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Maia Joseph, the young Black Fern 'not shy about hard work'
By Adam Julian
Maia Joseph has paused her medical studies at the halfway point to become a full-time professional rugby player.
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The halfback has racked up nine Tests in the past year for the Black Ferns, emerging as the strongest contender to fill the yawning gap left after Kendra Cocksedge’s retirement.
Joseph’s reasons for pursuing medicine provide an insight into her thoughtful, compassionate and competitive nature.
“There are a few reasons why I’m interested in medicine. I enjoy learning about people, understanding what makes the body work better and helping people when they are feeling their worst,” Joseph told RugbyPass.
“I’m a competitive person. I enjoy a challenge. I don’t want to study something easy. Finally, as a young Maori woman, I’m aware of the inequities in outcomes for Maori people. I want to understand why and help improve that.”
Joseph’s improvement on the rugby field has been immense. In Super Rugby Aupiki, she helped Matatu jump from last to second. Her best performance was in a 37-29 win over eventual winners the Blues, where she set up three tries.
On Saturday, Joseph distributed quickly and was an assured presence for the Black Ferns in their 38-12 win over Australia to open the Pacific Four Series.
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“It’s been an enjoyable season so far. With more games, I’ve become more confident and had more fun,” Joseph said.
“I’ve learned how to manage the game better and balance the responsibilities of being a student and full-time athlete.
“I was gutted not to win Aupiki. It was such a close final. I enjoyed the fast and expansive game plan we had.
“Aussie was a good game. The score didn’t reflect how hard it was. We’re focusing on some new structures that are coming together nicely.”
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Joseph debuted for the Black Ferns in a 57-5 win over the USA in Hamilton in 2024, an experience she described as “surreal.”
The Black Ferns otherwise struggled in 2024, losing to Canada (19-22) and Ireland (27-29). Twice, the world champions were rolled by England. A 24-12 defeat to the Red Roses at Twickenham, however, is a landmark in Joseph’s career.
“I’ve never experienced that level of hype or a crowd like that before,” Joseph admitted.
“The speed of the game was awesome, but the nerves beforehand were harder to contain than usual.
“We’ve used that Twickenham game to create pressure training scenarios. We’ll train with the ball in play longer to create more fatigue. The coaches will create random chaos where you have little time to react. Internal competition is heightened and healthy.”
The daughter of former All Black and leading coach Jamie Joseph has had a healthy dose of rugby in her life. Maia grew up in Wellington when Jamie was coaching the Lions in the NPC.
After Jamie fashioned a record of 32 wins in 45 games, including two NPC finals appearances, he was promoted to coach the Highlanders in Super Rugby. In his first tenure with the Southerns, Jamie won 54 out of 104 games, including the 2015 championship.
In Dunedin, Maia boarded at Columba College while Dad coached Japan to 23 wins in 51 internationals, including a historic appearance in the 2019 Rugby World Cup quarter finals.
Maia was the default First XV captain because she was the only girl to have played rugby. She also dabbled in netball and touch, winning a national title in the latter code in 2018.
Rugby was always where it was at for Joseph. Despite a struggle for numbers at Columbia, she quickly thrived at a senior club level for the University, Alambrah Union and Dunedin Sharks. She debuted for the Otago Spirit in a 29-20 win against Hawke’s Bay in the 2020 Farah Palmer Cup (FPC).
In 2022, playing first five-eighth, Joseph won the Fiao’o Fa’amausili Medal as the best and fairest player in the FPC. She played a starring role in wins over Hawkes Bay (44-22), Northland (39-10), Taranaki (55-15) and Tasman (39-7).
In 2024, Joseph debuted for Matatu and has amassed 13 games in two seasons.
The highlights of her Black Ferns season in 2024 were a strong debut against the USA, 67-19 and 62-0 wins over Australia and a 39-14 trouncing of the French in Vancouver.
“The French win was an important one for us. We took our lessons from three defeats and played some good rugby,” Joseph said.
“Still, we were unhappy with aspects of that performance. We started slowly and didn’t kick as many goals as we should have. There are always things to work on.”
Black Ferns assistant coach Tony Christie said in 2024 that Joseph was an exciting addition to the Black Ferns.
‘‘She’s not shy about hard work, really knowledgeable about the game, but obviously the most exciting part is her skillset,’’ Christie said.
‘‘Her ability to get the ball into the hands of the forwards and the backs really quickly, her speed to ruck and she’s got an excellent kicking game.”
Former Black Fern Erin Rush is close with the Joseph family. The vice president of New Zealand Rugby is a real estate agent who sold Joseph’s first house in Wellington. Erin’s son, New Zealand Under-20s representative Stanley Solomon, grew up playing rugby with Maia’s sister Ben. Maia and Ben were regulars in the Rush household. Occasionally, tempers flared between the siblings.
“I remember a fight broke out between Maia and Ben. I couldn’t believe the look on Maia’s face. She was furious. If she could have pulled a knife on Ben, then she might have plunged it right through him,” Rush laughed.
“Maia is super competitive and smart. I introduced her one time to David Kirk, who also studied medicine. 10 minutes later, I turned my head, they were still talking. I’m not surprised they had a lot in common.”
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PAC FOUR STANDINGS ARE WHERE PLEASE SOMEONE?