Matthew Brendon Todd (born 24 March 1988) is a New Zealand

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

coach and former player. He is currently an assistant coach for the

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding ...

. Todd played as a

flanker Flanker may refer to: * Flanker (perfume), a newly created perfume sharing attributes of an existing one * Flanker (rugby union), a position in rugby union (not found in rugby league) * ''Su-27 Flanker'' (video game), a 1996 computer game modelin ...

for 25 tests for New Zealand internationally, from his debut in 2013, until his last test, during the

2019 Rugby World Cup The 2019 Rugby World Cup () was the ninth edition of the Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's rugby union teams. It was hosted in Japan from 20 September to 2 November in 12 venues all across the country. The opening matc ...

. He scored three tries for New Zealand and also became the first overseas-based player to represent the All Blacks, in 2018, when he first signed for Panasonic. From 2009 to 2017, he played more than 150 games for the

Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It has previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Super Rugby started as the S ...

Early life

Todd's started playing rugby at the Kaiapoi Rugby Football Union and went on to play for the Kaiapoi High School first XV. He then attended Christchurch Boys’ High School. While at

Christchurch Boys' High School Christchurch Boys' High School, often referred to as CBHS, is a single sex state secondary school in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is situated on a site between the suburbs of Riccarton, New Zealand, Riccarton and Fendalton, to the west of ce ...

, Todd appeared alongside future All Black team-mates,

Colin Slade Colin Richard Slade (born 10 October 1987) is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player. He played primarily at first five-eighth, as well as all other backline positions on occasions. He was first selected for the All Blacks in 2 ...

and

Owen Franks Owen Thomas Franks (born 23 December 1987) is a New Zealand rugby player who currently plays for Crusaders (rugby union), Crusaders in the Super Rugby competition. His usual position is tighthead prop. Franks has previously represented the Can ...

, as well as former Crusader Nasi Manu and current Crusader Tim Bateman.

Playing career

Early career

In 2009, Todd made his

Air New Zealand Cup An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...

debut representing

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

as a replacement against

Waikato The Waikato () is a region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipā District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, the nort ...

at AMI Stadium. He made his first start against

Taranaki Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the ...

a week later in the second Shield challenge of the season. In the 2010 NPC season, with teammate

Richie McCaw Richard Hugh McCaw (born 31 December 1980) is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player. He captain (sports), captained the New Zealand national rugby union team, New Zealand national team, the All Blacks, in 110 out of his 148 t ...

being busy with the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...

, he had a chance to start in all of Canterbury's games. His versatility in being able to play blindside and openside flanker has helped Canterbury to win the

Ranfurly Shield The Ranfurly Shield, colloquially known as the Log o' Wood, is a trophy in New Zealand's domestic rugby union competition. First played for in 1904, the Shield is based on a challenge system. The holding union must defend the shield in challenge ...

. Following an early-season injury to McCaw, Todd was selected to play for the Crusaders 2011 season. Todd had previously been in the Crusaders' wider training group in 2010. Todd's presence in the Crusaders saw Richie McCaw switch jerseys, from 7 to 6, with Head Coach

Todd Blackadder Todd Blackadder (born 20 September 1971) is a retired New Zealand rugby union player and professional rugby coach. He played 12 tests (25 games) for the All Blacks, and had 14 appearances as captain. Blackadder captained the Crusaders to three S ...

choosing to field two openside flankers, in order to make Todd a regular starter for the team.

2013-2017

In 2013, Todd played outstandingly in the absence of Richie McCaw, who was on sabbatical. Todd was subsequently selected for the All Blacks by Head Coach

Steve Hansen Sir Stephen William Hansen and High Chief of Vaiala, (born 7 May 1959) is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former player. He is also the father of Black Ferns assistant coach, Whitney Hansen. He was the head coach of the New Zealand na ...

. Todd made his international debut for them during a 24–9 victory over France on 22 June 2013, replacing fellow rookie

Sam Cane Samuel Jordan Cane (born 13 January 1992) is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays as a flanker for the Japan Rugby League One club Tokyo Sungoliath and the New Zealand national team. He is also the former Captain of the New Zealand n ...

off the bench in the 72nd minute. Todd was also used off the bench against South Africa that year. After missing international rugby in 2014, Todd played against Samoa in Apia, in 2015, replacing veteran

Jerome Kaino Jerome Kaino (born 6 April 1983) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. In 2004, he was named IRB International Under-21 player of the year. In 2011, he was named the New Zealand Rugby player of the year, finishing ahead of Richie McCaw ...

the bench for a one-off test match, which the All Blacks won, 25–16. After missing the

2015 Rugby World Cup The IRB 2015 Rugby World Cup was the eighth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial rugby union world championship. The tournament was hosted by England from 18 September to 31 October. Of the 20 countries competing in the World Cup in 2011, there was ...

, Todd was re-selected for New Zealand in the

2016 Rugby Championship The 2016 Rugby Championship was the fifth edition of the annual southern hemisphere The Rugby Championship, Rugby Championship, featuring Argentina national rugby union team, Argentina, Australia national rugby union team, Australia, South Africa ...

following a leg injury to Sam Cane. Todd earned the first two starts of his international career in the series, against South Africa and Australia, where New Zealand retained the Bledisloe Cup. He was notably named Man of the Match in the final Bledisloe Cup Test, before being replaced by

Ardie Savea Ardie Suemalo Savea (born 14 October 1993) is a New Zealand professional rugby union player who plays as a Number 8 or Flanker for Moana Pasifika in Super Rugby and Wellington in the Bunnings NPC. He was named the 2023 World Rugby Player of th ...

in the 65th minute, as the All Blacks beat Australia 37–10. Todd's outstanding performance against Australia saw him taken on the 2016 end-of-year tour, where he played in a further two tests. Todd's standout 2016 season saw him named as one of two vice-captains for the Crusaders in 2017 alongside

Ryan Crotty Ryan Stevenson Crotty (born 23 September 1988) is a New Zealand-born former rugby union Rugby player. Crotty has previously played for the Crusaders in the Super Rugby competition and Canterbury in the ITM Cup, captaining both teams. He is curr ...

, with lock

Sam Whitelock Samuel Lawrence Whitelock (born 12 October 1988) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. Whitelock has played over 150 tests for New Zealand since his debut in 2010 and is the youngest New Zealander to reach 100 tests. He is the fastest ...

named as captain. Todd played the full 80 minutes against the touring

British and Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England national rugby union team, England, Ireland national rugby union team, Ireland, Scotland national rugby union team, Scotland, and ...

side for the Crusaders on 10 June. The Crusaders lost 3–12. Despite performing well in his Super Rugby campaign which included a start in the 25-17 Grand Final win over the

Lions The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the tip of its tail. It is se ...

, Todd was not selected for the All Blacks' Lions series squad or the initial squad for the

2017 Rugby Championship The 2017 Rugby Championship was the sixth edition of the expanded annual southern hemisphere The Rugby Championship, Rugby Championship, featuring Argentina national rugby union team, Argentina, Australia national rugby union team, Australia, Sout ...

. After Jerome Kaino paused his training with the All Blacks for personal reasons and went to represent Auckland in the

Mitre 10 Cup The mitre (Commonwealth English) or miter (American English; see spelling differences; both pronounced ; ) is a type of headgear now known as the traditional, ceremonial headdress of bishops and certain abbots in traditional Christianity. Mi ...

, Todd was re-selected and started against Argentina in a scrappy 36–10 win where he received the first yellow card of his test career and was replaced by Ardie Savea in the 65th minute. Todd made four more appearances for the All Blacks in 2017, including three on the bench as a replacement for

on the end-of-year tour.

2018

Todd captained the Crusaders numerous times during the

2018 Super Rugby season The 2018 Super Rugby season was the 23rd season of Super Rugby, an annual rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR between teams from Argentina, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa. After two seasons in which 18 teams participate ...

, with

and

suffering multiple concussions each through the season. Todd was later chosen as Crusaders' Player of the Season by his team-mates as the team beat the

, in the Super Rugby final, for the second year in a row. The Crusaders won against the Lions by 37-18 and claimed their ninth Super Rugby title. Although Todd was performing very well in comparison to

, who was struggling with injury, during Super Rugby, Savea was again chosen over Todd for the All Blacks' mid-year test series, which was against France. Todd was again called into the All Blacks, however, with

struggling in regards to discipline, while

Liam Squire Liam Ivan John Squire (born 20 March 1991) is a former New Zealand rugby union player from Tokomaru, New Zealand. He played in the Number 8 and Blindside flanker position for Tasman in the Mitre 10 Cup. Squire joined the NTT DoCoMo Red Hurri ...

and

Vaea Fifita Vaea Tangitau Lapota Fifita (born 17 June 1992) is a Tongan professional rugby union player who plays as a flanker for United Rugby Championship club Scarlets and the Tonga national team. Early life Born and raised on the Tongan island of ...

were struggling with injuries. Todd was named on the bench for the third test of the Steinlager series, on 23 June 2018. Todd replaced the injured Savea only 17 minutes into the test, scoring his first international try only minutes later. Todd starred against France as the All Blacks won 49–14. After the conclusion of Super Rugby, Todd signed a high-profile one-season deal with Japan-based club, the

Panasonic Wild Knights Saitama Wild Knights (formerly Panasonic Wild Knights) is a Japanese rugby union team formerly based in Ōta, Gunma, Ōta city, Gunma prefecture which played in the Top League. In 2021 it relocated 13 kilometers south to Kumagaya, Saitama, Kumag ...

. Todd missed the

2018 Rugby Championship The 2018 Rugby Championship was the seventh edition of the expanded annual southern hemisphere The Rugby Championship, Rugby Championship, featuring Argentina national rugby union team, Argentina, Australia national rugby union team, Australia, So ...

with his commitments to the Wild Knights, but was called in for the injured Sam Cane for 2018 the end-of-year tour. Todd subsequently became the first overseas-based All Black upon his re-selection. Todd played three tests off the bench during the end-of-year tour, replacing

in all of them. Todd unfortunately did not manage to make much of an impact towards New Zealand's 9–16 loss to Ireland, only playing for four minutes during the test.

2019

Todd returned to the Crusaders for the

2019 Super Rugby season The 2019 Super Rugby season was the 24th season of Super Rugby, an annual rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR between teams from Argentina, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa. The 2019 season was the second season using the ...

, his final season in New Zealand, which saw him Captain the team occasionally throughout the season. The Crusaders went on to win the competition for the third year in a row, sending Todd off on a high. With

opting out of consideration for All Black selection, Todd went on to start against South Africa in the

2019 Rugby Championship The 2019 Rugby Championship was the eighth edition of the annual southern hemisphere The Rugby Championship, Rugby Championship, featuring Argentina national rugby union team, Argentina, Australia national rugby union team, Australia, South Afric ...

, also appearing as a substitute against Australia in the first Bledisloe Cup test of the year, which was a 26–47 loss. All Blacks Head Coach,

named Todd in New Zealand's 31-man squad for the

on 28 August 2019. Having narrowly missed selection in 2015, this was to be Todd's first World Cup. Todd played in two tests during the World Cup's pool stages, including a start in a 63–0 victory over Canada. Todd was later named as a replacement for the quarter-final, against Ireland, scoring a try in the 46–14 victory, although he did receive a yellow card with three minutes left. Although Todd was ruled out of the semi-final loss to England through injury, he played his last test for New Zealand on 1 November 2019, replacing

Shannon Frizell Shannon Michael Frizell (born 11 February 1994) is a Tongan born New Zealand rugby union player. His position is flanker. Early life Frizell was born and raised in Folaha, Tonga and started his childhood playing football for Folaha Football C ...

, with 20 minutes left of the 40–17 win against Wales, during the World Cup's Bronze Final. Todd was one of five players to finish his international career for New Zealand that day, with

Sonny Bill Williams Sonny William Williams (born 3 August 1985) is a New Zealand heavyweight boxer, and a former professional rugby league and rugby union player. He is only the second person to represent New Zealand in rugby union after first playing for the cou ...

, Ben Smith and Todd's Crusaders teammates,

and Captain

Kieran Read Kieran James Read (born 26 October 1985) is a New Zealand former rugby union player. He played as a number 8 and is a former captain of the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks. Read played for New Zealand from 2008 to 2019. He is one of ...

, all retiring that day, alongside Todd.

2020-Present

Following the 2019 Rugby World Cup, Todd joined the

Toshiba Brave Lupus Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. They are based in Fuchu, Tokyo, as is their local rival Suntory Sungoliath. They won the second ever Top League championship in the 2004-5 season and the Mic ...

under head coach

, his former Crusaders coach. In 2024, a new house being built for Todd in Queenstown was caught up in the collapse of building firm Build 7 South Island. The firm was placed into liquidation with debts of before the building was completed. Todd may have lost as much as . Speaking about the insolvent company, Todd said, "I feel terrible for the contractors who have worked so long on this project and have not been paid."

Coaching career

Todd joined the coaching staff for the

football team for the 2022

National Provincial Championship The National Provincial Championship may refer to: * National Provincial Championship (1976–2005), original competition before reform into 14 sides * National Provincial Championship (2006–present) The National Provincial Championship (NP ...

. He took the role of breakdown coach, working under the team's head coach Marty Bourke. In 2023, it was announced that Todd would be joining the

coaching staff under new head coach

Rob Penney Robin Hugh Penney (born 27 April 1964) is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former representative player. Generally known as Rob Penney he played in the positions of Flanker or No.8 throughout his career, most notably for Canterbury. He has s ...

. His duties will begin during the 2024 Super Rugby season.

Honours

New Zealand *

Rugby World Cup The Men's Rugby World Cup is a rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams, the winners of which are recognised as the World championship, world champions of the sport. The tournament is administer ...

Webb Ellis Cup The Webb Ellis Cup is the trophy awarded to the winner of the men's Rugby World Cup, the premier competition in men's international rugby union. The Cup is named after William Webb Ellis, who is often credited as being the inventor of rugby foot ...

**Third-place:

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

References

External links

*
Matt Todd Canterbury Player ProfileMatt Todd Crusaders Player Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Todd, Matt 1988 births New Zealand rugby union players New Zealand international rugby union players Crusaders (rugby union) players Canterbury rugby union players Rugby union flankers People educated at Christchurch Boys' High School Rugby union players from Christchurch Living people Saitama Wild Knights players Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo players People educated at Kaiapoi High School 2019 Rugby World Cup players New Zealand expatriate rugby union players in Japan New Zealand rugby union coaches