In New Zealand, the National Provincial Championship (NPC) has been a proving ground for generations, producing All Blacks and uniting communities behind their proud provincial teams. This is New Zealand’s domestic rugby hotbed, launching the careers of world-class players to competitions around the globe, including Major League Rugby.

Across the Pacific in the United States, the new American professional league was looking to develop homegrown talent while providing a level of play that would both challenge and prepare North American players for ever-growing international competition. As a result, MLR created an exciting product for rugby fans across the globe. Owners and general managers struck gold when they began scouting players and personnel from New Zealand’s NPC competition. The two leagues line up perfectly in terms of schedule; first the MLR begins in the late North American winter and continues into the early summer. The NPC regular season begins at the end of July and continues until the end of October. This allows for North American and New Zealand players alike to have an opportunity at a new professional experience while upskilling their game in the “off-season” of their home tournament.

MLR has continuously embraced the connection with the NPC, with players and coaches moving between the leagues, sharing philosophies, cultures, and traditions. Here in New England, the Free Jacks have been a shining example of the partnership, with Kiwis coming to Quincy and Americans/Canadians expanding their rugby IQ across the island nation. As of 2025, 19 current and former Free Jacks players have made appearances in the NPC this year. And on the rugby operations side of the club, six current and former staff members have also represented NPC teams. 

The relationships between the Free Jacks and NPC teams, have seen players such as Le Roux Malan and Jack Reeves currently getting opportunities with Hawke’s Bay this year, while Paula Balekana joined Martin’s Northland Taniwha late as an injury replacement. In previous years, the Manawatu Turbos were loaded with Free Jacks players (including local legend Cam Davidowicz) due in-part to the synergy with former Assistant Coach of the Free Jacks (2022 – 2023) Mike Rogers and desire to gain further development for Free Jacks players. These meaningful life and rugby experiences have been an awesome byproduct created off the back of strategic relationships and planning by the Free Jacks.

The NPC is unlike any sporting competition in the United States. The competition runs on a round-robin system with quarter-finals, semi-finals, and finals at the end of the season. You may be thinking, “Uhhhh… we have that in America?” However, there is a challenge-system aspect of the NPC that is unique to the league. This is the battle for the Ranfurly Shield, the most sought-after trophy in New Zealand rugby that has been competed for over 120 years. When a club takes hold of the Ranfurly Shield, they must defend the shield in special challenge matches hosted at their home venue. If the visiting challenger wins the match, they will take hold of the trophy. The cycle continues with the new holder, who must defend the shield in their upcoming home fixtures. Canterbury currently holds the record for the longest streak, fending off visiting challengers 17 times in a row.

Few players understand the weight of those challenge matches better than Dan Hollinshead, a flyhalf on the New England Free Jacks and 9-year NPC veteran now suiting up for the Southland Stags. Reflecting on his experiences, Hollinshead explained:

“It’s said the Ranfurly Shield is the most prestigious trophy in New Zealand domestic rugby and I fully believe that. Personally, I’ve played 9 seasons of NPC, and played in 3 challenges from memory. You don’t get a crack at it every day, and it usually means you come up against one of the more successful teams in the competition. A bit of luck of the draw goes on as you can only win it if you beat the holder at home.”

On August 31st, Hollinshead helped the Stags win the Ranfurly Shield off of Waikato alongside former Free Jacks Faletoi Peni and Sam Fischli, against former Free Jack Sean Ralph. “Being a part of the Southland Stags was special as it was the first time since 2011 we have won the shield,” says Hollinshead. Though Canterbury would lift the shield in the following round, the Stags’ week with the trophy was enough to spark celebrations across the Southland community.

Dan thinks that “the past week showed what it can do to a community. We had it [the Ranfurly Shield] in schools, rest homes, sponsors’ events, public malls, and pools. The shield would have had thousands of hands on it in the six days we had it. I feel like the shield breathes life into NZ rugby at the domestic level, and the moments it gets in the smaller unions show why it’s so special.”

In 2014, Hollinshead began playing in the NPC with Bay of Plenty, representing the community he grew up in on the north coast of New Zealand’s North Island. Growing up, Dan has fond memories of Bay of Plenty’s Ranfurly Shield win; “I remember back when they won the shield for the first and only time they’ve held it, 2004. It came into our primary school and we had a special gathering to see it and get photos!”

At Bay of Plenty, Hollinshead played alongside Free Jacks’ captain Joe Johnston, and the team made a run to the NPC Semi-finals in 2020. The following year, both men took their talents to MLR, with Dan Hollinshead signing with Rugby New York and Joe Johnston joining the Free Jacks. In 2025, Hollinshead signed with the Free Jacks and found himself reunited with his former Bay of Plenty teammate, Joe Johnston. That crossover between the NPC and MLR has become a defining feature of both players’ careers, and according to Dan, it continues to shape his experiences today with plenty of familiar faces on the pitch:

“On the MLR/NPC front, I’ve been enjoying bumping into the guys from this year. So far I’ve only seen Malakai Hala-Ngatai, Sam Caird and Paula Balekana, but I’m coming up against Simon-Peter Toleafoa and I’m looking forward to seeing Jed Melvin in our last round-robin game!”

As mentioned before, Hollinshead is teammates at Southland with former Free Jack Sam Fischli. Fischli won the MLR Championship with the club in 2023. Looking back on his new Free Jacks connection with Fischli, Hollinshead says, “We have had some good laughs about each others experiences [with the Free Jacks] and I even got to deliver him his MLR Championship ring when I got home!”

The chemistry that Hollinshead has developed with his Free Jacks teammates comes in handy when he’s preparing to face them as opponents.

“I think it helps a lot with the analysis of teams when you know the ins and outs of some of those guys I played with in New England. For example, don’t give Balekana any time or space with the ball [haha],” Hollinshead jokes. At the same time, the reunions carry a lighter side, filled with laughs and post-match stories.

“I enjoy the banter on the field when seeing those guys, and then catching up for a yarn and a beer post-game is great.” Naturally, this unique community that connects players over 9,000 miles away from their home ground extends to their head coach, Ryan Martin. “It was also a great time to see coach Ryan Martin in our second game this season in Northland,” says Hollinshead. Martin, the 2025 MLR Coach of the Year, was appointed to be Northland’s head coach in May, shortly before the Free Jacks won the 2025 MLR Championship. Martin was also an assistant coach at Northland in 2024 and also coached for Super Rugby’s Melbourne Rebels and Mitre 10’s Otago. Most recently, he was able to head coach the Free Jacks and Northland concurrently because there was no overlap in competition schedules. 

Free Jacks’ General Manager Tom Kindley (an Otago man and former S&C Intern at the club) emphasized the value of the coinciding move, noting both the competitive intensity of the NPC and its role as a talent pipeline for the Free Jacks and MLR as a whole:

“There are so many benefits to Marto taking this opportunity–including the ability to continue to develop and hone his coaching craft in a short and high-pressure competition like the NPC. It is a competition which has proved to be a great recruitment pool and development resource for us.”

With experience spanning two hemispheres, Coach Martin offers a special view on how the contrasts between competitions influence his coaching strategy and philosophy:

“The experience of both competitions is actually very different – the first difference being the length of season & comp games [NPC season is nearly half of the 2025 MLR season], which means your preseason & training weeks are structured differently, as well as the use of your whole squad.”

Free Jacks’ speedster Paula Balekana joined his head coach in Northland alongside 6’7” lock Sam Caird and former Free Jack back rower Terell Peita. So far this NPC season, Coach Martin and the Northland Taniwha have faced eleven past and present day Free Jacks playing for opposing NPC clubs, two support staff and one coach:

Round 1: Jesse Parete with Taranaki
Round 2: Dan Hollinshead, Sam Fischli, Faletoi Peni and S&C Ewan Brumwell with the Southland Stags
Round 4: Mills Sanerivi and Assistant Coach Pom Simona with Auckland
Round 5: Le Roux Malan, Kianu Kereru-Symes, and Jack Reeves with Hawkes Bay
Round 8: Jed Melvin and Nick Marquet with North Harbour

The overlap between the NPC and the Free Jacks isn’t limited to players and head coaches. A growing number of Free Jacks staff members are making the 9,000 mile trip to New Zealand during the MLR off-season. Assistant Coach Pom Simona recently joined the colossal Auckland club. Just like he now does in Greater Boston, Thomas “Wheels” Grant formerly worked for his home team, Otago, driving community and competition initiatives. General Manager Tom Kindley started his career in performance as an intern at the same union (Otago Rugby). At one of the most southern points of New Zealand, Ewan Brumwell manages strength and conditioning for Southland. And near the top of the North Island, Nick Marquet provides strength and conditioning expertise for North Harbour. Last but certainly not least, Canadian Colton Bennett aids Coach Martin with Analysis expertise, also with Northland.

These cross-hemisphere connections create more than just shared personnel; they bring shared philosophies, training methods, and community-focused approaches that have enriched both leagues. As said by Ryan Martin, it’s not just about rugby strategy:

“What I enjoy about the Free Jacks is the authenticity of the off-field connections & team activities. That influenced some of the work I have done with Northland with our off-field connections; looking at how to authentically connect the team through community connections & the profile of our region.”

The other side of Coach Martin’s philosophy proves how these team values translate onto the pitch. Having coached across the globe, he’s had to adapt his game models and strategies to fit competitions that are similar in spirit but different in structure.

“In terms of match play I use the same philosophy of coaching for both teams in terms of building a game model related to the profile of the team & the winningest behaviors that statistically come out of the competitions statistics – so there are substantial differences in how you need to play to win in the competitions.”

The differing lengths of schedules also makes a big difference in terms of the player pool;

“With MLR being longer, you can plan the season accordingly with targeting games in groupings, allowing strategic selection based on the freshness of the squad, etc. Whereas in the NPC, you can only really do it game by game,” explains Martin.

Another aspect of Martin’s successful coaching philosophy revolves around the importance of an intent based game plan that encompasses one of his favorite sayings: “Clarity is kindness!”

That clarity was manifested in one of Northland’s most memorable results in recent years. In 2023, Martin’s Northland squad defeated Auckland at Eden Park, a feat the team hadn’t achieved in 17 years. The team is currently on the precipice of a top 8 playoff berth which would be a huge accomplishment.

“The region really appreciated that win as Northland is treated as the little brother in the Blues region,” recalls Martin. “Also we lost to Auckland in the preseason by 50 points and they celebrated accordingly… so nice to turn the tables!”

Last weekend, Otago clinched the Ranfurly Shield for the remainder of the 2025 NPC season by defeating North Harbour (captained by Free Jacks back row player, Jed Melvin). Southland will then head up to the northernmost suburbs of Auckland to play North Harbour on Friday, October 3rd at 2:10 a.m. EST. Melvin is having yet another outstanding season, the standout player in an otherwise winless North Harbour side.

More than half way across the world, the Free Jacks continue to fertilize the growth of the club and surrounding communities with products of the National Provisional Championship. The flow of players, coaches, and staff between the NPC and MLR as a whole has accelerated development, enriched team cultures, and provided pathways for talent on both sides of the Pacific. From Hollinshead’s shield run in Southland to Ryan Martin’s philosophy forged in both New Zealand and New England, the exchange has proven more than a convenience of calendars. It’s helped shape the present and future of professional rugby in America.

For more opportunities to engage with the Free Jacks community, stay updated on future Free Jacks matches, festivals, and announcements through the Free Jacks’ news page: www.freejacks.com/news