With over 3,000 people, three surf beaches and a beautiful natural harbour, Raglan is known for its famous surf breaks and arts and crafts.

It’s also home to a thriving Junior Football club, who have a scenic home ground in the middle of Raglan Harbour. 

The Raglan Football Club has seen an increase of almost 20% this year, with 291 children aged from 4 to 13 years old registered. With 118 of those being girls, they continue their club trend of 41% girls each year for the last 3 years.

Club President John Brzeski says “People ask us if our high numbers of girls are related to the Women's World Cup but we've always had consistently high numbers. This is a culture we've had at the Club for over 10 years now.”

Photo Credit: Amy Hanna (Whaingaroa Photography)

The club has a commitment to inclusion, and ensuring that everyone who wants to play is registered and is included into a team. The club mission statement sums it up perfectly “ Raglan Football Club strives to unite and empower our community through football, fostering inclusivity, sustainability, and a positive environment for everyone.”

Raglan run an in house First Kicks program every Saturday morning for the youngest footballers, aged 4-6 years old. They also have the opportunity to participate in several festival days in Hamilton over the season. 

From grade 7 onwards (age 6/7), teams play in the Waikato Junior competitions. Raglan enter both Girls and Mixed teams from Grade 7 through to Grade 12. They play games either at home – Papahua Reserve, Raglan – or at locations across the Waikato. While many teams are Hamilton based, games can be up to an hour away, such as games scheduled in Huntly. 

Photo Credit: Amy Hanna (Whaingaroa Photography)

John and the committee work hard to ensure that there is a family friendly environment. “I really get the impression, and have heard from visitors, that everyone loves to play football out here. There is a great atmosphere at the reserve on a Saturday and people often stick around to hangout at the park or pump track or have lunch at Jo's takeaways.”

John continues “I think our growth is generally a reflection of our growing community and of all      the various cultures you see around the place. We know that in a year or two we will see even more kids join as all of the covid babies make their way into first kicks. We're trying to gear up for this by growing our committee and network of other volunteers.”

Photo Credit: Amy Hanna (Whaingaroa Photography)

Youth teams (age 13-18) play through Raglan Area School in local Secondary Schools but the the two organisations work together to ensure all players in the community have a team to play for.

The club has been going since the late 1970s with two junior teams, and the first girls only team was registered in 2012 – with 9 girls forming the 7th grade Dolphins.

2024
291 registered (19% increase)
28 teams
118 girls (41%)

2023
244 (13% increase)
25 teams
101 girls (41%)

2022
215
23 teams
88 girls (41%)

This is one of a new series of Club Profiles – sharing stories of Football from our Region.

If you would like to feature your club, please contact Rachel on rachel.l@waibop.co.nz
 

Article added: Friday 14 June 2024