Du'Plessis Kirifi: captain of three title-winning sides and a debut in the All Blacks' 500th Test win

Du'Plessis Kirifi has captained teams to three titles in five seasons. He led Wellington to the 2022 NPC title and the Ranfurly Shield, led them to another NPC title in 2024, and co-captained the Hurricanes to the 2026 Super Rugby Pacific crown. In between, five years after his first call-up to an All Blacks squad, he made his Test debut in the All Blacks' 500th Test win. This is the story of the openside flanker from New Plymouth with the Afrikaans first name.

A name from the Springboks

Kirifi was born in New Plymouth on 3 March 1997 and is of Samoan descent. People often ask about South African connections, because of his first name. The Hurricanes explain that his father, a flanker for the Ponsonby club in Auckland who made a wider Manu Samoa squad in the 1980s, named him after his friend Morné du Plessis, the former Springboks captain, whom he had played against at a club tournament in France.

Rugby was not his first sport. He played football as a young boy before taking up rugby with the Tukapa club in New Plymouth, and he told ClubRugby.nz in 2026 that a return with Wellington to Corbett Park in Ōakura, where he had played as a 10-year-old, was a reminder "that we all started somewhere".

Francis Douglas and the move south

Kirifi went to Francis Douglas Memorial College in New Plymouth, where he was a classmate and First XV team-mate of Jordie Barrett, and where he even had a stint at halfback. After school he played for the Taranaki and Waikato Under 19 sides, then moved to Wellington, where he joined the Northern United club in Porirua. He has won the Jubilee Cup, Wellington's club championship, twice with Norths, in 2018 and 2022.

Wellington's captain

Kirifi made his NPC debut for Wellington in 2017 and scored a try in a 60-14 win over Canterbury at Wellington Regional Stadium on 17 September 2017. That season ended with the Championship final against Bay of Plenty at the same ground on 27 October 2017, which Wellington won 59-45 after extra time. He later named it as one of his favourite games.

Ahead of the 2019 season, aged 21, he was named Wellington captain. That season he scored twice in a 57-36 win over Northland at Wellington Regional Stadium on 28 September 2019, and by October 2022 he had played 51 games for the Lions, 34 of them as captain.

In 2022 the Lions won the Ranfurly Shield from Hawke's Bay with a 19-12 win at McLean Park in Napier on 17 September 2022, then defended it with a 34-6 win over Waikato at Sky Stadium on 24 September 2022. Kirifi told ClubRugby.nz that the team "had a bit of fun" celebrating, because it had not been done for such a long time. On 22 October 2022 he led the side out for the final against Canterbury at Rugby League Park in Christchurch, with Billy Proctor at centre, Ruben Love at fullback and Peter Lakai at No 8. Wellington won 26-18 to complete the NPC title and Ranfurly Shield double.

Two years later he did it again. Kirifi scored in the 29-14 quarter-final win over Counties Manukau at Sky Stadium on 11 October 2024, Wellington beat Waikato 29-24 in the semi-final at the same ground on 19 October 2024, and on 26 October 2024 he captained the Lions to a 23-20 win over Bay of Plenty in the final at Sky Stadium.

By Wikipedia's count he has played 78 games for Wellington and scored 100 points.

The Hurricanes

Kirifi became Hurricane No 259 in the 2019 season opener, against the Waratahs at Brookvale Oval in Sydney on 16 February 2019. The Hurricanes trailed 19-13 when he scored in the 75th minute, and his old school-mate Jordie Barrett kicked the conversion to win the game 20-19. Billy Proctor, Hurricane No 260, made his debut off the bench in the same match.

He was an All Blacks squad member by 2020, called in by Ian Foster without winning a cap, and a Hurricanes regular for years. In February 2025 the club named four captains, Kirifi, Asafo Aumua, Billy Proctor and Brad Shields, as Ngā Kaitiaki, the guardians, noting Kirifi's experience leading Wellington and the All Blacks XV. For 2026 he and Jordie Barrett were named co-captains. "O le ala i le pule o le tautua," Kirifi said: the pathway to leadership is through service. Head coach Clark Laidlaw called the pair "Hurricane men through and through".

On Anzac Day, 25 April 2026, Kirifi played his 100th Super Rugby game, against the Brumbies at One NZ Stadium in Christchurch, becoming the 19th Hurricanes centurion. The Hurricanes won 45-12.

They finished top of the table, beat the Brumbies 66-12 and the Blues 57-21 at home in the play-offs, and met the Chiefs in the final at Hnry Stadium in Wellington on 20 June 2026. Kirifi started at openside, and the Hurricanes won 60-5, the biggest winning margin in a Super Rugby final, for their first title since 2016. "It's huge," Kirifi said as he accepted his winner's medal. "We've been building for a few years now."

By October 2026 he had played 106 games for the Hurricanes, according to Wikipedia.

Leading the All Blacks XV

Kirifi toured Japan with the All Blacks XV in 2023, and in November 2024 he captained the side on its northern tour. The XV beat Munster 38-24 at Thomond Park in Limerick on 2 November 2024 and Georgia 31-13 at GGL Stadium in Montpellier on 10 November 2024, with Simon Parker at No 8 in the second match.

The All Blacks, at last

Scott Robertson named Kirifi in his squad for the July 2025 series against France, and his debut came off the bench in the first Test at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin on 5 July 2025. The All Blacks won 31-27, which by RUGBE's count of every Test was their 500th Test victory. He was on the bench again for the 43-17 win at Sky Stadium in Wellington on 12 July 2025.

His first start came at short notice. Before the third Test, at FMG Stadium Waikato in Hamilton on 19 July 2025, Luke Jacobson was injured late in the build-up and Kirifi took his place at openside. allblacks.com reported that he won key turnovers at the breakdown, and with the All Blacks trailing 19-17 after half-time, he scored his first Test try, pouncing on a loose ball after Sevu Reece forced it from France fullback Léo Barré. The try put the All Blacks ahead, and they won 29-19 to complete a 3-0 series win.

He started again in the 41-24 win over Argentina at the Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes in Córdoba on 16 August 2025, came off the bench in the 24-17 win over South Africa at Eden Park on 6 September 2025 and the 43-10 loss to the Springboks at Sky Stadium in Wellington on 13 September 2025, and was a replacement in the 25-17 win over Scotland at Murrayfield in Edinburgh on 8 November 2025. A fortnight later he started the last Test of the year, a 52-26 win over Wales at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on 22 November 2025.

Dave Rennie took over in 2026 and did not pick Kirifi in his early squads, so he went back to Wellington for the NPC, the side he calls "a team that gave me my first crack and a team I adore". He scored four tries for the Lions, according to Wikipedia's match records, and, for the first time in his first-class career, was picked at second five-eighth, against Auckland at Western Springs Stadium on 8 August 2026, the home ground of his father's old club, Ponsonby. Wellington coach Trent Renata explained the move simply: "He's a professional, he gets into his book, he does his work."

In October 2026 Rennie called Kirifi in as an injury replacement for Anton Segner before the second Bledisloe Cup Test. "Dupes can offer something a little bit different," the coach said. Kirifi came off the bench in the 43-21 win over Australia at Accor Stadium in Sydney on 17 October 2026.

That gave him nine Tests, three as a starter, eight of them wins, with one try.

Style and standing

The NZ Rugby Museum's profile on allblacks.com highlights his "tenacity at the breakdown", his tackle count and his work rate, and Rennie's call-up in October 2026 was for exactly that: "genuine post-tackle presence", in the coach's words. Off the field he was named Supreme Winner at the 2023 Porirua Sports Awards, and the Hurricanes have described him as "somewhat of a folk hero" among their fans.

He talks about leadership as service, and about bringing others through. Of Peter Lakai, who played alongside him in Wellington's 2022 title side, he said in 2022: "He is a special young man."

Where he is now

Kirifi was not named in the All Blacks' 36-man squad for the northern tour. He is named in the Hurricanes' 2027 squad, announced on 28 October 2026, as the club prepares to defend its title, with players not on All Blacks duty due back for pre-season on 26 November 2026. The All Blacks play Scotland at Murrayfield on Sunday 8 November 2026 NZ time, then Wales in Cardiff and England at Allianz Stadium in London, before the Nations Championship Finals Weekend in London at the end of the month.

Career at a glance

Test figures are from RUGBE's match-by-match All Blacks data to 17 October 2026. Wellington and Hurricanes figures are from Wikipedia, updated 17 October 2026.