Two-time World Cup-winning Black Fern Cheryl Waaka dies aged 56

Cheryl Waaka, a two-time Rugby World Cup winner with the Black Ferns, has died aged 56. Waaka played 20 Tests as a loose forward between 1997 and 2004 and was part of New Zealand’s World Cup triumphs in 1998 and 2002. In the 2002 final against England, she scored a try as the Black Ferns defended their title with a 19-9 win. Her impact extended into coaching and development: she became the first woman to coach a Northland senior men’s club team in 2005, later coached the Northland women’s side in the Farah Palmer Cup, and earned an MNZM in 2023. She was also named in Northland Rugby’s Women’s Team of the Century in 2024 and inducted as a Northland Legend of Sport in 2025.