New Zealand Māori rugby league team

The first game of international rugby league on New Zealand soil was between the Māori and the touring Great Britain Lions of 1910.

In 1983 they visited Britain and a side containing future Kiwi stars like Hugh McGahan, Dean Bell and Clayton Friend proved too strong for the amateur opposition they played.

[3] The Māori competed against Indigenous Dreamtime team on 26 October 2008 as the curtain raiser to the first match of the 2008 World Cup.

The Māori side, featuring NRL players Charlie Gubb, Sam Rapira and Bodene Thompson, won the first game 48–18 at Davies Park, Huntly.

In 2018 they took part in the NRL Festival of Indigenous Rugby League held in Redfern Sydney against the First Nation Goannas, they were beaten 22–16 in a thrilling finish.

New Zealand Maori pre–match huddle before their clash with the Indigenous Dreamtime team before the start of the 2008 World Cup
Wairangi Koopu takes on the Indigenous line
Maori Haka Meets Indigenous War Cry