Rangitoto College's sporting stars are representing New Zealand in a variety of codes these holidays.
Not surprisingly given their record in water polo, the school has a hefty representation in teams contesting under-15 and under-16 transtasman tournaments with 11 Rangitoto players taking to the pool.
Year 13 student Sam King is a member of the Junior Tall Blacks team competing in the FIBA Under-19 World Championships.
Cyclist Georgia Williams is contesting the three-day Kowalski Junior Tour of Canberra. Softballer Rhiannon Dennison is at the Softball Australia international friendship series. Chloe Francis is starring in the national swimming squad competing in the transtasman tri-series and Johann Timmer is in Brisbane to play in the Australian state volleyball championships.
Alexandra Maloney and Alexander Dyet have ventured further afield to contest world youth sailing championships.
Maloney lines up in the 420s - two-handed dinghies - at the Volvo Youth Championships which start tomorrow and end on July 18. Dyet will follow Maloney on to the waters at Buzios, 2 hours north of Rio de Janiero, to contest the World Laser 4.7 Youth Championships.
Alannah Jury lines up in the 10km open water championship at the 13th Fina World Swimming Championships in Rome. The open water events are being held at the city's seaport of Civitavecchia.
Also in Europe, javelin-thrower Kerry Charlesworth will compete at the World Youth Track and Field Championships in Sudtirol, Italy.
Already back, and enjoying her holiday, is Milika Nathan who played at last month's Oceania basketball tournament as a member of the Emerging Tall Ferns (under-21).
CYCLING
A team time trial victory and three individual titles capped by overall honours for the first time gave the strong St Cuthbert's squad plenty to celebrate at the North Island Championships at Gordonton and Ngaruawahia over the weekend.
Their junior team of Devon Hiley, Paige Paterson, Elise Salt and Helena Jackson set the tone with an outstanding ride over 16km. Their record-breaking time had them 1m 04s clear of non-counting Hillcrest High combined and 1 minutes faster than third-placed Diocesan. Their 25m 26.11s was 04s faster than Diocesan's time in winning the senior girls time trial.
In the individual races, Paterson, Hiley and Marris all claimed titles.
The under-17 race was a triumph for Waikato Diocesan who claimed the day's only trifecta while Amelia Watkinson restored some glory for Auckland's Diocesan with her win in the under-20 championship.
Auckland Grammar won three individual titles and the senior boy's time trial while Sacred Heart took the junior title from AGS with St Kentigern third.
St Kentigern finished one-two in the boy's under-20 race over 43km with Scott Mullaly pipping Matthew Peacock in a sprint finish with both recording the same time.
HOCKEY
The first round of the inter-city competition produced some close results, a runaway victory and a controversial finish to a key girl's game.
The match between Diocesan, unbeaten in the Auckland competition but fielding a below-strength team, and EGGS, who had finished fifth, at Auckland Grammar was headed for an upset with EGGS leading 1-0 after Sarah Bouden had scored 10 minutes from time.
With time up, and EGGS, who had been beaten by Diocesan 5-0 earlier in the year, still ahead, Diocesan were awarded a penalty stroke but before that could be taken the sprinklers burst into life.
Under College Sport rules that, no matter how much time is left to play, signals the end of the game.
The score has been recorded at 1-0 in EGGS favour but Diocesan have since protested although yesterday they would not elaborate on what grounds.
In other pool A games, MAGS beat Pukekohe 4-0 and WGHS won the all-Shore battle beating Carmel 2-0.
St Cuthberts opened their campaign in pool B with a 4-0 win over the Diocesan 2nd XI while St Kentigern and Rosehill played out a 0-0 draw.
In first round boy's action, Rangitoto, led by five goals from Josh Tatley, overwhelmed under-strength Kristin 11-0.
It was much closer for Kings who sneaked home 2-1 over St Kentigern.
The pool B matches were clear-cut affairs with WBHS beating Massey 6-0, Long Bay overpowering Waiuku 8-0 and favourites AGS 10-1 winners over Macleans.
LEAGUE
Finals day at Mt Smart Stadium brought together boys from six schools. And, no surprise, St Paul's College again went home with the big prize.
Pitted against a spirited Southern Cross Campus team, St Paul's, chasing a 10th straight University Shield success as 1st XIII champions, prevailed 32-14 but had to come from 10-14 at halftime to do it.
St Pauls prop Siliva Havili led the charge for the defending champions picking up man of the match honours after scoring a try and kicking two conversions. The try-scoring was led by Selwyn Fale and Etuate Havili with two each while Sam Lousi also scored. Sani Nuku also added two conversions as St Pauls stormed home with four late tries.
Southern Cross were rewarded for their strong start with tries from Samuel Lea, Graham Vite and Sioeli Matungi. Paul Pritchard added a conversion.
J In the under-15 9-a-side final for the Graham Lowe Cup, Jahsaiya Edmonds scored three tries for Aorere who raced to a 22-4 lead. St Pauls stormed back and with a minute to play held a 24-22 lead before Edmonds scored his hat-trick try with a brilliant solo effort with seconds remaining to get Aorere home 28-24 after Amos Roberts, who had earlier scored a try, added his fourth conversion of the match.
Massey High finally captured the Jack Fagan Cup as College A under-85kg champions after beating. MRGS 13-6.
Aorere were beaten 24-12 by Sir Edmund Hillary College in the 1st XIII plate final for the Stephen Kearney Cup.
RUGBY
NORTH HARBOUR
With top teams Massey and Rosmini having expected comfortable wins over Northcote and Mahurangi, most interest in the 1A championship 10th round centred on Takapuna Grammar's home clash with third-placed WBHS.
The teams tested each other early with a series of deep kicks into opposition territory which in the end resulted in the only points of the first half - a try scored by Westlake lock Jarrod Lester who barged over. Seventeen minutes into the second half the visitors increased their lead when replacement wing Mark Coleman gathered a grubber and went over in the corner.
Dylan Ferreira added the conversion for a handy 12-0 lead.
The home side refused to give up and were soon rewarded with a try scored after a quick tap and a ball spun wide to Colmar Jones who crossed wide on the right.
Despite continued pressure from TGS, the Westlake defence held firm to ensure their seventh win of the season.
Rangitoto upset Orewa 5-0 with player of the day, Rangitoto fullback Michael Watts scoring the only points.
Despite a much-improved showing by Mahurangi, Rosmini still ran in six tries en route to a 38-0 win.
It was much the same story for Massey who scored seven tries including two each for Mark Peteru-Sepu and Eti Tago as they raced away to beat Northcote 45-6.
The upset of the 1B round came with Glenfield's 32-17 win over previously unbeaten Long Bay.
In the only other 1B game, cellar-dwellers Whangaparaoa had plenty to celebrate as they bounced back from their 60-0 drubbing by Hato Petera a week earlier to beat second-placed Kaipara 22-15 after leading 10-5 at the break to record their first win of the season.
NATIONAL
In splitting the northern side into teams representing the Blues and Chiefs franchises for the first time, Auckland and Waikato schools have chances to claim the national regional title at Auckland Grammar next week.
The Hurricanes franchise will defend their title at the four-team tournament which also includes a team representing southern schools. In opening day action on Tuesday, the Blues will play the Chiefs and the Hurricanes have been drawn to play Southern. The final and play-off for third will be played on Thursday.
The tournament doubles as a trial for the New Zealand SS team.
SOCCER
Rangitoto did A1 contenders MAGS and AGS a big favour in holding WBHS to 3-3 in ninth round action on Saturday.
While MAGS, 6-0 winners over bottom-of-the-table Macleans, and AGS, 3-0 away winners over neighbours St Peters, consolidated their positions at the top of the table, WBHS lost ground in dropping points to Rangitoto.
Westlake are now five points back from MAGS and two behind AGS as the business end of the season approaches.
But it was not all plain sailing for Kevin Fallon's MAGS either. They led just 1-0 at halftime thanks to a 12th minute goal from captain Ryan Elder after towering Jude Fitzpatrick had headed a corner across the Macleans goal.
The home side, who met stout resistance from the East Aucklanders, did not increase their lead until the 64th minute and needed four goals in the last 15 minutes to make it safe.
With their 4-5-1 formation, the visitors gave as good as they got led by their captain Ahmed Al Jawad and right back Tim Crestanello.
But in the 63rd minute, the pendulum swung the home team's way and they never let up.
A Pomare Te Anau freekick was headed to Nikko Boxall who steered the ball home.
Then followed Fallon's crucial 72nd minute call.
He made a triple substitution and was almost immediately rewarded when Te Anau made it 3-0. Jordan Vale added a fourth four minutes later and in the last two minutes Te Anau completed his hat-trick for a somewhat flattering final scoreline.
The other 1A game between Kings and Sacred Heart will be played at a later date.
College sport: Rangitoto stars seen far and wide
www.asbcollegesport.co.nz
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