August 28, 2023
Media Release: Ruamata Boys hockey create history
Media Release: Ruamata Boys hockey create history
Author: Kereama Wright
History will be created this week with Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ruamata becoming the first Māori immersion school to take part in the Rankin Cup or Indian shield.
32 teams take the field at the Wellington National Stadium this week as they look to secure a top two pool finish in order to progress to the country’s top secondary school hockey tournament, the Rankin Cup. The bottom 16 will compete for the India Shield.
Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ruamata is a Rotorua based Te Aho Matua Māori immersion school with a roll of just under 200 where they have a pool of 36 high school boys to select from.
It’s the classic tale of David vs Goliath. A little Māori school up against schools such as Kings College, St Bedes and Westlake Boys High.
Head coach and former Ruamata pupil, Tenga Rangitauira, was acknowledged by Hockey NZ this year for coaching contributions.
He says, reaching the tournament alone is a significant milestone for the kura. “This is the first time in the one hundred year history of this tournament a kura kaupapa Māori will take the field. We are proud to represent our school, our wider community and te iwi Māori.”
“This has been a long time coming for our small school. Since our first tournament in 1999, taking te reo Māori and tikanga to the heights of this sport has been a strong desire of ours.”
His side made headlines last year after they received complaints for the use of te reo Māori during their 5-2 final win over Ashburton College.
Ruamata takes on 2022 finalist’s, St Andrews, at 8am on Monday before taking on Kings College at 5:15pm.
ENDS