Chase Sheridan’s story is already as long as the famous Tolaga Bay Wharf.
But at 16-years-old the young openside was a rugby rookie compared to the other 57 players at the 2017 Hurricanes Under-18 Development Camp in Masterton last week.
Sheridan played his first game of rugby two years ago when his nomadic existence finally settled in Tokomaru Bay, 91km north of Gisborne and 30km from the township of Tolaga Bay where the tiny Area School would soon become the tenth to contribute to his education.
“I started at Tolaga in Year 6, but left in Year 7 and lived in Canada and America, then came back in Year 9,”’ he said. “Mum and dad ran hunting lodges for clients… stags, deer mainly, and buffalo. We lived in Quebec, the French province in Canada, then in Ohio in America. I didn’t play any rugby, but I tried ice hockey.
“I guess I’ve moved around a lot. I’ve been to 10 schools total. My first school was inland from Te Karaka in Gisborne, then one closer to Gisborne, then down south near Christchurch, Ashburton, Geraldine. Then I went to school in Rotorua, then home to Tolaga. It’s all been mostly for deer farming.”
CAPTION: Chase Sheridan [No.7] packs down during scrum practice at the Hurricanes Uner 18 Development Camp.
Two years ago his parents Joe Sheridan and Lisa Morrison decided to move home to Tokomaru Bay where his father took a job as a fencer on a local farm.
Chase was sent to Tolaga to board with family friends and discovered some of the natural fitness and strength he’d developed hunting and farming made him a pretty decent rugby player.
“When we first saw Chase play he was probably a 1 or 2 for technical-tactical, but a 10 out of 10 for energy, enthusiasm and ability,” said Poverty Bay Rugby Development Manager Dwayne Russell. “He’s a genuine diamond in the rough.”
Sheridan remembers shooting his first stag when he was 12-years-old.
“It’s good for your fitness, walking hills, spotting deer and if you shoot them then you have to carry it out. I’m a pretty good shot and I got a 120kg stag once. I shot my first one when I was 12. My brother was seven, but we helped him carry that one out.”
He didn’t make the final squad of 23 that beat the Crusaders Knights 25-10 at Westpac Stadium on July 15. That squad included star first XV players from established rugby schools like Hastings Boys’ High School, Napier Boys’ High School, Scots College and Wellington College.
CAPTION: Wellington College locks Naitoa Ah-Koui and Taine Plumtree [L-R] and Petone prop Kaliopasi Uluilakepa were among the players selected for the Hurricanes Under 18 team to play the Crusaders Knights at Westpac Stadium. PHOTO: David Brownlie
However, Sheridan’s name stood out among the list of players selected for the 2017 Hurricanes Under-18 camp due to the fact he’s the only one from an Area School.
Tolaga Bay Area School is one of a network throughout New Zealand that caters for small communities that don’t have the population to cater for a stand-alone primary, intermediate or secondary school.
Sheridan is one of 128 students at Tolaga Bay from new entrants to Year 13s and plays for one of the schools three rugby teams.
“There are Under 18s, Under 15s and a younger team,” he said. “Our team struggles to get 13 players some Saturday’s and we get about eight players who turn up to training. It doesn’t bother me. I’m an openside.
“Hunting’s my weekend training, but during the week I train independently by myself every day and then once a week with the school team. We mostly play touch. We’ll try a scrum or lineout and some set plays, kick offs, but with only eight players it’s a bit limited. Sometimes we have a full team on Saturday though.”
Notably, the Tolaga Bay Area School Under-18s are undefeated in 2017 in a grade that includes a team the East Coast, Lytton High School, Campion College, and the Gisborne Boys’ High 3rd XV and colts sides.
However, Sheridan is the first to admit the Hurricanes development programme is a big step up.
“With all these big first XV players here it’s pretty intimidating, but it’s awesome. I want to be a Hurricane when I’m older, so it’s inspiring.
“I went to the Canes Under-17 camp last year and that was a big eye opener. Getting selected for this from where I am, an area school, it makes you just want to train harder. I’ve got another year of school, but if I get the chance to move to a bigger school who knows.”
And if rugby doesn’t work out, Sheridan is confident his rural background has provided him with some unique skills he could utilise later in life.
“If the rugby doesn’t work out I can go into farming, or maybe the family business and become a farrier [someone who shoes horses] like my granddad, but my teachers want me to go to university to do statistics, so there’s a few things to think about.”
In the meantime, Hurricanes Under-18 head coach Darren Larsen, also the Investec Super Rugby club's Recruitment and Development Manager, and his team will continue to monitor Sheridan’s progress along with all of the other players in the development programme.
“We make sure we follow up on all the players who come through the Under 18 camp,” Larsen said. “Some really exciting players missed out on the final 23 that played the Crusaders Knights and our hope is those players will go away with the knowledge and skills they’ve gained from the camp and come back stronger in the future. We are very lucky with the amount of talent in the Hurricanes region.”