Health Sciences First Year tauira Nina Murphy in action, playing for her home team Kings United Hockey Club in a match against Momona Hockey Club. Photo: Rhyan Griffiths Photography.
Nina Murphy (Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki) will represent Aotearoa on the international hockey stage not once, but twice this year.
The Health Sciences First Year (HSFY) tauira has been selected for the Black Sticks women’s squad for the upcoming USA series in Charlotte, North Carolina. In May, she also made the Black Sticks junior women’s squad for the 2025 Fédération Internationale de Hockey Junior Hockey World Cup, scheduled for later this year.
Described as the “standout selection” by Hockey New Zealand, Nina makes her international debut with the Black Sticks women’s team after a successful Junior Hockey League (JHL) performance earlier this year, where she was named tournament MVP (Most Valuable Player).
The 19-year-old is “very excited” to represent Aotearoa.
“I am incredibly honoured and grateful to have this opportunity, and I cannot wait to play with the team.”
Otago was not on the cards initially for the Australian-born Kiwi; Nina was originally planning on studying in Brisbane, close to her family in the Gold Coast.
“I changed my mind at the very last minute, only applying for halls and HSFY in January.”
The “amazing opportunity” to represent Tairāwhiti at the 2023 National Māori Hockey Tournament “definitely sparked my interest in the idea of moving over here”, Nina says.
Following in her parents’ footsteps increased the appeal.
“My parents both studied here and loved it.
“I was also keen for a change. I love New Zealand and was keen to reconnect with family and my culture over here.”
Once at Otago, Nina quickly got involved in club hockey, playing for Kings United Hockey Club and doing regional training environment sessions three times a week.
Then came the call up to the JHL, which Nina was “super stoked and excited about”.
“The tournament was awesome. Scary at first as I didn’t know many people, but everyone was very nice, and the hockey was challenging but very enjoyable.
“From this tournament I was lucky enough to be named MVP and later getting a call up to debut for the Black Sticks.”
Managing studies and hockey has been hard, but Nina has had practice - she has been playing hockey since the young age of six and was a regular on the Australian hockey scene in the Queensland teams from under-13s up to under-21s, and the 2023 and 2024 Australian U18s future hockey squad.
“It definitely comes with a lot of sacrifice, having to miss the occasional group activity or event, but the sacrifices are worth it.”
After HSFY, Nina hopes to get into medicine, with a healthy dose of hockey on the side.
“I definitely want to keep playing my best hockey, so I want to put in a lot of hard work in the future and continue to train hard.”
And Nina is happy she made the move to Aotearoa, calling it “a big highlight of her journey so far”.
“Meeting new people and playing the sport I love in a different country has been a surreal experience.”
Nina heads off to North Carolina at the end of June for the USA series. You can catch her in action at the two test matches on Sunday, 6 and Monday, 7 July, screened live on TVNZ+.
~ Kōrero by Sandra French, Adviser, Internal Communications