The Chiefs Manawa team was hoping to keep a low profile when players trained in Cambridge at Hautapu Sports Club on Sunday.
Chiefs Manawa outside the Hautapu clubrooms in Cambridge after training. Photo: Mary Anne Gill
But team management chose what was potentially the busiest day of the year around Memorial Park with the monthly Trash n Treasure on the adjacent fields and across the road, the Pre 49ers Hot Rod Show and Shine.
The workout was in the stifling heat under the watchful eye of head coach Dwayne Sweeney and assistant – former Black Fern Carla Hohepa. Players then headed indoors to fine tune their haka ready for the opening match on March 1.
Chiefs Manawa, finalists last year, will have a pre-season hit out against the champion Blues team later this month in Hamilton as the curtain raiser to Super Rugby’s Chiefs v Crusaders.
Among the players at training was four-time world champion 15s and sevens player Kelly Brazier, 35, returning to the Chiefs Manawa she played for in 2022 when they won the inaugural Aupiki title.
“Kelly is a player that embodies professionalism and work ethic, which we value highly here at the Chiefs. Her hunger to compete is what sets her apart and is evident in her successes with the Black Ferns and Black Ferns Sevens,” Sweeney said when her signing was confirmed.
Another star is winger Ruby Tui, 33, a regular in the Black Ferns Sevens team who like loose forward Kennedy Simon is another world champion contributing to the Chiefs’ team this season.
