Rugby World Cup hero Karne Hesketh looks at his son Cohen and grins. It’s rare moments like these, when he, his fiancée Carla Hohepa and their three-year-old are all together, revelling in the sunshine at their Te Awamutu home, that make their time spent apart and the constant travel worth it. It was just six months ago that Kiwi-born, Japan-based Karne made sporting history in the 2015 Rugby World Cup with a famous 80th-minute try that saw minnows Japan beat the mighty South Africa. He broke the hearts of Springbok fans worldwide and was instantly propelled to international recognition.
But this year, it may well be his fiancée, Carla Hohepa, who grabs the rugby limelight!The keen rugby player has her hopes pinned on being selected for the New Zealand Women’s Sevens team to compete in the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil. If her dreams come true, it will be Karne who watches proudly from the stands as his fiancée guns for Kiwi rugby glory. But either way, there’s no denying that this couple make the perfect team.
Family means a lot to Carla and Karne, both 30. When Karne reflects on his now famous World Cup match, he confesses that apart from the historic win, the most special thing about it was that he got to see his mother, Brit- based social worker Christina, for the first time in 10 years. “Having her there, cheering me on and coming to our after-game dinners was amazing,” grins the Napier-born hunk. “She loved it!”
Karne, who has played for Japanese club side Munakata Sanix Blues since 2010, received a hero’s welcome when he returned to his adopted home country after the World Cup. “It was surreal,” he recalls. “The support in Japan – and from New Zealand and around the world – has been incredible. It’s definitely made all the hard work worth it.” But no-one is prouder than Carla, who was watching her fiancé from their home in the Waikato when he made history in the sport. “I couldn’t get leave to go over to the UK due to my Sevens training schedule, so we were all here watching the game,” she remembers. “For me, there were mixed emotions. I was so proud and happy, but also sad I wasn’t there. We Skyped afterwards, but he was a bit shocked, so he didn’t say much! It made all those months apart worth it. Far out! It was amazing to see him achieve something so incredible.”
Karne and Carla spend time away from son Cohen for their careers, but the devoted dad is confident their sacrifice will pay off for the family.
Family support
Carla knows better than most the sacrifices Karne has experienced. They’re the same sacrifices she has endured – shuttling herself and Cohen between NZ and Japan, with separations of up to six months at a time as they pursue their separate rugby careers.
Since the Women’s Sevens team went professional last year, the pressure has become even greater for the couple. First meeting as teenage players for Dunedin club Alhambra Union, it would be another few years before fate brought the pair together, when they were seated next to each other on a flight home following a rugby dinner.
These days, they are a long way from Dunedin, living in a two-storey beachside pad in rural Fukuoka, where they enjoy frequent barbecues with friends. Japan holds a special significance for the couple – and not just because Karne plays rugby there. It’s also where he proposed in 2011, in a ritzy restaurant. “I tried to get down on bended knee,” laughs Karne, “but there wasn’t the space, so I ended up with my bum half on the chair!”
The following year brought another significant event, with Carla giving birth to Cohen in Japan in 2012. Just weeks later, she was back on the field. She recalls, “I was still breastfeeding when I went to my first camp.” When Karne and Carla are training, Cohen lives with Carla’s parents, Debbie, 48, and Selwyn, 50, who are both former Waikato rugby players, in Te Awamutu. “We couldn’t do it without them,” Carla says. “They are amazing, but Cohen never forgets his daddy! When he sees Karne, whether it’s after two days or six months, he’s always so happy. It’s like they’re two peas in a pod.”
When in Japan, the lively youngster attends a local kindergarten in Fukuoka, where he has plenty of friends and learns Japanese. He’s also learning English and Te Reo. The tricky juggle of Karne and Carla’s rugby careers and family life means that any wedding plans have been put on hold. This year’s focus is the Olympics and Carla is currently waiting the announcement of the team. For Karne, this also means his dreams of having a second child are still a way off. “I really want another kid,” he grins, “but this year is all about Carla. The fact that we understand each other’s careers is huge. And in a few years, we’ll have done our family proud.”
Carla and Karne in action. His World Cup try for Japan against South Africa made him a hero.
