Locals ready to dance up a Storm

Ashleigh Witkowski (front row, left), India Hakiwai, Hannah Coutts and Sarah Witkowski from Dance Express Napier have joined the Melbourne Storm official cheerleader team for the big game against the Dragons on Saturday. Photo / Warren Buckland

Four Hawke's Bay dancers have been given the chance of a lifetime by joining eight of the Tiger Air Melbourne Storm cheerleaders for tonight's historic NRL rugby league match in Napier.

The four, chosen from 10 during an audition with the newly-arrived Storm troupe at Dance Express in Napier yesterday, are 21-year-olds India Hakiwai and twins Ashleigh and Sara Witkowski, all of Napier, and Hannah Coutts, 17, of Havelock North.

The class of the Dance Express Events crew immediately impressed Storm cheerleaders coach and choreographer Trish Squire-Rogers, who said that if she could have chosen all 10 she would have.

Miss Hakiwai, a dance instructor and cafe worker, said: "It's amazing. It's surreal. It's an amazing opportunity."

She is also keen on sports, having played netball and other codes, and there's a connection to rugby league with her father having been a Hawke's Bay Unicorns representative.

The opportunities were highlighted by the experiences of the visitors, none of whom had been to Napier before they landed on the club's chartered flight on Thursday night. "We had never heard of Napier," they said.

"We are very excited to be here," said Ms Squire-Rogers.

"We got to meet the Mayor. Well, I bumped into the Mayor."

Two of the young women - Kristina Hardner and Breanna Davic - have performed at the NRL final, in front of crowds of over 80,000, and members of the troupes run by Ms Squire-Rogers have performed at other major events, including AFL Australian rules games.

Other visiting cheerleaders are Tori Monk, Eloise Rawthorne, Alex Beltrame, Chloe Gibson, Lilli Newman, and Kaila Quin.

While a victory for their team was the object of the trip, their place on social media had its place. "Melbourne Storm Cheerleaders on Instagram," said Ms Squire-Rogers. "Can we get 10,000 likes by the end of the game?"

Glenys Murphy and Kerry Tough, who run the Dance Express Events troupe from the Dance Express studio at the corner of Taradale Rd and Austin St, Napier, were overwhelmed by the opportunity for their students and dancers. Ms Murphy said it wouldn't have been possible without their facilities.

Tickets are still available for the game against St George Illawarra Dragons, starting at 7.30pm tonight, as the city strives to pack the park with a capacity of around 17,000 fans. It's the first NRL game at McLean Park, the eighth ground in New Zealand to be used for matches in what is regarded by many as the toughest club competition in the world.

Among those there will be Storm club members Adrian Woolerton and Kirby Smith, who moved from Melbourne to Auckland about 18 months ago, and were quickly impressed with Hawke's Bay after arriving in Napier yesterday.

"It's our first time we've been here, " said Mr Woolerton, who hails from Richmond, the home-base of the Storm in Melbourne. "But we will come back," he said.

"The Storm didn't play any games in New Zealand last year."