Magpies captain Brendon O'Connor today headed off to attend the official ITM Cup launch.

Today marks 14 days until the ITM Cup kicks off – and with one Ranfurly Shield, two trophies up for grabs, 10 weeks of play, 14 teams and 72 matches - the competition is sure to be nothing less than action-packed.

The 2015 season of the ITM Cup was officially launched today at a special event held at Auckland’s New Windsor School, where captains and senior players from the 14 ITM Cup provincial teams worked together to construct much-needed items for the students with tools and material donated by ITM.

New Zealand Rugby General Manager Rugby Neil Sorensen said the ITM Cup was much more than the country’s premier domestic rugby competition and today’s launch reflected that.

“In its 39th season, the ITM Cup is firmly established as an important fixture in our rugby calendar and one that’s recognised as nurturing some of the country’s best sporting talent.

“The colour, excitement and rivalry of the games, along with cherished traditions such as Ranfurly Shield challenges, have seen it develop a unique identity.

“As locals band together to cheer on their teams and showcase their provincial pride, this is much more than a rugby competition, it is an intrinsic part of the community.

“Today was a great demonstration of how important community is to rugby and it's only just the beginning of something we hope will not only help build our schools, but support our national game.

“In conjunction with ITM, we are pleased to announce that at the end of the ITM Cup 2015, 13 primary schools from around the country will each win $10,000 worth of building supplies.

“Fans give the teams so much across the season, so it's nice to be able to give a little of that back.

“Thanks to ITM for again backing this competition and for helping us today,” he said.

The spotlight will turn to Napier’s McLean Park for what promises to be an exciting end to the opening round of competition.  All eyes will be on Ranfurly Shield holders Hawke’s Bay, who have successfully held off three challenges in pre-season matches, as they hope to defend the Log o’Wood against Northland from 4.35pm.

Competition finals

The ITM Cup Championship Final – to decide the promotion and relegation teams – will be played on Friday 23 October with the ITM Cup Premiership Final taking place on Saturday 24 October.

Competition draw

To view the ITM Cup 2015 draw, http://itmcup.co.nz/Fixtures

Match statistics

View team and player rankings, compare players and check out referee statistics throughout the competition at  http://itmcup.co.nz/stats

To see photos from todays ITM Cup launch head to http://assignments.gettyimages.com/mm/nicePath/gyipa_public?nav=pr290199909