Novices starting to gel as team

The Muriwhenua under-13 girls team have been hard in training to prepare for the Maori basketball nationals in Rotorua this weekend.

The Muriwhenua under-13 girls have being doing the hard yards to ensure they're up to scratch before heading into the competitive cauldron of the National Maori Basketball Tournament in Rotorua at the end of this month.

Coach Shane Pika McDonald said he began training for the upcoming tournament four months ago. He stepped the regime up to four days a week over the holidays which included a three-day boot camp-styled session at Matai Bay.

This saw the squad getting up to run the beach at 6am every day, followed by hikes, swimming and variety of other cross fitness/ endurance activities to improve their stamina.

Pika said he was impressed by the way his side of rookies had responded to the challenge and knitted together strongly.

"They are all first-year basketballers, all netballers transformed to basketballers. They have come a long way," he said, adding the relatively intense training regime would help ensure all his players will be carrying the necessary firepower required to face other teams in their division, including several sides from schools where students "live and breathe" the indoor court game.

The under-13 squad is one of four teams representing Muriwhenua at the Maori nationals.

The faction has also entered teams in the men's, women's and under-17 boys' divisions (the latter side's coach is well known Kaitaia basketball exponent, Freda Riwai).

On behalf of the girls, Pika particularly wanted to thank all the local sponsors who contributed to the campaign.

DoC were also acknowledged for allowing access to Matai Bay and surrounds for the boot camp sessions.

- More than 200 teams are expected to converge on the Rotorua Energy Events Centre to contest divisions from under-9s to seniors at the 2017 National Maori Basketball Tournament from Thursday to Saturday, January 26-28.