Born in Riverton, New Zealand, Mere debuted with the Aotearoa Māori Women’s Sevens in 2000. Since then, she has embarked on a career as an internationally renowned athlete and coach, playing professionally in Europe, Australia and in the USA. Mere returned to New Zealand in 2019 to take up the position of Women’s High-Performance manager with Rugby Southland. Mere also developed the Hapori Project, a coaching, cultural and life skills programme which includes the Hapori Festival, an initiative for rangatahi and their extended whānau.
Honey Hireme-Smiler is one of New Zealand’s most talented cross-code female athletes, having represented the country in rugby union, rugby league and rugby 7s. Her career in NZ rugby league spans almost two decades, during which time she has captained the team on numerous occasions. Honey’s influence both on and off the field saw her appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her services to the game in the 2020 new year’s honours role. Honey now works as a disability sport advisor for the Halberg foundation.