Honey Hireme

Honey Hireme-Smiler MNZM
Hireme in 2021
Personal information
Born (1981-05-03) 3 May 1981
Height1.72 m (5 ft 7+1⁄2 in)
Weight82 kg (12 st 13 lb)
Playing information
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
Papakura
2018 St George Illawarra 3 4
Total 3 0 0 0 4
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2008–2020 New Zealand 32 0
Rugby union career
Provincial / State sides
Years Team Apps (Points)
2001–2016 Waikato 36 (160)
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2014–2017 New Zealand 18 (75)
National sevens team
Years Team Comps
2013 New Zealand 7s

Arneta Honey Hireme-Smiler MNZM (born 3 May 1981) is a former New Zealand rugby football player who has represented her country in rugby league, rugby sevens and rugby union. Due to her multi-sport career, Hireme-Smiler has been referred to as Honey Bill Williams, in reference to her New Zealand male counterpart Sonny Bill Williams.[1][2]

Early life

Arneta Honey Hireme-Smiler was born on 3 May 1981 in Putaruru Maternity Hospital to Caryn Ngarewa Hireme and Leonard Charles Hunter[3] and was to spend her early life in Putāruru in the South Waikato. At the time of her birth her father was working at the Pinedale Timber Mill and later became a bushman in Tokoroa and then worked at the Kinleith pulp and paper mill. Hireme-Smiler was born with a club foot which was corrected by surgery a days after she was born, which resulted in her departing hospital with her foot in a cast.[3] The club foot was hereditary and appeared in other members of her family. She has a two brothers, Buddy and Quintin as well as two older two step-sisters Coralie and Joan via her father's previous relationship.[3]

While her mothers details were entered on her birth certificate, her father's weren't even though he was living with her mother and drove her to the hospital and waited outside.[3] Her parents married when she was five. She spent her childhood as Honey Hunter. When she learnt of the lack of a father on the birth certificate, she asked her father for the approximately $150 needed to legally add his name, he refused, considering it a needless waste of money. Soon after getting her drivers licence at 17 as Arneta Hireme she had a disagreement with her father and as payback took her birth certificate to school and requested that henceforth Hireme be used as her surname.[3]

Her parents relationship was tumultuous and at times violent, driven by alcohol consumption during the weekends and led at one stage to her mother briefly taking herself and her children to a Women's Refuge in Auckland [4] When they were older Hireme-Smiler and Buddy would often ring the police late at night to ask them to come and restore the peace.[4] Her father was passionate about rugby league and so disliked rugby union that he would mow his lawn during All Blacks just to annoy his neighbours wanting to watch or listen to the game.

Following her primary school education at Oraka Heights Primary School she attended Putaruru High School.

Rugby league career

Due to her father's love of the game Hireme-Smiler was exposed to rugby league at an early age and at the age of five began playing for Putaruru Dragons and then progressed into the senior women's grades playing for the Papakura Sea Eagles club in the Auckland Rugby League women's competition. She has represented Counties Manukau, Bay of plenty, Waikato and Waicoa Bay in the New Zealand Rugby League's women's competition over her 20-year career at representative level.[5]

Hireme-Smiler has played in four Rugby League World Cups, she played for the Kiwiferns in the 2003 Women's world cup 2008 and 2013 World Cups.[5] She captained the team in 2013.[6] She was named in the world women's rugby league in all 4 world cup tournaments, and also awarded player of the Tournament in 2013.

She played in the 2017 Rugby League world cup representing the kiwiferns finishing the tournament as the highest try scorer and finalist for player of the tournament.

In June 2018, Hireme-Smiler joined the St. George Illawarra Dragons ahead of the inaugural NRL Women's Premiership commencing in September 2018.[7] She co-captained the New Zealand women's rugby league team, with Laura Mariu, between the pair they had over 36 years of experience at international level. She was awarded New Zealand women's rugby league player of the year in 2018, her third time winning top honours. She was also a finalist in 2018 for the International Women's Golden boot award.

Rugby union career

XVs

In rugby union, she plays and coaches Melville women's Premier rugby team and represents Waikato in the women's provincial championship.[5][8]

She made her New Zealand rugby union debut at the 2014 Women's Rugby World Cup, where she was named to the World Cup Dream Team and the World XV team.[6][9]

She competed in the Women's Rugby Super Series in 2015 and 2019.

Hireme-Smiler appeared for the Black Ferns in the 2016 Laurie O'Reilly Cup against the Wallaroos, scoring tries in both test matches.[10][11][12]

Sevens

Hireme-Smiler has played for the New Zealand women's national rugby sevens team in the 2013 Rugby Sevens World Cup in Moscow.[6] She has also played for New Zealand on the IRB Women's Sevens World Series and represented New Zealand Māori in sevens.[13][14]

In 2014, she also became one of New Zealand's first contracted sevens players.[6]

Honours and awards

She was:

References

  1. ^ Michael Burgess (30 April 2013). "League: 'Honey Bill' eyes another World Cup". Herald on Sunday. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  2. ^ CALEY WILSON (9 November 2014). "'Honey Bill' has resume to put Sonny to shame". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d e Hireme-Smiler, McFadden; pp.13-16, 24
  4. ^ a b Hireme-Smiler, McFadden; pp.22-24
  5. ^ a b c d Goile, Aaron (14 November 2012). "'Honey Bill Williams' is the centre of attention" – via Stuff.
  6. ^ a b c d Wilson, Caley (9 November 2014). "'Honey Bill' has resume to put Sonny to shame" – via Stuff.
  7. ^ "Marquee quartet further boosts Dragons' Women's Premiership squad". Dragons.com.au. 13 June 2018. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
  8. ^ "Honey Hireme". All Blacks.
  9. ^ "Womens RWC – #WRWC2014 Dream Team revealed after fan vote". 19 August 2014. Archived from the original on 19 August 2014. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  10. ^ "Black Ferns vs Australia (Game 1)". All Blacks. 22 October 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  11. ^ Julian, Adam (24 May 2024). "A history of the prestigious Laurie O'Reilly Cup". All Blacks. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  12. ^ "Black Ferns vs Australia (Game 2)". All Blacks. 26 October 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  13. ^ "'Honey Bill Williams' stars in rugby and league". 28 April 2013 – via New Zealand Herald.
  14. ^ "Honey Hireme: A force to be reckoned with – Fitness Journal". 9 November 2015.
  15. ^ "New Year honours list 2020". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 31 December 2019. Retrieved 31 December 2019.

Bibliography

  • Hireme-Smiler, Honey; McFadden, Suzanne (2024). Honey: My Storey of Love, Loss and Victory (Softcover). Auckland: David Bateman. ISBN 978-1-77689-074-3.
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