Maria Tutaia

Tutaia’s silky shooting style and deadly accuracy from the edge of the circle has thrilled spectators since her debut for the 2004 NZU21 team, which went on to win the 2005 World Youth Championships. Later that same year she made her on-court debut for the Silver Ferns during their tour of Jamaica, and in 2006 was a member of New Zealand’s Gold Medal-winning team at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games.

October 2009 was a great month for Tutaia, beginning with the one-off test against England on 15 October, in which she posted shooting statistics of 29/31 (94%), and continuing five days later, with an outstanding performance in the 1st Test against Jamaica. Tutaia's strike rate in that match of 32/33 (97%) is her best-ever figure in a full international, and 32 goals is her equal-highest score for the Silver Ferns.

Her 40th test appearance for New Zealand came in the 2nd Test against Jamaica on 22 October, when she posted 22 goals from 26 attempts (85%).

Playing mostly at goal attack for Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic in the 2009 ANZ Championship, Tutaia improved on her 2008 accuracy, with 217 goals from 276 attempts (79%) during the regular season, a tally that included 20/22 (91%) against Vixens in Round 10, and 14/15 (93%) against Swifts in the third round.

Highlights of Tutaia's 2008 season with the Silver Ferns were two strong performances against Australia, posting 17/21 (81%) in Melbourne, and 21/22 (95%) in Brisbane.