"We for sure was the biggest wingers around. RIP Norm Berryman we will miss you."
"He epitomised everything New Zealand Rugby are trying to provide a career path via rugby - any kid can grow up anywhere in the country, play for their province, make a Super Rugby team and get in the All Blacks and that's what Norm did."
"He was a shining light and a good example that if you're talented and you persevere you can succeed and he did that. He was a huge role model up here. He always had a smile on his face and high-fived kids after the games - he was the last to come off the field after signing autographs so he was a great representative."
"He was a bit of a cult and folk hero up here."
"We are just trying to contact the family and see what we can do. I would imagine that he would be coming back to the North for the tangi and in typical Norm fashion he'd want us to celebrate his life and have a bit of fun, a bit of a laugh and talk about the good memories, which there were plenty of them."
- Northland Rugby CEO Jeremy Parkinson
"I played a lot of rugby with him, he was one of those instinctive, gifted players. He was a bit un-coachable, a bit like Nemani [Nadolo] is with us," Blackdder said.
"I remember his huge infectious smile and one game we had at Lancaster Park, I think it was a tight game against the Sharks, when he scored two tries off the cuff and all you saw were the whites of his teeth as he interacted with the crowd. They loved him. He was a special man.
"He was unorthodox but with a really infectious personality. When we were in Perth a few years ago we took his Crusaders plaque over and he came and talked to the team about his time with us. It was great to catch up with him. He was everything that was special about New Zealand rugby. He was such a young instinctive player for us with the Crusaders.
"He made lots of people want to watch rugby. Off the field he never seemed to have a care ion the world. He was always laughing and joking."
- Todd Blackadder
"He was explosive, he was talented and had great ball skills, he had everything. He was one of the big backs, when Jonah was coming through at that time as well and he was clearly a world force, and Norm wasn't too far behind."
"He was the sort of character you wanted in your team, he was an energizer in the team, he was always up, always keen, always happy and I just remember him being one of the reasons we won in '98 and '99. He was hugely influential in big games and we all loved him for it.
"He was a great family man. He was a really good man, he loved his family, he put them first and I don't know but for those two or three years they combined to make him world-class probably one of the best in the world in his position and role and I will never forget him."
- Former coach Wayne Smith
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