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Stacey Waaka

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Stacey Waaka
Waaka at the 2017 World Cup celebration in Wellington.
Birth nameStacey Jamie Aroha Kirsten Waaka
Date of birth (1995-11-03) 3 November 1995 (age 29)
Place of birthPapakura, New Zealand
Height1.7 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight72 kg (159 lb)
Rugby union career
Position(s) Centre
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2015–present New Zealand 25 (55)
National sevens team
Years Team Comps
2016–present New Zealand 151 apps
100 tries
500 points[1]
Rugby league career
Playing information
PositionWing
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2024– Brisbane Broncos 3 2 0 0 8
As of 1 September 2024
Medal record
Representing  New Zealand
Women's rugby union
Women's Rugby World Cup
Gold medal – first place 2017 Ireland Team competition
Gold medal – first place 2021 New Zealand Team competition
Women's rugby sevens
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2024 Paris Team competition
Gold medal – first place 2020 Tokyo Team competition
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2018 Gold Coast Team competition
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Birmingham Team competition
Rugby World Cup Sevens
Gold medal – first place 2018 San Francisco Team competition
Silver medal – second place 2022 Cape Town Team competition

Stacey Jamie Aroha Kirsten Waaka (married name Fluhler; born 3 November 1995) is a New Zealand rugby union player. She plays fifteen-a-side and seven-a-side rugby union, and is a member of the New Zealand Women's Sevens team and New Zealand Women's National Rugby Union team. Waaka was a member of the New Zealand Women's Sevens team which won gold medals at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. She was also a member of the New Zealand fifteen-a-side team which won the 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup and the 2021 Women's Rugby World Cup.

Early life

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Stacey Jamie Aroha Kirsten Waaka was born on 3 November 1995[2] in Papakura, New Zealand to Raewyn (née Allan) and Simon Waaka.[3] She has four older siblings, Shannon, Bronson and Beaudein and was the only one born in New Zealand as her parents moved the family moved back and forth between Australia and Auckland several times.[3] When she was one years old the family moved back to Australia, and lived in Melbourne for eight years.[4] One Christmas, she and her brother Beaudein spent time with their grandmother Kiri on the farm and didn't want to leave. As a result, her parents decided to move back permanently in 2005 to farm in Ruatoki in the eastern Bay of Plenty.[3]

Her father had 17 siblings, and as a result Waaka has more than 70 first cousins, many of them resident in the area around Ruatoki. Her father played rugby and so did her brothers, while her sister played netball and mother in her youth played athletics, gymnastics, tennis and netball.

in 2011, at the age of 15 Waaka was on her way home in a school bus near Ruatoki when it was hit from behind by an unladen truck.[5] The impact was sufficient to throw her from her seat, and she came to lying in the aisle of the bus, on top of other children. Using her cellphone she called the police for help before assisting some of the injured children off the bus, including her niece and nephew. She then walked to a nearby Matariki Early Childhood Centre to telephone her mother before returning to the crash site where she helped other children. In all 36 people were injured with 28 taken to hospitals, many of them with broken bones.[6] Waaka received lacerations to her legs which prevented her playing sports for a few months.[7]

Rugby career

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By the age of 15 Waaka was a New Zealand touch youth international and promising netball player.[6]

While encouraged to consider playing rugby by friends and coaches at school she rejected the game as she had her heart set on representing New Zealand at netball.[6] After she heard through ads on TV in 2012 for the "Go for Gold" programme that Sevens rugby was to be an Olympic sport, she realised she could have an opportunity to play rugby full-time.[3] As a result, despite some concerns over tackling she decided to give rugby a go.[6] At the age of 16 she was one of the 800 young women who attended the "Go for Gold" Sevens trials in 2012 organised to identify talent with the potential to represent New Zealand in the Sevens competition at the Rio Olympics. At the trial she attended she was put through various fitness, rugby skills and character assessment activities. However she wasn't prepared to commit to the Sevens as she wanted to enjoy high school.[8] It wasn't until she began playing for the Waikato women's team in the 2014 Farah Palmer Cup that she was noticed in 2014 and was invited to attend a couple of Sevens training camps.[8]

Waaka debuted for the fifteen-a-side New Zealand Women's rugby team in their game against Canada on 27 June 2015, the same year her brother Beaudein Waaka made his Rugby sevens debut for New Zealand.[9][10]

In 2016, she was selected for the development squad for the women's sevens and made her international debut in that form of the game.[11][12]

In 2017 Waaka was again selected for the Black Ferns fifteen-a-side New Zealand Women's rugby team and played in eight games during their victorious 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup campaign.[13] That year she graduated from the University of Waikato in the Bachelor of Sport and Leisure Studies with a major in Sport Management.[14]

She played four games in August and November of 2018 for the fifteen-a-side New Zealand Women's rugby team.

With Portia Woodman out of commission since October 2018 as a result of an Achilles tendon injury Waaka filled her shoes to become the dominant try scorer during the 2018–19 World Rugby Women's Sevens Series season.[8] She was also selected for four out of five Dream Teams and was also awarded two Impact Player of the Tournament titles.[15] It was during this period that she acquired the nickname "The Smiling Assassin".[8]

With the international seven series suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic she took the opportunity to play seven games for the Waikato team in the 2020 Farah Palmer Cup, held in September and November of that year.

2020 Tokyo Olympic Games

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In July 2021, she was a member of the New Zealand team that won the gold medal in the women's event at the 2020 Summer Olympics.[16][17]

On 20 March 2022 she played a game for Chiefs Manawa against the Blues in the Super Rugby Aupiki.

Waaka was named in the Black Ferns Sevens squad for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.[18][19] She won a bronze medal at the event.[20][21] She later won a silver medal at the 2022 Rugby World Cup Sevens in Cape Town.[22][23][24]

2021 Rugby World Cup

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Waaka made the Black Ferns 32-player squad for the 2021 Rugby World Cup.[25][26] She played in five games, scoring a try in the tense 25–24 semi-final clash with France.[27][28]

In the final against England she scored a try at the start of the second half and later made a skilled offload that allowed Ayesha Leti-I’iga to score in the 72nd minute. After incurring an ankle injury during this action she was forced to leave the field. The Black Ferns went on to claim their sixth Rugby World Cup title.[29][30] For her efforts she was named player of the match.[31] The recovery from the injury delayed her return to sevens duty until the Hamilton tournament, which was the third in the 2022–23 season. [32]

2023 Premier Rugby Sevens

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In May 2023, Waaka announced she was going to play for Premier Rugby Sevens in the United States. Waaka signed with the New York Locals where she played alongside Black Fern teammates Manaia Nuku and Tenika Willson.[33][34]

Waaka and the Locals finished the 2023 PR7s season in second place after going 3–3 on the year. Waaka captained the Locals, totaling 15 points, 14 carries, 13 tackles, 4 steals, and 3 tries.

The Locals took second at the Eastern Conference Kickoff at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Tx. [35] and the Eastern Conference Finals at Highmark Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pa. where New York punched their ticket to the PR7s Championship Tournament in Washington, D.C. [36]

At the Championship, they defeated their Eastern Conference rival the Southern Headliners to advance to the title match. The Locals fell 21–10 to the Northern Loonies in the finals, ending the season in second place. [37]

Return to New Zealand sevens duty

[edit]

She returned to the New Zealand sevens team for the 2023–24 season and played in the first three tournaments before a calf injury forced her to miss the Vancouver and Los Angeles tournaments.

Waaka announced in early March 2024 that after the Paris Olympics she had agreed to play rugby league for the Brisbane Broncos in the NRL Women's Premiership. As she is contracted to New Zealand Rugby through to 2026 she would remain available to play sevens as the respective codes' seasons don’t overlap.[38]

During the pool play game against Great Britain at the Madrid tournament held on 31 May–2 June 2024, Waaka scored her one hundredth try in the seven series.

2024 Paris Olympics

[edit]

On 20 June 2024 it was announced that she had been selected as a member of the New Zealand Women’s Rugby Sevens team for the Paris Olympics.[39] Waaka scored six tries over the course of the Olympic sevens competition to make her the third equal highest try scorer. One of her tries was in the final against Canada which was won by New Zealand 19–12 to give her back-to-back Olympic gold medals.[40][41]

Rugby League

[edit]

After arriving back in New Zealand from Paris on the morning of 2 August 2024 Waaka departed two days later to take up her rugby league contract with the Brisbane Broncos playing in the NRL Women's Premiership rugby league competition which was already underway, having started on 25 July. She had previously announced in early March 2024 that she was taking up rugby league after the Paris Olympics.[42] As two years remain on her New Zealand Rugby contract she is still available to play sevens.[43]

Waaka scored six tries in her first six appearances before her debut season was bought to an end when after scoring a try in Brisbane Broncos’ 20-16 victory over the Cronulla Sharks on 14 September 2024 she had to leave the field at half time with what later turned out to be a broken fibula in her right leg.[44] As a result she was unavailable for selection for both the New Zealand women's national rugby league team for their 2024 Rugby League Pacific Championship campaign and the New Zealand Sevens team for the first two tournaments of the 2024-2025 season.[45] Despite her limited number of appearances Waaka’s performance was sufficient to see her named in both the NRLW’s Dally M Women Team of the Year and the Rugby League Players Association (RLPA) Women’s Dream Team.[46] She was also named the Brisbane Broncos’ NRLW Rookie of the Year.[47]

Television career

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Alongside Liam Messam and Erena Mikaere, Waaka was presenter in 2021 on Te Ao Toa, a weekly sports show on Maori TV.[4]

Awards and honours

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Waaka won the Junior Māori Sportswoman of the Year award in 2015.[48]

Because of the courage she had shown during a bus crash in 2011 Waaka was selected in 2019 by World Rugby to be a member of The Unstoppables XV. This was a team of women who've overcome barriers to participate in rugby. It was part of the year long initiative to boost the profile of the women's game globally.[7]

At the 2020 World Rugby Sevens Series Awards Waaka won the impact player award, the top try scorer awards and was selected as a member of that year's women's dream team.[49]

At the 2023 World Rugby Sevens Series Awards Waaka was named as a member of the 2023 women's dream team.[50]

Personal life

[edit]

Of Māori descent, she affiliates to the Ngāi Tūhoe iwi.[51] She married Ricky Fluhler in late 2019.[52] They separated in early 2023, and Waaka now uses her birth name again.[53]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Stacey Waaka". SVNS. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  2. ^ "Stacey Fluhler". World Rugby. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d Husband, Dave (12 November 2022). "Black Ferns' Stacey Fluhler: Freedom on the field". E-Tangeta. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  4. ^ a b Nealon, Sarah (10 June 2021). "Stacey Fluhler: Black Ferns Sevens player and Māori Television presenter". Stuff. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  5. ^ "Injured girl says children standing in crowded bus". Radio New Zealand. 6 September 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d "Stacey Waaka: "I Believe Everything Happens for a Reason"". Women in Rugby. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  7. ^ a b McFadden, Suzanne (22 May 2019). "How a bus crash made Stacey Waaka unstoppable". Newsroom. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  8. ^ a b c d Swannell, Rikki (2022). Sevens Sisters: How a People First Culture Turned Silver into Gold (Paperback). Auckland: Mower. pp. 57, 58, 112, 113. ISBN 978-1-990003-58-5.
  9. ^ "Two black jerseys for Waaka siblings". Māori Television. 8 June 2015. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  10. ^ Strang, Ben (23 June 2015). "Stacey Waaka excited for Black Ferns debut". Stuff. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  11. ^ "Waaka selected for NZ Women's Development Sevens squad". Māori Television. 15 October 2015. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  12. ^ "Waikato duo to debut in New Zealand women's sevens side in Atlanta". Stuff. Waikato Times. 5 April 2016. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  13. ^ "Black Ferns squad for 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup named". All Blacks. New Zealand Rugby. 5 July 2017. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  14. ^ "Stacey Waaka – Sir Edmund Hillary Scholar". University of Waikato. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  15. ^ "New Zealand teams win world sevens titles after 2020 season abandoned". Stuff. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  16. ^ "Tokyo Olympics: New Zealand sevens squads named as All Blacks winger Caleb Clarke only makes travelling reserves". NZ Herald. 2 July 2021. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
  17. ^ Pearson, Joseph (31 July 2021). "Tokyo Olympics: Golden Black Ferns sevens beat France to become Olympic champions". Stuff. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
  18. ^ "Rugby Sevens teams named for Commonwealth Games". All Blacks. New Zealand Rugby. 29 June 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  19. ^ "Experienced New Zealand sevens squads revealed for Commonwealth Games". Stuff. 29 June 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  20. ^ McConnell, Lynn (1 August 2022). "Double bronze for New Zealand Sevens sides in Birmingham". All Blacks. New Zealand Rugby. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  21. ^ "NZ Sevens sides bounce back to win bronze medals". 1 News. 1 August 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  22. ^ Julian, Adam (12 September 2022). "New Zealand sides scoop silver in Cape Town". All Blacks. New Zealand Rugby. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  23. ^ "NZ Sevens come up short, losing World Cup finals in Cape Town". 1 News. 12 September 2022. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  24. ^ Wilson, Sam (11 September 2022). "Recap: New Zealand's men and women beaten in Rugby World Cup Sevens finals in Cape Town". Stuff. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  25. ^ "Black Ferns squad locked in for Rugby World Cup". All Blacks. New Zealand Rugby. 13 September 2022. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  26. ^ "Black Ferns Rugby World Cup squad named". Radio New Zealand. 13 September 2022. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  27. ^ Burnes, Campbell (5 November 2022). "Black Ferns into the Rugby World Cup final". All Blacks. New Zealand Rugby. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  28. ^ "Rugby World Cup: Black Ferns win semi-final against France by one point". Radio New Zealand. 5 November 2022. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  29. ^ Julian, Adam (12 November 2022). "Black Ferns crowned Rugby World Cup champions". All Blacks. New Zealand Rugby. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  30. ^ Grey, Becky (12 November 2022). "England heartbreak as New Zealand win World Cup". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  31. ^ Pearson, Joseph (8 March 2024). "Stacey Waaka's Broncos move heats up code war and should sound alarm bells for rugby". Stuff. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  32. ^ Morton, Finn (1 April 2023). "'Just keep getting up': Stacey Waaka opens up about 'tough' injury". Rugby Pass. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  33. ^ "New Zealand Rugby Stars Sign with Premier Rugby Sevens for 2023 Season | Premier Rugby Sevens". PR Sevens. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  34. ^ "Sevens players to take part in Premier Rugby Sevens". All Blacks. 23 May 2023. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  35. ^ "Record Crowd Sees Headliners and Team Triumph in Austin | Premier Rugby Sevens". www.prsevens.com. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  36. ^ "Rugby Superstars Ascend on Washington, DC, for Premier Rugby Sevens Championship on Aug. 6 | Premier Rugby Sevens". www.prsevens.com. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  37. ^ "Women's Northern Loonies and Men's SoCal Rhinos x Loggerheads win 2023 Premier Rugby Sevens Championships | Premier Rugby Sevens". www.prsevens.com. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  38. ^ "Black Ferns star Stacey Waaka's shock code switch to join Brisbane Broncos". Stuff. 6 March 2024. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  39. ^ Kermeen, Mat (20 June 2024). "Sevens star Sarah Hirini completes 'unbelievable' recovery for Paris Olympics". Stuff. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
  40. ^ Burgess, Michael (31 July 2024). "Olympics 2024: New Zealand women's rugby sevens clinch Olympic gold in Paris". NZ Herald. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
  41. ^ Julian, Adam (31 July 2024). "Golden Ferns: How they did it and how it rates". Newsroom. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  42. ^ Pearson, Joseph (8 March 2024). "Stacey Waaka's Broncos move heats up code war and should sound alarm bells for rugby". Stuf. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  43. ^ Lester, Ned (5 August 2024). "Stacey Waaka has a new goal after second Olympic gold". RugbyPass. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  44. ^ "Stacey Waaka's NRLW season ends with suspected fibula fracture". NZ Herald. 17 September 2024. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  45. ^ Goile, Aaron (30 November 2024). "Out with the old, in with the new: New Zealand teams start afresh in SVNS world series". The Post. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  46. ^ Morton, Finn (4 October 2024). "Stacey Waaka recognised as one of NRLW's best before rugby sevens return". RugbyPass. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  47. ^ Morton, Finn (11 October 2024). "Stacey Waaka receives another major award in NRLW before sevens return". RugbyPass. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  48. ^ Koti, Tepara; Day, Wikitōria (28 November 2015). "Stacey Waaka wins Junior Māori Sportswoman of the Year award". Māori Television. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  49. ^ "Black Ferns star Stacey Fluhler the big winner in international sevens awards". Stuff. 22 September 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  50. ^ "The Best of Women's Rugby Sevens Celebrated Following Thrilling 2023 Series Finale at HSBC France Sevens". Women in Rugby. 14 May 2023. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  51. ^ "New look Black Ferns Sevens ready for World Series opener in Dubai". Te Ao Māori News. Retrieved 5 March 2023.
  52. ^ Ward, Lynley (17 January 2020). "Sevens star Stacey Waaka's heavenly Waikato wedding". Now to Love. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  53. ^ Bertrand, Kelly (6 December 2023). "Stacey Waaka's break from the Black Ferns". Woman's Day.
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