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‘In my shadow’: Black Ferns 7s star’s playful jab at brother Noah Hotham
By Finn Morton
There’s nothing quite like a sibling rivalry. Jazmin Felix-Hotham and younger brother Noah may be more than 12,800 kilometres apart right now, but the pair are both gearing up for a massive weekend.
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Felix-Hotham, 23, is expected to suit up in the black jersey once again when New Zealand take the field at Dignity Health Sports Park for the next SVNS Series leg in Los Angeles from Friday.
As for Noah, who captained New Zealand at the World Rugby U20 Championship in South Africa last year, the halfback will start for the Crusaders against the Waratahs on Saturday evening.
The No. 9 will partner childhood friend Taha Kemara in the halves during Melbourne’s Super Round, with one-Test All Black Mitchell Drummond set to come off the bench at AAMI Park.
It’s clear that both siblings have already achieved quite impressive feats at the professional level. There’s no question about that.
But what remains unanswered, as any sibling out there can relate to, is who ‘the best’ truly is out of the pair. It’s a question that Jazmin had “been dreading” before it was asked in late January.
“That question hasn’t come up before and I’ve been dreading it because I’ve been hoping to keep him in my shadow for as long as possible but the day’s come,” Felix-Hotham told RugbyPass at SVNS Perth.
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“I still like to say that I can beat him in a 10-metre sprint race but anything beyond that, he’s got me.
“When it comes to rugby, to be honest, I think I’m a better box kicker than him so there’s probably different skill sets that I’m better at and he’s better at.
“Ask him the question and he’ll say a different thing.
“Me and him are the youngest siblings so as always, being the older sister I need to keep him in my shadow.”
It was all said in good fun with Felix-Hotham smiling and even laughing her way through one of the all-time interviews at Perth’s HBF Park.
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Felix-Hotham, who is a medallist at both the Rugby World Cup Sevens and Commonwealth Games, played a big role in New Zealand’s drought-breaking win at SVNS Vancouver last weekend.
But it’s all to play for ahead of SVNS LAX. From late afternoon on Friday to Sunday, the 12 best women’s and men’s teams will battle it out for glory.
The event promises to be another important marker for the Black Ferns Sevens as they continue to build towards greatness after a tough start to the season.
“We had the likes of Sarah Hirini go out this year with her knee, Stacey (Waaka), Kelly Brazier, but the fact that we’ve gone through some moments that have been really quite hard in the past in terms of the rugby game, coming fifth in Perth was a real eye-opener for us,” Felix-Hotham’s teammate, Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, told RugbyPass after the final in Vancouver.
“But to come out here, we’ve got some really new girls, we took out all the excess stuff that didn’t need to be there and made the game simple: get the ball wide, create space and play from there.
“Our game’s not perfect, we’ve got a long way to go,” she added.
The SVNS Series leg in Los Angeles is from March 1 to 3 and tickets can be bought HERE.
