Name Gareth Evans Career start 2011 Weight 105 kg | Height 1.90 m Role New Zealand rugby player Positions Flanker | |
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Gareth Evans (born 5 August 1991) is a New Zealand rugby union player who currently plays as a loose forward for Hawke's Bay in New Zealand's domestic Mitre 10 Cup and the Highlanders in the international Super Rugby competition.
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Early career
Born in the town of Hastings in the north-east of New Zealand to a Zimbabwean mother and a father from Havelock North, Gareth attended school in the nearby town of Napier at Napier Boys' High School where he played first XV rugby alongside future Hawke's Bay teammates Brad Weber and Ihaia West. After graduating high school, he moved south to Dunedin to study environmental management at the University of Otago while also playing for Dunedin in the local club rugby competition.
Early career
Aged just 20, Evans broke into the Otago ITM Cup squad during the 2011 ITM Cup and played all 10 games for the Razorbacks to help them to 3rd place on the Championship log, just outside of the playoff places due to the domestic season being shortened to accommodate the 2011 Rugby World Cup. He was again in fine form during 2012, playing all 12 of Otago's games during a campaign which saw them make the Championship final before being thrashed 41-16 by Counties Manukau. 2013 would prove to be his final season with the Razorbacks and it saw him score 3 times in 10 games as the men from Dunedin reached the Championship semi-finals before being defeated 29-24 by Hawke's Bay.
He returned home to play for the Hawke's Bay Magpies from 2014, initially signing a 2-year deal to replace the departing Mike Coman and his first season back in the Bay saw him start 7 games and score 1 try to help the Magpies claim the Ranfurly Shield and reach the ITM Cup Championship final before going down to Manawatu. The 2015 and 2016 New Zealand domestic seasons were largely a right off for Evans as injury restricted him to just a solitary appearance over the course of 2 years which saw the Magpies promoted as ITM Cup Championship champions in 2015 before being relegated back to the championship for 2017 after just a sole season in the top division.
Super Rugby
After 3 years of solid performances at domestic level for Otago, he earned a Super Rugby contract with the Dunedin-based Highlanders ahead of the 2014 season. Despite strong competition from fellow loose forwards such as Shane Christie, Elliot Dixon, Nasi Manu and John Hardie, Evans acquitted himself well in his debut season of Super Rugby, playing 11 times and scoring 2 tries.
2015 would prove to be a memorable year both for Evans who scored 3 tries in 14 appearances and the Highlanders who won their maiden Super Rugby title, defeating the Hurricanes 21-14 in the final. However, after the highs of 2015, injury struck and restricted him to only 1 start and 4 appearances in total during 2016, as the Highlanders surrendered their Super Rugby crown, losing to the Lions in Johannesburg at the semi-final stage. Despite his injury problems over the previous 2 years, new Highlanders head-coach, Tony Brown opted to retain Evans in his squad for his first season in charge in 2017.
Career Honours
Highlanders
Hawke's Bay