New Zealand Māori women's rugby league team

New Zealand Māori
Team information
Governing bodyNew Zealand Māori Rugby League
Head coachJohn Strange
CaptainKennedy Cherrington
Team results
First international
Māori 4–34 Great Britain 
(Auckland, New Zealand; 1998)
Biggest win
Māori 44–0 Niue
(North Harbour Stadium, Albany; 2003)
Biggest defeat
Māori 0–58 New Zealand 
(North Harbour Stadium, Albany; 2003)
World Cup
Appearances1 (first time in 2003)
Best resultRunners-Up

New Zealand Māori women’s rugby league team, also known as Wahine Toa, is a rugby league representative side made up of New Zealand Māori players. The side represents the New Zealand Māori Rugby league. The team has competed in international competition, including Test Matches and the 2003 World Cup. Since 2018 the team has competed in an annual All Stars match, against the Australian Indigenous women’s rugby league team.

Coaches

Missing matches are 2002, 2006, and 2009.

Name Span M W D L W% Ref.
Barry Ngawati 1998 1 0 0 0 0.00% [1][2]
Greg Brown 2003 7 4 0 0 57.14% [3][4]
Janie Thompson 2007 2 1 0 1 50.00% [5]
Victor Heke 2017 1 0 0 1 0.00% [6]
Rusty Matua 2019-2020 2 1 0 1 50.00%
Keith Hanley 2021-2025 5 2 0 3 40.00% [7][8][9][10]
John Strange 2026 1 0 0 1 0.00% [11]

Captains

Missing matches are 2002, 2006, 2007, 2009, and 2017.

Year Captain(s) Ref
1998 Mere Ngawati [1]
2003 Kellie Kiwi [4]
2019 Krystal Rota and Rona Peters [12]
2020 Krystal Rota and Raecene McGregor [13]
2021 Corban Baxter [7]
2022 Corban Baxter [8][9]
2023 Zahara Temara and Shannon Mato [14]
2024 Zahara Temara and Shannon Mato [15]
2025 Shannon Mato and Kennedy Cherrington [16]
2026 Zahara Temara and Kennedy Cherrington [17]

Current squad

The following players were selected to play in the 15 February 2026 match against the Indigenous All Stars.[18][19]
All twenty players spent time on the field during the game.
Players' ages are as at the date that the table was last updated, 16 February 2026.

J# Player Age Position(s) Māori All Stars NRLW Other Reps
Dbt M T G F Pts 2025 Club CM TM T G F Pts
1 Gayle Broughton 29 Five-eighth, Fullback 2023 2 0 0 0 0 Warriors 0 36 9 0 0 36 3
2 Payton Takimoana 22 Centre, Wing 2026 1 0 0 0 0 Warriors 11 11 15 0 0 60 —
3 Corban Baxter 31 Fullback, Five-eighth 2016 5 0 0 0 0 Roosters 31 31 10 0 0 40 10
4 Shanice Parker 27 Centre, Fullback 2016 5 2 0 0 8 Knights 41 46 11 0 0 44 8 1 1 2
5 Tenika Willison 28 Centre, Wing 2026 1 2 0 0 8 Knights 19 19 6 0 0 24 —
6 Zahara Temara 28 Halfback, Five-eighth 2017 6 0 3 0 6 Raiders 28 52 7 110 3 251 5 8 1
7 Raecene McGregor 28 Halfback 2020 6 2 3 0 14 Tigers 0 48 2 45 0 98 16
8 Rima Butler 28 Prop 2024 3 1 0 0 4 Roosters 13 33 8 0 0 32 2
9 Chanté Temara 24 Hooker 2024 3 1 0 0 4 Raiders 29 32 1 0 0 4 1
10 Mya Hill-Moana 23 Prop 2021 5 0 0 0 0 Warriors 0 25 1 0 0 4 10
11 Jasmin Strange 23 Second-row, Centre 2023 4 2 0 0 8 Roosters 25 36 10 0 0 40 2
12 Shakira Baker 34 Second-row, Centre 2026 1 0 0 0 0 Warriors 8 8 1 0 0 4 —
13 Kennedy Cherrington 27 Lock, Prop 2021 5 0 0 0 0 Eels 29 33 5 0 0 20 6 6 2 1
14 Rueben Cherrington 22 Hooker, Lock 2025 2 0 0 0 0 Eels 23 23 5 0 0 20 1 1
15 Matekino Gray 20 Prop, Second-row 2026 1 0 0 0 0 Warriors 8 12 0 0 0 0 —
16 Ashleigh Quinlan 31 Five-eighth, Halfback 2023 4 0 0 0 0 Bulldogs 10 33 7 0 0 28 5 1
17 Harata Butler 32 Prop 2020 4 0 0 0 0 Warriors 11 23 0 0 0 0 1 1
18 Fane Finau 19 Second-row 2026 1 0 0 0 0 Knights 4 4 2 0 0 8 —
19 Zali Fay 25 Wing 2021 5 2 0 0 8 Eels 33 33 6 0 0 24 1
20 Laikha Clarke 24 Prop 2023 3 1 0 0 4 Titans 29 29 3 0 0 12 2 1

Results

Date Opponent Score Tournament Venue Video Ref.
16 August 1998  Great Britain
4–34
Tour Match Waitakere Stadium, Auckland — [20]
Oct 2002  New Zealand
10–36
Test Match — [21]
8 August 2003  Australia
14–20
Test Match Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane — [22]
28 September 2003  Australia
24–28
2003 WRLWC North Harbour Stadium — [23][24]
30 September 2003 Niue
44–0
— [25][24]
4 October 2003  Great Britain
10–8
— [26][24]
8 October 2003  Cook Islands
46–0
— [27][24]
10 October 2003  Australia
12–4
— [28][24]
12 October 2003  New Zealand
0–58
— [24]
1 July 2006  New Zealand
12–50
Test Match Rotorua International Stadium — [21]
31 October 2007  Australia
16–20
2 Test Series Rotorua International Stadium — [29][30]
3 November 2007  Australia
20–4
—
16 September 2009  Australia
18–14
Test Match — [31]
4 November 2017  New Zealand
12–32
Warm-up Match Waikato Stadium, Hamilton — [32][21]
15 February 2019 Indigenous All Stars
8–4
All Stars Match AAMI Park [33] [34]
22 February 2020 Indigenous All Stars
4–10
All Stars Match Cbus Super Stadium [35] [36]
20 February 2021 Indigenous All Stars
24–0
All Stars Match Queensland Country Bank Stadium [37] [38]
12 February 2022 Indigenous All Stars
8–18
All Stars Match CommBank Stadium [39] [40][41]
11 February 2023 Indigenous All Stars
16–12
All Stars Match Rotorua International Stadium [42][43] [44]
16 February 2024 Indigenous All Stars
4–26
All Stars Match Queensland Country Bank Stadium [45] [46][47]
15 February 2025 Indigenous All Stars
18–20
All Stars Match CommBank Stadium [48] [49][50]
15 February 2026 Indigenous All Stars
14–20
All Stars Match Waikato Stadium [51] [52]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Team Lists". Aotearoa Wahine Toa vs Great Britain. Auckland: Aotearoa Māori Rugby League. 16 August 1998.
  2. ^ Davis, Roland (22 August 1998). "Game Report - Great Britain Women v New Zealand Māori Women". Auckland Rugby League Weekly. Auckland: Auckland Rugby League.
  3. ^ "Women's Test Match Australia v New Zealand Māoris". Big League. Sydney: News Limited. 7 August 2003.
  4. ^ a b "New Zealand Māori Women's Rugby League". Lion Foundation Women's Rugby League World Cup 2003. Auckland: New Zealand Women's Rugby League: 20–21. 28 September 2003.
  5. ^ "Wahine (Women)". The Daily Post. Rotorua. 22 October 2007.
  6. ^ Paranihi, Eru (25 October 2017). "Māori Ferns side ready for historical match". Teao Māori News. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
  7. ^ a b Baylm, Todd (19 February 2021). "Young talent to make names for themselves on big stage". NRL. Retrieved 16 February 2026.
  8. ^ a b "Baxter to Lead Māoris as Six Roosters Selected for All Stars". Roosters.com.au. 1 February 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  9. ^ a b Lenehan, Martin (12 February 2022). "Maori v Indigenous All Stars: Old heads and young guns set to put on a show". Parra Eels. NRL Media Release. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  10. ^ Rosser, Corey (16 January 2023). "All Stars role a key part of Hanley's cultural journey". NRL. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  11. ^ Walter, Brad (14 January 2026). "Strange excited by depth of Māori talent for All Stars clash". NRL. Retrieved 16 February 2026.
  12. ^ Newton, Alicia (13 February 2019). "Maori game brings siblings together for rare occasion". NRL. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  13. ^ Whittaker, Troy (22 February 2020). "Women's Indigenous v Maori: Harden, McGregor, Rota named captains". NRL. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  14. ^ Edwards, Colleen (12 February 2023). "Captains' call: Those are the moments we're going to take". NRL. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  15. ^ "Māori Captains". facebook. NRLW - National Rugby League Women's. 16 February 2024. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  16. ^ Perese, Daniel (15 February 2025). "NRL ALL STARS 2025: It's about representing our people". Te Ao Māori News. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  17. ^ Walter, Brad (15 February 2026). "Still on my journey: How Hynes evolved into Indigenous leader". NRL. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  18. ^ "2026 Harvey Norman All Stars teams announced". NRL. NRL Media Release. 5 February 2026. Retrieved 5 February 2026.
  19. ^ "2026 Harvey Norman All Stars Team Lists". NRL. 10 February 2026. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
  20. ^ "Lionesses band together". Daily Telegraph. 17 August 1998. p. 31.
  21. ^ a b c "Kiwi Ferns – Past Results". NZRL. 30 September 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  22. ^ Marshall, Matt. "Short Passes". Rugby League Week (13 August 2003). Sydney: Bauer Media Group: 4.
  23. ^ "Scoreboard". Rugby League Week (1 October 2003). Sydney: Bauer Media Group.
  24. ^ a b c d e f Francis, Payne (2003). New Zealand Rugby League Almanack 2003. New Zealand Rugby Football League Inc.
  25. ^ "SPORT details". Daily Telegraph. 1 October 2003. p. 82.
  26. ^ "Women's Rugby League". Rugby League Review. 1 October 2003. p. 8.
  27. ^ "Women's Rugby League". Rugby League Review. 1 November 2003. p. 8.
  28. ^ "SPORT details". Daily Telegraph. 11 October 2003. p. 97.
  29. ^ "'Rugby snobs' prepare to play league for their country". Manly Daily. 20 October 2007. p. 87 – via NewsBank.
  30. ^ North, Bill (12 November 2007). "League Of Her Own – Pennell Returns After Back-To-Back Tours". Our Footy Team Archives. Daily Liberal. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  31. ^ Gaskin, Lee (30 September 2009). "Aussie women break Kiwi hold". Queensland Times. Retrieved 26 February 2018.
  32. ^ http://www.nzrl.co.nz/fanzone/news/2017/8/kiwi-ferns-to-play-rlwc-warm-up-game-in-hamilton/
  33. ^ "Match Highlights: Indigenous Women's All Stars v NZ Maori Women's All Stars". NRL. 16 February 2019. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  34. ^ Walter, Brad (15 February 2019). "Rota puts personal anguish aside to inspire Maori All Stars". NRL. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  35. ^ "Match Highlights: Indigenous All Stars v Maori Ferns". QRL. 22 February 2020. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  36. ^ Gould, Joel (22 February 2020). "Davis-Welsh, Harden lead Indigenous Women's All Stars to glory". NRL. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  37. ^ "Match Highlights: Indigenous Women v Maori Women". NRL. 20 February 2021. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  38. ^ Balym, Todd (20 February 2021). "Temara, McGregor shine as Maori All Stars too good for Indigenous team". NRL. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  39. ^ "NRL All Stars 2022 - Indigenous v Maori Match Highlights - NRLW". YouTube. NRL. 12 February 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  40. ^ Lenehan, Martin (12 February 2022). "Chapman doubles up as Indigenous All Stars storm home". NRL. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  41. ^ Kennedy, Chris (12 February 2022). "Best in the world: Fullback duel lights up All Stars". NRL. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  42. ^ "NRLW All Stars 2023 - Māori Ferns v Indigenous All Stars - Match Highlights". YouTube. NRLW - National Rugby League Women's. 11 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  43. ^ "NRLW All Stars - Māori v Indigenous - Full Match Replay - 2023". YouTube. NRLW - National Rugby League Women's. 15 February 2024 [2023]. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  44. ^ Edwards, Colleen (12 February 2023). "Captains' call: 'Those are the moments we're going to take'". NRL. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  45. ^ "NRLW All Stars 2024 - Indigenous All Stars v Māori Ferns - Match Highlights". YouTube. NRLW - National Rugby League Women's. 16 February 2024. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  46. ^ "Harvey Norman Women's All Stars - Indigenous 26 v 4 Maori". NRL. 16 February 2024. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  47. ^ Rosser, Corey (16 February 2024). "Indigenous run hot in Women's All Stars rout". NRL. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  48. ^ "NRL All Stars 2025 - Indigenous v Māori - Match Highlights". YouTube. NRLW - National Rugby League Women's. 15 February 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  49. ^ "Harvey Norman Women's All Stars - Indigenous 20 v 18 Maori". NRL. 15 February 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  50. ^ Walter, Brad (15 February 2025). "Indigenous All Stars overcome loss of Dibb to snatch late victory". NRL. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  51. ^ "2026 Women's All-Stars Highlights: Maori All-Stars v Indigenous All-Stars - NRL on Nine". YouTube. NRL on Nine. 15 February 2026. Retrieved 16 February 2026.
  52. ^ "Men's teams share spoils, Indigenous Women victorious in All Stars". League Unlimited. 15 February 2026. Retrieved 16 February 2026.
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