Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: Radio New Zealand

The New Zealand Breakers players won’t pocket all of the prize money from the Ignite Cup final.

Sunday’s finale of the inaugural in-season tournament between the Breakers and Adelaide 36ers ensures nobody leaves the Gold Coast empty-handed with the champions taking home A$300,000 and the runners-up A$100,000.

Prize money in the Australian NBL is unique to the Ignite Cup, and while pundits have debated how the prize money should be split, with suggestions it should all go to the players, the official line from the NBL is that 60 percent goes to the players directly and the remainder to the club.

Breakers president of basketball Dillon Boucher said the club would not be giving all the money to the players.

“Unfortunately anything that goes more than 60 percent to the players goes on your salary cap, so I think teams making smart decisions would probably not give it all to the players rather than incur some luxury tax by giving the players extra money.

“I think 60 percent is a fair amount to go to the players and obviously there is a lot of factors and a lot of people that are involved in making the team successful, so it’s only fair that they share in the success of the Ignite Cup profits.”

Not every player was focused on the cash.

Centre Sam Mennenga made an unexpected comeback from what was described as a season-ending wrist injury against the Cairns Taipans on Thursday night and will be available to play the 36ers in a boost for the Breakers and for the Tall Black who is looking off-season playing opportunities overseas.

“There is money on the line – I don’t really care about the money, but I’d rather us have the money than Adelaide have the money.”

The Breakers will tip off their final game of the season as underdogs.

After failing to make the post-season, by finishing seventh, the Breakers can still end an injury-hit rollercoaster of a season with a valuable victory but it will be against the odds.

For the majority of the Ignite Cup, played mid-week and with competition points for every quarter won, the Breakers were dominant. The Auckland-based club won the first three of their Cup games while losing games not played on Wednesdays with regularity.

The Breakers lost their fourth game of the Cup competition to finish second on the ladder behind the 36ers who also won three out of four games but edged the Breakers by winning an extra quarter for an additional competition point to qualify in top spot for the final.

While the Ignite Cup was where the Breakers shone, the 36ers are also sitting in second on the regular season table with a chance of winning a Championship and Cup double.

Adelaide beat the Breakers every time they met this season. Three wins, one in overtime, all by fewer than five points.

The Breakers and 36ers did not play against each other during the Ignite Cup. The two sides last met a week ago with the 36ers putting together a fourth-quarter comeback to win 92-89 on their home court in the regular season. The Breakers had the lead for 36 minutes of the 40 minute game and had an 18 point advantage at one stage before Adelaide got the win.

Mennenga missed that game as did Next StarKarim Lopez, who will both be back from injury for the crucial clash. Breakers coach Petteri Koponen also managed minutes in the Breakers’ last regular season game on Thursday to give the roster the best shot of being the first Ignite Cup winners.

Tai Webster and Izaiah Brockington will be game time decisions for Sunday after missing the Taipans game.

The final will be played in neutral territory, at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre, in a region that does not have an NBL team at the moment.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

USA’s Alex Ferreira celebrates after winning the freestyle skiing men’s freeski halfpipe final during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games.

There were no medals for New Zealand at the men’s freeski halfpipe final, USA’s Alex Ferreira taking home the gold at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

The final run ended with Ferreira in first place (93.75 points), Estonia’s Henry Sildaru (93.00) in second and Canada’s Brendan Mackay in third (91.00).

Canada’s Brendan Mackay reacts after competing in the freestyle skiing men’s freeski halfpipe final run 3 during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games.

New Zealand’s Ben Harrington was ninth.

Earlier Harrington had led the Kiwi contingent after a clean first run saw him sitting at ninth, dropping to 12th during the second run.

Making it to the finals was “an insane feeling”, he said.

“My biggest goal was just to come out and land some runs. I had knee surgery just over a year ago, so it was a mission to get back here but we did it.”

Fin Melville Ives fell during the second run, leaving him unconscious and stretchered off.

USA’s Nick Goepper came in fourth after he crashed on his final jump as he attempted a switch double cork misty flip – a never-before-done halfpipe trick – to land on the deck of the halfpipe.

“I have no regrets,” he said to the crowd. “I’m going to be 35 in four years,” as he looked ahead to another Olympic Games.

USA’s Birk Irving finished in fifth and Britain’s Gus Kenworthy in sixth.

New Zealand has so far secured three medals in this year’s Games.

On Thursday, Zoi Sadowski-Synnott became the world’s most decorated Olympic snowboarder with her silver-medal run in the women’s snowboard slopestyle event.

Luca Harrington brought home bronze at the men’s freestyle skiing slopestyle last week, after Sadowski-Synnott also claimed New Zealand’s first medal of the games, taking silver in the big air event.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

American striker Makala Woods has rescued a 1-1 draw for Wellington Phoenix away to Melbourne Victory, to keep the Kiwi club second on the A-League women’s standings.

Wood scored her fourth goal since joining the club as an injury replacement in January, finding the net in the 87th minute after the Victory had taken the lead from the penalty spot early in the second half.

It’s only the second time Wellington have left Melbourne with the sour taste of defeat, pleasing head coach Bev Priestman ahead of a three-week break.

“I’m delighted to pick up a point on the road,” Priestman said.

“We had a lot of chances that we should have put away and that’s a little bit of a learning for us, but with the tight turnaround, in that heat, and when you pick up a point late in the game…it always feels better than probably a draw from the beginning.

“Credit to Victory. I thought it was a very good performance from them. They really tested us.

“But I’m happy we got the point and probably this international break is much needed for the group.”

It’s Woods’ ninth goal contribution in just seven matches, with five assists to go with her four goals since joining the squad at the start of the year.

Priestman made two changes to the side which started last Sunday’s 2-1 loss to Central Coast, with Grace Jale and Emma Pijnenburg returning in place of Mackenzie Anthony and Daisy Brazendale.

The Victory were awarded a penalty in the 51st minute after Wellington midfielder Jale was deemed to have fouled her opposite Sofia Sakalis. Rhianna Pollicina converted the spot kick, picking out the top left corner.

Woods drew the Phoenix level, controlling a defence-splitting pass from Pia Vlok and then shooting past Courtney Newbon and into the left hand corner. It came after a string of Wellington corners.

Seven Phoenix players will now head away on international duty.

Wellington will next play host to Brisbane Roar on 14 March.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

• Ben Harrington has qualified for the men’s freeski halfpipe final.
• Fin Melville Ives is in a stable condition after a fall left him unconscious and saw him stretchered off the snow.
• The finals are set down for 7.30am Saturday 21 February (NZ time).

Ben Harrington has qualified for the men’s freeski halfpipe final after a tense finish to the second run at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

A tough competition saw three out of the four New Zealand athletes lose a ski in at least one of their two runs. Each competitor is ranked by their best run, with only the top 12 of 25 progressing to the final.

Harrington led the Kiwi contingent after a clean first run saw him sitting at ninth. The 24-year-old dropped to 12th place during the second run, making for a nail-biting wait while all the other athletes finished competing.

Making it to the finals was “an insane feeling”, he said.

“My biggest goal was just to come out and land some runs. I had knee surgery just over a year ago, so it was a mission to get back here but we did it.”

Speaking into the cameras on the slopes, Harrington dedicated his second run to teammate Fin Melville Ives, who had his own final hopes dashed after a fall saw him stretchered off the snow.

“Hey Finski, this one’s for you, brother. Love you, let’s go skiing,” Harrington said.

Melville Ives was the first competitor to drop into the halfpipe but lost a ski in both runs, putting him at 24th. He was assessed by medics following the second, more serious fall and stretchered off the snow.

Following the event, the New Zealand Olympic Team provided an update on his condition on social media, saying he was “stable and positive”.

Head coach Tom Willmott said “he took a big hit”, revealing the 19-year-old had been knocked unconscious.

“He’s in great care, our team doctor’s with him, his mum’s with him, and he’s doing okay. He was knocked out, but he’s conscious right now, he’s talking and he’s doing okay. He’s getting full checks, scans, x-rays, all the rest of it, just to fully rule anything out,” Willmott said.

“We had qualifying postponed due to the snow yesterday [Friday NZT] so today was the day, it was big Friday. He was using qualies as a warm up to the main event tonight [the finals, Saturday morning NZT] and he was all in, going real big.

“Fine margins, he was pushing his limits. He’s going to be devastated, he’s going to be gutted, you know. But he will pick himself up and he’ll come back from this because he’s a bit of a warrior.”

Fellow Kiwis Gustav Legnavsky and Luke Harrold also failed to qualify, ranking 14th and 15th respectively.

Harrold’s first run saw him in contention for the finals after he placed 11th, but run two saw the 17-year-old lose a ski.

“It was a tough day out there,” he said. “Training went well but, unfortunately, I couldn’t put down the run I wanted to in the two runs. I just want to say thanks to everyone who supported me through my whole journey, it’s been pretty incredible. I couldn’t put it down today for you guys but I know I will eventually.”

Legnavsky, 20, also lost a ski on his first run, and a clean second run was not enough to lift him into the top 12.

“I’m pretty bummed … I have more, I know I have more.”

The event involves competitors performing a series of tricks while skiing down a semi-cylindrical slope.

The final was set down for 7.30am Saturday, 21 February (NZT).

Kiwi Nico Porteous won gold in the event at the last Winter Olympics in Beijing in 2022.

New Zealand has so far secured three medals in this year’s games.

On Thursday, Zoi Sadowski-Synnott became the world’s most decorated Olympic snowboarder with her silver-medal run in the women’s snowboard slopestyle event.

Luca Harrington brought home bronze at the men’s freestyle skiing slopestyle last week, after Sadowski-Synnott also claimed New Zealand’s first medal of the games, taking silver in the big air event.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Central Districts (CD) have stormed into the final of the men’s Ford Trophy domestic one-day cricket competition, crushing Wellington by 211 runs at the Basin Reserve.

CD will carry momentum in the final on Sunday at the same venue, when they face top qualifiers Canterbury.

Black Cap Will Young laid the foundation for the winners, scoring 105 off 103 balls as they posted an imposing 349-5 – their highest-ever one-day total against Wellington.

Dean Foxcroft (89) and Dane Cleaver (75) provided aggressive support, with Cleaver and Josh Clarkson (47 not out) finding the boundary at will over the closing overs.

Wellington lost two wickets in the first two overs, sparking a steady capitulation that ended at 138 all-out in the 33rd over.

Black Caps allrounder Nathan Smith top-scored with just 30, while seamer Brett Randell produced Central’s best bowling figures, taking 3-30 off nine overs.

The women’s final was to be played at the Basin Reserve on Saturday, with top qualifiers Northern Districts chasing their first domestic silverware of any description.

Their opponents are Wellington, who powered to the Super Smash T20 title earlier in the summer.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand