It has shortened its moniker to AU.
One of the many reasons for the official name change was apparently some people could not spell Alhambra.
But whatever the club calls itself, chances are ODT Rugby Chat’s Paul Dwyer will still call them the Onion.
And maybe that is fitting at the moment.
Onions make you cry, and the club’s premier grade (Broncos) and premier development (Ponies) teams certainly had a tough opening weekend.
The Broncos were destroyed 76-8 by University A, and the Ponies were humbled 85-7 by University B.
AU does not have a premier colts side, but there was happier news for the championship colts team — it beat University 27-12.
They are a couple of worrying results so early in the season.
The Broncos have to play Dunedin tomorrow. And the Sharks edged the defending champions Southern 19-14 in their opening game, so they will present a very stern challenge for a team which will be low on confidence.
Club chairman Gary Wheeler had a consoling message for the AU faithful despite the disappointing start to the season.
"Look, it wasn’t a great start, but we have got numbers," he said. "The [Broncos] are a little short of backs. Obviously losing Levi Emery and Ben McCarthy did not help.
"We’ve had a couple of injuries as well. We’ve got Dunedin on Saturday and they won’t be easy, but we’ll be competitive I would have thought."
Wheeler said the Broncos’ heavy loss was in part down to losing a player to a red card part way through the opening half.
"But I’ve got to admit they were a very good Varsity side too."
Wheeler said all was well at the club otherwise. It has six senior teams, which includes two women’s teams.
"We’ll see how we go for the rest of the season, but I’m pretty confident we’ll hang in there."
The Broncos were not the only team in the premier grade left nursing a bruised ego.
Green Island suffered a 57-15 loss to Kaikorai. The Grizzlies have been open about their player shortage at the top level.
Zingari-Richmond was more competitive than its 44-10 loss to Taieri suggests. But it was still a chunky defeat nonetheless.
Harbour had a bye in the first round and will host Taieri in a tough opener.
Southern, who look strong on paper, are home to Green Island. But perhaps the game between University and Kaikorai shapes as the match of the round.
Both teams had healthy wins first up. Kaikorai loose forward Sidney Fidow produced a powerhouse performance, while University winger Jeremiah Asi scored four tries.
