National Champions, the Senior A Touch team, have defended their South Island title.

The Columba College Senior A Touch team, who won the National title in December, felt like they had targets on their backs at the recent South Island titles - but it did not worry them. Their focus was simply on being 'better than before' and if they could do that, success would come.

We welcomed three new players to the team this year, including Year 9 students Neve Graamans and Lara McCulloch, with Year 13 student Charlotte Wheeler. These players have worked very hard to learn their roles as part of this team.

A change in format saw several new and unknown teams enter the tournament, which is great for game development. Pool play would see us play five games on day one, with the top two in each pool progressing to the semi-finals on Sunday.

Our day began with a 10-1 win over Rangi Ruru and a 10-3 win over Christchurch Girls'. Game three saw a 14-1 win over Craighead from Timaru, then an 11-1 win against Nelson College for  Girls. The closest game of the round robin was our last game with a 7-0 win over Burnside.

A win in our semi-final against St Margaret's College would see us through to the final, and a clinical 9-0 display did just that! We were ready to meet St Hilda's again in a rematch, showing the strength of Dunedin Touch.

The team were relaxed entering the final, knowing that if they did their job well, the tries would come. Outstanding attacking skill and determined defence saw a 7-1 scoreline in the final against St Hilda's.

The team scored an astounding 68 tries in the tournament, with only 7 against. An outstanding display of Touch that received many compliments from our opposition and spectators.

Thank you to Mrs Kaye Sycamore for her help with the team over the weekend, and to all our travelling supporters.