Super 10 (Southern Hemisphere competition)

The Super 10 was a rugby union tournament featuring ten teams from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Tonga and Western Samoa, which ran for three years from 1993 to 1995. It was the predecessor of the Super 12 and now the Super 14 tournaments.

History

The Super 10 replaced the South Pacific Championship, CANZ Series and Super Six tournaments which had been organized by the Australian and New Zealand rugby unions during the 1980s and early 1990s. With South Africa being readmitted into international sport due to the dismantling of apartheid (both The Wallabies and the All Blacks toured South Africa during 1992), there was an opportunity to launch an expanded competition also featuring South Africa's top provincial teams. The South African Broadcasting Corporation's "Top Sport" channel committed to a three year sponsorship of the competition, allowing it to be launched.

The official declaration of professionalism in rugby union in August 1995 led to a reworking of the competition. SANZAR, a partnership between the South African Rugby Union, the New Zealand Rugby Union and the Australian Rugby Union was formed, and in association with Rupert Murdoch's News Limited, they created the Super 12. This fully professional competition featured teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa only, with one more team from each country being admitted, and was launched in 1996.

Past winners

Winners by year:

Transvaal defeated Auckland 20-17 at the final at Ellis Park in Johannesburg.

1994 Super 10

In 1994, New Zealand were represented by NPC champions Auckland, along with Waikato, Otago and North Harbour. South Africa were represented by Currie Cup champions Transvaal, along with the Natal Sharks and Eastern Province. Western Samoa were once again the representatives from the Pacific Tri-Series.

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Queensland defeated Transvaal 30-16 at the final at Ellis Park in Johannesburg.

References

*cite book | first=Matt | last=McIlraith | title=Ten Years of Super 12 | publisher=Hodder Moa | location=Auckland, New Zealand | year=2005 | | id=ISBN 1-86971-025-8