Denis O’Reilly: ‘Not the first time’ sporting van has been shot at in Hawke’s Bay

Black Power life member Denis O’Reilly says an incident in which a van full of rugby players was shot at in Hastings on Saturday was not the first attack on a sporting team in Hawke’s Bay in the past year.

The van was attacked after a match between Tamatea and the Young Māori Players (YMP) on Saturday. The match was abandoned early due to safety concerns, but YMP’s van was pursued by vehicles, which rammed and shot at it after they left.

A photo of the van, showing close to 50 holes in its back window and denting around the top back left corner, was shared with Hawke’s Bay Today on Sunday morning.

Police say they are following “strong” lines of inquiry and that the holes were likely caused by one or two shotgun blasts.

Police on Sunday said the shotgun attack was “gang-linked”, although Hawke’s Bay area commander Inspector Lincoln Sycamore on Monday would not comment on whether gangs were involved.

O’Reilly, a community advocate, said he had witnessed the aftermath of a similar incident in October last year, which went unreported.

He said it was a Black Power inter-club challenge game and the van was “ambushed” north of Bay View.

“A crew were on their way to Raupunga for a league match and their van got shot at with high calibre shot and how someone didn’t get killed I just don’t know,” O’Reilly said.

O'Reilly said a van of rugby players was shot at in October last year while on their way to a game in Raupunga for a Black Power inter-club challenge match. Photo / Denis O'Reilly

“There were children in the vehicle and the whole bloody lot and it was as if it were an ambush.

“It is the same behaviour and no one was ever held accountable.”

He said leadership was the only way to manage the issue of violence at the games.

“I heard the Tamatea club leadership disavowing themselves of any responsibility or connection, but there are Mob members within those teams who are good players.

“It is a bit like when marae exclude gang members from their premises rather than challenging the behaviour.

“What I heard the Tamatea management saying, to me it sounded like they were in denial.”

O’Reilly said the issues hinged on whether respective gang leadership held their members accountable or endorsed the behaviour. Photo / Denis O'Reilly

Tamatea Rugby & Sports Club chairperson Stewart Whyte said in a statement on social media on Sunday that the club did not support gangs or have association with gangs.

He said the incident “involved gang members who are not associated with Tamatea and are not members of our club”.

O’Reilly said it also came back to whether the respective gang leadership held their members accountable or endorsed the behaviour.

“Do not let this destroy sport, do not let this destroy competition, but do hold people accountable for their actions and do not let this be part of the 60 per cent of cases that get ignored.

“This is achievable and was demonstrably so during the Hawke’s Bay Rugby league days of the 1990s when opposing gangs played each other and indeed played as teammates in the Unicorns.”

Guy Taylor, YMP rugby team coach, with the van that he was driving when it was shot after the game on Saturday. Photo / Supplied

Van chased around Hastings, rammed and shot at - coach

YMP coach Guy Taylor was driving the van when it was rammed and shot and said the game was not stopped due to a big tackle on a Tamatea player as one witness had said.

“That is not correct, I believe it is a little bit of a smokescreen to insinuate that we provoked the situation.

“We had the ball, our winger was tackled close to the sideline and one of the spectators ran on and kicked him in the head,” Taylor said.

He said a number of people on the sidelines with covered faces were brandishing knives and “little pick things” during the match.

“They were sort of pulling at their clothing and letting us know they were armed.”

The game was called off after the referee tried his best to bring those who had come on to the field from the sideline under control with no success.

He said one of the Tamatea players had come running over to a YMP player while they were on the way to the changing room and said he wanted to fight.

“We had a beer with team management and food with them afterwards, they were really apologetic.”

Taylor and seven players left in the van sometime after, and he said he first noticed a car following when it ran through a red light to follow their van on Frederick St.

He said a white truck pulled out directly in front of the van and they were rammed by a third vehicle and shot at on Heretaunga St West when they were forced to turn back into Hastings after being unable to turn towards Napier at a Pakowhai Rd roundabout.

He believed four vehicles in total were pursuing the van.

“I think the clubs themselves need to take a stronger stance on the standards they want to display and uphold,” Taylor said.

Taylor said the game was originally going to be played at Raupunga, but YMP requested the venue change to Hastings as there was a 60th birthday at the marae where the pitch was, which could have potentially restricted the use of the shower and toilet facilities for the visiting team.

Keith Groube, secretary for Hawke’s Bay Rugby Referees’ Association said a meeting to discuss the incident was planned for today.

He said some ideas had already been suggested and Hawke’s Bay Rugby chief executive Jay Campbell would likely issue a statement after the meeting.

Ngāti Kahungunu condemns violence

Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi chairman Bayden Barber condemned the violence over the weekend in a statement on Monday afternoon.

“This sort of behaviour has no place in our community. Our sports grounds are supposed to be safe places for whānau to enjoy sport and recreation. The violence that took place over the weekend was disgraceful. We are very fortunate that no one was injured or worse by these actions,” Barber said.

Barber, who played more than 100 games for Tamatea, met with the club’s president Stewart Whyte and members of his executive team on Monday.

“Stu was very concerned about the events that took place over the weekend and had been in touch with the manager from YMP to express his remorse for what unfolded and to check that he and his players were okay. Tamatea Sports Club is devastated by what has happened,” Barber said.

“In all the years I played rugby for Tamatea, I never witnessed anything like this. We can’t let this incident deter the community from enjoying our national game. Those who instigated this violence were not there for the rugby, nor were they connected to, or representative of Tamatea Sports Club or YMP. It seems that the instigators have taken this opportunity to push their own kaupapa.”

Barber had also met with police liaison, John Tangaere, and advised anyone with information to pass it on to the police.

“Gang violence is an unfortunate reality in our community. These are long-standing issues that require community-wide solutions. We have a hui-ā-iwi on April 26, so we will be raising this on the agenda.”

Nicholas Richards, chair of Mayfair community group in Hastings, with the community fair poster designed by his daughter. He hopes the event will help bring the community together. Photo / Warren Buckland

A community-based solution to tackle anti-social behaviour

Chair of the Mayfield community group Nicholas Richards, who lives on Willowpark Rd North, said he wanted to promote the positives the community had to offer.

The solutions-based thinker said the community day planned for this Saturday couldn’t have come at a better time following the rugby match on Saturday.

The Mayfair Community Group was working to establish a community hub, and the upcoming awareness day was to promote it.

”There is a lot going on that we are working towards, and it is just a shame that this antisocial stuff is coming back in,” Richards said.

“Any other teams coming down here now will think I don’t want to go to that place cause we might get shot up”

He noted young adults were encouraging children into the “anti-social behaviours” and put it down to boredom.

”We are well and truly invested in this community, I want to make sure that when my kids have their kids they want to come to Mayfair School and live in the Mayfair area, but the way things are going we just need to do something to turn it back around.”

He said a solution to the issue would not be easy to find, but insisted it “all starts with a hui”.

The community day will run from 10am to 1pm at Mayfair School and include performances, information centres, community consultation, bouncy castles and a sausage sizzle.

James Pocock joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2021 and writes breaking news and features, with a focus on environment, local government and post-cyclone issues in the region. He has a keen interest in finding the bigger picture in research and making it more accessible to audiences. He lives in Napier. james.pocock@nzme.co.nz

Michaela Gower joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2023 and is based out of the Hastings newsroom. She covers Dannevirke and Hawke’s Bay news and has a love for sharing stories about farming and rural communities.