Melbourne Rising

The Melbourne Rising is an Australian rugby union team based in Melbourne that competes in the National Rugby Championship (NRC). The team represents the rugby community in Victoria and is organised and managed by the Victorian Rugby Union (VRU), with the coaching and training programs used by the Melbourne Rebels being extended to players joining the team from the Rebels, the local Dewar Shield competition, and local Victorian juniors.

The NRC was launched in 2014, reinstating the national competition after an absence of six years. The previous competition was the Australian Rugby Championship (ARC), which was discontinued in 2007 after only one season. The team representing Victoria in the ARC was the Melbourne Rebels, organised and managed by the VRU. That Rebels team was the predecessor of the Melbourne Rebels team in Super Rugby and the Melbourne Rising team in the NRC.

As of 2016, Melbourne Rising's colours of red, white and blue are those of the Melbourne Rebels, although the side previously played in a navy blue and pink jersey, with white and electric blue highlights. The team's current logo is also adapted from that of the parent franchise, with the name Melbourne Rising used instead of Melbourne Rebels.

In 2004, a consortium led by the Victorian Rugby Union entered the bidding process for a licence in the Super 14 competition to get a team in Melbourne for the 2006 season. The then Super 12 competition was expanding to 14 teams, with one new licence being allocated to an Australian team and another to a South African team. Victoria and Western Australia were the leading bidders for the Australian team and the licence was eventually allocated to Western Australia, creating the Western Force.

For the Australian Rugby Championship in 2007, however, b