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For the second year in a row, the Tomarata Rugby Football Club won’t be fielding a senior team in this year’s Northland competition.
Club president Ryan Allen says the club tried to muster a side, but could only interest about 10 players.
Last year, it went in with Wharehine Wellsford, but this year Wellsford has been able to make up two teams on its own.
“It’s disappointing that our club couldn’t find the players, but we’ve struggled ever since covid,” Allen says.
“I thought we might be in a better position this year with all the new growth in Mangawhai, but a lot of the people who have moved up from Auckland continue to play with their city clubs.”
Allen felt that the risk of injury and the fact that the competition started when a lot of people were still playing summer sports were all contributing factors.
He says the club hopes to host a couple of Golden Oldies games this year and the tag rugby on Thursday nights was “booming”, with about 500 players involved. The family night includes games for three year olds upwards.
Meanwhile, Tomarata’s junior competition starts on April 29.
Coordinator Michelle Keast says the club will have four teams – under seven, under nine, under 11 and under 13 – who will play in the Rodney/Otamatea competition.
She says the junior club is in a rebuilding phase after numbers fell as a result of covid.
It is not too late to register players; boys and girls all welcome.
Info: Michelle on 027 244 1753, email tomaratarugby@gmail.com or just turn up at the club, 710 Mangawhai Road, on a Thursday night from 5.30pm onwards.
Engaging teens
One of the reasons senior teams in the district are struggling to find players could be that rugby is losing players in the teenage years, according to Tomarata coach Lane Nepia. With this in mind, Nepia has put together two composite teams from clubs in the Rodney/Otametea region – Otamatea, Maungaturoto, Kaiwaka, Wellsford and Tomarata.
They will play in the wider Northland competition this year under the name Central Kaipara Whai. Nepia says all being well, he hopes to field a composite girls team and an under 19 team next year.
“The comp doesn’t start until April 29, but we’ve been working with the players now for several weeks and will run a camp at Mangawhai on April 1.
They’re an awesome group who are really starting to bond.” Nepia is coaching the under 16s, while Arapeta Waata is coaching the under 14s.
