2012 Heartland Championship
The 2012 Heartland Championship was the seventh season of the Heartland Championship, New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition, since its reorganisation in 2006, involving the 12 amateur rugby unions in New Zealand. The format was the same as in 2011. The tournament's round robin stage saw the 12 teams play 8 games. The top four teams in the table at the end of the 8 weeks played off for the Meads Cup, while the next four contested the Lochore Cup.
Teams
The 2012 Heartland Championship was contested by the following teams:| Team | Super Rugby partner | Hometown |
| Buller | Crusaders | Westport |
| East Coast | Hurricanes | Ruatoria |
| Horowhenua-Kapiti | Hurricanes | Levin |
| King Country | Chiefs | Te Kūiti, Taupō |
| Mid Canterbury | Crusaders | Ashburton |
| North Otago | Highlanders | Oamaru |
| Poverty Bay | Hurricanes | Gisborne |
| South Canterbury | Crusaders | Timaru |
| Thames Valley | Chiefs | Paeroa |
| Wairarapa Bush | Hurricanes | Masterton |
| Wanganui | Hurricanes | Wanganui |
| West Coast | Crusaders | Greymouth |
Table
| Pos. | Team | Pld | W | D | L | For | Against | +/− | BP1 | BP2 | Pts |
| 1 | East Coast | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 230 | 177 | +53 | 3 | 0 | 31 |
| 2 | Wanganui | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 237 | 133 | +104 | 3 | 0 | 31 |
| 3 | Wairarapa Bush | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 219 | 130 | +89 | 2 | 2 | 28 |
| 4 | North Otago | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 195 | 194 | +1 | 4 | 1 | 25 |
| 5 | Buller | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 205 | 180 | +25 | 3 | 2 | 25 |
| 6 | South Canterbury | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 265 | 227 | +38 | 3 | 1 | 21 |
| 7 | Mid Canterbury | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 158 | 162 | −4 | 2 | 3 | 17 |
| 8 | Poverty Bay | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 212 | 247 | −35 | 4 | 1 | 17 |
| 9 | West Coast | 8 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 140 | 185 | −45 | 1 | 3 | 12 |
| 10 | Thames Valley | 8 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 203 | 263 | −60 | 1 | 2 | 11 |
| 11 | King Country | 8 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 178 | 230 | −52 | 2 | 3 | 9 |
| 12 | Horowhenua-Kapiti | 8 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 124 | 238 | −114 | 1 | 0 | 9 |
Results
The fixtures were released on 28 March 2012.Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Finals
Semifinals
Meads Cup'''Lochore Cup'''
Finals
Meads Cup'''Lochore Cup'''