The 2023 WRC competition ticked all the boxes. There were new players, new team, competitive games and great refereeing.

Heading into The New Zealand Nationals competition on this weekend the 1^st-3^rd of September at the great Cowles stadium in Christchurch. This will be co-hosted by Canterbury Wheelchair Rugby and NZWR with the assistance of ParaFed Canterbury and proves to be a very competitive tournament.

WRC 1 in Tauranga consisted of 5 teams and was a great grading base as the top 4 teams went through to Division 1. Auckland and Canterbury were the front runners with Waikato and dsport nipping at their heels. Unfortunately for BOP this meant the dropped down to Division 2 for the WRC 2 round in Wellington.  

It was great to have 8 teams involved in WRC 2. Otago, Manawatu and Invictus joined BOP in Diivision 2 while the larger more established team were to fight it out in Division for the WRC title. There were some very tight games and great rugby played by all. The division 2 final came down to BOP v Manawatu. This game had everything and more. Four quarters was not enough time to determine a winner as at full time the scores were tied. The game turned out to be a marathon and Manawatu finally came away with the victory in the 3^rd over time. The Division 1 final was played between the 2 standout teams of the WRC competition Auckland and Canterbury. As they had done all year Auckland continued on their winning ways being crowned 2023 WRC Champions.

Final Standings

Division 1

1. Auckland
2. Canterbury
3. Dsport
4. Waikato

Division 2

1. Manawatu
2. BOP
3. Otago
4. Invictus

2023 New Zealand Nationals Preview

If WRC form is anything to go off Auckland are the clear front runners. They have the speed, skill and raw power of Hayden Barton-Cootes leading the team around and causing carnage on defence. His partnership with Low pointer Gareth Lynch will go a long way to determine the success of Auckland at the 2023 Nationals. Auckland have bolstered their roster with Australian import Ben Leaudis to complement their experienced players making them tough to beat.

The hosts Canterbury will be nipping at Auckland’s heels trying to get revenge for the WRC final lose. Canterbury will be lead around the court by their experienced Wheelblacks squad members Cody Everson, Mike Todd and Ian Simpson. Add to them some exciting new talent in Jacinta Richardson, Levi Mihaka, Dylan Lloyd, Ants Carter and Mich Simpson and we are sure to see an exciting brand of wheelchair rugby. Canterbury will also be joined by an Australian import Cam Whittiker.  Cam has a lot of experience in wheelchair rugby and having him in Canterbury to help combine with the exciting new talent could see Canterbury rack up plenty of wins.

Cameron Leslie jumps out of the pool and back on to the court as he makes his return to domestic rugby in New Zealand to lead the dsport/Waikato team. This combination team of the 3^rd and 4^th place teams from WRC will be looking to sneak some wins against other teams with better WRC form. Cameron will look to work well with his experienced low pointer Chris Moore and Sam Fitness to weave his way down court and score plenty of goals. Cameron will have some experienced mid pointer support in the form of Tyler Jennings and Chris Barry to help shoulder the workload. Keenan Alexander will be making his nationals debut and could well flex his muscle and be the wild card that sees dsport/Waikato finish higher up the ladder than their WRC forms suggests.

The Australian Development team heads across the ditch to take on New Zealand’s best and look to take out top spot a the New Zealand National. The Australian Development team cannot be crowned National Champions they can take out top spot at the tournament. The Australian Development team boast many world champions as part of the successful World Championships by the Steeler’s.  These include Shae Graham, Ella Sablijak and Ben Fawcett. This trio is surrounded by a number of teammates with international experience. Brayden Foxley-Conolly looks to burst on to the scene with his pace and play to help the Australian development team plan their assault on the New Zealand team.

The tournament tips off first game at 1pm on Friday the 1^st of September at Cowles stadium in Christchurch and the final is scheduled to tip off 2.45pm on Sunday the 3^rd of September. The games will be live streamed through Bevs Broadcasting. For more information check out the Wheelblacks social media channels.

The tournament could not run without the help and support of the public. NZWR would love to thank the following supports as we could not run our great sport without your help. DG Sport, Four Winds Foundation, Melrose Kiwi concept Chairs, Christchurch City Council, Lynn River and ParaFed Canterbury.

Article added: Wednesday 30 August 2023