A tenacious all-round display by College A has led them to a 34-32 win over Celtic A in a thriller between the two rivals.

The first game of ACL premier netball’s championship round on Thursday went down to the wire, however it was College who kept their nerve in a nailbiting final quarter.

It was hard-fought in the later games too, with United holding off a fast-finishing Celtic B side who proved their worth after being promoted to premier 1 earlier in the week.

Hampstead were also made to fight tooth and nail against a fired up Methven side, as the form team of the competition escaped with a 45-41 win.

A gripping night of netball was set up in the first matchup on court.

College were always going to match Celtic for energy, however they brought a noticeable physicality to the equation on defence.

The side edged ahead in the first quarter off the back of Hayley Tallentire and Sophie Adams in front of goal.

Down 11-7 at the first break, Celtic began to dictate the exchanges in the second period and got the ledger back to one by halftime.

It was a bruising third quarter, with both teams staunching it out on defence.

College were disciplined in centre court as they patiently worked the ball into position, meaning Celtic were left with scraps to feed off.

Although they were unsettled into mistakes, Celtic remained in touch via their clinical attacking and mid-courters.

Poppy Kilworth however was a ball of fire in the defensive third for College, throwing herself around to thwart any hint of scoring momentum for Celtic.

College held a 28-24 lead heading into the final period and appeared slightly nervy after the resumption.

Celtic capitalised on a few unforced errors from College, outscoring their opponents six goals to two early in the final stanza.

The green machine squared things up twice during the final few minutes.

However the ice-cool Tallentire landed the pivotal final points as the lead for Celtic continued to elude them at the death.

Later in the evening, Methven provided Hampstead with their toughest game all year as an upset looked on the cards deep into the encounter.

It was tit-for-tat early with both sides making few mistakes.

Methven however brought a physical presence as they looked to get on top of the competition frontrunners.

Even the competition’s leading shooter Alice Eddington was unsettled into the anomaly of consecutive misses on goal in the first quarter as Methven secured a deserved lead.

Hampstead found their groove to wrestle back the lead early in the second period.

However Methven were not going away, and picked up several turnovers to reclaim the ascendancy at halftime, up 23-20.

A vulnerable Hampstead were being overawed physically as they lost midcourter Ashleigh Collier to an injury.

It looked like goal attack Nicole Hands was going to join her on the side early in the third following strong contact, however the shooter soldiered on.

Methven were proving tough to break down at the back, with Sarah McKenzie scrapping for any bit of possession.

Hampstead worked the corners and remained in touch with only a goal separating the two sides at the final interval.

The lead changed hands early in the final quarter as Methven goal shoot Kelera Nawai crucially was off target as the pressure went on.

A strong finish ensured from the blue and golds to deny the out-of-towners by four goals.

United claimed a 33-27 win against premier 1 newbies Celtic B to go to the top of the championship round.

By Adam Burns © The Ashburton Guardian -  7 August 2020

New Zealand Governor-General Patsy Reddy with Hayden Roulston, after his investiture as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to cycling. Photo supplied.Two Ashburton-born figures were part of the theme of sporting excellence at an investiture ceremony held in Christchurch on Monday.

Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy held a short investiture ceremony where Roly Crichton was recognised for his efforts guiding the career of top Paralympian Sophie Pascoe, while top cyclist turned coach Hayden Roulston was also acknowledged.

The ceremonies normally take place at Government House in Auckland or Wellington, and one a year in the South Island, however, due to Covid-19 a series of smaller ceremonies are being held to have the honours conferred.

Crichton started coaching with the Ashburton Swim Team, but is most well known for coaching Pascoe – New Zealand’s most successful paralympian – and in the 2019 New Year Honours he was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Paralympic sport.

He had also been a successful athlete in his own right.

At the 1984 Summer Paralympics, Crichton won a gold medal in the 50m freestyle as well as two silver medals and a bronze.

Then at the 1988 Summer Paralympics, he won a silver and bronze medal.

Roulston is one of New Zealand’s most successful cyclists.

He won silver and bronze at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

He also won two bronze medals at the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2002, and then a silver in the road race at the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games.

Roulston has also competed in the Tour de France, won the Tour of Southland four times, and the New Zealand road race National Championship four times as well as several track titles at the New Zealand and Oceania track championships.

In 2015 Roulston announced his retirement from road racing and began coaching.

Roulston was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2009.

At the ceremony on Monday, former All Black coach Sir Steve Hansen was also honoured for his efforts in coaching our international team.

Hansen was knighted in the 2020 New year’s honours.

By Jonathan Leask © The Ashburton Guardian -  6 August 2020

Taonga Mbambo has returned to his studies in the USA. Photo supplied.Taonga Mbambo is making good strides with his studies and running and has just returned to start his second year at university in the USA.

The former Ashburton College student, a talented middle and long distance runner, won an athletics and academic scholarship to La Salle University in Philadelphia last year.

His first year of studies was cut short by the coronavirus outbreak and he returned home in March to complete them online.

Taonga’s academic performance and running prowess have both been noted by college officials and he has returned to America with a spring in his stride.

“I feel good about going back and getting into my studies and running.”

He said he was young, fit and healthy and not unduly bothered by the Covid-19 situation.

His sophomore (second year) would feature a mix of online and in-person lectures, but there would be no competitive running for a few more months.

“Sporting competitions will be reassessed in September, so I’ll have to see what happens then.”

Taonga, 19, is studying for a four-year business management degree and is both a track and cross country runner.

Since returning home in March he has been staying fit and pounding the streets of Ashburton to build up his distance work.

“I’ve been running around 70 miles (112km) a week and I’m feeling good.”

Taonga said he suffered a stress fracture last October, but had recovered well after some good treatment and was back running within six weeks.

Part-time work in Ashburton over the last few weeks has helped fund some new running footwear, and half a dozen pairs were crammed into his suitcase ahead of his departure earlier this week.

© The Ashburton Courier -  6 August 2020