Former Silver Ferns' coach Ruth Aitken mentored some of the greatest players New Zealand netball has ever known, and now she's a Dame.
Irene van Dyk, Maria Folau, Laura Langman, Temepara Bailey, and Casey Kopua - five players that could easily be named in an all-time greatest Silver Ferns' team.
They were all coached by Dame Ruth for large parts of their careers.
New Zealand coach Ruth Aitken during the New Zealand Silver Ferns versus Australian Diamonds Netball match at Vector Arena, Auckland, New Zealand on Sunday 5 September 2009. Photo: Andrew Cornaga / PHOTOSPORT Photo: Andrew Cornaga / PHOTOSPORT
Ruth Aitken has been made a Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the Queen's Birthday Honours.
She is just the third person to be made a Dame for services to netball, joining former Silver Ferns' coach Dame Lois Muir and current New Zealand coach Dame Noeline Taurua.
Judging by the layers in her voice, Dame Ruth can hardly believe it.
"It is pretty special yes. I was just looking back at some of the wonderful women in New Zealand that have been made Dames over a whole variety of fields and it does make you pinch yourself," Dame Ruth said.
When she got the letter from Government House, she had to read it a few times.
"I was pretty overwhelmed I would have to say, a lot of different emotions."
"Obviously incredibly honoured but also really mindful that there's been a lot of people that have been involved in the journey that I've had with the Silver Ferns.
"You are part of a team so you're not used to being identified individually in this way, but it is very humbling."
Irene Van Dyk & Ruth Aitken after the match, during New World Netball Series, New Zealand Silver Ferns v England at The ILT Velodrome, Invercargill, New Zealand. Thursday 6 October 2011 . Photo: Richard Hood photosport.co.nz Photo: Richard Hood
Shock appointment
The three-Test Silver Fern said coaching was something she grew into and came somewhat naturally with her background in teaching.
"I had a very short-lived Silver Ferns' playing career so it was pretty obvious that that wasn't going to be something that I was going to able to do for long."
But in late 2001 when she applied for the Silver Ferns' coaching role, she never expected she would actually get it.
"It was something I thought was quite a way in the future and I really just applied for it to kind of show Netball New Zealand that that was the direction I was wanting to go, and then I got appointed.
"So it was a bit of a shock to me and it was quite a shock to I think most people in New Zealand, it was like 'Ruth who?'."
Well people got to know who Ruth Aitken was pretty quickly after the side won the Netball World Cup in 2003, after a 16-year drought.
The Silver Ferns' also won gold at the 2006 and 2010 Commonwealth Games.
Dame Ruth coached the national side from 2002 to 2011 and is the most capped Silver Ferns' coach with 112 Tests.
"It is quite hard to believe even for me. There were some fabulously good times but some tough times in amongst it but that's sport really."
Dame Ruth was courtside for some of the most high-octane battles ever seen between the Silver Ferns' and arch-rivals Australia.
"My first Commonwealth Games in 2002 went to double over-time, the Commonwealth Games in 2010 went to double over-time. I mean they became monumental games so people certainly got value for money when they were watching.
"Amazing that two teams could be so evenly matched when the chips are down."
NZ coach Ruth Aitken shakes hands with Australian coach Norma Plummer after the 47-52 loss. International Netball - New Zealand Silver Ferns v Australian Diamonds Constellation Cup match at Arena Manawatu, Palmerston North, New Zealand on Thursday, 9 June 2011. Photo: Dave Lintott / photosport.co.nz Photo: Dave Lintott
We were very blessed
Dame Ruth almost chuckles in disbelief over the calibre of players she had during her tenure "we were very blessed."
"Especially Laura, Casey, and Maria who were 18 or 19 when they came in quite close together into the Silver Ferns.
"All three were incredibly humble and just didn't realise what they were themselves, but I could see something very special in them."
You get the sense that Dame Ruth was able to feel completely at peace after the trio won gold at the 2019 World Cup.
She had been there for the 2007 and 2011 World Cup losses those players had endured, and it looked destined they would finish their careers without that title.
Dame Ruth retired not long after the 2011 World Cup when the Silver Ferns' agonisingly lost to Australia in extra time.
Casey Williams and Ruth Aitken celebrate Commonwealth Games gold in 2010. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Her captain was Kopua, who had to fight back the tears after the match.
In 2015 the Silver Ferns' missed out again to Australia in the final.
She said it took a lot of guts for Langman and Kopua in particular to come out of retirement and put everything on the line again, with no guarantees they wouldn't just finish with more heart-ache.
"I took huge pride in the 2019 win with all three of them still being the spine in the Silver Ferns' team that won after the heartbreak.
"That's where sport is just brilliant when it can see people push through and come out the other side successfully. I did shed a bit of a tear and was just very proud of those amazing young women."
She said it reminded her of the group that went to Jamaica in 2003.
"The likes of Belinda Colling, Anna Stanley, and Lesley Rumball, who had been part of two or three one goal losses.
"I was absolutely honoured that they were still courageous enough to put their hand up and say 'we're going to have another crack and we're going to do it better this time' in 2003."
Netball World Cup 2019 winners, the Silver Ferns. Photo: © SWpix.com (t/a Photography Hub Ltd)
In the years following her Silver Ferns' coaching career Dame Ruth continued her involvement in the game.
That included coaching Singapore, working at Netball Waikato Bay of Plenty in high performance, and on World Netball's Coaching Advisory Panel.
She has been a member of the Sports Tribunal of New Zealand since 2017.
In 2021, as well as receiving a Service Award from World Netball, she was made a Life Member of Netball New Zealand.
NZ coaching stocks
Dame Ruth was Netball New Zealand Coaching Director from 2011 to 2013.
She believes New Zealand's netball coaching stocks are in really good health.
There was a period during the old trans-Tasman Championship when two of the five New Zealand franchises had Australian coaches.
All six franchises today have local head coaches as well as the six teams that sit underneath in the National Netball League, which was set up a few years ago.
"I think we're growing really great female coaches and it's great Netball New Zealand has got the programmes to support that.
"I think that Noeline will obviously have the Silver Ferns' crown as long as she would like it but when she decides to pass it on I think we've got some great developing coaches that are ready.
"It does take a while to grow your craft in coaching and I think that's where the stability that a number of the franchises have had, having the same coach for a number of years is really important."
Dame Ruth, who has lived in Paeroa for most of her life, is the patroness of Paeroa Netball and helps out where she can and is often down at the courts watching.
New Zealand winning 2003 Netball World Cup after defeating Australia in the final 49-47 Photo: © PHOTOSPORT www.photosport.co.nz
She took a completely new tack last year when she started working at the Hamilton District Court as the service manager for specialist courts, such as the youth court.
She's enjoyed the challenge of learning something completely new.
Dame Ruth enjoys watching the ANZ Premiership and Silver Ferns' games on TV and said netball would always be in her blood.
On the elite game being more physical now, Dame Ruth said the players were well conditioned for it.
"There's a balance between I think being a hands-off kind of sport and just getting in there and it really being intense.
"The reality has always been that when we've played international netball it's been at that level so I think the fact that it's now in our ANZ Premiership is actually very good for our development in terms of preparation for it."
During her tenure Dame Ruth always saw the Silver Ferns' as an environment for developing young women and knows that will continue.
"It's great to see young women developing such resilience and confidence in life. The Silver Ferns is a wonderful people development place I suppose because you get knocked into shape pretty quickly," she laughs.
