00:00:00
Oh, good. You're here. Come on. This is
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the center of performance. Whenever
00:00:05
there's a top performance in New
00:00:06
Zealand, it all comes from here. That's
00:00:08
Lisa Carrington. She's been doing that
00:00:10
for days. That's the boys who got the
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hole in one in to
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Finn. How's the performance going?
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>> Top tier.
00:00:18
>> Nice. This is our generate room. In
00:00:21
here, you'll find our top performers
00:00:22
helping Kiwis maximize their Kiwi Saver
00:00:24
[music] investments. Get in here, Finn.
00:00:26
>> Maximize. Generate. putting performance
00:00:29
first.
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>> Linda Vagna, welcome to my podcast.
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>> Oh, thanks for having me, Dom. I'm just
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admiring how flash this place is.
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>> Well, only the flash is for my queen.
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[laughter]
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>> Okay, now you're now you're pulling my
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leg.
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>> It's wonderful to have you here, Linda
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Vagina. Uh 64 test silver fern, one of
00:00:56
the best who ever do it. um goalkeeper
00:00:58
and goal defense once described as one
00:01:00
of the most feared silver fern
00:01:02
defenders. And I've we've been chatting
00:01:04
for like the last 10 minutes. This is
00:01:05
the first time we've we've met.
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>> M [clears throat]
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>> I can't What does that mean? One of the
00:01:09
most feared silver fern defenders. Cuz
00:01:11
you couldn't have been more lovely.
00:01:13
>> Oh, you're so sweet. But if you chuck me
00:01:16
on the net court and if we play any kind
00:01:20
of match, whether it's cards or um you
00:01:23
know any kind of sport, I think I'm
00:01:26
quite competitive. No, actually that's a
00:01:28
lie. I'm not quite competitive. I'm
00:01:30
super competitive.
00:01:31
>> Um I don't know where that comes from
00:01:33
because I I think I'm really nice. I
00:01:36
think I was always the person that if
00:01:37
there was a if there was some uproar at
00:01:40
school, I'll be the one in the middle
00:01:41
trying to um you know, keep the peace.
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Yeah,
00:01:45
>> keep the piece. But because of my size,
00:01:47
my height, everyone thought that I was
00:01:49
the one that would be the aggressive,
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the aggressor.
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>> And a sport like net, which is um for
00:01:56
the most part a non-cont sport, how can
00:01:59
you be one of the most feared? What
00:02:01
makes what makes someone feared in a
00:02:03
non-cont sport? Look, I think if if you
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enter the game, I always have this um
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you know, there's this this face that I
00:02:12
put on. It's almost like smoke coming
00:02:14
out of your nostrils. I don't really
00:02:16
care about the crowd that's watching.
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I'm not going to be affected by it. And
00:02:21
um I just got to go hunting and what I'm
00:02:23
hunting for is the ball.
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>> Um I might actually not I but you might
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be in my way and that's that's probably
00:02:30
where the fears comes out of. You might
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be in my way, but I'm still going to
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storm through.
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>> You Yeah. In your career, you played um
00:02:37
you played with um Irene Van Djk in the
00:02:40
Silver Thirds. You also played against
00:02:42
her while she was playing for South
00:02:43
Africa. Did you ever um I had your your
00:02:46
great friend Benise Minnie on the
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podcast and she talked about how how
00:02:49
sensitive Irene was. Did you ever make
00:02:51
Irene like cry when you played against
00:02:53
her?
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>> Do you know what? This is where the
00:02:55
peacemaker and me comes in again. Um, I
00:02:57
do recall and I remember having uh Nolan
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in the team and there was a few of my my
00:03:04
Pacifica girls who were shooters. Um,
00:03:07
there was the Belinda Collings and the
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Donna Lohagen who were all shooters. And
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I remember when she came into the team
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and even was coaching at the time and
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she said, "I'm rooming Irene with you."
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I mean, oh, sweet. Yep. And I think for
00:03:24
anybody I I would not have liked to be
00:03:26
in her shoes at that time. She came in
00:03:28
at a time where um you know the team the
00:03:32
team were were sort of at a at a
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changing guards um
00:03:37
situation and there were some of my
00:03:40
friends that were let go in the team
00:03:41
including Nolen and Irene was coming in
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to um replace them um all of her own
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merit of course. Um, but it was a it was
00:03:50
a tough sort of coming in from
00:03:53
representing South Africa and then
00:03:55
living in New Zealand and becoming one
00:03:57
of New Zealand's top shooters now. Um,
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but she was just another person. She was
00:04:02
just another teammate and I think I
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think Ion um made a [clears throat] made
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that move because I was probably the
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kindest that would be there.
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>> The kindest
00:04:12
>> the kindest to support her off the
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court. off [laughter]
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>> on the court though. On the court,
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especially when she was playing for
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South Africa or any team that she was
00:04:20
that we played against each other and um
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I was just in there to get some ball
00:04:25
>> because Benise was saying Irene was
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incredibly sensitive. Um there'd be
00:04:29
things that would happen like the the
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opponent or the opposition team would do
00:04:32
something good and she'd applaud them.
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Um
00:04:34
>> that's right. She did. I forgot that.
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[laughter] That's right. I
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>> So for someone That's right. for someone
00:04:39
with that sort of DNA um who's trying to
00:04:42
shoot goals and you're trying to snatch
00:04:43
the ball away from her. Um I'd imagine
00:04:45
that would be quite distressing for her
00:04:47
at the time.
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>> Well, I you've just reminded me that she
00:04:50
used to do that. I I actually had
00:04:52
forgotten that she would get a goal in,
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she'll clap every time. I'll get an
00:04:56
intercept off her and she'll clap and
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and she'll say, you know, she'll make
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comment about um great intercept and and
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the reason I think why I forgot is
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because I didn't want to listen to her.
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It's like, stop being so nice. you're
00:05:08
trying to put me off my game. Um, I'm
00:05:11
just going for the ball, so go away.
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[laughter]
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And then off the court, you know, we It
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was You just changed again and you were
00:05:18
friends again.
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>> Yeah. Just that ability to switch switch
00:05:22
on and go into almost like an alter ego,
00:05:24
I guess. Eh, like beast mode.
00:05:25
>> Yeah. Yeah. It's like, you know,
00:05:28
Beyonce's Beyonce. And then when she's
00:05:30
um Sasha Fierce or whatever her stage
00:05:33
name is. Um she turns into, you know,
00:05:35
she's so sweet. She's so when she's um
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not performing, you know, she's a mama.
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Um you know, she's got a family, but
00:05:43
when she's on that stage, she's somebody
00:05:44
else. So, I guess it's how it's like all
00:05:46
my drag friends, you know, they all
00:05:48
different personalities when um when
00:05:51
we're all together. And then when
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they're in that costume and they have
00:05:54
that mask on, they become something else
00:05:57
and they go for it on stage. And I guess
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it's the same mentality as a as an
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athlete, you know, you're totally
00:06:02
different person on the field.
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>> Yeah. I suppose someone that springs to
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mind from the Pacifica community is like
00:06:06
one of the greatest rugby players ever.
00:06:08
Sir Michael Jones, who was the Iceman on
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the field. The
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>> loveliest man ever off the field, but a
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complete badass. [laughter]
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>> Don't mess with Don't mess with MJ.
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>> Exactly. That's a a true example. He was
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he is still the nicest person.
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um you know often we're the last time I
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saw him was um at a Pacifica
00:06:29
um Moana Pacifica choir show that was on
00:06:33
at at Spark Arena and we sat next to
00:06:35
each other and he had elderly from his
00:06:37
community that he had paid tickets for
00:06:39
and also sponsored the event um sitting
00:06:41
on his row and I was sitting with with
00:06:44
dad and um the whole the whole time he
00:06:47
was just nudging me going this is so
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cool this is so cool and just
00:06:51
celebrating um Pacifica and and how it's
00:06:54
evolved in our music.
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>> I might have to use you to get him on
00:06:57
the podcast at some point.
00:06:58
>> Any anytime.
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>> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
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>> Um this is going to be such a fun chat.
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There's so much to talk about here.
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There's the um the the net stuff which
00:07:06
we've cracked into already. Um but then
00:07:08
there's this incredible
00:07:10
uh 20some year career you've had post
00:07:12
Netball with Duffy Books and Homes. Um
00:07:15
so there's a lot a lot to unpack. How's
00:07:17
your calendar looking today? How's your
00:07:19
schedule? Have we got time?
00:07:21
No, we never have time. [laughter]
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>> I [snorts] sort of slide into everything
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just on the minute before.
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>> Yeah.
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>> Um [laughter and gasps]
00:07:29
but you know, just before this, I was I
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was at a cafe talking to um kids from
00:07:33
Caramel and from Carmel College. Um and
00:07:36
and just trying to work out dates that
00:07:38
we can all meet up and finish off the
00:07:40
net season after coaching. And this was
00:07:43
my first year coaching a high school
00:07:44
team. Um I've always been in the space
00:07:46
of developing sport and particularly net
00:07:50
for Pacifica. Um and those pathways are
00:07:53
you know you I don't know that's that's
00:07:55
another whole conversation but um yeah
00:07:58
life is busy but it's also good you know
00:08:01
you're more always up and down but um I
00:08:04
always I always find um being positive
00:08:07
and and knowing that I haven't you know
00:08:09
I haven't been placed here by accident
00:08:11
and anything that I go into there's a
00:08:13
reason for it and that's just how life
00:08:14
is. It's cool like that. You just love
00:08:17
service, eh? From the research I've
00:08:18
done, like you you've just got the sense
00:08:20
of community and your whole life is
00:08:22
about giving back.
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>> It is. It is. And oh god, this is where
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the choking moments are. I I promised
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myself that I wouldn't cry, but I can't
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help it.
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>> We got [laughter] tissues if you do.
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>> Can you see my eyes are welling up with
00:08:34
tears already? Um, no, I'm not going to
00:08:36
cry. But I think it's I think it's
00:08:39
understanding and and it's even more
00:08:40
vivid now when you see um communities
00:08:44
that have been displaced. um not only in
00:08:46
our own country, but you see, you know,
00:08:49
the everything that's happening in Gaza
00:08:52
and and with Israel and not only that,
00:08:54
um all across the Middle East um in
00:08:56
parts of Asia, you you it's really hard
00:09:00
to imagine that you just have to lift
00:09:02
everything that you owned, everything
00:09:03
that you possess and walk away from it.
00:09:06
And I believe that's what my parents
00:09:08
did. Um they were both single. Uh they
00:09:10
were both targeted by their family to
00:09:12
leave Samour and um search for a better
00:09:16
life. Um I think they had met already in
00:09:19
in in Samoa but had um come to New
00:09:22
Zealand at different times and and meet
00:09:25
again. Um and then had us but it was for
00:09:28
a better life. And um you know their
00:09:31
life I grew up my gosh I grew up in a
00:09:34
home where I thought we were so rich.
00:09:36
There was in a three-bedroom home in
00:09:38
Messi, West Stalk, there would have been
00:09:41
any given time between 12 to 17 people
00:09:45
living in our house. And our garage was
00:09:47
a makeshift room for all the boys. Um,
00:09:50
and that was such a rich life. I didn't
00:09:52
know any life any other life. [laughter]
00:09:55
>> Um, and so mom and dad we saw every now
00:09:58
and then they would go off to work. Uh
00:10:00
we had cousins, uncles, aunties that
00:10:03
were our mumies [laughter]
00:10:06
and our um and our uncles and older
00:10:08
cousins. And everyone left, got married,
00:10:12
left and had their own families, but
00:10:14
they all still come back. And I think
00:10:17
that's that's just the life that I've
00:10:19
picked up. and whether it's service. Um
00:10:22
I think the the main thing that drives
00:10:24
me is that I've I've had the opportunity
00:10:26
with Silver Ferns and it was a great
00:10:29
opportunity. I've had the opportunity to
00:10:30
coach at international level and that
00:10:33
was beautiful too. It was um me going
00:10:35
back to the roots.
00:10:37
>> Yeah. And you got some serious results
00:10:39
too. We'll get into that later.
00:10:40
>> It was great. But I just wanted everyone
00:10:42
to experience what I had.
00:10:44
>> Um and that wasn't just from family.
00:10:46
that was from strangers who saw that um
00:10:49
my family were busy, weren't engaged in
00:10:51
the sport life that I had um but saw
00:10:55
that I could go far and they would pick
00:10:58
me up every day from home, from school,
00:11:01
from uni, they'll take me to training,
00:11:03
they'll take me to a tournament and I
00:11:05
was always brought back home safely.
00:11:07
[snorts] Um
00:11:09
yeah, and I think that's where the
00:11:10
service comes from. you know, you
00:11:12
[snorts] surround yourself and it's all
00:11:14
you know. It's the the only other thing
00:11:16
is is to give back.
00:11:17
>> You know, we're Polynesia is a is a
00:11:20
communal um we're very communitydriven.
00:11:22
We're very um sociocentric as a faro and
00:11:27
as a community that that's
00:11:29
>> life is is big.
00:11:30
>> Yeah. Yeah. I I do have one question and
00:11:33
um yeah, I hope this isn't isn't isn't
00:11:35
ignorant, but I'm genuine genuinely
00:11:37
curious. So um that that Saman sort of
00:11:40
household dynamic where there's like say
00:11:41
15 people or whatever from the family in
00:11:43
a threebedroom household
00:11:44
>> and in other Yeah. In other in other
00:11:46
societies it's called overcrowding.
00:11:48
>> No, but is that done out of out of
00:11:50
necessity because there's not enough
00:11:51
money or is that just because you're so
00:11:52
familycentric you all want to be under
00:11:53
the one roof?
00:11:54
>> I think it's both. You know, you you
00:11:56
come to New Zealand um you are
00:11:59
representing a family, you're
00:12:02
representing a village and it's a
00:12:04
community. And so when you come to New
00:12:06
Zealand, you are supported by everybody
00:12:08
that's around you. Um, you can't forget
00:12:11
that. And so there's the urgency always
00:12:14
to bring others with you and you always
00:12:17
try and approach everything together.
00:12:19
And so, you know, mom and dad at any
00:12:21
given time were adopting people were
00:12:26
[laughter]
00:12:26
were bringing individuals to work in the
00:12:29
lines of factories and uh, you know,
00:12:31
they and we worked hard. Well, I don't
00:12:33
work hard, but they worked hard. Um, but
00:12:36
I was so spoiled. I don't think I grew
00:12:38
up cleaning a single thing because I had
00:12:40
these 20some year olds who had come from
00:12:43
Samoa. Um, they did all the cooking, the
00:12:46
boys all did the cooking. Um, so there
00:12:48
was no sort of gender, you know, boys do
00:12:50
all the cooking in Samoa. Um and it's
00:12:52
only just changed in the last decade
00:12:55
where you know women are starting to um
00:12:57
show off their their own cooking um
00:13:00
skills and you know trying to to adopt
00:13:04
all what is cuisine in our in our
00:13:06
Pacifica food. But it's just the way we
00:13:08
lived and they brought everyone up so
00:13:10
that they could give back to their own
00:13:12
families. you know, the amount of um
00:13:15
funds and and paychecks that were taken
00:13:20
um each payday and then sent straight
00:13:22
home uh so that you can build your home,
00:13:25
you can build your own home. Um that's
00:13:27
that's just the way that life was. It
00:13:29
was very communal and um it was a a
00:13:32
collective environment where we all
00:13:34
helped each other. Um but it's such a
00:13:36
paradox because in some ways it's also
00:13:38
very hard. [laughter]
00:13:40
Well, it's it's a lot of people sharing
00:13:41
one bathroom.
00:13:42
>> It is. And that's what it was. And
00:13:44
[snorts] um you know, we didn't have to
00:13:46
put a schedule up. It just [laughter]
00:13:49
you had you had different shifts. People
00:13:51
worked graveyard shifts. Um you had your
00:13:54
day shift and often, you know, I could I
00:13:57
can remember a cousin of mine who had to
00:14:00
look after us um getting us ready for
00:14:01
school in the morning cuz everyone left
00:14:03
or people were coming back. Um and some
00:14:06
started afternoon shifts. And I could
00:14:08
remember my young sister complaining
00:14:10
about putting a dressing gown on to go
00:14:11
to to go to school. And that was one of
00:14:14
the cousins thinking, "Oh, I've got to
00:14:15
keep you warm. Put this on." Not knowing
00:14:17
[laughter]
00:14:18
shame. He made us wear a dressing gown
00:14:20
and if we answered back to them, you
00:14:22
know, you got the little whack on the
00:14:23
ears. And so we would walk to school
00:14:25
with these clothes that you know, no
00:14:26
shame. You just kind of just kind of
00:14:28
lived with it and kept going.
00:14:32
>> What were you like as a kid? What was
00:14:34
Did you What was the most trouble you
00:14:35
got in? So your mom was a seamstress,
00:14:37
your dad was a minister, so very
00:14:39
religious upbringing.
00:14:40
>> You did your homework, brother?
00:14:41
>> Yeah.
00:14:42
>> Um were you ever a bad kid? Ever go off
00:14:46
the rails? No.
00:14:47
>> Oh, I can think of a couple of times
00:14:49
where um not not of my fault. Um but
00:14:53
following some some friends along the
00:14:56
you as we do [laughter]
00:14:58
along a path [snorts] that I shouldn't
00:15:00
have and I can remember getting the hold
00:15:01
whack the odd whack on the air. Um, but
00:15:04
all of us grew up af really scared of
00:15:07
doing any wrong because we knew that our
00:15:09
dad would grow us off or um, you always
00:15:12
were afraid that you might get the
00:15:14
hiding. I mean, the hiding to us was
00:15:16
probably the whack around the ear, the
00:15:17
slap on the bottom. Um, that's what we
00:15:19
were afraid of. And so, we did our best
00:15:22
not to be in trouble, but I can say that
00:15:24
my brothers really tested my parents.
00:15:27
>> I think your brother's older than you.
00:15:30
Um, one one is older than me and um, I
00:15:33
I'm I'm the oldest of mom and dad's
00:15:35
kids. We have I have an adopted brother.
00:15:38
He is he's the oldest. Um, and I have a
00:15:41
half sister who is dad's daughter. And
00:15:43
then I have an adopted brother who I
00:15:45
brought back with me from Samoa.
00:15:46
>> Um, so we're we're blended siblings, but
00:15:49
man, we're so close. We're tight.
00:15:52
>> We're tight. We're all so tight.
00:15:54
>> And where did the why? Um, out of all
00:15:57
the things you could have done, why did
00:15:59
you gravitate towards net?
00:16:00
>> Because they have a cool uniform on.
00:16:03
They're short dresses and in my skinny
00:16:06
days, I looked okay in one. [laughter]
00:16:08
>> Is that what it was?
00:16:10
>> Honestly, it was. Yeah. I I wasn't like
00:16:13
I was not I tell this story all the time
00:16:15
when I'm visiting schools um with Duffy
00:16:17
Books and Homes with work and
00:16:21
>> uh I I played a lot of sport until I
00:16:24
started high school and my my dad who
00:16:26
was a teacher himself. He um he received
00:16:29
a report from um one of my teachers. I
00:16:32
think I was Yeah. from one of the
00:16:33
teachers. It was my favorite teacher
00:16:34
too. And the grades and comments from
00:16:37
the teachers weren't very good. And I
00:16:40
tried to hide the report, but um it
00:16:42
didn't work. And being scared of my dad,
00:16:45
I did try to tell him that the D's meant
00:16:47
did really well, Dad. But um [laughter]
00:16:52
that was um that was connected with um a
00:16:55
little slap on the ears. And I wasn't
00:16:58
allowed to play sport when I went into
00:16:59
high school. I honestly wasn't. But um I
00:17:02
was grounded actually for
00:17:03
>> Oh, because you had to focus on your
00:17:04
studies.
00:17:05
>> I had to focus on my school work because
00:17:06
I was not a smart girl. Um my brother,
00:17:10
he was the smart one, the one that was a
00:17:12
year apart with me. Um he was a year
00:17:15
younger and um and I loved sport. That
00:17:18
was the only reason I went to school.
00:17:20
Two reasons, playtime and lunchtime cuz
00:17:23
I'll be in the PE shed. [laughter]
00:17:26
Throwing out every equipment you can
00:17:27
think of, basketball, softball, net,
00:17:29
volleyball. I love tackling the boys cuz
00:17:31
I was, you know, taller than my
00:17:32
teachers. Everyone thought I was a
00:17:34
teacher at some at one stage. Um and
00:17:37
sport was the main reason I went to
00:17:39
school. It was where I found um you know
00:17:42
real comfort. It was where I I meant
00:17:44
something. Um I was always captain of
00:17:47
something. And I had um some great
00:17:50
intermediate teachers who uh not only
00:17:53
supported me with my sport, but they
00:17:55
really pushed me in my in my school
00:17:57
work, but you know, when you're a kid in
00:17:59
your 11, 12, 13 years, you don't really
00:18:02
listen to them when they're trying to to
00:18:05
tell you that education is really
00:18:06
important. Um but the high school I
00:18:09
attended, there was I sort of broke the
00:18:11
rules and I did okay with my reading, I
00:18:14
did okay with math, and dad said I could
00:18:16
play one sport. looked at the back of
00:18:18
the um the school office and there was a
00:18:20
net dress hanging up there. Brand new
00:18:22
uniform. I went that's what I'm playing.
00:18:23
I want to look good in that.
00:18:25
>> Oh, so that was the the draw card that
00:18:27
it wasn't like a handme-down. It was a
00:18:28
brand new
00:18:29
>> brand new uniform. Brand new uniform.
00:18:31
But I love netball. I mean, I can
00:18:32
remember, you know, when when you were a
00:18:35
kid and you didn't worry about what you
00:18:36
were wearing. It wasn't about brands.
00:18:38
And I don't know what you were like as a
00:18:40
kid, Dom, but um my mom was a seamstress
00:18:42
and you already alluded to that. But um
00:18:45
she would sew my clothes and she would
00:18:47
go to all the op shops and just find
00:18:50
bargains for us. And you never you never
00:18:53
complained about it. You just thought,
00:18:54
"Wow, new, cool." And she must have
00:18:56
found a box of different colored pleated
00:18:59
net skirts. Do you remember those? They
00:19:02
were This was before dresses. Yeah.
00:19:04
>> The net The net ball skirts were
00:19:05
pleated. and she got me a different
00:19:08
color for every day of the week. And so
00:19:10
I think I kind of had already developed
00:19:12
a love of these skirts.
00:19:15
>> And And were you immediately good when
00:19:16
you started the network? Were you Did
00:19:18
you get really good really quickly?
00:19:21
>> I think I I think I was already really
00:19:23
good at other sports and gymnastics was
00:19:26
one of my favorite and lucky for
00:19:29
gymnastics if I was not um you know
00:19:32
because gymnastics you got to have a
00:19:33
strong core. you got to be able to carry
00:19:34
your own body weight and um that was
00:19:38
probably the the sport that um developed
00:19:41
every muscle in my body uh to be a good
00:19:44
net baller and it just came naturally
00:19:46
after that and yeah had to work really
00:19:48
hard
00:19:50
>> um to be a better net baller
00:19:51
>> and you've make the silver ferns when
00:19:53
you were is it 22 21 22
00:19:56
>> yes about 20 yes I remember celebrating
00:19:58
quickly celebrating my 21st and then
00:20:00
going off to um Amsterdam of all places.
00:20:05
So, we went to La Hag um to the
00:20:07
Netherlands.
00:20:09
I I yeah, I was still very young, didn't
00:20:12
know much. Um but I remember seeing and
00:20:15
I'll always remember this. I remember
00:20:17
seeing people of color in the
00:20:20
Netherlands. Um but they weren't
00:20:22
speaking English cuz I used to watch
00:20:24
these American movies where everyone had
00:20:26
an American accent that was black um or
00:20:28
colored. And I was like I was so
00:20:30
shocked. I had no idea that the world
00:20:34
was this big. Um, and yeah, traveling
00:20:38
>> amazing
00:20:39
>> opened up my eyes.
00:20:40
>> How How do you find out you you've made
00:20:42
the silver fence? Like, do you get a
00:20:43
phone call? Was it a like a radio
00:20:45
announcement?
00:20:46
>> Uh, back back in my day. [laughter]
00:20:50
>> Can I send you a letter? A letter in the
00:20:52
post.
00:20:53
>> Telegram.
00:20:54
Um, back [snorts] in my day,
00:20:57
uh, I think the first time I found out
00:20:59
about the Silver Ferns,
00:21:02
um, they used to go, you used to go into
00:21:05
a camp as a squad. So, might have been
00:21:07
about 25 girls um or around about that
00:21:10
number. and um someone from net New
00:21:13
Zealand would come in at the end of the
00:21:15
camp and name the players
00:21:18
and you either celebrated or you kind of
00:21:22
tried to celebrate because you were in
00:21:23
the room with the others that didn't
00:21:24
make the the team.
00:21:26
>> They quickly changed it after that cuz
00:21:28
it was awkward.
00:21:30
>> It sounds like New Zealand Idol or
00:21:31
something where [laughter] this group's
00:21:33
going through this group's not.
00:21:35
>> Yeah, it was awkward. But I can remember
00:21:37
um luckily I made the team and I
00:21:40
remember being really happy but then I
00:21:42
saw some of my teammates that weren't
00:21:44
and I realized then that they didn't
00:21:45
make the team. So that quickly changed
00:21:48
to um still having again a squad
00:21:51
training and um if you didn't make the
00:21:56
squad you you will you would receive a
00:21:58
phone call. And so I remember telling my
00:22:01
dad this and this was the day of call
00:22:03
waiting. And I said to dad, um, 8:00 is
00:22:06
when the coaches meant to ring me if
00:22:08
I've made the team or not. Well, him and
00:22:10
my brother played a a prank on me and
00:22:12
they rang up at 8:00. [laughter]
00:22:14
And then I heard once I realized it was
00:22:16
them, I heard the phone actually
00:22:18
ringing. I could hear the call waiting
00:22:20
um, beep. So I got to go and I realized
00:22:22
then I I had an inkling that I probably
00:22:25
didn't make the team to walk up. Um, but
00:22:27
that was okay. I mean it was hard. It
00:22:30
was tough. Um yeah I can remember being
00:22:33
lost for a little bit not knowing what
00:22:35
to do but you just keep moving forward.
00:22:36
Ah
00:22:37
>> oh. Was that was that after so you made
00:22:38
the team in 93?
00:22:40
>> 93 and then there was the 95 World Cup
00:22:43
>> right
00:22:43
>> and so just before that I got dropped.
00:22:46
>> Yes. So what what happened in So you
00:22:48
[snorts] made the team in 93. What
00:22:49
happened in 94 and how did you how did
00:22:51
you come back from that disappointment?
00:22:52
That could have um a lot of people could
00:22:54
have crumbled with that. Right. I think
00:22:56
I did crumble
00:22:57
>> inside. [laughter]
00:22:59
>> I crumbled inside, but I but I also had
00:23:02
a dad who was just he's pretty camp
00:23:04
about most things. Um
00:23:07
I I think I well 94 I kept I was playing
00:23:11
in different tours. There were several
00:23:13
tours that were happening and um closer
00:23:16
to World Cup and I went and I went to to
00:23:19
the World Games. That was my first
00:23:20
experience sort of being part of a team
00:23:23
that played Australia in the final and
00:23:26
um I remember we lost. I came back so I
00:23:28
I still hadn't been um I wasn't really
00:23:31
on the court but I was sort of on on on
00:23:33
the fringe of the team and um come they
00:23:37
brought some of the senior players back
00:23:38
in. Um, and I remember I remember
00:23:41
someone calling me they're playing South
00:23:42
Africa in the final and Irene was
00:23:44
playing um,
00:23:47
and I can't remember where I think it
00:23:49
was Birmingham actually. [snorts]
00:23:51
>> Um, they they won that World Cup and it
00:23:53
was it was pretty cool. It was the first
00:23:55
time I'd ever seen New Zealand not win
00:23:57
the gold medal. Um but I carried on
00:24:01
playing representative net and I was
00:24:03
playing also for um what was then the
00:24:06
Coca-Cola Cup National Bank Cup um where
00:24:10
you had all your sort of it was kind of
00:24:11
like the franchise teams now in the A&Z
00:24:13
series. So I was still part of those
00:24:15
teams
00:24:16
>> and and that was a good thing you know
00:24:17
it was something to still be involved
00:24:18
with. It was hard. Um I think I went
00:24:21
back into just a mode where you wanted
00:24:25
to assess quickly assess and then move
00:24:27
on. and I and I picked up what I like to
00:24:30
do about training. I hated training. I
00:24:32
hated running. I was not a runner. You
00:24:34
could not get this body to pound the
00:24:35
pavements. [laughter]
00:24:37
Um but I love the gym. And so you I
00:24:40
found something that I really like that
00:24:41
would keep my fitness up um and get me
00:24:43
fitter and I was able to get I was able
00:24:46
to make the team later um back in 90 I
00:24:49
think just straight after World Cup
00:24:51
there was a tour and I made the team.
00:24:53
>> Yeah. Then you're in the team from 95 to
00:24:55
2002. um like seven years. So you you
00:24:58
[clears throat] came back you came back
00:25:00
stronger um without a doubt. But yeah, I
00:25:02
can't imagine how tough that time. How
00:25:03
was your mental health over that time?
00:25:05
Like 94 when you're in you're in the
00:25:07
silver ferns and then suddenly you're
00:25:09
not.
00:25:11
>> Well, you you're brought I guess you're
00:25:13
brought down to earth really quickly and
00:25:15
when you have siblings who tease you.
00:25:18
[laughter]
00:25:19
>> Is that like your siblings love
00:25:20
language? Roasting.
00:25:22
>> Yeah. Yeah. We're really good at
00:25:24
roasting each other. You trying to get I
00:25:26
mean, I had my brothers going, "Oh, are
00:25:28
they going to pick you?" Or has been,
00:25:30
you know, [laughter]
00:25:32
>> keeps you grounded.
00:25:33
>> I'm [snorts] looking at them going, "I'm
00:25:34
sorry. When did you represent New
00:25:36
Zealand?" Um, but I think the other
00:25:38
thing that keeps you grounded is, you
00:25:40
know, it's an experience and you got to
00:25:42
see it that way. Um, we our faith um we
00:25:46
are Christians and we were brought up in
00:25:47
the church life right from day one. I
00:25:50
can always remember church was something
00:25:52
that we woke up for every Sunday. Um we
00:25:54
were involved in church youth group. We
00:25:56
were part of my dad was a minister. Um
00:26:00
and and so life just kept moving on. You
00:26:03
know the nothing else stopped. Net
00:26:05
stopped. That was only a part of my
00:26:06
life. Yeah. It was sad and that was hard
00:26:09
to go through. But I think you know if
00:26:11
you don't go through life without the
00:26:13
bumps on your head um and don't
00:26:15
experience the the struggle that you go
00:26:18
through um there are other parts of your
00:26:22
life that are amazing. And you know,
00:26:24
rejection is is hard, right? When um
00:26:27
when you realize the next day, it's like
00:26:30
losing losing a gold medal by one goal
00:26:34
that hits you, I think, more. [laughter]
00:26:36
>> Oh, yeah. We'll get we'll get into that.
00:26:38
We'll get into that.
00:26:39
>> But those are those are bumps along the
00:26:41
road. And I truly believe that if you
00:26:43
don't I think a lot of times when I see
00:26:45
my nieces and nephews, I'm a mum, by the
00:26:48
way. Um, and if when I see my nieces and
00:26:51
nephews, I don't want them to fall. I'm
00:26:53
constantly behind them when they're
00:26:55
walking up the steps or um, you know, I
00:26:57
see them crying and I want to be the
00:26:59
first one to go and grab them. But
00:27:01
>> sometimes you just got to let them be
00:27:03
for a minute and let them just go
00:27:04
through that. Um, so that they know when
00:27:08
when life gets hard as they get older,
00:27:11
um, there are other parts of your life
00:27:13
that you can be proud of, that you can
00:27:15
be happy for. Um, you know, I had
00:27:18
amazing parents. I've got amazing
00:27:19
siblings. Uh,
00:27:22
yeah, it was hard. It was hard, Don. I'm
00:27:24
not going to lie. But I think my faith
00:27:26
really, um, kept me going in in the
00:27:29
sense that, you know, God's put me in
00:27:31
this place for a reason. Um, and yeah,
00:27:35
I'm not going to lie, I probably was
00:27:36
surprised when I was named first in the
00:27:38
team. Um, and it's like anything when
00:27:41
you achieve something, that is the
00:27:43
beginning. you know, when you graduate
00:27:45
in something and you celebrate it, but
00:27:47
that is the beginning of life as a as a
00:27:50
adult, as a working human being.
00:27:52
>> Um, and it doesn't change. It's all part
00:27:55
of life. And you know, you can get to
00:27:57
50, 60, 70, and you can still have bumps
00:28:00
[laughter]
00:28:00
>> on your head.
00:28:02
>> Yeah. You've said so much good stuff
00:28:03
there, Linda. Like, you don't actually
00:28:05
learn anything from the from the
00:28:07
successes, e, and the wins. All you're
00:28:10
learning comes from the um Yeah. Yeah.
00:28:12
The bumps in the road, the adversity.
00:28:14
>> Yeah.
00:28:14
>> Yeah. Although it does. It's at the
00:28:15
time though.
00:28:16
>> It is. It is. I can remember people
00:28:18
saying, "What are you going to do?"
00:28:20
Like,
00:28:21
>> but even the question, you know, even
00:28:23
the question that that that comes from
00:28:25
someone's soul asking that question
00:28:27
because they believe in you and they see
00:28:29
that um there is there are other things
00:28:32
that you can do or um and I and I always
00:28:34
feel like I do need to be asked those
00:28:36
questions because it just wakes me up.
00:28:38
Um, as much as it's hard to to think
00:28:41
what I'm going to do next in life
00:28:42
because it felt like everything was just
00:28:44
over, but I was,
00:28:46
you know, I feel like God puts me in a
00:28:48
place every time when um when I don't
00:28:51
want to be there, too. But this is this
00:28:53
is the step up to something amazing
00:28:55
that's going to come out of this. Um,
00:28:58
you know, I was very fortunate to still
00:29:00
be part of a university
00:29:03
um campus crusade for Christ on on
00:29:05
campus. And at that time that I had been
00:29:09
dropped, I was asked to be um to help
00:29:12
fund raise and be part of a mission team
00:29:13
to Fiji. Well, we had I can't remember.
00:29:16
I think we had to raise like 2,500 each.
00:29:19
And I sent out a few letters and I
00:29:22
remember getting some funds to help me.
00:29:24
And then I had something like $800 to
00:29:26
raise and I didn't know and it was the
00:29:28
day before in the mail, not direct
00:29:31
transfer because that didn't exist back
00:29:33
then. [laughter]
00:29:35
But in the mail, I got home that day and
00:29:37
there was a $800 check in my in my in my
00:29:40
letter box. And I just, you know, things
00:29:43
like that happen for a reason. And I had
00:29:45
to go to this mission trip and it was
00:29:47
good growth for me. M
00:29:48
>> just took my mind off net came back
00:29:52
again try you know focused on training
00:29:55
being better person and you just go
00:29:56
forward who who cares what's going to
00:29:58
happen I didn't know if I was going to
00:29:59
make the silver fern seem that wasn't my
00:30:01
goal I just want to be a better net
00:30:03
baller
00:30:04
>> it's such good attitude and I it's it's
00:30:06
very evident already like what just what
00:30:08
role faith plays in your life
00:30:10
>> oh yeah
00:30:11
>> yeah massive huge massive huge and
00:30:13
>> now your [snorts] family from what I can
00:30:15
gather about your family super
00:30:17
supportive but Never never came to a lot
00:30:19
of your games.
00:30:20
>> No.
00:30:21
>> Why?
00:30:22
>> Uh mom and dad were really when when I
00:30:25
made the team, they had just been um
00:30:27
accepted at a Presbyterian church on the
00:30:30
shore. And so, you know, in in the in
00:30:33
the words of um of the Bible, you know,
00:30:36
they had a um a flock that they had to
00:30:40
look over. [laughter]
00:30:43
>> It wasn't because they didn't want to. I
00:30:45
think they could feel my nerves when
00:30:47
they would be at a game. Um, but even
00:30:50
even when I was representative level,
00:30:52
uh, representing a region, whether it be
00:30:54
Harbor or or West Oakland,
00:30:57
um, dad never came. Dad hardly came to
00:31:00
my games. He might have sat in the car.
00:31:02
In fact, he he was sitting in the car
00:31:04
when I first got named in the Silver
00:31:06
Fern squad. [laughter]
00:31:08
And to him, okay, that's cool. You know,
00:31:11
it was Yeah. Fabulous. Um, don't chill
00:31:15
off about it. Um, you know, [laughter]
00:31:18
this is only, again, I think that's
00:31:20
where I get the the calmness is from dad
00:31:22
because mom's different level. She was
00:31:24
banned from the net courts. I I she made
00:31:27
me cry. Um, after a club game, I think I
00:31:30
sat in the car and she she gave it to
00:31:33
me. You know, how could that ball just
00:31:34
go past your face and you couldn't even
00:31:36
lift your hands to it? Did you know
00:31:37
that? Jump jump jump.
00:31:40
Someone's just catching a ball right in
00:31:41
front of your face. [laughter] and um
00:31:43
she went off and I was crying and I was
00:31:45
thinking, damn, this woman is something
00:31:48
else. And so she I never told her. I I
00:31:50
basically had um amazing people that
00:31:53
would come and pick me up and it just
00:31:55
eventually evolved into them not coming.
00:31:57
>> There was a odd occasion where we were
00:32:00
playing um at the ASB arena and I had
00:32:04
some good friends that I played with.
00:32:05
they got the the box for ASV and um they
00:32:08
said bring mom and dad and I brought
00:32:10
them to that game and then it was really
00:32:12
just siblings, you know, they found out
00:32:14
that I was playing that's what it was if
00:32:16
they found out that I was playing uh
00:32:18
locally cuz I'd just be doing my own
00:32:20
thing. Get my gears ready. Bye.
00:32:23
[laughter]
00:32:24
>> That's cool. They they were super
00:32:25
supportive though and
00:32:26
>> super supportive.
00:32:27
>> There's a story I'm not sure when this
00:32:28
was but they um they dropped you off to
00:32:30
Silver Fern game or the Silver Fins
00:32:31
Hotel in the red station wagon.
00:32:33
>> That was my first Yes. Yes, the station
00:32:35
wagon that was um a handme-down and um
00:32:39
my brother came with me, mom came with
00:32:41
me, and I think my and Lenny came with
00:32:43
me, my youngest sister.
00:32:45
I was rooming with then captain. That's
00:32:47
that was how things worked. If you were
00:32:49
a rookie, um you you the newest rookie,
00:32:52
you would room with the captain. So,
00:32:53
>> that's so intimidating.
00:32:54
>> So, I was rooming and Julie.
00:32:57
Julie. Now, I'm saying Julie twice cuz
00:33:00
my memory [laughter] is trying to work
00:33:02
out what her last name was. I'm so
00:33:04
sorry, Jules, but it's Julie. [laughter]
00:33:08
>> Got to tell it's it's like 30 years ago.
00:33:11
>> Oh my gosh. So, she was she was my
00:33:12
roomie. My manager um had told me, "This
00:33:15
is where your bed is." And I had all I
00:33:18
saw was my black net dress, and it had
00:33:20
Vanga on it, my last name. And me and my
00:33:24
little brother do this thing where we
00:33:25
just kind of um
00:33:28
This is my little brother that's passed
00:33:29
away. um where we get we put our our
00:33:33
arms together and we just kind of shake
00:33:35
our arms like a happy dance
00:33:36
>> in excitement. Yeah. [snorts]
00:33:38
>> And we came back out. Okay. Control
00:33:42
yourself, Linda. We came back out and
00:33:44
the car wouldn't start. I was like, "Oh
00:33:47
my gosh, everyone's on the other side of
00:33:49
the our hotel rooms." Um so we had to
00:33:52
push the car out of LMB LMB Park um
00:33:56
until it started and then they went on
00:33:58
their way. It's a little bit
00:34:00
embarrassing, but we laugh about it
00:34:02
still.
00:34:03
>> Yeah. Was it embarrassing at the time or
00:34:06
were you not overly embarrassed at the
00:34:07
time because you you know you're so
00:34:08
proud of your you love your family so
00:34:10
much or was it still embarrassing
00:34:11
>> that? No.
00:34:12
>> I'm trying to think if if it was me I'd
00:34:13
be I'd be mortified.
00:34:15
>> Oh, really?
00:34:16
>> Yeah. Yeah, I probably would.
00:34:17
>> I think I I had the shame [laughter]
00:34:20
cuz you could see the funny side of it
00:34:22
immediately.
00:34:22
>> Yeah. We're really good at laughing at
00:34:24
our own mishaps. I think that's how we
00:34:26
survived. um to see to see the funny
00:34:29
side of it. Um and that's how we've
00:34:31
always been,
00:34:32
>> but
00:34:33
>> I mean the my nieces and nephews are so
00:34:35
different these days that they they get
00:34:37
mortified for the tiniest of things. Oh
00:34:39
my goodness. [laughter] Um the fact that
00:34:41
I turn up to their school, they're so
00:34:42
embarrassment,
00:34:44
but um you know, just the fact that
00:34:46
we're there at their school.
00:34:48
>> That's a it's a really really healthy
00:34:50
space to be playing in where you're not
00:34:51
embarrassed about stuff like that. I
00:34:52
wish I was more like you.
00:34:54
>> Why you are, Dom? Why are you laughing
00:34:56
all the time?
00:34:57
>> Oh, no. You enjoy life. I would be now,
00:34:58
but I'm just trying to think if if I was
00:35:00
your age and I'd made say the New
00:35:01
Zealand cricket team and I got dropped
00:35:03
off by my parents and the car broke
00:35:05
down. I'd be just mortified. Mortified.
00:35:09
[gasps]
00:35:09
>> I think because that was my car. That
00:35:11
was my handme-down. That I was so proud
00:35:12
of that car. I mean, you had to there
00:35:14
was no there was [laughter]
00:35:16
the the windscreen wipers only had one
00:35:19
speed and so if it was only just
00:35:21
sprinkling, it would BE GOING CRAZY.
00:35:23
[laughter]
00:35:27
AND SO, UM, [snorts]
00:35:28
YEAH, I was proud of my
00:35:30
>> my my red ute, um, station wagon. I
00:35:33
mean,
00:35:33
>> but it was the handme-down from dad and
00:35:36
you just were proud that you had it. Um,
00:35:38
>> it took you from A to B.
00:35:40
>> Um, sometimes,
00:35:41
>> but we pushed the car, it made this
00:35:43
funny noise that were off. I walked back
00:35:45
to my room, I looked at my dress, and I
00:35:47
was just so, it was surreal, you know,
00:35:50
that I saw my last name there. And even
00:35:52
even even training, I just treated
00:35:55
training as
00:35:57
you know, you it's like when you start a
00:35:59
job or your first day at school, your
00:36:00
first day at college, you got no
00:36:02
friends. Um I was very fortunate that
00:36:05
Bernie was in the team, but I didn't
00:36:07
naturally draw draw I wasn't draw to to
00:36:10
my Pacifica girls. It was it was a
00:36:12
moment where I just had to really absorb
00:36:14
it myself and and see where the where
00:36:17
were the the little clicks? Where did I
00:36:19
sit in all in all of this? Um
00:36:23
but the the coach who was Lin Gansson at
00:36:26
the time um Lin Parker at the time um
00:36:28
she came up and said you're here because
00:36:30
you deserve to be here. Um I don't know
00:36:32
if she remembers saying that and and I
00:36:34
just held my head up and okay. And it
00:36:37
wasn't until I I stood in my first test
00:36:40
match, and that was when mom and dad
00:36:42
were there, um that I realized singing
00:36:45
the national anthem,
00:36:48
that I was one of
00:36:50
12 girls that were selected standing on
00:36:54
the transverse line getting ready to
00:36:55
sing national anthem. And I think I just
00:36:57
bored my eyes out. Um
00:37:00
one because of the TV camera, I could
00:37:02
see it. I was, you know, doing the side
00:37:04
eyes that it was coming up. Oh my gosh,
00:37:05
I'm going to be on national TV.
00:37:07
[laughter]
00:37:08
Um but and [snorts] but secondly, I
00:37:10
realized that I was representing New
00:37:12
Zealand
00:37:15
and I was more proud that um my parents
00:37:17
were there.
00:37:20
>> So cool. That is so wonderful.
00:37:22
>> Yeah, it was cool.
00:37:24
>> Yeah. And you mentioned um your your
00:37:26
brother before. I I don't know if you
00:37:27
want to talk about this or not, but um
00:37:29
[snorts]
00:37:30
>> Yeah.
00:37:32
>> Yeah. The one that passed away. M
00:37:35
>> what happened?
00:37:36
>> He um went into the hospital with a sore
00:37:39
tummy and [snorts] went into cardiac
00:37:42
arrest um while on the operation table.
00:37:46
Um I think he had made some choices in
00:37:47
life. Um he was super ambitious. You
00:37:50
know, he was in property investment. He
00:37:52
was he had just completed his MBA with
00:37:55
Massie University. He had um five
00:37:59
gorgeous kids just bought a brand new
00:38:01
beautiful home. Um and then somewhere
00:38:04
down the track um with all his business
00:38:08
uh um ventures he just
00:38:12
alcohol had played a a huge part in his
00:38:15
life um you know just all sorts of
00:38:18
pressures had put on himself and that
00:38:20
all led to um just not taking care of
00:38:24
himself and I think it's a big it's a a
00:38:26
big issue challenge for all our Pacifica
00:38:29
men um and I don't know if it's just men
00:38:31
generally we they tend to um see
00:38:34
themselves as the um provider for their
00:38:38
families and they and because they can
00:38:41
they go out all out in the hopes that
00:38:44
their kids will survive. Sorry, try not
00:38:47
to get all emotional about this.
00:38:50
>> Getting emot getting getting emotional
00:38:52
is okay. It shows that you care.
00:38:54
>> Yeah, but but Dom, I do it all the time.
00:38:57
[laughter] Like I'm just talking to a
00:38:58
group of funding partners about um the
00:39:01
way kids are. You know, literacy is is
00:39:04
something that everyone should have and
00:39:06
you know 30% of New Zealanders at the
00:39:09
age of 10 can't read.
00:39:10
>> Um and then I'm just like
00:39:12
>> have you always been emotional?
00:39:14
>> No. Only for the things that I really
00:39:16
care about.
00:39:17
>> Yeah. And I and those are the triggers
00:39:18
when I talk about my family um and my
00:39:21
brother and when I'm so proud, you know,
00:39:23
so proud of them. See, I'm choking up
00:39:26
already. Well, they're they're great
00:39:26
occasions to be expressing some emotion.
00:39:29
>> They are, but it's because I think too,
00:39:32
and I, you know, I've really had to
00:39:33
think hard why those moments trigger me,
00:39:36
>> but it's because I just want them so
00:39:38
hard to do well, cuz I've I see myself
00:39:41
as being so fortunate to have been a
00:39:43
Silver Fern. That that was the
00:39:46
>> um that's one of of many things that I
00:39:49
know that I can do well. Um, but it was
00:39:53
it was a great feeling and I want
00:39:55
everyone to know what that feels like.
00:39:56
And it's it's it's not necessarily, you
00:39:59
know, something is representing your
00:40:02
country, but it's representing your
00:40:03
family. You know, you can get a
00:40:05
scholarship, you can do really well if
00:40:06
you work really hard. You can um, you
00:40:09
know, you can represent Sour and the
00:40:11
under 10s for rugby league in
00:40:13
Oakuckland. I mean, those are all huge
00:40:15
celebrations and I I love and want
00:40:17
people to feel that all the time. M I
00:40:20
got to correct you. You weren't just a
00:40:21
silver fern. You were a great silver
00:40:23
fern.
00:40:24
>> Um
00:40:26
by Dom, [laughter]
00:40:28
>> you mentioned um going into the
00:40:30
captain's room in the black dress being
00:40:32
on the bed. Have Have you got any of
00:40:33
them? Have you got one framed and hung
00:40:35
up somewhere or
00:40:37
>> I'm really bad, but I the last dress
00:40:40
that I have, my niece borrowed it for
00:40:42
book characters last week. Um so her I
00:40:46
came second. Um, I think it was the
00:40:49
Moana dress from Teimu didn't arrive on
00:40:52
time. So, her second option was my
00:40:53
netbook dress. [laughter]
00:40:58
>> So, I [clears throat] was up against
00:40:59
Moana.
00:41:00
>> Um, [laughter]
00:41:03
um, so yeah, her mom rang me and go, she
00:41:04
really wants to wear the silver ferns
00:41:06
dress and she looked amazing in it.
00:41:07
She's she's eight.
00:41:09
>> Wow. So, how many have you got? Do you
00:41:11
Did you get a a dress for each test or
00:41:13
>> Yes. Yes. So, you always got for a new
00:41:15
tour. um or a new series, you always got
00:41:18
a new strip. And um you know, and with
00:41:22
that, you also had your other apparel,
00:41:24
whether they were your sponsors for your
00:41:26
shoes or um or for your uh the casual
00:41:31
wear, you always got new gears for tours
00:41:33
and and things.
00:41:35
>> Yeah. Um so if it was if it was
00:41:37
Canterbury or Adidas, you had your
00:41:39
playing strip, your number ones. Um and
00:41:42
you also had the gears that you kind of
00:41:43
trained in or walk around in. Um and so
00:41:46
some of us who were fortunate to have um
00:41:48
some labels that were sponsoring us and
00:41:50
and I was very lucky to have um Nike
00:41:53
[clears throat] behind me for a very
00:41:55
long time. You know, it it became the
00:41:57
joke of our family that our whole family
00:41:59
was sponsored by Nike.
00:42:01
[laughter]
00:42:02
So I would [snorts] wear something once
00:42:04
or twice and then it would be the thing
00:42:06
about being sour is um all Polynesian
00:42:09
for that matter is that everyone's the
00:42:10
same size [laughter]
00:42:13
and I just liked baggies. So that fitted
00:42:15
anybody. [laughter]
00:42:17
Um, and dad was a golfer, so I always
00:42:19
made sure that I had the odd
00:42:21
>> um I' forgotten his name. Sharky is was
00:42:24
his nickname, the golfer.
00:42:26
>> Um,
00:42:27
>> oh, um, and and also Yeah, Greg Norman.
00:42:30
So, he had a brand. Um, he had a brand
00:42:33
and so I'd always make sure I bring the
00:42:35
odd t-shirt for dad or Tiger Woods was
00:42:37
sponsor. So he's made sure he here the
00:42:39
old shoot and then I would see all his
00:42:41
minister friends wearing some [snorts]
00:42:42
of these hats. [laughter] I was like dad
00:42:44
can't do this dad.
00:42:47
>> So it's definitely sharing and caring at
00:42:50
the faro.
00:42:51
>> Oh that's [laughter] awesome. But in
00:42:53
like what what are the black dresses
00:42:54
mean to you when you see them now? Do
00:42:56
you do you have one on display or is
00:42:57
that too sort of is that not humble
00:42:59
enough?
00:43:00
>> Is that too showy?
00:43:00
>> No way. Yeah that's that's a bit too
00:43:02
showy
00:43:03
>> is it?
00:43:04
>> That's Pacifica thing. Yeah. Like
00:43:06
>> I think so being like
00:43:08
>> well I don't know because some Pacifica
00:43:10
are really proud and they'll they'll
00:43:11
really show it off. Um but I think it's
00:43:13
just that you know it really it really
00:43:16
shows up on on who who and how you were
00:43:19
brought up. Um
00:43:21
>> I think putting it away and and being
00:43:23
silently proud of it is is another way
00:43:25
to um to deal with uh all the joys in
00:43:29
life too. And and I don't think any any
00:43:31
way is a good way or bad way. Um, that's
00:43:34
just how I am and if you know my friends
00:43:36
know me that it's always about everybody
00:43:39
else and
00:43:40
>> um because that's that's how I roll.
00:43:43
[laughter]
00:43:44
>> Yeah, it's up up to the individual I
00:43:46
guess, isn't it?
00:43:46
>> Yeah.
00:43:46
>> What about your medals? Three silver
00:43:48
medals um for the 1999
00:43:50
World Cup and the 1998 and 2002
00:43:53
Commonwealth Games. Where are they? Are
00:43:54
they Are they in a draw? Like please
00:43:56
tell me they're not in a sock drawer.
00:43:58
>> I don't I might
00:43:59
>> You don't even know where they are.
00:44:00
>> I might know where two are. They might
00:44:03
be with the um they might be with a
00:44:05
Queen's medal. Um but the team at the
00:44:09
office always always joke about this cuz
00:44:11
they go, "Where are you?" And I know
00:44:13
they're in a box safe somewhere. Um
00:44:16
sometimes the kids borrow them.
00:44:18
[laughter]
00:44:20
>> Well, I don't know. Are they there to
00:44:23
>> to be shared and enjoyed?
00:44:25
>> You know, I think I think it's it's just
00:44:27
nice that a kid or a family member can
00:44:30
be holding on to it. Um cuz what am I
00:44:32
going to do with them?
00:44:34
>> Yeah, it's a GOOD POINT.
00:44:35
>> MIGHT AS WELL share it.
00:44:36
>> It is a good point.
00:44:37
>> I mean, at least I know there's a photo
00:44:38
of me wearing one somewhere. Um
00:44:40
[laughter]
00:44:41
>> you're just you're so indifferent about
00:44:43
it, eh?
00:44:44
>> Yeah, that they're the they're great.
00:44:47
They're great things to hold on to and
00:44:48
it's great to be acknowledged and um I
00:44:51
think if some kid can hold it and feel
00:44:54
something with it um that might be a
00:44:56
game changer for them, you know,
00:44:58
tomorrow they might see life
00:44:59
differently. Yeah.
00:45:01
>> Yeah.
00:45:01
>> So, let's talk about these three medals.
00:45:03
So, the um the 1999 Net Bill World Cup,
00:45:06
this is where uh
00:45:07
>> the Silver Fins made it to the finals.
00:45:09
>> Y
00:45:09
>> and you were you were leading for the
00:45:11
first three quarters. Yeah.
00:45:12
>> And then you got beaten in the last
00:45:13
quarter and you lost by like one point.
00:45:15
>> Yeah. That was the story of my life. For
00:45:16
about a good 10 years. [laughter]
00:45:18
>> Yeah. Was it How long Yeah. How long did
00:45:20
that play on your mind? How long How
00:45:21
long were you seeing sort of replays of
00:45:22
that?
00:45:24
>> For a good while. That hurt badly. Um
00:45:27
because even 99 we were um we were the
00:45:32
team to beat and uh we were playing at
00:45:36
home. We were in Christ Church for the
00:45:37
World Cup. Um
00:45:41
probably
00:45:43
I don't know that that that week that I
00:45:45
went back to work it was tough. Um but
00:45:48
you got straight back into work again.
00:45:49
>> It was tough in what way? Because people
00:45:51
were bringing it up or
00:45:52
>> No, because I could still feel it.
00:45:54
>> I could still feel the hurt. Um,
00:45:57
you could [sighs]
00:46:00
yeah, I try not to, um,
00:46:04
let it f to the point where it fers and
00:46:07
it could really hurt you.
00:46:08
>> Um, and anything like that in life,
00:46:11
that's my approach at it. You know,
00:46:13
okay, so it happened.
00:46:15
Um, let's you got to grieve, you know,
00:46:19
you got to have that grieving moment and
00:46:20
but I I try not to to let it determine
00:46:24
anything in and the way I feel like I'm
00:46:26
not going to let it win. But the best I
00:46:28
can take from this is just remember the
00:46:31
paths that took me there. Um, and why
00:46:34
the result was like that and what can I
00:46:36
do better? Can I do better?
00:46:40
I've assessed it.
00:46:42
The hurt will always be there. Um, but I
00:46:45
was I was in a job at AUT trying to get
00:46:48
young people into um, you know, further
00:46:51
education and and that was my that was
00:46:54
my goal again. So,
00:46:56
>> you know, you just got to find the next
00:46:57
thing that you need to do. You you're
00:46:59
only and I hate saying life is short,
00:47:02
but you only have that one moment to
00:47:04
maybe impact one or two people and you
00:47:07
got to keep going.
00:47:09
>> Such a good attitude. So, I've had Lori
00:47:11
Mains on the podcast, the All Black
00:47:13
coach, he like just recently, and he he
00:47:15
the 95 Rugby World Cup where the All
00:47:17
Blacks got beaten by South Africa in
00:47:19
extra time in the final.
00:47:20
>> He he said he still thinks about that
00:47:22
quite often like 30 years on. Uh I had
00:47:25
Shane Cameron on the podcast. He said
00:47:26
after he got beaten by David Tu, like
00:47:29
>> got hiding by by the tour man. He
00:47:31
thought about it every day for like
00:47:32
seven years. I I spoke about about that
00:47:35
and I said a little bit to Shane Cameron
00:47:37
at a at a function for David Tour
00:47:40
celebrating his um I think it was a Hall
00:47:42
of Fame for Oakland boxing. And I
00:47:45
remember saying to um Cameron then that
00:47:50
that was an era when that fight
00:47:52
happened. That was the time of the
00:47:54
tsunami and and we had lost over 200
00:47:57
lives in Samoa. And I remember looking
00:47:59
to to Shane at the back and saying, "You
00:48:02
might remember this moment because you
00:48:04
lost and the way that you lost,
00:48:08
but David Tour was carrying a whole
00:48:11
nation on his shoulders and it must have
00:48:13
been tough for David. He really needed
00:48:16
to win that and he would never have had
00:48:18
that moment to lift s people if it
00:48:21
wasn't for Shane." Um, and I hope he
00:48:24
really understood the role that he
00:48:25
played. Yes, it was a match, but it was
00:48:27
also a match that just lifted the
00:48:29
spirits of a whole nation of people.
00:48:33
>> I'm sure that made Shane feel not better
00:48:35
at all. [laughter]
00:48:37
>> Well, I'm pleasing if it uplifted the
00:48:40
spirits.
00:48:40
>> I mean, it was a it was Yeah. Yeah. It
00:48:42
was [laughter] a huge loss, right? It
00:48:44
was a huge loss, but
00:48:45
>> I was trying to make him feel better
00:48:46
about it. It did mean a lot to a lot of
00:48:49
other people.
00:48:49
>> It's a wonderful way of framing it. Um
00:48:51
so the Commonwealth Games Yeah. two
00:48:53
silver medals 1998 2002 1998 in Koala
00:48:56
Lumpa. Um that was a special one because
00:48:58
it was the first time net was in the
00:48:59
Commonwealth Games.
00:49:00
>> Introduced into games. Yeah.
00:49:02
>> Yeah. Also the first time uh rugby
00:49:04
sevens was in the com.
00:49:06
>> Did you go to any of those games? That
00:49:07
was a that was a stacked team. E Jonah.
00:49:10
>> Oh my gosh. Yes.
00:49:11
>> Rushy.
00:49:11
>> Rushy was still playing. Um
00:49:14
>> Dallas Seymour. Oh Julie Seymour. Yes.
00:49:16
Dallas.
00:49:16
>> Is it Julie Seymour you were talking
00:49:18
about before you could?
00:49:18
>> No. No it wasn't Julie Seymour. It was
00:49:20
Julie, not Towns End either. Oh my gosh,
00:49:24
it was a really easy last name. Forgive
00:49:27
me, Julie. Sorry.
00:49:29
>> But um yeah, but yeah, Commonwealth
00:49:30
Games, what was that experience like?
00:49:33
>> Amazing. I was thinking to myself, if
00:49:36
this is what it's like to get top
00:49:39
athletes representing nations all around
00:49:41
the world in the Olympics, um the
00:49:44
Comalth Games must be pretty close to
00:49:45
it. just the protocols and processes of
00:49:50
um teams entering you know all embarking
00:49:53
on and and moving into this big area in
00:49:57
some big city. Um and the first one was
00:50:00
in Malaysia. So net was not a sport
00:50:04
that's played. It's not an international
00:50:06
sport in this in the form that every
00:50:08
nation plays it like football. Um, we
00:50:11
had courts that had to be specifically
00:50:14
drawn and built for net ball and and a
00:50:16
few other sports were like that. Um, but
00:50:19
it was just I was admiring all the
00:50:21
Jamaican athletes, you know, track and
00:50:23
field
00:50:24
>> whilst trying to remember that I was
00:50:25
actually there to play net too.
00:50:27
[laughter]
00:50:28
but even your own teammates representing
00:50:31
New Zealand, you know, um it's amazing
00:50:34
how we're just human and when you come
00:50:38
into an environment where you're there
00:50:40
with like Valerie Adams was there and um
00:50:43
you had the Sevens boys, you had the
00:50:45
cricketers because the cricketer cricket
00:50:47
cricket was also an introductory sport
00:50:49
that that time. Um and then you had your
00:50:52
usual track and field. You saw not only
00:50:54
the superstars of your own country. I
00:50:57
saw um the Samans and I was uh you know
00:51:02
immediately connected with them because
00:51:04
I saw some net ballers. You saw your own
00:51:06
Pacific nations. So the little community
00:51:08
just got bigger and bigger and bigger.
00:51:10
Um and for me that was the best ever
00:51:14
experience. Um,
00:51:17
I even, you know, everyone was fanguling
00:51:19
and f just everybody. Uh, even in the
00:51:24
New Zealand team, you could see all the
00:51:25
New Zealand athletes all going to get
00:51:27
photos with each other. I remember um
00:51:29
Dame Valerie coming up to me and and
00:51:32
saying, "Can I have a photo with you,
00:51:34
Linda?" And I was so trying to be cool
00:51:36
about it [laughter]
00:51:38
as we do, but I was like, "Sis, I want a
00:51:40
photo with you. I [laughter] want a
00:51:42
photo with you." I was too scared to ask
00:51:43
you.
00:51:44
>> She was young. young at the time, right?
00:51:45
I suppose it was the beginning of young.
00:51:47
It was the way that she came up to me
00:51:48
and she I was up to her shoulder. That's
00:51:51
how much taller she is. Um but gosh,
00:51:54
she's just beautiful. And then there was
00:51:56
um
00:51:57
[sighs]
00:51:58
there were um oh my gosh, I'm trying to
00:52:01
think our track and field. Um
00:52:04
so there was Valerie, who I really
00:52:06
admired, and then there was Beatrice
00:52:08
from Wina, who was just a superstar. um
00:52:10
she'd already won gold medals and um and
00:52:14
she was she was carrying our yeah she
00:52:16
was our flag bearer um for that for for
00:52:19
those games and you just you just saw
00:52:22
each other as um you know you didn't
00:52:24
want to approach them because they're
00:52:25
such superstars but underneath we're all
00:52:28
just human and we just love the fact
00:52:30
that we were fanning on each other. It
00:52:32
was pretty special moment.
00:52:34
>> And this is sort of pre- cell phones. So
00:52:35
I suppose it was like an old school
00:52:37
camera with a
00:52:38
>> film. I had I had about six I brought us
00:52:40
six um six camera special. You know
00:52:42
those
00:52:43
>> disposable disposables. [laughter]
00:52:46
>> Uh we did have Fujifilm as our sponsor,
00:52:49
but I love the disposables cuz if you
00:52:51
lost it, then that's okay. You didn't
00:52:53
lose anything expensive. But I had six
00:52:55
of them that I took with me and they'd
00:52:57
still to be honest, Dom, they're still
00:53:00
the photos that I still that I have
00:53:02
>> and because they were put in albums.
00:53:04
Whereas the digital ones, you never look
00:53:06
at them ever again. You know, they just
00:53:08
go into
00:53:09
>> the phone library.
00:53:10
>> Yeah. The library or in the cloud and
00:53:12
you never look at them again. But my
00:53:14
albums,
00:53:15
>> those it's those Commonwealth Games and
00:53:18
um some of the tours that we we took
00:53:20
with the Ferns that I've still got
00:53:21
photos of because they were all my
00:53:23
disposable cameras. Did you did you um
00:53:25
meet [snorts] or have anything to do
00:53:26
with Jonah? So Jonah's like breakthrough
00:53:28
world cup was um 1995. I think by 98 he
00:53:31
was still playing in the sevens won a
00:53:32
gold medal but he I think he was dealing
00:53:34
with severe kidney issues by then.
00:53:37
>> Um he did
00:53:37
>> but he was a big he was a big star.
00:53:39
>> He was a superstar. Yep. I have a photo
00:53:42
of we were all in the same block of the
00:53:45
sevens and um the net girls. We all kind
00:53:47
of pass each other um to and from
00:53:50
training. And there was one time I think
00:53:51
we might have we might have got jewel
00:53:54
Julie to get the boys to come in and
00:53:56
have a photo cuz we you know we're next
00:53:58
to the seventh boys. Um [laughter]
00:54:01
but I I remember just yeah it was just
00:54:04
an admiration of all these elite
00:54:07
athletes and you were amongst them
00:54:10
[snorts]
00:54:10
>> and it was something that was really
00:54:11
hard to explain to my family you know
00:54:13
from I mean the first thing I spoke
00:54:14
about was the food hall. [laughter]
00:54:18
>> Never mind that. Never mind the
00:54:19
athletes, but it was the food hall. The
00:54:22
fact that you could walk into this place
00:54:24
that was um 10 times bigger than the
00:54:26
normal mall food hall and you could
00:54:29
choose types of food and um you know,
00:54:32
you'd get people from other nations who
00:54:34
went straight to the you know, it wasn't
00:54:36
about cereals and and bacon and eggs.
00:54:39
Some countries went straight to the
00:54:40
heavy stuff, you know, the rice and and
00:54:42
noodles. And I was like, and I was
00:54:45
trying to be all professional with my um
00:54:47
toast and boiled egg [laughter]
00:54:49
in the end. In the end, I think I just I
00:54:51
just did WHAT WAS RIGHT.
00:54:54
What I what I felt like eating.
00:54:56
[laughter]
00:54:57
>> Yeah. Over your um over your career as
00:54:59
an athlete, did you ever struggle with
00:55:01
like body image or public scrutiny?
00:55:04
>> Every every day, even now. Um because I
00:55:07
was always the biggest and you know mom
00:55:10
always made my clothes because from the
00:55:12
age of five I think um I was already oh
00:55:16
well from the from intermediate I was
00:55:18
already 6'1.
00:55:20
So already, you know, I think there was
00:55:25
there was a lady at church. I remember
00:55:27
um one of one of our leaders in the in
00:55:30
the choir and she said to me, "You hold
00:55:33
yourself so well." And the fact that she
00:55:35
said that from that day I just always
00:55:38
stood tall, had my head up and would
00:55:42
walk like that. um be proud of, you
00:55:44
know, you are representing your mom,
00:55:46
your dad, your grandparents, that you've
00:55:48
got your height from your grandparents.
00:55:50
Um and so, you know, regardless of
00:55:56
there was [sighs] there was a a little
00:55:58
joke in the in the team, especially when
00:55:59
I was with Bernie um in the Silver
00:56:01
Ferns, that we were the over 90 girls
00:56:04
because everyone else was much
00:56:06
[laughter]
00:56:07
>> Oh, much lighter. Um but we were the
00:56:11
over 90 girls and it was because of that
00:56:13
that we had you know that we would be
00:56:16
clocking it in the in the 10 m sprints
00:56:19
in the strength and um so whenever it
00:56:21
came to strength and conditioning and
00:56:23
testing um Bernie did okay. I was never
00:56:26
the best at endurance but everything
00:56:28
else I would make sure that I sassed
00:56:31
everybody in and everything else. Um,
00:56:33
and that was my strength. That was, you
00:56:35
know, I could never understand why do I
00:56:37
have to run this far when I'm only
00:56:39
working in in the first 15 meters of the
00:56:41
court. [laughter]
00:56:43
I mean, the first 10 meters of the
00:56:45
court. Um, but my strength was in my
00:56:48
power. My and believing that I think
00:56:50
really believing that was probably what
00:56:52
um
00:56:54
matching that with some of the the
00:56:56
thoughts that were coming into my head.
00:56:58
I'm always the one that's an XL. I'm
00:56:59
always the exgirl.
00:57:01
Um yeah, I did struggle with it, but it
00:57:04
was it took me ages to embrace that.
00:57:07
>> Um because I always saw myself as big
00:57:10
and um even in photos uh school photos
00:57:13
and um with net ball. But that was all
00:57:17
taken over and covered by the fact that
00:57:20
um you know I'm a good player. I'm a
00:57:23
good net baller. I got to keep striving
00:57:24
for this. And there were times that I
00:57:27
felt the, you know, at the lowest when
00:57:29
people would tell me that I was not
00:57:30
doing well or I didn't receive any, you
00:57:34
know, positive feedback from coaches and
00:57:37
players. Those were really quiet times
00:57:39
for me. But you really had to, you know,
00:57:41
I would go into my Bible quotes and
00:57:45
these that's what kept me going.
00:57:47
>> Yeah. So this is like pre preocial
00:57:49
media, so there was none of that. But
00:57:51
how did you deal with um like media
00:57:53
criticism or public criticism?
00:57:55
>> I did read it.
00:57:57
>> Yeah, I stayed away from it.
00:57:59
>> It's great advice. It's great advice.
00:58:00
Like don't read the comments. But it is
00:58:02
easier said than done. Eh,
00:58:04
>> well, it depends. I mean, I I'm not very
00:58:05
good at socials now. My my whole family
00:58:08
roll their eyes at me because I'm, you
00:58:10
know, I'm I'm going, "Oh my gosh, I just
00:58:12
sent a photo. Somebody can How do you
00:58:14
delete it? How do you delete it?"
00:58:15
[laughter]
00:58:16
They all roll their eyes. You know, I've
00:58:19
only, and this is the truth, Dom, I just
00:58:21
went and did a week of um travel around
00:58:25
Widor and then I also went up to
00:58:27
Northland and did um from the Cape down
00:58:29
to um Awanoi, which is just out of
00:58:32
Kitaya. And I took lots of photos, um
00:58:36
did some videos, and I did only my
00:58:39
second ever Instagram post since I've
00:58:42
had Instagram, and I've had Instagram
00:58:44
for a number of years. Oh, you're going
00:58:46
to be terrible at sharing uh clips from
00:58:48
this podcast, aren't you?
00:58:50
>> No, because [laughter] this this because
00:58:53
this serves a purpose and um you know,
00:58:56
if anyone if anyone can be can be
00:58:59
encouraged
00:59:00
um or if anyone can support the work
00:59:02
that we do, whether it be in net or um
00:59:05
with literacy and education and
00:59:07
learning, then put it out there.
00:59:09
>> Yeah. By the way, we I'm looking at the
00:59:11
clock. We've been going for almost an
00:59:12
hour and we haven't even touched upon um
00:59:14
>> cuz you ask me questions and I'm just
00:59:16
you're not stopping me. You got to go
00:59:19
and
00:59:19
>> No, no, no. It's amazing. But but I I do
00:59:22
have a card about that. We want to get
00:59:23
to the stuff because it's um
00:59:24
>> yeah, a lot of a lot of high performance
00:59:26
athletes sort of struggle with that, I
00:59:28
suppose, the void in their life or the
00:59:29
emptiness when net finishes. But you
00:59:31
sort of fell straight into this new
00:59:32
thing which has been a wonderful two
00:59:35
decade career which we'll get to to in a
00:59:37
second. But
00:59:38
>> I'm not saying the void wasn't there,
00:59:39
Dom. It definitely was there.
00:59:41
>> It was
00:59:41
>> It was It was But it was finding that um
00:59:45
you know, whatever the whatever made me
00:59:47
a great athlete, you know, is is
00:59:50
three-fold. And that was um my faith and
00:59:53
me being physically active as an athlete
00:59:55
and also my mental state. And that all
00:59:58
that all came together as um me being a
01:00:00
Christian. Um that's and and even if
01:00:04
you're not, you know, even if you're not
01:00:05
a Christian, there is a a greater being
01:00:08
that um you know, we know there's good
01:00:11
and bad. Um and what's good is uh
01:00:15
knowing that there's a greater being in
01:00:16
there that wants you to be the best that
01:00:18
you can be while you're on this world
01:00:20
because we don't know what's after this
01:00:21
when life is over, when we die. Um
01:00:24
because that's inevitable. And so we got
01:00:26
to really um focus on the time that
01:00:28
we're on this earth to
01:00:31
it might be hard when you're just being
01:00:32
uprooted from your country um and you
01:00:35
have bombs living around you but you can
01:00:37
still be positive that you might have
01:00:39
your kids that you or your siblings or
01:00:41
family around you um and there might be
01:00:44
a moment where you know food is hard but
01:00:48
provision of food will be somewhere.
01:00:50
>> Yeah.
01:00:51
>> You just got to keep thinking positive
01:00:52
about it.
01:00:55
So 2003 New Zealand Order of Merit for
01:00:58
services to net.
01:00:59
>> Yeah. Um where's where's that today? Is
01:01:02
someone someone wearing that to dress up
01:01:04
at school?
01:01:05
>> I know that's somewhere in [laughter]
01:01:06
the cupboard.
01:01:07
>> But you've got you've got um
01:01:09
>> I know that's somewhere in the cupboard,
01:01:11
but um
01:01:11
>> No, you've got a really healthy attitude
01:01:13
to these things like um sharing them
01:01:15
around and yeah, not being not being too
01:01:17
precious about them. I don't know. Not
01:01:18
that there's any right or wrong, but
01:01:20
yeah. How do you get that? Do you does
01:01:23
does does does do you get a phone call
01:01:24
someone asking you if you want it? Do
01:01:26
you do you just read about it in the
01:01:27
newspaper?
01:01:28
>> How do you get it? I think um Netbook
01:01:31
New Zealand might were the catalyst of
01:01:34
um putting there's a profile that you
01:01:37
got to build and that needs to be
01:01:38
submitted to um I think it's the
01:01:41
governor general. Uh and I was I had
01:01:46
finished from the ferns and from any net
01:01:49
bull in New Zealand and moved on to help
01:01:51
um one of my role models which was Rita
01:01:53
Fat. I don't know if you'll remember
01:01:55
her. She she represented New Zealand in
01:01:58
in two codes of softball and net. But I
01:02:00
just thought wow that lady looks like
01:02:03
me. [laughter]
01:02:05
um that's a nice you know something cool
01:02:07
to aspire towards but she was coaching
01:02:11
Samoa and had lived in Samoa and said
01:02:13
that um you know it' be really cool to
01:02:15
come in and and help out and um she
01:02:17
handed over the reigns to um to me after
01:02:21
I had retired from the ferns and I went
01:02:23
and played one year for Samoa um in 2003
01:02:28
and then coached after that and that one
01:02:30
year was the year that the Soons won
01:02:31
[laughter]
01:02:32
in my head I was like good Linda,
01:02:36
you could have stayed for one more year.
01:02:38
Like that would that one eats me quite a
01:02:40
bit.
01:02:40
>> Um because I'd left that year. [snorts]
01:02:43
Bernie had left. Um and
01:02:44
>> you left on your own terms.
01:02:46
>> I did.
01:02:46
>> Yeah. I was um mom had not been well.
01:02:50
>> Um I wasn't really enjoying netball with
01:02:53
New Zealand um anymore. And I really
01:02:56
felt uh a draw towards um helping Samour
01:03:01
and um that was good. It was good. I had
01:03:04
I still had all my friends um who were
01:03:07
part of the English, Jamaican ferns and
01:03:10
every time I came up against them at
01:03:12
that World Cup, it was it was cool,
01:03:15
>> but I was just wearing different colors.
01:03:17
I was still playing a sport that I
01:03:18
loved.
01:03:19
>> So the Yeah, that was the World Cup. So
01:03:21
Silver Ferns won.
01:03:22
>> Silver Ferns won.
01:03:23
>> Yeah. How do you how do you feel? Cuz
01:03:25
I'm guessing a lot of the girls are your
01:03:26
friends, so you're you're happy for
01:03:28
them.
01:03:28
>> Yep.
01:03:29
>> But
01:03:29
>> but I was like, damn it. [laughter]
01:03:32
>> I was like, girl, girl,
01:03:35
>> it must be a strange a [laughter]
01:03:36
strange feeling like a Yeah, you're
01:03:38
happy for them, but also you got it.
01:03:40
>> Yeah, I was. But but Samoa had reached
01:03:44
its best performance.
01:03:45
>> Um, we were top five. Like, never had
01:03:48
that happen. So, and um, you know,
01:03:53
Anna, myself, um Rachel Rasmmanson and
01:03:56
some young girls who I'm still friends
01:03:58
with now. We were all part of um history
01:04:01
in that team. And you know I remember
01:04:04
Mango who was part of sambul netball.
01:04:06
She wrote written an an article um in
01:04:09
the sour times uh about me about the con
01:04:13
kon shell calling me back to my roots.
01:04:16
And when I read her article, I was just
01:04:18
like, [laughter]
01:04:20
you know, I'm representing my parents
01:04:22
and and and that was just that was the
01:04:24
best thing. And my parents were more
01:04:26
proud of that moment that I played for
01:04:29
Samour and then went into coaching than
01:04:31
I was in with the Silver Ferns. Um
01:04:33
because, you know, I was in a place that
01:04:36
was familiar to them, uh that
01:04:38
represented, uh our heritage and that
01:04:41
would always grab me right here all the
01:04:43
time.
01:04:44
>> Yeah.
01:04:45
And then then you went on to coach
01:04:47
summer for like nine years.
01:04:48
>> Yeah, I loved it.
01:04:49
>> What what were you like as a as a coach?
01:04:51
So we established that you're one of the
01:04:53
most fearsome players of all time.
01:04:55
>> I was scared, Dom, because I I've
01:04:58
always, you know, been in a situation
01:05:00
where I only had to focus on myself um
01:05:03
and getting myself to a certain level um
01:05:06
getting me mentally ready every time I
01:05:09
was in tour or playing with the ferns.
01:05:11
But now taking on the coaching role um
01:05:16
at that time it was pretty scary. I was
01:05:18
like what the heck am I going to tell
01:05:21
these girls? And it was strange. The
01:05:23
feeling was so strange and from the the
01:05:25
moment that we had trials or I'd had
01:05:29
five silvers coaches. I'd had um and one
01:05:32
of them was Ivonne Willering and uh
01:05:35
Ivonne was my last coach as
01:05:37
representative and club. And I didn't
01:05:39
realize that I had the ability to draw
01:05:41
from five, six, seven amazing coaches
01:05:45
and take the best from Oops, sorry,
01:05:48
Mike. And take the best from all of that
01:05:50
learning. And it just it just happened.
01:05:54
>> Were you a tough co What were you like
01:05:56
as a coach? Were you a tough coach?
01:05:58
>> I think if you spoke to any of the any
01:06:01
of the players, I was just another chick
01:06:04
that was part of the team. Um,
01:06:09
I think there was a time when I had
01:06:11
someone come up to me and said, "You
01:06:12
need to relax. It looks like [laughter]
01:06:16
get that carrot out of your bottom." Is
01:06:19
what they said to me. Um, [laughter] and
01:06:21
just relax. I went, "Okay." So, whatever
01:06:24
that meant, I think I might have been
01:06:26
[laughter] I think I might have been a
01:06:28
little too serious as a coach. And um,
01:06:31
yeah. And that was at a Comwalth Games.
01:06:34
I think it was at the Melbourne Comwalth
01:06:35
Games. I'd taken Samour and you know I
01:06:39
was coaching at this level because I I
01:06:42
knew and um I'd had the coaches um but I
01:06:45
really needed to reconnect to connect
01:06:47
better with the girls.
01:06:49
>> Um and once I did that yeah we had a
01:06:51
really good team. I had um we did really
01:06:53
well at that comworth games. Um I think
01:06:56
we came again maybe top top five or top
01:06:59
six at the com games with that team and
01:07:02
it was a good team.
01:07:03
>> Unreal. M
01:07:04
>> so what's your involvement with net
01:07:05
these days?
01:07:07
>> I am um well not I I'm working with um a
01:07:12
fabulous small team uh with Anna Sen and
01:07:16
Romana and we're working with Moana
01:07:19
Pacifica. So the you've got the Moana
01:07:21
Pacifica rugby team.
01:07:23
>> Incredible season.
01:07:24
>> Awesome season. And that's just been um
01:07:27
a great catalyst for the work that we're
01:07:29
doing at grassroots level. just bringing
01:07:31
in pathways for our girls who might not
01:07:34
see the path of representing New Zealand
01:07:37
as one that that they would go down, but
01:07:39
that they can see that representing a
01:07:41
Pacific nation might be uh an option for
01:07:44
them.
01:07:44
>> Oh, like a more achievable goal.
01:07:46
>> Yeah. Yeah. Well, more achievable or
01:07:47
they might see both and they can take
01:07:49
the best from it from from either one.
01:07:51
And I think um you know, I think net at
01:07:54
the moment has uh it's it's got great
01:07:58
access. It's got um everything going for
01:08:01
for net ball at college level, but I
01:08:04
think after 18 there's it's not so
01:08:07
strong and um pathways are a little
01:08:09
blurred. Um so yeah, so this is an
01:08:12
opportunity just to have girls play
01:08:15
against their peers, see where they're
01:08:17
at. Um this Saturday we're going into a
01:08:21
um the Moana Pacifica Secondary School
01:08:23
level team will be playing at a Pacifica
01:08:26
Rim series. um where you'll have your
01:08:29
tongen uh sour um rep teams and you'll
01:08:33
have a team from Australia representing
01:08:35
Pacifica. Um and that's again just we're
01:08:38
just trying to get girls to love the
01:08:40
sport and see that there's something
01:08:41
good that can come out of it and they
01:08:43
can be better players as they um
01:08:46
represent their school teams, but they
01:08:47
can also represent at Pacifica level.
01:08:51
>> Do you get some sort of FOMO now? Like
01:08:53
when you played it was completely
01:08:54
amateur, right? there's like no money in
01:08:56
the game and now there's a there's a
01:08:57
there's a bit more money and a bit more
01:08:59
sort of opportunity. Yeah. How do you
01:09:01
feel about that? Do you get a bit jelly?
01:09:03
>> I don't know. Maybe
01:09:06
>> not often. No,
01:09:07
>> not often. I we we were um we were on
01:09:10
contracts when I when I had left. Not a
01:09:13
lot. I mean I'd always um you know make
01:09:16
the similarities that what we made in a
01:09:18
year was probably what an All Black made
01:09:20
in one test match.
01:09:21
>> Yeah. [laughter]
01:09:23
to to make comparisons and compare
01:09:25
apples with oranges.
01:09:27
>> Um, and now it's a you know, we've all
01:09:30
achieved something from the path of
01:09:32
those that have gone before us and it
01:09:34
just keeps getting better if the right
01:09:36
people are at the helm. So, I think um I
01:09:39
think for me it's always been how do I
01:09:41
get how do I get girls to experience
01:09:43
this? This is this is such a great path
01:09:45
in life to use sport um to see the world
01:09:48
and um you know to educate yourself and
01:09:51
and and also see the joys of um winning
01:09:56
and and failures, successes and um and I
01:10:00
think sport is a great way to to grow
01:10:03
>> and it's a great way to it's a great way
01:10:05
to be busy. Um you know you can keep a
01:10:08
lot of kids out of trouble if you've got
01:10:10
them in the sporting space.
01:10:12
>> Yeah. and friendships for life as well.
01:10:13
Like we've mentioned um the great
01:10:15
[snorts] Benise Minnie a few times on
01:10:16
this podcast. She she was in the the
01:10:19
same chair as what you're in just a week
01:10:20
ago recording a podcast.
01:10:22
>> She said um yeah she'd phoned you the
01:10:25
day before and you guys had a like a a
01:10:27
phone karaoke session or
01:10:29
>> we did. We did.
01:10:30
>> Well, how often do you guys speak?
01:10:32
>> Well, a lot. [laughter]
01:10:34
>> So you just call each other up when
01:10:36
she's driving home from work and you're
01:10:37
driving home from work and you just sing
01:10:38
songs or
01:10:39
>> No, no, not all the time. I mean there's
01:10:40
there's there's the odd occasion where
01:10:42
we're we might see each other um you
01:10:45
know recently we were she was coaching
01:10:47
St. Mary's. I was coaching Carmel
01:10:49
College um before the Upper North Island
01:10:52
Secondary School. We she rang up and
01:10:54
said let's have a game. I said okay
01:10:56
that's cool. I love that idea. Two
01:10:58
Catholic girls schools. Let's get in
01:11:00
there and have a game. Get all the
01:11:02
cobwebs out before we all go into the
01:11:04
serious stuff with Ununice. And um net's
01:11:07
been the connector. net ball's been um
01:11:10
you know that that that glue that's held
01:11:13
a lot of us girls together and and then
01:11:16
there was the odd milestone and and this
01:11:19
one wasn't a milestone as such but you
01:11:21
know the
01:11:22
>> the news that came out with um Dave
01:11:24
Nolene to
01:11:27
our teammate uh with her being stood
01:11:31
down as the silver ferns coach you know
01:11:33
again that creates conversations amongst
01:11:35
all your friends everyone's trying to
01:11:37
find out what's happening. Um, and you
01:11:41
know, we're constantly trying to save
01:11:43
what we keep saying to to each others.
01:11:45
We're, you know, we're trying to save
01:11:46
the world, Bernie. Um, just keep moving
01:11:49
forward, keep doing what we're doing.
01:11:50
That's what we can change. And I think
01:11:53
shine your light. And then she went this
01:11:55
little light of mine. So, we're singing
01:11:57
away, giggling. So, yeah, we can do that
01:12:01
because we can. [laughter]
01:12:01
>> That's great. Yeah. What's your take on
01:12:03
the um the Dame Nolan thing? Ah, do you
01:12:06
know I I I was out of reception um being
01:12:10
up up north in a beautiful home Airbnb
01:12:13
and the news came through and another
01:12:15
net colleague who I was traveling with
01:12:18
um had shown me the the screenshot that
01:12:20
someone had sent her and I I actually
01:12:22
thought it was AI. Someone was playing
01:12:24
with this. Um, and when it came to light
01:12:28
that it was true, the first thing that
01:12:31
came to mind was which players are the
01:12:34
ones that have, you know, put have a
01:12:36
revolt against the coach? Um, what has
01:12:40
the coach done? And there was so much
01:12:42
speculation. We were we were doing all
01:12:44
sorts of scenarios um myself and
01:12:46
Michelle and um
01:12:49
number one definitely handled terribly
01:12:53
by Neborn New Zealand.
01:12:54
>> 100%. That's number one. Um, and number
01:12:57
two, regardless of who is at fault, I
01:12:59
just thought everyone's human. Um, this
01:13:02
is this is a situation that is not
01:13:05
foreign to me. Um, you know, I was part
01:13:08
of the team when when there was talk of
01:13:10
the same kind of thing happening to Evil
01:13:12
Wallering. Um,
01:13:15
and people are hurt will be hurt from
01:13:17
this. um be it the players uh be it the
01:13:20
coaches and a whole organization a sport
01:13:24
that I absolutely love um which has made
01:13:27
so many things for me um created so many
01:13:29
opportunities for me um is at you know
01:13:33
it's got its head up there and somebody
01:13:36
is going to be blameful of this. So
01:13:39
yeah, that was my instant reaction. Um,
01:13:42
>> and we can't jump to conclusions, albeit
01:13:44
it's natural for us to all start finding
01:13:46
who to blame for this and who's involved
01:13:48
in this. But I really do feel for Nolen.
01:13:51
>> Um, you know, oh,
01:13:53
>> she's done so much for sport, hasn't
01:13:54
she?
01:13:55
>> She's she's she's proven herself time
01:13:57
and time again. And you know some of the
01:14:00
comments that are coming out um on the
01:14:02
media media space you don't know what to
01:14:06
believe but uh it will sort itself out
01:14:11
>> as it as it always does
01:14:12
>> to um to survive as a player at in high
01:14:16
performance sport do you need to be
01:14:18
pretty tough fairly resilient
01:14:22
>> assuming that's what the issue is here
01:14:23
maybe some of
01:14:24
>> that's a that's like a life question
01:14:26
though Dom
01:14:28
I um you know I think at the level
01:14:33
primary level our kids are pretty
01:14:35
resilient.
01:14:36
>> I mean you've [snorts] seen that happen
01:14:37
so many times when there's been trauma
01:14:39
or tragedy our kids are so resilient. Um
01:14:42
in professional sport I think if you are
01:14:45
a person that is well grounded um you
01:14:49
have a great support around you you can
01:14:52
get through this because there are so
01:14:54
many other things in life besides net
01:14:55
it's just a chapter of someone's life
01:14:58
professional sport
01:14:59
>> there's only few that can keep going and
01:15:01
going [laughter]
01:15:02
>> like our superstar um you know she's
01:15:06
she's doing so well right now with um
01:15:09
with netball and Nolen is
01:15:12
um a person that you know I hold in in
01:15:15
great regard as a as a coach. Um but we
01:15:19
will see where this will lead you know
01:15:21
and I and I also know um [snorts]
01:15:25
what's her name? She's just come in. My
01:15:26
brain I've just had a brain fog. She's
01:15:28
just come in to take over the team.
01:15:29
Lyanna and I
01:15:32
my [snorts] recall was really good
01:15:33
there. [laughter] I'm not suffering from
01:15:35
menopause too badly. Um
01:15:37
>> got wait that's that's a that's another
01:15:40
thing. Um, yeah, they're they're amazing
01:15:43
people themselves. So, you know, that
01:15:45
it's hard for them, too. And I hope that
01:15:47
people aren't um you know, they're not
01:15:50
being ridiculed for taking this over.
01:15:52
They are both Mai women who have taken
01:15:54
on the spot um who have taken the spot
01:15:57
of another MAI figure, you know, another
01:15:59
sister. And um this will be hard for
01:16:02
them, but you know, they're in there to
01:16:04
ensure that our girls are looked after
01:16:07
um and number one, that the sport's
01:16:08
being looked after.
01:16:11
Thanks for sharing those thoughts.
01:16:13
>> Yeah, appreciate it.
01:16:15
>> Thank you.
01:16:16
>> Um, so you finished playing with the
01:16:17
silver ferns and then um I suppose you
01:16:20
feeling [snorts] potentially a little
01:16:21
bit lost about what you're going to do
01:16:23
and then you go to Benise uh Minnie and
01:16:26
Dion Nash's wedding on Wicki Island and
01:16:29
this sort of changes the course of your
01:16:31
life.
01:16:32
>> Yeah. Yep. Yep. You know, I could say
01:16:35
netball and education have been a huge
01:16:37
part of my life. Um but I say that in
01:16:39
the sense that I I don't also want to be
01:16:42
a hypocrite in the sp space of education
01:16:44
because I don't have a degree. Um you
01:16:46
know I think I keep telling everybody I
01:16:49
am you know a daughter of immigrants. Um
01:16:54
I am a net baller. Um I'm an auntie. Uh
01:16:58
I'm a daughter and um I'm not a graduate
01:17:01
though but I went to university. I went
01:17:03
to two universities and I worked for
01:17:06
those universities. Um started every
01:17:10
degree that you could think of.
01:17:12
[laughter] I honestly did. I started
01:17:14
every degree. Everything that was
01:17:15
glamorous I started with. And um you
01:17:19
know as law set up for me they were
01:17:22
probably I probably didn't have the best
01:17:24
um setup or preparation going into those
01:17:27
that I never really finished one. Um,
01:17:30
but I got some really good learnings
01:17:32
from all from [laughter] all of those
01:17:34
papers I took. And um,
01:17:37
>> when I went to this wedding,
01:17:38
>> what why do you why do you why do you
01:17:40
bring that up? Are you is it like a
01:17:42
sense of shame? Are you embarrassed that
01:17:43
you don't have a degree?
01:17:44
>> I think because you know, everyone that
01:17:46
talks about success is measured
01:17:48
differently, right? And um, for me it
01:17:50
was it was the sport uh, sport had
01:17:53
measured um, my success and that had
01:17:55
created so many opportunities for it.
01:17:57
And then you know you also you also have
01:18:01
education and academia that also in a
01:18:04
big way that also measures success.
01:18:07
>> Um I mean I just celebrated a niece who
01:18:10
>> um did a conjoin degree and did really
01:18:13
well in in a in a field of um
01:18:15
engineering as a woman and um and
01:18:19
commerce and I and we celebrated that to
01:18:21
the tea. May we we had the nines out and
01:18:25
and um you know she's the oldest of my
01:18:27
my brother that passed away. she's the
01:18:30
oldest. But that's how we measure
01:18:32
success, you know, having an education
01:18:34
background, having um academia, letters
01:18:38
behind you, um representing the country,
01:18:42
being on television, right? Um so I do
01:18:45
mention that because I don't have a I
01:18:47
don't have a degree, but I do work hard.
01:18:50
Um and that's what's taken me ahead. And
01:18:55
you know, it wasn't my forte. And I I
01:18:58
tell that to lots of kids. I was not a
01:19:01
good person to study. Um I was always
01:19:05
hands-on. You give me anything to cook.
01:19:07
You give me anything to put together.
01:19:08
You give me anything to organize and
01:19:10
I'll get that done.
01:19:11
>> Um but when I had to put my head down in
01:19:14
that quiet time to do study, that so
01:19:15
wasn't me.
01:19:17
>> I found it hard. It's It was hard.
01:19:20
>> Yeah. But um I don't want kids to be you
01:19:24
know I keep saying that to all the kids
01:19:25
that I talk to that it some some have a
01:19:28
pathway that is along um academia and
01:19:31
some have the pathway that's along sport
01:19:33
m music um anything we are all talented
01:19:37
but there will be one thing that you'll
01:19:38
be good at and that would just open the
01:19:40
doors for you
01:19:41
>> right
01:19:44
>> that's why I brought it up.
01:19:45
>> Yeah. Okay. I've I've got I don't have a
01:19:48
I don't have a degree. I've never been
01:19:49
to university. I've got some friends
01:19:50
that have got a degree and they they
01:19:51
sort of say it's, you know, just a
01:19:53
useless piece of paper now.
01:19:54
>> But do you have a inclination? Are you
01:19:57
inclined to go and study at some point?
01:20:00
>> You don't think you need to?
01:20:01
>> No, probably not.
01:20:02
>> Because you're good at other things. You
01:20:04
have a podcast for goodness sake named
01:20:05
after you.
01:20:06
>> Yeah. [laughter]
01:20:06
>> Oh, yeah. But anyone can set up their
01:20:08
own podcast.
01:20:10
>> But I've been told that yours is one of
01:20:12
the best ones.
01:20:13
>> One of the best.
01:20:14
>> There you go.
01:20:15
>> Yeah. So, so um so you're on Wiki
01:20:18
Island. You you go to your your your
01:20:20
best mate Bernice Mini's wedding to Dion
01:20:22
Nash.
01:20:22
>> Um and this is how you get um introduced
01:20:25
to Duffy Books and the Homes.
01:20:26
>> Yes.
01:20:27
>> Yeah.
01:20:27
>> Yes.
01:20:28
>> What's the story there?
01:20:29
>> Well, I was always a role model. Um so
01:20:32
the Duffy Books and Homes program, uh
01:20:35
it's its focus is on inspiring a love of
01:20:38
reading. And so the the work that they
01:20:39
started back in 1994, I can remember
01:20:43
going out as a silver fern with all the
01:20:44
the boys from the All Blacks, you know,
01:20:47
into schools and just just giving out
01:20:50
books and and showing the value of
01:20:52
books. And I Ronnie Clark, I can
01:20:55
remember Iran and a few of the other
01:20:56
boys all telling stories about being
01:20:58
brainy. You know, their dad would would
01:21:00
would tell them that if you want to be
01:21:01
brainy, you have to be able to read
01:21:03
books.
01:21:04
And so we did that work and and then it
01:21:07
just kind of we let go of it. Um I never
01:21:10
thought of it again until the wedding.
01:21:13
I met [snorts] Bruce Pstead. Um
01:21:16
>> Oh, the main freight guy.
01:21:17
>> Yeah. Who is the executive um chair of
01:21:20
Mainfright, a very successful New
01:21:23
Zealand company um global I should say.
01:21:27
[snorts] Uh and I again was mentioned
01:21:31
about the Duff the the conversation
01:21:33
around Duffy was brought up again and it
01:21:36
was never mentioned again after the
01:21:37
wedding until um I think Bruce was
01:21:41
looking for someone to take over Duffy
01:21:44
Books and Homes. They um had the
01:21:46
organization going for about
01:21:50
um I think about 10 years. They were
01:21:52
just looking for a change. At the time I
01:21:53
was working at AUT um with Michael Jones
01:21:57
about to join his team um in a Pacifica
01:22:01
space which has always been something
01:22:02
that's really dear dear to me um
01:22:04
advancing anything that supports
01:22:06
advancing our Pacifica people. Um, and I
01:22:09
was really excited about about joining
01:22:11
that team, potentially joining his team.
01:22:13
And um, I had also had helped mom with a
01:22:17
a training establishment that she had
01:22:18
received funding for to get people um,
01:22:21
skilled in textile and um, and sewing
01:22:24
and they would finish with a
01:22:26
qualification.
01:22:29
Bruce rung while I was at work and said,
01:22:32
"I want you to consider this role." And
01:22:35
I freaked out because I thought there's
01:22:38
no way that I would be able to look
01:22:40
after a team of six people.
01:22:43
>> He's the job's manager.
01:22:44
>> Yeah.
01:22:45
>> Yeah. Yeah. [laughter]
01:22:46
>> I'm I'm quite happy to be sitting here
01:22:48
doing the work that I'm doing. Um but my
01:22:51
brother Sunny, the one that passed away,
01:22:52
he was my first He was the first person
01:22:54
I called and he said, you know, you do
01:22:57
that anyway. You know that the with the
01:22:59
work he's trying to get you to do,
01:23:01
that's what you do. and just because
01:23:03
it's got this title. Um, since when has
01:23:06
that bothered you? And um, and I rang up
01:23:08
Bruce the next day and that was only
01:23:10
after I got two of his messages that
01:23:13
Linda, you need to call me. Don't be
01:23:14
afraid. Which I was. I don't know how he
01:23:16
realized that I was. [laughter]
01:23:18
>> Why were you afraid? What was
01:23:20
>> like anything? Because it's it's a step
01:23:22
up. You know, we were always so
01:23:24
>> out of your comfort zone.
01:23:25
>> Yeah. You know, we're always scared to
01:23:27
step up and that's all I think that's
01:23:29
just life in general. Some of us are
01:23:31
some of us are really good at um you
01:23:34
know backing ourselves up but um for me
01:23:38
you know everything's kind of naturally
01:23:40
fallen and this was the first time
01:23:42
really that someone who I didn't know
01:23:44
very well was offering me an
01:23:46
opportunity. But if someone's someone
01:23:48
smart like Bruce Pstead has the belief
01:23:50
in you, doesn't that
01:23:52
>> I didn't realize who Bruce was really.
01:23:56
Um I knew that he was someone that had
01:23:59
quite a lot to do with Books and Homes
01:24:01
and I had known a little bit about Main
01:24:04
Freight then too. Um, and and to be
01:24:07
honest,
01:24:08
um,
01:24:11
powerful people have always been someone
01:24:13
that I've always revered
01:24:15
>> and would never see myself in the same
01:24:17
room. Um, and that it's taken time to
01:24:20
get used to that. Walking into a room
01:24:21
where, [sighs] you know, not everyone
01:24:24
has the same hair as me, [laughter]
01:24:27
same bright flowers on as myself and my
01:24:30
hair. Um, and that's always been
01:24:32
something that I've had that I've found
01:24:34
challenging. But over time, I've really
01:24:37
embraced it and realized that actually I
01:24:39
I'm supposed to be here. You know, I've
01:24:41
seen too many times, and that's just
01:24:43
from life experience. Too many times
01:24:45
I've seen that I am the one that is um
01:24:48
holding the flag for someone that looks
01:24:51
different. Um, so it's my time to tell
01:24:54
my story.
01:24:55
>> Your time to shine.
01:24:57
>> Yeah. I don't know about shine, but it's
01:24:58
time to
01:24:59
>> it's time to share that story and um you
01:25:02
know, be a part of the change by sharing
01:25:05
what life is. And um this is how this is
01:25:08
this is how we've had it. You know, it
01:25:10
hasn't been um the rosy story like
01:25:13
everyone thinks it is or the rosy time
01:25:15
that everybody thinks it can be.
01:25:18
>> Yeah. When I said your time to shine, I
01:25:19
sort of meant like shine as just be as
01:25:21
bright as you can. Oh, right. Yes.
01:25:23
Sorry. So, I I saw it as a shine.
01:25:25
>> Oh, no. You know what I mean?
01:25:26
>> Yeah, I know exactly what you mean. Um,
01:25:28
so I just thought I'd clarify that you
01:25:29
know your time to shine and like don't
01:25:30
don't dim yourself. Don't make yourself
01:25:32
smaller. Absolutely. Um, cuz I believe
01:25:34
you straightened your hair for a number
01:25:35
of years and you've only let it go curly
01:25:37
recently.
01:25:38
>> Yeah. Co we can blame that on.
01:25:40
[laughter]
01:25:42
>> But no, it's it's good. you should lean
01:25:44
into lean into you know who who Linda
01:25:47
Vagar is and be 100% authentically you
01:25:51
>> and and it's taken time Dom to be that
01:25:53
person it does
01:25:54
>> because you know you you you so often
01:25:58
>> are afraid to um to to meet who you are
01:26:02
halfway
01:26:03
>> um and that's and and that's purely
01:26:06
because we're so afraid of rejection and
01:26:08
I've had that a lot in my life with not
01:26:10
just netball um but with the many fail
01:26:14
failings that we've had in life. But if
01:26:15
you can embrace it and have a have a
01:26:18
path that is drawn out for yourself
01:26:20
where you can just think actually, you
01:26:23
know, everybody goes through this, but
01:26:25
it's up to it's up to me how I deal with
01:26:27
it. And that's why I say it's only it's
01:26:29
only something that I've be really been
01:26:31
proud of because they've been
01:26:34
I see everybody else being proud of it,
01:26:36
too. Um, you know, I get to go back to
01:26:39
Samoa. I've spoken I speak 50/50 fluent
01:26:43
um in my language in my mother tongue.
01:26:46
Um and I love speaking tedial um I don't
01:26:49
speak it fluently but words are similar
01:26:51
as you know most Pacifica words um the
01:26:55
language is similar um and yeah we're
01:26:58
just proud I think a lot of people are
01:27:00
starting to stand up and be proud of who
01:27:01
you are and if imagine if everyone could
01:27:03
be like that. Yeah,
01:27:04
>> that's what I think
01:27:07
hits me the most is that our young
01:27:08
people through they're so
01:27:12
they're so smart right now because you
01:27:14
know there was a time when we didn't
01:27:17
have social media influencing us but
01:27:19
right now there's just their brains are
01:27:21
just full of everything.
01:27:23
>> Um and to a point it to a point I
01:27:26
sometimes think that that's that's what
01:27:28
drives them to do what they do.
01:27:30
>> I feel like they need to find out for
01:27:31
themselves.
01:27:32
>> Absolutely.
01:27:34
So, general manager of Duffy Books and
01:27:36
Homes for 22 year. When is the 22 year
01:27:38
anniversary?
01:27:40
>> I think it was 20 years last year.
01:27:42
>> 2003 though. Was that when you got the
01:27:44
job?
01:27:46
>> 2004.
01:27:46
>> 2004. Okay.
01:27:48
>> Did you last year?
01:27:49
>> When you started, did you imagine being
01:27:51
there 20 years later?
01:27:53
>> No.
01:27:54
>> It's a It's a It's a long shift.
01:27:56
>> It's a long time.
01:27:57
>> Yeah.
01:27:57
>> No, I didn't. Um,
01:28:01
but I recall going into a couple of
01:28:04
leadership programs with New Zealand
01:28:06
leadership and um and global women. And
01:28:13
you know the the word was every time you
01:28:16
do these courses, life changes.
01:28:19
And I was waiting for those moments to
01:28:21
happen. [laughter]
01:28:23
I was leaning in as much as I could. Um
01:28:27
but I I suddenly realized that actually
01:28:30
this is so rewarding. You know this is
01:28:32
what I was made for. This is um what I
01:28:35
represent is um you know creating the
01:28:39
space and networking in a space where I
01:28:43
can bring people together for a cause
01:28:45
that is uplifting our young people that
01:28:48
they might have a path um to start them
01:28:52
off in terms of literacy.
01:28:54
>> Yeah. Yeah. So, for anyone that's like,
01:28:55
"What are you guys on about?" Um, Duffy
01:28:58
Books [clears throat] and Books and
01:28:59
Homes.
01:29:00
>> Um, yeah. [snorts]
01:29:02
What is the core mission of it? How
01:29:03
would you explain it to someone that's
01:29:05
unfamiliar with it?
01:29:07
>> It's inspiring a love of reading. Um and
01:29:13
creating a message where without
01:29:15
reading, you know, we without creating a
01:29:18
love of reading in the small minds that
01:29:21
they will be growing up to be
01:29:23
individuals where um they are not
01:29:26
literate. Um you know and I talk talk
01:29:29
about this to young kids that everything
01:29:31
around them is about being able to read.
01:29:35
uh from prescriptions on um you know
01:29:39
your med pack to um signs on the road to
01:29:43
traveling the world by um knowing what
01:29:46
you're reading when you're filling out
01:29:47
the application to opening your bank
01:29:49
account. Um life requires you to read
01:29:53
and
01:29:55
life is also teaching us to be
01:29:56
independent. Um, so if you cannot read
01:30:00
and you don't have the power to be able
01:30:02
to read and books are not in your home,
01:30:04
you know, Alan, I always quote Alan
01:30:06
Duff, um, it's a bookless society and
01:30:10
that's tough when everything around you
01:30:12
is, um, is about reading.
01:30:15
>> So, you're on a back foot in starting
01:30:19
life if um, you are coming into an
01:30:22
environment of learning and you are
01:30:24
unable to read. And I have seen too many
01:30:26
times um individuals in the workspace
01:30:30
who um and generally most of them are
01:30:32
Marti and Pacifica who have found a way
01:30:34
to mask their ability to read and um you
01:30:40
know have not been able to see the world
01:30:43
as everyone else has because of the
01:30:46
barrier of not being able to read.
01:30:48
>> Yeah. I I can't begin to imagine how
01:30:51
small um your world must feel or how
01:30:54
isolating it must feel if you're unable
01:30:55
to read.
01:30:56
>> Hey,
01:30:57
>> the things that you mentioned before
01:30:58
like road signs and you know pill pill
01:31:01
boxes or whatever, just dayto-day
01:31:03
reading. Not even [snorts] books per se.
01:31:05
>> So, what do what do you guys do? You you
01:31:06
give away books.
01:31:07
>> We give away books.
01:31:08
>> Yeah. Like how many how many?
01:31:09
>> I don't know. I don't know if you recall
01:31:11
Lucky Book Club
01:31:12
>> as a as a child. [laughter]
01:31:14
>> I do.
01:31:14
>> Do you remember? Tell me tell me your
01:31:16
feeling. Tell me how that felt. So, you
01:31:18
would receive a brochure, [snorts] you
01:31:20
put your order in. Yeah. And then
01:31:22
>> Yeah. My mom and dad would usually say,
01:31:23
"No, we can't afford it." Um, but on the
01:31:25
the months I got it when the uh delivery
01:31:27
arrived, um, it was awesome.
01:31:30
>> That's how brilliant foundational
01:31:32
memories.
01:31:33
>> Yes. And that's how a Duffy kid feels
01:31:35
three times a year at the end of every
01:31:37
term. Um, I always tell the story that I
01:31:40
would receive these brochers um at Lucky
01:31:43
Book Club and when all the books arrived
01:31:46
cuz I I my parents, you know, I told you
01:31:48
earlier that we had so many people live
01:31:49
at home, everything was about um the
01:31:51
necessities. Um so having books at home
01:31:54
and ordering books on the Lucky Book
01:31:56
Club was not a priority. Um hence why I
01:31:59
found the library. [laughter]
01:32:01
But it's like Christmas to these kids.
01:32:04
So yes, our schools and our teachers and
01:32:07
every learning environment is about
01:32:09
ensuring that our kids can read, but we
01:32:12
come in from a space that is the icing
01:32:13
on the cake. So we're providing the tool
01:32:17
for these kids to see the value of a
01:32:19
book and celebrate that feeling that you
01:32:21
had.
01:32:22
>> You know, when the books arrived, you
01:32:23
can go, "Wow, these are mine. These and
01:32:26
so it's about choice where they get to
01:32:28
choose the brand new books that they
01:32:30
would never have had. It's like
01:32:31
Christmas." Um, and then it theirs. It
01:32:36
belongs to them. And I hear so many
01:32:38
times about kids who talk about the
01:32:40
Duffy Books Gnomes program and they
01:32:42
still have their books. And that's
01:32:44
because of that feeling, you know,
01:32:46
probably like my medals. [laughter]
01:32:49
You get this given to you, you're so
01:32:50
excited about it, and then you just want
01:32:52
to share it with everybody. [laughter]
01:32:54
>> And sometimes you want to hold on to it
01:32:55
because it's the only thing you own
01:32:57
>> and and the kids don't have to pay for
01:32:58
them. It's it's
01:33:00
>> No.
01:33:00
>> Wow. It's paid for by the portal.
01:33:03
>> So, we we're very lucky that we have a
01:33:05
publisher which is Scholastic who have
01:33:07
been amazing with us and Wheeler's books
01:33:10
who look after our um early childhood
01:33:12
program. The books all vary from around
01:33:15
$5 to $7 each. Now, every book that goes
01:33:19
into the program um into every kid's
01:33:21
hand is $2.50. That's how much each
01:33:25
school has to pay. So, if you've got 100
01:33:27
kids, you're paying 250 per book. Um,
01:33:32
and then the other $2.50 is covered by a
01:33:35
funding partner, a trust, a partner that
01:33:38
we've brought in with Duffy Books to
01:33:40
partner with that school. And that's how
01:33:42
the program covers itself. Um, so we
01:33:45
don't say no to any school. And that
01:33:48
that's just me and my board and my team.
01:33:51
We don't like saying no to our kids. Um,
01:33:54
so every school that joins the program
01:33:55
comes on knowing that they have to pay
01:33:57
half the cost of every book and leave it
01:33:59
to Duffy team to try and find a a
01:34:02
partner that will sponsor the other half
01:34:04
of the cost. So obviously in Oakland
01:34:06
you'll have your bigger roles um where
01:34:10
the cost for a year could be um up to
01:34:14
the five six 7,000s right down to a
01:34:17
school say um in W Cuttle in the small
01:34:21
town in W Cuttle with only five
01:34:22
students. um funding partners come on
01:34:25
board, choose an area that they want to
01:34:29
give to um and and they'll we'll connect
01:34:32
them with the school and they become the
01:34:34
funding partner to that school. So it
01:34:35
becomes like sponsor a child, you know,
01:34:37
over over the years for as long as you
01:34:40
want um as as much as you want, you can
01:34:43
fund the books that go into every
01:34:44
school.
01:34:45
>> Yeah. Do you do you have a particular
01:34:46
story of of say a child or a school that
01:34:49
really sticks with you and sums up why
01:34:50
this work matters?
01:34:52
>> Oh gosh.
01:34:54
Yeah. Really?
01:34:55
>> Every day the stories come because we
01:34:57
it's also about um creating the value of
01:35:00
books through theater. You know, we we
01:35:03
have a mascot and his name's Duffy. He's
01:35:05
like your regular Kiwi kid in his jeans
01:35:08
and his cap. Um
01:35:10
and we bring him to life and he goes
01:35:13
into the schools and it's a new script
01:35:14
every year. Um and for some schools this
01:35:17
might be the only opportunity that
01:35:19
theater comes into the schools. But the
01:35:21
one thing I've learned from, you know, I
01:35:23
was just up in Northland, like I said
01:35:24
earlier, um, with our schools, the kids
01:35:27
just absolutely love it because when is
01:35:31
another time that they might have the
01:35:33
opportunity, um, to be gifted something
01:35:36
like a book. And not every kid is going
01:35:39
to be a reader, but we surely hope that
01:35:42
with all the ambassadors that we send
01:35:43
out to the schools, they can share their
01:35:45
own success stories, but also relate the
01:35:48
fact, and some of them say that they
01:35:49
weren't readers themselves. I mean I I
01:35:51
share that you know um I only went to
01:35:53
school for sports to play sport until I
01:35:56
realized that if I did not know how to
01:35:58
read um there was just no way that I
01:36:01
would have made it in life.
01:36:02
>> Um I talk about the itinerary for
01:36:04
training and traveling with
01:36:07
>> um I would not have been part of that
01:36:08
team if I was not able to read. Um, and
01:36:12
it's like some it's not something that's
01:36:14
on your hip, you know, it's something
01:36:16
that has got to be part of your soul
01:36:18
reading. Otherwise, you would just be
01:36:20
lost.
01:36:21
>> You'd be half a person, wouldn't you,
01:36:23
Dom? Um, and and I think it's the
01:36:27
solution to all our problems, you know,
01:36:29
poverty, um, not being educated and, um,
01:36:34
not having the ability to learn through
01:36:36
reading. We take in all those words and
01:36:39
we absorb all of that in our brain.
01:36:41
There's all the
01:36:42
>> the data and research and studies that
01:36:44
have done about the connection of being
01:36:45
able to read and being read to
01:36:48
>> um and and what that all means and and
01:36:50
how that all becomes part of someone's
01:36:53
living and um you know we are all social
01:36:55
people and being read to um is all part
01:36:58
of that connection that you make with
01:37:00
someone. So it's it's powerful thing and
01:37:03
if you are not able to share books that
01:37:05
you have or to the ability to read um
01:37:08
you're not living life the fullest.
01:37:10
>> No.
01:37:10
>> Um so we're the icing on the cake.
01:37:13
>> That's how I see the program.
01:37:15
>> Um there are all sorts of arguments as
01:37:17
you've known around literacy. What's the
01:37:19
best method of um you know especially
01:37:22
for where we stand in literacy in as a
01:37:24
country. Um, but at the end of the day,
01:37:27
Duffy comes in there and ensures that
01:37:29
every kid gets a book and it's a
01:37:31
powerful thing.
01:37:32
>> Is there there one book in particular
01:37:34
that you really love? Like if you could
01:37:35
put one book book in the hands of say
01:37:37
every Kiwi kid today.
01:37:40
Is there one book to rule them all? What
01:37:42
would it be? And
01:37:43
>> in my time it was The Hungry
01:37:45
Caterpillar.
01:37:46
>> I remember that. [laughter]
01:37:48
>> See,
01:37:48
>> I remember that.
01:37:49
>> In my time it was the
01:37:50
>> You probably still buy that. It's a
01:37:52
beautiful book. Well, it's been
01:37:54
translated in so many different
01:37:56
languages. So, I've I've got it in Son
01:37:59
um and in Tongen [laughter] as well, but
01:38:02
it's it's amazing the play of words, you
01:38:04
know, it it means it means differently
01:38:07
um when you're reading them in a
01:38:08
different language. But I think one book
01:38:10
that is right across um all cultures
01:38:14
with especially if you read it in
01:38:15
English because of the rhyme and that's
01:38:17
a Wonky donkey. [snorts]
01:38:19
>> The winky wonky donkey.
01:38:20
>> Wonky donkey. Yeah, that went crazy
01:38:23
internationally because of the rhyme and
01:38:26
um you know that one picture where you
01:38:29
have a grandma reading it to a a young a
01:38:31
young grandson I think it was I I got to
01:38:34
meet her too not long ago. Um that's
01:38:36
just magic, you know? It's it it does
01:38:39
something for the soul. Not only for the
01:38:41
kid that you're sharing the book with,
01:38:42
but also
01:38:44
when you got an adult laughing, it just
01:38:46
releases all the good stuff.
01:38:47
>> Oh, I think it's the viral clip. The um
01:38:49
the Scottish lady.
01:38:50
>> Yeah. Yeah, I got [laughter] to meet
01:38:52
her. She came She came to New Zealand. I
01:38:54
said to her,
01:38:55
>> "I love what you did there cuz you just
01:38:57
rose, you know, the level of reading and
01:38:59
the level of books to another level."
01:39:02
>> Just having the um that interaction
01:39:05
between her and her child
01:39:07
>> and her grandson.
01:39:08
>> That's special.
01:39:09
>> So, what does the future hold for Duffy
01:39:11
Books and Homes? How long are you going
01:39:12
to be there?
01:39:13
>> I have.
01:39:13
>> Have you thought about this? You just
01:39:15
love it.
01:39:16
>> I do. And you know, life has just been
01:39:18
one where um like I said, it's the
01:39:22
things that I love the most. I think I'
01:39:25
if I find myself in in a space where
01:39:27
I've got these self-doubts, um [snorts]
01:39:30
you know, prayer is really important to
01:39:32
me. And I also find that meditating on
01:39:36
um what you need to do in life and
01:39:38
hoping that things will will just fall
01:39:40
into place. Normally, they do. um you
01:39:43
know, if I've got something that's
01:39:45
that's a huge decision that I need to
01:39:47
make, I always find that I'm in the
01:39:49
right place, I have the right people
01:39:51
that just fall into place and I know I'm
01:39:53
the I'm in the right place.
01:39:55
>> I think that's how life has been. And so
01:39:57
I keep going, keep meeting all these
01:39:59
wonderful people who are able to go out
01:40:01
as ambassadors for Duffy Books and
01:40:03
Homes. And you when are you going out,
01:40:05
Dom?
01:40:06
>> For me? Oh,
01:40:06
>> you tell me. You tell me, Linda. I'll be
01:40:08
there.
01:40:09
>> I'll set you up in term one next year.
01:40:11
[laughter]
01:40:11
>> Okay. Let's lock it in. I'd love to do
01:40:13
that. So, so you're not you're not so
01:40:15
much a goal setter. You just like keep
01:40:17
working and where it takes you is where
01:40:19
it takes you.
01:40:20
>> You've got I think you've got inward
01:40:21
goals in terms of um not so much
01:40:24
outward, but I think you definitely got
01:40:26
goals in terms of um the work that you
01:40:28
do.
01:40:29
>> Um you know that the place that you're
01:40:30
in has there's got to be a plan in place
01:40:33
for it to do and work really well. Um,
01:40:38
but the time will come where yeah, I
01:40:40
might not be at Duffy Books. And I think
01:40:42
every year I I I sort of consider are
01:40:45
there other things around? And it's not
01:40:47
like there hasn't been a lot of jobs
01:40:49
that have been offered, but I still
01:40:51
think that the power is empowering our
01:40:54
kids and this is the role that I've
01:40:56
loved. Um, and I'm I'm still here. Who
01:40:59
knows what might happen next year.
01:41:01
>> Yeah. Oh, you've done so much great work
01:41:03
there. Well, I've been part of a amazing
01:41:05
team, Dom. Yeah. Um, it's Yeah, it's
01:41:08
definitely not just me. I've been part
01:41:10
of a great team that is Main Freight.
01:41:12
>> Um, my board and um a team of people
01:41:16
that believe in in our kids.
01:41:18
>> Of all the things you've achieved, what
01:41:20
makes you the proudest?
01:41:26
>> The proudest [sighs] I think um getting
01:41:29
up every day. [laughter]
01:41:31
I think um the fact that I can make time
01:41:34
to look after my dad. Um wow.
01:41:36
>> You know, dad's going dad's uh got
01:41:38
dementia. Um he's lived um 85 going on
01:41:43
86 amazing years. Um I think I I'm I
01:41:48
don't have my own family, but um as a
01:41:50
mum, I think what I'm proudest of is
01:41:53
that I have siblings who are the best.
01:41:58
the grandkids for dad, you know, they're
01:42:00
amazing kids. Um, everyone's at their
01:42:03
own learning level. Uh, I think I'm
01:42:06
proud of that. And yeah, I just I just
01:42:10
love that Net Ball's been um
01:42:13
the
01:42:15
the catalyst for so many opportunities.
01:42:17
And I've I I can be proud that I took
01:42:21
>> most of those opportunities and and made
01:42:23
them pretty good.
01:42:25
>> Yeah, pretty good. Come on. pretty
01:42:28
[laughter] good cuz there's cuz you
01:42:30
Yeah. There's never a perfect time. I
01:42:32
think there's just um great times to be
01:42:34
lived.
01:42:35
>> E yeah.
01:42:37
>> Yeah.
01:42:38
>> When when you think about happiness,
01:42:39
what does it look like for you now?
01:42:42
>> Happiness.
01:42:45
Um that I've got things to do. Um you
01:42:49
know, people say, "When are you going to
01:42:51
go on holiday and relax?" Well, my
01:42:53
holiday relaxing with Faro, I go looking
01:42:55
for the kids. [laughter]
01:42:57
That's my relax. Um, you know, I might
01:43:00
sit on the beach at in Samour for a
01:43:02
little bit, but I'm looking for the kid.
01:43:03
Like I Yeah, you just want to give joy
01:43:07
to so many people
01:43:09
>> and if they're happy um then I'm happy.
01:43:14
>> What are your fears? What are you most
01:43:15
afraid of?
01:43:17
>> Every time I fail, every time someone
01:43:20
says that that wasn't good enough. Um,
01:43:25
yeah. and and those have happened
01:43:27
enough,
01:43:28
but I I really I talk about the fails,
01:43:32
but the the opportunity I just see them
01:43:35
as opportunities to not let it um
01:43:39
dictate the things that I do.
01:43:41
>> Yeah. And it's a stepping stone to
01:43:42
success as well. Yeah.
01:43:44
>> And Yeah. You've talked about
01:43:45
>> I've got so many bumps, you know, it's
01:43:46
not funny, but um
01:43:47
>> but you've had so many so many so much
01:43:49
success as well, but you can't have that
01:43:51
much success without having
01:43:53
>> That's right.
01:43:53
>> an element of failure on the way. That's
01:43:55
right. And that's happened a lot.
01:43:58
>> What about regrets? Do you have any
01:44:00
regrets?
01:44:00
>> Oh, apart from when S first won in
01:44:02
Jamaica. There's probably one.
01:44:04
[laughter]
01:44:05
>> Yeah, but you were you were representing
01:44:07
summer at the time.
01:44:08
>> I know. Um regrets. [laughter] Oh gosh,
01:44:11
I don't know. Um [snorts] Oh, there's
01:44:14
probably a lot,
01:44:16
>> but I I don't like to,
01:44:19
you know, get I don't like to give them
01:44:21
time. Yeah,
01:44:24
>> I think my priorities are are with
01:44:27
family. My priorities are with the work
01:44:29
that I do. Um, my priorities are with
01:44:32
the work that I do with net ball.
01:44:35
Um, and you know, a big big part of that
01:44:39
that's at the center is is church. And
01:44:42
um, you know, it's not a religion. It's
01:44:45
a life that you have um created as a
01:44:48
stepping stone for everything that you
01:44:50
do. Um, and that's probably what keeps
01:44:54
me going forward.
01:44:56
>> And so I don't give regrets um time.
01:44:59
[laughter]
01:45:00
>> Otherwise, I I'll be such a different
01:45:02
person.
01:45:03
>> Who's who's in your household? Are you
01:45:05
in a [snorts] big bustling Yes.
01:45:07
>> household?
01:45:08
>> Uh, so [clears throat] we sold our big
01:45:09
family home when mom passed away um back
01:45:11
in 2008 and then moved in I think at
01:45:15
different times. We've always had um
01:45:18
either lived at home, lived in a family
01:45:21
home, um lived with dad, but now we've
01:45:24
got dad downstairs.
01:45:26
Um he's needing um 24-hour care, and we
01:45:30
call it the convent because it's only
01:45:32
single people living in there. So,
01:45:34
[laughter]
01:45:37
so the nuns are myself and my sister um
01:45:40
and my auntie who we grew up with. we
01:45:42
were born and she was already one of the
01:45:44
um staples in our lives, Auntie Moa. Um
01:45:48
and she's now 74. So, she looks after us
01:45:50
still, but we look after her more.
01:45:53
Um so, there's they're the two oldies.
01:45:56
And then there's my um adopted brother.
01:45:58
Um my VA never I say adopted because
01:46:02
everyone knows that I'm the oldest of
01:46:03
mom and dad's kids, but I have amazing,
01:46:06
you know, siblings who
01:46:08
>> have just been part of our our our
01:46:09
family, greater family.
01:46:12
Um,
01:46:13
yeah, that's us. There's six of us.
01:46:15
>> Wow.
01:46:15
>> Yep.
01:46:16
>> Have you ever I couldn't find a lot
01:46:17
about you on online. Have you ever been
01:46:19
married?
01:46:20
>> No.
01:46:20
>> No.
01:46:21
>> No.
01:46:22
>> No.
01:46:22
>> Did you Did you want to or has it
01:46:24
[snorts] just not happened?
01:46:25
>> My mom I grew up with my mom making um
01:46:28
wedding dresses for so many people. She
01:46:31
was one of the best seamstress. And I
01:46:33
actually that's a regret. It's just that
01:46:35
I don't like to um what's the word to uh
01:46:40
>> dwell
01:46:41
>> dwell that's it. I don't like to dwell
01:46:43
on it because it's it was my own loss.
01:46:45
You know, I didn't take up her her
01:46:48
skills and never gave time to learning
01:46:50
how to sew. Um but it was at a time when
01:46:53
her and aunties, other aunties all moved
01:46:56
to New Zealand and they were all taught
01:46:58
>> to work in the in the sewing factories.
01:47:01
>> And she was amazing. her workmanship was
01:47:04
the best. Um, and so I'd see her bring
01:47:07
in all these young people and she would
01:47:09
make from wedding dresses. She made her
01:47:11
own wedding dress and her bridesmaid's
01:47:12
dresses. They were gorgeous. Um,
01:47:16
and I don't know. I just I don't even
01:47:18
think I imagine getting married. I think
01:47:20
I thought, "Oh, I'll probably get
01:47:22
married at the age of 30." [laughter]
01:47:26
And then I turned 30, but I was too
01:47:28
busy. So, it's never been a priority. Um
01:47:32
and I think I think with most people
01:47:34
that have been um part of that part of
01:47:37
my life um have seen that uh my family
01:47:40
have always been a priority and as well
01:47:43
as everything else that I've mentioned
01:47:45
>> and you know if you were coming into
01:47:46
this part of my life you you be right at
01:47:49
the bottom of the list. [laughter]
01:47:51
>> Yeah. You're never going to be your top
01:47:52
priority.
01:47:53
>> Yeah.
01:47:53
>> Um
01:47:54
>> I think so. But I've never married.
01:47:56
>> But never say never.
01:47:58
>> Never say never. I don't know. It's just
01:48:01
something I've I've always been pretty
01:48:05
happy with um being the auntie.
01:48:09
>> Yeah.
01:48:10
>> There's so much joy out of that.
01:48:13
>> And it doesn't seem like like there's
01:48:14
there's nothing nothing worse than being
01:48:16
lonely. Like being lonely is is
01:48:18
terrible. But there's a there's a
01:48:20
difference between being alone and being
01:48:21
being lonely. A very big difference.
01:48:24
Sounds like you're surrounded by family
01:48:26
constantly anyway.
01:48:27
>> Yeah. And if even if I'm not surrounded,
01:48:29
I'll um I'll have my little me time and
01:48:31
then I'm off to look after the kids.
01:48:33
>> Yeah.
01:48:34
>> Bring them over. Granddad wants to see
01:48:35
them. I don't mind looking after them.
01:48:36
And I think you know in a time where um
01:48:42
there is a push for
01:48:44
>> I don't know about you, but you know you
01:48:46
I I hear it all the time. Um you know,
01:48:48
you just want your kids to grow up. By
01:48:50
18, they're out of the house. And then,
01:48:53
you know, I sometimes think that for
01:48:56
for those who are grounded in in the in
01:48:58
the nucleus family, which I don't know
01:49:01
what that looks like anymore these days.
01:49:03
>> You know, we grew up always being at
01:49:05
home and um yes, we might have been
01:49:07
pushed out the odd time. [laughter] I
01:49:10
don't I think I think we're pushed out
01:49:12
or we pushed ourselves out because we
01:49:13
wanted to go live life. Um, but we there
01:49:17
was always the expectation that we would
01:49:19
always come back and there was a home
01:49:20
that we came back to.
01:49:22
>> Um, and I I I honestly think that
01:49:25
that's, you know, that's what causes
01:49:27
some of the mental health issues these
01:49:29
days. you know, we we go through all
01:49:32
these um I mean,
01:49:35
my siblings and a lot of those uh
01:49:38
friends and family um you know, I I I
01:49:41
would rarely hear um mental health or
01:49:44
well-being in in our communities because
01:49:48
um family is such a big thing in our
01:49:50
lives. You know, you do go out and you
01:49:52
may want to live on your own, but you
01:49:54
always have a big family that is right
01:49:57
there
01:49:58
>> um supporting You know, there's a new
01:50:00
baby that's come into your family and
01:50:03
you just the wife, the mom, the new mom
01:50:06
is is left to go rest and you got
01:50:09
aunties and grandmas and great aunts who
01:50:11
are helping take care of this child and
01:50:13
so you grow up with all this around you.
01:50:16
>> I love that so much. Hey, I think the
01:50:18
Pacific Islanders have have got the
01:50:20
right idea.
01:50:21
>> Maybe. Yeah, maybe. But but not it's not
01:50:23
everyone's cup of tea, too. [laughter]
01:50:26
>> I like the idea. It's that paradox
01:50:28
again, you know.
01:50:30
>> I like the idea of having all that
01:50:31
support around, but I don't like the
01:50:32
idea of like sharing a bathroom in a
01:50:34
shower with 15 [laughter] other people.
01:50:36
Like you can't have one or the other,
01:50:38
can you?
01:50:38
>> Yeah. Well, you know, I we [laughter]
01:50:40
never had problems. I never had a
01:50:42
problem with it. [snorts] Well, we were
01:50:44
we always actually we always had the um
01:50:45
when we lifted the house, we had an
01:50:48
extra bathroom, put it downstairs, so
01:50:49
the girls were always, you know, and we
01:50:52
>> you know, no one really bothered about
01:50:54
um it wasn't it wasn't like how um we
01:50:59
grew up we grew up watching TV and
01:51:01
hearing about how much time girls spent
01:51:04
in the bathroom. But when you were in
01:51:05
that family with 15, 16 people, you just
01:51:08
know you're in the bathroom, have a
01:51:09
shower, get yourself clean, come out,
01:51:11
and sort yourself out when you're out.
01:51:12
You don't mess around.
01:51:13
>> No, you don't. [laughter] Um, and so
01:51:15
that was just normal.
01:51:16
>> Um, but definitely, yeah, communial,
01:51:20
community, um, yeah, big family is
01:51:23
number one, but in some
01:51:26
it it can also be a lot of pressure.
01:51:28
>> Um, so it has those challenges.
01:51:30
>> Yeah. the the people that um you care
01:51:33
about the most and the people that care
01:51:35
about you the most. I'm thinking your
01:51:36
family first and foremost, but also um
01:51:38
the people that work for you or with you
01:51:40
at Duffy Books and Homes. How would you
01:51:43
like them to describe you when you're
01:51:44
not in the room?
01:51:47
H
01:51:50
um I'd say
01:51:54
easygoing,
01:51:56
family oriented,
01:51:59
understands the challenges of
01:52:02
um work life, home life balance,
01:52:06
a good boss.
01:52:10
>> Now they're all going, "What? [laughter]
01:52:14
>> Get that car out of your ass. What
01:52:16
planet is she living on?
01:52:20
[laughter]
01:52:20
>> No, that's that's wonderful. Are you
01:52:22
proud of yourself?
01:52:25
>> Sometimes.
01:52:26
>> Sometimes.
01:52:27
>> Yeah.
01:52:27
>> More often than you're not.
01:52:30
>> Yeah.
01:52:31
>> Yeah. Cuz you can't, you know, you got
01:52:33
to have some things that you need to
01:52:35
improve on.
01:52:37
>> There's always stuff to improve on. M
01:52:39
>> um so yeah, celebrate the good times all
01:52:42
the time and um know that you just got
01:52:44
to get straight back into it and work.
01:52:47
>> Hey, this has been wonderful today. This
01:52:49
has been really cool.
01:52:50
>> It's been cool chatting with you. You've
01:52:52
had some crazy questions.
01:52:55
>> Really? Like what?
01:52:56
>> All of them.
01:52:57
>> I've really had to open up and think.
01:52:59
You've really challenged me.
01:53:01
>> This is cool. Do you do you are you
01:53:03
Yeah. Yeah. How do you feel about
01:53:04
reflecting? Like reflecting on your
01:53:05
sporting career and your accomplishments
01:53:07
and the highs and the lows.
01:53:09
>> I don't like talking about it.
01:53:12
>> Why is that?
01:53:13
>> Oh, cuz it [sighs]
01:53:15
it was a it was a great chapter of life.
01:53:18
Um but there's other great chapters to
01:53:20
be, you know, there's other parts of my
01:53:22
story that need to be written, you know,
01:53:24
if you want to reflect on a book.
01:53:26
Um, so you know, like chapters in the
01:53:28
book, it's you're going to have some
01:53:30
some really exciting parts of the story
01:53:34
and then yes, there's a and every time
01:53:37
there's a reflection part. Um, but yeah,
01:53:41
you can't ever see that there's an
01:53:43
ending to this.
01:53:44
>> It it is inevitable, but um,
01:53:47
>> so you you're constantly thinking about
01:53:48
what's next rather than what's what's
01:53:50
behind.
01:53:51
>> Yeah. Yeah. I like to put that away
01:53:54
because it's been take the learnings
01:53:55
from it, good or bad.
01:53:57
>> Um,
01:53:59
and I and I love I I surround myself
01:54:02
with people that are way better than me
01:54:04
>> cuz so I can just sit there and go, "Oh
01:54:06
man, I feel like I'm doing nothing." you
01:54:08
know, that's why I think, you know, that
01:54:10
those those those
01:54:12
>> parts of my life have been closed in the
01:54:14
sense that they've been
01:54:16
>> um and wow, I'm just so inspired by
01:54:20
young people who are out there globally,
01:54:23
you know, our own Pacifica
01:54:25
representatives. Um, I'm inspired by
01:54:28
girls in my community or in my group of
01:54:30
friends who
01:54:32
are just putting themselves out there.
01:54:34
And that's where I sort of look at
01:54:37
myself and go, what can I do better? Um,
01:54:40
how can I be part of this story? Um, and
01:54:44
part of it might be FOMO,
01:54:46
but I wouldn't be in the position that I
01:54:49
I wouldn't have
01:54:51
Yeah. Yeah, I wouldn't be in the
01:54:52
position that I'm in or have um achieved
01:54:56
what I have without
01:54:59
taking that that reflection piece and
01:55:02
and really looking hard at um what I can
01:55:05
do better.
01:55:06
>> The challenge is always there and it's
01:55:08
always hard a hard one to take. Um,
01:55:13
but every time I I find myself just
01:55:15
being lazy,
01:55:17
something happens and I just got to that
01:55:20
just wakes me up and goes, "Okay,
01:55:22
>> take the step out. It's going to be
01:55:23
hard, but you got to do it."
01:55:28
>> This has been great. I'll tell you what
01:55:29
hasn't been great. Just behind the
01:55:30
scenes, we've had the air con on cuz you
01:55:32
run at a you run at a hot temperature.
01:55:35
>> I've been Are you cold, my friend? I
01:55:37
should have given you my cardigan. I'll
01:55:39
tell you what, I eyed it up a couple of
01:55:41
times. I was like, I could do with that.
01:55:42
>> You need hair like this, [laughter] Dom.
01:55:45
You need hair like this and it would
01:55:46
just keep your back warm and your neck
01:55:49
warm. It's good insulation. [laughter]
01:55:51
>> Yeah. But this has been a lot of fun.
01:55:53
Um, this is I've enjoyed it. You've been
01:55:55
cool. You've been good. Like we've been
01:55:57
talking like we've known each other for
01:55:58
ages.
01:55:59
>> Yeah. Oh, no. It's been really neat.
01:56:00
It's been really, really cool. And um, I
01:56:02
can't thank you enough, Linda, for
01:56:03
coming on the podcast.
01:56:04
>> Oh, thank you. And I hope you enjoy the
01:56:07
cupcakes that I bought you because, you
01:56:08
know, can't go anywhere without taking
01:56:11
food with me. It's part of
01:56:14
>> we love our food.
01:56:16
>> I tell that's one thing I've been
01:56:17
thinking about when I look at the clock
01:56:18
cuz we've been going for almost two
01:56:19
hours. I'm thinking
01:56:20
>> two hours. Shut up.
01:56:22
>> The girls in the office, they better not
01:56:23
have eaten all of them. There better
01:56:24
[laughter] be at least one for me.
01:56:25
>> Right, let's get out there. Linda Vaga,
01:56:27
thank you so much.
01:56:28
>> Thank you, Dom. All the best for all
01:56:30
your continued work that you're doing,
01:56:32
too. you're sharing these stories and
01:56:34
you know allowing people to even learn
01:56:36
from them and um thanks for the
01:56:38
opportunity. Thank you're doing amazing
01:56:40
work. Keep it up. Thanks, Dom.
01:56:45
[laughter]
