CENTENNIAL Park's Year 5/6 team won in the younger of the two age categories. Photo Amiria Tapu.
Thirteen young Ki o Rahi teams came to Piopio College for the Te Nehenehenui Ki o Rahi festival last Friday.
There were two grades: Year 7/8s and Year 5/6s.
It was deliberately called a festival rather than a tournament to emphasise its cooperative values.
Each team nominated a player from the opposition for the Ngakau Māhaki Tohu award, given to “a student who demonstrates excellent spirit and sportsmanship.”
Those winners are yet to be announced.
Ki o Rahi is a fast-paced sport played on a circular field. Games are played between a defending taniwha team and an attacking kīoma team.
Teams score points by touching a tupu, a central marker, with the ball. Kī-o-Rahi is derived from ball games played in circular clearings before colonisation.
Centennial Park’s Tī Ara, coached by teacher Mani Borell, topped the Year 5/6 category after an “awesome” game against Benneydale.
The Centennial Park tamariki told their stories to student Amaia Tapu, also the team photographer alongside fellow year 6 student Eli Rapana.
She asked fellow year 6 Kauri Wynyard which team was the most challenging to play.
“Mōkau – because we only started getting most of our points in the last quarter,” Kauri said.
Year 6 Wiremu Rangitonga said his favourite aspect of the game was trying to protect the tupu – “the stick in the middle.”
“It was fun blocking the balls,” he said.
Year 6 Manaia Waaka thought the “very fun” sport was great for all – especially those girls who like to try new things.
Year 5 Taiao Wynyard was the youngest Centennial Park student to participate.
“I was only a tiny bit scared,” he said.
Te Kūiti High School supported the other kura.
Staff members including Nano Te Whare visited primary schools in the area (including Pukenui, TK Primary and Mōkau) to provide gear and advice ahead of the festival.
“We always try to give them as much help as we can,” Nano said.
On the day, top TKHS players served as referees.
“We had our two representative students out there: New Zealand representative Potahi McTainsh and New Zealand Māori representative Hone Mathieson.”
TKHS has played competitive Ki o Rahi for the past 10 years, so knows the game better than many. It recently finished third at the NZ Secondary Schools Nationals in 2023.
TKHS support helped ensure the fields were a good size for the students who would play on them.
“We helped them set up the dimensions of the fields for the year 5s to 8s, just to make them a little bit bigger, to help them out,” Nano said.
The younger ones get more running and play area that way, he said.
Benneydale principal Jacqui Coogan said her students appreciated the chance to play at the festival.
Their goal was to “have a good time and learn a new game”.
The Benneydale students were so exhausted afterwards that they all fell asleep in the van on the way home, she said.
Hosts Piopio College saw their senior team Ruru win the final against Te Wharekura o Maniapoto Waiwaia – in the year 7/8 category.
