Hamilton Boys' High First XV 2026: a title-chasing season takes shape

Halfway through the 2026 First XV season, Hamilton Boys' High School are once again in the conversation at the top of the Super 8, the eight-school competition that gathers some of the strongest boys' rugby programmes in the central North Island. Here's how the Blues' campaign has taken shape so far.

A pre-season that set the tone

Hamilton's build-up featured exactly the kind of contest they were after. In a pre-season hit-out on 20 April, St Kentigern edged them 26-24 in Auckland, and coach Cam Moorby framed the narrow result as a win for the group's growth. "It was a hell of a contest and we learned a lot about ourselves. You get so much more out of a game like that than from racking up big scores," he told the NZ Herald (Bruce Holloway and Adam Julian). Tough, close, and full of lessons, a useful marker before the real business began.

Fast out of the blocks in the Super 8

Into the competition proper, Hamilton have built momentum. An early draw with Rotorua Boys' High was followed by a statement home performance against Napier Boys' High, whom they beat 40-28, according to the NZ Herald's wrap by Bruce Holloway and Adam Julian (29 June). The Herald reported Hamilton raced to a 21-0 lead inside 15 minutes despite making six changes, a sign of the squad depth the programme has become known for.

That result lifted them to the top of the table on 18 points, two clear of Napier, in a competition the Herald described as tightly bunched, with the top five within five points of each other. RUGBE covered that moment in more detail when Hamilton first went top, see our earlier piece, Hamilton Boys' High surge to the top of a tightly bunched Super 8.

Standout team moments

The Napier win showcased a side clicking into gear. The Herald noted a positional switch that paid off, with Jackson Botherway moving to first five-eighths, running incisively and slotting five conversions. "We just felt it was the right time for a change. Jackson handles the pressure so well and everyone else feeds off his calmness," Moorby told the Herald. Right wing Carson Hunter grabbed two tries, and there were first-start contributions across the park, the mark of a group sharing the load rather than leaning on one or two names.

The bigger picture

Hamilton Boys' High are the most successful team in Super 8 history, with 14 titles plus one shared, per the NZ Herald, and after finishing third last season, this year's fast start suggests a group determined to reclaim top spot. Their keenest recent rivalry, against Tauranga Boys' College, loomed as one of the season's marquee fixtures, with the Super 8 First XV final scheduled for 8 August.

With the round-robin still to play out, there's plenty of rugby left. But at the halfway mark, the Blues have done exactly what a title contender should: stay in the fight, share the scoring, and keep learning. Follow the school's own updates via Hamilton Boys' High School on Instagram (@hamilton.boys) and at hbhs.school.nz.