Huimai Rugby Club (Omanawa)

Club History

The Huimai Rugby Club (Omanawa) was formed in 1954 when Eddie Heke called for a meeting in the Tauriko Hall to see if there was enough interest in the wider Tauranga districts of Omanawa, Tauriko and Pyes Pa to form a Rugby Club. The response was good and a decision to go ahead was made. The decision was made to name the team Huimai, which, in Maori, means a gathering of people coming together. The team played for just 2 seasons, 1944 and 1955 before players moved away and the team disbanded.
The highlight of their history was the match against the very strong Matakana Island team on Tauranga Domain number 1. The Matakana Island team were expected to win easily, and, as their ferry arrived 4 hours before the game, they went to the pub to fill in the time. Huimai won and they couldn’t believe it.

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Omanawa Settlers 1910 to 1960

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Huimai Rugby Club (Omanawa)

2002

Trish Heke and Margaret Bennett

58 pages

Trish Heke and Margaret Bennett wrote a history of the Omanawa Settlers 1910 to 1960 and included on page 54 is a history of the Huimai club. The club only existed for 2 seasons but did taste some success.

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Omanawa Settlers 1910 to 1960

Club:

Huimai Rugby Club (Omanawa)

Year:

2002

Author:

Trish Heke and Margaret Bennett

Pages:

58 pages

Notes:

Club History