Baywide Hockey Weekend Preview.
Bay of Plenty Teams Set to Fire Up the Weekend!
Image: Geoff Soper Photography
The Baywide competition launches this weekend with five cracking games across Rotorua and Whakatāne. Our Bay of Plenty sides are loaded with new talent, seasoned players, and real local passion. Whether you're lacing up your own shoes or cheering from the sidelines, these matches are going to bring the energy.
Get along to your local turf, bring the noise for the BOP teams, and let's make it a great start to 2026! Here's the rundown:
Rotorua Turf
1:30pm – Rotorua Aces Men vs Otūmoetai Blues The Aces are rebuilding for 2026 with some new faces stepping in after the loss of a few legends from last season. Home turf advantage will count. Otūmoetai come up from Tauranga D1 fired up and ready to take scalps from Intercity teams. They're coming hard – this one's going to be intense!
Player to Watch: Will Mace-Cochrane (Aces Men) The steady hand in the Aces defence. Cool, calm, and collected – Will's the guy who can lower your blood pressure just by how smoothly he reads the game. Watch him control the play for Aces and set some of their young guns loose.
2:00pm – Hepi Sports vs Omanu Premier Blues Omanu step up from Tauranga D1 with real talent and eyes on those Intercity scalps. Hepi Sports at home won't make it easy though – expect pace and physicality from the first whistle.
Player to Watch: Jasmine Fitzwalter (Hepi Sports) Freshly selected for the NZ Indian Sports side ahead of the Heritage Hockey Tournament, Jasmine's in top form and ready to light it up. Big watch!
3:30pm – BOP Indians vs Tauranga Old Boys United United were runners-up in 2025 Intercity and will want to stamp their authority early. But the BOP Indians? They're all about attack – defence is optional, just score more than the other lot! Expect goals galore in this one.
Player to Watch: Karambir “Ricky” Singh (BOP Indians) The pure excitement machine who's been in sizzling pre-season form. Ricky's hungry to get his name on the scoresheet (probably more than once). Buckle up!
Whakatāne Turf
1:30pm – Whakatāne Men vs Mount Maunganui Whakatāne step into Baywide for the first time, buzzing to test themselves. Mount rebuild after a strong 5th in Intercity last year and will be keen for a solid season opener. Great challenge for our Whakatāne lads!
Player to Watch: Connor Fraser (Whakatāne Men) Young circle sneak who's always lurking for that chance. Connor will be hoping his old man Dave delivers the perfect pill so he can finish it off. Father-son combo incoming!
3:00pm – Whakatāne Women vs Mount Maunganui Rematch alert! This is the 2025 Intercity final replay – Whakatāne nicked it in a shootout last time. Mount will be out for revenge. Our Whakatāne Women blend BOP Masters experience with rising secondary school talent – dynamic mix!
Player to Watch: Addie Tetze (Whakatāne Women) Rising star from the 2025 BOP U18 Women's team. Super fit, covers massive ground in midfield, and keeps getting better. Addie's set to dominate!
What a weekend for Bay of Plenty Hockey! Our teams are full of young guns and experience, ready to compete hard. Head down to Rotorua or Whakatāne, support the locals loud and proud, and soak up the action.