Lachie Marshall: NZ Water Polo member on the state of the sport in Christchurch, his Kings Birthday recognition

A long-time servant to Water Polo in Canterbury has been recognised for his efforts. 

Lachie Marshall was recently recognised in the Kings Birthday Awards for his dedication to the sport. 

He spoke with Lesley about the state of the sport following the many delays in getting an aquatics facility back up and running in Christchurch after the earthquakes.  

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Well, he was named in the New Zealand Honors and
I'm talking about New Zealand water Polo Life member Locke
Marshall and he joins us back on there, good morning,
how are you good? Thanks well, congratulations on your well
deserved recognition and we know the voice that you have
been for water polo, especially in christ Church and especially
post earthquake. At the moment, I guess we're all waiting

(00:22):
with basic brief to see what happens with the metro.

Speaker 2 (00:24):
Yeah, well, sircially thanks those kind of words, Leslie. Yes
we are. So we're going to be end of twenty
twenty five, and when it was first proposed, I think
it was going to be twenty fourteen. It's been a
long time coming. So everybody who's interested in aquatic sports
is really keen to set up and running.

Speaker 1 (00:41):
Absolutely, he's Locke Marshall in in ZM behind your name.
How does that feel?

Speaker 2 (00:45):
Surprising and really humbling to be honest, because it's the
last thing I expected, And to be honest, I got
an email last I's been spammed. I'm so nearly believed
that so completely unexpected, and to be honest at blindside
a bit bit.

Speaker 1 (00:58):
Yeah, well, it's fan test it because when you think
about well, going back into we're going back into the
other century. One hundred games for New Zealand men's water
polo team. I think there were what thirty five test
matches in there as well. But it has mentioned at
the beginning, it's about all that work you did in
securing water polo space and you increased didn't you increase

(01:18):
the playing roster so much during or post the youthquakes.

Speaker 2 (01:24):
Well, the reality was we were down to probably one
team of an under fourteen team of top or thirteen guys.
So but I mean everybody at that stage was scrambling
for a whole lot of things, some some for just
the love of their family units. So like a lot
of sports, it took us a while to I guess

(01:46):
get reorganized. And part of that was a complete restructure
of their club structure here, centralizing under the Cannbury water
Polo umbrella. But you know, there was a lot of
good people involved in there in that strategic thinking space,
and then you know we had a very proactive board

(02:06):
and so you know it was a real collaborative effort
across a lot of people. You know, the parent group
involved in the sport by a large extremely positive and
helpful and you know, ready and willing and able to help.
So you know, as I said, it was as a
real collaborative effort. And so we went from probably fourteen players.

(02:29):
I think we've probably peaked about nine hundred emissions a
week through the pool with our school's competition in twenty
two hours of pool space. So it became a real
jigsaw puzzle us.

Speaker 1 (02:38):
The most important thing is that you not only grew
the sport, but you had an elite end to it
as well. And you know, Cannoby water Polo's got a
very very good name at national level.

Speaker 2 (02:48):
Yes, so we took a punt and we decided that
we would we'd do a bit of a search for
some international coaching expertise and we were lucky enough to
secure the services of a global RP Barbad and he's
an ex Hungarian international and we managed to get onto
him through Zolli Boris, who was a Hungarian national who

(03:10):
was living in christ Church. Zolis are a good coach in
his own right that we bought up the over here
as head coach. He had a really really huge impact
on the club. That was I guess the catalyst for
starting to achieve success at Age Revelet Nationals. Unfortunately, with
the lockdowns and after that, his wife decided she wanted
to go back and be closer to her family, but

(03:32):
he's still in touch with the club. About a year
ago we've got another Hungarian coach called Charba Rule and
Chard has been just been fantastic for us. And again
we're on up which sec. Three. But it just it
just brings a lot more I guess, contemporary ideas tactics.
You know, Charber is an international accredited coach and referee,

(03:53):
so it brings a lot of IP with them and
him and the samily are settled in really well. And
as I say, across the every age group, he's just
great and he's great to deal with. So he's a
real positive vibe around the club. Yeah, we have sort
of challenges, and again it's around access and cost to access.
You know, our numbers talk a bit of a hit
last year, probably a year before last when the council

(04:15):
changed their pricing structure. That's a work in progress. You know,
I'm not a fan of what they're doing. Ben in mine,
I'm not speaking there as a member of Kennedy Water
Polo Homon individual. I've got some fairly strong views on
how the council treat us, but I don't really want
to politicize that today.

Speaker 1 (04:31):
Because we are actually celebrating you and what you've achieved
over so many years, and as mentioned, not only in
the pool, but all the work that you've done in
terms of creating a pathway for young players just giving
them opportunity to play. That's really what we're about today
and it's so well deserved.

Speaker 2 (04:50):
Well thank you, Leslie, but you knows a sport has
been good to me and it's just been great seeing,
you know, some of these young men and women just
start to realize their potential. You know, we had a
couple of players who played off sure in Europe last
year and that was just, you know, great to see
them had that opportunity and extend themselves. And they've come back,

(05:13):
you know, Paton Samonel enough come back and a better
players for the experience. They played Division one in Germany.
But you know, that's the sort of opportunities that are
open to players that they're good enough, and they certainly are,
and you know, we're looking forward to seeing, you know,
what they're going to bring back to us for this year.

(05:34):
You know, but Anais said that we've got a women's team.
You know that they're doing really well finish. I think
I finished third and second the last years at Nationals
and considering you know, for a long time we struggled
to get enough women's even field a senior women's team.
So that program has gone from strength to strength, and
that's largely on the back of the work of the

(05:55):
likes of Andy Anderson and Zoie's done a lot of
time coaching and women's praging before Trevor got So you know,
we're strong on both sexes and our age program, as
I said, and we've won a Golden Under twenty one
men's a couple of years ago, and most of those
young guys there are through to our senior men's team.
That's great decas I'm still involved. But you know what's

(06:17):
really pleasing on a personal level is that a lot
of those young guys and girls started at year seven
in their intermediate high school program and are still planning today.
Is that's a real for me, that's a real big class.
I'm really happy to see that.

Speaker 1 (06:31):
Fantastic. Oh you're a great man. Keep up the fantastic work.
Before you know it, there'll be a sir in front
of your name.

Speaker 2 (06:40):
Thanks easily, but this was unexpected as it was so
I think. I think I'm one and done, but I
do appreciate the sentiment. For more from News Talks B
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