View source for Doug Howlett

{{Use New Zealand English|date=December 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{Infobox rugby biography
| name           = Doug Howlett
| image          = Doug Howlett 2015.jpg
| caption        = Howlett in Dublin, Ireland, 2015
| fullname       = Douglas Charles Howlett
| birth_date     = {{birth date and age|1978|09|21|df=y}}
| birth_place    = [[Auckland, New Zealand|Auckland]], New Zealand
| height         = {{convert|185|cm|ftin|0|abbr=on}}
| weight         = {{convert|93|kg|lb stlb|0|abbr=on}}
| school         = [[Auckland Grammar School]]
| university     =
| relatives      = 
| occupation     = 
| position       = [[Wing (rugby union)|Wing]], [[Fullback (rugby union)|Fullback]]
| currentclub    = 
| youthyears1    = 
| youthclubs1    = 
| years1         = 1996–2007
| clubs1         = [[Auckland Rugby Union|Auckland]]
| apps1          = 55
| points1        = 245
| years2         = 1997
| clubs2         = [[Highlanders (rugby union)|Highlanders]]
| apps2          = 2
| points2        = 15
| years3         = 1998
| clubs3         = [[Hurricanes (rugby union)|Hurricanes]]
| apps3          = 5
| points3        = 5
| years4         = 1999–2007
| clubs4         = [[Blues (Super Rugby)|Blues]]
| apps4          = 97
| points4        = 275
| years5         = 2008–2013
| clubs5         = [[Munster Rugby|Munster]]
| apps5          = 112
| points5        = 175
| repyears1      = 1997–1999
| repteam1       = [[New Zealand national under-21 rugby union team|New Zealand U21]]
| repcaps1       = 13
| reppoints1     = 70
| repyears2      = 2000–2007
| repteam2       = [[New Zealand national rugby union team|New Zealand]]
| repcaps2       = 63
| reppoints2     = 245
| coachyears1    = 
| coachteams1    = 
| clubupdate     = 22 June 2019
| repupdate      = 22 June 2019
| ru_coachupdate =  
}}

'''Douglas Charles Howlett''' (born 21 September 1978) is a retired New Zealand professional [[rugby union]] player. He was primarily a [[Wing (rugby union)|wing]], but he also sometimes played as a [[Fullback (rugby union)|fullback]].

He played for [[Auckland Rugby Union|Auckland]], and the [[Highlanders (rugby union)|Highlanders]], [[Hurricanes (rugby union)|Hurricanes]] and [[Blues (Super Rugby)|Blues]] in [[Super Rugby]]. He finished his career with [[Munster Rugby|Munster]] in Ireland.

With 49 tries in 62 tests, Howlett is currently the [[List of leading Rugby union Test try scorers|seventh-highest try scorer in rugby union history]] and the top try scorer for [[New Zealand national rugby union team|New Zealand]].

==Early life==
Born in [[Auckland, New Zealand]], Howlett attended May Road School and Mt Roskill Intermediate School. He started playing rugby at [[Auckland Grammar School]],<ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-30/rugby-world-cup-auckland-grammar-an-all-blacks-production-line/6900908 "Rugby World Cup: All Blacks keep rolling off the Auckland Grammar production line"], 30 October 2015.</ref> where he was also a star sprinter, captain of athletics and, during his final year in 1996, [[Head Prefect]]. He calls upon his speed as a sprinter (he once clocked a personal best 10.94 seconds for the 100 metres in an under 20 athletics championship in 1998) to great effect in his rugby career.{{citation needed|date=January 2016}}

==Playing career==
Howlett made his first-class debut at the age of 18 for [[Auckland Rugby Union|Auckland]] in the [[Air New Zealand Cup]]. He has played with three [[Super Rugby]] teams, briefly with the [[Otago Highlanders]] and [[Wellington Hurricanes]] and, for the majority of his career in his home city, the [[Auckland Blues]]. It was with his hometown Blues that he established himself as one of the finest back players in the world,{{citation needed|date=January 2016}} winning a [[Super 12]] title in [[2003 Super 12 season|2003]]. Throughout his domestic career, he remained affiliated with Auckland in the [[Air New Zealand Cup]], with more than 50 appearances for the union.

===Barbarians===
In May 2009, Howlett was named in the [[Barbarians (rugby team)|Barbarians]] squad to play England and Australia.<ref>{{cite web|date=12 May 2009|title=D'Arcy And Murphy Named In Barbarians Squad|url=https://www.irishrugby.ie/2009/05/12/darcy-and-murphy-named-in-barbarians-squad/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602065831/https://www.irishrugby.ie/2009/05/12/darcy-and-murphy-named-in-barbarians-squad/|archive-date=2 June 2021|access-date=2 June 2021|website=irishrugby}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

===Munster===
On 30 August 2007, Howlett signed for [[Munster Rugby|Munster]], following in the footsteps of another All Black great, [[Christian Cullen]]. Howlett joined Munster at the start of 2008.
He made his debut for Munster in the [[Heineken Cup]] against [[ASM Clermont Auvergne]], notably starting the movement for [[Lifeimi Mafi]]'s try. His second match came against [[Wasps RFC|London Wasps]] where he notably dived to save the ball in the build-up to [[Denis Leamy]]'s try. He scored his first Munster try against [[Ulster Rugby|Ulster]] on 22 March 2008.

On 24 May 2008, Howlett was part of the Munster team that beat [[Stade Toulousain|Toulouse]] 16–13 to win the [[2007–08 Heineken Cup]].<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.irishtimes.com/munster-rugby/doug-howlett/ | newspaper=The Irish Times | title=Howlett's career highlight | first=John | last=O'Sullivan}}</ref> Howlett had won his first cup with Munster only five and a half months into his career in the Northern Hemisphere. Howlett himself scored a try in the final only for it to be disallowed due to a forward pass from [[Rua Tipoki]].
[[File:Doug Howlett 2010 (cropped).jpg|250px|thumb|right|Howlett during a match against [[Northampton Saints]], April 2010]]
Howlett joins [[Rod Kafer]] and [[Brad Thorn]] in having won major rugby tournaments in both the southern and northern hemispheres, the [[super rugby|Super 14]] and [[Heineken Cup]] respectively. He enjoyed his success with the [[Blues (Super Rugby)|Auckland Blues]] in the 2003 [[Super Rugby|Super]] 12 and [[Munster Rugby|Munster]] in 2008. With Munster winning the Magners League title for the 08–09 season, Howlett held both a Heineken Cup and Magners League medal in the space of just two seasons with Munster. On 26 February 2010 it was announced Howlett had signed a contract to stay on at Munster until the end of the 2010–11 season, with the option for a further year.<ref>{{cite web |last=Geraghty |first=Pat |url=http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/7217.php |title=Munster Rugby: News : Howlett Staying On |publisher=Munsterrugby.ie |date=26 February 2010 |access-date=17 August 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111119225240/http://munsterrugby.ie/news/7217.php |archive-date=19 November 2011  }}</ref> That option was confirmed by Munster in February 2011, and he began the 2011/2012.<ref>{{cite web |date=7 February 2011 |title=Munster Rugby: News : Youngsters Weigh in Behind Munster |url=http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/8623.php |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111119024621/http://munsterrugby.ie/news/8623.php |archive-date=19 November 2011 |access-date=17 August 2011 |publisher=Munsterrugby.ie}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/sports/rugby/2011/0207/1224289244950.html|title=Howlett agrees new deal with Munster|date=7 February 2011|newspaper=The Irish Times |access-date=7 February 2011}}</ref> But in December 2011, Howlett picked up an [[Achilles tendon]] injury in a [[2011–12 Pro 12|Pro 12]] game against [[Ospreys (rugby union)|Ospreys]] which ruled him out for the rest of the season.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/achilles-injury-rules-doug-howlett-out-for-the-season-2956186.html|title=Achilles injury rules Doug Howlett out for the season|date= 7 December 2011|work=Irish Independent|access-date=7 December 2011|first=Hugh|last=Farrelly}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/sport/rugby/2011/1206/howlettd.html |title=Howlett ankle injury blow for Munster |date=7 December 2011 |work=RTÉ Sport |access-date=7 December 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111208055442/http://www.rte.ie/sport/rugby/2011/1206/howlettd.html |archive-date= 8 December 2011}}</ref>

On 24 February 2012, Munster announced that Howlett had extended his contract until the end of the 2012–13 season.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/10160.php |title=Howlett Extends Contract |date=24 February 2012 |work=munsterrugby.ie |access-date=24 February 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216033857/http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/10160.php |archive-date=16 December 2013}}</ref> On 24 August 2012, it was announced that Howlett would take over from [[Paul O'Connell]] as the Munster squad captain for the 2012–13 season.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/10707.php |title=Doug Howlett Named Squad Captain |date=24 August 2012 |work=munsterrugby.ie |access-date=24 August 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120827014243/http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/10707.php |archive-date=27 August 2012}}</ref> He underwent successful knee surgery in late January 2013, and returned to action after the surgery on 2 March 2013. On 14 May 2013, it was confirmed that Howlett, after receiving medical advice, would retire from rugby due to a shoulder injury he sustained playing against [[Glasgow Warriors]] in March 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.independent.ie/sport/howlett-calls-time-on-playing-career-29266124.html|title=Howlett calls time on playing career|date=14 May 2013|work=Irish Independent|access-date=14 May 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/22527495|title=Munster and former New Zealand wing Doug Howlett Howlett retires|date=14 May 2013|work=BBC Sport|access-date=14 May 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/sport/rugby/irish/2013/0514/392199-injury-forces-munsters-howlett-to-retire/ |title=Injury forces Munster's Doug Howlett to retire |date=14 May 2013 |work=RTÉ Sport |access-date=14 May 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216040203/http://www.rte.ie/sport/rugby/irish/2013/0514/392199-injury-forces-munsters-howlett-to-retire/ |archive-date=16 December 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/11934.php|title=Injury Forces Howlett To Retire|date=14 May 2013|work=munsterrugby.ie|access-date=14 May 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130610064156/http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/11934.php|archive-date=10 June 2013}}</ref>

Howlett returned to the province as a corporate ambassador in December 2013.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://munsterrugby.ie/2013/12/07/corporate-role-for-howlett/|title=Corporate Role For Howlett|date=7 December 2013|work=Munster Rugby|access-date=8 December 2013}}</ref> He went on to become Munster's head of commercial and marketing, before returning to New Zealand in the autumn of 2019.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://munsterrugby.ie/2019/05/20/howlett-to-return-to-new-zealand/|title=Doug Howlett To Return To New Zealand|date=20 May 2019|work=Munster Rugby|access-date=21 May 2019}}</ref>

===International===
Howlett debuted for the [[All Blacks]] on 16 June 2000. In his career, he scored on average 4 points per game (155 from his first 38). He was also a first choice winger in the [[2003 Rugby Union World Cup|2003 World Cup]].

Howlett scored 49 tries for the All Blacks, a team record.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.superxv.com/news/rugby_union_news.asp?id=28038 |title=Howlett & Munster wary of Holah's Ospreys |publisher=superxv.com |date=7 December 2010 |access-date=28 January 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120525214248/http://www.superxv.com/news/rugby_union_news.asp?id=28038 |archive-date=25 May 2012}}</ref> His hat-trick against [[Italy national rugby union team|Italy]] on 8 September 2007, at the [[2007 Rugby World Cup]], brought him level with the record of [[Christian Cullen]], the All Blacks' previous leading try scorer and then his try in the 15th minute against Scotland on 23 September gave him the record.

He was selected for the Rugby World Cup squad ahead of Canterbury and Tasman player [[Rico Gear]]; however, he was expected to play the first three rounds of the 2007 Air New Zealand Cup. He scored a [[hat trick]] in Auckland's victory over Counties Manukau in the first round, and on 11 August against [[Waikato Rugby Union|Waikato]] he scored two, bringing his try total for Auckland to 50. Howlett was known as a winger with a high work rate and strong defensive tackling ability.

==Personal==
Howlett is the brother of former Tongan rugby league international [[Phil Howlett]].<ref name="NZ_Herald_16325">{{cite news |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=16325 |title=Rugby League: Tongans not planning rough stuff |author=Jessup, Peter |date=20 October 1999 |work=[[The New Zealand Herald]] |access-date=29 September 2011}}</ref>

On 22 February 2007 Howlett launched "The Doug Howlett Outreach Foundation" to support New Zealand children between the ages of 8 and 14 who demonstrated academic and sporting ability, initially in the codes of [[rugby union]], [[rugby league]], and [[netball]]. It was intended to assist with school and sports fees and sporting equipment. Scholarships and equipment were distributed in 2007 and 2008. The Foundation website is now offline and it appears defunct.

In May 2019, Howlett announced his decision to leave his role as Munster Rugby's Head of Commercial and Marketing after 6 years to return to New Zealand with his family.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.the42.ie/doug-howlett-munster-4644188-May2019/ |title = Doug Howlett's 11-year association with Munster comes to an end}}</ref>

==Controversies==
Howlett was arrested on 9 October 2007 outside Heathrow Airport's Hilton Hotel on suspicion of criminal damage to two cars.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2007/SPORT/10/10/howlett.arrest/?iref=mpstoryview |title=All Blacks rugby star arrested |publisher=CNN  |date= 10 October 2007|access-date=13 November 2008}}</ref> This followed the All Blacks' [[2007 Rugby World Cup|World Cup]] loss in Cardiff to France a few days earlier, a game in which Howlett did not play. Howlett subsequently issued an apology through the media.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/sport/rugby/2007/1010/howlettd1.html |title=Howlett apologises after arrest |date=10 October 2007 |work=RTÉ Sport |access-date=7 December 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080505044253/http://www.rte.ie/sport/rugby/2007/1010/howlettd1.html |archive-date= 5 May 2008 }}</ref>

He was again arrested on 23 December 2010 on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly after his team's Christmas party in [[Kilkenny city]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/howlett-in-drunk-and-disorderly-arrest-after-munster-team-party-2471722.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120804061713/http://www.independent.ie/national-news/howlett-in-drunk-and-disorderly-arrest-after-munster-team-party-2471722.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=4 August 2012 |title=Howlett in 'drunk and disorderly' arrest after Munster team party |publisher=Independent News and Media|work= Independent.ie |date=23 December 2010 }}</ref>

==Honours==
'''<big>Blues</big>'''

* [[Super Rugby|Super Rugby Title]]: [[2003 Super 12 season|2003]] (1)

'''<big>Auckland</big>'''

* [[Ranfurly Shield]] Holder
* [[National Provincial Championship (2006–present)|National Provincial Championship]]: 1996,1999,2002,2003,2005,2007 (6)

===Munster===
*[[European Rugby Champions Cup|European Champions Cup]]: [[2007–08 Heineken Cup|2007–08]] (1)
*[[United Rugby Championship|Celtic League]]: [[2008–09 Celtic League|2008–09]], [[2010–11 Celtic League|2010–11]] (2)

===New Zealand===
*[[The Rugby Championship|Rugby Championship]]: [[2002 Tri Nations Series|2002]], [[2003 Tri Nations Series|2003]], [[2005 Tri Nations Series|2005]], [[2006 Tri Nations Series|2006]], [[2007 Tri Nations Series|2007]] (5)

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{sports links}}
* {{All Blacks|new_id=Doug-Howlett-AB-992|old_id=406}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150406210103/http://www.doughowlett.com/ Official site (Archived)]
* [http://munsterrugby.ie/player?PlayGuid=DH969112 Munster Profile]

{{All Blacks Squad 2007 World Cup}}
{{All Blacks Squad 2003 World Cup}}
{{Munster Rugby captains}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howlett, Doug}}
[[Category:1978 births]]
[[Category:New Zealand international rugby union players]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:New Zealand rugby union players]]
[[Category:Blues (Super Rugby) players]]
[[Category:Munster Rugby players]]
[[Category:Munster Rugby non-playing staff]]
[[Category:Munster Rugby captains]]
[[Category:Auckland rugby union players]]
[[Category:Rugby union players from Auckland]]
[[Category:Rugby union wings]]
[[Category:Rugby union fullbacks]]
[[Category:New Zealand people of Tongan descent]]
[[Category:Sportspeople of Tongan descent]]
[[Category:People educated at Auckland Grammar School]]
[[Category:New Zealand expatriate rugby union players in Ireland]]
[[Category:2003 Rugby World Cup players]]
[[Category:2007 Rugby World Cup players]]
[[Category:Hurricanes (rugby union) players]]
[[Category:Highlanders (rugby union) players]]
[[Category:20th-century New Zealand sportsmen]]