Aotearoa Māori Netball tournament, Easter 2022. Credit / Stuff
Twenty exciting young athletes have been named in Aotearoa Māori Netball’s 2022 secondary school squad.
The naming of the squad follows the successful return of the national Māori netball tournament at Easter in Palmerston North after three years' absence due to Covid and a May trial with 45 of the country's best Māori secondary school netballers in Wellington.
Head coach Jess Huia says there was a "real buzz across the motu" following the Māori netball nationals and she is "thrilled" with the outcome of the trial.
"The talent is alive and we had a tremendous group of young wāhine attend the tournament and trial," Huia said in a statement Saturday.
"To see so many players transition across into New Zealand's national netball league and ANZ franchises who have been a part of our Aotearoa Māori Netball programme is really special and highlights the importance of our kaupapa and pathway. We have a lot of work to do and the bar has been set pretty high but we believe we have selected an experienced and youthful group who are up for the challenge.”
The squad will be monitored over the next couple of months with check-in day camps in June and July.
The final team of twelve will be named in August and come together to prepare for a couple of key events being planned for later in the year once school and main season representative netball commitments have concluded.
Aotearoa Māori Netball has a proud record, which includes winning the 2019 Pacific Cup Tournament in Auckland and the International Schoolgirls Netball Challenge in Palmerston North in 2019 under the management of Huia and assistant coach Renee Matoe.
"Winning both events was a significant milestone for Māori Netball, highlighting the success of its (high-performance) programme."
Aotearoa Māori Netball’s 2022 secondary school squad are:
