Wanganui Rugby Union chief takes delivery of the totara trophy with a back story carved by Allan E Jennings to be awarded to an outstanding school leaver in the game.
Wanganui Rugby Union chief takes delivery of the totara trophy with a back story carved by Allan E Jennings to be awarded to an outstanding school leaver in the game.
A totara carving with a back story has been gifted to the Wanganui Rugby Union to reward outstanding rising stars of the game on the cusp of leaving school.
Allan E Jennings has gifted the union his carving completed 27 years ago when he was joinery instructor at Wanganui Prisonat Kaitoke.
"One of my then joinery students was a tops security prisoner who was also a master Maori carver and he taught me the intricacies of the art," Jennings said.
"I carved this mania (figure) with the shape of a rugby ball as his puku." The design refelcted his love of rugby and he also had a brother with four sons playing rugby at the time, so donated it to a club in his brother's home town.
"It was also to be awarded to outstanding school leavers in the game. I had strict instructions on how it was to be dealt with. However, I was watching rugby on television about five or six years ago and there was my trophy lying on its side at some match up north.
"Up until then it had not been awarded to any player, so I retrieved it with the help of a former All Black. I have now gifted it to the Wanganui union and I'm sure it will be looked after well. Recipients will be given a smaller replica and the original trophy will remain at the union with the name of each winner engraved on it," Jennings said.
Wanganui union chief executive Bridget Belsham said the trophy would be awarded to a player already chosen at Saturday night's annual Wanganu Rugby Awards.
