New book details proud League history

By Frank Neill

Part of the proud history of the Wainuiomata Rugby League Club features in a new book.

“Rugby League in New Zealand – A People’s History” by Ryan Bodman has just been published by Bridget Williams Books.

Wainuiomata’s Ken Laban lifts the national Rugby League club competition trophy, the Lion Red Cup, following the Lions 34-12 win over Otahuhu in the 1990 final at Carlaw Park. Piri Weepu, the Wainuiomata born future All Black is standing on Ken’s left. Photo: Alexander Turnbull Library.

Such well known figures as Ken Laban, Kara Puketapu and John Lomax feature in the book, along with the club itself.

“During the 1990s, Wainuiomata Rugby League Club was a powerful force on and off the field, serving as a vehcice for community unity and Wainuiomata pride,” the books notes.

“Wainuiomata won the Wellington Rugby League premiership in 1989, 1991 and 1992.”

In the face of harships resulting from industrial closures in the Hutt Valley “the Wainuiomata Lions emerged as the dominant club in New Zealand Rugby League.

“This on-field strength was built upon the foundations of community cohesion and Wainuiomata pride.

“’The Lions helped bring Māori and Pacific peoples together,’ explained Ken Laban, a New Zealand-born Samoan who captained the club’s premier side from 1987 to 1990.”

Kara Puketapy, of Te Āti Awa descent was behind this sense of community cohesion, the book notes.

“’Kara ... was the coach, consultant, advisor, father figure, club matua [and] mentor,’ said Laban.”

It was his vision that ‘the Wainuiomata Rugby League Club would be the vehcile by which

everybody would be connected’.

“Guided by this vision, the Wainuiomata Lions developed ionto something much more than just a sports club.

“It was a place where the community gathered, socialised and addressed the challenges they faced in their own ways.”

And this is just a taste of the book’s excellent reporting on the Wainuiomata Rugby League Club.

That includes a photo of front rower John Lomax celebrating the Lions 25-18 victory over

Northcote Tigers in the 1992 Lion Red Cup final.

Author Ryan Bodman is an historian with an MA in history from the University of Auckland.

This book is based on years of research and interactions with clubs, players and fans across Aotearoa.

It traces the history of Rugby League from its introduction to New Zealand in 1907.

Already lauded as “one of the very best books ever produced on the history of sport in New

Zealand”, Ryan Bodman’s “Rugby League in New Zealand” shows why Rugby League is so much more than a game.