With the end of the first 2022 season of handball, we reflected on how there have been some new and exciting developments and challenges this season.

Firstly, the most significant change that LPHS underwent was moving to mixed team formats with much larger teams. The changing in team types allowed for two things: the first being allowing a more significant margin of absence for covid related outcomes (which would play out to have been a good call), and the second allowing for a better and more comfortable representation of game level which accommodated for a more considerable amount of our players.

LPHS Maroon competed in the Division 1 competition, and LPHS White played in the Division 2 competition. They placed 2nd and 1st respectively.

The Maroon team hopes to take out the Division 1 competition in the coming season, feeling ambitious and wanting to play much better handball. A few steps forward would include building confidence in not just ourselves but also our teammates, so we can play more intuitively and jump up a level, nailing basics and more advanced gameplay in the months to come.

The key to this will be creating a much stronger handball community within LPHS so that the legacy begins as a way into the future.

Otago Representatives: John Barham, Ethan Dalwwod, Grace Jones, Yannick Medvecky-Wolkenhauer, Eva Woodhouse

Many of the senior handball players from Logan Park have been fortunate enough to have the opportunity to play handball on a more competitive level, travelling out of town to compete against teams from all over NZ as regional representatives.

So far this year, our players have competed at Beach Handball Nationals, the Queenstown Social Tournament, and the first round of South Island Shield.

Yannick, Eva, and I travelled to Christchurch in late February as a part of the Otago squad to compete at Beach Handball Nationals. Eva and I played in the women's team, Yannick in the men's team, and all three in a mixed team together. It was a valuable learning experience for all three of us, which we immensely enjoyed and would love the opportunity to do again in the future.

Ethan, John, and Yannick also attended a social tournament in Queenstown alongside the Otago Men's team on the 9th and 10th of April.

All 5 of our Otago representatives played the first round of South Island Shield in Dunedin at the end of the previous term. The women's game was incredibly competitive, with Christchurch only pulling ahead by 2 points. The men's game was similar, and the boys will keep working on their individual and team skills moving forward.