Amy Turner's sporting journey has followed a unique path.
Six years ago, Turner lined up for the Australian sevens team at the Rio Olympics – winning a gold medal at the event. This weekend, the 38-year-old centre will make her debut for the Kiwi Ferns when they run out at Mt Smart Stadium against Tonga; a moment Turner never thought she would get to experience.
Growing up in Tokoroa, Turner was involved across the three main rugby codes – league, union and touch. But at 20, she made the decision to move to Australia for a fresh start.
"It was just something different, I suppose," she recalled. "My sister was living over there at the time and I had a few family members who just wanted a change. I wasn't really doing much over here in New Zealand and thought the change would do me good."
Early on in life in Australia, Turner was invited into camp with the Jillaroos, Australia's national league team, but she didn't stay there long and felt that her opportunities for representative football might be limited by the fact she was from a different country.
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But after a few years based across the Tasman, Turner was invited into the national sevens camp, before debuting for Australia in 2013.
"I took my opportunity and decided to run with it. I wanted to see where it would take me, and I was fortunate enough to travel the world and go to the Olympics. The rest is history, really."
Turner played her final game for the Australian sevens team in 2016, before returning to high-level league in 2019, playing for Queensland in State of Origin and claiming an NRLW title with the Brisbane Broncos.
While she missed the 2022 NRLW season, she was in fine form in 2021, representing the Māori All Stars and performing well in the centres with the Broncos.
Amy Turner. Photo / Photosport
Her comeback to the 13-a-side game caught the attention of the New Zealand camp, and now she will get to live out a dream she believed to have long passed her by.
"I've always been a Kiwi and have always wanted to play for New Zealand," Turner said. "I honestly thought that boat sailed passed a long time ago, but here I am."
Turner will be one of four players to make their Kiwi Ferns debut tomorrow afternoon, alongside fellow centre Page McGregor, winger Laishon Albert-Jones, and second-rower Roxy Murdoch-Masila. A fifth uncapped player, Hailee-Jay Maunsell, has been named outside of the matchday 17 in the extended reserves.
With the World Cup on the horizon later in the year, the match against Tonga will provide a solid starting point for the team's preparations. With a relatively young and inexperienced squad, captain Krystal Rota said it was important that the side got into a position of comfort with such an important tournament awaiting them in October.
"We're just encouraging them to be themselves, and just trying to make everything not so nerve-wracking," Rota said. "You want these spaces for girls to feel comfortable and enjoy it. That way you can get the best footy out of them.
"It's really good that we get this opportunity to have this hit out with the girls and start the foundations of where we're heading for the World Cup at the end of the year. This is a good start for us; we start cementing some combinations and getting to know each other."
