Ash Dixon

Ash Dixon (born 1 September 1988) is a New Zealand rugby union player, who currently plays as a hooker for Kobelco Kobe Steelers in Division 1 of the Japan Rugby League One (JRLO). He has also played for the and .

Early career Dixon was a 2006 New Zealand Secondary Schools representative and Canterbury age-group rep through to Under-19 level. He has won the 2007 Under 19 Rugby World Championship with the New Zealand Under-19 team as well as the 2008 IRB Junior World Championship with the New Zealand Under-20s.

Senior career Dixon started his career with , playing 21 matches for the province from 2008 to 2009 before shifting north to further his career with . The move paid off after he was awarded a wider training group contract with the for the 2010 Super 14 season. After being a part of the Wider Training Group in 2010, Dixon was then promoted to the senior side for the 2011 Super Rugby season, He made his Super Rugby debut on 15 March 2013 against the Highlanders.

After two seasons with the Hurricanes, Dixon moved to Dunedin to play for the . He was first named in the Highlanders squad for the 2015 Super Rugby season and played 7 seasons for the southern franchise. He was part of the Highlanders squad that won the 2015 Super Rugby title, defeating the 21–14 in the final.

On 12 August 2021, the announced that Dixon would be leaving the franchise, having played exactly 100 games for them, to take up a two-year contract in Japan. The same day, Japanese club Green Rockets Tokatsu, which competes in the Japan Rugby League One competition, announced that Dixon would be joining the club. He played four seasons for the Green Rockets during which he made 46 appearances and scored 16 tries. He left the club at the end of the 2024–2025 season.

On 4 August 2025, Kobelco Kobe Steelers announced that Dixon would join the club for the 2025–26 season. He made his debut for the club on 13 December 2025 in their round 1 match against Kubota Spears. He finished the season as a Japan Rugby League One champion, after Kobelco Kobe Steelers beat Kubota Spears 22–13 in the final. He played 15 games and scored six tries for the club.

New Zealand Māori On 25 October 2016, Dixon who is of Ngāti Tahinga descentwas named Captain of the New Zealand Māori for their Northern hemisphere tour. Ahead of their game against Munster in Thomond Park in Limerick, he presented a Māori jersey with the initials of the recently deceased Anthony Foley to Foley's sons.

In 2020, Dixon was awarded the Tom French Cup for Māori rugby player of the year.

Career honours

Highlanders

Super Rugby: 2015

Kobelco Kobe Steelers

Japan Rugby League One: 2025–2026

Hawke's Bay

ITM Cup Championship: 2015 Mitre 10 Cup Championship: 2020

Individual

Tom French Memorial Māori Player of the Year: 2020