Winter Sports Tournament – sloshing good fun

On Tuesday afternoon, the 15th August, several Paraparaumu sporting grounds were alive with activity as hundreds of primary children participated in the annual Winter Sports Tournament with teams from all the local primary schools competing in a variety of 7-aside winter games.
Children had been able to choose from soccer, hockey netball, and Rippa Rugby.
At Mazengarb Park the soccer games were played on grounds where puddles added a new dimension to the game. While children wore sneakers instead of boots with studs, a number of children played in bare feet hoping for extra grip. The ball would suddenly stop when it hit a soggy patch and many children ended up wet when they slipped which appeared to add to enjoyment of the games. This was reflected in children’s comments following the game. “It was pretty good the teams played fairly. We were in the middle of the first game. There was a puddle we didn’t see. The ball stopped. We were all running up to it and we all slipped over,” said Waikanae School Room 11 pupil Conor Baker.
“I got so wet,” said 10 year old Adam Perkins,”and I didn’t have other clothes to get changed into. We didn’t know that it was going to be that wet.”
Hockey was played on the artificial turf in front of parent supporters, with senior students from Kāpiti College as referees. According to Year 6 pupil James Davies-Collins there was great team play. ” It was pretty exciting it takes a lot of cooperation and I kept passing to team mates to score a goal. Kāpiti and Kena Kena were pretty good and so was Raumati South,” he said. “It was really awesome I was great at stealing the ball and getting goals. I got 14 goals overall.” said George Curtis, another Waikanae School pupil.
Meanwhile netball proved popular and was played on the Te Atiawa courts, with all courts full and other teams waiting to play.
Rippa rugby, a game similar to touch rugby was also played at Te Atiawa Park, Players wore a Velcro belt with two tags attached. To make a tackle opposing players had to pull a tag off the ball carrier’s belt, making the ripping sound that explains the games name.
The tournament, which emphasises participation, was organised by the Kāpiti Sports Association, was a chance for children to experience an unfamiliar sport.