Earlier this term, we entered two junior teams and a senior team in the Canterbury Secondary Schools' Rugby League 9s Tournament at Ngā Puna Wai.

The senior team, coached by JaeJae Smith, faced a tough lineup of opponents at the start of the day. They went up against the defending national champions, St Thomas's, in their opening match and lost 20-6. This was followed by a match against CBHS, who defeated them 22-6.

The seniors concluded their day on a high note with a 32-0 win over Haeata and a 12-4 victory against the Hornby/Rolleston Combined team.

For many of our players, this was their first experience with Rugby League, and it was exciting to see new playmakers emerging, such as George Kneebone and James Setter. Returning players Isaiah Smith, Joel Harris, Kymani Hau-Taunoa, and Noah Love, who were part of last year's nationals side, provided crucial momentum in the middle throughout the day. We look forward to the senior side reassembling late in Term 3 as we gear up for another NZSS Nationals campaign.

Due to the high level of interest among the juniors, we formed two junior teams, composed of a mix of Year 9 and Year 10 players.

The Junior Black team, coached by Sam Tatupu, lost to St Thomas's, Haeata, and Marlborough Boys' College in pool play. The Junior Red team, coached by Mac Gibson, was defeated by St Thomas's and SBHS in pool play but managed to secure a win against Greymouth Combined, 20-10. These results led to the two SBC teams meeting in the Bowl semi-final. The Black team led the match for most of the first half through outstanding performances by Xander Milne, Taani Nuku, and Mako Downs, and they looked fairly comfortable heading into the second half. However, powerful ball running by Harley Watts and Troy Applegarth, dynamic moves from Jacob Ioane, and strong tackles from Samuel England, fuelled the Red team’s comeback, resulting in a 26-16 victory. The Red team then went on to win the Bowl final 24-16 against Greymouth Combined.

All in all, it was a fantastic day for Rugby League, and it was great to see our players giving their all in a relatively new sport for the college.

A big thank you to all the parents who helped on the day and to our coaches—we couldn’t have done it without you.