Nine-time All Black Braydon Ennor the latest Crusaders re-signing

The Crusaders have continued their recent string of re-signings, this time extending nine-time All Black Braydon Ennor’s contract for the 2026 season.

Ennor has donned the red and black jersey 76 times in his eight seasons in Christchurch, battling serious injuries throughout that have kept him from seeing consistent game time.

Still, both Sir Steve Hansen and Ian Foster saw enough of the midfield speedster to select him in the national setup, and at 28, Ennor has plenty of rugby left in him.

“It was a pretty easy decision to make,” he said.  

“This is my tenth year here – I moved down when I was 18, just out of school, so I’ve done all my growing as a man here, this is home for me now. A few championships, eight seasons, I just love going to the well with the boys, and I love turning up to Rugby Park every day and going to work.”  

2017 saw Ennor tearing up the U20 World Championship en route to victory with the Baby Blacks, earning him a supersub role in the Crusaders’ title-winning side of 2018. By 2019, Ennor was pushing into the starting XV, splitting his time between the midfield and wing. A Test debut was awarded in the 2019 Rugby Championship.

The meteoric rise validated Ennor’s difficult decision to leave his hometown as a teenager and begin his professional career in Christchurch.

“It was a big call coming from Auckland, you always looked at the red and black as a very successful franchise, that’s why I came down, to be a part of it and be a part of the legacy. 

“We’ve had a lot of success, and that’s been awesome, but it’s been the little wins along the way that’ve been most enjoyable.” 

Joining the club at a time when Ryan Crotty and Jack Goodhue owned the starting midfield jerseys, Ennor is no stranger to competition for selection. In 2026, he’ll be one of four capped All Blacks competing for gametime in the midfield, with returning powerhouse Leicester Fainga’anuku joining Dallas McLeod and team captain David Havili as options for Rob Penney.

March of this year saw reports out of France about a potential Top 14 move, but Ennor himself dismissed those, saying the publication breaking the story had “jumped the gun, big time”.

Now with that speculation put to bed entirely, Ennor spoke on what it means to pull on a Crusaders jersey at this point in his career.

“It comes with a lot of emotions and a lot of memories – from being the young guy wanting to have that jersey every week to being able to start, it’s always been a challenge, there’s always been competition in the jersey for your positions, but you’re playing for each other. 

“But to be the ones to put on the jersey every week and go out there and play the big games and make the big plays, it’s the best thing in the world.”