Newtown Park
Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
Newtown Park, Wellington, New Zealand — opened 1881 (originally part of the Wellington Zoo grounds), 14 rugby league games hosted, home of Wellington provincial rugby league team, for representative and touring-side fixtures, 1912-1939.
Sourcing caveat: The 20 Sep 1913 fixture is the closest to a full New Zealand international Test in this site's own records; most other matches are provincial (Wellington) fixtures rather than full national-team Tests.
Ground facts
| Opened | 1881 (originally part of the Wellington Zoo grounds) (Sources give slightly different accounts of when rugby league was first played there: this site's own records show a match as early as 24 Aug 1912, while a general summary elsewhere cites 1913 as the code's first year at the ground.) |
| Home club | Wellington provincial rugby league team, for representative and touring-side fixtures, 1912-1939 |
| Games hosted (rugby league, on record) | 14 |
| Top recorded crowd | 10,000 |
| Capacity | 5,000 (current) |
| Test matches hosted | 5 |
| Floodlights installed | Present in the main arena |
| Surface | Grass pitch surrounded by a 400m all-weather athletics track (current surface installed January 2018, World Athletics Class 2 certified); underwent major renovation in 2008 and further upgrades in 2023 ahead of the FIFA Women's World Cup |
| First rugby league match | 24 Aug 1912, Wellington 13-45 NSW Firsts (NSW Tour), attendance 4,000 |
| Years used | 1912–1939 |
| Location | Wellington, Wellington |
Name history
- Newtown Park — 1881-present
Rugby league history
A historic multi-sport venue in Wellington, hosting the provincial rugby league side against touring international opposition (New South Wales, the Northern Union, Australia and Queensland) between 1912 and 1939, including one full New Zealand representative fixture in 1913. Still an active community venue today, shared between Wellington United football club (winter) and Athletics Wellington (summer), and used for school athletics and community events.
Historic Test matches, Cup & Grand Finals hosted
- 13 Sep 1913 — Wellington 18-34 NSW Firsts (NSW Tour), attendance 10,000
- 20 Sep 1913 — New Zealand 19-58 NSW Firsts (NSW Tour)
- 11 Jul 1914 — Wellington 7-14 Northern Union (Lions Tour), attendance 5,000
- 4 Oct 1919 — Wellington 5-93 Australia (Kangaroos Tour), attendance 1,000
- 19 Sep 1925 — New Zealand XIII 20-44 Queensland Firsts (Queensland Tour), attendance 5,000
Pre-dates the site's structured match-by-match records for these competitions, so listed here as sourced facts rather than linked match pages.
Sources
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
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