The Gallagher Chiefs fixtures for the upcoming Super Rugby Pacific competition have been confirmed.
The opening round kicks off on the 24th of February with Gallagher Chiefs vs Crusaders at Orangetheory Stadium, Christchurch with Super Round Melbourne the following weekend.
The Gallagher Chiefs will play all teams in 2023 for a total of 14 matches in the regular season. 11 roundrobin fixtures plus 3 rivalry matches that will see them play a home and away series against the Crusaders, Hurricanes and Highlanders. The top 8 teams from the round-robin will qualify for finals to play off in a 3-week series.
The first home game for the season will be in round 3 against the Highlanders. The Gallagher Chiefs prevailed
against the South Island side in last season's opener played in the Queenstown bubble. Due to the pandemic,
2023 will be the first time in 2 years that the Highlanders will have played at FMG Stadium Waikato, so the Chiefs Rugby Club looks forward to welcoming them back.
Back-to-back with the Highlanders game, the Gallagher Chiefs will play the Rebels in their only afternoon scheduled game at home. Like the Highlanders, it has been many years since the Rebels played at the Gallagher Chiefs home ground. The last time was in 2016 when they were defeated 36-15.
April brings with it 3 weekends of home games for Chiefs fans. Neighbouring rivals the Blues will make the journey to Hamilton for round 6, with rounds 9 and 10 back-to-back against the Fijian Drua and defending champions, the Crusaders. Three strong sides, the Gallagher Chiefs will be excited to have the home crowd support as they take them on.
Rounds 12 and 13 will be the final home games for the season against the Reds and the Hurricanes. The Gallagher Chiefs succeeded against both these teams last season so look to repeat this form in 2023.
Gallagher Chiefs Head Coach Clayton McMillan said, "We are looking forward to Super Rugby Pacific and having our loyal fans and whānau back at FMG Stadium Waikato. We missed that unique atmosphere during the pandemic-affected games last season so it will be good to have them back for our home games in 2023."
The Chiefs Rugby Club will be launching its 2023 season membership campaign on the 3rd of October. For the first time, this will also include a Waitomo Chiefs Manawa membership to allow members to get amongst the Super Rugby Aupiki competition too.
Fans can register their interest now to be notified when memberships go live.
Register Interest: https://www.chiefs.co.nz/membership-packages
