About
David Havili had a breakthrough Super Rugby season in 2017, which saw him named the Crusaders Player of Year and earned him All Blacks selection.
He is the son of former Nelson Bays representative wing Bill Havili, and a product of the Nelson College First XV. David played in the 2014 NZU20 team, making the semi finals of World Cup U20 Championship. He debuted for Tasman in the provincial competition in 2014 and captained them in back to back Mitre 10 Cup titles in 2019 and 2020, his younger brother William plays alongside him with the Mako’s.
When David first joined the Crusaders in 2015 he was a Wider Training Group member, but earned 11 Crusaders caps that year and showed he could bring some formidable flair to the backline.
He made his All Blacks debut against the Pumas in 2017, scoring his first try on debut in the 81st minute. In 2019 David was named in the Barbarians side, scoring two tries and converting two more as fullback.
After a superb 2021 campaign as Vice-Captain of the Crusaders (which saw him named Back of the Year at the club's awards night), David was recalled into the All Blacks for the Steinlager Series and scored two tries against Fiji in Dunedin.
David played his 100th game for the Crusaders in 2022 and no stranger to the captaincy role in both provincial and Crusaders jerseys, he has been named our captain for 2025, “It’s very humbling. I was pretty blown away when Penney approached me,” said Havili, “this is certainly the proudest moment I have had for a while. The Crusaders are all about community, and I love this team”.