Category: Sport

Source: Radio New Zealand

Dame Lisa Carrington won’t compete in the opening Canoe Sprint World Cup regatta in Hungary this weekend.

Dame Lisa was initially named in the K4 500m starting line-up alongside Olivia Brett, Greer Morley and Lucy Matehaere.

However on medical advice she has decided not to compete.

Aimee Fisher, who has concentrated in the single and double in recent years, will replace her in the K4.

Carrington recently announced that she was pregnant but would still race the Hungary and Germany World Cup regattas this month before taking 2027 off.

She did that she still intended to competed at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Fisher will also race the K1 500 heats on the opening day.

New Zealand has an eleven-strong team competing at the Hungary and Germany World Cup regattas.

Quaid Thompson will race the men’s K1 1000m and K1 5000m. James Munro, Kurtis Imrie, Hamish Legarth and Grant Clancy will race the men’s K4 500 and will also split up to race the K2 500.

Almost 700 athletes from more than 60 countries have arrived in the Hungarian city of Szeged with the event the start of the Olympic qualification cycle.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

A GoFundMe page has been launched for former Warriors NRL player Jason Death, following reports he’s suffered a serious fall.

According to a post on the website, Death has a long recovery ahead of him, after he fractured his skull which caused bleeding on the brain.

He is intensive care following surgery,

“Jason and his family are some of the kindest people around, and now it’s our turn to support them. Any donation, big or small, would be greatly appreciated,” the post said.

Death, 54, played 55 games for the Warriors between 1999 and 2001. He also played the for the Raiders, Cowboys and the Rabbitohs in his 14-year career.

Panthers coach, Ivan Cleary, who’s also a former Warriors coach, is Death’s brother-in-law.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

The official 2026 FIFA World Cup song will be performed by Shakira.

The 49-year-old Colombian pop star unveiled a teaser of her official song on her Instagram account.

The song also featured Nigerian singer Burna Boy.

Shakira is among the world’s best-selling musicians and her hits include Whenever, Wherever and Hips Don’t Lie.

The video on her post is set at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana stadium.

The track will officially be launched on 14 May.

It is Shakira’s second official World Cup song after Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) for the 2010 tournament in South Africa.

Shakira’s country, Colombia, are playing at the 48-team tournament that runs from 11 June to 19 July.

New Zealand is in Group G with Belgium, Egypt and Iran.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Dame Lisa Carrington won’t compete in the opening Canoe Sprint World Cup regatta in Hungary this weekend.

Dame Lisa was initially named in the K4 500m starting line-up alongside Olivia Brett, Greer Morley and Lucy Matehaere.

However Aimee Fisher, who has concentrated in the single and double in recent years, will replace her in the K4.

No reason has been given for the change.

Carrington recently announced that she was pregnant but would still race the Hungary and Germany World Cup regattas this month before taking 2027 off.

She did that she still intended to competed at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Fisher will also race the K1 500 heats on the opening day.

New Zealand has an eleven-strong team competing at the Hungary and Germany World Cup regattas.

Quaid Thompson will race the men’s K1 1000m and K1 5000m. James Munro, Kurtis Imrie, Hamish Legarth and Grant Clancy will race the men’s K4 500 and will also split up to race the K2 500.

Almost 700 athletes from more than 60 countries have arrived in the Hungarian city of Szeged with the event the start of the Olympic qualification cycle.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

The scrap for playoff spots is well and truly on.

Super Rugby Pacific enters its 13th round and things are looking very good for New Zealand.

The top four spots are occupied by the Hurricanes, Blues, Chiefs, and Crusaders – with a diet of derbies on the menu in the coming month.

Australian sides which threatened to close the trans-Tasman divide have fallen off badly, the Brumbies in particular a shadow of their early season selves.

After blowing away the defending champions, the Hurricanes declared themselves favourites to break their decade long title drought, and get the chance to rotate their squad against the struggling Moana Pasifika, whose future remains in limbo.

The Chiefs head to Brisbane to meet a resurgent Reds outfit, while the Highlanders stuttering season hangs by a thread as they host the Waratahs in Dunedin.

The match of the round comes under the roof at Te Kaha, where to competition’s biggest rivals go to battle once again.

The Crusaders and Blues have waged some famous wars over thirty seasons, and the bad blood between the sides still runs deep.

Selection notes

The Blues have made the bold call to bench Beauden Barrett for their crucial clash in Christchurch.

Fresh off return from injury, Stephen Perofeta gets the nod at ten, with Dalton Papali’i, Ofa Tu’ungafasi and Bradley Slater all returning to action.

Taking on bottom of the table Moana, the Hurricanes have opted for seven changes, two of which were injury enforced.

The Canes will be without their star playmakers Cam Roigard and Ruben Love, with Ere Enari and Lucas Cashmore handed the reins for Albany. Clark Laidlaw has also switched his front row, while Jone Rova gets a rare start in the midfield with Jordie Barrett rested.

Taha Kemara is out for the Crusaders with Rivez Reihana to get the start at first five and Cooper Grant coming on to the pine.

Jamie Hannah replaces Tahlor Cahill at lock and Sevu Reece returns to the right wing for the red and blacks.

Anton Segner who will play his 50th for the Blues while All Black George Bower brings up a century of games for the Crusaders.

The Highlanders welcome back one of their top strike weapons in Caleb Tangitau, who has been missing due to a nasty knockout against the Blues.

Argentine Tomás Lavanini returns to the second row with livewire halfback Adam Lennox back in the number nine jersey.

Issac Hutchison gets another chance at fullback for the Chiefs, Kyle Brown and Kyren Taumoefolau making for a young and exciting backline.

Manu Samoa midfielder Faletoi Peni earns his first start at home for Moana Pasifika.

Injury ward

Highlanders fullback Finn Hurley is nursing a hamstring complaint and will sit out for at least another three weeks.

The Hurricanes have key players sidelined with Cam Roigard’s calf to keep him out of action for a month, however Ruben Love should be back next week.

The Blues are without some of their big boppers with Ben Ake and Marcel Renata missing, while halfback Taufa Funaki continues to recover from a shoulder injury,

The Chiefs are down a bit of firepower with All Blacks Samipeni Finau, Emoni Narawa and Leroy Carter not travelling to Brisbane.

Moana may have the worst rate of casualties as Jonathan Taumateine, Julian Savea, Lalomilo Lalomilo, Monu Moli, Ngani Laumape, Niko Jones, and Patrick Pellegrini all remain unavailable.

The Crusaders meanwhile eagerly still await the return of Will Jordan.

Key stats

Fehi Fineanganofo needs one more try to equal Ben Lam and Joe Roff’s season try scoring records of 16.

The Waratahs are on a 12-game losing streak in New Zealand.

Beauden Barrett has kicked on 44% of his total receipts, the highest percentage of any player.

Fraser McReight has hit 124 defensive rucks, at least 49 more than any other player in the competition

The Hurricanes have won six of seven against Moana.

Moana Pasifika are on a 10-game losing streak

Crusaders v Blues

Kickoff 7.05pm, Friday, 8 May

One NZ Stadium, Christchurch

Live blog updates on RNZ

Crusaders: 1. George Bower 2. Codie Taylor 3. Fletcher Newell 4. Antonio Shalfoon 5. Jamie Hannah 6. Ethan Blackadder 7. Leicester Fainga’anuku 8. Christian Lio-Willie 9. Noah Hotham 10. Rivez Reihana 11. Macca Springer 12. David Havili (c) 13. Dallas McLeod 14. Sevu Reece 15. Johnny McNicholl.

Bench: George Bell, Jack Sexton, Seb Calder, Tahlor Cahill, Dom Gardiner, Kyle Preston, Cooper Grant, Kurtis Macdonald.

“We need the crowd. If the red and black supporters can come along and be loud, it makes this a really difficult place to play. That’s something our boys feed off,” Crusaders coach Rob Penney said.

Blues: 1. Ofa Tu’ungafasi 2. Bradley Slater 3. Sam Matenga 4. Patrick Tuipulotu (c) 5. Sam Darry 6. Malachi Wrampling 7. Dalton Papali’i 8. Hoskins Sotutu 9. Sam Nock 10. Stephen Perofeta 11. Caleb Clarke 12. Pita Ahki 13. AJ Lam 14. Kade Banks 15. Zarn Sullivan.

Bench: James Mullan, Mason Tupaea, Flyn Yates, Laghlan McWhannell, Anton Segner, Finlay Christie, Beauden Barrett, Xavi Taele.

“They’re a side that prides themselves on their physicality and accuracy, and our focus has been on staying connected to ensure we are at our best for the full 80 minutes,” Blues coach Vern Cotter said.

Reds v Chiefs

Kickoff 9.35pm, Friday, 8 May

Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

Live blog updates on RNZ

Chiefs : 1. Ollie Norris 2. Tyrone Thompson 3. George Dyer 4. Josh Lord 5. Tupou Vaa’i 6. Simon Parker 7. Luke Jacobson (c) 8. Wallace Sititi 9. Xavier Roe 10. Damian McKenzie 11. Liam Coombes-Fabling 12. Quinn Tupaea 13. Kyle Brown 14. Kyren Taumoefolau 15. Isaac Hutchinson.

Bench: Samisoni Taukei’aho, Jared Proffit, Reuben O’Neill, Fiti Sa, Seuseu Naitoa Ah Kuoi, Cortez Ratima, Josh Jacomb, Lalakai Foketi.

“They are a difficult opponent. they have a good identity around how they play. It’s going to be a tough battle, in the air, the challenge around the breadown,” Chiefs coach Jonno Gibbs said.

Highlanders v Waratahs

Kickoff 4.35pm, Saturday, 9 May

Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin

Live blog updates on RNZ

Highlanders: 1. Ethan de Groot (co-c) 2. Jack Taylor 3. Angus Ta’avao 4. Tomas Lavanini 5. Mitch Dunshea 6. Te Kamaka Howden 7. Lucas Casey 8. Nikora Broughton 9. Adam Lennox 10. Cameron Millar 11. Jonah Lowe 12. Timoci Tavatavanawai (co-c) 13. Jona Nareki 14. Caleb Tangitau 15. Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens.

Bench: Soane Vikena, Daniel Lienert-Brown, Saula Ma’u, Oliver Haig, Sean Withy, Folau Fakatava, Taine Robinson, Xavier Tito-Harris.

“We’re not looking past the Waratahs, we need to get this perforamnce right, and then we’ll look at the table,” Highlanders coach David Kidwell said.

Moana Pasifika v Hurricanes

Kickoff 7.05pm, Saturday, 9 May

North Harbour Stadium, Auckland

Live blog updates on RNZ

Moana Pasifika: 1. Malakai Hala-Ngatai 2. Millennium Sanerivi 3. Atu Moli 4. Allan Craig 5. Veikoso Poloniati 6. Miracle Faiilagi (c) 7. Semisi Paea 8. Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa 9. Augustine Pulu 10. William Havili 11. Tuna Tuitama 12. Faletoi Peni 13. Solomon Alaimalo 14. Israel Leota 15. Glen Vaihu.

Bench: Mamoru Harada, Abraham Pole, Lolani Faleva, Jimmy Tupou, Sam Tuitupou Ah-Hing, Siaosi Nginingini, Jackson Garden-Bachop, Tevita Latu.

“We don’t want to go out on our backs, we want to make sure we’re walking proud in everything we do. That’s something we talk about a lot,” Moana Pasifika coach Fa’alogo Tana Umaga said.

Hurricanes: 1. Pouri Rakete-Stones 2. Vernon Bason 3. Pasilio Tosi 4. Caleb Delany 5. Isaia Walker-Leawere 6. Brad Shields 7. Du’Plessis Kirifi (c) 8. Brayden Iose 9. Ereatara Enari 10. Lucas Cashmore 11. Fehi Fineanganofo 12. Jone Rova 13. Billy Proctor 14. Josh Moorby 15. Callum Harkin.

Bench: Asafo Aumua, Xavier Numia, Siale Lauaki, Hugo Plummer, Devan Flanders, Jordi Viljoen, Bailyn Sullivan, Kini Naholo.

“Having picked up a few injuries in the Crusaders game, it’s an opportunity for the squad to use its depth, and we expect the boys who are coming in to play well,” Hurricanes coach Clark Laidlaw said.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Caleb Clarke had little chance of becoming a Crusaders fan.

His father, Eroni, was a member of the inaugural Blues squad in 1996, and Clarke inherited his old man’s heated rivalry with Canterbury.

So when Clarke had thoughts of making the move down south, they were not met with enthusiasm.

“I remember this one time in school I said to dad, ‘I might check out Canterbury’. He sent me out the house,” Clarke laughed.

“Auckland-Canterbury, Blues-Crusaders, there’s always that history between the two. That’s what’s so cool about the game is you bash each other on the field for 80-odd minutes and then afterwards you’re good mates.”

Super Rugby’s most storied rivalry writes another chapter on Friday night, the first under the roof at the new Te Kaha Stadium.

Blues coach Vern Cotter is expecting a cauldron.

“There’s not a better test than Crusaders down there. You can see their performances are ramping up as well towards the end of the season. We had a few people from Christchurch who probably weren’t cheering us very much down there, despite playing the Reds.

“I imagine it’ll be as it always is down there. It’s a tough environment.”

Cotter said while not a heavy focus of the week, the history between the franchises was always on their minds.

“Last time we were down there against the Crusaders it was a semi-final and that went right to the wire. The time before that when we were down there was we lost the game in the last few minutes. We know we’ve got to stay locked in on every facet of the game.

“It’s just recognising and respecting them for what they are. There’s a certain amount of confidence within us to go down and try and impose our game and give it a shake and see if we can come away with something.”

The Blues have a wretched record in Christchurch, losing 14 of their last 15 visits to the city.

However, the prospect of a dry track has Clarke excited.

“It won’t be cold like what Christchurch usually is, just ready for some fast running rugby. For an outside like me, it’s really exciting.”

He did admit that there may be a psychological aspect at play when the Blues play in the garden city.

“Christchurch is Christchurch, it’s always going to be tough. The Crusaders boys always want to defend their home and in a way, yep, there’s a bit of that mental edge that you have to take down.

“It’s a mental game heading down there and if you start slow, then it’s going to be one long game against those Crusaders boys.”

Clarke also praised All Black team-mate Leicester Faingaʻanuku’s successful switch to seven, though said he had no desire to make the move himself.

“I saw someone make a video about it saying outsides can play in the loosies and they started naming off outsides and I heard my name and I went, ‘oh no, keep me on the outside where I can run away from those guys’.

“But man, Leicester’s always been like that ever since we first played together in New Zealand schools. He’s always been someone that loves the contact, loves the ruck area, so really learned that role.”

Sitting second on the ladder but with a tough run home, Cotter was comfortable with the blues position a month away from the quarters.

“We want to get into the play-offs. The priority at the moment is getting into a play-off situation. Then we’re back to zero. Then it’s 80 minutes every weekend. We’re realistic around getting ourselves in the position we need to be in and then going for it.”

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

After searching the globe for a new CEO, New Zealand Rugby finally came to the conclusion that the best person was right under their nose.

The New Zealand Rugby Board has confirmed Steve Lancaster as the organisation’s new chief executive.

Lancaster was overlooked when he first applied for the job, but stepped in as interim boss six months ago, following the departure of previous chief executive Mark Robinson.

New Zealand Rugby chair David Kirk said last year’s governance changes might have played a part in their hesitation to appoint someone internally.

A new nine-person New Zealand Rugby (NZR) Board was officially ratified and took office in early 2025 following a significant reform process aimed at modernizing the organisation.

When the new board came in Kirk said it “didn’t have a lot of experience with or understanding of the capabilities of the management team” within NZ Rugby.

“We just weren’t ready to appoint an internal person to the chief executive role, from what we knew at the time, we didn’t feel that there was the right candidate available,” Kirk said.

“But since Steve stepped into the interim role … he’s just really grasped the role and shown us that he can manage a complex organisation …we’ve just seen him in action and we’ve see what he can do.”

Kirk said discussions with some external candidates got quite advanced but the board was never fully satisfied.

Head-hunters assisted with the search, before NZR whittled down a short-list to interview but found none were suitable. So they went out on another external search, which still didn’t yield anyone they were happy with.

At the same time Lancaster kept moving up in the board’s estimations.

“This is probably the case sometimes when you’re looking to move into a new organisation with a new board, you tend to underestimate the capability of the internal talent.

“We thought he interviewed well but nevertheless we [decided] to go for an external appointment but we’ve been forced in a nice way to review our decision, we’ve been able to see someone in the role performing to a level that is what we need.

“We haven’t been able to find anyone external that’s as capable as him. The hurdle that an external appointment had to jump has gone up and up as we’ve seen Steve’s performance in the role so it just became a natural decision for the board.”

Kirk said Lancaster had all the qualities to excel in the role including the ability to deal with a lot of complex relationships, such as with World Rugby and SANZAR (South African, New Zealand and Australian Rugby).

Lancaster, who was appointed NZR’s general manager community rugby in 2016, said he was humbled by the opportunity and well aware of the “responsibility that comes with it.”

He said he was fortunate he got to demonstrate his skills during the interim appointment and felt “incredibly privileged” that he stood out, while other candidates dropped off.

“My focus has just been on turning up every week doing the best job that I can for the business and the game and like a player you let the results take care of themselves …I’ve always felt confident I could do the job from the day I stepped into it,” Lancaster said.

He believed his long tenure as GM of community rugby meant he had a very good understanding of the game from grass roots, which he felt was important.

Lancaster said the sport faced challenges, but also opportunities.

“The game is incredibly well positioned, we’ve got a healthy balance sheet, we’ve got a really strong participation base, we’ve got really competitive teams in black that are performing well on the world stage and our opportunity is to build from that and grow.”

Meanwhile, Kirk said he was comfortable with the financial health of the organisation after its latest financial results were revealed at Thursday’s annual general meeting in Wellington.

NZR reported a net loss of $7.5 million for 2025, despite record total income of $304.2m.

The organisation also reported an operating profit of $700,000, which reflected its day to day operating costs.

Kirk said the net loss was money spent on investing in things beyond normal expenditure. He said those investments will help with their growth strategy and NZR had a strong reserves position to be able to do that.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Moana Pasifika are stuck in limbo.

The club’s long-term position remains unclear amid ongoing discussions over investment and ownership, after last month’s shock announcement the franchise would disband at the end of the season unless a new ownership group could be found.

The process has played out publicly over the past few weeks, with Kanaloa Rugby – a consortium of former players and administrators – pursuing a proposed takeover of the franchise. The group has claimed politics are plaguing attempts to save the club from demise, taking aim the Pasifika Medical Association (PMA) – the current owners of Moana. The PMA contends it is NZ Rugby, as the licence holder, that is managing the process.

The competing claims, rumours and uncertainty are all taking a toll on the players and staff.

Halfback Augustine Pulu stressed that if no deal can be made, livelihoods will be be lost.

“That’s what really breaks my heart, seeing the young guys breaking down into tears because these are the opportunities that we’re not going to get anywhere else. We’ve got to provide for our families. God willing, that there’s another opportunity to carry on.”

Coach Fa’alogo Tana Umaga said he was doing what he could to keep Moana’s morale.

“I’ve learned a long time ago not to believe everything you read, everyone’s got their slant of what should happen and how they think. That’s just noise on the outside that really we can’t control, it’s a waste of time worrying about it.”

Umaga expressed frustration at a lack of transparency coming from the top of the organisation.

“We don’t know the facts, until we get the real facts and see what happens, we’re just trying to worry about what we can control. There must be a reason why those things aren’t going through. Everyone is waiting to hear from someone, we’re at the bottom of it, there’s probably reasons for that.”

He said the hope can hurt.

“These things hang over us quite heavy. We can’t think that it’s not affecting our people. There’s a little bit of light, a glimmer of hope, but we have to be realistic. The tough thing is that uncertainty and waiting for something that, we don’t know is going to happen.”

Pulu said the cultural connections within the team allowed players to keep coming to work with a smile.

“They’re still fighting for it. If this was any other franchise, I don’t know if they could come out and carry on performing the way the boys have been going, this is something that we’re used to as our people. We’re resilient in what we do and we’re going to carry on giving back as much as we can.”

Speaking after NZ Rugby’s annual general meeting in Wellington on Thursday, NZ Rugby chairperson David Kirk said it would be “sad” to see Moana unable to continue, but acknowledged the financial reality facing the franchise.

“We need a powerful one step below All Black level competition, Moana Pasifika have made a really meaningful contribution to that but you cant fight reality, if they are financially unable to continue, we have to work with them to have a managed off ramp, and it is what it is.”

He added that NZ Rugby had already been in discussions with a range of interested groups looking to save the franchise, but no concrete proposal had yet emerged.

“We have had interactions with a range of groups and we are very encouraging of them pulling together something that will work for the competition, that is the role we find ourselves in. we are just maintaining the support for all the Super Rugby teams including Moana Pasifika, we have supported them, and that will be there for someone else if they think they can put together a team, but its not our job to do that.”

On a 10 match losing streak, Moana’s rough run doesn’t get any easier as they get set to host top of the table Hurricanes in Albany on Saturday night.

“We don’t want to go out on our backs,” Umaga said.

“We want to make sure we’re walking proud in everything we do. There’s a glimmer of hope and I think that’s what we’ve got to hang onto. It’s another chance for these players to show the best of themselves, if anyone’s watching, you know, for the future.”

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Auckland FC v Adelaide United

Semi-final first leg

Mt Smart Stadium, 6pm Saturday 9 May

Live updates on RNZ.co.nz

Footballer Liam Gillion is in a unique position two years into his professional playing career with his hometown club.

Gillion has played 18 times in Auckland FC colours this season. He has appeared twice as often for the club’s OFC Pro League team (12 games) as he has the A-League team.

But as both teams approach finals football in their respective competitions, Gillion and teenager Luka Vicelich, could become the first players to be part of silverware-winning campaigns in both competitions in the same season.

Last season, before OFC Pro League existed, Gillion started 11 times for the A-League team, mostly in the first half of the season, before nearly getting half an hour off the bench in both semi-final games.

This season Gillion has made sporadic appearances in the A-League for a total of 97 minutes across five regular season games. On Saturday, as Auckland held off Melbourne City with a win on penalties in the Elimination Final, he came off the bench for 29 minutes of game time and scored in the penalty shootout.

He was subbed on in the first minute of extra time in the must-win match, to get him the most minutes he had played in the A-League since November.

By contrast, the 23-year-old played 893 minutes and scored five goals in the Pro League as Auckland dominated the first part of the new competition.

Gillion said it was a joint decision between him and the two teams’ coaches that he would spend time with the Pro League team.

“I was pretty keen to get some [minutes] back in my legs and I hadn’t played full 90 for a long time. [The coaches] sort of approached me and I was happy to do it – I was excited.

“I think getting some minutes and games under my belt gives me a bit of confidence. When you have a bit of confidence you play better, so I think it’s definitely good to get some minutes under my belt, and goals.”

Being on the outer with the A-League side earlier this season was “tough”.

“Every footballer wants to be playing, but especially when the team’s doing well you’re just out here training, trying to get better and trying to earn your spot.”

Gillion is too old to play in Auckland’s reserve team and A-League coach Steve Corica said the Pro League had helped the midfielder “a lot”.

“It’s built his confidence back up,” Corica said.

“You can tell when he’s come on now, he’s back to himself. He’s positive, creating opportunities.”

Gillion was a fan favourite with the club’s supporter group The Port, and Corica also liked what he saw but wanted more from Gillion.

“It’s good to be exciting, but you also need to have an end product.

“I think he has that end product, I’ve seen it before, he’s just got to be more confident in front of goals and a bit more consistent.”

Moving between different teams, with different head coaches and game plans, is a challenge for Gillion but a welcome one for a player who spent five seasons as an amateur in the senior domestic competition in New Zealand.

“At first I didn’t really know the Pro League boys as much, but I think as the games went on I got to know them a bit better and got more chemistry with them,” Gillion said.

“They play quite a similar style to how Steve plays and I think it’s not too hard to switch between.”

The Pro League continues in Auckland this week but Gillion was not playing on Wednesday when his side lost to South Melbourne and will also miss Saturday afternoon’s clash against Bula which kicks off three and a half hours before Auckland’s first leg of the A-League semi-finals against Adelaide United.

“Obviously I wish I could be playing and helping out the boys. But I will be supporting the boys and hoping to get good results from there.”

For a player who comes off contract next month he said he “had plenty to prove” for the remainder of the season and in a finals campaign is a good place to do it.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

The New Zealand Rugby Board has confirmed Steve Lancaster as the organisation’s new chief executive.

Lancaster, a seasoned sports administrator, steps into the role permanently after serving as Interim CEO for the past six months.

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