Rugby League 2023 Grand Finals 

Under 15 Maroon / Under 15 Blue teams

Our Year 9s and 10s played every Wednesday at 4pm home and away. The Under 15 Blue team was mostly made up of Year 9s, led by Tane Keereweer-Taia (Year 10). This was a challenge for Tane, but a very deliberate challenge set by a combined coaching staff, who challenged Tane to step up with his leadership, finding a voice to compliment his athleticism. The Under 15 Blue team are a strong contender for “Team of the Year”, which is announced at St Paul’s annual Sports Excellence Awards held later in the year.

The Under 15 Maroon team, a team which attracted big numbers in pre-season went through 2023’s regular season undefeated; this was a testament to the hard work and long training hours, the attention to detail that coaches and players put in throughout.

An exciting finish was had to the season where both teams qualified for the grand final! 

The game did not disappoint where both teams defended their lines for long periods of time, they could not be separated after a last minute penalty kick for Under 15 Blue by Daniel Kali (Year 9), finishing regular time 6-6, to take us to golden point!

Golden point over-time was some of the most exciting and committed rugby league I’ve seen at St Paul’s college - Under 15 Maroon went one set, Under 15 Blue went one set before Bronson Fisiiahi (Year 9) calmly kicked a 30 metre field goal to win! Beating the previously undefeated Under 15 Maroon team 7-6! 

Well done to ALL coaching staff, dedicated and committed volunteers who gave up their time for training and games, assisted with transport, laundry, all the while facilitating our students' passion for sport and passion for St Paul’s College rugby league.

U15 Maroon staff: Taisyn Williams, Jaysn Taufua and Ms Eniata

U15 Blue staff: Maryn Murray-Tiavaasue, Mrs Fiu, Junior Fiu, Jaelin Murray

1st XIII Premier Rugby League Team 

The 1st XIII went through their season winning all seven games except a 10-10 draw with De La Salle in the early rounds of the season. Coach Sefo Fuimaono worked hard with an excellent connection and communication with Mr Fa’amausili, 1st XV coach and fellow Old Boy. They worked together to manage player workload, injury management, techniques and tactics but always with one shared goal at the front of decision making - what is best for St Paul’s College, rather than one code or the other, one team or the other. I have been continuously impressed with this selfless act, where some coaches put results and winning at the front of the agenda, Mr Fa’amausili and Coach Sefo put the College first, every week, all season - Wednesday or Saturday. 

With this in mind, it’s no surprise that no matter the opposition, no matter the occasion or challenge in front of them - the 1st XIII (and 1st XV) dual-code players never let their coaches down, always competing, always playing with sportsmanship and a tough, physical but clean style of play.

After beating Manurewa HS in a demanding semi-final, it was the old foes De La Salle in the grand final in front of a sold out Mt Smart #2. Excellent tries against the run of play to Compton Purcell (Year 12) and Sio Kali (Year 13) meant St Paul’s were up 18-0 at half time, however De La Salle refused to go away, kicking a penalty in the last minute to take the game to golden point! What an exciting finish to the season, and the second golden point final for the day.

St Paul’s dug deep in golden point, with Sio Kali offloading to younger brother Lucky (Year 12), who scored to win the Premier 1st XIII grand final for the fourth year in a row!

Thank you to coach Sefo Fuimaono for his continued dedication to St Paul’s rugby league, thank you to the many Old Boys who assisted him throughout the year, thank you to Mr Sargeant, a long time supporter and dedicated rugby league volunteer, who is always available to help out as a trainer, coach or otherwise.

1st XIII staff: Sefo Fuimaono, Mr McDermott, Mr Sharma, Mr Sargeant, Mr Hamiora

Basketball

A season of improvement. Focusing on shooting and dribbling, the program has a whole has grown and improved, sitting in a better place than we were last year. Some new additions across the age groups, and some returning faces; we have won, lost and learned together. 

I would like to highlight the players' hard work, with hundreds of hours in the gym together, hundreds of made shots, and sprints is the key to continuing to build to the basketball programme and setting the tone for future years to come. 

I am extremely happy with the progress we continue to make, the growth of the players, the development of the culture and the standards we have held each other accountable to. 

A special thank you to Hamish Meads for his help as a Team Manager extraordinaire, his assistance with all U15s, U17s and 1st V helps the program to run as smoothly as it does. We could not have done what we did without him.

1st V
Ethan Ropati-Delaney, captain of the program and of the 1st V, led the charge again this year, demonstrating great leadership, commitment and passion for the season. 

The team started to find its feet mid way through the season, beating Green Bay U19 and Rutherford B comfortably. The seniors in the team, Ethan Ropati-Delaney, Dominic Calvert-Smith, Byron Toko and Nathan David, were complimented by our up and coming Year 11s and 12s, Solomon Nash, Leaam Kelemete, Sebastian Smith, Drew and Cruz Scott. The mix of experience and athleticism within the team helped push them over the edge in some games, and held them back in others with close endings. A season of learning for the younger members and successes for our Year 13s to remember. 

As the season closes, there is a lot of promise for the future with a new young core emerging full of talent ready to take on the 1st V next year. 

Under 17
New players Nico Smith and Feleti Fane proved to be great additions to the programme providing much needed size and skill for the team. The U17s, captained by Solomon Nash, started slow but soon found their groove, and winning teams with ferocious rebounding from Ngatu Lui, and smooth shooting and scoring from both Leaam Kelemete and Joseph Samuels. Joseph Samuels, who started basketball at the end of last year, has made immense improvement to his shooting, defence and overall game. His growing confidence and excellent commitment to improving has helped to build his development and prove to be a useful addition to the programme for the future. 

Coming back from injuries, Kyan Henry slotted in quickly and showed his extra basketball practise to have paid off. 

In a tight game with Kelston, the team took ownership and stepped up to the plate, proving that a true team is made up of lots of players, who all can provide something unique to the team. 

Under 15
Our three U15s teams, Maroon, Blue and Yellow, had mixed seasons, in some weeks we showed great composure, team play and fantastic shooting displays. 

Captained by Feata Sului, the Maroon team fought out several games in a tough league, beating Rutherford, Green Bay, Liston and Waitakere Boys comfortably. 

Preston-David Stanely, Larenz Pua and Malakai Kurata-Lafaele showed to be great leaders who carried the offensive burden for much of the season. 

Walk on players Peter Creevey, Arthur Gabriel and Pharrell Hughes showed to be great passers and scorers who fitted into the team game excellently. 

Our reigning most improved player Xavier Lafaele has continued to improve, showing his impact on the defensive end. His knack for timing blocks and steals has been wonderful to watch. A few of his blocks this season have been some of the best I have seen in my time at St Paul’s College, drawing admiration even from opposing teams. 

AJ Glen has continued to be a smooth and consistent shooter, filling up points from behind the 3 point line with ease. 

Preston-David Stanley has been the MVP, star of the show, and team leader. His excellent skills and persistence to score, no matter who or what is in front of him, is second only to his commitment to improving his game. 

The U15s will take on the BBNZ Zone 1 Junior Premiership later this year hoping to maintain the development from the season taking on new opponents and showing that St Paul’s College is a great basketball program. 

AIMS Games
Our AIMS team this year looks more complete than last year, with five returning players from last year, Naea Williams, Gianni Williams-Fotu, Kingston Fonua, Cairyn Robarts and captain Jett Nash. They have set the tone and shown the new players the standard expected to compete. 

Both Jett Nash and Naea Williams made U13 Auckland Rep teams for the second consecutive year, showing that St Paul’s College players have the talent to compete in the Central Auckland grades. 

New player Ebenezer Asnake still holds the record for a shooting drill, untouched by any other player in the programme and our starting center Abner Maafu is learning more and more to use his size to his advantage. 

Year 7 Junior Fui is showing to be a tough and persistent defender. An engine that never stops, he is a great addition to the team.