Category: Sport

Source: Radio New Zealand

Shane van Gisbergen has put on another consummate display of road race driving to easily win the latest round of the NASCAR Cup series in New York.

The New Zealand driver celebrated his 37th birthday the day before by defending his title at the Watkins Glen International circuit – grabbing his first victory of the season and seventh all up in NASCAR racing.

Van Gisbergen dominated the weekend, firstly by putting himself on the pole for the fifth time since switching from Australasian Supercars to the US stock car scene three years ago.

He then proceeded to pull clear from the outset of the ‘Go Bowling at the Glen’ race, displaying his superiority on road circuits compared to rivals who are raised on a diet of oval track racing.

Van Gisbergen has won six of NASCAR’s last seven road or street races and was second in the other.

He led for 74 laps of the race’s 100 laps and the only moment of tension came when pitting with 24 laps to go, dropping him back to 26th at that point.

However, on new tires and a refreshed tank of gas, the Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet driver scythed through the field, making up 30 seconds on the leader in the space of just 18 laps.

Van Gisbergen hit the front six laps from the end and took the chequered flag seven seconds before American runner-up Michael McDowell in another Chevrolet.

Victory lifts the man nicknamed ‘SVG’ to 16th after 12 of 36 rounds, with only two more road or street races to come, both next month in California.

It was also the first win in the number 97 car, after driving number 88 for his first two seasons – a number made famous by former American great Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Van Gisbergen has long favoured 97 – a number used by his father Robert, a former rally driver.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Incoming All Blacks coach Rennie and his star flanker Ardie Savea have steered Kobe Steelers to the top seeding in Japan Rugby League One’s knockout stage.

The Steelers clinched victory in a key final match of the 18-round regular season, winning 24-19 away to arch rivals the Kubota Spears.

The win leaves Kobe top and the Saitama Wild Knights second, handing them a bye through the first round of the play-offs while the third-ranked Spears must play an elimination final.

The outcome also increases the likelihood of a short preparation time for Rennie when he takes charge of the All Blacks for the first time ahead of their first test of 2026 – a Nations Championship fixture against France in Christchurch on 4 July.

Kobe are guaranteed to be involved in either the Japanese final on 7 June, or the third-place match a day earlier.

The All Blacks will have less than a month with Rennie, along with attack coach Mike Blair, the Scotsman who works under Rennie at Kobe and has been included in the new-look New Zealand coaching staff.

Savea – who is a contender to be named All Blacks captain – will also have little time on the ground before probably being called into Test duty.

Despite missing the Super Rugby Pacific season, Savea and Kobe team-mate Anton Lienert-Brown are both in contention for All Blacks selection under clauses in their Japan sabbatical contracts.

Kobe produced a strong finish to the season to claim top spot, with co-captain Brodie Retallick enjoying a standout campaign.

In a remarkable feat, former All Blacks lock centurion Retallick topped the try-scoring list for all teams with 17 – leaving him one short of the competition season record.

There is a two-week break before the two Japan elimination finals are played.

The first match will pit fourth-placed Tokyo Sungoliath against the fifth ranked Black Rams Tokyo.

The teams’ respective captains are long-time All Blacks team-mates and test centurions Sam Cane and TJ Perenara.

The defending champion Brave Lupus Tokyo – coached by Todd Blackadder and featuring All Blacks first-five Richie Mo’unga – snuck into the knockout stage in sixth.

Their elimination final against the Kubota Spears – a rematch of last year’s final – could be the last in Japan for the 31-year-old Mo’unga, who was New Zealand’s first-choice playmaker at the last two World Cups.

His first two seasons of a three-year contract brought successive titles for the Brave Lupus.

Under New Zealand Rugby stipulations, Mo’unga is ineligible for the All Blacks’ opening Nations Championship tests on home soil, along with the four-test Greatest Rivarly tour of South Africa.

Meanwhile, the season is over for ninth-placed Toyota Verblitz, who have a strong Kiwi connection.

Steve Hansen is the club’s director of rugby while fellow-former All Blacks coach Ian Foster is head coach and former All Blacks Aaron Smith and Mark Tele’a are in their playing ranks.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

It’s a South Island one-two at the midway point of netball’s ANZ Premiership after the Tactix held out the Stars 52-50 in the closest finish of the season after five rounds.

The defending champion Tactix joined the Steel on four wins to lead the standings at the midway point of the reduced competition, although the Steel own top spot courtesy of a superior goal percentage.

It was a strong response from the Christchurch-based Tactix on front of their home fans, having been well beaten the previous week by the third-placed Mystics.

It was a second loss for the fourth-placed Stars but they were never out of the contest, leading after the first quarter before trailing by one goal at halftime and by three going into the final stanza.

The visitors snatched a two-goal lead midway through the final quarter, boosted by key turnovers by defender Kate Burley, and they were still ahead with about three minutes to play.

Tactix coach Donna Wilkins called a timeout and her team responded, snaring a turnover and going on to score the final three goals of the game.

Shooter Hanna Glen, in her first match, shot a solid 34 from 38 attemptsl, forging a good partnership with wing attack Taiana Day who started again in place of injured captain Erikana Pedersen.

The Stars’ Silver Ferns shooting pairing of Amelia Walmsley (35/36) and Martina Salmon (15/17) were accurate but didn’t put up the same number of shots as Glen and Amorangi Malesala (17/20)

Victory was the ninth in a row at home for the Tactix.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealand three-day eventer Tim Price has recorded his best result at the Badminton Horse Trials, finishing second riding Falco.

Price and Falco climbed through the field at the famed five-star event, having found themselves 10th after dressage phase and fifth after the cross-country.

They jumped clear in the showjumping on Monday morning (NZT) but it wasn’t enough to overhaul British winner Ros Canter on Lordships Graffalo, who accrued just two time penalties.

Canter and her 14-year-old horse became the first combination to win Badminton three times in its 77-year history, finishing on 25.7 penalty points.

Price notched 33.9 points, having edged in front of third-placed Briton Harry Mead (35.1) on the final day.

Price’s previous best Badminton result was a third in 2017.

He was full of praise for his gelding, who was contesting his first Badminton.

‘Falco is a fantastic little horse, all head and heart. If he’s enjoying it and his confidence is there, he gives me everything,” said Price, who rode Falco at last year’s Pau five-star event and to sixth place at the Paris Olympics.

The other best played New Zealanders were Tayla Mason (sixth on Centennial) and Jonelle Price (12th on Chilli’s Midnight Star). It was Mason’s best result at any five-star event.

Former champion Caroline Powell was fifth after the dressage but failed to complete the cross-country phase.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

The White Ferns let victory slip through their grasp in a tense one-wicket loss to England in Durham to kick-start their three-match ODI series.

The hosts crawled to 211 for nine in the 49th over, surviving a key dropped chance late in the chase and just doing enough to overhaul New Zealand’s 210 all out in difficult batting conditions at Chester-le-Street.

Only three players posted scores above 35, including New Zealanders Maddy Green (88) and Melie Kerr (55) who put on 105 for the third wicket before the last eight wickets fell for 63 runs.

England had similar struggles in their chase, losing wickets steadily, with only Maia Bouchier (59) able to defy a methodical New Zealand attack before she was the second victim of captain Kerr (2-54), lobbing a catch to midwicket.

At that stage the home side were 160-7 but their lower order displayed grit, most notably skipper and allrounder Charlie Dean, who finished 31 not out and hit the winning runs with 10 balls to spare.

The match swung in the 47th over when England were nine down and Dean slashed a full toss from Bree Illing straight to Nense Patel in the gully.

The chance came at an awkward height and was spilled, opening the door for the hosts to eke out victory.

Illing was New Zealand’s tightest bowler, taking 1-31 off 9.2 overs while fellow-seamer Rosemary Mair claimed 3-42.

Green was the game’s best batter, striking nine fours in her 107-ball knock, the 33-year-old falling short of a fourth ODI century when she was caught on long-on off the bowling of Tilly Corteen-Coleman.

Kerr said batting proved more difficult than she anticipated.

“The wicket was a bit slow, we thought 250 would be a good score. We were set up to do that but unfortunately lost wickets at the back end,” she said.

“We fought hard with the ball to take it deep. We have to learn and be better but I thought our bowlers were outstanding.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

The Wellington Phoenix women made history on Sunday when they won a place in the club’s first A-league grand-final; they also won the hearts and minds of a legion of new fans.

In front of record home crowd, the Phoenix women won the second semi-final leg 2-0, to overcome a one-goal first-leg deficit to the Brisbane Roar.

Wellington secured the 3-2 advantage on aggregate in extra-time, sending them through to Saturday’s A-League decider with Melbourne City in Melbourne.

The Wellington women ended the football club’s 19-year grand final drought – the Phoenix men were eliminated in the preliminary final in 2010.

Nearly 6000 fans filled Porirua Park, north of Wellington, hoping to witness history.

Phoenix head coach Bev Priestman said there was a sense running through the team that they were going to win – “there was something in the air.”

Priestman said it was a special day for the club.

“Moments like tonight is why you do it right, I think there’s young kids in that stand today who fell in love with the game and I think in five, 10 years’ time they could be on that pitch right. So I think it’s incredible, a big shift and I’m just so happy to be on that plane to Melbourne,” Priestman said.

American striker Makala Woods scored for the Phoenix in the first half. Woods eventually slotted the winner in extra time after missing two attempts just before regular time.

“Oh, I wanted to die,” she laughed. “That was really hard, I think I would have taken that very heavily, it’s still probably going to be in my nightmares.

“But I just have a great group of girls around me, every single one of them lifted me up and continued to feed me balls and Bev and the staff …when you have that great of a group of people believing in you, how can you not believe in yourself,” Woods said.

“I feel like I owed it to them to put that ball in the back of the net … so I was really happy I could put it away.”

Woods said the tension in extra-time was palpable.

“I felt like I was going to throw-up on the sideline, I’ve never been so anxious … that’s just how much it means to this group of girls.”

Woods, who only joined mid-season as an injury replacement, said she was most happy for inaugural club player Mackenzie Barry.

“She’s been here since day one, she deserves this more than anyone in this league and she proved why she’s one of the best defenders in the league today.”

Since the Phoenix women entered the A-league five years ago, they had never made the finals. In their first two seasons, the side finished with the wooden spoon and looked out of its depth at times.

Barry, now captain, found it hard to express the joy she felt.

“It means so much to me, it’s hard to feel all the feelings right now, it’s amazing, the club’s worked for year’s for this and the season has been really tough so I think no other club deserves it more than us,” Barry said.

Extra stands were erected to accommodate the fans, triple the number the Phoenix usually play in front of in Porirua.

“Even right from the warm-up it was starting to get packed and I was like ‘wow this is going to be amazing’ so as soon as we walked down the crowd was cheering the whole game,” Barry said.

Woods said they felt buoyed by the fans.

“I’ve never played in front of that many people in my life, it was so amazing …they really showed up and I’m so thankful,” the American said.

Priestman has achieved a lot on the international stage, including an Olympic Gold with Canada at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. But she said helping the Phoenix women get into the grand final ranks highly.

“It’s right up there, I was reflecting on the win today, it’s been a hell of a ride, and I wouldn’t [want] do it with anybody else, these lot are a special bunch,” Priestman said.

The Wellington Phoenix went big when they recruited Priestman, who served a one-year ban for her role in a drone spying scandal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The Phoenix were looking for a coach just as her ban was about to lift.

Still, the Phoenix women have exceeded expectations, given they also lost key players to season-ending injuries.

Now some fans are affectionately crediting Priestman for a ‘Bev-olution’ at the club.

Melbourne City have dominated recent matchups against Wellington Phoenix Women, with 1-0 and 2-1 wins this season, but Priestman insists the Phoenix are not done yet.

“We’ve only ever lost by a goal, we’ve scored some goals, and we’ve worked our arses off and I think when you do that you get your rewards and I think we absolutely can beat Melbourne City, I have got no doubt about it.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Wellington Phoenix women have made club history, booking a place in the A-League grand final for the first time in an extra-time thriller.

Wellington won the second leg 2-0, sending them through to next weekend’s A-League decider with Melbourne City, 3-2 on aggregate.

Phoenix striker Makala Woods was the standout at Porirua Park, scoring both goals in the tense, marathon contest.

The home crowd erupted, as Woods burst through the middle to level the tie 2-2 on aggregate in the 42nd minute, after teenage star Pia Vlok brilliantly curled a ball upfield for Woods.

The American striker then sealed the 3-2 advantage with her winning goal in the first 15-minute period of extra-time.

Wellington held Brisbane out for the second period, as the crowd of nearly 6000 reached fever pitch.

Melbourne City earned grand final hosting rights, after finishing top of the league table in the regular season, then overcoming crosstown rivals Melbourne Victory in the semis.

The Wellington women have ended the club’s 19-year grand final drought – the Phoenix men were eliminated the preliminary final in 2010.

The women’s team joined the A-League in the 2021/22 season, with their best finish seventh before this season.

Follow the live action here:

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Follow all the A-League action, as Wellington Phoenix take on Brisbane Roar at Porirua Park for the second leg of their women’s semifinal.

The Phoenix will need to overcome a one-goal deficit, if they hope to progress to the final.

They return home to Porirua for Saturday’s return leg, [https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/sport/594111/wellington-phoenix-women-fall-behind-brisbane-roar-in-home-and-away-a-league-semis trailing Brisbane Roar 2-1, after their opening encounter across the Tasman.

Kickoff is 2.30pm.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

While Super Rugby Aupiki has evolved significantly from its early three-round amateur format, many players are still balancing the demands of professional rugby with work and family commitments.

With non-Black Fern players earning about $17,000 for the season, tough choices remain part of the reality for many athletes.

For Hurricanes Poua fullback TeRauoriwa Gapper, that balancing act has been part of her life for more than a decade.

A rugby player, teacher and mother of three, Gapper’s experience reflected the challenge faced by many Aupiki players.

“It’s hard work,” she says. “It’s a choice to do what you want to do and you’ve got to know your why.

“My children are the reason why I do what I do.”

Based in Christchurch, Gapper has previously travelled between cities during Aupiki campaigns, but this year will base herself full-time in Wellington.

That decision was made only with the blessing of her children, aged 17, 14 and 8.

“When I spoke to the kids and said, ‘If I have to move full-time, I probably won’t go’, they were like, ‘No Mum, you can’t give up opportunities like that’. That makes me feel a bit better about going, because I know that I’m showing them to follow your dreams.

“I’m glad that the boys are willing to let mom go for a few months and my daughter’s getting there. I was very proud.”

Gapper says the women’s game has changed significantly, since the early days of her career.

“My first season with my daughter, she was 8 months old, when I was playing Farah Palmer Cup, and I had to give up breast-feeding, because I couldn’t pay to take her with me. Now we’re allowed, under a certain age, to bring a child with you, but we just didn’t have the support back then.”

With such allowances, Gapper takes pride in pioneering the progress.

“Now the support around us is massive and it’s pretty exciting that we’ve got mothers that are Black Ferns. We’ve got the right systems in place for people to feel supported, and be able to be a professional athlete and a mother at the same time.”

However, Gapper admits it won’t be easy spending the season away from home.

“I move up on Saturday, which is going to be a bit sad,” she says. “I don’t think the boys will be too worried – I’m going to feel it more than they do – but my daughter’s definitely going to.

“It’s going to be pretty pretty tough to be away.”

She said the whanau had adopted a well-oiled system, allowing Gapper to balance, work, training, matches and family life.

“We’ve got a great Google calendar going on, I’m thankful for my family, for my tribe for helping me out.”

Alongside the demands off the field, Gapper had also dealt with the physical toll of a lengthy rugby career or, as she put it, “been through the ringer a bit”.

“I’ve broken my jaw twice, broken my collar collar bone twice and had quite a few nasty concussions, but I just love rugby so much that I’m willing to put my body on the line.

“There was no thought of stopping because of injury.”

Poua have endured a tough start to Aupiki, finishing last in all but the inaugural season, when they were runners-up with just one win.

“I know it’s been bit rough for us the first few years, hopefully get a few wins on the board this year, if not the biggest win.”

She says the franchise has recruited some top talent.

“There’s so much new blood, really exciting new blood, too. They haven’t tapped into the potential that these girls can reach.

“Having this competition, where they’re playing week-in, week-out rugby, getting to train like a high performance athlete is just going to do wonders for their development.”

After fighting through so much adversity on and off the field, Gapper is simply happy to still be lacing lace up the boots.

“I’m at the point in my career where I want to make the most of every minute, every second. We are wanting to shift the needle, and get fans and the public excited.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

A quartet of tries to winger Josh Moorby has helped the Hurricanes to a strong 50-17 win over Moana Pasifika at a sodden North Harbour Stadium.

While fellow wing Fehi Fineanganofo has been grabbing the headlines this Super Rugby Pacific season, Moorby has also been potent on the right wing, none more so than this match.

He scored tries in the 11th, 22nd, 52nd and 69th minutes, while Fineanganofo missed out this time. He still needs two tries to set a new Super Rugby record of 17 tries.

The scoreline was tough on Moana Pasifika, who were trying for their second win of the season before their likely departure from the competition.

They gave it their all, restricting the Hurricanes to a halftime score of 19-5, but couldn’t stop the Canes in the second half.

They never stopped trying, with winger Tuna Tuitama providing their highlight with a try double.

The victory sees the Hurricanes maintain their competition lead, with nine wins in 11 matches.

The bonus point win takes them to 45 points, five ahead of the Chiefs, who also have nine from 11, while there are two points back to the Blues.

The Hurricanes play the third-placed Blues next weekend, while Moana have a bye.

See how the game unfolded here.

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.

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.

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