Kamo Karzi (New Zealand Paintball Team)

Kamo Karzi, also recorded as Kamo Kazi, Kamo Karzis, Kamokarzi, Kamo and KK, was a New Zealand paintball team formed around 1994. The team combined social and tournament paintball, won the 1997 National Paintball League Second Division and finished third overall and first in Division Two at the 1997 New Zealand Paintball Nationals.[1][2]

Kamo Karzi competed in national events through 2003 and appeared in the Valhalla National Rankings for five consecutive seasons from 1997 to 2001.[3][4][5][6][7]

History

Formation and early competition

Kamo Karzi's official website states that the team formed around 1994 after users of two bulletin-board systems organised a social paintball game. The team continued organising social games, through which several later members joined.[1]

Its first recorded tournament was the 1994 Winter League organised by Tactics Paintball. Kamo Karzi received the Most Improved trophy but did not record a placing.[1]

In 1995, the team competed at the Taupō Nationals with support from RP Scherer and finished fourth. Its contemporary history states that five regular players, including the captain, subsequently left for another team. The remaining group spent approximately a year rebuilding. An original member known as Wolf became captain in 1995.[1]

1997 season

Kamo Karzi entered and won the Second Division of the National Paintball League in 1997 with support from Combat Vision.[1]

At the New Zealand Nationals on 25–26 October 1997 at Actions Paintball in Te Atatū, Kamo Karzi scored 818 points. It finished third overall and first in Division Two. Allan Gatland was identified as captain when he accepted the divisional trophy.[2]

The league championship and Nationals result were separate achievements. Kamo Karzi also finished third in the retrospectively compiled 1997 Valhalla rankings, with a ranking score of 74.[3]

1998–2001

The 1998 National Paintball League Division Two team list named Allan Gatland as manager of Kamo Karzi 2. Separate results recorded 16 league points for Kamo Karzi #2, without giving a final placing.[8][9]

At the 1998 New Zealand Nationals, Kamo Karzi finished eleventh with 435 points. The tournament report identifies the captain as Alan Gatland, preserving that source's spelling.[10]

Kamo Karzi supplied most of the referees for the 1999 Nationals instead of entering as a playing team. Marty Kinny was the head marshal.[11]

At the 2000 Nationals, Kamo Karzi competed in the First Division, scoring 515 preliminary points and not advancing to the divisional finals.[12]

At the 2001 Nationals, the team recorded 665 preliminary points and did not reach the finals. A player identified only as Dazz, described as formerly of Saints, received the second day's player award.[13]

2002–2003

Kamo Karzi and Phantom provided referees for the 2002 Northland Open. The team was not listed among the eight playing entries.[14]

Kamo Karzi returned as a playing team at the 2003 Auckland Queen's Birthday Superball. It scored 341 points in the preliminary round and did not reach the four-team finals.[15]

The contemporary report described Kamo Karzi's final preliminary game, against Katipo, as its last tournament game as a cohesive team. It reported that the team was disbanding after approximately ten years because of player shortages and other commitments. Rob Maddox and Kerry Munro were identified as the remaining players seeking places with other teams.[15]

The same report described the newly formed Raiderz, printed there as Raiders, as being composed primarily of former Kamo Karzi players. This establishes a player connection but does not make Raiderz an alias or direct continuation of Kamo Karzi.[15]

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Members and team entries

The surviving sources identify the following people with Kamo Karzi. They relate to different seasons and events and do not constitute a complete roster for any one tournament.

Name	Documented involvement	Evidence
Allan “Wolf” Gatland	Captain	Identified as Kamo Karzi's captain in his contemporary player profile, the Paintball.co.nz Who's Who directory and tournament reports from 1997, 1998 and 2001. His given name was also printed as Alan.[3][9][17][19][20]
Rob Maddox	Player and team contact	Described in his contemporary profile as a long-standing Kamo Karzi member. He was identified as a player in tournament reports, supplied the team's website address in 2001 and was listed as its internet contact.[1][9][15][18][19]
Paul “Spider” McKay	Player	Listed as a Kamo Karzi member in the Paintball.co.nz Who's Who directory. His own profile states that he joined in 1996 and played during the team's 1997 Second Division campaign.[2][19]
Kerry Munro	Player	Authored the team's report on its victory at the 2000 Auckland indoor three-player tournament. A 2003 report identified Munro and Rob Maddox as the team's two remaining players.[13][15]
Jo Pitts	Former player	His contemporary profile states that he played for Kamo Karzi before joining Saints. The profile does not establish the dates of his Kamo Karzi involvement.[16]
Dazz	Player	Identified by first name only as a Kamo Karzi player, formerly associated with Saints, at the 2001 New Zealand Paintball Nationals. He received the second day's player award.[20]
Wayne	Player	Identified by first name only in Kerry Munro's report on Kamo Karzi's victory at the 2000 Auckland indoor three-player tournament. The source does not provide his surname.[13]
Quad	Player	Identified by this name in Kerry Munro's report on Kamo Karzi's victory at the 2000 Auckland indoor three-player tournament. The source does not provide a full name.[13]

The 2000 indoor tournament report also refers to an unnamed 13-year-old member of Munro's family playing for Kamo Karzi. The player is not added to the table because the source does not provide a name.[13]

Recorded team entries

The team's normal published name was Kamo Karzi. Contemporary records also used the spellings Kamokarzi, Kamo Kazi and Kamo Karzis, together with the shortened forms Kamo and KK. These are treated as spelling or shorthand variants of the same New Zealand team.

Kamo Karzi entered multiple affiliated squads at some smaller tournaments and league rounds. Recorded squad names include:

Kamo Karzi 2
Kamo Karzi #2
Kamo Karzi Team One
Kamo Karzi Team Two

These names identify secondary or event-specific Kamo Karzi entries rather than separate permanent teams.

The separately recorded name Kami Kazi is not treated as a Kamo Karzi spelling variant because no recovered roster, location or organisational evidence establishes that identity. ```

Team names and squads

New Zealand sources use several renderings of the team's name, including Kamo Karzi, Kamo Kazi, Kamo Karzis, Kamokarzi, Kamo and KK. These are treated as spelling or shorthand variants of the same team when the New Zealand context is clear.

The entries Kamo Karzi 2, Kamo Karzi #2, Kamo Karzi Team One and Kamo Karzi Team Two identify event or league squads associated with Kamo Karzi rather than separate permanent team histories.[8][9]

Tournament results

Year	Tournament or series	Recorded result
1994	Tactics Winter League	Most Improved trophy; no placing[1]
1995	Taupō Nationals	4th[1]
1997	National Paintball League, Division Two	1st[1]
1997	1997 New Zealand Paintball Nationals	3rd overall; 1st in Division Two; 818 points[2]
1998	NPL Division Two league	Kamo Karzi #2 recorded 16 points; placing not supplied[9]
1998	1998 New Zealand Paintball Nationals	11th; 435 points[10]
2000	2000 New Zealand Paintball Nationals	515 preliminary points; did not reach the First Division finals[12]
2001	2001 New Zealand Paintball Nationals	665 preliminary points; did not reach finals[13]
2003	2003 Auckland Queen's Birthday Superball	341 preliminary points; did not reach finals[15]

National rankings

Season	Ranking category	Position	Ranking score
1997	Combined	3rd	74[3]
1998	Combined	9th	43[4]
1999	Combined	9th	63[5]
2000	Combined	18th	59[6]
2001	Seven-player	10th	111.4[7]

Valhalla ranking scores were calculated ranking values rather than raw tournament points. The calculation method and categories changed during the period, so the seasonal figures are not directly comparable.[7][19]

References

External links