Two teams from different countries have been working hard on and off the court to prepare for this year’s AIMS Games tournament.
Suva in a team huddle while Mervin and Manager Miss Fox (pink bandana) look on Photo: Ronella Felizardo
Waikato’s Cambridge Middle School (The Mighty Blues) and St Anne’s Primary School (Suva) from Fiji faced off on the second day of the AIMS Netball Girls competition. Regardless of their different cultures, the athletes shared the goals of AIMS Games displaying camaraderie and inclusivity, finishing the game by exchanging hugs and souvenirs from Fiji.
AIMS was a time for firsts for both teams, The Mighty Blues first international match and the first time on a plane and travelling out of the country for some of the Suva players.
Players from St Anne’s School in Suva, and Cambridge Middle School link up for an end of match photo Photo: Ronella Felizardo
Inez Lesuma (12) team captain of Suva is very excited to play again and see her friends, “It’s good to be back, most of the friends I met last year, I’ve met them again this year.”
Cambridge players Keelan Mareroa and Ava Chadwick were happy to be at the games, playing netball and watching their peers. Keelan said she is grateful for the match with Suva, “Not many people get to play a team from a different country.” While Ava said it has been a “pretty good experience and they’ve been doing really well.”
Danielle Fuller, a teacher from Cambridge Middle School, is ecstatic to support her students, who have been training together since February. She agreed with Keelan saying, “We are lucky to play international netball.”
Joanne Lesuma is the Suva team coach, and said “It’s such a great opportunity for the girls to come and experience New Zealand.” She said the team worked incredibly hard on their tournament fundraising, securing themselves a comfortable air BnB for the week.
In the match, both teams had an enthusiastic start, backed by encouragement from family and friends. Coach Bronwyn Gurney of Mighty Blues has been a strong mentor for the girls and said they have been focused on a lot of team building exercises which has solidified their sportsmanship, “We’ve also been trying to get them exposure to different players as part of their experience.”
Two of Suva’s players, Maritina Seruitukuna, aged 11 sprained her ankle and their centre’s knee swelled but that hasn’t stopped their team spirit.
As well as the families who have travelled with them, Coach Lesuma has been supporting the students by taking care of them on and off the court, in the role of ‘second mum’.
Action shot of teams defence (Suva) and catch (Mighty Blues) Photo: Ronella Felizardo
One of the dads supporting the Fiji team, Mervin, said despite the cold, he is happy to be here to support his daughter.
In the first half of the game, goals were scored by both teams, from The Mighty Blues Macca Shaw (goal attack) and Tess Hancock (Goal shoot and team captain) and Kaitlyn Singh (goal shoot) and Matelita Ofa Tam (goal attack) from Suva.
During the second half of the game, both teams demonstrated precise pivots and defence in a continuous effort. However, Cambridge excelled in their coordination and caught a few rebounds, leading them to win the match 24 points to 10.
Suva congratulated them by gifting shell bracelets as a souvenir from Fiji and Cambridge thanked them with a hug.
SUVA team manager Miss Fox acknowledged that the loss was ‘the kick’ to work extra hard and said “The pressure will push the team’s efforts harder come next game”.
The Zespri AIMS Games is Australasia’s largest junior sporting event and has an aim for adolescents not just to compete in sporting competitions but “to meet others from outside their normal peer group, and to learn and build on their social interaction skills”, an experience this match showed perfectly.
Teams
Suva: Ana Qio, Angela Tafilagi, Blessing Qaqanaivalu, Inez Lesuma, Kaitlyn Singh, Lanya Katirewa, Litiana Rakasalu, Maritina Seruitukuna, Matelita Ofa Tam, Sapphire Lule, Stephanie Waqanivalu, Vivita Raidre
Cambridge Middle School: Aaliyah Tiatoa, Ava Chadwick, Eliana Taylor, Keelan Mareroa, Mackenzie Jones, Mackenzie Shaw, Madison Gurney, Mia van de Wall, Nevaeh Hemana-Paraha. Rachel Rutter, Tess Hancock
Ava Chadwick (left) pictured with Danielle Fuller and Keelan Mareroa Photo: Julia Bartley
