A secondary schoolgirls 10-a-side rugby tournament to be held at Makoura College on Sunday has attracted keen interest.
Five colleges - Kuranui, Solway, Makoura, Tararua and Wairarapa - will be represented in an event which is seen by Sport Wellington-Wairarapa sport-development adviser Quentin Parr as an ideal chance to build on the high profile the Eketahuna club has given women's rugby in the local region.
Not only did Eketahuna win the Wellington premier division titles this season but they had seven players in the Wellington NPC squad, with two of them, Rebecca Mahoney and Shakira Baker, recently named in the Blacks Ferns squad to play a three-test series in England in November.
Also in the national side is Kathleen Wilton, who has just returned from Japan and will be part of the Eketahuna squad next year.
Parr said many of the Eketahuna players would be at Makoura on Sunday to check out the future rugby talent and while the emphasis of the round-robin play would be enjoyment, there was sure to be plenty of passion, too, with school pride at stake.
