Touch Rugby

Our Maungaraki touch teams had a fantastic Term 4 season! Thank you so much to the coaches, managers, parents, and all players for the support in making this season possible. It was definitely one like no other, and we appreciate the role everyone played in making is a success. Bring on the 2022 Term 1 season!

Each coach nominated an MVP (Most Valuable Player) and MIP (Most Impressive Player) for the season. Check out below what they had to say:

Year 1/2

Maungaraki Miraculous
MVP: Hamish Kerr
MIP: Daniel Jones

We've seen our year zero and 1 players grow through the term, they know where they should be and want the ball, our year 2 players are all coming along well and helping their younger colleagues. Henry has got his fair share of tries and Jacob helped so much, always jumping into dummy half. The most nominations for MVP went to Hamish Kerr for his all round play, thinking about the game, getting touches and getting tries. MIP goes to Daniel Jones who I think had only scored 1 try prior to this season but picked up a hat trick in round 5; he's been a great asset to the team and worked really hard.

Maungaraki Majestic
MVP: Kendall Struthers. It was Kendall’s first year and she really stepped up knowing all our team and helping assist Marcus when he was coaching without me.
MIP: Kaia Jensen. She’s been in our team for two seasons, she’s gotten more into it and now loves being dummy half and has really increased her involvement in the team.

Maungaraki Magnificent
MVP: Liam Morris
MIP: Zachary Harman

Year 3/4

Maungaraki Mysterious
MVP: Harry Faulkner
MIP: Molly Newrick

Maungaraki Metros
MVP: Josh Papps
MIP: Minh Huynh

Maungaraki Magnetic
MVP: Dhyey Chudasama
MIP: Ruby Kleinveld

Year 5/6

Maungaraki Mavericks
MVP: Olivia Turner
MIP: Quinn Tipoki
Overall Player of the Year: Toby Browne

Maungaraki Marvels
MVP: Noah Kleinveld
MIP: Isobel Hemmingsen

The progression the entire team made through term 4 was impressive. We were starting to see some really great plays being made by the team under the guidance of our wonderful year 8 coaches Mia Burt and Sophie Papps, who gave up their Friday nights to support our school in the game they love. Awesome that parents could be there to watch the last few games and see how far the kids had come too. We had some really hard and evenly matched games and the kids really shone with their resilience. With a subbing bench of 4, the fact so many were eager to get back on the field as soon as they came off is testament to how much they were enjoying the game. Really proud of this crew! Thanks so much to Mia and Sophie, we couldn't have done it without you.

Maungaraki Matrix
MVP: Jackson Berry. Jackson’s high energy and enthusiasm for the game is contagious - he always gave every game and practice his all. He really enjoys Touch and is a real asset to the team.
MIP: Sasha Chan. This was Sasha’s first term playing touch and he quickly became an invaluable member of the team. His fast feet, commitment to giving each game 110% and great teamwork helped take the Matrix to victory in the final. 

A huge shout out to the whole team from the coaches! What a great bunch of players we had this term!

Year 7/8

Maungaraki Mustangs
MVP: Casey Hurley. Casey is a quiet, yet high achieving player. She's great to coach, and listens intently to instructions. Casey always gives her everything, and is a positive and bright influence on the other team members. Casey was also on the end of some impressive team tries.

MIP: Toby Schulz. Coming into an established team is always a hard task, but with Toby it felt like he'd always been there. Always with a smile on his face, Toby worked hard during the season - soaking up all of the learnings, and improving game after game in both confidence and skills. 

The Maungaraki Mustangs won the Year 7/8 Mixed grade, playing a very determined Muritai team in the A final. We played some tough games, especially against exceptional club teams - but the team always kept their cool, and supported each other. Sophie, Mia, Sam & Lachlan M were absolute rocks in the middle, working hard on defence and setting up the tries on attack. Sophia's defence was amazing, chasing down and putting constant pressure on. Casey, Lachlan B & Toby did a great job out on the wing and at link, shutting down potential tries and also being ready to dot down in the corners. A huge thank you to our parent helpers, especially to our MVM (Most Valuable Mum) Nicky Papps for running the team in my absence and driving the Maungaraki Bus down to the games each week.

Congratulations Mustangs on being not only great individuals, but more importantly, a wonderful team! 

Maungaraki Madness
MVP: Madison Herapath and Mia Tuapawa-Spooner
MIP: Briallen Aberhart

Maungaraki Magic
MVP: Charlie Edhouse. Charlie is fully committed to the team, and always gives 100% in training and games. She is fast, and was our highest try scorer of the season, scoring tries in all but 1 game. She has also shown great leadership on the field when on defence, encouraging her team to move forward and slide when required.
MIP: Jake Driscoll. Jake has just joined the team and has consistently improved throughout the season. He is attacking with speed, improved his passing, experienced for the first time positional play, and overall is playing with more confidence.