Tilly Hirst

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Tilly Hirst
Vercoe in 1965
Personal information
Full name Tilly Titihuia Rangimatau Hirst (née Vercoe)
Born (1941-09-17)17 September 1941
Died 4 June 2021(2021-06-04) (aged 79)
Height 5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Netball career
Playing position(s): GD, WD, GK
Years National team(s) Caps
1967–71 New Zealand 19
Medal record
Representing  New Zealand
Netball World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1967 Perth Team
Silver medal – second place 1971 Kingston Team

Tilly Titihuia Rangimatau Hirst (née Vercoe; 17 September 1941 – 4 June 2021) was a New Zealand netball player. She was a member of the New Zealand team that won the 1967 World Netball Championships.

Early life[edit]

Hirst was born Tilly Titihuia Rangimatau Vercoe on 17 September 1941, the daughter of Ruhina and Raharuhi Vercoe.[1][2] Of Māori descent, she was affiliated with Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Kea Ngāti Tuarā, and Ngāti Manawa.[3] She was educated at Rotorua High School from 1955 to 1958.[3]

Netball career[edit]

At 1.75 metres (5 ft 9 in) in height, Vercoe was regarded as being a tall netballer player in her day, and was known as a dynamic defender, playing as a goal keeper, goal defence or wing defence.[1] She represented the Rotorua provincial team between 1960 and 1972, winning the North Island provincial championships every year from 1962 to 1967, except 1963, and was a member of the North Island team from 1963 to 1966, 1968 to 1970 and in 1972.[3]

Vercoe was first selected to play for New Zealand at the 1967 World Netball Championships in Perth, and was also named as the team's vice-captain, with Joan Harnett as captain.[1] At that tournament, New Zealand won all seven of their matches, and were crowned world champions.[4] In 1969, Vercoe toured Australia with the New Zealand netball team, with the two-test series being shared 1–1.[1] She retired as a player after the 1971 World Netball Championships in Kingston, at which New Zealand lost just one match, against Australia 48–42, to finish as runners-up.[1][5] Over her career, Vercoe played 19 international games for New Zealand.[1]

In 1996, the world-champion 1967 New Zealand netball team was inducted into the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame.[6] In 2018, Hirst was inducted into the Rotorua Boys' High School Hall of Fame, which includes people who attended the school when it was the co-educational Rotorua High School.[3][6]

Later life and death[edit]

After retiring from netball, Hirst worked at the Rotorua police station, undertaking clerical duties.[6] She was married to Peter Hirst, who died in 2013.[7] The couple were active members of the Rotorua Baháʼí community, with Peter Hirst serving as the group's secretary.[2][7] Tilly Hirst died on 4 June 2021, aged 79.[2][6][8]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Tilly Hirst". Netball New Zealand. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "Tilly Hirst death notice". Rotorua Daily Post. 5 June 2021. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d Sparks, Zizi (2 June 2018). "More names added to Rotorua Boys' High School Hall of Fame". Rotorua Daily Post. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Women Netball II World Championship 1967". Todor 66. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  5. ^ "England third". The Times. No. 58072. 14 January 1971. p. 12.
  6. ^ a b c d Beck, David (9 June 2021). "'Decent', 'loyal' former Silver Fern mourned". Rotorua Daily Post. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Obituary: Peter gets last of wishes". Rotorua Daily Post. 27 March 2013. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  8. ^ Beck, David (8 June 2021). "Obituary: 'Fiercely loyal' former Silver Fern Tilly Hirst remembered as one of Rotorua's finest". Rotorua Daily Post. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
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