Marist St Pats

Nearing the end of the 2022 season, an idea that had floated around early in the season to reinvigorate the Marist St Pats Weights Room was finally set in motion to bring it to life. Our Rugby Development Officer, Li'i Alaimoana gave us the run down of a huge amount of work to get this project completed.

Murray Tocker was able to source the gym equipment through Blue Fitness, where we were able to, with the help of grants funding, invest in new gym gear which included:

1 x Power Rack

1 x Squat Rack

1 x Battle Rope

1 x Dumbbell Rack

1 x New set of Dumbbells 

2 x Spin Bikes

1 x Concept 2 Rowing Machine

1 x Air Bike (Assault Bike)

1 x Set of Slam Balls

Due to the complications of shipping (Covid affected), wait times for the gear to arrive varied, so work to remove flooring, clean walls, and remove old gym equipment and renovate commenced.

The MSP Soul Fitness Group, led by Fred Lefaoseu and members of the wider MSP community, started the work by moving gear out of the gym. Along with members of the Premier Women's Rugby Team, Premier Men's Manager Katrina Bailey and her children, and Jaime Alaimoana and kids, work to prepare the gym to re-floor and paint took a few hours, but thanks to all their work, the next phase was ready to start.

Mike Sood, Life Member and MSP long time player, coach, manager, supporter, maintenance man, helped by providing the paint, and his time to paint the walls, frames, and older gym equipment we were able to salvage in his own time. Soody was able to build off the hard work so many people had helped prepare and the end result of the walls has received nothing but great feedback from all people who were able to see it. 

The next stage of the facelift was flooring, where Chris Betham Flooring were able to come in and lay new carpet in both the Weights and Cardio Rooms. Prepping the flooring meant leveling the concrete underneath, and adding their finishing touches after laying the carpet. The end result of the flooring is incredible, and we thank Chris and his team. 

As the bones of the gym were coming together, new gym equipment slowly started coming in, and with the help of Fred Lefaoseu and the MSP Soul Fitness team, as gear came in, they would stay behind after gym sessions and help put the gear together, move the gear into the rooms, and clean up after every session. They even spent many hours putting the Power Rack together - a job that definitely required many hands. Many thanks to them. 

With the majority of the gym gear and flooring in, and walls painted, Atlas Signs came in to add some amazing touches, with both the MSP and SPC crests now visible high on the shed walls as you enter the gym from the rolling door. Brand new signage is also visible in the gym rooms and entrance door to the Weights room, encouraging members to be safe, look after the gym gear, and look after themselves. As part of the work that Dave from Atlas Signs had completed for the gym, we were also able to have the first ever plaque for our women's teams, celebrating women who have played/continue to play for the club that have reached 50 Premier games. 

Pita Taele, Premier Reserve's Men's Head Coach, added some great touches to the gym, building slant boards, and a ten-layered barbell rack for the gym's olympic bars. 

St. Patrick's College has purchased new security cameras through Optic Security, with Solomon Meredith coming in to install. Through Matt Buck, cameras can now be remotely monitored thanks to the team at Optic and to St. Patrick's College. 

On Wednesday 17 May, the project to reinvigorate the Weights room into a High Performance Weights and Cardio Room was completed, as loyal MSP man and current U85kgs player Rueben Ouwerkerk has volunteered his time and expertise to come in and lay the gym matting into the main entrance area.

Marist St Pats extends its gratitude to Li'i and all the volunteers who have made this project a reality.