Mo’onia Gerrard

The Tonga Netball team announced the tragic news in their official Facebook page.

“Tonga Netball & Tala would like to share our deepest sympathy with Mo’onia Gerrard, Mark Gerrard and your Family having lost your Mother, the Late Kalasi Gerrard.”

Tonga Netball also said Kalasi and her family is no stranger to netball and national sporting federations.

“Kalasi was no stranger to Tonga Netball and Sports in the Kingdom as she is a sibling of the Famous Iongi’s where a few of them represented Tonga in National Sports.”

The 42-year-old defender is one of 15 players named for the Tonga Tala to travel to Cape Town to take on the world’s best starting last July.

It means the ex-Diamond will come up against her former side, with Tonga drawn in the same pool as 11-time world champions Australia.

Gerrard last played top level netball a decade ago, finishing up with the NSW Swifts back in 2013.

She’s a two-time netball world champion, winning gold with Australia back at the Singapore and Auckland world cups in 2011 and 2007.