Jubilant welcome for kapa haka winners

An excited group of supporters gathered at the Whangarei airport yesterday to welcome home the best Maori singing group in the world.
Supporters waved and shouted congratulations as 50 members of the Hatea kapa haka group taxied up the runway in their chartered plane.
The group emerged from the plane holding the Te Ropu Waiata Maori O Aoteoroa trophy - their prize for having won the choral section at the world's biggest kapa haka competition, Te Matatini O Te Ra, at Wai o Hika Estate, north of Gisborne.
Some of their supporters had driven 12 hours from the festival to make it back in time to welcome the group at the airport.
One of those was David Tapene, who composed and conducted the chorus sung by the winning team.
Mr Tapene said the chorus was based on Psalm 121, his mother-in-law's favourite psalm, and he wrote it a few months ago for his father-in-law's unveiling ceremony.
The performers had worked hard to learn the chorus leading up to the event and had hit all the right notes on the day, he said.
"You know what you want, and you know the sounds you want, and we just hit it on the day."
Hatea kapa haka group leader Pauline Hopa said the group was very excited to win the choral award.
"We're very pleased to be taking home quite a prestigious award," she said.
"The group that wins that are said to be the best singers in the country.
"We're singing what we believe. We understand that the particular psalm gives us comfort and we look to the maker of heaven and earth, so if you sing with belief and you've got quite a good ensemble of singers, that alone will give you success."
This year's success was the second time the Hatea group had won the choral section at Te Matatini O Te Ra.
The kapa haka title was won by the Rotorua-based group Te Matarae i Orehu.