Beach Volleyball: O'Dea and Watson take title

Mike Watson (left) and Sam O'Dea won the New Zealand Open at Stanley St Tennis Centre at the weekend. Photo / Owen Hammond

Tauranga pairing and No1 seeds Sam O'Dea and Mike Watson defeated Rene Kapa and Thomas Hartels in a nail-biter final of the New Zealand Beach Volleyball Open on Sunday.

At one set all at the ASB (Stanley St) Tennis Centre, the match went down to a cliffhanger deciding set before O'Dea and Watson were able to pull away from the second seeds and take the title 21-19, 21-23, 15-10 and the series championship, finishing the tour undefeated.

"It was awesome having the event back at Stanley St, it is great exposure for our sport and an exciting venue to play in," said O'Dea.

O'Dea and Watson have recently qualified for the World Championships in the Netherlands and are now focusing on international events in the lead-up.

"Tom and Rene really pushed us in the final. It's great to have this level of competition in New Zealand as we now start to prepare for the international season," said Watson.

The pair will be heading to Asia in March to compete on the Asian Tour. From there they will fly to Los Angeles, for a training camp, and then to Europe for the world championships.

A good result at this event will help them on their way as they work to qualify for the Rio Olympic Games.

"The pair are growing in confidence, with a string of excellent results over the summer, and will look to make podium positions regularly on the upcoming tough Asian circuit," says Volleyball New Zealand's Dave McPhearson.

The women's final was another great battle, with number two seeded Julia Tilly and Shaunna Polly, from Hamilton, taking the match 2-0 against top seeded Melissa Ruru and Danielle Quiqley.

Tilley and Polley had a low-key lead-up to the tournament, with Tilley injured and out of action for some weeks, causing the pair to drop to third ranking going into the event. The New Zealand Open was the final event of the New Zealand National Tour, with previous stops in Mairangi Bay, Karapiro and Mount Maunganui. It was making its return to Stanley St after a five-year break.

The centre court was transformed from the hard surface to a beach volleyball court with seven truck loads of sand coming from Mairangi Bay beach volleyball centre.

The draw was made up of the 11 best men's and women's teams in New Zealand plus two international teams from Germany in the men and Vanuatu in the women.