Meet Francis Morrison – a new star representing his country in two codes

New Zealand has a new sports star, Francis Morrison, who recently represented the country in both rugby and touch rugby.

Last month, the 22-year-old Aucklander represented New Zealand in touch against Australia in a trans-Tasman series in Ōtautahi Christchurch.

Then a week later, Morrison represented New Zealand in the U85kg rugby team against the Sri Lanka’s national rugby team, the Tuskers.

Not only did Morrison become a dual-code international, but he achieved this with the highest honours possible, winning most valuable player for the Touch Blacks, and player of the series for the New Zealand U85kg team in Sri Lanka.

Morrison says he’s extremely proud of his recent achievements in his beloved sports.

“It’s hard to describe how special it felt to represent New Zealand in touch and rugby,” says Francis.

“I just think back to my younger self wanting to wear the silver fern, and this truly has been a dream come true.”

Morrison’s family was there to witness both milestones, with his brother Jayden Morrison telling Te Waha Nui he couldn’t be prouder of his older brother.

“I was just very proud as a brother to see Rocky making the national team for both codes, watching all his hard work pay off.

“The highlight was seeing Rocky take out the player of the series on his debut for both national codes," says Jayden.

Francis says he felt inspired by seeing the love shown for rugby in another country.

“There’s honestly nothing that can prepare you for the Sri Lankan crowd. The passion and the sheer numbers in the crowd truly make the experience so different, yet so special.

“It's pretty unreal to be honest. I didn’t think rugby was much of a thing here in Sri Lanka However, I thought wrong. The local people love rugby, the All Blacks and mostly the haka.

“To be in a crowd that loves watching and supporting the game, I loved it,” says Jayden.

The Sri Lankan tour was a success, with the Kiwis winning both games, with scorelines of 50-10 and 32-6.

Morrison scored a try in each of the two games, played in Colombo and Kandy, and stayed on the park for 80 minutes in both games.

In the touch tournament in Christchurch, Australia won all three series, beating New Zealand 3-0 in the men’s grade, 3-0 in the women’s grade and 2-1 in the mixed grade.