Phill Jones coaching the Nelson Under-18 team earlier this year. Photo / BBNZ
A sporting legend who has become a volunteer high school coach to his prodigal son; the longest winning streak in domestic rugby could be set to be broken; under-85kg rugby reaches the skinny end of the season; and the future of New Zealand rugby. Mike Thorpe reports.
Phill and Hayden Jones have one more shot at a national basketball title – before the father-and-son team takes a time-out.
Phill Jones, aka The Reefton Kid, is one of the best ever to pull on the Tall Blacks singlet. The 400-game NBL player with the Nelson Giants now volunteers as head coach for South Island secondary school champions Waimea College. His son Hayden is the team’s biggest attacking weapon, both statistically and literally.
“He’d be getting up to 6′7″ – he’s easily 6 foot 6 [inches],” says Phill.
The Year 13 student, who made his Tall Blacks debut earlier this year and has become a regular with the Giants, is already taller than his father.
“Yeah, it’s not ideal when we walk around the house and he strides past me looking down at me – nothing that a short jab in the ribs doesn’t fix,” jokes Phill.
Managing a parent-child/coach-player relationship is something that many families can relate to – and the Joneses are no different.
“I’m pretty matter-of-fact with him and we have our moments. At times I get on him because I feel like he’s being too unselfish.”
Hayden’s manner on court is familiar to Phill.
“He reminds me so much of me when I was a kid. He’s super-competitive and he really wants to win but he’s also really humble and I like the way he plays. He gets after it but he’s not dirty.”
The competitive spirit of the junior Jones is evident at training, too.
“We have our little moments in practice where Dad hasn’t called a foul for him and he doesn’t like it. We get over it pretty quickly.”
All kidding aside, as his coach and father, Jones is full of praise for the 17-year-old.
“He moves really well, good athlete. I don’t actually remember doing the stuff that he was doing when I was his age.”
The numbers back it up, too. At the recent South Island Championship, Jones topped both the scorer’s chart (222 points) and the averages (31.71 points per game).
“Hayden gets a huge amount of attention. In the final we played against Christ’s [College], they tried to run a box-and-one [zone] on him and just ran a guy next to him the whole game, which gives some of our other guys a free rein and we’ve got enough weapons that they can do that,” said Jones.
For the record, Hayden still managed 37 points in that game (in a 94-84 win), but Phill is quick to point to the depth of Waimea’s whole roster in their success.
“Coen Williams is a really good point guard, excellent shooter, just understands the game – incredible passer. And then Kaden Bracey, those three guys are probably the core of our group and everyone else fits in really nicely around them.”
Jones says his coaching style is very much around a team performance.
“I really push for everyone to be ready to shoot the basketball. We do a lot of shooting and it shows when we play – we shoot a lot of threes.”
Last year that strategy took them to the national final, before falling to Wellington College in a tight contest, 77-72.
“We didn’t change the style that we play and kind of live and die by the three-pointer, but I like it that way.”
The 2024 national champs tip off in Palmerston North at the end of the month and Coach Jones is wary of the quality opponents his side will face.
“I really think that Christ’s will push for a title. Adding in those JTBs [Junior Tall Blacks] into their respective teams, obviously Tama Isaac into Christ’s College, Carter Hopoi into Mount Maunganui among others – which will make their respective teams much stronger, but you wouldn’t want to have it any other way.”
It’ll be Hayden’s last shot at the secondary schools title before he heads to college in the United States next year.
“He has had a verbal commitment with Wisconsin next year. That’s [former Tall Black] Kirk Penney’s old school. The signing period for that is November this year – so all things going well Hayden should be committing to that school,” says Jones.
100% committed. Thanks to coach Gard and the staff at Wisconsin for this awesome opportunity. Looking forward to being part of the Badger family!@BadgerMBB @PCGJ13 pic.twitter.com/UR6HfuSX8t
— Hayden Jones (@HaydenJonesNZ) July 25, 2024
He’ll join his older sister Maia (St Mary’s College) in the US college ranks – while the youngest Jones (Ava -Year 11) will travel to the girls’ Nationals in Palmerston North with South Island winners St Andrew’s College.
On the court, Jones believes his son’s future could be at point guard.
“He’s got size, he handles the ball pretty good, he’s got good vision, he’s a good passer and he’s good with the ball in his hands. He’s also a pretty good defender.”
Nelson College’s success has continued – even after their unbeaten run came to an end in the national First XV Championship final.
The South Island champs had three players named in the New Zealand Schools squad as well as two in the Barbarians Under-18s and one in the New Zealand Māori Under-18.
Influential first five Harry Inch has been rewarded for an incredible season, as has blockbusting loose forward Saumaki Saumaki. Hardworking halfback Oliver Gibbons also made the top New Zealand schools team.
Christchurch Boys’ High School (CBHS) had three boys recognised for that side, too, CBHS captain and hooker Josh Findlay, athletic lock Finn McLeod and powerful prop James Moore all getting the nod for higher honours.
St Bede’s lock Bede Giera and Southland Boys’ High School’s stand-out prop Thomas Jennings round out the South Island representation.
NZ U18 Māori (South Island players)
NZ Barbarians U18 (South Island players)
High School Old Boys’ Light Bears made a statement in their defence of the national Under-85kg rugby title.
HSOB were far too good for Old Boys University RFC Scallywags of Wellington, winning away 25-7. They’ll now host the semifinal against Auckland University RFC Slugs on Saturday – the curtain-raiser to Canterbury v Counties at Apollo Projects Stadium.
The Slugs hosted the South Island’s other quarter-finalists, Linwood, in last weekend’s quarter-finals. Linwood trailed 22-0 before staging a second-half comeback. In the end, both sides crossed for four tries, but the boot of William Boswell proved the difference for the Auckland University side.
The national final will be played in Wellington on September 28 as the curtain-raiser for the Bledisloe Cup clash.
Another week with the same result – a South Canterbury win. This time it was against neighbours North Otago, 44-31.
South Canterbury are now one win away from rewriting the New Zealand rugby record books. The green-and-blacks have clocked up 36 consecutive wins in the Heartland Championship – stretching back to 2019.
They now share the record for most consecutive wins in an NPC division with Hawke’s Bay. The Magpies achieved their run in the now-defunct second division between 2001-2004.
The record will be South Canterbury’s alone if they can beat Horowhenua Kāpiti at the neutral venue of Eden Park on Sunday. That match will be the third in a triple-header that also features a Farah Palmer Cup clash between Auckland and Hawke’s Bay, and a Bunnings NPC match between Auckland and Southland.
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