Margharet Norma Matenga (née Kamana; born ) is a former

Cook Islands The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately . The Cook Islands' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers of ocean. Avarua is its ...

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, coach and administrator. She played for both 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 ...

and Cook Islands national netball team and was the first Pacific Islander to play for the Silver Ferns. She is the daughter of Cook Islands MP Teanua Kamana. Matenga was born in

Rarotonga Rarotonga is the largest and most populous of the Cook Islands. The island is volcanic, with an area of , and is home to almost 75% of the country's population, with 10,898 of a total population of 15,040. The Parliament of the Cook Islands, Coo ...

. After playing senior tennis as a teenager, she moved to

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

in 1973 to pursue a professional

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

career. In 1974 she moved to

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

, where she joined a local Pacific Islands Church netball team. In 1975 she trialed for the Silver Ferns and was selected for the

1975 World Netball Championships The 1975 World Netball Championships was the fourth edition of the INF Netball World Cup, a quadrennial premier event in international netball. It took place from 22 August to 4 September and was held in Auckland, New Zealand. It featured 11 teams ...

as a reserve. In 1978 she was selected for the team, becoming the first Pacific Islander to play for the Silver Ferns. She subsequently competed in three World Netball Tournaments, as well as the

1985 World Games The 1985 World Games were the second edition of the World Games, an international multi-sport event held in London. Three main venues were used, the main one being the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre. The opening ceremony was held at the ...

. During the 1980s, Matenga formed a notable shooting partnership with fellow Silver Fern

Margaret Forsyth Margaret Hine Forsyth (28 December 1961 – 4 May 2021) was a New Zealand netball player and coach, and politician. Born in Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton, she was selected for the New Zealand national netball team, the Silver Ferns, in 1979 at ...

, known together as the "two Margs". In 1989 Matenga returned to the Cook Islands, where she played for and later coached the Cook Islands national netball team, and later served as president of the Cook Islands Netball Association. She stood unsuccessfully as an independent for

Titikaveka Titikaveka is one of the five districts that make up the island of Rarotonga in the Cook Islands. It is located in the south of the island, to the south of the districts of Ngatangiia and Avarua, and east of the district of Arorangi Arorangi is o ...

in the

2018 Cook Islands general election General elections were held in the Cook Islands on 14 June 2018 to elect the 24 members of the 17th Cook Islands Parliament. The nationalist Cook Islands Party, led by the Prime Minister, Henry Puna, attempted to win a third consecutive term in ...

. She was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

, for services to netball, in the 1990 New Years honours. She ran as a candidate for the

Cook Islands United Party The Cook Islands United Party is a political party in the Cook Islands The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately . The Co ...

at the 2022 election, losing the seat of

by just three votes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matenga, Margharet Living people 1956 births New Zealand international netball players Netball players at the 1985 World Games Cook Island netball players New Zealand Members of the Order of the British Empire 1979 World Netball Championships players 1983 World Netball Championships players 1987 World Netball Championships players New Zealand netball players 20th-century New Zealand sportswomen