Hoop Club Kāpiti director Angelo Robinson makes call for central sports hub for youngsters

Some of the many youngsters who enjoy going to Hoop Club Kāpiti. Photo / David Haxton

Hoop Club Kāpiti is seeing a strong increase in the number of players, and that in turn is putting pressure on its training base.

“Our numbers are growing and we’re running out of space,” club director Angelo Robinson said.

“We’ve got 30 to 40 kids, which is very unusual at this point in time.”

The club, which has a group of coaches, teaches a range of young age groups each Sunday morning in the old Paraparaumu College gym.

He said the growth in numbers highlighted the need for more sporting facilities on the coast.

“We’re going to continue to grow, especially now that Transmission Gully has been built, and more people are coming to live in the district.

“With more and more people living on the coast, there needs to be a closer look at what we can do to improve things.”

He advocated for a community centre for all sports.

“I’ve been talking about that for a long time.

“It would be great to have more facilities for children because there’s not a lot for them to do.

“Having a new facility would be great.

“You could have the Tall Ferns or the Wellington Saints come out here to play a game.

“It’s going to happen some day — it’s just a matter of time.”

Robinson, who has been involved with the club for 29 years and was a highly regarded player in his prime, said the ideal location was somewhere on vacant land near Coastlands.

“You could have a rugby field, a softball field ... everyone could go to one sports-focused hub.

“It has to be somewhere central.”

He hoped someone would step forward to make the dream a reality.

“I think there’s someone out there who can see the vision and would get in behind it.”