NZ rugby league great Benji Marshall never expected this day would arrive, when his name would appear on the Queen's Birthday Honours list.
The former NZ Kiwis captain and 346-game NRL veteran has been made a Companion of the NZ Order of Merit for services to rugby league, after a pro career that spanned 19 years.
"For me, it was quite a shock," he told Newshub. "I wasn't expecting anything like that and when you play professional sport, you don't play for accolades or honours, but when it comes from the Prime Minister of New Zealand, it's quite a buzz.
"Throughout those 19 years, it's the family you carry with you, who mean the most, and when I told them about it, they were over the moon. I'm pretty stoked about it."
Marshall, 37, reflects fondly on a career containing many highlights - his Kiwis debut in 2005, an NRL premiership with Wests Tigers that same year, a World Cup triumph in 2008, Golden Boot as International Player of the Year in 2011.
"The proudest moment for me, emotionally, was when I was out of the Kiwis for a while and got to come back in 2019," he said. "Having my son and my wife see me play for New Zealand for the first time, that's probably the most special moment for me."
Marshall retired in 2021, after helping South Sydney Rabbitohs to the NRL Grand Final, and has transitioned into a broadcast career as rugby league analyst.
"Since retiring, I've gone from training 5-6 days a week to working 5-6 days a week in TV at Fox Sports, which is quite a fulltime job," he said. "I'm lucky that I got to go from playing straight into a job.
"I know a lot of athletes struggle with that transition, but I can honestly say I haven't looked back once."
The lad from Whakatane is keenly aware he has inspired a generation of Kiwi kids chasing rugby league careers, just like him, and has some advice for those youngsters.
"If you want to follow in the path I did, it's hard work, with a lot of dedication and a lot of sacrifices," he said. "I had to move away from home when I was 15 and leave my family behind, but if you have a good attitude and work hard, you can do what you want.
"For me, it was all worth the sacrifice, but if I can do it, trust me, so can they."
Other sporting identities receiving Queen's Birthday Honours this year include world championship-winning Silver Ferns netball coach Dame Ruth Aitken, retired Blackcaps cricket star Ross Taylor, Olympic rowing champions Emma Twigg, Grace Prendergast and Kerri Williams, and Paralympics javelin gold medallist Holly Robinson.
Dame Companion of the NZ Order of Merit
Ruth Aitken (netball)
Companion of the NZ Order of Merit
Benji Marshall (rugby league)
Ross Taylor (cricket)
Officer of the NZ Order of Merit
Pam Elgar (hockey)
Don Griffin (sports historian)
John Kirkpatrick (shearing sports)
Rod Pelosi (football)
Des Peters (snow sport)
Member of the NZ Order of Merit
John Bezett (Masters Games)
Ross Everiss (rugby)
Richard Garratt (tennis & Māori sport)
Sharon Morgan (rugby)
Grace Prendergast (rowing)
Holly Robinson (athletics)
Trevor Tauima (squash)
Ann Tod (netball)
Emma Twigg (rowing)
Kerri Williams, formerly Gowler (rowing)
Honorary Member of NZ Order of Merit
Hans Van Ess (ju-jitsu)
Queen's Service Medal
Merv Huxford (hockey)
Kate Leebody (netball)
Larry Morgan (canoe sports)
