Ko Ngā Ōpango me Ngā Mamaku Takiwhitu i tau mai ki te wā kāinga i te ata nei whai muri i wā rātou ekenga hohoro i te peka o te World Sevens Series ki Cape Town i te mutunga wiki ki muri nei.
Kua toru wiki rātou i tāwāhi whai muri i te peka ki Dubai i tērā atu mutunga wiki, e koa ana te kapa i te hokinga mai ki te kāinga. Ko te kaitākaro toa o te tākaro whiringa toa i te Tonga o Awherika, ko Ngārohi McGarvey-Black, e anga nui atu ana te titiro ki te whakatā.
"He pai ki te hoki mai ki te kāinga. Toru wiki mātou i tāwāhi, nō reira kei te tino harikoa, kei te tino tau te wairua ki te hoki mai ki te kāinga."
He tuaruatanga i te tau 2019, te ekenga a ngā kapa e rua o Aotearoa ki te angitu i te whakataetae kotahi. Nā Ngā Mamaku te kapa o Ahitereiria i turaki, 17-7 i te whiringa toa ki Cape Town i mua i tā Ngā Ōpango Takiwhitu rānaki i tā rātou hinganga i te kapa o Awherika ki te Tonga i te wiki i mua atu, ka patu i te kapa hau kāinga e 7-5.
Nā McGarvey-Black te piro i toa ai te tukinga i te ata Rāhina (NZT), kia riro i a Aotearoa te taitara toa, ā hei muru hoki i tāna hapa i hua ake ai te piro tuatahi a te kapa Blitzbokke i te whiringa toa o te wiki i mua atu.
"Ko tāku noa iho, he whakahoki i tērā piro ki a rātou," te kī a te uri nei nō Rūātoki. "Nā taku hapa i pērā ai, i tino harikoa ahau i taku whiwhinga i tēnā piro mō taku tīma. Kāore mō au anake, mō aku hoa, mō taku tīma, mō taku whānau, mō taku iwi o Aotearoa."
Ehara ko McGarvey-Black anahe te uri o Mataatua i tū toa ai i Cape Town. Nā Māhina Paul nō Poroporo i Whakatāne te piro toa i te wehenga tāpiri o te tukinga whiringa whānui ki a Ingarangi, kia ora tonu ai ngā Mamaku, ā ko te otinga, ko te tōnamana tuarua karapīpiti tēnei kua eke rātou.
Ko te kōkuhunga tēnei a te uri o Ngāti Awa ki te World Sevens Series, ā i te taunga ōrite o ngā piro e 21-21, ka riro i a ia te paoro i a Ruby Tui, ka oma tika atu, ka piro i raro i ngā pou kia toa ai Ngā Mamaku, e 26-21.
"Scoring the try it just gave me the confidence. I think that's what I've been working on this year is just gaining that confidence. It was just a unreal feeling. Shout out to Ruby for giving me that pass out," te kōrero a Paul.
18 noa iho ngā tau o Paul, nō tērā tau ka mutu te kura. Kāore ia i whakapono ka pēnei te tere o tana ekenga ki te taumata toa i te ao. Ko tana tākaro tuatahi i haere ngātahi me te wā tuatahi kua whai wāhi te wāhanga mā ngā wāhine ki Cape Town. I mīharo a Paul ki te ariā i Cape Town Stadium, i muia e te 50,000 tāngata.
"So special. Just running out yeah, it was an unreal feeling. Pretty cool, making my debut and yeah, the girls were just so supportive, and real welcoming when I got over there."
He tānga manawa mā ngā kapa takiwhitu e rua mō te rua wiki o te Kirihimete. Ka hoki atu ngā uri nei o Mataatua ki ō rātou whānau, i mua i te hokinga atu ki Maunganui, ki reira whakangungu ai mō te peka o te World Series ki Kirikiriroa hei te paunga o Kohitātea.
