A winning tradition. A home built together.
A Waikato championship story with fundraising, improvised training spaces and generations of club service behind it.
From borrowed rooms to a home
Hamilton Old Boys began in 1916 without grounds or clubrooms. Early meetings and training moved between offices, newspaper printing rooms and other borrowed spaces. Members later raised $23,000 for their own clubrooms, opened by H. D. Tait in August 1964.
The railway shed that became a training centre
In 1990–91, the club built its indoor training centre from a goods shed at Tokoroa railway station. John West spotted it for sale; the club bought it for $2,500, dismantled it and trucked it to Hamilton to be rebuilt. The John West Training Centre carries that resourceful story in its name.
Championships across the club
The men won the Waikato Breweries Shield in 17 seasons through 2022, including the shared 1988 title with Fraser Tech. The women’s Gallagher Trophy titles include 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2025. The colts added the Elliot Shield in 2025.
Pictures with a past.
Sources & image credits
Sources reviewed 22 October 2026. Photographs remain the property of their respective rights holders. Contact the editor for credits or corrections.
