Builders become Southland Sharks fans

Basketball didn’t interest Paul McHaffie and Tom Hewitson until they went to a Southland Sharks’ game.

The Gore builders were hooked after one game.

The pair attended a home game against Wellington Saints in March. The Saints won 88-86 at the ILT Stadium Southland.

It was Hewitson’s first Sharks game, while McHaffie had been to three others.

McHaffie agreed the atmosphere at Sharks’ games was a big attraction.

‘‘It’s a good fast game to watch,’’ he said.

McHaffie, a trail bike rider in his spare time, owns McHaffie Building Ltd.

He was part of a team who built houses for All Blacks Taine Randell and Ben Smith.

McHaffie did his apprenticeship in Wanaka before working on Brisbane building sites. He returned to Southland 10 years ago.

The most expensive house he had built was constructed in Wanaka at a cost of $2 million.

Meanwhile, the Southland Sharks’ latest two games were in the North Island.

They beat the Hawke’s Bay Hawks 101-87 in Napier on Friday night after losing 111-93 to the Wellington Saints in Wellington the night before.

The Sharks joined the National Basketball League in 2010. They won the league final in 2013 and 2015. The annual Work Place Challenge will be held at the Southland Indoor Bowls Centre on April 21 and 28. The competition is not only for businesses. Social clubs, groups and individuals are also welcome to compete, according to the centre’s executive and development officer, Diane Jenkins. In other indoor bowls news, players converged on the centre for the annual Easter tournament at the weekend, with the Bill Kane Memorial (fours event), Mark Keen Memorial (pairs), Mackie Family (singles) and Low Family (player of the tournament) contested.