The Gordon Hunter Memorial Trophy is a Rugby Union trophy contested between the Blues and Highlanders as a part of some regular season Super Rugby fixtures between the two sides. The trophy is awarded in memory of Gordon Hunter, who had been head coach of both teams prior to his passing in 2002.[1]
Hunter was held in high regard and in 2020, Highlander's coach Aaron Mauger noted that he gave players the courage to "really back themselves", while co-captain at the time, Aaron Smith said he was motivated by the trophy and "we would like nothing more to keep the Gordy Hunter at home".[2] One commentator said that while Hunter "may have been a Southlander by birth...he was an Otago man at heart".[3]
The trophy was first played for in 2002 with the Highlanders winning 20-13.[4] Prior to 2011, the trophy was contested every time the two teams met, but with the introduction of the conference system meaning there are two meetings per regular season, the decision was made that the trophy would only be contested in matches hosted by the holders.[5] While the Blues scored non-trophy-match wins over the Highlanders in the 2013 and 2014 seasons, the Highlanders won both home and away in 2015 on their way to lifting the Super Rugby title. As of 2023, the Blues currently hold the trophy, since earning it in 2020's Super Rugby Aotearoa,[6] and defeating the Highlanders 16-9.[7]
Past winners
The following table summarises the results between the two sides since the trophy was first contested in 2002.2016 was the first season in which the Gordon Hunter Memorial Trophy could not be contested due to the Blues only playing the Highlanders once - not in the host city of the current holders.
| Season | Venue | Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Auckland | Blues | 13 - 20 | Highlanders (1) [4] |
| 2003 | Dunedin | Highlanders (2) | 22 - 11 | Blues [8] |
| 2004 | Auckland | Blues (1) | 50 - 22 | Highlanders |
| 2005 | Dunedin | Highlanders | 14 - 30 | Blues (2) [9] |
| 2006 | Dunedin | Highlanders (3) | 25 - 13 | Blues |
| 2007 | Auckland | Blues (3) | 28 - 9 | Highlanders |
| 2008 | Dunedin | Highlanders | 15 - 40 | Blues (4) |
| 2009 | Auckland | Blues (5) | 26 - 6 | Highlanders |
| 2010 | Dunedin | Highlanders | 15 - 19 | Blues (6) |
| 2011 | Dunedin | Highlanders | 10 - 15 | Blues (7) |
| 2011 | Auckland | Blues (8) | 33 - 16 | Highlanders |
| 2012 | Dunedin | Highlanders (4) | 30 - 27 | Blues |
| 2012 | Auckland | Blues | 20 - 27 | Highlanders (5) |
| 2013 | Dunedin | Highlanders (6) | 38 - 28 | Blues |
| 2014 | Dunedin | Highlanders (7) | 29 - 21 | Blues |
| 2015 | Dunedin | Highlanders (8) | 30 - 24 | Blues |
| 2017 | Dunedin | Highlanders (9) | 26 - 20 | Blues [10] |
| 2018 | Dunedin | Highlanders (10) | 41 - 34 | Blues |
| 2019 | Dunedin | Highlanders (11) | 24 - 12 | Blues |
| 2020 | Dunedin | Highlanders | 21 - 32 | Blues (9) [6] |
| 2021 | Auckland | Blues (10) | 39 - 17 | Highlanders |
| 2022 | North Harbour | Blues (11) | 32 - 20 | Highlanders [11] |
| 2023 | Auckland | Blues (12) | 16 - 9 | Highlanders [7] |
| 2024 | Auckland | Blues (13) | 47 - 13 | Highlanders |