Kiwis in Kolkata on Wright trail

KOLKATA: Our kabaddi for their rugby. Kolkata schools may soon turn into a platform for rich cultural and sporting exchange between India and New Zealand.
It''s John Wright''s successful and well-publicised stint with the Indian cricket team that whetted the appetite for the country among New Zealanders.
The Kiwis now plan to cash in on this groundswell of interest, starting with the city of joy.
The New Zealand tourism board has asked Willy Heteraka, the All Blacks Maori''s U-19 coach currently in Kolkata, to get in touch with the West Bengal government and explore possibilities.
"We plan to have about 60-100 boys from New Zealand to come to Kolkata and learn more about the city," Heteraka said on Friday.
But why Kolkata? "We want to make a good start and Kolkata seems to be the right choice because of its rich cultural heritage," he remarked.
Heteraka said he would also talk with the authorities of top schools like La Martiniere and St James. "These schools have good sporting facilities. It will be great if our boys can come here, learn some of the sports that are natural to Indians, and also help Kolkata boys pick up a sport like rugby."
The New Zealand tourism board wants to make it an annual affair and invite Kolkata students over as well. "Indians can help us improve in sports like hockey and cricket. This programme will allow us do that at the grassroot level."
If the programme works out well, it could be the forerunner to exchanges on a bigger scale. "We can then have our army and police teams in various disciplines coming and playing here and vice-versa," he said.
Also, the fact that there is a big enough Indian population in New Zealand has had their tourism board pretty keen on the idea.
"There is quite a big Punjabi and Gujarati population in our country. They will surely be enthused by this and we may see more players of Indian origin in our teams," Heteraka added.