Taine Randell

Full name

Taine Cheyenne Randell

Date of birth

5 November 1974 (age 42)

Place of birth

Hastings, New Zealand

Height

1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)

Weight

110 kg (17 st 5 lb)

School

Lindisfarne College

Rugby union career

Senior career
Position(s)	Flanker, Number eight
New Zealand No.	949
Years	Team	Apps	(Points)
2003–2006	Saracens	70	((20))
Provincial / State sides
Years	Team	Apps	(Points)
1992–2002	Otago	83	((-))
Super Rugby
Years	Team	Apps	(Points)
1996–2003	Highlanders	77	((45))
National team(s)
Years	Team	Apps	(Points)
1997–2002	New Zealand	51	((60))

Senior career
Position(s)	Flanker, Number eight
New Zealand No.	949
Years	Team	Apps	(Points)
2003–2006	Saracens	70	((20))
Provincial / State sides
Years	Team	Apps	(Points)
1992–2002	Otago	83	((-))
Super Rugby
Years	Team	Apps	(Points)
1996–2003	Highlanders	77	((45))
National team(s)
Years	Team	Apps	(Points)
1997–2002	New Zealand	51	((60))

Taine Randell (born 5 November 1974, in Hastings, New Zealand) is a retired New Zealand rugby union player. He was a versatile loose forward and a former All Black captain. He is of Ngāti Kahungunu descent.

In his 61-game tenure as an All Black, Randell played 51 tests, including 22 as captain. He also captained Otago in the National Provincial Championship (NPC) at the age of 19. His All Black debut was versus Italy 'A' at the age of 20, and his test debut versus Fiji, age 22. In his time as an All Black he scored 12 tries for a total of 60 points.

Randell excelled as a rugby player, cricketer, and student at Lindisfarne College near Hastings and in 1992 he went to the University of Otago where he completed degrees in law and commerce. He played for Otago in the National Provincial Championship and the Otago Highlanders in 1996 in the opening season of the Super 14

Randell played his first game for the All Blacks in 1995 against an Italy A selection.

Randell was 21 when he first captained the All Blacks in South Africa in 1996 in four non-test games and only 23 when he first captained the All Blacks vs England in 1998. Randell was selected as captain to replace Sean Fitzpatrick by new coach John Hart. At the time there was some controversy about this selection as Randell was quite young and inexperienced and it is not clear that he himself wanted to be captain.

In 1999, Randell captaining the Otago Highlanders to an 8–3 regular season record and subsequently to the 1999 Super 12 Final where they lost to the Canterbury Crusaders in a closely fought match 24–19. Randell captained the Highlanders for seven years from 1997 to 2003.

...
Wikipedia