29ththJan Aug--34rdth Feb Aug 2014 2017 27
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No No 434 615
LAKES WEEKLY BULLETIN
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Hockeytown. Rugby is our national sport. The mourning of Colin Meads, “Sir Ed in rugby boots” this past week was a reminder of how players of the game become national heroes. In Queenstown, rugby has a grassroots rival in ice hockey. Each year a growing number of wee tykes take to the rink at the beginning of the season in gear making them look a foot taller and wider to start on their ice hockey journey. And it’s not just wee tykes. The social league expands each year, more than 200 players belong to the Queenstown Ice Hockey Club and the Queenstown Ice Arena is booked out most evenings for ice hockey practices and games. It’s a collegial atmosphere with neither age nor sex a measure of who can play. Senior players like Stampede and Ice Black goaltender Aston Brookes can be seen at the rink most weeks, mentoring young players. So where did it all start? Ice Hockey has been played in New Zealand for over 80 years, originally in the high country where farmers played on frozen ponds and lakes. The first organised ice hockey tournament was played in 1937 for the Erewhon Cup which Queenstown teams still compete for today (and currently hold). The modern resurgence of the game in Queenstown dates back to the mid 1990’s when the enclosed Queenstown Ice Arena was developed and fans of the game had a local venue to hone their skills. Where locals had the desire, ex pats had the experience of growing up on ice skates and playing ‘hockey’. Like so much that is good and great about Queenstown, people and cultures from around the world that choose to make this town home blend their passions with kiwi culture and in doing so enrich our community. Queenstown’s reputation as Hockeytown NZ comes not just from the number of people taking up the sport but the passion with which it is held by the community. Ask any NZIHL player and they can tell you that Queenstown is the best and the worst location to play in. The rink is louder than anywhere else, the stands are always full and unless you’re wearing the gold jersey of the Stampede, it’s a tough thing to ignore the sheer energy willing the home team along. Regularly newbies and visitors to town are coaxed to an ice hockey game on a Friday night. “You’ll love it. The place is packed, you don’t need to know anything about the game, just cheer and stamp your feet.” One game and they’re hooked. In 1963 the first international game against Australia was played in New Zealand. 54 years later and the QIHC is hosting Queenstown’s first ever international test series between the Ice Blacks and the Mighty Roos during the Audi quattro Winter Games NZ. Scheduled just after the NZIHL finals, the country’s best talent – old and new is available. Six players will be making their Ice Blacks debut including newly minted New Zealander and SKYCITY Stampede Captain Matt Schneider. It’s a coming of age in some ways. Being an official part of the Audi quattro Winter Games NZ will give Australasian ice hockey international exposure. The hope is that the TransTasman Challenge becomes an annual event. An awesome atmosphere and sell-out crowds will add to Queenstown’s reputation as Hockeytown, New Zealand.
Callum Burns, Ross Burns, Sharon Burns and Colin McIntosh at the NZIHL Skycity Stampede v West Auckland Admirals ice hockey final at the Queenstown Ice Arena on Friday.
(Photo: Jodi Walters)
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Andy Mills, President, Queenstown Ice Hockey Club. NZ Ice Blacks vs Australia’s Mighty Roos, 7,8 & 9 Sep Tickets: www.queenstownicehockey.co.nz
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JOHN RAVENS WEATHER Last week John was 92% correct
TUES
WED
THUR
FRI
A Few Showers, Clearing.
Mainly Fine. Late Cloud
Cloudy Periods, Late Showers
Cloudy at First. Fine Spells
SAT
SUN
Cloud Clearing & Partly Cloudy becoming Fine with Light Winds
MON
Cloudy. Not Much Wind