The Mangakino Basketball Courts. Photo / Taupō District Council.
Ballers and footy players in Mangakino are hoping for a brighter future now Taupō District Council has applied for funding to extend and upgrade the lights.
By Bronson Perich – Local Democracy Reporter
Taupō district councillor Hope Woodward says she has heard of people using cars to light up the basketball court on Rangatira Drive when playing at night.
A local rugby player has also reached out to her, saying basketball players weren’t the only ones jumping around in the dark as the Mangakino Sportsgrounds on Wairenga Rd didn’t have a full night-lighting set-up.
Aside from being the local rugby battlefield, the Mangakino Sportsgrounds house the training barracks of the King Country Rugby Union youth and senior grade rep teams.
The union covers parts of the King Country, Taupō and South Waikato districts, which puts the Mangakino Sportsground roughly in the middle.
King Country Rugby Union community rugby manager, Joshua Standen, says they use the grounds often for age-grade and senior rep teams.
“We [also] have a lot of development days and coaching clinics out there.”
The Mangakino Sportsground. Photo / Taupō District Council.
Standen says the grounds will benefit from night lights since training on weeknights is common, and rep squads hold games on the weekends.
The council has been working with the Mangakino community on an upgrade proposal for the lights, which includes new poles and LED floodlights.
However, the upgrades aren’t included in Taupō District Council’s annual budget with council staff instead hoping for funding through the NZ Rugby Legacy Fund and Sports NZ Grassroots Spaces & Places Fund.
The council hopes to secure $122,550 to fund the lights project.
A council spokesperson confirmed their application to the Legacy Fund was endorsed days before applications closed this month.
The Sports NZ Grassroots funds are accessible through Sport Waikato and the council is also working with them to secure funding to light the sportsgrounds.
Standen says he wrote a letter supporting the applications because the upgrades would make the sportsgrounds, “a bit more user-friendly.”
Re-purposing the old lights Woodward says she has an idea of how to solve the issue for the ballers.
“I’ve also asked that the existing rugby ground lights be considered for our basketball courts.”
She says the upgrades have been a long time coming, and her community needs them.
“Our sportsgrounds are more than just places to play sport.
“They’re spaces where our people, particularly our rangatahi, find belonging, confidence and connection.
“In communities like Mangakino, these spaces are invaluable.”
The council says if it is successful in securing the funding, new lights could be in place in time for the 2027 winter rugby season.
– LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.