Premier club rugby to be broadcast on Te Upoko o Te Ika

Wellington Rugby is proud to announce a radio partnership with Te Upoko o Te Ika from Saturday, March 21.

Broadcasting on 87.6FM, 1161AM and iHeart Radio, Te Upoko o Te Ika is the oldest Māori Radio Station in the country.

Dedicated to rugby and the rejuvenation of te reo māori, WRFU’s Head of Community Rugby, Will Caccia-Birch says he’s delighted by the arrangement.

“Every Saturday afternoon, listeners of the E Tū Whānau Footy Show will hear live commentary of a selected premier game, feature interviews with prominent coaches and players and analysis of our various competitions.”

The E Tū Whānau Footy Show also promotes standing up to family violence and building positive change in the community.

Te Upoko’s CEO, Adrian Tangaroa Wagner, believes the values align perfectly with Wellington Rugby.

“This is an opportunity for Wellington Rugby to access our audience and for us to access Wellington Rugby’s audience. The E Tū Whānau Footy Show brings te reo phrases and some of Wellington’s most experienced radio sports commentators.”

As community rugby has been pushed back to April 18 over the Covid-19 outbreak, the show will be filled with a recap of the 2019 season and in-depth interviews of the regions most popular rugby personalities

Caccia-Birch says it’s every code-head’s dream.

“Whilst we’re all dreaming of getting back on the footy field in four weeks, rugby chat’s the next best thing. Last season was incredibly exciting from the grassroots level all the way up to premier and Lions level – so there’s plenty to recap before the 2020 campaign gets underway. “