Melissa Ruscoe MNZM (born 15 December 1976) is a New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 sportswoman who has served as captain of her country's national team in two different football codes—association football and rugby union

Rugby union

Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

.

In soccer, Ruscoe made her Football Ferns debut in a 0-1 loss to Bulgaria

Bulgaria women's national football team

The Bulgaria national women’s football team is the national football team of Bulgaria and is controlled by the Bulgarian Football Union.-World Cup record:-Current squad:-External links:*...

 on 24 August 1994, and finished her international career with 23 caps and 2 goals to her credit.

After leaving behind her international career in soccer, she switched to rugby, joining the Canterbury

Canterbury Rugby Football Union

The Canterbury Rugby Football Union is the governing body for rugby union in a substantial part of the Canterbury region, in the middle of the South Island of New Zealand...

 team in New Zealand's women's provincial championship in 2003. As a loose forward, she made the Black Ferns the following year. She has played on Black Ferns teams that won the Churchill Cup

Churchill Cup

The Churchill Cup was an annual rugby union tournament, held in June, contested by representative men's teams from Canada, England, the United States, and other invited teams from a wide array of countries....

 in 2004

2004 Churchill Cup

The 2004 Churchill Cup was held between 14 June and 21 June 2004 in Calgary and Edmonton, Canada. It was the second edition of the Churchill Cup competition...

 and the Women's Rugby World Cup

Women's Rugby World Cup

The Women's Rugby World Cup is the premier international competition in rugby union for women. The tournament is organised by the sport's governing body the International Rugby Board...

 in 2006

2006 Women's Rugby World Cup

The 2006 Women's Rugby World Cup took place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The tournament began on 31 August and ended on 17 September 2006. The 2006 tournament was the third World Cup approved by the IRB, the previous two being held 2002 in Spain and in the Netherlands, in 1998...

, and was also named the New Zealand women's player of the year in 2005. Ruscoe captained the Black Ferns to victory in the 2010 Women's Rugby World Cup

2010 Women's Rugby World Cup

The 2010 Women's Rugby World Cup was the sixth edition of the Women's Rugby World Cup and was being held in England. The International Rugby Board Executive Committee selected the host union following a recommendation from the Rugby World Cup Limited board after considering bids from the Rugby...

.

Ruscoe was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit

New Zealand Order of Merit

The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order established in 1996 "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have rendered meritorious service to the Crown and nation or who have become distinguished by their eminence, talents, contributions or other merits."The order includes five...

 in the 2011 New Year Honours, for services to women's rugby.

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