Sport Hawke’s Bay and REPLAY are teaming up to encourage new and used sports gear, donated from the wider community, to directly reach local children and families that may need help accessing gear of their own.

The key focus of REPLAY is to help our communities stay active by connecting sports gear to reach those that need a specific piece to get started, or to continue with their physical activity.

Denise McLean of REPLAY says “Our key focus with re-distributing sports gear is to be as targeted as possible so each piece reaches individuals, families, and groups who will most benefit from its use.  In addition to the pieces of sports gear we re-distribute, we also look at how we can add ideas and further resources to help enable the receiver to use and enjoy a piece of gear”

Sport Hawke’s Bay will pilot the programme in Central Hawke’s Bay with the Centralines Sports Complex, Central Hawke’s Bay College, and Waipawa Library all set to be collection points for sports equipment that will be able to be reused in the community and will enable more children to be active and participate in play, physical activity and sport by helping provide gear they otherwise wouldn’t have.

Sport Hawke’s Bay CHB Community Sport Advisor, Nicki Heremaia says “we are excited about REPLAY coming to our community. We all have equipment laying around that others may have a home for so I cant wait to be able to support keeping our local kids active through having this equipment in our community”

REPLAY was started 5 years ago by the Manawatu based McLean family. Denise, Lucy & Millie had a clean out in the garage and realised there was a large amount of accumulated sports gear that was no longer being used or needed.  Being aware, as we all are, of the benefits to having the right piece of gear to stay active and keeping kids involved in their sport, they started REPLAY with several collection bins in their community.  Five years later, over 18,000 quality pieces of sports gear have been donated to local children and families, across 3 regions (Manawatu, Whanganui, and Taranaki). 

“We are hugely grateful for the donations of a wide range of sports gear from within our community.  The kindness and generosity of those who donate is central in allowing us to do what we do.”

“Donated gear includes all of the main sport codes and items that provide for a fun and free-range play.   A huge variety of sports balls such as netballs, basketballs, rugby & footballs are received along with implements such as tennis & badminton racquets, hockey sticks, cricket bats.  We also receive rugby & football boots, shin pads, sneakers, skipping ropes, hula hoops, and volleyball nets just to name a few. So many fantastic items, in great condition, ready to be used again” adds Denise.

If you’re having a clean out in the garage or have items of gear that are in a good condition and can be used again, please consider donating them to us.  For a list of sports gear we’d love to receive and the current location of our collection bins, please visit www.sporthb.net.nz or our Facebook page www.facebook.com/sporthb  For Central Hawke’s Bay information go to www.facebook.com/sporthawkesbaycentralhb

To find out more about replay across the regions visit www.replay.org.nz or www.facebook.com/replaynz

Article added: Monday 04 April 2022