29th July 2017

Two wins, two draws and two losses made it a rather even competitive day for Awakeri's older football teams as they returned from the holiday break on Saturday.
In the 13th grade, SLH Contracting Awakeri Warriors were rusty and took a while to get going in their game at home to Whakatane Intermediate Jets. Isaac Clements opened the scoring after a while. Kieran Butler won and then converted a penalty and Warriors added a third before half time. Elijah Wetting-Davidson scored a long range strike in the second half and his twin Bonnie-Marie was also busy on the wing. Frank Butler did a fine job winning the ball in the midfield and then passing it around well to team-mates, he was player of the day. The final score was Awakeri Warriors 6, WI Jets 0.
Primogrow Awakeri Ninjas had a tough day against Ohope Panthers in the 11th grade 1st division. Panthers played very well and deserved their 7 – 2 win. Ninjas worked hard, with Sophie Growden named player of the day for her excellent work in defence. Ollie Fort and Ben Peat scored Ninja's goals.
In the 11th grade 3rd division, Awakeri United were at home to Kutarere. United held their own against the sometimes bigger opponents, by passing the ball around well. Kutarere scored first, but United came back to score through Kohen Laurent, making the result a 1 – 1 draw. Mary Bragg was Awakeri United's player of the day for a whole hearted effort. Others in good form included Jamie Hawkes in defence and Ashlee Jennings.
Awakeri Panthers were at home in the 9th grade to Ohope Kraken. Panthers battled away very well and Rhianna Rowe capped off a strong game with a goal. She shared player of the day with defender Charlize Butler, who made some good challenges. Kraken won the game 3 – 1 in the end.
Also in the 9th grade, Awakeri Avengers beat the Ohope Mako's 3 - 0. Patch Jones scored two goals and Kaleb Grindrod got one. Patch got player of the day for his awesome shots at goal and general attacking play.
Awakeri Magic played Saints Stars in the 8th Grade. It was a good game, and not too bad from either side considering a few weeks holiday break. The result was a 2 – 2 draw, with Saints Stars scoring their second goal with just seconds left in the match to deny Magic the win. Magic's goals were scored by Ollie Peat and Ryan Lambert. Player of the day went to Christian Smith for following the coaches' game plan/instructions!
In the 7th grade, the teams got to play longer games, which the players really liked. Awakeri Rangers had a fantastic start to the second half of the season. They played very well together despite having two losses. Max Mead got their only goal in the second game and was also player of the day.
Awakeri Phoenix played their first 7th game against Whakatane Snappers, who won 2 - 0. Allandale Foxy Feet defaulted the second game with only two players so a friendly game was played. Player of the day went to Dominic Rowland for great attacking and defending in the games.
Superior Excavation Awakeri Athletic had a good session on a cold but sunny morning. The kids did well with their games. Athletic won one game and lost the other. The player of the day was well deserved by Jayden Grindrod for awesome attacking play.

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