Dan Carter Pulls Crowds at Ellesmere

It’s not often that over 2000 people gather at the Ellesmere Rugby grounds on a cold, wintery Saturday afternoon to watch the local Southbridge team play West Melton. But not many players have the pulling power of former All Black and World Cup hero Dan Carter.

Dan, who recently signed with the Auckland Blues, returned to his home ground on Saturday, 4 July to catch up with friends and family and play for the Southbridge Rugby Football Club which is where his stellar rugby career began. The game was part of the Luisetti Seeds Coleman Shield Ellesmere competition and the day reflected the importance of grass-roots rugby to rural communities, from the ripper rugby through to the Senior Competition.

The community was there in force and it was fitting that Dan ran onto the field with his cousin Will, who is part of the Ellesmere Seniors team. This showed the inter-generational family connections associated with farming districts and their local rugby club.

The game itself was a great tussle between the two sides, with Southbridge winning by 54-14. Dan contributed 12 points to the final score by kicking six of his seven conversion attempts. He was also involved in several tries.

In the clubrooms after the game, Dan was presented with an Honorary Lifetime Membership blazer by his father Neville and spoke of the fond memories he had cutting his rugby-playing teeth playing for the Southbridge Rugby Football club.

As it was also a Sponsors Day, all sponsors were well looked after by the host club and it was great to see the Luisetti Seeds’ flags flying and the company brand on the rugby shirts, from the youngsters through to the seniors. Luisetti Seeds is proud to sponsor Canterbury Country Rugby.