The loud, proud crew at lake’s edge
There is nothing more exciting than when the team you support wins. Just ask the Whakatane High School supporters.
Dressed in black and gold school colours, the supporters stand at the edge of the lake, cheering, waving flags and yelling support when Whakatane High School are competing.
“Go Whakatane!” can be heard above any other cheering, as the supporters watch the crew fight to the finish line.
Maurice Butler, Whakatane High School parent, said the rowing crew have been successful this year so supporting them has been fun.
As a parent, supporting can be a little stressful. “You want them to go well, you feel their nerves and stress but once they get out on the track and they win, they relax a bit,” he said.
The support team, also known as Whakatane Rent a Crowd, is made up of parents, coaches and grandparents, who have travelled from Whakatane and even as far as Queenstown.
The nickname was given to them from a previous Maadi Cup regatta because they are loud and proud when the crew are on the water.
They even help other support teams cheer on their crews.
“We’re all fantastically proud of them when we see, them win or lose,” he said.
The support crew is only going to get bigger as Maadi reaches the final days.
“Especially Saturday, there will be a lot of the mums and the guys from last year’s crews, because they aren’t here any more and miss the community side of it, and they’ll be loud,
“Everybody shares the experience,” Butler said.
