Category: Sport

Source: Radio New Zealand

The Warriors will open their 2026 NRL season with a Friday night clash against the Sydney Roosters in Auckland.

While the full draw will be announced later this week, the NRL has confirmed the first round games.

Igniting the Warriors’ 32nd season in the competition, the tie on Friday 6 March will be the 49th encounter between the rivals.

The Warriors have won 23 of the previous contests, the Roosters have won 24, and one match was drawn.

Both clubs made the playoffs this season, the Warriors finishing sixth before being eliminated by Penrith in week one of the finals while the eighth-placed Roosters were knocked out by Cronulla Sutherland.

In the only battle between the sides this year, the New Zealand Warriors prevailed 14-6 to break a run of eight straight losses to the Roosters.

The 2026 season will open with the Bulldogs playing the Dragons and the Knights playing the Cowboys in Las Vegas on Sunday 1 March.

On Thursday 5 March the Melbourne Storm play the Parramatta Eels, while the champion Brisbane Broncos will open their campaign against the Penrith Panthers on Friday 6 March.

Over the weekend the Cronulla Sharks play the Gold Coast Titans, the Manly Sea Eagles play the Canberra Raiders and the Dolphins play the South Sydney Rabbitohs.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Follow all the netball action as the Silver Ferns take on the Scottish Thistles for their second test of the Northern Tour in Glasgow.

The Ferns are coming off the back of a comfortable 63-41 win over the Scots in the first test on Monday morning.

First whistle is 8.30am NZT.

New Zealand then take on England in a three-test series starting in London on Sunday.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Red Bull and Ford will officially launch their new era in Formula 1 in January.

Formula 1 will make dramatic changes to their cars in 2026 and Red Bull will feature a new partnership with Ford.

They have used Honda engines since 2019.

From next year Formula 1 cars will no longer have the drag reduction system (DRS) with it being replaced by a separate power-boost system.

Under the new rules the cars will be lighter and smaller, while the power units will produce a significant increase in electric power.

Red Bull and sister team Racing Bulls will unveil their new livery on January 15 in Detroit, Michigan at the home of Ford.

They are the first F1 team to announce their 2026 pre-season plans.

Red Bull are now developing their own power units at their Milton Keynes base in England with Ford providing the technical support.

The team is yet to announce its driver line-up for 2026 with only Max Verstappen confirmed in one of the Red Bull seats.

Isack Hadjar, who is currently driving for Racing Bulls, is expected to join Verstappen in the top team, with Yuki Tsunoda, Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad vying for the two Racing Bulls seats.

Kiwi Lawson’s prospects were boosted by his seventh place finish in Brazil last weekend.

Red Bull had said they would confirm their driver line-up after the Mexico Grand Prix last month, but then announced they would delay their decision.

Lawson is 14th in the Drivers’ Championship.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

England v All Blacks

Kick-off: 4:10am Sunday 16 November

Allianz Stadium (Twickenham), London

Live blog updates on RNZ

The All Blacks have been dealt a blow ahead of this weekend’s test against England at Twickenham with two loose forwards heading home.

Samipeni Finau is returning to New Zealand due to illness in his family and Luke Jacobson has already left the UK to recover after suffering a head knock in the All Blacks XV game against England A.

Three players have been called up from the All Blacks XV as training cover, loose forward Christian Lio-Willie, lock Josh Beehre and wing Caleb Tangitau.

The All Blacks are seeking to keep alive their hopes of a Grand Slam tour with victory at Twickenham on Sunday morning.

Recent history is on the visitors side, with the All Blacks having won the last five games against England at the London ground.

The hosts last victory over New Zealand at Twickenham was in 2012.

The loss of Finau and Jacobson comes as the All Blacks sweat on the fitness of captain Scott Barrett ahead of what shapes as possibly the toughest test of New Zealand’s end of year tour.

Barrett is racing to recover from a laceration to his leg that he suffered in the win over Ireland in Chicago earlier this month, which forced him out of the last week’s win over Scotland.

He will have to get through a full contact training session to prove his fitness.

England have won their last nine tests in a row (10 games in a row if you include a victory over France A) and will be confident.

The All Blacks are coming off the back of a shaky win over Scotland, in which they almost blew a 17-0 halftime lead.

England have made seven changes the match with Tom Roebuck returning on the wing, George Ford back at first-five and Sam Underhill in the loose forwards.

Roebuck starred in their recent victory over Australia but didn’t play in last week’s win over Fiji.

The All Blacks team is named on Thursday night (NZT).

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

England v All Blacks

Kick-off: 4:10am Sunday 16 November

Allianz Stadium (Twickenham), London

Live blog updates on RNZ

The All Blacks head to one of rugby’s most daunting venues this weekend, although it is one that where they tasted dramatic success just last year.

Here are some key talking points as we await Scott Robertson’s team announcement on Thursday night NZT.

Rematch or revenge

Much was made about the rematch in Chicago, nine years on from Ireland’s historic victory. But really, this game at Twickenham is the more important rerun of a test fixture, after the three times the All Blacks played England last year.

All three were incredibly tight, with the last one at Twickenham coming down to a late Mark Tele’a try and sideline conversion by Damian McKenzie.

A new English era

Steve Borthwick has been heavily criticised for a seemingly inflexible set of game plans over the last two seasons, but he does have a few of the most exciting names on his books right now. Flanker Henry Pollock has a massive amount of hype around him, while we got a good look at fellow loosie Chandler Cunningham-South and first five Fin Smith last year.

Outside back Henry Arundell’s return from playing in France has been seen as a real positive for the English system, while lock Alex Coles and blindside Guy Pepper are ones to watch for the future.

How have England been going?

Admittedly, all of those players contributed to a not particularly convincing performance against Fiji last weekend. England eventually won 38-18 but were only ahead by one point at halftime and only pulled away at the end.

They did have a very good Six Nations earlier this year, winning four games and having a chance to win it on the last weekend, before France took the championship by one point.

Is this the biggest test of the tour?

You’d think so, given how close tests have been at Twickenham lately. While England haven’t won there since 2012, there’s been a draw and a two point win for the All Blacks in their last two meetings.

Twickenham does still hold quite the reputation as a formidable venue, no matter how England are playing it is still the largest purpose-built rugby stadium in the world and is always at its 82,000 capacity when the All Blacks come to town.

Is fatigue going to affect the All Blacks?

Maybe. This is the 12th of 13 tests this year and while they’ve had decent breaks after the July series and Rugby Championship campaigns, they are looking pretty banged up. Scott Barrett should hopefully return this weekend, but brother Jordie is back in New Zealand already, while there’s a host of players who never even got on the plane in the first place.

They’re not exactly limping home, but this has been a very long season that’s taken quite a physical toll.

What’s the motivation like to get a win this weekend

It’s the Poms, so of course that’s enough to get the All Blacks fired up as it’s a team they despise losing to more than any other. Then there’s the slightly dubious ‘Grand Slam’ achievement that’s on the line.

But really, the main driver will be to just keep stringing good performances together after the up and down Rugby Championship campaign. The All Blacks have now won four tests in a row, all in differing fashion, so another couple will put a lot of minds at ease as we head into summer.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Kingman won the 122nd New Zealand Trotting Cup at Addington Raceway in Christchurch on Tuesday.

Over 3200 metres the horse trained and driven by Australian Luke McCarthy was able to pull off an upset.

From the 1400m mark Kingman was three wide but McCathy was unfazed.

“You’re going in a straight line whether you’re one wide or three wide it’s not a big deal but I just wanted to get next to them and try and just get him to sit there you leave it until to late you get pushed off the track so full credit to the horse,” McCarthy told Trackside.

To outstay pre-race favourite Leap To Fame was “massive” McCarthy said.

Kingman was a late entry to New Zealand Trotting Cup after beating Leap To Fame in the Victoria Cup last month.

As one of the few Australians to win the race, McCarthy described the New Zealand Trotting Cup as the “mecca for harness racing”.

Leap To Fame trained and driven by Queenslander Grant Dixon finished second.

Merlin was third and Better Knuckle Up fourth.

Kingman receives $540,000, second $150,000, third $85,000, fourth $47,500, fifth $27,500, while all other starters receive $15,000.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealand tennis star Erin Routliffe and her Canadian doubles partner Gaby Dabrowski have split after a two and a half years together, which saw them win two grand slam titles.

The pair shared the news in an Instagram post, where they described the partnership as “a ride”.

“Titles, tears, and triumphs. A rollercoaster of emotion no one could have predicted. A business partnership comes to its end, and a friendship remains,” the post reads.

“We want to thank every person who has supported us through our journey on tour together. Through our stubbornness you encouraged us to keep an open mind. Through our tiredness you held space for rest and resets. Through our injuries you trusted us to come back stronger. Through our desire to be better, you helped us win Slams. We couldn’t have achieved anything without all of you. We love you.

“Thank you, and goodnight.”

Last week Routliffe and Dabrowski’s reign as WTA Finals doubles champions ended. The New Zealand/Canadian pair missed out on the semi-finals at the season-ending event in Riyadh after suffering their second group loss.

During their partnership Dabrowski and Routliffe won seven titles, including two US Open trophies, the WTA Finals and the WTA 1000 event in Cincinnati in August.

In September the pair scored their second grand slam doubles victory after beating top seeds Taylor Townsend and Katerina Siniakova at the US Open – their third title together of the season.

The pair had previously won the 2023 US Open title.

Last year Routliffe won the Cincinnati Open with Asia Muhammad, who stepped in while Dabrowski was continuing her treatment for breast cancer.

Routliffe might be eyeing up a new partnership with best friend Muhammad, an American doubles specialist.

The 30-year-old is getting ready to play in Poland, in New Zealand’s Billie Jean King Cup team, starting on Friday.

Routliffe is ranked fifth in the world in doubles, she won four doubles titles this year and collected prize money of $1.7 million.

The Kiwi was ranked number one in in the WTA doubles rankings in July 2024.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Eliesa Katoa could be released from hospital as early as this week, Australian media is reporting.

The Tongan rugby league star was admitted to hospital where he underwent emergency surgery following a series of sickening head clashes during the Pacific Champions match against the Kiwis earlier this month.

The first was a head knock with a team mate during the pre-game warm up, followed by two more high hits during the game.

He had an HIA after the first on-field knock, but left the field after the second – his condition worsening as he watched from the bench.

TV images showed Katoa being fitted with an oxygen mask and put on a stretcher.

Tonga coach Kristian Woolf has visited Katoa every day since the incident and is vowing not to return home to Australia until he is confident Katoa will make a full recovery, the Sydney Morning Herald has reported.

Citing a Tonga source not authorised to speak on behalf of Woolf, the Sydney Morning Herald is reporting Woolf did not feel comfortable leaving the country while there were concerns about his player’s health, and wanted to be there to support Katoa’s family.

Woolf, also head coach for the Dolphins, has been coaching the Tonga team for more than a decade.

At the time of the incidents, Woolf defended team doctors in not ordering him from the field sooner, saying “everything was done by the book”.

“We’ve got two very experienced doctors there. They’ve done their usual HIA. He’s passed all that and passed all that well,” Woolf said, according to Australian media.

“My job is not to question doctors. They were both comfortable with that and comfortable with him coming back onto the field.

“So I don’t think there’s anything to worry about there in terms of the process.”

Both the NRL and the NRL Players Association were investigating the circumstances that led to Katoa being allowed to continue to play.

The NRL investigation is complete, but findings will not be released until the league has a better picture of Katoa’s recovery, according to the Australia Associated Press.

Katoa has not been well enough to be interviewed for the investigation, Yahoo News reported.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Twickenham is the biggest rugby stadium in the world and for many visiting players, it’s one the most iconic.

The home of English rugby, Twickenham, will host the All Blacks test against England this weekend, as the tourists seek to keep alive their dreams of a Grand Slam tour.

The ground holds 82,000 and is the second biggest stadium in England after Wembley.

FNB Stadium (Soccer City) in Johannesburg is the largest seating capacity for a rugby stadium at almost 95,000, but Twickenham is the biggest stadium solely dedicated to the sport.

The All Blacks haven’t been beaten by England at Twickenham since 2012, winning their last five tests against the hosts at the London ground.

Many of the current All Blacks have played at Twickenham before, but for some, such as midfielder Billy Proctor and loose forward Peter Lakai, it will be a new experience.

“I went there last year and didn’t play. It was an awesome stadium to be at and hopefully I get to play this week,” Proctor said.

“If so, it’ll be an awesome occasion to play at one of the greatest rugby stadiums in the world.”

Lakai shared similar sentiments.

“Like Billy, I was there last year in the stands watching and just the atmosphere, especially pre-game, was unreal.

“Hopefully I get named in the 23 and then we’ll look forward to that occasion.”

Lakai has started in the last two test wins over Ireland and Scotland and appears set to be retained for the England clash alongside fellow loose forwards Ardie Savea and Wallace Sititi.

Proctor on the other hand has lost his starting spot to Quinn Tupaea for the final Rugby Championship test against Australia and hasn’t been in the run on side since. He has also seemingly been leap frogged in the midfield pecking order by Leicester Fainga’anuku, who started alongside Tupaea against Scotland.

The Hurricanes star had an outstanding Super Rugby season, but hasn’t been able to nail down the starting centre role for the All Blacks, despite being given plenty of opportunity this year.

Proctor insists he’s happy to “fight” to regain his starting spot and said his focus is on helping the All Blacks in whichever way he can.

“I think every position in this team is a competition with the calibre of player that we have in here. So, yeah, you’re fighting for your position,” he said.

“Whoever is the one that gets to wear the jersey, you do what you can to prepare him the best way possible and support him, or you have the privilege of being the one to wear the jersey and represent your country.”

Based on rankings, England should be a step up in competition for the All Blacks from Scotland and Lakai said they need to improve on their performance against the Scots if they’re to emerge triumphant at Twickenham.

“Yeah, 100 percent. There were a few positives that came out of the Scotland game, but also a few work-ons. Our focus is just to get better every day and build from the last test,” Lakai said.

“We know how good England are, especially their back row being the heartbeat of their team, but we’re just focusing on us and looking to get better every day and build towards Saturday.”

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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 injury list is growing for the All Whites ahead of their next internationals.

There are now six front-line players unavailable for this month’s games against Colombia and Ecuador.

Liberato Cacace, Callum McCowatt, Alex Paulsen and Ryan Thomas have all been ruled out of the squad with injury.

The four join Tim Payne and captain Chris Wood who were not named in the original squad for the games.

In their place James McGarry (Brisbane Roar), Owen Parker-Price (Örgryte), Jesse Randall (Auckland FC) and Nik Tzanev (Newport County) have all been called up.

Defender Tommy Smith has also been added to the squad to provide additional experience on and off the pitch.

“It is normal for us to lose a player or two with injury but it is really unfortunate to lose six regular starters like this ahead of two big games,” coach Darren Bazeley said.

“This is football though and it opens the door for other players to come in and take their opportunities to impress.

“We want to be testing ourselves in as many situations as we could face at the FIFA World Cup and while we always want to have our strongest team available, this will give us the chance to see how we address a challenge like this.”

The All Whites will face Colombia in Florida on Sunday (16 Nov NZ time) and Ecuador in New Jersey three days later.

Colombia are ranked 13 in the world and Ecuador 23.

They are the highest ranked nations New Zealand has played as a part of their World Cup preparations.

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