Why are so many women’s sports played in near-empty stadiums? Madeleine Chapman suggests some big changes to bring in more fans. Over the weekend I took a bus to Tauranga to watch the first of three tournaments aimed at deciding the best women’s basketball team in New Zealand. The event was held at ASB Baypark Arena, a huge sporting complex … Read more
Queensland Reds coach Richard Graham has left the club just minutes after his side was ranked last on the KFC Super Rugby Power Rankings. Scotty Stevenson reports. Richard Graham walked out of Ballymore yesterday after overseeing one of the great declines in Super Rugby history. Yes, he walked out, but it was the Reds board … Read more
Two of the most exciting stars in the UFC lost last night, badly. Don Rowe describes what happened and pays homage to the omnipotent power of chaos in the sport of sanctioned violence. If UFC president Dana White had any hair left on his shining bald dome, it would have been violently pulled out by … Read more
Scotty Stevenson takes stock of Super Rugby after a round where the Blues went stumbling back to their home in the loss column, the Highlanders inflicted more pain on the Hurricanes, and the Lions remained on track for a perfect season. 1. The Brumbies Rd 2: 32-15 v Waratahs Last week: 1 (N/C) This team is 80% machine, 20% Stephen … Read more
James Dann scales his personal Everest, power ranking all 45 Warriors jerseys from transcendent best to horrible worst. The Warriors head into their 21st season tonight after a number of ups and downs. Probably more downs, to be honest. Since 1995, the Warriors have been known for their unpredictability, their thrilling highs and depressingly common lows. The same mercurial nature … Read more
You might have noticed an increase lately in the amount of news stories about half-naked men fighting in a cage. You might also have noticed one man in particular seems to get a bunch more air time than anyone else. Don Rowe explains just who he is, and why everyone is talking about him this … Read more
Our Spinoff writers remember Martin Crowe: an old-school batting technician who became the headband-clad hero of the 1992 Cricket World Cup, the inventor of Cricket Max, and a regular antagonist to the cricketing establishment. Sonia Gray, TV presenter, Black Caps tragic I first met Martin Crowe in 2000 when we filmed a promo for Sky Movies together. There were camera … Read more
One of the best cricketers New Zealand has ever produced died today after a losing battle against cancer. Scotty Stevenson remembers Martin Crowe. For people of my generation, Martin Crowe was everything we wanted to be. He was a calculated-yet-cavalier, disciplined-yet-dashing batsman who feared no attack. He wore headbands under his helmet, and stood tall on … Read more
If Tana Umaga didn’t understand how much scrutiny he will face as Blues coach, he sure does now. And all it took for him to create mass hysteria was to make a few changes to a winning team. Adages die harder than John McClane, and that’s especially true of those that apply to rugby union. One of them … Read more
It’s never too early to start talking about who might make the All Blacks. Barely a week into the season, these are James McOnie’s top 11 candidates to pull on the black jersey for the first time this year. The rugby season started in a big way at the weekend. It was a massive TV … Read more
Our Olympic throwing future looks bright, says ex-athlete Madeleine Chapman, thanks to an incredible generation of young discus, hammer throwers and shot putters going very long over the past few years. Last week I went to the Auckland Track Challenge in Henderson, the first time I had attended an athletics meet without competing. It was … Read more
The Breakers are set to kick off their finals series against the Perth Wildcats at 11.30pm. The Crowd Goes Wild’s Andrew Mulligan explains why the match-up is the best rivalry in Australasian sport. The All Blacks’ and Wallabies’ rivalry has nothing on the one between the New Zealand Breakers and the Perth Wildcats. Whereas New Zealand … Read more
Scotty Stevenson gives his take on the shockingly competent Blues and the Mighty and Terrible Brumbies in our first ever KFC Super Rugby power rankings. 1. The Brumbies Rd 1: 52-10 v Hurricanes The Brumbies are more organised than an obsessive compulsive’s wardrobe. From the grind of the 150-game veteran skipper and resident orc, Stephen Moore, to the metronomic goal … Read more
It’s Super Rugby opening weekend and a few fresh faces are taking to the field. James McOnie does his best to describe just who the hell they are. Super Rugby opening weekend is almost upon us and no-one is really ready but too bad, it’s happening. Post-Rugby World Cup is always a big changing of … Read more
It’s 2016 and Super Rugby is back! Ra Pomare tracks down coach for a yarn about the hard yakka the boys have been putting in to get ready so they can really take it up the guts! “You guys gonna look to play traditional Kiwi rugby? Tries? Tackles? Turnovers?”
All you have to do is move them from the Southern Hemisphere to the North. Jamie Wall looks at rugby’s growing talent gap. Word came out this week about the French national union’s unsuccessful attempt to fast-track New Zealand-raised winger David Smith into their squad for the remainder of the Six Nations tournament. Unfortunately, it … Read more
If Haru Nomura’s win at the Australian Women’s Open – her first in 72 tournaments – makes her Marky Mark, what does that make runner-up Lydia Ko? Greg Bruce draws the link between early-90s pop and LPGA golf. ‘Marky’ Mark Wahlberg, younger brother of Donnie Wahlberg, scored a number one hit in 1991 with ‘Good … Read more
Arguing With My Dad is an occasional column which features Greg Bruce in conversation with his father about sports. In an unprecedented turn of events, Greg finds himself agreeing with his dad on everything – until an unlikely saviour arrives. I was always aware that one day I might come to write one of these … Read more
Why was Conrad Smith always praised for his ‘intelligent’ play, while Ma’a Nonu was often branded an ‘imposing physical specimen’? Jamie Wall takes on racial stereotyping in the New Zealand rugby media. There’s an opening in the archetypes department of NZ rugby. No, not the bashful, camera-shy tight forward. Not even the first five who … Read more
Sean Marks’ elevation to Brooklyn Nets GM was seen by most New Zealanders as a deeply unfortunate promotion. But when Andrew Mulligan interviewed him he caught a hint that it’s part of a bigger plan… From the outside the decision to take the job offered by the Brooklyn Nets seems like really bad idea for … Read more
The jubilation which has accompanied Sean Marks elevation to NBA GM is deeply misplaced, says Hayden Donnell. Sean Marks just got named the general manager of the Brooklyn Nets. That’s weird because yesterday, the team’s owner said he’d never heard of ‘Sean Marks’. When asked specifically about Sean Marks, Prokhorov said: “I have never heard … Read more
Ben Stanley spoke with midfield vet Simon Elliott about his time in the Premier League, the All Whites’ 2010 World Cup campaign, and why New Zealand football hasn’t kept up its momentum. It was a thing of beauty from Simon Elliott. A long, looping cross streaming above the turf at Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit, dropping down … Read more
Richie McCaw won New Zealander of the Year last night, proving we cannot and will not stop giving him awards. Steve Bolton tracks a humble man from Kurow’s gradual transformation into a prize-laden deity. Winning is a habit; something a person gets used to and begins to expect of themselves and the others around them. … Read more
The All Blacks great is more than just a Versatile home owner – he’s a surprisingly versatile actor. Richie McCaw was named New Zealander of the Year last night. Some people are angry. They say setting about every All Blacks record, winning two World Cups, and retiring the greatest rugby player of all time isn’t … Read more
The Halberg Awards honour the best of the best in New Zealand sport today. James McOnie proposes a new award to honour the best there ever was. Tomorrow night New Zealand sport’s glitterati (sporterati? jockerati?) will gather in Auckland for the Halberg Awards.It’s a swanky affair, the beef is good, and the athletes enjoy mixing … Read more
Caddies are subjected to an avalanche of indignities. In return, they keep getting shafted by their filthy rich bosses. Greg Bruce pleads on behalf of golf’s little guys. There is nothing in all of sport as cute and sad as a caddy. There they go, marching up the fairways, their little rounded backs bent at … Read more
Samuel Scott takes his mind off the Black Caps’ humiliating defeat by thinking about their uncertain future. Day 1: Black Caps deliver touching reminder of the old days with throwback batting collapse Day 2: A day in hell Day 3: Blood magic now the Black Caps’ only hope As New Zealand’s hopes disappear, so do … Read more
As the hills around the Basin Reserve burn, along with the Black Caps’ chances, Samuel Flynn Scott turns to a legend’s blood-stained shirt in a search for salvation. Day 1: Black Caps deliver touching reminder of the old days with throwback batting collapse Day 2: A day in hell Mt Victoria is on fire. … Read more
Sam Scott watches Adam Voges score 176* as Australia clinically dismember the Black Caps on a punishingly hot day at the Basin Reserve. Day 1: Black Caps deliver touching reminder of the old days with throwback batting collapse As I peer out from under my giant “ladies hat” the field looks an out of focus … Read more