It has been another successful and enjoyable Rugby Sevens season this year, with a group of over 40 girls getting involved in the Friday night tournaments that the girls are currently playing in this term.

We finished off the 2017 season on a very high note, placing 2nd in the National Condor Sevens tournament. This was a massive achievement for all the girls selected to play in the team, placing 2nd in the country being a feat CGHS Sevens has never achieved before. A countless number of trainings and gritty morning fitness sessions certainly paid off, as the team achieved an amazing result, a moment that will be remembered for a lifetime.

After losing multiple Year 13 players from the previous year, we begun this year with a mix of new players all varying in all ages and experience. A squad of 12 girls were selected to compete in the South Island tournament in Timaru during Term 1, where the team finished second overall, closely losing the final to Motueka Girls’, our all-time rivals from previous years. This tournament was a great way to start the season and a confidence boost for the team to go ahead into rest of the season to be played later in the year.

This term the Friday night school’s competition began, with Girls’ High entering 4 teams, a Senior team, U15, developement blue, and development red team. For the first two Friday tournaments the teams play off in their pools, before finding the winners from each pool where they play off in a final. The last, third, Friday tournament is the Condor’s qualifying tournament, which is essential for CGHS to win in order to secure our spot as second seating in the Condor tournament, and in order to qualify for the National tournament.

Recently, the team was nominated as a finalist in the 2018 Zonta Sports Awards for the most outstanding team, which we won alongside the Rangi Ruru under 18’s rowing eight. This was a massive achievement for the team and one we are certainly proud of, beating teams of netballers, basketballers and footballers for the title of most outstanding team of young sportswomen at Thursday night's 28th Zonta awards, held at the Hornby Working Men's Club.

The team won the qualifying tournament and travelled to Auckland to compete over the weekend of  1/2 December. This was a great tournament and the girls took the strong North Island opposition in their stride. After some great play and wins the team faced Putaruru College in the quarter finals. They won this game but then lost in the semi finals to a very strong and skilled team from Howick College; the Howick girls then went on to win the tournament. Our team were third equal in New Zealand - a fantastic and well-deserved result! Credit must go to Jamie Livingstone, and his assistant Grace Brooker, for his great coaching. The girls look forward to 2019; smashing other schools and doing CGHS proud again.

Lucinda Hutchinson

Head of Rugby Sevens