Rugby player Farah Palmer Cup Championship returns to professional boxing

One of the Farah Palm Cup Championship Northland Kauri champion, Trish Vaka (Ngāpuhi), will return to professional boxing after a four-year hiatus, returning on the double world title undercard

December 2nd will be one of the most exciting dates with one of the biggest Northland Boxing events in history, with IBF World Heavyweight champion Lani Daniels fighting for the vacant IBF World Light Heavyweight title and Mea Motu defending her IBO World Super Bantamweight title. This event will be the first fight for both Lani and Mea to compete in their hometown; however, there is another female boxer who will be returning for this homecoming fight.

Trish Vaka was born in Okaihau and has lived in Whangarei and Kaikohe. Now that the Rugby season is over, Boxing has started to look like a possibility for Vaka to return. 

Vaka made her professional boxing debut against another debuting boxer, now IBF World champion Lani Daniels, in September 2017. Vaka's current record does not look like much, with one win, six losses and one by no contest. Four of her losses were against World champions, two against Lani Daniels and the other two against WBO Light Heavyweight champion Geovana Peres. Another loss was against soon-to-be world title challenger Desley Robinson, who will be Lani Daniels's opponent for the vacant IBF Light Heavyweight title. This was the last time Vaka fought in October 2019 on the Geovana Peres World title defence undercard.

Vaka has fought one as a professional boxer in Northland in her professional boxing career. However, the controversy surrounded the fight with the referee, who acted as just failed to score the fight. The fight eventually was declared a No contest.

Vaka made her Australian boxing debut in August 2018 when she received her first win in an upset against undefeated boxer Natalie Jenkinson, winning the fight by knockout. Due to the impressive win, Vaka jumped high in the rankings, reaching 8th in the Middleweight division.

Outside of boxing, Trish Vaka has played Rugby with Kaikohe since 2014 and has been a part of the Northland Kauri team since the original team in 2018. Playing most as a forward, either in the Hooker or lock positions.

Trish Vaka will be taking on what could be the next Dean Lonergan signed boxer Roseanna Cox. It is believed that D&L Events is currently negotiating with Roseanna Cox, and if this fight goes well, we will be seeing more of Cox.

Cox has had an amazing background in amateur boxing while living in London, England. She represented New Zealand at the 2014 International Boxing Association (AIBA) Women's World Boxing Championships, losing in the first round of the middleweight competition. She went on to win an English amateur national title and later represented England.

Cox was looking to make her transition into Professional boxing; however, in 2018, she was denied a licence by the British Boxing Board of Control on medical grounds due to concerns over a cyst on her brain. She also received a two-year ban from UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) for furosemide in 2019; however, in the defence of Cox, she believes her boxing career is over and was not actively competing.

Fast forward to June 2023, in Denmark, Cox made her professional boxing debut against Georgia boxer Nana Chakhvashvili. Cox walked away from the fight with a 2nd round stoppage.