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Wednesday <strong>September</strong> 5 <strong>2018</strong><br />
Latest Christchurch news at www.star.kiwi<br />
BAY HARBOUR<br />
PAGE 15<br />
SPORTS<br />
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SHOE<br />
Sale<br />
HOME RUNS: Finn (left) and Tyler Mounty, brothers who play softball and<br />
football.<br />
Brothers join forces in<br />
national softball squads<br />
• By Matt Salmons<br />
HEATHCOTE’S Finn<br />
Mounty will emulate his<br />
older brother Tyler when<br />
he plays for a national<br />
softball side in two weeks.<br />
Tyler said having his<br />
brother play his first international<br />
in a development<br />
squad was the St Bede’s<br />
College student’s first steps<br />
towards the dream of playing<br />
together in the Black<br />
Sox.<br />
“That’s definitely the<br />
dream. At the top level,<br />
playing together will definitely<br />
show just how much<br />
we’re made of softball and<br />
how much it runs through<br />
our blood,” Tyler said.<br />
Tyler, 17, was first selected<br />
for a national side<br />
two years ago and this year<br />
played for the under-17<br />
Emerging Sox in the July<br />
friendship series in Brisbane.<br />
This year was Finn’s,<br />
15, first call up to an<br />
international side. He was<br />
set to play for the under-15<br />
Developing Sox in the<br />
Queensland state championships<br />
starting <strong>September</strong><br />
22.<br />
While Tyler had been<br />
disappointed his team<br />
had not taken gold in<br />
the friendship series and<br />
placed third, Finn said the<br />
brothers had been discussing<br />
the lessons learned for<br />
Finn’s upcoming international<br />
debut.<br />
“The Australian teams<br />
are aggressive batters. I<br />
think what will get us over<br />
the line will be our defence.<br />
Offence wins games,<br />
but defence wins titles,”<br />
Finn said.<br />
Playing locally with the<br />
Richmond Keas Softball<br />
Club since they were five,<br />
Tyler said they had kept<br />
pushing themselves to see<br />
how far they could go.<br />
“I enjoy every game. I always<br />
play like it’s my last,”<br />
Tyler said.<br />
Often playing in the<br />
same teams, Finn said<br />
there was rivalry and<br />
banter between the boys<br />
which pushed them to play<br />
harder.<br />
“We both try work harder<br />
than each other. There’s<br />
lots of support though,<br />
both playing infield we<br />
know each quite well. If we<br />
play a bad game, we talk<br />
about it afterwards,” Finn<br />
said.<br />
Tyler said the Richmond<br />
Keas had taken a hit in<br />
numbers during the earthquake.<br />
While they were<br />
slowly regrowing, the boys<br />
said having a core of keen<br />
and talented players had<br />
kept the club competitive<br />
in the intervening years.<br />
Former Black Sox pitcher<br />
Penese Iosefo returned<br />
to the club this season<br />
to grow the club’s young<br />
talent, supporting them to<br />
achieve at the highest level.<br />
In the past three years<br />
the Richmond Keas had a<br />
number of players in international<br />
sides, including<br />
Nikora Wikiriwhi in the<br />
2017 under-17 developing<br />
Black Sox and Tyler who<br />
had worn the black strip a<br />
few times.<br />
Richmond Keas<br />
committee member Penny<br />
Cherry said there were<br />
some talented girls coming<br />
through the ranks too.<br />
8th - 9th<br />
SEPTEMBER, <strong>2018</strong><br />
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