Aaron Mauger
As of July 28, 2010 National September 30, 2007
Aaron Joseph Douglas Mauger ( born November 29, 1980 in Christchurch, New Zealand ) is a former New Zealand rugby union player at the position of the inner three- quarter. He is the former New Zealand rugby union player Nathan Mauger 's younger brother. Your Uncle Graeme and Stephen Bachop were in the late 1980s to the mid-1990s also New Zealand rugby union international. In addition, another uncle named Ivan Mauger won the Speedway World Championship six times.
Mauger began his professional career in his native New Zealand in 1999 at Canterbury in the National Provincial Championship ( since 2006 Air New Zealand Cup). A year later he made his debut in Super Rugby for the Crusaders. During this time, Canterbury won the 2001 and 2004, the New Zealand province championship and defended the Ranfurly Shield from 23 September 2000 until October 11, 2003 23 times as well as of 5 September 2004 to September 24, 2006 14 times. The Crusaders also brought the four-time Super Rugby titles (2000, 2002, 2005, 2006). In 2002, the Crusaders had a " perfect season "; they remained unbeaten in all group matches in the semifinals and the finals. 2003 and 2004, they were beaten until the endgame. By 2003 and 2004, his brother Nathan also played at Canterbury and the Crusaders. However, this succeeded in the latter, unlike Aaron, never the breakthrough.
Mauger was captain of the New Zealand U- 21 team and led them in 2000 and twice in 2001 to title wins at the Rugby World Youth Championships. In 2001 he also made his debut for the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks, at the annual November internationals. His brother was also in the squad, but completed no single official international match. Then Aaron Mauger was continuously until his departure from New Zealand in 2007 in the national team and quickly fought his way to a permanent place. With the All Blacks, he won five times the annual Tri Nations (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007 ) and in 2003 the Bledisloe Cup, which they lost in 1998, from Australia back. This defend the New Zealanders uninterrupted until today. In 2005, he won with the national team in all three games against the British and Irish Lions, bringing with her the second Grand Slam in its history. The latter refers to a national victory from the southern hemisphere in the same season against all four British teams, the so-called Home Nations. He also participated in the Rugby World Cup 2003 in Australia as part of a regular player. There, however, the favored All Blacks failed in the semifinals at the hosts and arch-rivals, the Australian Wallabies, with 10:22. In the 2007 Rugby World Cup, he was also included, but was replaced by his younger rivals Luke McAlister to the bench. When completely surprising 18:20 quarterfinal defeat against hosts and nemesis France, which meant the worst performance of the New Zealanders of all time at a Rugby World Cup, he was not even on the bench. After the World Cup, he signed a contract with the top European team Leicester Tigers in England.
He played for the English first division in the Guinness Premiership, where he was vice-captain of the team. With these he was English champion in 2009. However, in the same year, the Tigers failed in the final of the European Cup rugby against the Irish team Leinster. In both games, Mauger could not accumulate because of an injury towards the end of the season.
In March 2010, he resigned due to a back injury from professional rugby. He had previously visited several clinics in the UK and Germany to to seek treatment for the injury and can play again, but it was no longer possible to train him without excruciating pain. In June 2010 he returned with his family back home in New Zealand.