It was Sack Attack time again in Auckland today as teams gathered at Onehunga High School for the monthly scrimmage. Having already had two Sack Attack scrimmages, teams now have a little more experience with the game and today was another opportunity to further test changes made to robot design and strategy. Over the 56 matches during the day, a variety of robot designs took to the field, some with more success than others. However the matches provided teams, experienced and new, with valuable practice in a competition environment. As more Sack Attack matches are played, teams are also gaining greater understanding of the game rules. Scrimmages not only provide practice forteams, but for referees as well, as referees encounter different scenarios which test the rules of the game. Positives are taken from these experiences as teams learn from their mistakes in preparation for Nationals and the World Champs.
We would also like to extend a very big welcome to HTOWNA and HTOWNB from Computer Clubhouse who travelled up from Hamilton to compete at their first Auckland scrimmage. It was great to see new teams gain experience and tap into the support offered by the Kiwibots family. HTOWNA reached the quarter-finals which is a very commendable result and we look forward to seeing this young team develop and achieve further success at future scrimmages!
The final saw 2941A ‘Oats VeXmen’ from Otumoetai College and 2915A ‘Jack Attack’ from Lynfield College against 2915S from Lynfield College and 2931B ‘Prime Robotics’ from Pinehurst School. The formidable alliance of 2941A and 2915A dominated the final with scores of 276-1 and 328-4. Scoring points in the high goal and de-scoring were strategies implemented throughout the elimination rounds which resulted in very one-sided scores. The Oats-Jack alliance has won every scrimmage in Auckland so far this season, and it will be up to the other teams to knock them off their pedestal.
As always, we were well looked after by our hosts. Thank you to Onehunga High School who provided a great venue as well a great food-stall. The large number of AURA and Massey volunteers provided teams with ample technical support and also resulted in a very smooth scrimmage. The Auckland teams are developing well and we can all look forward to very competitive teams with exciting designs and strategies as the Sack Attack season progresses!