CRL News
UNBEATEN KEAS LAST HURDLE IN RESURGENT PANTHERS’ BACK-TO-BACK BID
Hornby Panthers’ premiership defence has been far from smooth, forced to walk the tightrope for several weeks just to keep their bid for back-to-back Canterbury Rugby League titles alive. But after finding form at the right team of the year with a new-look and rapidly improving line-up, the club finds itself facing Linwood Keas in…
Read MorePAT SMITH’S ENDURING LEGACY
Most people know the Pat Smith Trophy is the greatest prize in Canterbury Rugby League, but how much do you know about the man it is named after? Ahead of Sunday’s CRL premiers grand final, we revisit an article by The Press’ Tony Smith about New Zealand Kiwis and Canterbury legend Pat Smith. First published…
Read MoreCRL 2022 – FINALS WEEK 2
Sitting outside the top four a week out from the playoffs, defending CRL champs Hornby Panthers have surged into their sixth Pat Smith Trophy grand final against archrivals Linwood Keas in seven years. The Panthers carved out a gritty 16-6 Bartercard Men’s Premiership preliminary final defeat of Halswell Hornets on Saturday to keep their bid…
Read MoreCRL 2022 – FINALS WEEK 1
Linwood Keas have snared a spot in the CRL’s Pat Smith Trophy grand final for the eighth consecutive season, while Hornby Panthers’ Bartercard Men’s Premiership defence is still alive after a sudden-death victory on a wet and wild semi-final Saturday. Linwood carved out an emphatic 40-10 win over Halswell in the top-two showdown at Ngā…
Read MoreCRL 2022 – ROUND 14 WRAP
Hornby Panthers will get the opportunity to defend their title in the 2022 Bartercard CRL Men’s Premiership finals series after leapfrogging Northern Bulldogs into fourth spot in the last round of the Massetti Cup. In a thrilling finish to the regular season, the Bulldogs had the chance to control their own destiny but left the…
Read MoreNZRL LIFE MEMBER REON EDWARDS: ON THE IRL BOARD AND IN THE GRASSROOTS TRENCHES
Dyed-in-the-wool Cantabrian Reon Edwards received the highest of honours at last weekend’s New Zealand Rugby League AGM, becoming just the seventh person in the past seven years to receive an NZRL life membership. Edwards joined recent Canterbury stalwarts such as John Coffey (2018) and Frank Endacott (2020) in having the honour bestowed upon them from…
Read MoreCRL 2022 – ROUND 13 WRAP
The top three spots on the Massetti Cup ladder are locked in with one weekend of the regular season to go, but Northern Bulldogs ensured the battle for fourth place will go down to the wire after a stunning last-gasp win in Round 13 of the Bartercard CRL Men’s Premiership on Saturday. Linwood Keas clinched…
Read MoreCRL 2022 – ROUND 12 WRAP
A top-of-the-table showdown finished in a nail-biting draw, while Hornby Panthers landed a crucial blow in the top-four race as the CRL Bartercard Men’s Premiership regular season gets down to the business end. Tough conditions across the city for the Massetti Cup Round 12 fixtures set the scene for three gripping, close-fought and low-scoring encounters.…
Read MoreCRL 2022 – ROUND 11 WRAP
The race for CRL Bartercard Mens’ Premiership finals spots tightened up with fast-finishing Hornby Panthers nabbing a crucial win and Northern Bulldogs going down convincingly at home in Round 11 of the Massetti Cup. Meanwhile, Linwood Keas, Halswell Hornets and Eastern Eagles consolidated the top three places on the table with big victories. Hornby outlasted…
Read MoreCRL 2022 – ROUND 10 WRAP
The Massetti Cup’s top four teams all chalked up Round 10 victories on Saturday, leaving Hornby Panthers and Riccarton Knights with plenty of work to do to force their way into the CRL Bartercard Men’s Premiership playoffs with four weeks of the regular season remaining. A late surge from Eastern delivered another blow to Hornby’s…
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