Hockley, Jelley, Cocksedge recognised for achievements

The Herald spoke to three of the top sportspeople who have been recognised in the 2021 New Year honours list.

Ms Deborah (Debbie) Ann Hockley

Companion of the NZ Order of Merit for services to cricket

Almost 20 years to the day of her greatest triumph in a long and successful cricket career, White Ferns great Debbie Hockley continues to strive in making the women’s game strong in New Zealand.

Hockley was first made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 1999 New Year honours before helping lead the White Ferns to victory in the 2000 World Cup final, the nation’s only World Cup cricket title.

Hockley, who has been president of New Zealand Cricket since 2016, having been the first woman elected to the position in the 122-year history of the organisation, said the latest honour was a surprise.

“I really was a stunned mullet. I received an email from the Honours unit and I have to admit I thought someone was possibly pulling a prank on me.”

Hockley had an international cricket career representing New Zealand between 1979 and 2000. In 2013 she became the fourth woman and the first New Zealand woman to be inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame.

Reflecting on her career, the triumph over Australia at Bert Sutcliffe Oval was the highlight after coming so close to claiming the World Cup in previous years.

“I knew that tournament would be my last . . . after having attended four previous World Cups and being part of a successful team that had made two finals that we had unfortunately lost, winning that World Cup final out at Lincoln College was unquestionably the highlight of what had been a long time trying to get my hands on that jolly trophy,” said Hockley.

Since retiring Hockley has been a strong advocate for women’s cricket.

She contributed to a major review by New Zealand Cricket in 2015 of the state of women’s cricket nationally.

“We’ve got a fair way to go but the fact that we’re recognising that fact we need to put more resources into girls and females playing cricket, I’m delighted with that. I can’t help but be an advocate for that considering I had so many opportunities myself.”

Mr Albert Archibald (Arch) Jelley

Companion of the NZ Order of Merit for services to athletics and the game of bridge

The 98-year-old’s vast list of achievements include coaching Sir John Walker to his gold medal triumph at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games. Forty years on, Jelley yet again made his presence felt at Olympic level, as 1500m runner Hamish Carson qualified for the Rio Games under his tutelage.

At the time, Jelley was the oldest top-level coach in New Zealand sport at 94.

Jelley says Walker’s Olympic gold was a career highlight, but known as a calm coach he said the most animated he ever got during a race was the famous 1974 battle between Walker and Tanzanian great Filbert Bayi at the Christchurch Commonwealth Games. Bayi edged Walker in the 1500m final with both runners breaking the world record time.

“My brother told me that’s the only time he’d seen me excited at the end of a race. After the race I was looking at my watch, stood up from my seat and yelled out ‘it’s a world record’. Which is very unlike me,” he said.

Twenty of the athletes he coached represented New Zealand, with 12 competing either in the Olympics or world championships.

Between 1976 and 1993 he was appointed as coach or manager to 12 New Zealand or Oceania teams, including three Olympic Games teams. Outside of athletics, he has been involved with the Mt Albert Bridge Club and New Zealand Bridge where he has been a bridge tutor since 1996 and was president from 2003 to 2013.

“It’s a great honour for me and my family. But also a tribute to the dozens and dozens of amateur coaches across NZ. “Without amateur coaches, most sports would perish,” Jelley said.

Ms Kendra Margaret Cocksedge

Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to rugby

Cocksedge has been a trailblazer for women’s rugby and in 2018 was the first woman to win New Zealand Rugby’s top award, the Kelvin R Tremain Memorial Player of the Year. The Black Ferns halfback has played in more than 50 tests, having made her test debut in 2007, and is the second-most capped Black Fern.

She is a two-time World Cup winner as a member of the 2010 and 2017 successful campaigns. She was named World Rugby Women’s Player of the Year and New Zealand Rugby Women’s Player of the Year in 2015.

Cocksedge said she thought the initial email informing her of the honour was spam.

“It’s a huge honour and pretty special,” she said. “It’s amazing to reflect on what I’ve achieved in my career. I never thought I’d achieve what I’ve achieved and this is that icing on the top of the cake.”