Date of birth | 3 December 1964 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Place of birth | Timaru, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 67 kg (148 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record |
Anna Mary Richards MNZM (born 3 December 1964) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. She represented New Zealand and won four Rugby World Cups — 1998, 2002, 2006, and 2010.[1][2][3]
Rugby career
[edit]XVs
[edit]After being dropped from the Canterbury netball team an invitation from her family law lecturer, Laurie O’Reilly, who was married to then Canterbury netball coach, Kay O’Reilly, to come watch a game kickstarted her rugby career. She eventually played for the University of Canterbury side and toured America and Europe.[4]
Richards debuted for the Black Ferns on 26 August 1990.[3] Her test debut at the 1991 Rugby World Cup came against Canada on 6 April at Glamorgan.
In 1992, when the Black Ferns was formally recognised. She was a member of the squad that defeated Auckland 36–0 at Eden Park.[5] She scored a try in the game.[5][6]
She played 54 matches for the Black Ferns of which 49 were full internationals, she has won four Women’s Rugby World Cups before she retired in 2010.[7][4]
Sevens
[edit]She was a member of the first official New Zealand women's sevens team, who took part in the 2000 Hong Kong Sevens.[8][9] She captained the side again at the 2001 tournament.[10]
Coaching career
[edit]Richards was appointed as head coach of the Hong Kong women's sevens team in 2013.[11][3] She completed her coaching role at the end of 2017.[12][13]
As at January 2023 she is the women's player development manager at Auckland Rugby.[14]
Personal life
[edit]Richards has a law degree and a BA.[3] She played representative tennis and netball. In the 2005 Queen's Birthday Honours, She was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to women's rugby.[15]
Hall of Fame
[edit]Richards was inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame on 17 November 2014.[7][16]
References
[edit]- ^ "World Cup Windback: 2006 Black Ferns". allblacks.com. 5 April 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
- ^ "Black Ferns World Cup squad named". NZ Herald. 26 July 2006. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
- ^ a b c d Johnstone, Duncan (5 November 2013). "Black Ferns legend Anna Richards gets new role". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
- ^ a b Egan, Brendon (19 May 2024). "Where are they now?: Black Ferns great Anna Richards". www.thepost.co.nz. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b Julian, Adam (24 May 2024). "A history of the prestigious Laurie O'Reilly Cup". allblacks.com. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Black Ferns vs Auckland XV". stats.allblacks.com. 30 August 1992. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b IRB.com (10 November 2014). "2014 Inductee: Anna Richards". Retrieved 6 January 2015.
- ^ "2000 New Zealand Women's sevens team - Where Are They Now?". All Blacks. 17 April 2020.
- ^ "Looking back: Black Ferns Sevens in Hong Kong (2000)". allblacks.com. 31 March 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
- ^ "Richards to lead New Zealand women at Hong Kong sevens". ESPN scrum. 6 March 2001. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
- ^ Jacqueline, Rachel (22 March 2014). "Black Ferns legend Anna Richards aims to instil winning mentality in Hong Kong women". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
- ^ "Anna Richards announces end of Hong Kong Sevens Role". Hong Kong China Rugby. 15 September 2023. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
- ^ Agars, Sam (21 December 2017). "Goodbye, Anna Richards, wherever it is you've gone and for whatever reason". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
- ^ "Black Ferns legend returns to join Auckland Rugby's High Performance team". www.aucklandrugby.co.nz. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
- ^ "Queen's Birthday honours list 2005". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 6 June 2005. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ allblacks.com (19 November 2014). "Former Black Ferns Richards and Palmer inducted into Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on 25 October 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
External links
[edit]- Black Ferns profile
- World Rugby Hall of Fame profile
- Anna Richards at the World Rugby Women's Sevens Series (archived)