Women's rugby league

And I just love all the attention, and the respect that the women's game gets now.

Absolutely, and a lot of that success is happening in Women's Rugby League right now, a testament to the work that's been done over the years by the likes of yourself, Trish Hina, Louisa Awaiki, who are being inducted alongside of you.

So how do you reflect on that time, knowing that a lot of the hard yards were built in the time of yourself and that generation before you?

Yeah, I think just on like the likes of Trish and Louisa, they were part of the very first team that went to the very first World Cup.

And like to me and I came in as quite a younger player.

And I just remember looking up to them and thinking, thinking far out I just wanted to be a part of it and you talk about the foundation that they built like a lot of that was built off those players shoulders and there's probably so many more other players that are very much deserving of this acknowledgement this hall of fame acknowledgement um that I had the privilege of playing alongside of um but that foundation you know we went through some hard times you know we we fundraised we sold hangis we sold raffle tickets um and we had an amazing group of Wahine, they called themselves the New Zealand Women's Rugby League organisation at the time and they were all females and they were passionate about the game and they were passionate about women thriving in league spaces back in times when people just did not want to, did not approve if you like of women playing rugby league and they pushed through all those barriers and the game is where it is today because of them.

Now, you mentioned the grand final, that you've been a part of two winning sides.

The last time the Kiwiferns won a grand final was 2008.

I think it's the women's game over the last year or two has been a bit filtered out because there's more teams coming in.

So the talent is spread and you notice that when you're watching the WNRL.

But when you go to the elite games, the state of origin games, the test matches, which we've seen, those are the elite players in the game playing and it's a really good level of footy.

Yeah, on that note, and we started off the show talking about it this morning, about International Rugby League, and that sometimes it can take a bit of a backseat, because obviously the NRL is great.

Great to have some world-class rugby league in WA.

Now, why is Women's Rugby League here in Australia so far advanced against the rest of the world?

I think it more has to do with the professionalism of it.

Obviously, 10 years ago or something, there was a real big push from women to have... you know, a professional pathway for women to kind of get there.

But, you know, Australia have also gone from strength to strength.

The, the WNRL competition's gone, gone up and up.

So, um, good luck to the women out there.

We, we hope that they can keep it close for the first sort of f- 50 minutes, then in the last 20, um, see where we are and if we can keep it close or we can e- even nick it.

How did it

change? How did it change when you became, you went from the New Zealand Rugby League, Women's Rugby League team to the Kiwi Firms? How did that all come about? I think it was Gerald Ryan that came up with the Kiwi Firm moniker.

Um, there's, there's several backstories.

Um, and, and I like to, I think I like to give the kudos to Christine Panapa, um, knowing that, knowing that she had an apparel, um, uh, company herself, you know, within the family and design was their thing, you know, like, um, and, and she really drove the brand, um, as you know, like, um, Uh, the, the brand of women playing rugby league, but you know, like we had to center ourselves around, uh, uh, you know, like being able to grasp it onto a brand to make us a name instead of Kiwi Friends.

Yeah, so as soon as that started, then it was like, you know, you knew that there was going to be a bit of momentum.

Yeah, shout out to the Minister of Sport there too, by the way.

Start investing in the Women's Rugby League.

Yeah.

They're in that Northern Hemisphere umbrella.

England play Wales in Women's Rugby League and beat them by 70 points.

Now, last time I checked, Wales tends to come under rugby football league administration as well as a rule.

And France don't, but France are the closest neighbours and they have two teams in the English Super League, in the British Super League.