Canoe polo making a splash
Canoe polo is making a splash in Manawatu as some of the country’s best exponents of the water sport gather to show their skills.
Pupils are taking to the sport in droves ahead of the New Zealand Secondary School championships in Feilding this weekend – with 15 out of the 43 teams entered coming from Manawatu schools. Only two teams are from the South Island.
Palmerston North Boys’ High School will be defending its senior boys title in the three-day competition, while Feilding High School is looking to go back to back in the boys senior division two.
The goal for many pupils this weekend will be to catch the eye of the New Zealand selectors to prove their worth not only as an individual, but also as a cog in the wheel of what could be a national team.
New Zealand Canoe Polo schools’ director Penny Dustin said every year more pupils were stepping off the rugby field to pick up a paddle. ‘‘Manawatu is a wonderful place for canoe polo. You have to have the facilities and here there is the lagoon, the Lido, Freyberg and the Makino Aquatic Centre.’’
Feilding High School’s teacher in charge of canoe polo Marious Dryfhout said the sport started at the school with seven pupils, about seven years ago.
Canoe polo is now a marquee sport at the school, with five teams competing regularly. ‘‘It’s grown since then,’’ he said.
‘‘We’ve got 30-odd students down there now. You don’t need an ocean to play it and the refurbishment of the Makino Centre makes it a classy place to play. It’s quite an aggressive sport. You can push other canoes out of the way and you have to be able to roll a canoe.’’
New Zealand Canoe Polo competitions director James Mitchell said the sport had grown exponentially in Manawatu and Wellington.
‘‘It is a physical sport. It’s typical New Zealand – we like a bit of impact and to push people around a bit, but this is a safe environment to do so. You get all that contact, but it’s not like rugby where you’ve got someone steaming into you.’’
Feilding has produced several stars such as Stephanie Dryfhout who, at the tender age of 21, is considered a seasoned veteran after captaining the New Zealand under 21 women’s team in Syracuse, Italy, last year for the world games. St Peter’s is defending the junior open boys competition.
Pool games started on Friday, with a full day of play again on Saturday. Playoffs run on Sunday. Manawatu is hosting four other tournaments this season, including the Oceania canoe polo champs.
Whanau Tri returns
More than 400 people are expected to swim, bike and run in the return of Palmerston North’s Whanau Tri. The annual event will take place on Sunday, with more than 400 people signed up so far. Sport Manawatu communication and events coordinator Muz Sujau said they expected more people to sign up on the day. A variety of different courses would be on offer to cater for all ages and fitness levels. Sport Manawatu chief executive Trevor Shailer said each year there was a range of participants rising to the challenge for the first time. ‘‘In 2016, Whanau Tri attracted over 800 participants. It was awesome to see a range of people giving it a go and challenging their whanau and friends’’. The event includes an aquathon, short, medium, and long triathlon courses. People can enter as an individual or team, with a Tamariki Tri for children. Shailer said it promised to be a great day celebrating health and culture with stalls, live entertainment from Sonny Tatana, and activities.