Pirongia School’s Year 5-8 team with their coach Nicola Spence
Pirongia School’s bounce is getting bigger with another win in this year’s inter-school jump jam competition.
The Pirongia Poppets, or Year 1-4 team, won in their category with a song called ‘Freak’.
Two of the school’s teams entered in separate divisions at the recent Waikato Strictly Jump Jam competition in Hamilton ended up taking first place in both.
The Year 1-4 team, named Pirongia Poppets, won in the Year 1-4 Strictly Freshman category with their song ‘Freak’. The Year 5-8 team, dubbed Everything’s Gonna Be Pirongia, took the top slot in the Year 5-8 Strictly Open category with their song ‘Everything’s Gonna be Alright’.
On top of that, both teams won additional awards in their respective age groups. The 13-strong Pirongia Poppets won first place for excellence in presentation and excellence in technical execution in the Year 1-4 team awards, and the 19-strong Year 5-8 team took first place for presentation and excellence in technical execution.
Both teams now go ahead to Nationals in Tauranga later this year.
The school’s 2025 early success bodes well given their success at last year’s competition. In 2024, its Year 7-8 team entered the Strictly Open division and ended up scoring the highest points in New Zealand for that category, scooping the national title in the process.
Nicola Spence coached that winning team … and coached this year’s Year 5-8 team. The Year 1-4 team is being steered by Sophie Gold, a newcomer to jump jam coaching
“Some of these girls I have coached over the last three years. The dedication and effort everyone puts into practices is commendable,” Spence said
School principal Kelly Bicknell said she was proud of the students’ efforts.
Pirongia School’s Year 5-8 team with their coach Nicola Spence after their win at the jump jam competition.
