Former Ashburton College First XV captain Harry Ferguson in action. Photo Ashburton Guardian.A big weekend of rugby looms for former Ashburton College First XV captain Harry Ferguson.
The lively flanker is hoping to take the field for his University of Canterbury club side against Lincoln University in the final of the division one Canterbury Metro Trophy on Sunday.
Ferguson, 20, has spent the past few weeks on the sideline with a hematoma but is cleared to play in the big final at Rugby Park. He has been a regular starter at flanker for University this season and is hoping his good form prior to injury will allow him to win his spot back.
University last won the trophy in 1990 and the students beat Sydenham last Sunday to set up the clash with Lincoln University. They upset Lincoln University 29-27 earlier in the competition so the scene is set for an epic final.
Ferguson was a gutsy performer for the Ashcoll First XV. He first played for the team in 2013 as a Year 12 student; the side that year qualified for the top four co-ed national playoffs in Rotorua. In 2014 he was captain of the side.
He says the Rotorua experience remains a highlight of his Ashburton College playing days, along with a rare win over Christ’s College.
The secondary school competition was a good build-up to rugby in Christchurch and he joined the University Club in 2015, when he started studying towards a four-year degree in forestry engineering.
He played in the premier colts team that year, on the wing … a little quiet for a player used to being in the thick of the action.
The following year he was back at flanker and this year he has impressed the div 1 coach, after a stellar season with the University sevens side. He has scored a couple of tries over the course of the club season – his first resulting from his first touch of the ball ever in the div 1 competition.
University has some high profile players. Ferguson has played alongside Israel Dagg – “it was pretty fun running on with an All Black” - and was disappointed to be injured when Kieran Read took the field for them during a club match. Read has also been to some trainings and Ferguson said his presence was huge for the team.
This week the side will train as usual on Tuesday and Thursday and have a light training on Saturday. They’ll be watching the Crusaders v Chiefs game together on Saturday night and arriving in style on a bus to Rugby Park on Sunday.
Ferguson plans to be in the action.

By Linda Clarke © AshColl Alumni - 25 July 2017

The Mid Canterbury Under 17 Netball side that finished 28th at the recent Netball NZ Under 17 Championships. Back row: Ella Hurley (from left), Kate Brady, Emma McDowell, Sophie Beveridge, Hannah McDougall and Natasha Drummond. Front row: Samantha Holden, Vicki Pluck, Meg McIntyre and Natasha Waddell. Photo suppliedMid Canterbury’s under 17 netballers have come away from the Netball NZ Under 17 Championships with a sense of déjà vu.

The side finished 28th out of 38 sides at the four day tournament held in Pukekohe, the same position they finished last year.

Coach Sarah Lassen said it was a good solid tournament for the team, with the superior height of the opposition often creating challenges for the team.

“We wanted to finish with the same result if not better and we did that so we achieved our goal,” she said.

“We played very nicely and cleanly and really showed our sportsmanship.”

Mid Canterbury opened pool play against the Hawke’s Bay, falling 59-26.

They looked to get things back on track when they took out a 39-33 win against Rotorua.

However, this would be their only win in the pool stage, with heavy losses against Whangarei and North Harbour 1 coming on day two.

This meant the side dropped in to the second bracket for knockout play, playing against Trust Waikato Hamilton City B, losing 47-27.

In the afternoon of day three, Mid Canterbury picked up their second win of the tournament, this time against Kapi Mana 33-28.

This win guaranteed the side a place somewhere between 25th and 28th, and left them needing to beat Nelson if they were going to take out one of the top two spots.

However, Nelson proved to be too good on the day, winning 49-30.

This left Mid Canterbury facing Gisborne for 27th or 28th.

Eight points separated the sides at the final whistle, with Gisborne taking the win 44-36.

By Jaime Pitt-MacKay © The Ashburton Guardian - 20 July 2017

The Mid South Canterbury team that finished 8th at the recent Under 17 National Championships in Wellington last week. Back row: Hayley Tallentire (from left), Roi Makutu, Taryn Douglas, Summer Anderson, Phoebe Trolove and Mark Douglas (coach). Front row: Milly Ford, Grace Adams, Sammy Arnold, Dani McArthur and Tessa Thompson. Photo suppliedThe Mid South Canterbury U 17 girls’ basketball side has returned home after a successful run at the national championships last week.

The side cracked the top eight at the tournament after starting the tournament with a bang.

Facing off against Hutt Valley in their first match, they ran away with the match 86-25.

Waitakere East presented a far tougher challenge in the second match of the day.

Needing the win to have any chance of making the top eight, Mid South were able to hold on in a tense final quarter to take out the win 70-66.

The side faced eventual runners-up Auckland Counties Manakau in their third pool game.

After trailing heavily for most of the game, a big late fourth quarter surge from Mid South closed the gap to 13, with the scoreboard reading 77-64 in favour of Auckland at the final whistle.

In the final pool match, Mid South put the scorers to the test, flying to a 97-74 win against Southland, securing second place in the pool.

In the quarter-finals, it was also going to be a challenge for Mid South coming up against basketballing powerhouses North Harbour.

Undersized but not lacking effort, Mid South were unable to keep up on the scoring charts, losing 97-41.

However, they did take the honour of being the first side to keep North Harbour under 100 points in a match.

In the first tournament crossover match for fifth through eighth, Waikato had too much for Mid South Canterbury to handle.

In the playoff for seventh and eighth, the side fought hard against Manawatu, but it was not enough, losing by six.

Coach Mark Douglas said despite the disappointment of missing out on the top four, the side were still happy to celebrate making the top eight, especially when looking at the size of the catchment areas of the other top eight teams, such as Canterbury, Waikato and Auckland.

By Jaime Pitt-MacKay © The Ashburton Guardian - 20 July 2017