AA Rewards supports Heartland Championship

AA Rewards is the new naming rights sponsor of the Heartland Championship, New Zealand's amateur rugby competition, the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) and New Zealand Automobile Association announced today.

The competition will be known as the AA Rewards Heartland Championship.

AA Rewards is the loyalty programme for Members of the Automobile Association. AA Rewards has over 50 Partners, including BP, American Express, Telstra Clear and Genesis Energy, and 1,400 retail outlets nationwide.

NZRU Deputy Chief Executive Steve Tew has welcomed the signing.

“The successful launch of the Heartland Championship was a key priority for the NZRU this year and we are delighted to have AA Rewards on board as the competition naming sponsor. Their support will help ensure the competition is successful in its inaugural year,” he said.

AA General Manager Club Operations Peter Moxon said AA Rewards was delighted to be able to support New Zealand provincial rugby.

“The AA Rewards programme has Members and Rewards Partners from Cape Reinga to Bluff, in every New Zealand province. Supporting the Heartland Championship made perfect sense and we are thrilled to be in partnership with the NZRU – an organisation as iconic to New Zealand as the AA,” he said.

The AA Rewards Heartland Championship will feature the 12 teams from the old Divisions Two and Three of the former Air New Zealand NPC.

The 12 teams – Buller, East Coast, Horowhenua Kapiti, King Country, Mid Canterbury, North Otago, Poverty Bay, South Canterbury, Thames Valley, Wairarapa Bush, Wanganui and West Coast – will compete in a two-pool competition with two trophies, the Meads Cup and the Lochore Cup, up for grabs.

The cups, named after New Zealand rugby legends Colin Meads and Sir Brian Lochore, had previously been challenge cups in Divisions Two and Three.

The Heartland Championship kicks off this weekend with the finals played on the weekend of 21 – 22 October.