CLUB INFO
History of the OU Vikings
The Otago University Vikings Volleyball Club was originally founded in 1975 as a high school team called the Kings High School All-Boys Volleyball Team. The Kings team was nurtured in this form by a procession of notable coaches such as Bill Turnbull, John Drummond, Phil Merit and Ray Baker. The club later evolved into the Vikings Volleyball Club under the direction of Bob Haywood from 1981-4. The club's inclusion of the fairer sex was in 1985 by the efforts of Peter Hills and the Bayfield High School women's team. This once humble high school team has developed into a National Club Team with the majority of its members recruited from the University of Otago & other tertiary institutions in Dunedin.
The calibre of volleyball played by the Vikings men and women has traditionally been quite high. In the 2003 season the Vikings women boasted some of the top players in the country, holding four places on the NZ National team including the captain, as well as placing one woman in the NZ University Games Team. Although the Vikings pride themselves on maintaining their competitive edge, they consider the social side to the club equally important. The club holds a number of events throughout the year starting with Club Day and ending with the Vikings Fest. Certain volleyball tournaments also offer social events post-finals; and within the NZ volleyball community, the Vikings Volleyball Club is well known for both its on and off court performances.
Southern League Tournaments
The volleyball club season is during winter. It officially starts with the first Southern League Tournament around the end of April, and ends with Volleyball New Zealand (VNZ) Nationals in the middle of August. The Southern League consists of 5 tournaments per season held on weekends in Dunedin, Christchurch and Blenheim. Teams accumulate points at each tournament and these points are tallied at the end of the League to determine the Southern Champions and pool placement for Nationals.
VNZ Nationals
VNZ Nationals are alternatively hosted each year by cities in the North and South Islands. At Nationals there are two divisions: A & B, with twelve teams in each division. However, the four top teams from each zone (Northern, Central & Southern) are not awarded four spots each. The spots are divided between each zone depending on how the previous years teams placed at Nationals in order to have the highest level of competition. The higher all of the teams from your zone rank at Nationals, no matter which division they compete in, the greater the likelihood of winning more spots in Division A for your zone at the next years VNZ Nationals. Aside from team placing, there is also an opportunity to be named in tournament teams for each division.
The New Zealand Men and Women's Nationals Teams are not chosen at Nationals, but through application and multiple team trials earlier on in the season. To be eligible, candidates have to be a member of a VNZ affiliated club.
Queen's Birthday & University Games
There are two alternative annual volleyball competitions: Queen's Birthday Volleyball Championships and University Games. The Queen's Birthday Champs is held every year in Christchurch on the Queen's Birthday weekend and any VNZ member can compete in it. The University Games is held during the Easter break and is also hosted alternatively between South and North Island Universities. Rules of eligibility stipulate that you must be a University student and belong to a VNZ affiliated volleyball club. At the University Games there are awards for team play (championships) as well as an opportunity for individual players who exhibit outstanding skill to be recognized. Players can be named to the University All-Star team or receive the highest recognition of all, the tournament Most Valuable Player Award. These individuals named to the All-Star team are then able to represent New Zealand at the International University Games.
The 2004 University Games was held in Dunedin and Team Otago managed to walk away with the coveted shield The Otago men and women's volleyball teams helped contribute to this result by placing first in their respective divisions. The womans managed to win the Vollyball again in 2005 and we plan to compeet again in 2006 with the introduction of Beach Vollyball in the University Games Lineup. 2007 nz uni games are in Christchurch, trials will be held at Smithels Gym wednsday 14th 6:30 for the men and 7:30 for the women.
Community Involvement
The Vikings have always maintained deep roots in the Dunedin community. This has been managed by providing locals schools with student coaches for their volleyball teams. Any person(s) interested in coaching, whether or not they are a club player, are encouraged to contact club executives. They'll do their best to find them an available coaching position within Dunedin.
Proud to be a Viking - Hail Thor
