Carlos Spencer

Carlos James Spencer (born 14 October 1975) is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer and most recently the head coach of the Eastern Province Kings.

During his playing days, he played at fly-half (first five-eighth) for the Blues and Lions in Super Rugby and for New Zealand internationally.

Club career

He has generally specialised in the position of fly-half, also known as "first five-eighth" or "number 10", although he has also played fullback (number 15) at national and international levels.

Spencer first rose to prominence when he starred alongside Christian Cullen in a Ranfurly Shield challenge in 1991, playing for the Horowhenua team against Auckland. Auckland coach Graham Henry spotted Spencer's talent and recruited him to play for the Auckland team.

He played for the Blues Super 12 team from the inception of the competition in 1996 until 2005, and for the Auckland NPC side.

In 1996, Spencer played for the Blues in the first ever Super 12-match, kicking off the professional era of rugby union. He went on to score 608 points for the Blues in the Super Rugby competition.