Black Ferns prop Awhina Tangen-Wainohu's incredible comeback

Braxton Sorensen-McGee dominated headlines after the Black Ferns’ 38-12 victory over Australia in Newcastle. Her two-try debut was everything and more than expected from the precocious 18-year-old.

A quieter but no less significant milestone was the return of Awhina Tangen-Wainohu. The prop came off the bench in her first international since a 56-12 win over Wales at the 2021 Rugby World Cup in 2022.

Tangen-Wainohu had entertained thoughts of retirement after a torrid battle with injury. A fusion in the back of her neck was debilitating.

‘This Energy Never Stops’ – Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025

‘This Energy Never Stops’ – Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025

“There was a bulge in my neck. I had time off deciding whether I wanted to retire. Finally, I came to the decision that I wanted to have the surgery,” Tangen-Wainohu told RugbyPass.

“I’m excited and super proud to be back in this whanau. It’s been a bit of a journey.”

After her two-year absence, Tangen-Wainohu made her return for the Blues in Super Rugby Aupiki in March and was ever present in their eight matches. The Blues beat Matatu 26-19 in the Aupiki decider and then conquered Super Rugby W champions the Waratahs 36-5 in the inaugural Super Rugby Champions Final.

A mother to her four-year-old son, Hipirini, Tangen-Wainohu’s comeback wasn’t guaranteed, but Hipirini has been the biggest motivator in her rugby career.

From the East Coast of the North Island, Tangen-Wainohu first played rugby in her penultimate year of high school. She was persuaded by teacher Tom Blake to tussle against her old kura, Wairoa College, Black exclaiming, ‘With tree trunks like those, you’re built to play rugby.’

She joined the Havelock Rugby Club in Hawkes Bay as a lock, switched to loose forward, and eventually migrated to prop. Unfortunately, her progress was derailed by a torn ACL. Her recovery was a greater struggle, blighted by the fact that she didn’t always have the finances to take her to rehabilitation appointments.

 

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Still, she was good enough to make six appearances for the Hawke’s Bay Tui in the 2017 Farah Palmer Cup (FPC). A shift to Hamilton saw her start at Marist, then settle at Hamilton Old Boys. She was a regular selection for Waikato until an Achilles injury. A largely sedentary pregnancy and an emergency caesarean then left her sidelined in 2020.

“Before I had my son, I was just a ‘Tuesday-Thursday afternoon training and play on Saturday’ kind of rugby player. I’d have a drink and eat at McDonald’s and whatnot. So, I wasn’t the ideal athlete,” Tangen-Wainohu said.

“I joined a gym called The Movement NZ, run by former Tall Ferns shooting guard Matangiroa Flavell. It was not only the motivation to get fit for my boy and be a better mother, but they also helped me learn more about my body.”

In 2021, she helped Waikato win the FPC for the first time in the 100th Anniversary season of the Union. She scored a try in the 22-20 win over Canterbury in the final, which snapped a 27-game winning streak for the four-time defending champions.

In 2022, she was selected for the Rugby World Cup and on debut scored a try from the bench in a 41-17 win in the opening pool game against Australia at Eden Park.

“I love the white line. When I went over, hearing the crowd reminded me, what game we were playing and how many came to watch us play. I tend to get lost in the battle, so when something like that happens, it’s emotional. The first place I looked was where my whanau was sitting,” Tangen-Wainohu recalled.

“Ball carrying and set pieces are my strengths. In high-level rugby, I’ve only ever played loosehead prop. I love doing my core role well, so there is a solid platform on which to score off.”

 

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The World Cup should have been the platform for many more Tests. Instead, Tangen-Wainohu succumbed to injury. She was far from idle in the rugby space.

When based in Hamilton, Tangen-Wainohu was still training at the Black Ferns’ Waikato performance hub and said she has felt “like a nanny” when mentoring younger props.

One of them was tighthead Veisinia Mahutariki-Fakalelu, an uncapped player the Black Ferns have named for the first time. The 20-year-old was converted from No.8 to prop in the FPC last year.

Statistically, premiership champions Waikato enjoyed the most dominant scrum in the FPC. Mahutariki-Fakalelu added additional value with her explosive carrying, which saw her rank inside the top 10 for most defenders beaten.

While at Hamilton Girls’ High School, Mahutariki-Fakalelu won two National Secondary Schools touch titles. She maintained that momentum for Chiefs Manawa in Super Rugby Aupiki, again ranking in the top ten for carries and topping the scrum efficiency charts.

“Awhina took me through my first scrum session, eight or nine months ago, when I was first asked to transition,” Mahutariki-Fakalelu said.

“She’s a mum as well and has so much stuff going on. She inspires me. I would not be here today without her and all the other girls.

“I was in bed with a knee injury when the Black Ferns won the World Cup in 2022. It was such an amazing game. Watching it, I said, ‘Imagine if that was me.’ I’m trying not to get ahead of myself, take every opportunity that comes, and learn from those more experienced than me.”