Sharks first side to travel up north

23Feb14 - Northlander secondary schools baseballers playing Orewa Sharks. PHOTO/RON BURGIN

Northland age group baseballers are making history tomorrow when they look to take down the Orewa Sharks in Tikipunga.

The region's under-11 and secondary school sides will be hoping to leave the Sharks high and dry as the Orewa-based side become the first to ever travel to visit Northland.

Baseball Northland president Paul Allen was blown away when the Sharks management suggested they travel north for a return match, after Northland played them last weekend.

"We make contact with a club every year and they're all welcome to come see us, [but] for some reason it's a short drive down but it's a long drive up," Allen commented.

"It is frustrating [clubs not coming north], they always say they want to grow the game but they don't want to leave their patch."

While it might seem like a nice gesture, Allen said the sides were evenly matched - more so in the secondary school ranks rather than the under-11s.

"The secondary team went down in the final innings, and the under-11s started strong, but being their first ever game of proper baseball, they kind of wilted and we got a good old fashioned hiding in the end.

"We've learnt a lot from that game, and we can improve. They enjoy it, sometimes you wonder what's going on in their heads but they're all smiling."

Allen said the matches were a continuation from their in-house club baseball competition which finished up before Christmas.

"We've had a bunch of kids who are keen and skilled and now they're playing proper baseball against another club," Allen said of the squads of kids who stay on and train once the season finishes.

"It's a learning curve for all. There are kids who think baseball is about catching the ball and hitting the ball, but they've got to know where to throw and know what is going to happen before they get the ball."

The under-11s kick off tomorrow's action at Tikipunga Sports Park at 12pm, with the secondary school group starting at 1pm.

Tomorrow's matches continue a busy summer for baseball in Northland after Baseball New Zealand brought up its national selectors in a bid to find players, or potential players, for the Kiwi Under-12 and Under-15 teams.

Under 11: Rheuben Boutet-Manning, Cole Allen, Aiden Buckton, Tane Murphy, Jon Cherrington-Irving, Quinn Buckton, Matiu Murphy, Grayson Pukeroa, Kiri Tonga, Shannon Raimona, Kahukura Tonga, Hamiora Tonga.

Secondary: Joshua Moore, Aotea Parata, Xander King, Ethan Moore, Katarina Walker, Parirau Tonga, Tahu Tawhiwhirangi, Claudia King, Te Wakaroa Tonga, Micah Tonga, Zahra Cherrington-Irving, Josh Anderson.

Northland vs Orewa
* Tikipunga Sports Park, tomorrow.
* The under-11s game starts at 12pm.
* The secondary school side start at 1pm.