Player Atawhai Tupaea

[mt.wellington]

Atawhai Tupaea

​

Atawhai Tupaea (born 3 February 1989) is a New Zealand rugby league footballer who played as a centre for the New Zealand Warriors in the NRL Women's Premiership.

She is a New Zealand representative.

Born in Papakura, Auckland, Tupaea represented New Zealand in tag, rugby, touch football before switching to rugby league.

In 2014, Tupaea began playing for the Papakura Sisters and represented Counties Manukau. On 9 November 2014, she made her Test debut for New Zealand, scoring a try in their 12–8 win over Australia at WIN Stadium. On 28 January 2015, she was named the NZRL Women's Player of the Year.

On 6 May 2016, she started on the wing and scored two tries for New Zealand in their 26–16 win over Australia.

In 2017, she played all five games for New Zealand at the 2017 Women's Rugby League World Cup, including starting on the wing in their 16–23 final loss to Australia.

In 2019, Tupaea returned to rugby league after a year off and was signed by the New Zealand Warriors NRL Women's Premiership team. In Round 1 of the 2019 NRL Women's season, she made her debut for the Warriors, starting at centre and scoring a try in their 16–12 win over the Sydney Roosters.

In October 2019, she joined New Zealand's 2019 Rugby League World Cup 9s-winning squad.

Atawhai is a proud mum of two and wife.

 

[mt.wellington]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGoK3cUSSPo​

 

[mt.wellington]

WNRL 2019: Playing at Mt Smart Stadium means so much to Atawhai Tupaea​

• 19/09/2019
• Michael O'Keeffe

The NZ Warriors women will make history this weekend when they run out at Mt Smart Stadium for the very first time.

This will also be the first time many of the players' friends and family get to see them in action for the club live.

But for centre Atawhai Tupaea, Sunday’s match against the Dragons will be an emotional one.

"So my dad's been diagnosed with stage-four bowel cancer," Tupaea told Newshub, with a deep breath. "I'm doing it for him."

Tupaea described father Mita as the rock of their family, so it was an understandably tough topic to talk about.

She credits him for being a "massive, massive" influence on her career, and remembers coming home from school and being made to go running instead of doing homework.

"Dad would be like, 'ok, chuck your shoes on, we're going for a run', so off we would go.

"I think there was like four of us - my four sisters and my dad - and off we go running around the block, and we'd do that every day."

That laid the foundations for her to go on and represent New Zealand at touch (like her father) and rugby league.

Tupaea was playing for Counties at the league nationals this year, when her dad texted her, saying he missed her and her siblings, and wanted them to go into the hospital to see him.

"It was very strange, because my dad took us into a private room and he told us to leave our kids in the other room - it just didn't feel right.

"My dad is such a strong person and he's so private, and he just started crying and tears started coming out of his eyes. My mum was behind him and I was like, 'ok, something's wrong'.

"That's when he said the doctors have found a massive tumour, which has spread, so they said to my dad that he had about four weeks to a few months left to live with us, which was really hard to take."

Atawhai has been with her father, as he goes through chemotherapy. She said his first round hit him bad.

Unable to play for the Warriors last year, because she was pregnant with her second child, Tupaea was willing to give up playing for the Warriors again this season, but her father was having none of it.

"I always say to him, 'I don't need to play league, I could stay here and look after you, if you want to', but he's so stubborn," she said, with a beaming smile.

"He's like, 'nope, you get out there, you do your thing, you go to training'."

The experience has changed Tupaea's approach to the game.

"So when I'm at training or when I'm on the field, I just give it everything I've got."

That hasn’t gone unnoticed by her coach Luisa Avaiki, who was one of the select few Tupaea told at the club.

"Obviously, that's really personal for her and it's not something she wanted to share with the team, and we had to be respectful of that," Avaiki told Newshub.

"She was thinking about the team, and she said to me she didn't want to come across at training like she was being slack or she wasn't performing to her best, but she wanted to make me aware of this personal [issue] she's going through with her family."

Avaiki offered as much support as she could, suggesting Tupaea spend as much time away from the team as she needed, but Tupaea told her exactly what her father said.

"She said, 'no, this is what my dad wanted me to do', so he's the one that's really supporting her to continue

"She's managing it really well," Avaiki said. "She's a great leader, she's in our leadership group and always thinking of others, and it just really shows the character that Ata has."

Tupaea is extremely excited to play at home this weekend and in light of everything that's happened, the opportunity really hits home.

Her five sisters and brothers will be at Mt Smart Stadium, but unfortunately, her father isn’t likely to be there.

"I know that he'll be watching on the TV hopefully. I just wanna make him proud."

'I'm doing this to make my dad proud' - Tupaea

The NZ Warriors star's father is battling aggressive cancer.

www.newshub.co.nz

 

[mt.wellington]

Rugby league: Northland junior players get Warrior treatment​

By Kristin Edge
Reporter·Northern Advocate·
14 Aug, 2019 11:00 AM

Aieshaleigh Smalley braces herself for a big hit from a little player.

Young Northland female league players enjoyed the opportunity to run through skills drills with the country's best women league players during a training camp in Whangarei.

The driving force behind the day at Tikipunga Domain was passionate league parent Nick Waihi who wanted the 80 young girls to learn they to could reach the top level in the sport with some commitment and training.

"I want the girls to be aware league doesn't just fit one size or build of player, but is a sport for everyone," Waihi said.

"I wanted to show the girls that you can come from Whangārei and you can be one of these Warriors. I wanted them to see if you train hard, work hard you can achieve anything."

About 80 girls aged between 5 and 15 signed up for the Saturday training session.

Waihi said the Warriors travelled to Whangārei on Friday for a two-day camp built around training sessions and community activities.

He had organised the teams accommodation and food for the weekend and had got local sponsors to help to make the event a reality.

"I really want to build a great relationship with theses Warriors and create a pathway for our girls. I wouldn't be surprised if we don't see some of these Northland girls in that top team," Waihi said.

He said the best thing about the day, despite the rain, was the huge smiles of the girls' faces.

"The feedback from parents were that the girls were fizzing and excited to see the players they had only seen on television."

Cori Paul, development manager for Rugby League Northland, said exposing the young players to the best in the sport was a winner.
"It gives these young girls something to aim for."
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/northern...-a-waste-of-space/HCAGRJN7SOFHE2NISRYTS24DFA/
Last year, the Warriors Women's team competed in the inaugural NRL women's premiership alongside teams from the Sydney Roosters, St George Illawarra and Brisbane.

The side is coached by Luisa Avaiki, who was named 2017 New Zealand Rugby League player of the year. She was at the Whangārei training day.

"In New Zealand, being part of the WNRL has created exciting pathways for our youth and women," Avaiki said.

She captained the Kiwi Ferns to victory in two women's World Cup tournaments in 2003 and 2008 and was also in the winning side in the first World Cup in 2000.

Warrior treatment for young Northland league girls

75 girls keen on rugby league turn up for skills day run by Warrior women's players.

www.nzherald.co.nz

 

[mt.wellington]

'My family thought I was crazy': The miracle Mum starring for the Warriors in NRLW​

By Michael Burgess
21 Sep, 2019 05:05 PM

Atawhai Tupaea. Photo / Photosport

If the Warriors women are seeking inspiration ahead of their clash with the Dragons at Mt Smart on Sunday afternoon, they won't have to look too far.

Centre Atawhai Tupaea has defied sporting logic to make the NRLW competition this year, just 10 months after giving birth to her second child.

She was a standout in last week's win over the Roosters, and scored the match-sealing try, but back in February Tupaea was almost ready to give up on her dream.

Tupaea was trying to prepare for the team's first trial, just three months after the birth, but started to realise the enormity of the task.

"I was still breast feeding and my son was waking up every three hours," recalled Tupaea.

"I couldn't train for the first eight weeks [after the birth]. When I think about it now, it's like 'Oh my god, what was I thinking?"

Her son Rieko was born in early November last year. After two months, Tupaea took the first tentative steps back to athlete life.

"I couldn't run, I couldn't do burpees," explained Tupaea. "I was just doing squats and deadlifts, things I could do, and went from there.

Her sister and cousin provided moral support as they worked out in her garage, but most of her relatives had reservations.

"My family thought I was crazy," said Tupaea. "And I never thought I was actually going to make it, but I had to try."

As well as regaining strength and conditioning, Tupaea had to lose weight.

"I had a food diary and I stuck to that for about three months because I knew I couldn't exercise," said Tupaea. "It was so hard. Especially being pregnant where you eat everything and anything, from burgers and chocolate, to eating none of those."

After barely four weeks of training, Tupaea faced the first Warriors' trial in mid-February.

"I had to be; No excuses, just turn up, that's all you have to do," said Tupaea. "Then I was sore for a week. The first hit up I got smashed, then got back up and carried on."

Her teammates were impressed.

"They said 'Wow, you are back; Did you even have a baby?", recalled Tupaea. "Obviously they didn't see me when I was heavily pregnant, on my couch eating ice cream."

It helped that Tupaea had great pedigree. The 30-year-old had been part of the Kiwis Ferns since 2014, when she scored a try on debut against the Jillaroos.

That game remains a career highlight, but the next few weeks could takes things to another level.

"It's amazing to be part of this team," said Tupaea. "I remember when I was a little girl, my Dad would put the telly on and we would all sit there and watch Stacey Jones. Now I am actually wearing a Warriors jersey. It's just priceless. You have no idea how proud my family is. There is no word to describe it."

The NRLW Warriors were impressive last week, absorbing pressure and defending stoutly in the first half before finishing over the top of the more fancied Roosters. Tupaea gained a team high 106 metres from 12 runs with three tackle breaks, along with 19 tackles (only one miss).

"It was very fast, physical," said Tupaea. "I enjoyed it but it was a bit of a shock to the body. It was awesome to get the right result and an amazing experience. But it was only game one, so we have to refocus."

The Warriors are out to avenge a heavy defeat to the Dragons at the same stage last year, while the St George side are coming off a 14-4 loss to defending premiers Brisbane.

'My family thought I was crazy': The miracle mum starring for Warriors Women

Tupaea was preparing for the team's first trial, just three months after the birth.

www.nzherald.co.nz