At a glance

A$25,000 (NZ$26,560) next week to donate to a worthwhile cause. While it may pain Australian rugby fans to have the New Zealand and South African Super Rugby teams included in the study, Darwin said the Canterbury team’s achievements had been remarkable.

‘‘In 2011 they did something we’ve never seen before, they basically played the entire season away from their home ground because of the earthquake and they still made the final. To pull that off is pretty extraordinary, particularly with all the extra things that come with earthquakes, like family stress and constantly changing environments,’’ he said.

‘‘They’ve also punched above their weight geographically, representing an area smaller than Newcastle or Geelong, but they have consistently recruited internally from the local area, and produced extraordinary results.’’

The Broncos and Geelong came in second and third, while National Water Polo League team the Fremantle Mariners and Women’s National Cricket League side the NSW Breakers rounded out the top five, edging out higher profile sides such as the Queensland Bulls (sixth), the Storm (eighth) and the Roosters (10th) in the top 10.

The study, launched in partnership with equities fund Platinum Asset Management, used competition stability, size and longevity to compare teams across the 14 eligible national or Australasian leagues, before ranking them according to consistent performance. The methodology meant that no A League team made the top 25. Australasia’s best sporting teams, top 10: Crusaders (Super Rugby) 1, Brisbane Broncos (NRL) 2, Geelong Cats (AFL) 3, Fremantle Mariners (National Water Polo League) 4, NSW Breakers (Women’s National Cricket League) 5, Queensland Bulls (Sheffield Shield) 6, Sydney University Lions (National Women’s Water Polo League) 7, Melbourne Storm (NRL) 8, Perth Wildcats (ANBL) 9, Sydney Roosters (NRL) 10.