A meeting of the Manaia and the Taniwha proved a great match for the young members of Whangārei Heads School's Summit Club on Thursday.
Players Tom Robinson and Aorangi Stokes didn't play later that night when Northland Rugby's Taniwha took to the field - and were soundly beaten - in a match against Auckland's premier side in Whangārei. Robinson and Stokes had taken knocks in the Taniwha's winning game against Southland the week before.
But earlier in the day, the two were sporting enough to tackle Mt Manaia with members of Whangārei Heads School's Summit Club. The players accompanied the Year 7 and 8 class' mountain-running pupils a short way up the track, but their mentoring and advice could yet prove a game changer for the sporty kids who weekly run up the mountain chasing their own personal bests.
''Being a match day, the players were on a pretty tight time frame and could not go all the way up the mountain with us so they cheered us off and timed our count down,'' Summit Club leader Sara Robinson said.
![Tom Robinson and Aorangi Stokes with Whangārei Heads School's Summit Club, whose members tackle Mt Manaia every week.](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/TGICAKOEAYO2U4TB4R2HBL4Z3M.jpg?auth=01404a96bb3053836fd987058a7d9d52c2cba23e283e113d7ad4c4d771ca2d61&width=16&height=22&quality=70&smart=true)