The Otago Daily Times counts down the 150 greatest moments in Otago sport.
No 93: Nicol first Silver Fern to 100 caps (2003)
But Lesley Nicol was also a tough woman who threw her body on and around a wooden court during her long career as a Silver Fern.
Picked and then dropped as captain, Nicol was an ever-present in the national side for nearly a decade, often alongside Otago team-mates Belinda Colling and Anna Rowberry.
The highlight of her career came in 2003, when she was the starting wing defence for the Silver Ferns team that won the world championships for the first time since 1987.
Nicol reached a great personal milestone when she became the first New Zealand player to 100 caps in the 79-24 round-robin win over Fiji.
Later, she said the milestone was secondary to the winning of the title.
"I'd actually almost forgotten about it. I remember the announcer calling my name first and wondering what was going on.
"It was nice, but I have to say my 103rd test [the final] is the one I'll never forget."
Nicol, a Southlander, had transferred from the Rebels to the Sting by that year, but she was still playing for Otago in the national championship.
She retired in 2006, and her caps record has since been eclipsed by Irene van Dyk.
Nicol married Chris Rumball, started a family and lived in the United Kingdom for two years, working as a locum.
She later spent time at the Australian Institute of Sport as a sports medicine doctor, before coming back to New Zealand to live in Christchurch.
