Radio Sport Breakfast

Organisers have begun nutting out the logistics for next year's Hamilton Sevens.New Zealand Rugby has been awarded a licence to host an integrated men's and women's event for the next four years.Both will be World Series events for the first time.Organiser Dallas Fisher believes the variety of fans will increase following the renegotiation of the World Series contract.Fisher was asked by Radio Sport Breakfast what it will do for ticket sales."There's no question that what we did this year with four teams was to get those wonderful athletes on the paddock, and people reacted to it well."He says the event will start earlier and finish later."People who came to both so far have seen significant change in the event every year. We are putting new entertainments, new ways of doing things, new structures, new spaces."There's no guarantee the four events will be played in New Zealand.NZR is negotiating to outsource the event from Hamilton to Fiji on alternate years.Fisher says knowing he'll host at least two events h

Former All Black and regular contributor to the show Jeff Wilson joined Radio Sport Breakfast to look back on the Weekends Super Rugby action.Wilson believes the captaincy was good for Blues star Sonny Bill Williams, with the side battling it out to record a hard-fought win over the much-improved Sunwolves.But in contrast, Wilson thought Chiefs captain Brodie Retallick struggled against a powerful and dominant Crusaders side.LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Listen to the audio above as Radio Sport yachting commentator PJ Montgomery speaks to Radio Sport BreakfastRising tensions between America's Cup defenders Team New Zealand and Challenger of Record Luna Rossa seem to have cooled following a protocol announcement on Tuesday.As reported by the Herald, the two camps weren't exactly seeing eye-to-eye over a few issues for the 2021 America's Cup event, however, a meeting in Auckland last week should put those differences to bed.The teams have reached "an agreement to resolve a series of issues in the best interest of the event" a statement said today.Team New Zealand and Patrizio Bertelli, CEO of the Prada Group and Chairman of the Challenger of Record, mutually agreed on a settlement to the America's Cup Arbitration case filed on February 12 regarding the dispute on the validity of late entries.Up to three of the six challengers for the 2021 America's Cup in Auckland were the target of legal action heard by the Cup's arbitration panel. The Herald previously report

Chiefs halfback Brad Weber says their recent losses has been "one of those things".The team has currently lost three games in a row, including a 50 point loss to the Brumbies and handing the Sunwolves their first ever away win. NZ Herald sports writer Patrick McKendry wrote yesterday that it was a stunningly poor game, and they could be set for more difficulty. "Given the Chiefs' draw over the next four weeks – four difficult away matches, including a trip to South Africa and Argentina - the question is, can the Blues avoid the New Zealand conference wooden spoon this year? Will it be the Chiefs who take that dubious honour? In what is looming as a crucial game in the context of the booby prize, the two teams play each other on April 13."Weber told the Radio Sports Breakfast that there are no easy games in the Super Rugby competition, and he remains optimistic for their chances. He says that they aren't focused on injuries and exiting players and how that will affect them. "It's nothing we read into, personal

North Harbour Rugby has the support of New Zealand Rugby. The Auckland rugby club has axed its junior reps team, in a bid to focus more on participation and less on performance.It's the first provincial union to make such a move, but it might not be the last.Steve Lancaster, Head of Participation and Development for NZ Rugby, told Radio Sport Breakfast that the policy could work for other clubs."We're talking at a national level, with all of our unions, and others are certainly asking the same questions presently about the right time for players to go into representative programmes and how that impacts on participation." Lancaster does not want to speculate on the future of the Roller Mills tournament, but thinks that there could be changes."[North Harbour] aren't saying the competition itself is problematic, but some of the behaviours around it need some work."He said participation drop off is a huge concern to them and they have their own ideas, to be released soon, as how to arrest the slide.See omnystudio

Spark will launch its Spark Sport app in early March, in time for the Melbourne Grand Prix on the 14th to 17th of that month.You won't have to belong to Spark to use the app.Spark Sport head Jeff Latch said the app would cost $19.99 per month and be an all-you-can-eat service that includes all of the codes the telco has signed so far, from motorsport to NBA TV to English soccer and European rugby (see full list below).There's a single, glaring exception: the 2019 Rugby World Cup, which will be priced separately. Latch - a 23-year TVNZ veteran who joined Spark late last year - said pricing and other details around the Japan tournament will be revealed in April.However, Latch told Radio Sport Breakfast that they have already worked out how much it will cost. "We have been working very hard on this for the last six months plus. We will be sharing in April all the information that you would want."Meanwhile, Spark will be covering its bets with the Melbourne Grand Prix - which will also broadcast live on TVNZ's Du

Who are the nominees?Of the nominees Lisa Carrington is the only one to have previously won the supreme award (2016), as she looks at winning sportswoman of the year for a third straight year. All the other woman in that category are first time nominees.Scott Dixon, who previously won sportsman of the year in 2008 and 2013, is looking to join Danyon Loader and Rob Waddell as a three-time winner in the category. Mahé Drysdale holds the record with five.Sophie Pascoe could win the Disabled Sportsperson of the Year for a sixth time, having been nominated every year since the category was introduced in 2011.Kiwi-born Irish coach Joe Schmidt has been named as a finalist for coach of the year, while not a single link to the All Blacks' 15-player code could be seen across the six categories.It's the first time since 2007 that neither an All Blacks player, coach, or the team as a whole has made the final shortlist.New Zealand Rugby's hopes for taking home an award lay on the shoulders of the men's and women's sevens

Sir Owen Glenn has frozen funding to the Black Sticks women's hockey programme because of dissatisfaction with the sport's governance.In October the businessman committed $1 million each to the country's top male and female teams over the next two years.That figure doubles this year with the taxpayer contribution through High Performance Sport New Zealand.This month's Glenn payments, which are distributed directly to the 25-strong contracted squad members, have been suspended. Hockey New Zealand has dipped into its reserves while negotiations continue.Glenn was a key supporter of former women's coach Mark Hager. Hager resigned last month to take over as coach of the British and English teams leading to the Tokyo Olympics.His decade-long Black Sticks tenure culminated in a maiden gold medal at April's Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. Hager also took the team to two Olympic fourths, two World League finals and a Champions Trophy bronze.However, a review into the women's environment was launched in September by em

Australian Rugby League commission chair Peter Beattie has sounded out the Australian Olympic Committee as he considers a seachange in policy for the sport.The commission meets next week to discuss standing down players charged with serious offences, such as Jack de Belin who has pleaded not guilty to aggravated sexual assault.The Sydney Morning Herald reports Beattie has been in contact with AOC president John Coates, who cut swimmer Nick D'Arcy from the 2008 Olympic team after he was charged with assault occasioning grievous bodily harm.The league commission needs to determine whether they have the power to suspend players for such action, even though they are still to go before the courts.In the view of Fox NRL commentator Andrew Voss, de Belin needs to be dropped. He told Radio Sport Breakfast that is a difficult situation and should be a case-by-case basis, but things are clear here. "If I was in charge of the St George Dragons, I'm not letting Jack de Belin play. Surely I'd be saying to de Belin 'Mate,

Former All Black Julian Savea is just one of many Kiwi rugby stars under-delivering while playing in Europe, according to Talksport UK correspondent Russell Hargreaves.Savea was told he was "not welcome" at French club Toulon yesterday despite having a year left on his contract, with owner Mourad Boudjellal making explosive comments over the former All Black winger's performance.The 28-year-old's shock sacking comes less than a month after French club Montpellier boss Mohed Altrad revealed that former All Black Aaron Cruden wasn't what the team expected and Lima Sopoaga's lack of notable performance since signing with English club Wasps.Aaron Cruden. Photo / PhotosportSpeaking on the Radio Sport Breakfast yesterday, Hargreaves said he felt underwhelmed by the current Kiwi stars playing in Europe."The current crop are probably under-delivering and one or two of the new ones that have been signed for next season, I'm not entirely sure are going to be an awful lot better," Hargreaves said."I just wonder with the

Jeremy Coney, former NZ captain and Radio Sport analyst said Tim Southee is in serious danger of missing the World Cup squad based on form. He wants to see a hell of a lot more from the Black Caps in this series vs Bangladesh.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

LISTEN ABOVE AS BREAKERS CEO MATT WALSH SPEAKS TO RADIO SPORT BREAKFASTThe New Zealand Breakers' playoff aspirations are finally dead.The Breakers had clung to a mathematical change of turning around their disappointing season, but a 114-107 defeat to the Adelaide 36ers at Spark Arena last night has ended their hopes of making the top four.They fittingly went out with a poor defensive performance, as Adelaide shot 50 per cent from the field and hit 13 of their 25 three-point attempts. Nathan Sobey led the way with 27 points and nine assists for the 36ers, who moved to 14 wins with the victory, sitting in the fourth and final playoff spot.The Breakers have just 10 wins, and with three games remaining have run out of possibilities to sneak in at the last minute. They are likely to finish in second-to-last on the table, ahead of only the hapless 4-21 Cairns Taipans.The loss epitomised their season in some respects. Shawn Long put up gaudy offensive numbers (28 points on 11/13 shooting, with 12 rebounds), and got

Head NFL analyst for Bleacher Report Brent Sobleski joined Radio Sport Breakfast after Super Bowl 53 in Atlanta yesterday. Sobleski thought the game was a chess match and was really only appealing to football nerds.LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former NZ cricket captain and Radio Sport analyst Jeremy Coney joined the Breakfast show this morning to provide an insight into the Blackcaps vs India series.Coney says there can be too many distractions for a struggling team and the end-goal of "winning the game" can be overlooked. He wants to see the New Zealander's knuckle down and play for the team.LISTEN ABOVE AS JEREMY CONEY SPEAKS TO RADIO SPORT BREAKFASTSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Black Ferns Sevens could find themselves with regular fixtures on home soil in the future if a proposal to include a women's world series stop in New Zealand goes ahead.World Rugby competitions operations manager Douglas Langley today confirmed there was "a very good chance" an event in New Zealand will be added to the women's series for its next four-year cycle.The women's event would be run in tandem with the current men's tournament, with both to be contested across two days."New Zealand are interested in a combined event with 16 men's teams and 12 women's teams if that's the way we go with the new cycle," Langley said."The only thing for them is it has to be over two days, but that's aligned with us currently looking at what the tournament format should be in the new cycle."It would be a welcome addition to the calendar for the New Zealand audience and players alike. This weekend saw the Black Ferns Sevens play their first matches on home soil in an exhibition Fast Four tournament against France, Engl

Former NZ captain and Radio Sport cricket analyst Jeremy Coney joined Radio Sport Breakfast this morning to preview the Blackcaps series against India which starts in Napier today.LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Black Caps coach Gary Stead joined Radio Sport Breakfast this morning.He told the team they are a little further along in the World Cup squad selections after the recent series against Sri Lanka, and he expects all 14 players in the squad to play India to see action.LISTEN ABOVE AS GARY STEAD SPEAKS TO RADIO SPORT BREAKFASTSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

LISTEN TO NOELINE TAURUA DISCUSS THE WIN WITH RADIO SPORT BREAKFAST ABOVESilver Ferns 62 South Africa 60 (after extra-time)They did it the hard way but the Silver Ferns eventually delivered clinical composure to down South Africa in extra time of their final Quad Series match.Sixty minutes was not nearly enough to separate the teams in dramatic scenes at London's sold out Copper Box Arena.There were so many twists and turns it is hard to know where to begin.With seconds remaining in regular time, Ferns shooter Ameliaranne Ekenasio hit the long shot tie the game and force extra time.Down by two in the second seven-minute period of extra time, the Ferns somehow clawed their way back; Maria Folau dropping a long bomb to bring her side level and force the match to continue until one side established a two-goal lead.Bongiwe Msomi (left) and New Zealand Silver Ferns Karin Burger battle for the ball. Photo /GettyWith both teams out on their feet, finally the Ferns found a break and put the match to bed and take extr

Crusaders player and member of "Team Rugby" for the "Black Clash " Israel Dagg joined Radio Sport Breakfast this morning to explain why he has placed limited expectations on himself for the coming rugby season.While Dagg is philosophical about missing out on the All Blacks, he is determined to cement his place in the Crusaders for the 2019 season.LISTEN ABOVE AS ISRAEL DAGG SPEAKS TO RADIO SPORT BREAKFASTSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Silver Ferns coach Noeline Taurua joined Radio Sport Breakfast this morning, and made a point of noting yesterday's use of all 12 squad players vs England was not experimental.She also said her team need these "off days" before playing Australia on Sunday. LISTEN ABOVE AS NOELINE TAURUA SPEAKS TO RADIO SPORT BREAKFASTSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.