National Handball Trials

During the long weekend, Issac Tilli, Jack Waterworth and Brent Manangan accompanied by ex-students Kyran Edmonds and Lachie Tait went up to Christchurch for the first training camp/trials for the U18 and U20 New Zealand Youth Handball team.

Day 1 was full of multiple activities starting with fitness testing. Shortly after that, it went to movement training, with the New Zealand handball coaches emphasizing that movement is an important part of the handball game. Then lastly the boys ended day 1 with transition training highlighting the importance of moving back and forth between offence and defense. 

Day 2 started off well for the boys as they began with defense training. During this defense training, they learnt the importance of calling out to each other and also understanding the rules around defensive play. Day 2 ended with the U18 athletes playing against each other in three different teams and by the end of it everyone was exhausted. Even after that exhaustion, the group ended up playing the U20 team and the match was tight with the final score being 21 to 20 favoring the U20 team.

The camp was an amazing experience for these boys on the handball stage, and all three gained good knowledge even if some may have come away limping with the hard training they had gone through! We wish them all the best for the trials coming up near the end of the year.