The Northland rugby league team are a rugby league

Rugby league

Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

 team that represents the Northland Region in New Zealand Rugby League

New Zealand Rugby League

The New Zealand Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. The NZRL was founded on the 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year....

 competitions. They are based in Whangarei

Whangarei

Whangarei, pronounced , is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the regional capital of Northland Region. Although commonly classified as a city, it is officially part of the Whangarei District, administered by the Whangarei District Council a local body created in 1989 to administer both the...

. They currently compete in the Albert Baskerville Trophy as the Northern Swords.

Between 2006 and 2007 they were part of the Bartercard Cup

Bartercard Cup

The Bartercard Cup was the top level rugby league club competition in New Zealand from 2000 until 2007. For the entire life of the tournament it was sponsored by Bartercard. The cup was administered by the New Zealand Rugby League...

, playing under the name the Northern Storm. Northland was originally known as North Auckland and has previously used the nickname the Wild Boars.

History

Northlands first season was 1929 and they challenged Auckland

Auckland rugby league team

The Auckland rugby league team is the team which traditionally represents all of the clubs which play in the Auckland Rugby League competition. The Auckland Rugby League team has traditionally been a powerhouse of New Zealand domestic rugby league...

 for the Northern Union Cup, losing 22-19.

2006-2007: Bartercard Cup

The Northern Storm joined the Bartercard Cup

Bartercard Cup

The Bartercard Cup was the top level rugby league club competition in New Zealand from 2000 until 2007. For the entire life of the tournament it was sponsored by Bartercard. The cup was administered by the New Zealand Rugby League...

 in time for the 2006 season. There inclusion was due to the work of Anthony Murray

Anthony Murray (rugby league)

Anthony Murray was a New Zealand rugby league player and coach who played professionally for Wigan.-Playing career:Murray played for the Takahiwai Warriors alongside his twin brother, Thomas...

 and Harry Clyde.

The Storm's first win was 40-22 against Wellington and was dedicated to Murray who had passed away earlier that week.

Notable players

New Zealand Warriors

New Zealand Warriors

The New Zealand Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership and are the League's only team from outside Australia...

 associated with the Northern Storm included Todd Byrne

Todd Byrne

Todd Byrne is a professional rugby league player who currently plays for Hull in the Super League competition...

 & Grant Rovelli

Grant Rovelli

Grant Rovelli is an Australian rugby league player. From 2006 to 2010 he played in the National Rugby League for the New Zealand Warriors and the North Queensland Cowboys. He is of Italian descent and has represented Italy's national rugby league team...

.

2006 Results

In the Northern Storm's debut season in 2006 the club performed poorly, managing only two wins and two draws from eighteen matches. They finished in last position on the table, collecting the Wooden Spoon

Wooden spoon (award)

A wooden spoon is a mock or real award, usually given to an individual or team which has come last in a competition, but sometimes also to runners-up. Examples range from the academic to sporting and more frivolous events...

.

A bright point of the season was that fullback Brendon Hikaka, centre Mason Pure and hooker Linton Price were all selected for the Junior Kiwis

Junior Kiwis

The Junior Kiwis side represents New Zealand in the sport of rugby league. They are commonly known as the Junior Kiwis, after the native bird of that name. They are not necessarily an age grade side, but the second national team behind the New Zealand national rugby league team. They are...

.

Season	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts	Position (Teams)	Finals
2006	18	2	2	14	314	802
6	Wooden Spoon (Ten)	N/A

2007 Results

Before the season started 2006 Head Coach Geoff Morton moved South and joined the Counties Manukau Jetz. He was replaced by Phil Marsh.
The Storm started the season strongly with big wins against the Jetz (54-28) and Central Falcons

Central Falcons

The Manawatu rugby league team are a rugby league team that represents the Manawatu Rugby League in New Zealand Rugby League competitions. They have previously been nicknamed the Mustangs and between 2002 and 2007 competed in the Bartercard Cup as the Central Falcons.Manawatu has a strong domestic...

 (48-24). However they then suffered heavy losses to both the Waitakere Rangers

Waitakere Rangers

The Waitakere Rangers were a franchise in the now defunct Bartercard Cup rugby league competition in New Zealand. They represented five clubs based in Waitakere City including the Glenora Bears who previously represented the City in the Bartercard Cup. The other four clubs were the Waitemata...

 (66-16) and league leaders the Auckland Lions

Auckland Lions

The Auckland Lions were a rugby league club that had teams in both the New Zealand Bartercard Cup and the NSWRL Premier League. They were mostly based around the Mt Albert Lions Rugby League club...

(70-8). The squad showed improvement since 2006 but they again finished near the bottom of the table.

Season	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts	Position (Teams)
2007	18	4	0	14	372	730
8	Eighth (10)

External links

• Northern Swords NZRL.co.nz