Local kids light up tourney
Aotearoa NZ Ma¯ ori Rugby League tournament held
On Saturday, September 23, over 96 teams, 1500 kids, and thousands of supporters filled Rex Morpeth Park in Whakatane for the annual Aotearoa New Zealand Ma¯ori Rugby League tournament.
Two days of action-packed rugby league were on display with tamariki from all over New Zealand. Teams from as far north as Kaita¯ia and as far south as Christchurch made the journey to Whakata¯ne, the home of the Ngati Awa people.
The Hauraki Ma¯ori Rugby League (HMRL) roopu ran two musters, the first in Paeroa and the second in Whitianga. Their efforts culminated in a gathering of tamariki from Coromandel, Manaia, Whangamata¯, Thames, Tearoha, Waih¯ı, and Katikati.
A massive increase in keen trialists resulted in the roopu registering three teams, an under 10s, an under 11s, and an under 12s. Each team comprised 20 players, three coaching and management staff, and two trainers.
Over 75 people in total, the largest group HMRL has taken to date. This was a huge win for rugby league and the representation of tamariki from our communities.
The two days were a blur of strapping tape, filling drink bottles, haka, supportive praise up and down the sideline, making sure tamariki had a good kai, high-fives, tying boot laces and repeat!
The U10s were the first to take the field. Being the teina team, the roopu made a clear statement of kotahitanga as all three teams took the field, performing the haka as a mighty contingent of warriors, drawing strength from the mauri of the fields and declaring “We are Hauraki” proudly for all to hear.
This set the tone for the tournament, and the combined efforts of their coaches, trainers, wha¯nau and themselves saw them well prepared to face Raukawa, Waiariki, Ngati Tuwharetoa and Auckland Ma¯ori.
The U11s team went up against some heavyweight teams such as Nga Puhi Ahi and Taranaki Whanui. They persevered through hard battles and came together as a team to hold off strong attacking lines and to break through equally strong defensive lines.
The U12s started off their tournament with a hard-fought win over Pikiao followed by an equally challenging loss to Ngati Maniapoto.
Day two was eerily similar to last year’s tournament, the teams were greeted with one day of ‘midsummer-like’ weather and another of torrential monsoons. With day two teetering on the edge of being cancelled and all teams anxiously waiting for a call to be made, the rains stopped and cleared enough for a few rounds to take place.
The 10s and 11s’ field wasn’t too bad. The U12 field, however, had more puddles than grass. With over 50 per cent of the field underwater, a snorkel and wetsuit looked like a better option than a rugby league strip. But nothing was going to dampen the mindset of the eager U12s once they heard their game would go ahead.
They hurriedly changed into their strips and ran to the far field with just enough time to wipe the sweat from their brows. The U12s played their hearts out, soaking up (literally) the atmosphere going down against Muriwhenua Whai Repo.
On the mod fields, the U10s won their first game, but unfortunately, their second game was cancelled as the opposition had to make a quick exit before the roads were closed. The U11s were in a similar boat as their opposition also had to leave.
The U12s’ last game was played against the Kirkiriroa Hornets, where both sides displayed outstanding skill and determination to represent themselves, their teams, their wha¯nau and roopu to the best of their abilities.
Both deserved victory, but Hauraki Ma¯ori walked away with the win on the day.
The game was live streamed and can be found on Youtube ANZMRL Tamariki Tournament 2023, Day 2 at the 2hr 53-minute mark. A real treat for our tamariki to see themselves on ‘the big screen’.
Our time down in Whakatane now seems much too short as we already look to next year’s campaign.
We are beaming with pride to see the growth of the tournament over a single year and to know that our little roopu were a part of it brings big smiles to us all. It is all very humbling, but to see the growth of our club from a few small numbers to three full teams of 20 is something else.
Although seeing Hauraki tamariki on the field is what powers us, none of this would be possible without the endless hours of volunteered time from our amazing support staff. We would also like to acknowledge the incredible efforts from our coaching, management staff, and trainers to ensure our tamariki were ready, our teams were organised, and their days ran smoothly. A big thank you to all our parents for coming along to experience this wonderful event with us and a huge thank you to our tamariki for “Doing the mahi and getting the treats!”.
Hauraki Mao¯ri Rugby League would also like to thank our sponsors for helping us get there. Paeroa Rugby and Sports Club for continuing to provide a space for our tamariki to train, Mico plumbing supplies, Pak’nsave Thames, Liddell building, Opoutere school, Te Kura Kaupapa Mao¯ri o Manaia, Te Korowai O Hauraki and all the superstar individuals/ wha¯nau that sponsored playing jerseys.
A big thank you and special mention to Tiny, our major sponsor. Without his generosity in supporting our wha¯nau, we would not have had the ability to give the tamariki of Hauraki the experience of a lifetime within the ANZMRL Tamariki Tournament.
From feeding our wha¯nau throughout the day to making sure our uniforms were cleaned and packed, ready for the next day of the tournament. Without your team’s efforts and support, our campaign would not have been as successful as it was.