Netball tourney expects rivalry

By PATRICIA KEAMO
ORGANISERS of the Iga Papaka Cup are anticipating strong competition when the tournament hosts 500 netballers across 50 teams at Central’s Hula village this Queen’s Birthday weekend.Organising committee member Lawrence Lahari said his family and committee were excited about the tournament and were looking forward to hosting a bigger one next year. “We did plan for 10 teams per division, but now we have 50 teams in total,” Lahari told The National. “There are 20 A-Grade, 14 men’s, four masters, six Under-15 and six U18 teams. For us siblings — Caroline, myself, Arinamo and Jacklyn — and our dad, Howard, we are excited about this tournament.“What we thought was a one-off just to give back to the community is now an annual tournament.“Our mum, Iga Papaka Lahari, was a tough netballer and mum, but caring at the same time. “We want to ensure her legacy as a passionate netballer lives on. “A lot of Central talented netballers are there and we want to use this tournament to unearth new talents.“The idea of the tournament is to have fun and come together, it’s not about promoting a prize money but giving prizes like shopping vouchers and backpacks to the juniors as prizes.”