Double Olympic gold medallist Portia Woodman-Wickliffe has admitted she performed poorly in her final Olympic match. Prior to the Games, she had announced her intention to retire from international rugby after Paris.
The 33-year-old ended her career on a high note on Wednesday as the Black Ferns sevens team triumphed over Canada, securing back-to-back gold medals and New Zealand’s first in Paris.
Despite the victory, Woodman-Wickliffe was critical of her own performance. “I think I played my worst game out there – a yellow card and another penalty. Man, that was terrible, I thought I learned my lesson from Rio,” she confessed to the media afterward.
In addition to receiving a yellow card for a high tackle on Charity Williams, New Zealand was trailing Canada 12-7 at halftime. Yet, Woodman-Wickliffe said the team remained confident they could secure the win. “It was just about being who we are and keeping things simple and just loving the game. I think that’s what we showed out there.”
She expressed it was a privilege to win gold and represent the fern. “To do it with these girls, we’ve got some young players coming through the ranks and then we’ve got players who have been together a long time, through a lot of highs and lows. [I’m] Grateful.”
Looking ahead, Woodman-Wickliffe lightheartedly mentioned her future plans: “Lounging on the couch, eating Maccas and KFC and popping out babies.” She is married to Renee and they have a daughter.
Woodman-Wickliffe’s impressive career also includes two 15-a-side Rugby World Cups, two Commonwealth Games medals, an Olympic silver from Rio, and being the first woman to score 200 tries in the Rugby World Sevens Series.
Tyla King, New Zealand’s most capped women’s sevens player, had also announced that Paris would be her final tournament. Teammate Stacey Waaka praised both players as “awesome humans” and highly skilled athletes.
“The mana and the respect they hold within the girls within the group – it’s going to be missed but we send them off with our blessings,” Waaka told Sky Sport. She shared that helping them win gold in their final match was a special experience.
“It’s a surreal feeling, surreal moment. Some [players] in their first Olympic campaign, some second and for some it’s their last. To see those girls off and to seize this opportunity we had I’m speechless really.”