Taha Kemara: signed at 19 to follow Richie Mo'unga at the Crusaders, then home to the Chiefs for 2027

When Scott Robertson went looking for a first five to grow into the Crusaders' No 10 jersey after Richie Mo'unga's departure, he signed a 19-year-old from Waikato who had captained Hamilton Boys' High School to a Super 8 title the year before. Taha Kemara made his Super Rugby debut in Lautoka in 2023, became the Crusaders' first-choice first five in 2025, came back from a ruptured knee ligament to score 15 points in a 2026 playoff win, and scored the try that put the Māori All Blacks ahead in a comeback win in Nagoya. In 2027 he plays for the Chiefs, the team he dreamed about as a Year 7 kicking a ball around Waikato Stadium on his own.

Omaio and Ōpōtiki

Kemara was born in Ōpōtiki, the Chiefs say, on 17 April 2003, and grew up in Omaio, a small coastal settlement in the Ōpōtiki district of the Bay of Plenty, RugbyPass reported when he signed for the Crusaders. He is of Te Whānau-ā-Apanui and Te Whakatōhea descent. He began his rugby at the Ōpōtiki Sports club and later played for Te Awamutu Sports, according to Wikipedia. The family moved to Hamilton, where he went to secondary school, RugbyPass reported.

He was good at more than one game. In 2020 he played for New Zealand in the Under 18 Youth Trans-Tasman touch final against Australia, alongside Noah Hotham, his halfback at school and later at the Crusaders.

Hamilton Boys' High School

Kemara made the Hamilton Boys' High School First XV in Year 11. The school won three Super 8 titles in a row between 2019 and 2021, and in 2020 the First XV went through the season unbeaten, RugbyPass reported. In 2021, his final year, he captained the side to the school's 14th Super 8 title, the Crusaders' profile of him records, and that season earned him selection for the New Zealand Secondary Schools team.

Chiefs Under 20 and Waikato

In 2022 Kemara played for the Chiefs in Super Rugby Under 20. In May 2022 he scored two tries and kicked three conversions in a one-point loss to the Crusaders' under-20 side, and scored two more tries in a 58-26 win over the Hurricanes, RugbyPass reported. The Chiefs named him their Under 20 Player of the Year for 2022.

He was named in the Waikato squad for the 2022 NPC, playing behind All Black Damian McKenzie, who RugbyPass said showed him the ropes. When he got his chances he took them. On 26 August 2022 at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton he scored a try and kicked two conversions in a 53-6 win over Manawatu, and on 14 September 2022, at the same ground, he scored two tries and six conversions, 22 points, in a 54-24 win over Southland. He finished his first provincial season with three tries in five games.

Signed to follow Mo'unga

In October 2022 the Crusaders signed him for 2023. RugbyPass reported that Robertson had recruited him as a long-term successor to Mo'unga, who was leaving after the 2023 season to play in Japan, and that the Crusaders put a development plan around him so he could learn alongside the All Black. Kemara became Crusader No 271.

His debut came in a famous match. On 11 March 2023, at Churchill Park in Lautoka, he came off the bench in the 22nd minute, ESPN's match record shows, on the night the Fijian Drua beat the Crusaders 25-24 with a penalty after the siren. He played twice for the Crusaders that season, the year they won their seventh title in a row.

New Zealand Under 20

In June and July 2023 Kemara played for New Zealand at the World Rugby Under 20 Championship in South Africa, and he scored points in all five of their games. Against Japan at Paarl Gymnasium on 4 July 2023 he scored two tries and two conversions in a 62-19 win. Against Australia at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town on 9 July 2023 he kicked two conversions, a penalty and a drop goal, and against Georgia at Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch on 14 July 2023 he kicked five conversions and a penalty in a 50-26 win. His tournament total was 43 points from two tries, 12 conversions, two penalties and a drop goal. Macca Springer, a Crusaders team-mate, was the tournament's joint top try scorer.

First choice at the Crusaders

Kemara played five Super Rugby games in 2024, a season in which injuries held him back, 1News reported. On 6 July 2024 he made his debut for the Māori All Blacks, coming off the bench at half-time against a Japan XV at Toyota Stadium in Toyota City.

In 2025 he took the No 10 jersey. 1News reported that he "quickly became the Crusaders' first-choice first-five", with the former Wallaby James O'Connor on the bench. Then, on 26 April 2025, he hurt his left knee in a 43-10 win over the Highlanders at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin. Scans showed a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament, and his season was over after nine games. Rivez Reihana replaced him that night and was the Crusaders' first five through their 2025 title run.

Head coach Rob Penney called Kemara "a young man with an incredible drive and work ethic". In 2025 the Crusaders also extended his contract to 2028, with Penney saying he had "matured into a fine leader and game driver". Kemara called re-signing a "dream come true".

Back for 2026

Kemara returned for the 2026 season and played 13 games, scoring 82 points from a try, 34 conversions and three penalties, RugbyPass's match data shows, starting at first five or fullback alongside Reihana. In the qualifying final against the Blues at One NZ Stadium in Christchurch on 6 June 2026 he converted the Crusaders' first two tries and then, just before half-time, after the Crusaders took a quick tap close to the line, stepped inside the defence to score and converted his own try. He kicked five conversions in all, 15 points, in a 52-31 win that sent the Crusaders into the semi-finals.

Three weeks later he was in Japan with the Māori All Blacks. On 27 June 2026, at Paloma Mizuho Stadium in Nagoya, the Māori trailed a Japan XV 31-14 with 16 minutes left. Later, with the Māori 31-28 down and attacking inside the Japan 22, Kemara, on as a substitute at first five, looped behind a pod of forwards and beat the defence with a dummy, a bump and a step to score the go-ahead try, allblacks.com reported. He kicked two conversions as the Māori won 38-31.

Waikato in 2026

He went home to Waikato for the 2026 NPC and played ten games, scoring three tries and 72 points. On 30 July 2026 at FMG Stadium Waikato he scored a try and five conversions from five in a 38-26 win over Bay of Plenty. On 23 August 2026 at the same ground he scored a try and four conversions as Waikato beat Counties Manukau 45-12, and on 19 September 2026, again in Hamilton, he scored a try, four conversions and a penalty, 16 points, in a 36-27 win over Manawatu. Waikato reached the quarter-finals, where they lost to Canterbury at One NZ Stadium on 11 October 2026. Across four seasons for Waikato, RugbyPass's match data credits him with 26 games, 137 points and six tries.

Home to the Chiefs

During the 2026 NPC the Chiefs announced that Kemara had signed a one-year contract for the 2027 season. The Crusaders said he had asked to be closer to his family, and head coach Scott Hansen said the club supported him. "The Crusaders have been incredibly supportive throughout this process," Kemara said.

For Kemara, it was the boy from Year 7 coming true. "It's about making that kid proud, making his dream come true," he told the Chiefs, remembering the days he kicked a ball alone at Waikato Stadium. Chiefs head coach Jono Gibbes said: "Taha is a great young player with a good head on his shoulders."

Style and standing

The Crusaders' profile quotes O'Connor calling him "probably the most naturally gifted 10 I've played with". He has played at first five and fullback for the Crusaders, kicked goals at every level, and scored tries in Super Rugby, the NPC, the Under 20 Championship and for the Māori All Blacks.

Where he is now

Kemara is one of three first fives in the Chiefs' 2027 squad, with Damian McKenzie, his old Waikato mentor, and Tepaea Cook-Savage. He played 29 Super Rugby games for the Crusaders, and he has not played a Test.

Career at a glance

Under 20, Waikato and Crusaders figures are from RugbyPass's match data (Crusaders figures agree with Wikipedia's 29 games and 124 points; Wikipedia's Waikato tally of 21 games and 107 points was last updated on 3 September 2026, mid-season). Under 20 figures agree with Wikipedia's match records.