Rugby league didn’t just arrive in New Zealand in 1907 — it erupted. Born from British working-class rebellion over player payments, it landed in a country ripe for its own social upheavals. Through gripping firsthand accounts and forgotten archives, this session explores how rugby league became the sporting voice of New Zealand’s industrial heartland. From the Kiingitanga to the coalfields, from factory gates to suburban clubs, discover how communities used this ‘rebel sport’ to challenge power, build identity and write their own rules.

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