Brayden Mitchell is a New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 rugby union

Rugby union

Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

 footballer. He plays as a hooker for Southland in the ITM Cup and for the Highlanders in the Super Rugby competition.

Provincial Rugby

Mitchell, a product of the Southland academy system, made his debut for the Stags during the 2009 Air New Zealand Cup

2009 Air New Zealand Cup

The 2009 Air New Zealand Cup was the 33rd provincial rugby union competition, the fourth since the competition reconstruction in 2006, involving the top 14 provincial unions in New Zealand. It ran for 15 weeks from 30 July to 7 November...

, and served as backup to Jason Rutledge

Jason Rutledge

Jason Rutledge is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays provincial rugby for Southland, and is in the Super 14 team the Highlanders....

 after David Hall suffered a season-ending knee injury. He continued to apprentice behind Rutledge in the 2010 ITM Cup

2010 ITM Cup

The 2010 ITM Cup was the 34th provincial rugby union competition, the fifth since the competition reconstruction in 2006 and the first under the new sponsor of ITM , involving the top 14 provincial unions of New Zealand...

.

Super Rugby

Mitchell was selected to the Highlanders squad for the 2011 Super Rugby season, where he served as the team's 3rd choice hooker behind Jason Rutledge

Jason Rutledge

Jason Rutledge is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays provincial rugby for Southland, and is in the Super 14 team the Highlanders....

 and Mahonri Schwalger

Mahonri Schwalger

Mahonri Schwalger is a professional rugby union footballer who plays for the Chiefs in the Super Rugby competition and for Taranaki in the ITM Cup. He is also currently the captain of the Samoan national team....

 and made 4 substitute appearances.

International Play

Mitchell was a member of the 2009 New Zealand Under 20's

New Zealand national under-20 rugby union team

The New Zealand under 20 rugby team are the newest representative rugby union team from New Zealand. They replace the two former age grade teams Under 19's and Under 21's. Their first tournament was the 2008 IRB Junior World Championship, which they won after defeating England 38–3 in the final....

 who won the IRB Junior World Championship

IRB Junior World Championship

The IRB Junior World Championship is an international rugby union competition. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the International Rugby Board , and is contested by 12 men's junior national teams , with an under-20 age requirement. The inaugural tournament was held in June 2008,...

, and scored a try in the final against England

England national under-20 rugby union team

The England under 20 rugby team are the newest representative rugby union team from England. They replace the two former age grade teams Under 19's and Under 21's. They are coached by the RFU's National Academy Coach, Mark Mapletoft. Their first tournament was the 2008 IRB Junior World...

.

External links

• {http://www.highlanders-rugby.co.nz/net/team/profile.aspx?id=83 Highlanders Profile]
• New Zealand Under 20 Profile