Hokonui marching teams defend national titles
Hokonui’s marching girls were in tears after a "tough" performance at their third national championship last weekend.
Hokonui U18 coach Renee Morgan said her team were unsure of whether they were going to keep their title after performing last at the NZ Marching Championships on Saturday.
Ms Morgan said because of going last they were unable to see how the other teams did, but they were crying tears of joy because they had done their best.
"We just took it and said to them ‘look, no matter the results ... you couldn’t have done anything more’," she said.
Despite this, the U18 team became champions for the third time in a row last weekend and the other team — the Hokonui U13s — won their second title.
The first category in last weekend’s competition was the technical event, in which every team did the same routine as structured by governing body Marching NZ.
The second category was the display, in which teams could take a more lyrical approach.
Scores from both categories were then added together to see who would take the overall win.
The Hokonui U13s won with their display routine and coach Levana Philip said in the category some teams get quite "dancey" while others keep it military-based.
Ms Philip said her girls were very "sassy" and she intentionally played to those strengths, choosing equally sassy music to let their talents shine.
"If they relate to the music and have input into the creativity of it, they’re more likely to enjoy it and perform it well," she said.
"The display that they did on Saturday was amazing," Mrs Morgan said.
She said the older girls came off their performance crying and saying that it "felt so good" to give their everything on the floor.
The girls may have been emotional for other reasons, too, she said, as it is her and fellow coach Tracy McDonald’s last time coaching for the team.
Some of the older performers have now also aged out of the category or are going off to university and are hanging up their marching boots.
When asked what made the Hokonui teams so successful, Ms Philip said the fun and hardworking environment as well as the close ties the marchers have has made them thrive.
"There’s a lot of hard work, but there’s a lot of fun as well.
"I think the combination of the two is what brings everything together," she said.
Ms Morgan agreed that the sport built life-long friendships.
The discipline of the precise sport was something the coaches said was a benefit to the young women.
Ms Morgan said she and Ms McDonald did not put much pressure on the team, but the nature of the sport meant that the girls hold each other accountable.
"Because they’re doing it for each other," she said.
