Issue 24 : 24 February 2019
Talofa Lava, Kia Orana, Malo E Leilei, Tena Koutou, Hello ...
... and welcome to the latest issue of “For The Love Of The Game”, the official e-zine of the New Zealand Amateur Sport Association Inc. We hope you enjoy reading the articles below.
If you have any feedback on this issue, ideas for future articles, or would like to contact the Editor, please click here. And, you are invited to forward the e-zine to others you know, who may be interested in reading it.
If you are interested in applying for membership of the Association, please click here.
Auckland Seminar Reveals Community Need In Urban Growth ...
Representatives of "Aktive" (Auckland Sport & Recreation), Athletics Auckland Inc., Auckland City Council, Auckland Football Federation, Auckland Sunday Football Association, Mangere East RLFC & Sports Inc., Netball Waitakere, New Zealand Tag Football, North Shore Table Tennis Association, Otahuhu Rugby League, Papakura Sea Eagles RLFC, Sport Waitakere, Squash Auckland, and Tennis New Zealand attended the Association’s Auckland seminar on the 2018 National Amateur Club Survey, on Wednesday last week. The seminar was hosted by the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) and held at AUT's South Campus, in Manukau.
Across a wide-ranging discussion, it was acknowledged that the role of clubs in the community often transcended a sporting code itself, with seminar attendees noting that being part of (and understanding) the community was essential to maintaining and growing club members.
In that regard, a club’s identity could be (in many cases) strongly tied to a particular place, meaning that the creation of sporting-hubs (such as the Kolmar Sports Complex in Papatoetoe), while an effective use of resources within an area, would not necessarily engage the support of all local sporting communities within that region.
The Association warmly thanks AUT for their hospitality in hosting the seminar.
Two Clubs Keep Their Roots, But Grow New Shoots ...
In an era of club amalgamations and closures, two sports clubs in different parts of the country have adopted different strategies to maintain their longevity in the community. The Waipawa Lawn Tennis Club (founded in 1885) and the Arataki Sports Club (founded in 1971) are community-based sports clubs which are using their rich heritage to generate new membership.
(The Waipawa Lawn Tennis Club has served the local community continously since 1885)
In the Central Hawkes Bay, at the Waipawa Lawn Tennis Club, all members - male and female and all age groups - play together on Monday evenings. This means families can attend, mixed doubles can be played and it brings with it a very relaxed, social atmosphere. Members say while they join the club to play tennis, it's the camaraderie, the friendly atmosphere and the banter and laughter that helps keep them coming back. "It’s the community that matters".
You can read more about the Waipawa Lawn Tennis Club by clicking here.
(The Arataki Sports Club, while based around rugby and netball, focuses on community)
In the Bay of Plenty, the Arataki Sports Club has appointed a health-and-wellness coach, to provide programmes for members of the community to get more active and engaged in healthy living. The Club primarily caters for the families of local rugby and netball players from Arataki and the surrounding community, but is now extending its reach to others who can benefit from participating in its health-and-wellness programmes. The Club receives the majority of its funding through sponsorship from local businesses and organisations.
You can read more about the Arataki Sports Club by clicking here.
Annual General Meeting - Tuesday, 16 April 2019 ...
The second Annual General Meeting of the Association, will be held at the Wellesley Boutique Hotel, Maginnity Street, Wellington at 5.30pm on Tuesday, 16 April.
All Members (and those interested in the Association's Objects), are warmly invited to attend.
Viewpoint : Community Sport Receives Another Warning ...
In what appears to be a further sign of the continued decline of organised amateur sport in the community, of the 177 Incorporated Societies already dissolved by the Registrar in 2019, nearly a third (a total of 52), are amateur sports clubs. Incorporated Societies are dissolved when the Registrar determines that it “is satisfied that these societies are no longer carrying on their operations”. In simple terms, this means that a club which loses its registered status is no longer meeting the basic requirements to operate as a legally incorporated entity.
In practical terms, for a club to be dissolved by the Registrar, a written warning is provided up to 12 months prior to the dissolution, with formal advice of de-registration provided two weeks prior to the actual dissolution occurring. All club de-registrations are publicly notified in the New Zealand Gazette. Between them, Rugby Union, Rugby League and Netball have accounted for 37% of the sports clubs dissolved by the Registrar so far this year.
The New Zealand Rugby Supporters Club Inc. (the NZRSC), was among the list of clubs whose registered status has been revoked in 2019. For over a decade, the NZRSC has encouraged participation in (and the promotion and support of the initiatives of) affiliated Rugby Supporters Clubs throughout New Zealand. While operating without the financial support of Rugby Union’s provincial or national governing bodies, the NZRSC appears to have been a genuine attempt to grow grass-roots support for the game. Regardless of any specific achievements of the body over its ten year history, the fact that it actually existed as an incorporated entity spoke volumes for the perceived importance of the game to the community.
The NZRSC was formed in February 2008 “to be the National Body for participating Rugby Supporters Clubs in New Zealand”. While the underlying reasons for the NZRSC’s dissolution are not immediately clear, it must be of concern to many supporters of the game that the national body established to encourage their sporting interest has now been deregistered.
While there is no doubt that provincial Rugby Supporters Clubs still exist, is enough being done to promote interest in and support of the game outside of the purely professional clubs, whose motives have little to do with the health of the sport in the community, or the health of the community as a whole?
Among the Rugby Union Clubs dissolved this year is the Flaxmere Rugby & Sports Club (established in 1999), a community club in an area which continues to face a number of serious social challenges. When thinking of community health, sports clubs like Flaxmere (and their supporters) must surely be a cornerstone of any Government policy focused on social well-being. Whether or not the NZRSC will be revived at some point in the future is an open question; however its dissolution this month only reinforces the growing perception that grass-roots support for community sport is on the wane.
From The Archives ...
TINIROTO SPORTS
POVERTY BAY HERALD, VOLUME XLI, ISSUE 13270, 5 JANUARY 1914
“The weather was beautifully fine for the sixth, annual sports gathering in connection with the Tiniroto Sports Club, which took place at Te Reinga on Saturday. There was a record attendance, numerous visitors journeying from Gisborne, Wairoa and Frasertown, whilst the settlers of Tiniroto and surrounding districts turned out in strong force. The grounds were in excellent condition.
An interesting programme of events was provided, a notable feature being the expeditious manner in which the stewards got the various events off, there being no monotonous delay between the races. Everything passed off successfully, the meeting being a thoroughly enjoyable one. One of the most exciting events of the day was a tug-of-war between teams representing Maoris and Pakehas. There were 11 aside, and a strenuous pull was witnessed. The Maoris had a slight advantage of grade, and after about 15 minutes the weight of the natives told, and they won.
In the evening a dance was held in Mr Glassford's woolshed, about 70 couples attending. The weather was so warm that some of the gentlemen divested themselves of their coats.”
The Tiniroto Sports Club was originally formed in October 1908, based around those enlisted with the Huramua Mounted Rifles (quartered in Wairoa), to form the Huramua-Tinroto Military Sports Club. The first meeting of the Club was held at Te Reinga Falls, Ruakituri in January 1909, featuring horse-jumping, wood-chopping, running and other "military events". Abbreviated to the Tiniroto Sports Club, with much of the military characteristics abandoned, the Club continued in various guises through the next 40 years.
(Te Reinga Falls, in the Ruakituri Valley in Poverty Bay, venue for the Tiniroto Sports Club)
Pynson Wilmot Mossman from Waerenga o Kuri was an early member of the Club, serving as the Club Treasurer and Secretary, as well being a judge and steward at various times. Mossman served in both World Wars and his horse “Star” is considered to have been the inspiration for the recent popular movie “Warhouse”. Following the Great War, Pynson returned home to Tiniroto, farming at Awapiko. Two of his brothers died at Gallipoli and another was injured on the Somme. Mossman died in 1963, aged 79.
(P W Mossman from Waerenga o Kuri - an ardent supporter of amateur sport in Poverty Bay)
The Final Word ...
“Tennis is a game for life. It provides for two of the most important requirements for longer and better living; fitness and social contacts."
(Brian Setter – Waipawa Lawn Tennis Club, Central Hawkes Bay)