For the first time in Central Hawke’s Bay History our Kī-o-Rahi team “Ruataniwha” competed in the Secondary School National Kī-o-Rahi Competition held in Rotorua. We played a total of six games over the duration of the tournament coming away with two wins. We ended up placing 34^th out of 38 schools from all over the country.

For our small community this is a huge achievement, especially with the majority of our team consisting of juniors and them having to play up against Year 12’s and 13’s. We are very proud of our Ruataniwha whānau on what they achieved in Rotorua, and this is only the beginning of bigger things to come.

We would like to thank Mrs Vicky and Mr Brendon Shaw for not only supporting the team by being our drivers, but for everything they did over the duration of the tournament, they were a huge help!

Also, would like to thank all of our sponsors and many whānau that supported our rangatahi to make this competition a reality for them.

Epic Ministries

New World Waipukurau

Bidfood

Connect Youth & Community Trust

Hans Healthy Fitness

Pure Sports & Leisure

Vet Services Hawkes Bay

Hatuma Lime

Silver Fern Farms

Ngā whānau o Tamatea

Te whānau o Ruataniwha

Team Members were: Jordan Coles, Kaia Hema, Leila Heremaia, Phoenix Higgins-Hone, J D Mananes, Pirini Maraki Pene, Jafet Francis Monegro, Jehoshua Monegro, Melia Neilsen, Jacob Taylor, Talia Te Atua Pere, Maia Watene and Aliyah Wiki.

Article added: Thursday 27 April 2023