Caleb Clarke: a hat-trick in the final that ended the Blues' 21-year wait, and 16 tries for the All Blacks

On 18 October 2020, in his first Test start, a 21-year-old wing bounced through Wallabies defenders at Eden Park, and the crowd stood to applaud him off. On 22 June 2024, on the same ground, he scored a hat-trick in the Super Rugby Pacific final that ended the Blues' 21-year wait for a title. Caleb Clarke, son of 1990s All Black Eroni Clarke, has 35 Tests and 16 tries for the All Blacks, and what the NZ Rugby Museum calls "a knack for silverware". This is the story of his career so far.

Where he comes from

Clarke was born in Auckland on 29 March 1999. Rugby was in the house from the start. His father, Eroni Clarke, was born in Apia, came to New Zealand as a child, and played 10 Tests for the All Blacks between 1992 and 1998; the Blues call him a "Blues and All Blacks great". Wikipedia describes Caleb as a Fijian and Samoan New Zealander.

The boy was quick. The Blues' profile calls him a former Auckland schools sprint champion, and his coaches at Mt Albert Grammar put him in the First XV when he was 14. He stayed there until the end of 2016, and in his final year the NZ Rugby Museum credits him with leading the school to the national First XV title. The Blues' profile records that he played for New Zealand Schools in 2016 and 2017. His NZ Rugby profile lists Ponsonby as his club.

World champion at 18

In 2017 Clarke went to Georgia with the New Zealand Under 20 side for the World Rugby Under 20 Championship, alongside future All Blacks Will Jordan, Luke Jacobson, Asafo Aumua and Dalton Papali'i. He scored twice against Italy at the AIA Arena, Kutaisi, on 4 June 2017 (68-26), three times against Ireland at the same ground on 8 June 2017 (69-3), and once in the 39-26 semi-final win over France at Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Tbilisi, on 13 June 2017. Five days later New Zealand beat England 64-17 in the final at the same stadium. Clarke had six tries for the tournament. He played for the Under 20s again in 2018.

Auckland and the Blues

Clarke made his Auckland debut at 18 in 2017. A year later he was part of an NPC-winning side: in the Mitre 10 Cup final against Canterbury at Eden Park on 27 October 2018, he came off the bench and scored in the 72nd minute, and Auckland won 40-33 after extra time.

His Super Rugby debut had come earlier that year, against the Waratahs at Brookvale Oval, Sydney, on 5 May 2018, a 24-21 Blues win. His first Super Rugby try was the last of five in a 39-16 win over the Reds at Eden Park on 29 June 2018.

The 2019 season began with a hat-trick in a pre-season win over the Chiefs and then a knee injury that kept him out of the early rounds. "I just want to play," he told 1News in April 2019. "I want to have a long career not just a short one." Once back, he became a regular starter under new coach Leon MacDonald.

Sevens

All the while, Clarke was also an All Blacks Sevens player. He was selected for the sevens programme in 2018 and named in the squad for that year's Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, but emergency surgery to remove his appendix ruled him out of the tournament. He went on to play 25 sevens matches and score 50 points, according to his Wikipedia entry, and the Museum lists him as part of the side that won the 2019-20 World Rugby Sevens Series.

When the Covid-19 pandemic halted the series in 2020, the sevens players were released to their provinces and Super Rugby clubs. Clarke returned to the Blues for Super Rugby Aotearoa, and the All Blacks took notice.

The breakout: Bledisloe 2020

Ian Foster named him in the All Blacks squad for the 2020 Bledisloe Cup. His Test debut came off the bench in the 16-16 draw with Australia at Westpac Stadium, Wellington, on 11 October 2020, and a week later he was given the No 11 jersey for the second Test at Eden Park.

The NZ Rugby match report says Clarke "outstandingly" made his mark; RNZ wrote that he left a string of Wallabies defenders in his wake. One barnstorming kick return set up Ardie Savea's try, and when he left the field the Eden Park crowd gave him a standing ovation. The All Blacks won 27-7, with his father beaming in the stands. Australia's coach that night was Dave Rennie, now his All Blacks coach. "He was a real handful tonight," Rennie said.

Foster asked reporters not to "paint a headline" around his new wing, in vain, as RNZ put it. Codie Taylor, asked whether he had seen anyone make such an impact so early, compared him with Jonah Lomu, half in jest. RNZ also noted that a clip of him playing the piano had gone viral.

He kept his place for the rest of the year: a 43-5 win over Australia at Stadium Australia, Sydney, on 31 October 2020, his first Test try in the 15-25 loss to Argentina at Bankwest Stadium, Sydney, on 14 November 2020, and a 38-0 win over the Pumas at Newcastle Sports Ground on 28 November 2020.

The Olympic gamble

Clarke had already decided what came next. In 2020 he told the sevens coaches he wanted to be considered for the Tokyo Olympics. "I wanna have a go at the Olympics," he told 1News in May 2021, after rejoining the sevens squad in Mount Maunganui. The decision meant leaving the Blues partway through 2021 and missing All Blacks games.

When the Olympic squads were named on 1 July 2021, Clarke was a travelling reserve. Coach Clark Laidlaw called it the toughest selection he had been involved in. Clarke's Blues team-mates, meanwhile, won the Super Rugby Trans-Tasman title without him.

Back in black

A hamstring problem ended Clarke's 2022 Super Rugby season early, but the All Blacks still wanted him. When the squad was read out in the Blues' meeting room, his team-mates were still cheering Finlay Christie's selection when his own name came up. "I'm reading it like, 'I made it, I made it!'" he told 1News.

He returned to Test rugby against South Africa at Mbombela Stadium on 6 August 2022 and played 10 Tests that year, all on the left wing. He scored against Argentina at Rugby League Park, Christchurch, on 27 August 2022 (18-25), at Waikato Stadium, Hamilton, on 3 September 2022 (53-3), and against Japan at the National Stadium, Tokyo, on 29 October 2022 (38-31). He finished the year with a 25-25 draw against England at Twickenham on 19 November 2022.

In 2023 he scored off the bench in a 38-7 win over Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 29 July 2023, and went to the World Cup in France. He started on the right wing and scored in the 71-3 win over Namibia at Stade Municipal, Toulouse, on 15 September 2023, and came off the bench in the 73-0 win over Uruguay at Groupama Stadium, Lyon, on 5 October 2023.

2024: the year of tries

Vern Cotter took over the Blues in 2024. Clarke scored 10 tries that season and, according to the Blues, led the side for metres gained (1,220) and clean breaks (22); the Museum says he led the whole competition in both.

In the playoffs he scored twice in the 36-5 quarter-final win over the Fijian Drua at Eden Park on 8 June 2024 and once in the 34-20 semi-final win over the Brumbies at Eden Park on 14 June 2024. In the final against the Chiefs on 22 June 2024, in steady rain in front of 41,975, he scored three. The first came after Akira and Rieko Ioane kept the ball alive in the left corner, Akira hurling it infield as he toppled into touch; the second after Hoskins Sotutu broke from a scrum against a Chiefs pack down to seven men; and the third from a long, floated pass by Finlay Christie. The Blues won 41-10 for their first Super Rugby title since 2003. "We had so many boys who stepped up," Clarke said.

His Test year was just as productive: nine Tests and seven tries under new coach Scott Robertson. He scored against Fiji at Snapdragon Stadium, San Diego, on 19 July 2024 (47-5), against Argentina at Eden Park on 17 August 2024 (42-10), twice against South Africa at Ellis Park, Johannesburg, on 31 August 2024 (27-31), against Australia at Stadium Australia on 21 September 2024 (31-28), and twice more against Australia at Westpac Stadium on 28 September 2024 (33-13). He then started all four Tests of the northern tour: against England at Twickenham on 2 November 2024 (24-22), Ireland at Lansdowne Road, Dublin, on 8 November 2024 (23-13), France at the Stade de France, Paris, on 16 November 2024 (29-30) and Italy at Allianz Stadium, Turin, on 23 November 2024 (29-11).

2025 and 2026

In July 2025 Clarke was named to start the second Test against France at Sky Stadium, Wellington, on 12 July 2025, then hurt his ankle at training two days before the match. He came back for Auckland in the NPC at the end of August 2025 and scored on his Test return against Australia at Eden Park on 27 September 2025 (33-24). On the northern tour he started against Ireland at Soldier Field, Chicago, on 1 November 2025 (26-13) and Scotland at Murrayfield, Edinburgh, on 8 November 2025 (25-17), and scored twice against Wales at Principality Stadium, Cardiff, on 22 November 2025 (52-26), the first from a long pass by Ruben Love four minutes in and the last to finish the match.

His 2026 Super Rugby season brought nine tries, including a hat-trick in the first 49 minutes of a 29-13 win over the Crusaders at Eden Park on 7 March 2026. Dave Rennie, the Wallabies coach on that Eden Park night in 2020, named him in his first All Blacks squad. Clarke started the first Test of the Rennie era, against France at One NZ Stadium, Christchurch, on 4 July 2026, breaking down the left with Peter Lakai and returning the ball for Lakai's try in a 34-32 win. He came off the bench in the 40-21 win over Ireland at Eden Park on 18 July 2026.

On the tour of South Africa he scored against the Sharks at Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban, on 11 August 2026, finishing a long pass from Wallace Sititi in a 54-0 win. Scans afterwards showed he had ruptured a tendon in his shoulder in that match. He flew home for surgery, and his season was over. "I am staying positive and excited about what's ahead," he said in the All Blacks' statement.

Style and standing

The NZ Rugby Museum calls him "an explosive winger" with "a knack for silverware", and the list supports it: a national schools title in 2016, an Under 20 world title in 2017, an NPC title in 2018, a World Series title with the sevens and a Super Rugby title in 2024. At 184 cm and 107 kg, he has worn the No 11 jersey in 30 of his 37 games for the All Blacks. His Test record is 28 wins, two draws and five losses.

RNZ in 2020 described the way he came across in his first press appearances as "friendly yet humble, excited but not overawed".

Where he is now

Clarke is recovering from his shoulder operation and is not part of the All Blacks' November 2026 tour. He is named in the Blues' squad for 2027, the club's first season under new head coach Jason Holland, and turns 28 in March 2027.

Career at a glance

Test figures are from RUGBE's match-by-match All Blacks data to 17 October 2026. Provincial, Blues and sevens figures are from Wikipedia and the Blues' player profile.