It will be a nostalgic Queen's Birthday for the four Dunedin rugby clubs that are having their 125th jubilee celebrations this weekend.
Many of the greats of the past will be back, and Otago selectors would enjoy having such an array of talent in the union today.
This talent is typified by the Otago University club, which has produced 44 All Blacks, more than any other New Zealand club.
There are 19 living All Blacks who have played for the club and they have all signed a University jersey that will be auctioned at the dinner tomorrow night.
Included among those returning for the student reunion are former New Zealand World Cup winning captains David Kirk and Farah Palmer.
The University guest list is a who's-who of New Zealand rugby with the All Black inside back combination from the 1960s, Chris Laidlaw and Earle Kirton, both returning.
All Blacks from the Otago teams of the 1990s include Marc Ellis, Josh Kronfeld, John Timu and Scottish captain John Leslie.
There are 330 former players and administrators attending the celebrations, with one of the best known being Finance Minister Bill English, who read his first budget yesterday.
His son, Tom, is captain of the University Blue Colts team.
The guest speaker is retired Dunedin judge Oke Blaikie, who is the father of former club members John and Duncan Blaikie, both of whom played for Otago.
Four former All Blacks are returning to Bathgate Park for the Southern club's celebrations.
The most well-known is Laurie Mains, who played 15 games for the All Blacks between 1971 and 1976, coached the All Blacks from 1992 to 1995 and also coached Otago and the Highlanders.
The other All Blacks at the Southern reunion are Lindsay Clark, Dean Kenny and Gary Seear.
International referee Cliff McAuley, former Otago Rugby Football Union president Bill Townsend and former Otago coach Alan Stevens will be among the 350 guests at the celebrations.
The 12 surviving All Blacks have signed a Southern jersey that will be auctioned.
The jersey was sent to France to get the signature of Isitolo Maka and to the United Kingdom to be signed by Tom Willis and Carl Hayman.
There will also be a full set of original style Southern jerseys auctioned during the weekend.
Former Scottish international Brendan Laney, a member of the last Kaikorai team to win the banner, is coming back to Dunedin from Christchurch for the jubilee.
He played 20 tests for Scotland.
Former Otago captain Kelvin Middleton is another member of the 1997 Kaikorai team.
The guest speakers for the 350 guests at the celebrations are former All Black assistant coach Tony Gilbert, who was the winning Kaikorai coach in 1997, and former All Black captain Graham Mourie, who was also the guest speaker at the centenary celebrations 25 years ago.
The Kaikorai premier team will play old rival Alhambra-Union in the feature match at the reunion.
Kaikorai and Alhambra dominated Dunedin rugby up to 1921 and shared the banners between them.
Alhambra amalgamated to form Alhambra-Union in 1987, but the Alhambra side of the club is also 125 years old this year.
To mark the occasion the Alhambra-Union team will wear the traditional Alhambra colours of red and black hoops at Bishopscourt tomorrow.
All Blacks returning for the Green Island 125th celebrations are brothers Lyn and Mervyn Jaffray and Brian McKechnie.
They will be among the 550 guests at the celebrations.
They were all members of Green Island teams that won three banners in the 1970s under coach Jack McLachlan, who will also be at the reunion.
The guest speakers at the celebrations will be Laney, 1974 Commonwealth Games 10,000m champion Dick Tayler, and former Otago representative and heart surgeon Dick Bunton.
Rugby club 125th celebrations
University
Today: 6pm, official opening at Student Union Common Room.
Saturday: 6pm, jubilee dinner, Dunedin Town Hall.
Sunday: 1pm, barbecue, University Oval; 2pm, Golden Oldies rugby, University Oval.
Notables attending: Annaleah Bodle (nee Rush), Tuppy Diack, Marc Ellis, Wayne Graham, David Kirk, Earle Kirton, Josh Kronfeld, Chris Laidlaw, John Leslie, Farah Palmer, Arran Pene, John Timu.
Southern
All activities at Bathgate Park.
Today: 7pm, get-together.
Saturday: 10am, day of rugby; noon, women's lunch; 6.30pm, prize giving, barbecue, dance.
Sunday: Barbecue lunch.
Notables attending: Lindsay Clark, Dean Kenny, Cliff McAuley, Laurie Mains, Gary Seear, Alan Stevens, Bill Townsend.
Kaikorai
All activities at Bishopscourt.
Today: 7pm, get-together.
Saturday: 7pm, aftermatch evening; 8pm, guest speaker Tony Gilbert.
Sunday: 7pm, official dinner, guest speaker Graham Mourie.
Notables attending: Tony Chave, Tony Gilbert, Mike Kenworthy, Brendan Laney, Kelvin Middleton.
Green Island
All activities at Miller Park.
Today: 7pm, jersey auction; guest speakers Dick Tayler, Dick Bunton.
Saturday: 7pm, buffet meal, guest speaker Brendan Laney.
Sunday: Noon, final wind down.
Notables attending: Bert Harvey, Lyn Jaffray, Mervyn Jaffray, Brian McKechnie, Jack McLachlan, Ben Smith.
