Ranfurly Shield not only thing at stake for Corey Kellow against Otago

Corey Kellow isn’t a player who seeks the limelight. The dogged openside flanker, however, has scored a try in his last five NPC games, which places him in rarefied air for champions Canterbury.

With tries in five wins against Bay of Plenty (21-7), Hawke’s Bay (26-7), Manawatu (53-14), Southland (54-14), and Auckland (38-31), Kellow has joined the likes of Randall Scott (1980), Dale Atkins (1986), and Justin Marshall (2001-2002) in scoring tries in five consecutive Division 1 NPC matches for Canterbury. When Canterbury won the title in 2017, the last of their nine-in-10-years sequence, Josh McKay scored tries in six consecutive matches.

“I didn’t realise that was the stat. That’s pretty cool,” Kellow told RugbyPass.

“It’s awesome to play good minutes in a team with a lot of experience and talent that plays a running brand of rugby I enjoy.

“My try against Auckland was opportunistic. There was a small space on the short side, and I went for it.

“Last year was bittersweet. We won the title, which was amazing, but I got injured and missed the final. My try against Southland was the first and only time I’ve played in a Ranfurly Shield game. I can’t wait to have another crack this weekend.”

Following a 54-14 romp to take the Shield in Invercargill against Southland on September 14, 2025, Canterbury lost the Shield six days later to Otago 38-36 in Christchurch. Canterbury took some revenge by winning the last NPC final at Apollo Projects Stadium (69 wins in 84 games) 36-28 in October.

Winning the Ranfurly Shield under the roof at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin on Sunday might be a tougher challenge for Canterbury than winning the 2025 decider. Otago, hunting vengeance, are in form, dispatching Southland 41-14 in the first round.

“It’s going to be huge,” Kellow enthused. “They’ve got strengths all across the park. Their loose forwards are outstanding, Christian Lio-Willie’s an All Black and Lucas Casey got two tries in the Shield game last year. It’s going to be an awesome challenge.”

Head-to-Head

Last 5 Meetings

Wins

2

Draws

0

Wins

3

Average Points scored

25

31

First try wins

60%

Home team wins

40%

Kellow’s biggest challenge was overcoming the first serious injury of his career. He has played 44 games for Canterbury and 36 for the Crusaders, part of the 2022, 2023, and 2025 Super Rugby Pacific winning teams.

“I did the PCL and MCL in my knee in the Southland game. It happened after a “croc roll” in the ruck. It required surgery,” Kellow recalled.

“The Canterbury medical staff were awesome, so grateful to them. I reached out to Johnny McNicholl and Billy Harmon who had similar injuries. Their advice was invaluable in helping me recover. Though I enjoyed reflecting more deeply on my game and focusing on things outside rugby, I’m not going to lie, there were challenging moments being injured. Some days were a rollercoaster of frustration, not being able to do things as confidently or quickly as normal, or just feeling a bit flat in general.”

Kellow is a classical tackling, savaging seven with superb support play. With the All Blacks preferring taller, more versatile loose forwards, how does the 2024 All Blacks XV selection break the glass ceiling?

“From the outside it looks tough for guys like us. I guess I’ve tried to become more versatile. I’ve played a bit of eight and trained multiple skills. There’s a lot of great players in the All Blacks. It’s a challenge to aspire to,” answered Kellow.

“Leicester Fainga?anuku going from the backs to openside for the Crusaders might have been seen as a strange one, but he’s a freak, one of the best ball carriers in the world and someone who learns really quickly. Not everyone can be like Leicester.”

A product of Sacred Heart College in Auckland where contemporaries included newly selected All Black Josh Jacomb and All Blacks XV winger Chay Fihaki, Kellow received a scholarship for rugby and to study a Bachelor of Land and Property Management at Lincoln University in 2020. He helped the senior Rams win the Christchurch metro competition and the following year was promoted into the Crusaders Academy. He credits former Crusaders and All Blacks coach Scott Robertson with much of his success. He is settled in Canterbury, having recently bought a house.

“I came here with an open mindset. You can’t just script your way into Canterbury and the Crusaders. It was hard at first leaving home, but it was what I needed. I was lucky to play in good teams with good mates and get good coaching,” Kellow said.

Canterbury’s Ranfurly Shield match against Otago kicks off at 2:05 pm at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin on Sunday. Canterbury’s record in Ranfurly Shield matches is 153 wins in 202 matches with a record 17 successful challenges. Otago’s record is 48 wins in 97 matches.

Otago first played Canterbury in 1877, winning 2-0. Since that fixture, the provinces have played 172 times, with Canterbury winning on 96 occasions, Otago 66, with 10 draws. In the NPC era (1976-Present), Canterbury leads 40 wins to 19.

Tries in Consecutive Games for Canterbury

Canterbury’s leading try scorer, Fijian international Paula Bale, scored 93 tries in 102 appearances between 1989 and 1996. He scored tries in ten consecutive matches from a 37-28 win against Wellington in Christchurch on September 24, 1994, until a 75-5 win against Tonga in the 1995 Super 10. Most famously in this streak, which included an England and Welsh tour, he scored two tries in Canterbury’s 22-20 win over Otago to defend the Ranfurly Shield at a sold-out Lancaster Park in 1994. Otago hooker David Latta (161 games) was contentiously penalised in the last minute of the game. Koise Seinafo scored tries in six games in a row in the Super 6 and on an Australia tour in 1992. Craig Green (1983), Simon Forrest (1995), Joe Maddock (2001), and Nathan Mauger (2002) are among those in Red & Black to have scored tries in five first-class matches in a row. Karl Te Nana scored in all eight NPC games for Wellington in 1997 and added another against the Central Vikings. Bernie Fraser (Wellington, 1980-1981), George Moala (Auckland, 2014-2015), and Salesi Rayasi (Auckland, 2020) each scored eight tries in a row. John Timu (Otago, 1990-1991) and Hosea Gear (Wellington, 2008) scored seven consecutively. Mike Clamp (Wellington, 1980-81, 1984-85), Joeli Vidiri (Counties, 1995), Jonah Lomu (Wellington, 2001), and Lelia Masaga (Bay of Plenty, 2010) each scored tries in six successive matches.