ADVERTISING FEATURE
By DAVIDDA HIKATANGATA
In the history of any club, there are people whose contributions stand the test of time.
Edward ‘Ted’ Engebretsen is one of those individuals whose dedication to the Ngatea Rugby & Sports Club has left a mark on its legacy.
As the club’s first-ever player and administrator to become a life member, Ted wasn’t just an early supporter but one of the key people instrumental in the club’s reformation in 1975 – when he was elected president.
But it doesn’t stop there.
Ted, now 81, who shifted to Ngatea from Palmerston in 1970 with wife Glenys or ‘Glenn’, became the Ngatea Rugby Football Club (NRFC) delegate to the Thames Valley Rugby Football Union (TVRFU), and later went on to become the TVRFU president from 2007 to 2012, and patron from 2016 to 2021.
Ted also became a life member of the TVRFU, which recognised his contributions to rugby in the community.
He was also a patron of the NRFC and the Ngatea Rugby and Sports Club (NR&SC) until 2024.
The most significant part for Ted during his presidency at the club was the encouragement from the people around him, he said.
“It was very important to have support from everybody,” he said.
“And I was lucky over the years to have good secretaries, treasurers, bloody good club captains, a good active committee.
“I had a very good committee around me, and they passed their enthusiasm down onto the rugby players and the management and things like that to work well.”
But rugby wasn’t just a thing to do – it was something that ran in the Engebretsen family.
The rugby legend was one of four brothers who grew up “playing rugby all day, all night” out in the backyard or in the paddock, he said.
“It was just a natural thing, that’s what young country boys did, they played rugby, you know?”
Ted said he remembered his dad, Bill Engebretsen, teaching them how to tackle when he was about four years old.
But the family sport genes didn’t stop there.
Ted and Glenn have three daughters: Kylie, Hayley and Lauren, who were involved in all sorts of sports, including swimming, hockey, cricket and rugby.
Lauren followed her dad’s footsteps into rugby and played for Waikato University and then made her debut in the New Zealand Black Ferns in 2004.
It was clear how significant rugby was for Ted’s family.
One memorable moment for Ted was from around 1953, when he played in a primary school tournament for his team, the Rangitikei Primary School Rugby Representatives, he said.
“That’s really when rugby became really important to me.”
But Ted’s passion for the sport was propelled by his intention: “you play to enjoy the game”.
“All I wanted to do was just to go out there and to play and do well for whichever team I played for.”
As well as rugby, Ted is also involved in the Ngatea Volunteer Fire Brigade and in 2023, was recognised for 50 years of service.
“I was very lucky that I was able to have a full life doing what I did,” Ted said.
