Another casualty of the weather

Another casualty of the weather

It is with great regret that Stop Out have been forced to postpone the 14th Wynton Rufer tournament for August / September 2008. The impact of weather on the ground availability this season is clear to all of us involved in sport. Stop Out have worked very hard with Excel and with schools and colleges to come up with a viable alternative venue, but it has proved impossible.

However, we do not regard this as an end, but rather as a new beginning. After three out of the last six tournaments have been impacted by weather, Stop Out will relaunch WR14 in the new year at a new stage of the season, as a pre or early season event (on some decent
grounds   )

Actual details are still being finalised, but will be available before Christmas. Next year�s tournament will also give us an opportunity to welcome Capital Football juniors to the great new facilities at Hutt Raceway, and we are looking to have a great football party.

Wynton Rufer is an annual tournament open to 7th to 10th Grades teams first started in 1994. Last year we had teams from as far away as Wanganui participating, and we promise that next year will be even bigger and better.


Martin Brabander
Stop Out Sports Club Crazy-Horse2008-08-12 18:53:52

Sad to see it postponed. Big applause to all those make the effort to run the tournament in any case.  

I remember playing in this tournament 13 years ago for upper hutt. Great fun and i remember it raining. Lost to stop out on penalties from memory

Guttered.  My 9th grade Wgtn Utd dynamos were keen to carve up

Not talking on behalf of Stop Out, but only my personal views and experiences here.

The kids love tournament football - A day to play lots of different teams, rather than just the local teams they normally play (up to 10th grade) - the different team strips, the atmosphere, watching other games in a dedicated way, knowing that the winners of the game you are watching may be your next opponents, all make a 'day to remember'.

In parts of Australia, they play tournament football every four or so weeks, with each club organizing a day during the season.  Again, the player response is really positive.

Because the beginning of the season is so busy for club administrators, we don't know what the response will be from clubs, but we hope that clubs will see this in the same way as they view Upper Hutt and KCU tournament's (at older grades)- not necessarily about winning, but a chance to build team structures and bonding.

To me, moving the timing of the tournament at least has to be tried.  Although the concept of the Tournament is not broken, the weather has broken the implementation 3 times in the last 7 years.