From the famous haka against England to serving the community, the life of All Black Norm Hewitt

Former All Black and Wellington Lions captain Norm Hewitt was a dynamic and often inspirational hooker whose off-field fame was later hugely magnified by his charity work and a much-publicised Dancing With the Stars competition win.

Hewitt (Ngati Kahungunu, Ngati Tuwharetoa) has died at the age of 55 following a long, arduous, and silent battle with motor neurone disease – the same illness that took fellow rugby legends Jarred Cunningham, Joost van der Westhuizen and Doddie Weir.

Hewitt (1.78m, 108kg) played 296 representative matches during a memorable first-class career spanning 13 seasons.

He represented Hawke’s Bay, Southland, the Maori All Blacks and most famously in the capital, captained the Wellington Lions to NPC glory in the astonishing 2000 final against Canterbury in Christchurch.

Hewitt grew up in Porangahau, southern Hawke’s Bay. He attended Te Aute College which was a challenging experience; exposed to violence, drugs and alcohol at a young age.

Rugby was an outlet and Hewitt made his first-class debut for Hawke’s Bay aged 20 in 1988.

Hewitt rose to national prominence with a herculean display as captain for Hawke’s Bay in their 29-17 victory against the touring British and Irish Lions at McLean Park in Napier in 1993.

A tight tussle was broken open early in the second half when Hewitt bumped off Tony Underwood in a movement that later led to fullback Jarrod Cunningham slotting a penalty. Hewitt also scored a try.

Simon Tremain played blindside flanker that day and scored a try. The leading real estate director is the son of All Blacks legend Kel Tremain and reflected in 2017: “Norm led from the front that day with a series of barnstorming runs. He was a great man to have, absolutely inspiring at his best.”

Hewitt played 91 games for Hawke’s Bay (45 wins) and debuted for the All Blacks on the UK tour later that season.

Hewitt had debuted for the Maori All Blacks in 1990 and would feature 15 times (12 wins) in the next dozen seasons. Notable international scalps included Fiji, Argentina, Samoa and Scotland.

All Black #938 played behind All Blacks skipper Sean Fitzpatrick (348 first-class games, 302 wins) which offered few Test opportunities in an era where substitutes were used sparingly.

Hewitt played nine Tests for the All Blacks, the last being in a 40-10 win over England in 1998. Hewitt made his Test debut at the 1995 Rugby World Cup, coming off the bench in a famous 43-19 pool win over Ireland which introduced Jonah Lomu to the world stage. Hewitt also started in the 145-17 thrashing of Japan but didn’t appear in the knockout games.

In 23 appearances for the All Blacks, Hewitt had 21 wins and two draws. He was part of the 1996 team that toured South Africa and won a series in the republic for the first time.

Perhaps the most memorable incident in his All Blacks career was in 1997. Before the All Blacks 25-8 win over the English at Old Trafford in Manchester, Hewitt was involved in a haka “face-off” with England’s Richard Cockerill.

Hewitt later reflected in the New Zealand Herald: “It was like there were only two people on that field,” he said. “At one point I thought to myself ‘if I had a patu [club] I would have cut his head off’ and I was going into that place.

“I don’t know why… it was a big game, and we were going to war and he’s my enemy, [a] kill or be killed scenario. I likened it to that and yeah, I suppose it is now part of that folklore much like when the Irish stepped over the line with Buck Shelford.”

Hewitt was a foundation stalwart of the Hurricanes, missing just one of their matches in the first five years of Super 12. Hurricane #15 made 66 appearances between 1996 and 2001, leading the Hurricanes to their first playoff appearance in 1997.

In Wellington, Hewitt will forever be remembered as captain of the Wellington Lions who conquered Canterbury 34-29 in the 2000 NPC final in Christchurch.

Staggeringly, 36 of the 44 players on display were internationals. In Canterbury’s starting XV the only non-All Black was winger Marika Vunibaka, and he appeared in two Rugby World Cups for Fiji.

With two tries Wellington winger Jonah Lomu won most of the individual plaudits but Hewitt played much of the second half with a broken arm still managing to tackle, hit rucks, and throw to the lineout.

He was publicly pillioried for his valour by government ACC minister Ruth Dyson who called him a poor role model.

But in 2016 Dyson saw things quite differently, describing Hewitt as “courage personified” for his work in strengthening whanau to bring about change that stops violence.

Hewitt is the fourth member of the iconic 2000 Lions team to have passed. The others are Lomu, Jerry Collins and tighthead prop Morné van der Merwe.

Hewitt’s rugby career was immortalised in The Flight of the Conchords TV show starring Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie. Clement revealed just last month the character Murray Hewitt (played by Rhys Darby) was named after two rugby icons – Murray Mexted and Norm Hewitt.

Controlling anger and booze was a challenge for Hewitt. He hit rock bottom in 1999 when he drunkenly broke into the wrong Queenstown hotel room. He later broke down in tears at a press conference and apologised. It was the start of his pathway to sobriety.

Hewitt cathartically addressed his tumour in an explosive 2001 autobiography Gladiator: the Norm Hewitt Story. It sold over 30,000 copies.

He dedicated much of the latter half of his life to helping young people achieve their potential.

His work saw him become a respected public speaker and work across several organisations, from Air New Zealand to Downer Group, to NZ Steel and the NZ Army, with a major focus on staff well-being.

He was also a kahukura for E Tu Whanau, a Maori kaupapa that focuses on strengthening whanau to bring about change that stops violence.

In 2005 Hewitt won the inaugural season of New Zealand’s Dancing with the Stars, raising nearly $200,000 for Books in Homes.

Toughness is a family trait. Norm’s brother Rob Hewitt was rescued after three nights in the sea off Porirua’s coast in 2006. The Dominion Post reported Rob was “severely dehydrated, nibbled by sea lice, cooked by the sun and covered in boils, he was in bad shape, with his skin peeling off him but, nonetheless, miraculously alive after 75 hours of bobbing in the water.”

Hewitt coached rugby at Hutt International Boys’ School, St Patrick’s College, Silverstream and across Wellington in various age group setups.

Aaron Jones, an experienced, licensed World Rugby/New Zealand Rugby coach educator who runs Rugby Code in Wellington paid tribute to Norm on Facebook.

“You have given so much to our young men, Norm, and it was a pleasure working with you in our 16s space. A man who instilled quality values and standards among the teams he was aligned with.”

Hewitt is survived by his wife Arlene (a former world aerobics champion & schoolteacher), and his two tamariki, Elizabeth and Alexander, a talented rugby player in his own right.

Sources: Rugby Almanack, New Zealand Herald, Te Ao Maori News, Club Rugby