The HBHS Premier Inline Hockey team was excited to be able to compete in the NZSS National Tournament held in New Plymouth in May. We stayed in camp for two nights and, when not at the rink, the boys challenged each other to giant chess and riding the go karts. They behaved impeccably at all times, receiving many compliments on the manner in which they conducted and presented themselves. On Saturday, at the rink, we progressed through the round robin with two wins. We ended the day with a draw against New Plymouth Boys’ High School, the pre-tournament favourites, subduing a loud and parochial home crowd. The next day, we won our semi-final against Kerikeri High School, 10-1, which meant we replayed NPBHS once more in the final. The Year 13 players for NPBHS were too strong for our young team in the end and were the deserved winners, taking out the title. We finished with a silver medal, however, and the boys, although initially devastated, bounced back quickly and are already looking forward to next year.

I would sincerely like to thank Rochelle Middleton for assisting in the management of the team, and Jonathon Tagney and Brett Robertson for their expert and supportive coaching during the games. Lachlan Robertson is an excellent Captain of Inline Hockey and he was impressive in his leadership of the younger boys. We will sadly lose Lachlan in 2023, but the remainder of the team will still be attending the school, which bodes well for the future. 

Photography by Rochelle Middleton.