Sarah Hirini, the captain of Black Ferns Sevens team, was in town recently. She tells #legend about her trailblazing career as a woman in rugby, overcoming injuries, and being Born To Dare. 

The launch of Tudor’s new Black Bay collection came at a time when rugby fever was at a high, with the Hong Kong Sevens on the social calendar for many. 

So the watchmaker had eight All Blacks Sevens and Black Ferns Sevens players host an exclusive coaching session at Pure Fitness in K11 Musea that gave guests a taste of just what it takes to be a world-class athlete like them.  The coaching day saw influencers like Mandy Tam, Kevin Chu, and Locker Lam turn up. 

The captain of Black Ferns Sevens team, Sarah Hirini, is also an ambassador for Tudor’s Born To Dare campaign. Besides leading the coaching session, Hirini also paid a visit to the Tudor boutique to view the launch of Tudor’s new Black Bay collection. 

#legend speaks to the rugby star about her trailblazing career as a woman in rugby, overcoming injuries, and being Born To Dare. 

Hey Sarah! So tell us how you got into rugby?

So I got into it when I was 13 at high school, I wanted to hang out with my friends after school, and they were going to rugby training. So I just joined and have been playing ever since!

What do you love most about it?

I think it would have to be the people and the relationships that I’ve gained from it. I get to play with my best friends, and I think it’s just such a welcoming sport. You can be from any background, and you get to come together and play such a such an amazing sport. But I think because of the contact and the way that you have to defend yourself and others, that you get close. It’s like you’re literally defending them with your life, or they’re defending yours. So I think it’s a pretty cool sport, to be able to play with different people and get to meet new people. 

When you started playing rugby, there wasn’t as many women in rugby or even a clear path to playing professionally. What do you make of the changes you’ve seen?  

It’s been a pretty amazing journey. When I was nine, I wanted to sign up for a rugby club. But I was the only girl, so I just didn’t sign up. I was too scared. And now that I’ve been playing it since I was 13 and seen what it’s given me, I’m like “I don’t know why I just didn’t sign up back then”. 

Seeing the growth that has come in New Zealand, there are literally clubs that just have girls and you see how happy they are that they get to hang out with their friends. I just want to continue to grow the amount of people in rugby. Traveling around the world and being able to play that sport is incredible for me. I know that it’s just going to continue to grow, even when I get old and stop playing. 

As captain of your team, what are some of the most important things you need to take care of? 

I think myself probably, first and foremost. If I’m not right, then I can’t give as much as I can to the court, what I want to to the group. I want to be able to turn up every day, to be able to have the same attitude around playing or training that I expect from the group too.

For me, I have a critical job.I feel like I’m the older sister to a lot of the girls, and I want to be there for them, just on the field or at training, but when we leave as well, or when I leave the group. I want them to be able to ring me for for life stuff too, which I think is really amazing for me that I get that opportunity. I think on the field, I also have to be the calm head that keeps everyone with our purpose at the forefront of our minds, and especially in tough matches. I just want to be that calm head that makes good decisions and puts us in a good place to win.

What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced in recent times?

It was probably the six months leading into the last Olympics, obviously. I had a very big injury that potentially could have ruled me out from that, but with the support from my medical team and obviously our team back home, I got to make my dream of playing in another Olympics a reality and got to bring home another gold medal for New Zealand.

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Rugby is an exciting but challenging sport. Things like injuries can really take the wind out of one’s sails. How do you keep yourself pushing on despite these setbacks? 

Yeah, I had a pretty big one obviously. I just want to be able to play rugby when I can. I know the sport won’t last forever for me, so that’s why I wanted to come back when I did. I think injuries are a part of sport, especially rugby, and I think that I just want to be able to continue playing as much as I can, and that’s why I tried to come back as fast as I can.

Let’s talk about your partnership with Tudor. What does Born to Dare mean to you?

For me, it relates directly to what I do. I get to play in a sport that used to be male dominated and now, I don’t think it is. That to me, is exactly Born To Dare. With Tudor, we’ve created a really amazing relationship where we’re pushing boundaries. Through their support of the rugby academy, we’re able to continue to be bold and be brave and do the things that others don’t want to do. What are some of the values of a good sports woman that you think align with the

In your view, What are the traits/values of a good sportswoman that aligns with Tudor? 

I think precision is a pretty cool one. For females, we’re very precise on what we want, what we want to do, and how we do it. And obviously, that is the way that Tudor makes their watches. They take a long time to do it. Lots of preparation goes into that, and that’s exactly how we play our sport and how we prepare to be able to win big matches and be successful on the world stage. So I think the craftsmanship at Tudor and the way that we play our sport is very aligned. Hence, why I love the relationship that I get to have with them and the way that we get to do things together

What are you looking forward to in Hong Kong?  

I can’t wait to play! The stadium looks incredible. It’s to me, the home of the Sevens here in Hong Kong. It’s one of the biggest tournaments of our calendar. To be able to play here in Hong Kong again is very special to me.

Who is your #legend and why?

My #legend would be my mum. She is just a very hard working person who always put me and my siblings first, and it allowed us to do what we wanted to do. She was the number one supporter of us. To me, she was just so brave, strong, and someone who I want to be like.

What’s next for you?

I want to take home the series win in Singapore, and then hopefully round out the World Championships in LA in a couple of weeks with the team. That would be amazing, an amazing season for us to be able to finish on.

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