Five weeks into the term and the school is abuzz with activity. It is wonderful…
Here are a few of the sporting achievements of students from Western Springs College-Ngā Puna o Waiōrea (WSCW) during Term 1 and/or Term 2 of 2025.
ATHLETICS
Congratulations to the Su brothers (Benaiah – Y13; Daequan – Y12) on their recent successes at the North Island Secondary Schools Athletics Championships, for which they were selected to represent Auckland. This was a 2-day event that took place at the Porritt Stadium in Hamilton on Saturday 5th – Sunday 6th April.
Daequan’s results:
Intermediate Boys Long Jump – 5.87m 5th place
Intermediate Boys Triple Jump – 12.22m 3rd place
Benaiah’s results:
Senior Boys 110m Hurdles – 15.59s – 2nd place (just missing out on 1st place!)
Senior Boys Long Jump – 6.16m – 5th place.
MOUNTAIN BIKING
Congratulations to the following students who participated in the 2025 North Island School MTB Championships, which were held in Tauranga recently (12-15 April). Here are some photos and results from that event. Great effort by all of the riders and some great results too!
Enduro event:
- Ellora Sidwell – 2nd in U16 Female
- Beth Edwards – 8th in U16 Female
- Rohan Sidwell – 19th in U20 Male
- Sam Norrie – 70th in U17 Male
Downhill event:
- Ellora Sidwell – 5th in U16 Female
SKATEBOARDING
Congratulations to our Year 13 student, Millie Dunn, who competed in the NZ Skateboarding Nationals in early April at Mount Maunganui and was placed third in NZ Open Women’s Street Skating! This is a huge accomplishment and her best ever achievement! This event is regarded as one of the most prestigious skateboarding competitions within Aotearoa New Zealand, with over 120 skaters from all over the country taking part.
TENNIS
Term 1 saw our Under 18 boys Tennis team for WSC travel around Central West to compete against a range of different schools and abilities. The boys thoroughly enjoyed the tournament and will be back for more in Term 4.
If you’re interested in tennis next summer starting in Term 4, please contact Sports Director Peter McIntyre (mcintyrep@wsc.school.nz).
TRIATHALON/DUATHALON
Our Y10 student, Charlie Evans, competed in the Weetbix Triathlon in late March – finishing in first place in the 13-15 years category. Charlie emerged from the swim in first place and was able to hold the lead through the bike and running legs of the race.
Charlie also competed in the Auckland College Sport Triathlon Championships (Pt England, Auckland) on Thursday 1st May, where he successfully placed 3rd in the U14 Junior Boys category.
Charlie will also be representing WSCW at the Duathlon Championships and Triathlon Championships in June – best of luck!
WATER POLO
WSC Senior Boys’ 2025 Wrap Up
Tovia Patelesio has coached the WSC Senior Boys for the last 5 years building them up to Premier Division standard. We are so grateful for all the time he has put into driving the boys to Waterview School for swim training and out to West Wave for practices several times a week – huge ups to Tovia for all his support!
2025 kicked off with a nail-biting 9-8 win over MAGS to gain promotion into the Premier Division in the College Sport League for Term 1. Up against ‘Schools with Pools’ they have done incredibly well as a comparatively small team of 10 against the full benches of their well-resourced rivals – a highlight was beating St Kentigern 8-5, placing 8th in the College Sport League overall.
The Delfina Tournament saw the team fend off old rivals Kristin 8-7 and draw with Saint Bedes of Christchurch 8-8. With only 9 players available the team performed well at the North Island Secondary Schools Championship (NISS), with notable wins against Rosmini 8-5 and a cracking 14-5 victory over Kristin. Special mention to Louie Roberts for being selected for the NISS Tournament Team – well done! At the National Secondary Schools in Rotorua, the team won 3 of the 7 games played – denying Kristin a win once again.
A huge thank you to Linda Raynes for her ongoing work coordinating water polo for WSC and to Peter Gourdie for managing the team this year. Also to Jo and Kylie Stafford for the amazing catering, and all the parents for the camaraderie and support – it’s been awesome.
Sadly, it feels like the end of an era, as we bid farewell to Louie Roberts, Kees and Milan Stafford, Jackson Gourdie and Rielly Erikson. That leaves Ben Hardy, Austin Raynes, Logan Gourdie, Dylan Lord and Julian Stevenson.
If there are any players, or strong swimmers with an interest in playing water polo, please do get in touch with Linda Raynes (lindaraynes92@gmail.com) as we would love to be able to field a team in 2026.
Tania Stevenson
WSC/Avondale Girls
This year, a composite WSC/Avondale College team played in B Girls Division and came 1st!
North Islands played in the Division 2 Mixed Division with some boys from Rutherford College and came 4th.
At NISS in Hamilton, the team played in the Division 2 Girls competition and came 5th equal. Congratulations to Clarisse Purdon who got MVP for this tournament.
We had 3 senior and 1 junior WSC girl(s) playing in this and the rest from Avondale College. They did well with mostly junior players. Lucas Wilson was a great coach and did very well with them.
OTHER SPORTING NEWS
Our former Springs-Waiōrea student, Skylah Tainui-Takerei, is taking on new challenges as a mid-courter with her Central Manawa netball team in the Synergy Hair Netball League (NNL), which will showcase Aotearoa New Zealand’s emerging netball talent in an 8-round league that started on 10 May 2025. Check out this recent news article here about Skylah’s debut for Central Manawa.
Wishing you all the best for your season, Skylah!
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