Rising College sports stars in high-level play
24 Sep 2021
Rising College sports stars in high-level play
Four outstanding College sportsmen are making their mark in four very diverse sports.
Hendrix Taylor, 17, (Ngāti Kahungunu) has been selected for the New Zealand U18 Māori Rugby team – an outstanding achievement for a young man who has played a major role in powering the success of the College 1st XV.
Hendrix, who will face the New Zealand Schools and Barbarians sides, describes his selection as “pretty big for me and my family”.
“All my hard work has paid off, with all the coaching and training at College helping to get me here,” he says.
College 1st XI co-captain Daniel Metherell, 18, will also step into the big league following his “shock” selection for the New Zealand Secondary Schools U19 Football team.
“Being selected in a national team was definitely a shock for me,” he says. “I was more than happy with what I had already achieved with the College 1st XI and playing Men’s Premier level for my club, Ferrymead Bays, so now being able to play in my chosen sport for New Zealand is extremely exciting and I cannot wait to get into it at the start of next year and improve even more.”
Initially, Daniel was meant to play against Australia and the Cook Islands but because of Covid-19 and both games being international, they were cancelled. The squad will attend a three-day camp in Auckland in January 2022 and play the New Zealand Māori team and another side.
Daniel adds that he has made “significant improvement to my game, especially over the past couple of years”.
Standout polo player Edward Davidson, 17, has been named in the New Zealand School team for the second successive year to take on invitational teams in Sefton on 28 November and 4 December.
Edward, who has been playing polo since age 10, “works his 10 horses on the family farm in Waikari and plans to join the international polo circuit”, hoping to represent New Zealand at the highest levels.
College A basketball captain Josh Book, 18, aims to make the most of a “great opportunity” following his impressive selection for the Canterbury Rams 3x3 team to compete in the Schick 3x3 National Basketball League in Invercargill next month.
Josh has guided College through a brilliant season, both in terms of leadership and court play.
“Personally, I am very excited about being selected for this team and I think it will be a great opportunity to play at a high level and go against great competition,” he says.
