"We all look almost the same, so no problems recognising each other, once we got past the grey or white hair. We could tell who had been cheating with hair dye!
"Taini, of course, was the most recognisable because of the trophy bearing her name. We have seen a lot of her on TV.
"She was very well respected as a coach before she became Silver Fern coach, and still retains that respect, maybe even more to this day. She is the most successful Silver Fern coach ever. Most of all she was, and still is a very gracious, fun-loving lady."
The players in 1967 were New Zealand's first netball world champions. It was a well-balanced side with four players from Canterbury, one from Southland, three from Rotorua, one from Auckland and Easterbrook as Northland's representative.
Easterbrook said they just went and did their job.
"Our captain Judy Blair, married and a mother, was a very down-to-earth person who got the best out of everyone, both on and off the court with her matter-of-factness, and her playing ability," she said. "She had the respect of everyone for the example she set.
"Everyone at the reunion kept referring to our side as a great side. To us we were just a group doing our best, with very little media coverage, but to be the first New Zealand side to win a World Championship makes our group really special.
"More titles have come the Silver Ferns way, but we were the first."
Easterbrook played as wing defence for the side. Her height (178cm) was a big asset. She was the tallest player in the team.
She said she is proud to have represented that team but said it is tough for Northlanders to crack the international level.
"I was the first and last person to play for New Zealand by representing Northland, with other Northlanders having represented the country from other provinces," she said.
"The pathway to the Silver Ferns is harder for Northland girls now due to so many changes in structures. There is now no actual Northland netball team."
A topic of conversation at the reunion surrounded how much the game has changed in the last 50 years as professionalism entered the sport.
Easterbrook said the athleticism is something to marvel at.
"Their level of fitness and the effort they put into this is mind-boggling. We saw this over this series," she said.
"The sport is very aggressive compared to when we played. Our emphasis was on skill, because we played it as a 'non-contact sport' in theory.
"The squads are much bigger with players, managers, strategists, statisticians, medical staff, player agents and marketing managers being all part of the Silver Ferns' set-up. Club-level teams often have something similar, although on a much smaller, less sophisticated set-up."
Despite there not being an ANZ Championship side based in Northland, Easterbrook said the code was still going strong.
"The grassroots of netball is still going strong and I see it when I go to Kensington Park with my 5-year-old grand-daughter, as she plays Future Ferns netball," she said.
"The keen players are still there in the schools and older age groups, as are the social players and the thousands of volunteers all over the country who keep the sport going. Umpires are still recruited from volunteers, and are so needed to keep the games going.
"Frosty mornings at Kensington Park are still there for aspiring Silver Ferns."
