{"id":215794,"date":"2026-01-04T04:03:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-04T04:03:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/215794\/"},"modified":"2026-01-04T04:03:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-04T04:03:09","slug":"kiwi-ferns-trailblazer-kathleen-whartons-legacy-lives-on-in-far-north","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/215794\/","title":{"rendered":"Kiwi Ferns trailblazer Kathleen Wharton\u2019s legacy lives on in Far North"},"content":{"rendered":"

Their sons, Brooklyn, 20, and Quintin, 14, along with daughters, Manea-Jade, 7, and Niwa, 4, all live with their dad in Kerikeri, close to Kath\u2019s wider wh\u0101nau.<\/p>\n

Kath\u2019s generosity and her boundless energy weren\u2019t limited to those closest to her. Whether on the field or in everyday life, she had a way of inspiring those around her to push themselves, try new things and embrace life with the same gusto.<\/p>\n

Pulling on the Kiwi Ferns<\/a> jersey 14 times, she played at two World Cups and returned to the field at the age of 35 to play for the Warriors Women.<\/p>\n

Beyond her career, she was a tireless advocate for developing young people \u2013 especially girls \u2013 on and off the field.<\/p>\n

When her playing career ended, the family left Auckland for the Far North, where Kath, who was proudly of Ng\u0101puhi and Ng\u0101ti T\u016bwharetoa descent, helped establish and coach the Hokianga Storm women\u2019s league team.<\/p>\n

Andrew, 43, tells, \u201cShe was always encouraging the girls to go for it, to travel or study like she had. If anyone asked her for support, she\u2019d always help.\u201d<\/p>\n

When \u201ca few thousand people\u201d attended his wife\u2019s tangihanga at her Tuhirangi Marae, he was stunned.<\/p>\n

\"KathKath Wharton’s family. Photo \/ Jess Burgess<\/p>\n

\u201cI hadn\u2019t fully realised the effect she had on people,\u201d he explains. \u201cShe was a great connector through her sport and through her mahi.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kath\u2019s Kiwi Ferns teammate, Honey Hireme-Smiler, tells Woman\u2019s Day how much she misses her old friend.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all loved how Kath was so welcoming,\u201d she shares. \u201cWe were drawn to her caring heart, infectious laugh and cheeky mocking. She was the glue that held us together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other tributes continue to flow for Kath, who made a difference through her role as Far North manager for Healthy Families NZ. Some of the projects she had been working on have now come to fruition, including the m\u0101ra h\u016bpara, a traditional M\u0101ori playground<\/a>, in Kerikeri.<\/p>\n

The Kathleen Wharton Cup was established in her honour \u2013 a new under-19 women\u2019s league competition between Auckland and Northland, the two regions where the star player blazed a trail.<\/p>\n

In February, the Aotearoa M\u0101ori All Stars W\u0101hine performed an emotional haka for their former teammate before their clash with an indigenous Australian side in Sydney. Harata Butler, one of Kath\u2019s proteges, placed a photo of her on the halfway line, watched on by Andrew in the stands.<\/p>\n

\"KathKath was 19 and Andrew was 22 when they first met. Photo \/ Woman’s Day<\/p>\n

Returning to the places where Kath left her mark hasn\u2019t been easy for her husband.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been really hard at times, overwhelming, to stand in those spaces we used to be in together,\u201d he admits. \u201cI did a lot of the heavy lifting and she did the organising \u2013 we were a pretty good team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Andrew and Kath first met playing league and touch in M\u0101ngere in South Auckland. She was 19 and he was 22.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe both loved sport and that\u2019s how we got together,\u201d he recalls. \u201cM\u0101ngere was our t\u016brangawaewae. She was quite cheeky and good at mocking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although they were together for more than two decades, the couple didn\u2019t marry until 2017, eloping to the Cook Islands with their two sons in tow. Kath became pregnant with Manea-Jade soon after.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was about eight months hap\u016b on our honeymoon,\u201d Andrew confesses. \u201cEverything was booked, so we were going, no matter what. We went to Egypt, Venice, Athens and London. She even made us cycle through France. Even when our bank account said no, she\u2019d always find a way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AndrewAndrew realised how important it was for their girls to have made special memories with their mum. Photo \/ Jess Burgess<\/p>\n

Now Andrew realises how important it was for their kids to have made those special memories with their mum.<\/p>\n

Always \u201cbrainstorming\u201d, he recalls how good she was at dreaming up unexpected ideas and making them happen.<\/p>\n

It was no surprise that, as a mum of three who was deeply involved in her work supporting young offenders and their victims in South Auckland, Kath came out of a six-year retirement to play for the Warriors Women in the 2019 NRL Women\u2019s Premiership.<\/p>\n

Few people know she also represented New Zealand in the traditional Indian sport of kabaddi, a cross between bullrush and rugby. She took a team of former Kiwi Ferns and Black Ferns to the 2013 World Cup in India, where they finished second.<\/p>\n

Last year, Kath convinced Andrew to go with her to the CrossFit Games<\/a> in Texas.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was always taking other people on those journeys, opening their minds to seeing the rest of the world,\u201d he says. \u201cI always had her back, no matter how crazy her ideas were. If your partner wants to dream, you support her 100%.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AndrewAndrew wants to continue giving their own tamariki a rich life in the north. Photo \/ Woman’s Day<\/p>\n

One idea that she sadly didn\u2019t quite achieve was becoming an Air Force pilot.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe contacted the first M\u0101ori wahine to become a pilot, then did all the testing,\u201d Andrew tells. \u201cPhysically, she was always really fit and she got a tutor to help her with maths. She smashed the tests.\u201d<\/p>\n

But when it came to the interview stage, the Whartons decided to move north for a quieter life. Yet it ended up busier, laughs Andrew.<\/p>\n

Kath became co-chairwoman of Sport Northland, a member of the Rugby League Northland board, and coach of the M\u0101ori All Stars and the Hokianga Storm. She was also passionate about her work with Healthy Families NZ, determined to give young adults and children opportunities to thrive.<\/p>\n

Now Andrew wants to continue giving their own tamariki a rich life in the north.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so good for my babies to be connected to who they are and where they\u2019re from,\u201d he enthuses. \u201cThey can climb their maunga and swim in their awa. They\u2019re kura kaupapa kids \u2013 te reo is their first language. That\u2019s something we both wanted, so I\u2019ll carry that on for Kath.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Looking at his children, he sees many of his wife\u2019s traits \u2013 both girls are witty, smart, and athletic. Manea-Jade is a cross-country champion like her mum.<\/p>\n

\u201cQuintin has the best of both of us,\u201d shares Andrew. \u201cHe\u2019s quite determined and, like his mum, he\u2019s a really good leader. He sits on the taumata k\u014drero [speakers\u2019 bench] for us on the marae and he loves his footy. He aspires to be like his mum.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brooklyn, who plays league alongside his dad, has moved home to help with his siblings.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had a massive village supporting us too,\u201d reveals Andrew. \u201cI guess when you give, people give back.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Their sons, Brooklyn, 20, and Quintin, 14, along with daughters, Manea-Jade, 7, and Niwa, 4, all live with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":215795,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[20251,1558,11773,528,10541,10109,78,302,5511,29486,194,14731,11285,6176,6187,2225,111,139,529,69,90,193,1523,21041,7811,213,2737,6100,24994,84401,130355,86313,130356,379],"class_list":["post-215794","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-andrew","tag-been","tag-deeply","tag-far","tag-ferns","tag-husband","tag-in","tag-its","tag-just","tag-kathleen","tag-kiwi","tag-league","tag-learning","tag-legacy","tag-lives","tag-loss","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-north","tag-nz","tag-on","tag-other","tag-over","tag-peoples","tag-since","tag-sports","tag-star","tag-still","tag-sudden","tag-touched","tag-trailblazer","tag-wharton","tag-whartons","tag-year"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/215794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=215794"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/215794\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/215795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=215794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=215794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=215794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}