Tauranga Boys' College's Caleb Aperahama was a force to be reckoned with at Main Beach yesterday on the way to winning the senior boys secondary school title with Tom Reid. Photo/George Novak
Tauranga Boys' College's Caleb Aperahama was a force to be reckoned with at Main Beach yesterday on the way to winning the senior boys secondary school title with Tom Reid. Photo/George Novak
The shear scale of the weekend's Secondary School Volleyball Nationals made for a long two days at Main Beach as a host of local powerhouses again came to the fore.
With close to 500 matches between 143 teams spread across 29 courts, the expanse of beach between Moturiki Island andthe Mount Maunganui Surf Club writhed with the best young volleyballers the country has to offer until well after the scheduled mid-afternoon finish.
Tournament director Tim Cleaver had plenty on his plate as matches of unerring quality raged all around him.
"With the surf club running down there as well we were crammed in but it went well," Cleaver said.
"We've got an extra 20 teams than last year. It's growing really fast - it's a little bit concerning about how much beach we'll have left to work with if it keeps growing."
The tournament marks the end of the beach volleyball season, with indoor to take centre stage until players are chosen for high performance camps ahead of the Youth Olympics and under-17 and under-19 world champs.
