Two MAGS coaches have been named the best in the country at their sports’ organisations’ respective awards.
Director of Basketball, Mr Daryl Cartwright, was awarded New Zealand Coach of the Year by NZ Basketball, and Orienteering coach Ms Lyn Stanton received the same award from New Zealand Orienteering.
In addition to heading the school’s Basketball programme and coaching our Premier Boys’ team, Mr Cartwright is also the coach of the Junior Tall Blacks. A former Tall Black who represented New Zealand in 2002-2003 and 2007, and with 17 years experience playing in the NBL, Mr Cartwright last year coached the Junior Tall Blacks to an historic win over the Australian Emus in the final of the 2016 Under 18 FIBA Oceania Championships. The win qualified New Zealand for the Under 19 World Cup, to be held this July in Cairo, Egypt – the first time that a NZ Junior team has qualified for a FIBA World Cup.
MAGS’ top Boys team won a qualifying tournament last year to gain entry to the Premier grade, coming a respectable 5th in their first season.
Ms Stanton, mother of 2016 Girl Dux Theresa Boyd and also a coach at club level, was instrumental in re-establishing Orienteering at MAGS about five years ago and built the squad to regional and national standing. This year the school’s Junior Boys team represented New Zealand at the World Championships in Italy.