LEAGUE MUM’S FIGHT FOR HER GIRL
The sporty star finds inspiration at home
On the sports field, Krystal Rota is fearsome – an abrasive, toughtackling forward for the Warriors and Kiwi Ferns.
Yet off it, the loving mumof-two displays tenderness, flying in the face of her staunch rugby league persona as she cares for her fouryear-old daughter Nikayla, who has been plagued by serious kidney issues since she was born.
“It’s not been easy,” tells Krystal, 32. “I have nine medications to give my girl every day and not having my mum here any more has been tough, but my dad and stepmum have been my backbone.”
Raised in Manurewa, rugby league was in Krystal’s blood. Her father Roger was a talented player and prominent coach, although once she took up the game aged 15, it wasn’t welcomed by everyone.
“To play league was frowned upon by the women in the family because it was seen as a man’s game,” she explains. “But I was the girl who broke the mould. I was an aggressive netball player and I immediately liked the physicality of the game.”
The talented sportswoman thrived in the game, first making the Kiwi Ferns’ training squad before just missing out on the 2008 Rugby League World Cup.
Putting family before her sport, she took a three-year break from league following the birth of son La Ricco in 2010, and then to care for her ailing mother, who had been
diagnosed with cancer.
Following her mum’s tragic passing in 2013, a determined Krystal took to the field with renewed vigour and the following year fulfilled her dream to play for the Ferns.
She then took time off to give birth to her daughter
Nikayla, but her elation turned to serious concern when her newborn started having seizures. Examinations revealed the wee tot had nephrotic syndrome – the same debilitating kidney disease as All Black great Jonah Lomu – which requires many operations, daily infusions, regular blood transfusions, then dialysis before, in many cases, a transplant is necessary.
“I didn’t cope too well with the news,” recalls Krystal. “For a while, I didn’t want to see anyone and
I shut everyone out.”
Krystal spent three months living with her sick daughter at Starship children’s hospital before learning to administer dialysis. However, after tests showed the baby’s diseased kidneys were functioning at just over 10%, a transplant became a priority.
It was Krystal’s expartner and the father of her children, Henry, who stepped in to donate his kidney.
Krystal was relieved when the operation, which required complicated surgery, with her daughter’s tiny organs needing to be moved to fit the adult kidney, was deemed a success.
But after Nikayla – who she describes as “sweet and shy” – fell ill early last year, and the replacement kidney was found to be functioning at only 57%, the doting mum knew her daughter required urgent help.
“Part of the initial transplant had not gone correctly, which caused urine to backflow and resulted in damage to Nikayla’s replacement kidney,” says Krystal. “Surgeons tried a procedure to put gel in the gaps to stop the backflow, but they weren’t confident it was successful. At first, I was mad because this should never have happened, but I understand mistakes happen. I always pray nothing goes wrong, but it did and I have to try to stay positive.”
For Krystal, who personally administers medication to her daughter, daily life can be a grind. With a tube connected
to her tummy to give Nikayla the necessary nutrients, she is also put on a pump to flush through the 1.2 litres of water each day to help her adult kidney function.
Mum knows best
“To look at Nikayla, she looks completely normal, but I know when something is wrong because her eyes sink in, and physically she can become quite drained and her appetite suppressed,” explains Krystal, adding she’d give her own kidney in a heartbeat if it was a match.
“It is a constant worry – I just hope and pray that the kidney lasts for as long as possible, and when the time comes for another kidney transplant, the technology has evolved so there is something new available for her.”
Juggling training and looking after her daughter has been hugely demanding, but somehow, because of the pain and stress she has experienced with her daughter, her beloved sport has offered her the perfect release.
“It has made me realise that life is short and we need to make the most of every day,” says Krystal.
“On the field, I used to feel these surges of fear, but now I am fearless and mentally tougher, which is because of what I’ve been through with my girl.”