The New South Wales Rugby Union is the governing body for all rugby matches in New South Wales, a state in Australia. The New South Wales Country Rugby Union and the New South Wales Suburban Rugby Union are two affiliated units of the NSWRU.
The New South Wales Waratahs represents the state at the Super 14 competition. There is also a rival organization named ACT and Southern NSW Rugby Union operating in this state.
History: The origin of the NSWRU goes back a long way in history. It dates back to 1874 when the Southern Rugby Union was formed in Sydney. Victoria, Mudgee, Sydney University, Wallaroo, Goulburn, Balmain (now Drummoyne), Waratah, Camden College, Newington College and the King's School were its initial members. In its inaugural year, a tournament was organized with these teams taking part in it. The first inter-state was match was played in 1882. They played against Queensland and it became an annual affair. The SRU was later renamed to New South Wales Rugby Union.
In 1908 the NSWRU received a jolt when several of its affiliated players joined the New South Wales Rugby League. This incident took place because the NSWRU was an amateur organization and did not offer payment for matches to the players.
The NSWRU runs two tournaments: the Tooheys New Cup and the Shute Shield. The Tooheys New Cup was first played in 2002 keeping in mind the need to have a competition for the elite clubs. The Shute Shield was presented to the NSWRU by the Sydney University Football Club in 1923. The Shield is named after Robert Elliott Shute, who died while playing for New South Wales against The Rest on 6 June, 1922. Besides the 12 grade teams, Illawarra and Central Coast also take part.
The 12 grade clubs which take part in these two tournaments are:
- Eastern Suburbs
- Eastwood
- Gordon
- Manly
- Northern Suburbs
- Parramatta
- Penrith
- Randwick
- Southern Districts
- Sydney University
- Warringah
- West Harbour
The NSWRU also holds tournaments in the suburban and county level. More than 6000 players and 55 clubs take in the New South Wales Suburban Rugby Union. The New South Wales Country Rugby Union, on the other hand, covers the majority of non-metropolitan areas in the state. NSW Country Cockatoos represents New South Wales County in the Australian Rugby Shield.
