Kumeu Rugby Club clinched a $10,000 prize at the fourth annual nib Little Legends $10K Relay during halftime at the Blues vs Hurricanes rugby match at Eden Park on Saturday.
The North Harbour-based club triumphed over competitors from across the Auckland, North Harbour, and Northland regions, enhancing their funding for junior player initiatives.
The relay event brought together 100 young athletes, aged 11 to 13, from various junior rugby clubs and intermediate schools.
The young athletes competed at the iconic Eden Park, with the cash prize aimed at supporting health and wellbeing initiatives for the winning team.
Commenting on the Kumeu Rugby Club’s win, relay manager Stephen MacKenzie, said: “It’s life-changing for our club. We can do so much with the money, so we’re super excited. It’s been an amazing opportunity for all of the junior rugby clubs in Auckland – $10,000 is just an amazing amount of money that can be put to good use. So, thank you very much to nib and the Blues!”
The club intends to use the prize money to help cover player costs including fees and equipment and to upgrade facilities. One significant project includes enhancing the changing rooms to better serve an increasing number of female players, as part of their efforts to expand their women’s rugby program.
Rob Hennin, CEO of nib New Zealand, emphasised the broader goals of the relay.
“As a health insurer we know the importance of proactively looking after your health and wellbeing,” he said. “Encouraging kids to be active is a great way to teach children positive habits from a young age. Our long-standing partners, the Blues, are fantastic role models, and it was awesome to see the little legends compete on the same pitch as their sporting heroes.”
The event also featured the nib Check Up Clinic in central Auckland, offering free health checks to the public before the game, reinforcing the health-focused ethos of the event.
Andrew Hore, chief executive of the Blues, spoke about the impact of the relay and its growth.
“It’s been a pleasure to work with our principal partner nib to put on this event for the fourth year running and seeing how much energy the teams bring every single time. Not only does the relay embody the values of rugby – team work and mate ship but also hard work and sportsmanship that’s central to our game, we love seeing these young people battling hard for their clubs and one day we hope to see a few battling for the Blues on behalf of their clubs,” he said.
Finalists for the relay were selected based on their proposed uses of the $10,000 prize to enhance player health and wellbeing. This included teams such as Koru School, Auckland Normal Intermediate, and St Dominic’s Girls Catholic School, among others.
