New South Island Boys Network Kicks Off This Weekend
By OBHS | Posted: Thursday April 30, 2026
The highly anticipated South Island Boys Network will officially launch this weekend with our first game of first XV rugby between Christ’s College and Otago Boys’ High School.
The competition is delivered in partnership with New Zealand sports media company Sportway NZ, whose AI camera network and broadcast production bring every game to families across the country - and put real roles in the hands of the boys themselves.
All games will be broadcast on Sportway built and purpose designed streaming hub SIBSN.tv, with a match per week on TVNZ’s Duke, and TVNZ+ platforms, too.
Steve Hart, principal of St Thomas of Canterbury College in Christchurch says he knows there will a lot of interest in the games and they wanted to make it accessible for anyone to watch.
“Our group has been working hard behind the scenes to get everything organised. Rugby is the first cab off the rank and we know there will be a lot of interest in these games, but our goals are much more than a new rugby competition,” he says.
The South Island Boys’ Schools Network (SIBSN) was formally established last year and brings 11 boys’ schools across the South Island - Nelson College, Marlborough Boys' College, St Bede's College, Christchurch, Timaru, Otago and Southland Boys' High Schools, Christs College, St Thomas’ of Canterbury College, King's High School and Shirley Boys' High School.
“It’s really about harnessing our collective know-how as leaders of boys schools. There are many passionate leaders around the South Island and we figured that if we work together in brain storming some of the challenges we and our young men face, we can make really good decisions and provide amazing opportunities that wouldn’t otherwise exist,” Steve Hart says.
The SIBN has 4 pillars, teaching and learning, character, care and well-being, leadership and culture and sport and belonging.
“There are 4 of the leaders of the schools who are each responsible for running these programmes. The sporting pillar, for example will look at things like behaviour at sports fixtures, and what passion for your school or sport looks like.”
“We have looked at a major piece of research which came out of the UK which highlights dropping achievement rates for boys, higher rates of suicide and an overall lack of engagement and low self-esteem. Many boys don’t know their place or how to express themselves in todays’ world. We want to address some these issues and use our collective know how to make a difference,” Steve Hart says.
The live streaming of the games will involve some of the boys who will gain experience in TV production and in commentary.
Mike Craig, CEO at Sportway NZ says “What drew us to this wasn’t just the calibre of rugby - but the stuff happening around the rugby. We've got students who'll be calling games, cutting highlights, learning the technology and contributing to the production. For some of them that could turn into a career, for others it’ll turn into confidence. Either way, it's a kind of opportunity that didn't really exist before, and we're proud to be the ones building it with them.”
Anyone who wants to watch all games can on www.SIBSN.TV.
