Silver medal worth its weight in gold

Northland Commonwealth Games silver medal winner Anna Thorpe reckons it took her days to get her head around the fact that silver is amazing.
The Black Sticks midfielder was "gutted" at not getting the gold at first - after losing to arch rivals Australia in a penalty shootout - but a large welcoming committee at Auckland Airport made her realise she deserved to feel proud.
Thorpe, 26, was one of five Northland women in the Black Sticks who travelled to Delhi, India, for the games - the others were Charlotte Harrison, Sam Harrison, Stacey Michelsen and Ella Gunson. The team had originally planned to stop over in Hong Kong for eight hours but delays with their accommodation in India saw that extended to five days. Thorpe said negative media stories before the event made her feel apprehensive and there had been some disappointments in India, including a dirty bath and toilet, unfinished plastering and cracks in the ceiling. Strangely, on one occasion, she returned to her room to find her mouthwash had been used and a long black hair attached to her unused razor. And keeping on top of her gluten-free diet proved to be a real mission, with Indian organisers unable to confirm whether food items had gluten in them or not.
She had taken gluten-free cereals and muesli bars with her from New Zealand.
"I ended up living on rice and salad. It was really disappointing and it stressed me out not having enough variety."
On the positive side, the feisty sportswoman said the large number of security guards in the games village made her feel safe, and despite rumours of bombs about to go off, there were no issues.
The Black Sticks came fifth at the Champion Trophy in England in July and seventh at the World Cup in Argentina in August, and their Delhi performance built on that momentum.
The team played six games in temperatures of up to 43C, including a 5-1 win against Wales, a 5-0 win against Malaysia and a 4-1 win against England in their third pool game.
Thorpe scored three goals - two against Wales and one against Malaysia.
Beating England, who had placed third at the World Cup, boosted the Black Sticks' confidence and they went on to win 1-0 against South Africa in the semifinal.
However, the women's hopes for a gold medal were dashed in the final when they lost 4-2 against Australia on penalty strokes after the score was a nail-biting 2-all at the end of extra time.
The Indian crowd were enthusiastic and supportive, Thorpe said.
"They love hockey and we showed them respect by clapping for them."
The talented Kamo-based kindergarten teacher has been in the Black Sticks for two years but has playing hockey for 22 years. She started as a youngster at Kaurihohore School, then continued at Ruatangata School before playing for the Southern National Hockey League while studying for an Early Childhood Education degree in Dunedin. She has played for Northland ever since.
Thorpe is relieving at Northland kindergartens until the end of the year before resuming as head teacher at Onerahi Kindergarten next year, and has been showing off her silver medal to the keen youngsters. She said the Black Sticks had come a long way in the past 18 months and this was the team's best result at a Commonwealth Games.
"We're really on track for the (London) Olympic Games in 2012."