Players
Note - The Profiles are Meant to be Like us.......a little bit serious, Mostly a little bit fun!
Click on a players name to see their International Profile
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Loralee Pope
"Kia ora koutou katoa. Ko Loralee Wairau ahau. Nō Ōtautahi ahau" Loralee is the most experienced Korfball player in New Zealand and the best singer in the team as well, being regularly seen singing into her drink bottle! Her voice has never sounded croaky, because she praciticed a lot in the karaoke. Asia-Oceania Korfball Championship 2014, kia kaha Aotearoa! Written by Carl Rosa Cooper - vice captain
Rosa is an extremely gifted sportswoman easily making the transition to Korfball when she started in 2010. In 2011 she was co-captain of the NZ U23 team at the AOYKC. As part of her build up for this tournament she spent four months of 2013 in the Netherlands playing for DOS '46 from Nijeveen. When she isn't playing Korfball she works as a maths teacher and has a secret talent of being able to produce some epic burps! Written by Steve Sarah Bateup
Bateup first started playing korfball while studying at teachers college in 2010. Do not let her bubbly personality and friendly attitude fool you, she is more competitive and fearsome than most guys on the team. One interesting fact about Bateup is that she is not only fluent in English but also has the unique ability to speak, interpret, and sing the NZ national anthem in horse language! Written by Spencer Rachel Barrett
"Eating yummy chocolate and seeing her family Getting sweaty on court and just a little handsy These are a few of her favorite things" Rachel is a qualified physio and studied with Bevan at university. She is also one of the elder members of the squad, having finished school when most of us were just starting out. Written by Neville Kelsey Forward
Kelsey is one of the latest additions to our team having only played Korfball for 3 years. She brings a lot to the game including her electrifying pace and her fine looking butt. But don’t get your hopes up as she has an exotic Brazilian boyfriend. Kelsey, a neglected middle child, now works in the family insurance business but originally trained as a PE and maths teacher with a few of our other team mates. Petrified of spiders and heights, Kelsey also feels the call of the wild with her talent for making animal noises! Written by Simon Alice Cheersmith
The daughter of kiwi korf god Rob Smith, Alice has been in training for her international debut ever since her father sacrificed his korfball match to be at her birth. At just 16 years of age, Alice is not only a young korfball talent but also an incredibly accomplished artist. Our resident baby giraffe, Alice's boasts great height and a unique ability to spin in circles around a stationary ball! Written by Bevan Sarah Ennor
From Auckland, Sarah is one of the newest members of our team who is keen to take every opportunity to learn and develop her korfball experience. Sarah is a trained PE teacher but shows her multi-purpose abilities using these skills to teach a number of subjects at secondary school level. Written by Mikey Steve Asher
Stevo started playing Korfball in 2002 and this will be his third time representing New Zealand at an Asia Oceania Championship tournament. Stevo is the grandad of the team being the oldest male player but he can still give us all a run for our money after parking his zimmer frame on the side of the court! Written by Rosa Bevan Lawson - captain
Bevan has been playing korfball since 2006 and captained the 2010 national team. He recently returned from the Netherlands where he lived for ten months playing Korfball at Dutch club DOS '46 from Nijeveen. A physiotherapist by trade, Bevan has also been a NZ junior hockey rep and nationally ranked junior badminton player. He once had very very long hair and grew a beard to match when aiming to be an extra in a movie set in biblical times! Written by Alice Simon Cooper
Simon started playing korfball at the age of 14 and first represented NZ in 2007 at the AOYKC (U23), aged just 16 and when he couldn't grow facial hair. Simon has earned the nickname of Moth due to his large wingspan and enjoyment these tasty delicacies. He is often seen with a camera on his shoulder working for CTV as a camera man and editor. Apparently Simon swore he would never have a Korfball playing girlfriend, and we all know he never stuck to that! Written by Kelsey Neville Brooker
Nicknames: Nipplez or Trigger Enjoys singing: favourite karaoke song is "Reach" by S Club 7 Very proud Korfball moment: equal leading scorer vs Taipei in 2011 Injuries (recent): broken arm (cricket), dislocated jaw (basketball) Lost without: Snapchat Looks up to: Stephen Curry, hence why he wears number 30 Eating habits: favourite meal is chicken peanut satay but is happy to eat picklets for dinner too! Written by Rachel Spencer Te Pou
Spencer started playing Korfball in 2010 at NZIS. He has previously represented his country in Korfball at the 2011 AOYKC (U23) in Adelaide. Not only is Spencer our inspirational warmer-up-er-er he is our best story teller in the team... I dare you to ask him for a story. Spencer also likes to mediate for 30-40 minutes before any major tournament. Written by Sarah B Carl Chung
Carl is our inside man on this Korfball mission to Hong Kong. Born in Auckland, he moved to Hong Kong when he was young and started playing Korfball there at the age of 15. Carl moved back to Auckland at age 18, making his NZ U23 debut in 2011. He is one of the youngest of our team with a great sense of humour, amazing hair and the best array of goal celebrations and on-court dance moves in the team! Written by Loralee Mikey Graham
Mikey is a born and bred Cantabrian who works full time as a Sports Coordinator. About to compete in his second international tournament, Mikey's strength is grabbing balls that rebound off the korf. He is most famous in Korfball circles for being the three-time undefeated and only winner of the 'Best Rob Smith look-a-like' award at the annual Korfball Canterbury Cocktail and Awards Night. Written by Sarah E |
Management
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Mark Garrett - Coach
"I am not, nor have I ever been, a Las Vegas showgirl. I am a headliner!". Mark has been head coach of NZ korfball since 2009, taking the reins at AOKC 2010 and AOYKC (U23) 2011. He enjoys copious amounts of coffee (which he cannot function without), betraying his home country of Australia by coaching their trans-tasman rivals and long walks on the beach. Helen Timms - Manager
Helen has managed New Zealand international representative korfball teams regularly since 2006, taking care of the many tricky logistical challenges. During training camps her sensational culinary skills always impress the squad members, with her guacamole and frittata recipes proving firm favourites. Helen and her husband run a successful car importing business in Christchurch. Helen is looking forward to catching up with players and officials from other countries she has met on previous tours. Dardy McLean-Smith - Assistant Manager
Dardy is a qualified social worker who works with disadvantaged young people in Christchurch. Although she only recently became involved with korfball, her calmness under pressure and her people skills are excellent qualities that should help ensure the squad functions as successfully as possible. Her previous sporting interests include netball, basketball and rowing. Lucy Bolton - Sports Medic
Lucy began playing korfball in 2009 and would have been on court for this tournament if it wasn't for an ACL rupture. She is currently studying physiotherapy at university. Lucy has a reputation for dominating many things including our fitness testing. Her two all-time favourite celebrities are Celine Dion and Roger Federer (imagine their babies!) Brodie Thompson - Stats Man
Brodie, aka Cat, along with three other members of the squad, started playing korfball while studying at the University of Canterbury College of Education in 2010. Another one of our injured ranks, Brodie works for an organisation that assists offenders to re-integrate into society after release from jail. He is a keen aficionado of Crossfit and anything that purrs. Koru, The Korfball Kiwi - Mascot, Wisdom Provider
Koru was gifted to Korfball NZ from our mentors Grahame and Doreen Felton in 2010. Koru represents Grahame and Doreen on our Korfball adventures while reminding us about their teachings and wisdom to ensure a positive attitude is always maintained. |