Kate Lloyd in her Tactix gear from last season, accompanied by her parents, Wayne and Sharon, Photo suppliedExcited Ashburton netballer Kate Lloyd is packing her bags for Hamilton this week for a season with the Western Bay of Plenty Magic.

Lloyd, 20, was named in the squad last August after returning from the Netball Youth World Cup in Botswana with the triumphant New Zealand Under 21 side.

Since then the 192cm defender has been finishing her studies and hitting the gym so she is ready for the tough season ahead.

Lloyd and her mum Sharon will be driving up on Thursday and Lloyd will live with three other Magic players for the duration of the ANZ Premiership season.

Last year she was part of the Mainland Tactix line-up, spreading her time between the top team and the Beko development league team.

Following the world cup, she concentrated on her studies at Lincoln University, where she is on a netball scholarship.

She is studying towards a Bachelor in Sport and Recreation Management, and loving it.

The university has given her the flexibility to study around her netball commitments and she will focus on her books outside the main season.

For the past few months in Ashburton, she has been working on fitness and weight training, as well as attending some training weekends in Hamilton with her new team-mates.

The gym sessions are aimed at building muscle, power and speed.

Lloyd says the work is paying off and she sees muscle tone on her former “stick” body.

She is keen now to begin the next phase of her netball career, under the guidance of coach Marg Forsyth and former New Zealand defender Casey Kopua, who is in her 15th season for the Magic.

Lloyd said she has a great opportunity to play alongside and learn from Kopua.

“I think of her as a mentor and another coach.

“She is a pretty cool girl and great to talk to.”

Forsyth rates Lloyd’s range and mobility and says the Magic squad has a strong balance of experience and youth that is important for future seasons as well.

Lloyd’s family and friends plan to be courtside for as many Magic games as they can and the former Ashburton College player says that support means a lot.

“There’s a little bit of Vegas in me every time I take the court.”

Linda Clarke © The Ashburton Guardian - 24 January 2018

Ashburton born and raised Jack Hanrahan is thrilled to have landed a spot in the ensemble of Wicked. Photo Katie ToddJack Hanrahan was eight years old and sitting in the audience of Fiddler on the Roof when he decided performing arts was what he wanted to do with his life.

“I looked at my mum and I said, ‘I want to do that’, and she just said, ‘sure’!” he said.

Thirteen years later, true to his word, Jack has a NASDA course, six years of singing lessons, eight Big Little Theatre Company shows, five years’ worth of Variety Theatre shows, endless Summer Singing School productions and “every other opportunity there was to take in Ashburton” under his belt.

Now, the 21-year-old is ready to tackle his first role out of NASDA, in the ensemble of Wicked in Christchurch.

The Showbiz-produced show will open on April 6, and it’s a role Jack said he was thrilled to land.

“A lot of people auditioned and I know a lot of people who missed out, but I was really thrilled to get it,” he said.

Under the direction of Steven Robinson, Jack will be performing along a host of Kiwi talent, including two other Ashburtonians – Jane Leonard and Greta Casey-Soley.

The family-friendly classic follows the story of an unlikely but profound friendship between two girls who first meet as sorcery students at Shiz University: blonde, very popular Glinda and misunderstood, green-skinned Elphaba. It will show 10 times at the Isaac Theatre Royale, and will be proudly attended by Jack’s mum and dad among other friends.

“I have a lot of thanks to my parents, who have supported me so much,” said Jack.

“I got my licence really late so there were a lot of late nights for them growing up, with rehearsals and singing lessons and so on.”

He also credits his singing teacher Jo Castelow, without whom he said he would not have got through the “really scary” NASDA auditions and into the performing arts school.

Beyond Wicked, Jack said he looks forward to imparting his own theatrical knowledge to learners. He has also just been accepted into a one-year teaching course for performing arts.

“I’ve always enjoyed the directing aspect of performance and I’m looking forward to teaching. I like helping people and saying ‘let me help you with what I know’ kind of thing,” he said.

It will be a balancing act – workshops and rehearsals for Wicked, classes for the teaching course and part-time work at Burgers & Beers in Christchurch – but Jack is ready and raring to go.

“I’ve dropped off a big colour-coded schedule of my rehearsals and classes to work,” he laughed.

Tickets and more information on the Showbiz season of Wicked is available at ticketek.co.nz/showbiz.

Katie Todd © The Ashburton Guardian - 22 January 2018

Mollie Gibson was in superb form at Lake Ruataniwha, picking up gold in the women’s single sculls. Photo supplied.Ashburton rowers were right in the thick of the action at last weekend’s Canterbury Championships on Lake Ruataniwha in Twizel.

In a combined effort between school squads and club rowers, the entire contingent walked away with five gold medals for their efforts as well as two silver medals and four of the bronze variety.

Racing in hot conditions there was a good mix of the familiar faces and some new ones on the water – netting good results all round.

Rowing dynamo Veronica Wall led the charge on what must be one of her favourite pieces of water, winning not only the Under 19 Women’s Single Sculls but also the open women’s event as well.

She went close to the perfect weekend but in the open women’s double sculls with Grace Wilson, but had to settle for second – beaten by New Zealand representatives Nicola Baker and Georgia Keech, who row out of the Central Rowing Performance Centre.

Mollie Gibson was in solid form as well winning gold in the Under 17 Women’s Single Sculls – winning her final by 20 seconds.

Matthew Rae and Haxby Hefford were in on the action too, winning gold in the Men’s Club Double Sculls while Hefford picked up bronze in the Under 19 Men’s Single Sculls.

Wyatt Burrows, Michael Wall, Jarred Matson and Gerard Wall claimed the fifth gold of the championship when they won the Men’s Intermediate Coxed Quad Sculls.

Burrows and Michael Wall also picked up a silver in the men’s intermediate double sculls.

Other bronze medals went to Charlotte Cox in the women’s masters single sculls while the women’s open coxless quad sculls team of Wilson, Fran Connelly-Whyte and Olivia and Mollie Gibson also picked up bronze.

All counted the contingent made 23 A finals over the course of the weekend – another incredible effort which puts them in good stead for the upcoming South Island Championships next weekend which will be held back on Lake Ruataniwha.

Matt Markham © The Ashburton Guardian - 18 January 2018