Black Ferns coach Glenn Moore. Photo: Marc WeakleyAshburton-based rugby coach Glenn Moore is going fulltime.

The former Highlanders and Mid Canterbury Heartland coach has been appointed the fulltime coach of the New Zealand women’s rugby team, the Black Ferns, through to the Rugby World Cup in 2021.

Moore has been at the helm of the successful women’s side since 2015 during which time he has successfully won the World Cup – losing just three matches during his tenure.

Following the announcement yesterday Moore said in a statement from New Zealand Rugby, that the role would allow him to work even closer with players in their development.

“It means I can help players improve their training and skills by providing feedback throughout the year. We’ll be able to prepare in a much more consistent way and take things a step up,” he said.

The 2021 World Cup will be a special occasion with the entire tournament to be played on our shores.

“To play in a world cup at home is special. We know as current world champions we have a target on our back and it’s an exciting time to be involved,” he said.

“Over the past couple of years there’s been massive growth in the top end of the women’s game. Our talent pool is deeper than it’s ever been, so players are working hard to secure a black jersey and have a desire to get better. As a coach that’s exactly what you want.”

New Zealand Rugby’s head of women’s rugby, Cate Sexton, said that Moore’s role would also now include a strong element of talent identification.

All Provincial Unions now deliver Black Ferns high performance programmes alongside their Mitre 10 Cup programmes ensuring contracted Black Ferns and wider squad members have full access to trainers and facilities, specialist skill development, strength and conditioning, physiotherapy, nutrition advice and player development management.

The general manager of Smallbones, Moore also has a strong involvement with the Mid Canterbury Rugby Union.

© The Ashburton Guardian - 19 September 2019

SMASHED performer Troy Vandergoes mid-performance at Ashburton College yesterday. Photo Jaime Pitt-MacKayAshburton College students got a dramatic look at the dangers of underage drinking and dealing with peer pressure yesterday.

SMASHED, which was established in the UK in 2005 and will this year be delivered in 21 countries worldwide, has been brought to New Zealand as part of responsible drinking initiative The Tomorrow Project and is being delivered by the Life Education Trust.

The trio of performers were at Ashburton College yesterday to deliver the hour-long show that consists of 30 minutes of performing and 30 minutes of a workshop with the students on what they learned from the performance.

The performance highlights three friends and their experiences with alcohol and its negative effects, including what happens when one of the characters becomes grossly intoxicated and has to be carried home by his friends, and a fight between the two male characters, Caleb and Jack, that results in the character Charlotte being injured as a result.

Neatly woven into the performance are important lessons around the drinking age and the short-term and long-term effects alcohol consumption can have on the body.

“This project lasts five months and we are on our second-to-last week now,” performer Troy Vandergoes said.

The main aim of the show was to educate the students on underage drinking and avoiding peer pressure, he said.

The tour will continue south as far as Queenstown before returning to the North Island.

Tomorrow Project spokesman Matt Claridge said establishing the SMASHED programme in New Zealand is an exciting opportunity to address the issue of under-age drinking as well as encourage a responsible approach to alcohol as adults.

“We know, from our own research, that the younger people are when they begin drinking alcohol, the more likely they are to develop poor drinking behaviours later in life and this is a pattern that we are looking to change,” he said.

“The unique theatre-based approach to education is proving incredibly successful globally as students are engaged in an interactive way.

“The UK – where more than 380,000 pupils have participated in the programme, has seen a significant drop in the number of young people drinking alcohol, from 45 per cent of 8 to 15-year-olds in 2003 to 14 per cent today.”

SMASHED will reach more than 21,000 Year 9 students this year across 120 schools, with funding being secured to roll out to all 60,000 Year 9 students in 2020.

Life Education Trust CEO John O’Connell says SMASHED represents the organisation’s first foray into secondary schools.

“We’re delighted we have the opportunity to work with youth and support them with a programme that has a proven track record internationally,” he said.

O’Connell said the uptake from schools booking SMASHED has been significant.

“We’ve had a huge response from schools which indicates it’s an issue they see real value in supporting their students,” he said.

A global survey of SMASHED participants shows the programme, developed in collaboration with young people, has had a real impact on teenagers and their attitude and behaviour related to alcohol.

Ninety-five per cent of students said they understood more about the dangers of underage drinking than they did before the workshop and students who knew the legal age for buying alcohol in their country increased from 78 per cent to 94 per cent.

Eighty-six per cent of pupils demonstrated confidence in where to get help with alcohol-related issues after the programme (an increase of 33 per cent)  and 15 per cent have said the most important thing they learned from the session was how to challenge peer pressure.

By Jaime Pitt-MacKay © The Ashburton Guardian - 19 September 2019

Among those taking aim at the Phoenix Target Shooting Club’s schools’ and junior championships on Sunday were Jack McIntosh and Shania Harrison-Lee. Photo Robyn HoodThere seems to be no stopping Shania Harrison-Lee on the range at the moment.

The top young Ashburton shooter added yet another title to her growing collection at the weekend, taking out the Phoenix Target Shooting Club’s Junior and Schools Championship, held at the West Street range they share with the Coronation Target Shooting Club on Sunday.

Phoenix Target Shooting Club club captain Andrew McKenzie said the event was effectively organised as a practise event for three of Ashburton’s top young shooters, who are preparing to head to Wellington at the end of this month for the New Zealand Secondary Schools’ shoulder-to-shoulder match.

And they couldn’t have asked for a better showing, with the three who are off to the national event finishing in the top three individual spots, and taking out the team trophy.

Harrison-Lee, Emma Smith and Charlotte McKenzie formed the Ashburton College Angry Birds team and they topped the team standings at the end of the day with a total of 875.41.

In second spot was the Team JJAM (under the umbrella of Target Shooting Mid Canterbury), on 829.19.

That team was made up of Jack Jones and Jack McIntosh from Ashburton College, Amelia Swan from Mount Hutt College, and Madison Tourle from Ashburton Intermediate.

Third spot went to the St Jo’s Pros, with three St Josephs School youngsters – Kate McIntosh, Phoebe McKenzie and Eliza McKenzie – combining for a team score of 730.05.

When it came to the individual standings, Harrison-Lee finished on top of 297.18, with Smith second on 294.18, and Charlotte McKenzie third on 284.05.

Club captain Andrew McKenzie said as well as giving the Ashburton College trio competition heading into the national event, the championships were also a good chance for juniors to experience shooting in team matches.

By Erin Tasker © The Ashburton Guardian - 18 September 2019