World Cup star Mahoney wants repeat success

The dream is over, the goal achieved and life is returning to normal.
That's the reality for Rebecca Mahoney, Wairarapa's Rugby World Cup-winning Black Fern.
Back on the family farm in Pahiatua last week, Mahoney said: "The calves haven't managed to brown shower me yet, but they keep on trying. I guess that's as near to reality as it gets."
Mahoney has just returned from England and her second world cup campaign. "This tournament was just as intensive as the last one four years ago in Canada, but we had better backup this time and were really together as a team," she said.
"In terms of women's rugby it was massive. It was beamed to 120 countries around the world, reflecting the growth of the game worldwide."
The publicity afforded the world cup in England only added to the whole experience.
"Wherever we went in England, people would stop us in the street and congratulate us on our previous games," Mahoney said. Mahoney played in the games against South Africa, Australia, Wales and during the France game, either wearing the No10 shirt or at fullback. However, she admitted having enjoyed so much playing time it was a disappointment to miss out on playing in the final.
She said coach Brian Evans decided to stick with the combination that finished the semifinal.
"It would have been nice to have a run, but that was his call and I had to go along with it.
"The final itself was a great experience. Sean Fitzpatrick - he's quite cute - arrived to present the girls playing in the final with their shirts.
"There were heaps of Kiwis in the crowd, so we had terrific support. After the final whistle the feeling was a bit surreal. We'd done it. This was the culmination of four years' hard work and we'd beaten the world with what was basically minimal buildup. For instance, up to the time we played South Africa in the very first game, we hadn't played together as a team until we took the field."
When asked who provided the toughest opposition, Mahoney was quick to reply.
"England, it had to be England" she said. "They'd been together for 35 days before the cup and were well drilled, but they seemed to lack that natural ability to sidestep or feint. We were asked the keys to our success and we put it down to things like playing touch in the backyard as kids. I'm sure this is what breeds the Kiwi flair and success.
"We were a skilled team though, all 26 of us, and we had brilliant coaches. So a combination of all that produced a winning side. And the girls themselves were a great bunch. They were all so different - teachers, students, farmers, lawyers. There was the usual mix of comedians, musicians, jokers and entertainers. They were a pleasure to be with. There were no individuals, just one team. That was the best thing of all.
"I celebrated my 27th birthday over there and they all chipped in with a birthday cake and bought me a silver bracelet for a present. I appreciated that."
Mahoney was full of praise for the way the English Rugby Union organised the whole event.
"They really put on a top show. Everything was taken care of and things worked like clockwork. We couldn't have asked for more."
Teams to watch out for in the future? "Definitely the South Africans," Mahoney said. "Enormous resources are being poured in to the women's game over there and boy, have they got some big units in their team."
Where to from here for women's rugby in New Zealand?
"We have to build on this success," Mahoney said. "We need England's structure to go to the next level again. The closeness of the score in the final suggested the rest of the world is catching us up. I would love to see a proposal put to the NZRFU by women's rugby for us to play Australia every year and maybe organise to get England touring out here..
"And how cool would it be to see some more Wairarapa girls develop into international players and feature strongly in the future. The likes of Shakira Baker and Emma Aldworth. "
And as for "Bex" Mahoney herself? "I've got quite a bit of unfinished business on the rugby front ... I've got at least one more world cup left in me. I'll be 31 by then, but I'll be up for it."