Casey May Kopua (née Williams; born 19 June 1985) is a retired New Zealand international

netball Netball is a ball sport played on a rectangular court by two teams of seven players. The primary objective is to shoot a ball through the defender's goal ring while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own. It is one of a ...

player and former captain of the

New Zealand national netball team The New Zealand national netball team, commonly known as the Silver Ferns ( or ), represent Netball New Zealand in international netball tournaments such as the Netball World Cup, the Netball at the Commonwealth Games, Commonwealth Games, the ...

, the Silver Ferns, and the

Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic are a New Zealand netball team based in Hamilton. The team were formed in 1998, following the merger of Waikato Wildcats and Bay of Plenty Magic. In 1997, Wildcats and Magic had been founder members of the Coca-Col ...

. Kopua became a member of the

(the Silver Ferns) in 2004, making her on-court debut in 2005 against Barbados. She also played in the New Zealand U21 netball team that won gold at the 2005 World Youth Netball Championships in Florida. During her career she has won gold medals at the

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

and

2010 Commonwealth Games The 2010 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Delhi 2010, were an international multi-sport event for the members of the Commonwealth that was held in Delhi, India, from 3 to 14 October 201 ...

and the

2009 World Netball Series The 2009 World Netball Series was the inaugural tournament of the World Netball Series. The 2009 Series was held at MEN Arena in Manchester, England from 9–11 October, and was the first major trial of the new FastNet rules that were announced by ...

, and silver medals at the

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

and

2011 World Netball Championships The 2011 World Netball Championships () was the 13th edition of the INF Netball World Cup, a quadrennial premier event in international netball. It was held in Singapore from 3–10 July. All 48 matches were played at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. ...

. In 2008, she co-captained the team with

Laura Langman Laura Robyn Langman (born 16 April 1986) is a retired New Zealand international netball player, who last played domestic netball for the Sunshine Coast Lightning in the Australian Super Netball league. Primarily a midcourt player, Langman is ...

, stepping into the role of acting captain later that year following an injury to Julie Seymour. In July 2009, Kopua became the 23rd captain of the Silver Ferns, taking over from Seymour who retired from the game. Casey Williams

In domestic netball, Kopua played her entire career with the

, starting in 2003. During the

2008 ANZ Championship season The 2008 ANZ Championship season was the inaugural season of the ANZ Championship. The 2008 season began on 5 April and concluded on 28 July. Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic were minor premiers after finishing top of the table following the regula ...

, she was named the Holden Captiva player of the championship, winning a new car. In the

2011 Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours 2011 for the Commonwealth realms were announced on 11 June 2011 in the United Kingdom,United Kingdom: New Zealand,Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have r ...

, alongside former Silver Ferns coach Ruth Aitken, for services to

netball in New Zealand Netball is the most popular women's sport in New Zealand, in terms of player participation and public interest. With the national team, the Silver Ferns, currently ranked second in the world, netball maintains a high profile in New Zealand. As in ...

. On 11 October 2014, Kopua became the most capped New Zealand netball captain in history, playing her 63rd test as captain of the team in the 3rd test of the 2014 Constellation Cup against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. In the fourth quarter of that match, Kopua suffered a suspected dislocated patella (knee injury). Scans later revealed that Kopua also ruptured her patella tendon. Three days later Kopua underwent surgery to repair her patella tendon. In 2017, still rehabing from her surgery, Kopua announced her retirement from the Silver Ferns, stating she would return to the Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic in 2018, but would not be available for international selection. Kopua was coaxed back to the national team by

Noeline Taurua Dame Noeline Taurua (born 26 March 1968) is a New Zealand international netball coach and former representative player. She is currently head coach of the New Zealand national netball team, the Silver Ferns. Early life Taurua was born in Papa ...

for the

2019 Netball World Cup The 2019 Netball World Cup (also known as the 2019 Vitality Netball World Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 15th edition of the INF Netball World Cup. It was held from 12–21 July 2019 at the Liverpool Arena in Liverpool, England with matches ...

. New Zealand would go on to win the World Cup, with Kopua being named the grand final's player of the match. She retired from netball after the World Cup. In 2024, Kopua was an inaugural inductee to the Netball New Zealand Hall of Fame. In 2025, Kopua made her return to netball in Round 8 of the Australian Suncorp Super Netball league as a replacement player for GIANTS Netball after defender Jodi-Ann Ward ruptured her ACL. In Round 9, Kopua helped the GIANTS achieve just their second win of the season.

Personal life

In December 2012, Kopua married Hamilton lawyer Terry Kopua. On 21 May 2016, the couple announced the birth of their daughter. Following the 2019 Netball World Cup, Kopua revealed that she was unknowingly pregnant during the tournament. The couple had a second child, a boy, in 2020, and another son on Christmas Eve 2021.

References

External links