Isaac Hutchinson: two tries off the bench in the 2026 NPC final, months after scoring in a Super Rugby semi

The NPC final at One NZ Stadium on 26 October 2026 was level at 24-24 when Canterbury kept the ball for 25 phases and a replacement wing, on the field for about three minutes, finished the move in the 63rd minute. It put Canterbury ahead for good. Eleven minutes later the same man scored again, and Canterbury beat Northland 43-24 to keep the title. Isaac Hutchinson, 22, had scored for the Chiefs in a Super Rugby semi-final that June, against the Crusaders of his home region, and he did both after a 2025 season in which he did not play a match.

Where he comes from

Hutchinson was born on 2 March 2004, according to his Chiefs profile, and Canterbury Rugby describes him as "born and bred in Christchurch". He went to St Bede's College, where he played in the First XV, and his club is Marist Albion. In February 2025 Canterbury Rugby reported that he had played for the Marist Albion premier side since he was 17 and had 24 premier games, one short of earning his club blazer. A Marist Albion team-mate, Rowan O'Gorman, called him "electric on the field".

A jersey for every grade

Canterbury Rugby joked that he probably needs a large drawer at home for all his representative jerseys. In 2021 he was selected for New Zealand Schools, as both his Chiefs profile and his Wikipedia entry record. In December 2022, playing for Marist Albion, he was named in the New Zealand Under 18 Boys Sevens team for the World School Sevens in Auckland, a side coached by Euan MacIntosh with Andrew Knewstubb as his assistant.

Canterbury's development staff had spotted him while he was still at school, and he spent three years in the Crusaders' Canterbury academy. He played for Canterbury Under 19, and it was on the way to the Under 19 final against Otago that his agent rang to tell him he had an NPC contract. "The phone call really caught me off guard," he told Canterbury Rugby.

In 2023 he made the New Zealand Under 20 team for the World Rugby Under 20 Championship in South Africa, coached by Clark Laidlaw. On 4 July 2023, in the final pool game against Japan, he started on the right wing and scored New Zealand's first try in the seventh minute of a 62-19 win. In November 2023 he was one of 50 players called to New Zealand Rugby's Under 19 development camp in Wellington.

He was back in the Under 20s in 2024. He kicked a penalty in a 13-13 draw with South Africa at Sunshine Coast Stadium on 2 May 2024 in the Under 20 Rugby Championship, and at the World Rugby Under 20 Championship in South Africa he kicked five conversions against Spain on 9 July 2024, in a 45-13 win in Stellenbosch, a match abandoned early in the second half because the weather had made the pitch unplayable. New Zealand finished third. His six games for the Under 20s brought one try and 18 points.

Canterbury Rookie of the Year

Hutchinson made his Canterbury debut in the first round of the 2024 NPC, on 10 August 2024 against Northland in Christchurch, a 34-21 win in which he kicked a conversion. On 28 August 2024 he started on the wing against Hawke's Bay in Christchurch and scored his first NPC try, though Hawke's Bay won 27-21.

His standout game came on 5 October 2024 against Waikato in Christchurch. Hutchinson scored three tries, all in the second half, in the 47th, 62nd and 77th minutes, and kicked three conversions as Canterbury won 36-19. He finished that night with 21 points.

A week later, on 13 October 2024, he kicked seven conversions and a penalty in a 62-14 quarter-final win over Tasman in Blenheim, 17 points in all. Canterbury lost the semi-final 32-20 to Bay of Plenty in Tauranga on 19 October 2024. Hutchinson finished the season with nine games, four tries and 58 points, the tenth-highest points total in the competition, and was named Canterbury's 2024 Rookie of the Year.

A lost season, then the Chiefs

In 2025 he was one of the Canterbury players promoted to the Crusaders' wider training squad, and he was named in Canterbury's NPC squad again. But he did not play a match that year. When the Chiefs announced on 6 November 2025 that they had signed him for 2026, they noted that he was injured. Their new head coach, Jono Gibbes, had worked with him in the New Zealand Under 20 set-up, along with assistant coach Marty Bourke. "His key attribute is his work rate," Gibbes said.

His Super Rugby debut came, by chance, in his home city. The 2026 Super Round put every game of Round 11 at One NZ Stadium in Christchurch, and on 26 April 2026 Hutchinson started at fullback for the Chiefs against the Fijian Drua, a 42-22 win.

He started again at fullback in a 31-21 win over the Reds in Brisbane on 8 May 2026, came off the bench in a 42-12 win over the Highlanders in Hamilton on 15 May 2026, and was back at fullback in Christchurch on 22 May 2026 when the Crusaders beat the Chiefs 36-32.

Finals football

In the qualifying final against the Reds in Hamilton on 6 June 2026, Hutchinson scored his first Super Rugby try in the 79th minute, and the Chiefs won 46-24. Six days later, on 12 June 2026, the Chiefs hosted the Crusaders in the semi-final in Hamilton. Hutchinson scored in the 20th minute to make it 19-0, and the Chiefs went on to win 49-12. He did not play in the final, which the Hurricanes won in Wellington on 20 June 2026.

He finished his first Super Rugby season with six games and two tries.

The 2026 NPC

Back with Canterbury, Hutchinson played six NPC games in 2026, mostly at fullback in the regular season and on the wing in the playoffs. In the 62-26 quarter-final win over Waikato on 11 October 2026 he kicked six conversions. In the semi-final against Taranaki on 18 October 2026 Canterbury had led 26-7 at half-time and then let Taranaki back into the game; his try in the 61st minute helped them close it out, and with four conversions he finished with 13 points in a 38-28 win.

For the final, with the All Blacks back, he dropped to the bench. He came on with the scores level and scored in the 63rd and 74th minutes, both tries converted by Chay Fihaki. Canterbury won 43-24, their 16th NPC title.

Where he is now

Hutchinson has not played a Test for any country.

The Chiefs named him in their 2027 squad on 28 October 2026 as one of six outside backs, with Leroy Carter, Emoni Narawa, Daniel Sinkinson, Kyren Taumoefolau and Frank Vaenuku. Gibbes goes into his second season as the Chiefs' head coach in 2027.

Career at a glance

Provincial and Super Rugby figures are RugbyPass season totals, matched game by game to Wikipedia's match records and ESPN's match data. He did not play in 2025.