Geyser City's Tuwhakaiti Winsor, pictured batting against Bay of Plenty Indians, will be representing the Lakeland Māori cricket team this weekend. Photo / File
Geyser City's Tuwhakaiti Winsor, pictured batting against Bay of Plenty Indians, will be representing the Lakeland Māori cricket team this weekend. Photo / File
For Māori athletes, the chance to represent your iwi in your chosen sport is a unique and rewarding experience. This weekend a group of local cricketers will do just that.
A team was selected and at 11am on Sunday at Smallbone Park the Lakelands Māori side will host their Northern Districts counterparts who also have five Lakelands players included in their squad.
Rotorua Cricket Association chairman Paul Wyllie, who will also play in the Lakelands side, said there was a lot of excitement around the fixture.
"We can't wait. We had a look through the history and there's been a couple of attempts to get a Lakelands Māori team off the ground but it hadn't really ever happened so we're very excited to be part of it.
"Having five Lakelands players in the Northern team as well shows the Māori talent in the area is really good and we want to do as much as we can to promote and encourage even more of it."
He said taking on the Northern side would be a good challenge and an opportunity for the Lakelands players to test themselves.
"It is Northern Districts Māori so they are a very, very strong side but I definitely think we'll be competitive. For some of our players it might even be a trial situation - Northern Māori have a couple of fixtures coming up and it's a chance for our other players to impress and potentially push for selection in the team as well."
The Lakelands side also includes a guest player. Englishman Sam Kershaw is currently playing for Geyser City will play in the match, ensuring he gets the full cultural experience while on New Zealand soil.
Two opposing players who might share more banter than the rest are father and son Brent and Harry Jones, who play their club cricket together for the Trident High School team in the Lakelands Senior Reserve competition.
Rotorua 15-year-old Cohen Stewart has been named to represent the Lakeland Māori cricket team this weekend.
On Sunday, they will line up against each other with Brent captaining the Lakelands side and 15-year-old Harry lining up for Northern.
Wyllie said it was crucial that the association attempt to build on the momentum of this one-off fixture.
"There's already interim discussions about having a local tri-series between the Lakelands Indians, the Lakelands Sri Lankans and the Lakelands Māori. This was an opportunity we couldn't turn down and we haven't had much of a chance to look further than that at this stage but we definitely want to provide more fixtures on an annual basis."
Rotorua's Greg Taipari will speak to the Lakelands team before the match about what it means to represent Māori in sport.
"This is a huge opportunity for our Māori cricketers to be able to be part of an historic occasion, playing at a high level, it's always great for them to have that opportunity.
"To see that they're playing under a Māori banner on Sunday is a special occasion and hopefully we can get Rotorua people to go down there and support it. The boys can be proud of their ancestry and hopefully we can make this an annual event for the future of cricket here."
Lakelands Māori Cricket Team: Tuwhakaiti Winsor - Geyser CC (Nga Puhi/Ngai Te Rangi), Cohen Stewart - Geyser CC (Ngai Tahu), Brent Jones - Trident High School (Ngāti Kahungunu), Bradley Wiggins - Central CC (Ngāti Whakaue), Sam Gordon - Central CC (Te Arawa/Ngāti Raukawa), Ethan Forbes - Trident High School (Tuhoe), Matt Collier - Geyser CC (Ngāti Porou), Jaedon Fredricksen - Cossie College Old Boys (Te Arawa), Lochlan White - Trident High School (Whakatohea), Paul Wyllie - Central CC (Ngāti Porou/Ngāti Kaipoho), Sam Kershaw - Geyser CC (Guest Player).
