Kobe Hewitt will represent both sides of his family when he lines up for the Fiji New Zealand Schools sevens team this weekend. Photo / Stephen Parker
Kobe Hewitt will represent both sides of his family when he lines up for the Fiji New Zealand Schools sevens team this weekend. Photo / Stephen Parker
For an athlete, representing your country, your culture and your whānau is the pinnacle. This weekend, one Rotorua rugby player will enjoy the unique opportunity to represent both sides of his family at the same time.
Ngongotahā's Kobe Hewitt is right on track to becoming a successful athlete.
The 18-year-old Western Heights High School student dreams of being a professional rugby sevens player and while higher honours have been hard to come by so far in his fledgling career, persistence is just one of many attributes the budding athletes holds.
That persistence is paying off, preparing to represent both sides of his family this weekend. Hewitt will line up for the Fiji New Zealand Sevens team at the World School Sevens tournament in Auckland. His Fijian blood comes from his mother Jessie Hewitt's side of the family - she was born there to Fijian parents - while his dad Darren Hewitt is a Kiwi.
Lining up alongside him in the Fiji New Zealand team is Tauranga Boys' College's Veveni Lasaqa.
"When I played at [the Condor National Secondary School Sevens] last year I tried making higher honours so I applied for those teams. I didn't end up making them but I gave it another go this year and made the wider squad," Hewitt says.
"I was over the moon when I was named in the team. To be able to do something for my family and our culture, to be able to represent my family from Fiji and the ones who have passed away, it's pretty surreal. They'd definitely be proud."
He said the Fijian players in his team were great to be around - full of flair and a love for the game, they play a free-flowing, unstructured style of rugby. Hewitt's role in the team will be as a playmaker, tasked by the coaches with bringing some balance to the side.
"This team has lost in the final to New Zealand every year since it started three years ago. To be in that team that has always made the final is pretty exciting.
"What I want to get out of it is just to make my family proud. The main goal is to win, obviously, but just to be there and represent Fiji and New Zealand at the same time is awesome.
Ngongotahā's Kobe Hewitt makes a run for Central Bay of Plenty against Cambridge during the Stan Meads Cup semifinal at Kuirau Park. Photo / File
"Our strength will be the skills and some of the other boys are huge. The Fijians love to use the ball, carry it one hand, have a laugh. The coaches wanted a bit more structure and balance from me but the biggest thing they told us is it's about learning about Fiji, the culture and where we come from."
Hewitt played senior rugby for Ngongotahā for the first time this year which he said was a good learning experience.
"I play winger and fullback, it was definitely different going from school to playing against men. The game play is a lot slower which is good for me because I love sevens so it made it a bit easier for me to move around.
"The physicality is crazy, at my body weight, trying to tackle those big guys is unbelievable. I love it though, I love trying to tackle the bigger guys."
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"I love how fast it is, there's no time for resting, you're always having to move."
Kobe's mum Jessie said his achievement had helped bring the extended family together.
"We're quite spread out now, we've all gone our different ways but this has helped bring us back to our culture. We've had some passing of family members so it's cool to have something positive bring us together."
I was over the moon when I was named in the team. To be able to do something for my family and our culture, to be able to represent my family from Fiji and the ones who have passed away, it's pretty surreal. They'd definitely be proud.
His dad Darren, who played rugby league for the Junior Kiwis himself, described his son as "a late bloomer".
"We've always wanted to make sure he's a good person as well as a good athlete. He's got a great work ethic so it's nice to see that rewarded now. When you don't get into the Bay of Plenty Academy or things like that early it can be quite hard to get noticed but he has worked really hard to get to this point," he said.
Hewitt is not the only Bay of Plenty player selected for the tournament. Meanwhile, Rotorua Boys' High School students Cassius Misa, Tama Te Aute, Stuart Leach and Manu Paea are all in the Condor New Zealand Under-18 Schools team.
