Union. 28 February 1997. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  2. "SA Rugby Match Centre – New South Wales Waratahs 26–33 The Chiefs". South African Rugby Union. 8 March 1997. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
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