Highlanders begin off-season with five re-signings

The Highlanders haven’t wasted any time in ticking into off-season mode, announcing five re-signings as the club’s fresh-faced potential starts to make its mark in Super Rugby Pacific.

Jamie Joseph’s youthful revolution in Dunedin has given the club one of the most exciting young cores in the competition, and four of the new contracts signed are two-year extensions, keeping that core together.

Hooker Henry Bell, 26, is the odd man out, having signed just a one-year extension with the club, ensuring his fourth year at the club after a stint with Utah in the MLR in 2023.

The man who has taken Bell’s starting minutes, Jack Taylor, 22, is in line for two more years with his home team, having enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2026 alongside Ethan de Groot and Angus Ta’avao in the front row. The bustling hooker has two All Blacks XV caps to his name from the team’s 2025 tour.

Also in the engine room but in the second row, Will Stoddart, 22, has confirmed his future in blue and gold, with 22 appearances to date in his three-year career at the club, including four starts.

The most experienced Highlander of the young cohort, Sean Withy, 25, will remain in Dunedin until at least 2028, competing in a highly talented loose forward unit that will only get better in 2027, with the return of Shannon Frizell. Withy made his All Blacks XV debut last year and has 54 Highlanders caps to his name.

Finally, pocket rocket fullback Finn Hurley, 22, will be hoping for a better stretch of health over his new two-year deal, having impressed in the nine games in which he’s suited up for the Highlanders to date. The fullback threatened to break out in 2025, scoring two rapid tries in a win over the Blues in what was just his second start for the team, but was soon sidelined by a quadriceps injury.

Coming into the 2026 campaign, Joseph signed New Zealand U20 stars Dylan Pledger, Stanley Solomon and Josh Tengblad, snapped up Otago’s breakout star Lucas Casey, and rewarded the efforts of Mika Muliaina, 19, in pre-season with a contract.