Talented jockey with 46 wins dies aged just 18 after devastating dirt bike crash
Ngakau Halley, aged 18, was in his third year as an apprentice in New Zealand and had claimed 18 race victories this season, bringing his career total to 46.
The collision occurred at an intersection in Whitoria, where Halley's dirt bike was involved in a serious accident with another vehicle, according to Waikato Police. "Sadly, the rider of the dirtbike received critical injuries and was transported to hospital where they later died," their statement read.
"Two young people in the car were transported to hospital with moderate injuries. The road was closed while the Serious Crash Unit conducted a scene examination. Enquiries into the circumstances of the crash are ongoing."
Authorities later confirmed Halley as the deceased.
"It's tragic, words just can't describe it. I was talking with him on Monday and then this happens," New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing Northern Riding Master Noel Harris told LoveRacingNZ.
"He was very polite and he was a very talented boy. You knew straight away when you saw him on a horse that he was a natural. From where he was brought up, they just jump on a horse and you are part of it."
Halley began riding horses at a young age but originally aspired to play professional rugby league. He played as hooker for his local team and represented his district.
His path shifted when he started doing trackwork, eventually beginning an apprenticeship under trainer Debbie Sweeney.
"He was a natural talent, and that is just what you want," Harris added. "It's tragic, he was a lovely boy."
Among numerous tributes, leading Australia-based jockey Blake Shinn commented: "Such a devastating tragedy.
"Sending strength and sympathy to the family, friends and all in the NZ Racing community."
A fundraising campaign has been launched to help cover funeral expenses.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Journal
an hour ago
- The Journal
Councillors wear Palestine Action t-shirts in Newry as PSNI issues warning ahead of protests
TWO INDEPENDENT COUNCILLORS wore Palestine Action t-shirts at a protest in Newry last night, as the PSNI today warned it will take action against anyone seen to be supporting the group this weekend. Independent councillors Alan Lawes and Cieran Perry attended a weekly Palestinian support protest yesterday in Newry, Co Down and displayed t-shirts and posters supporting Palestine Action. Palestine Action is a UK-based protest collective and last month, a vast majority of MPs in the UK parliament backed the Labour government's move to ban the group as a terrorist organisation. The ban means that membership of, or support for, Palestine Action is a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison, under the Terrorism Act 2000. The move to ban the organisation was announced after two Voyager aircraft were damaged at RAF base in Oxfordshire on 20 June, an incident claimed by Palestine Action, which police said caused around £7 million (€8m) of damage . Councillor Alan Lawes of Meath County Council said his intention in showing support for Palestine Action last night was to 'expose the hypocrisy of Keir Starmer's Government in banning a non-violent direct action protest group while also supplying weapons to slaughter children in Gaza'. While the UK Government last year suspended around 30 arms export licences to Israel , British Foreign Secretary David Lammy noted that this is not a 'blanket ban or an arms embargo'. Councillor Cieran Perry pictured holding the megaphone in Newry last night Cllr Cieran Perry Cllr Cieran Perry Meanwhile, Councillor Cieran Perry, Independent Group leader on Dublin City Council, said Britian is using 'draconian legislation to silence ordinary people calling out genocide'. Lawes said his action in Newry was in 'solidarity with the peaceful protesters arrested in London at the weekend in a disgraceful attempt to muzzle voices opposing the Israeli genocide'. Over 500 people were arrested in London last weekend, and their average age was 54 – some 112 of them were over 70 years old. In Belfast, a woman in her 70s was arrested last weekend for wearing a Palestine Action t-shirt. Protests are planned in Belfast and across the North this weekend and the PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Anthony McNally warned anyone planning to protest 'to ensure they act within the law'. He said the move to proscribe Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act 'has no impact on other groups' or individuals' right to protest about Gaza'. Advertisement However, he warned that 'anyone showing support for Palestine Action, including with placards or messages on clothing, may be committing an offence'. 'I would urge everyone to consider the seriousness of a prosecution under the Terrorism Act and the very real long-term implications this could have on their future,' said McNally. While McNally said the right to freedom of speech and freedom of assembly are 'fundamental human rights protected in law', he added that these rights are 'limited by the need to prevent and detect crime'. He said that if the PSNI 'identifies potential criminal offences' it will 'take lawful and proportionate action'. 'We may arrest and detain anyone suspected of committing an offence,' said McNally. Councillors Alan Lawes (left) and Cieran Perry Cieran Perry Cieran Perry Perry told The Journal that the PSNI warning is 'really disappointing'. 'I thought the PSNI would have had more sense, given the sensitivities in the six counties,' said Perry. 'I would have thought they would be more sensible than to try and provoke people by arresting people for simply supporting a non-violent, direct action protest group.' 'The hypocrisy of the PSNI to begin to charge people with terrorism offenses when all over loyalist areas, there is a blatant disregard for that legislation.' A Presbyterian minister, Reverend Bill Shaw, was cautioned by the PSNI last week in Belfast for wearing t-shirts in support of Palestine Action. He too accused the PSNI of double standards over an alleged failure to tackle support for proscribed paramilitary groups. He told the Irish News: 'People within the loyalist community can display UVF flags, UDA flags. 'They can march with bands, with paramilitary insignia, all of which are prescribed to organisations, and nothing happens.' Elsewhere, Perry said the arrests so far have been 'both ridiculous and dangerous' and pointed to the ages of those arrested. 'Just looking at the age profile of the people arrested, including ex-veterans and people involved in the Church, they are almost the definition of non-terrorists, by any account.' Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Examiner
2 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
'Preferred bidder' found for MV Matthew berthed in Cork Harbour
Drug trafficking cargo ship the MV Matthew has cost the State almost €10m in maintenance, crewing, and berthing fees since it was intercepted in 2023. A buyer has been found for the drug trafficking ship, and the Revenue Commissioners are engaging with Panamanian authorities to ensure legal and regulatory compliance. The MV Matthew, a Panamanian-registered ship, was at the centre of the largest cocaine seizure in the history of the State. Eight men were sentenced to a combined 129 years in prison in July for their role in the drug trafficking operation in which some €157m worth of cocaine was seized. The MV Matthew, owned by a Dubai-based company, was boarded at gunpoint by Ireland's elite army ranger wing in rough seas off the Cork coast in September 2023. Eight men from the 21-person crew were ultimately charged with drug trafficking offences. The ship, which has since been berthed in Cork Harbour, has been costing an average of €120,000 each week to maintain. However, Revenue has confirmed that 'a preferred bidder has been identified' for the MV Matthew. 'Revenue is engaging with the Panamanian authorities to ensure compliance with maritime legislation and regulations that govern the disposal of the MV Matthew, and has received confirmation from them that it is receiving attention,' a statement said. 'Revenue hopes to have these matters finalised shortly. Revenue is required to ensure that all regulations and legal obligations are fully complied with throughout the disposal and removal process.' 'Far too long' Berthing the ship, which includes costs for unberthing and moving the vessel when necessary, has cost €2,187,950. Maintenance of the ship — including fuel costs, waste removal, and repairs — has cost €3,784,050. Crewing has cost 3,762,054. More than €9,734,054 has been spent on the ship in total. These costs were paid by the Revenue Commissioners to maintain and manage the MV Matthew from September 2023 to the end of July 2025. Fianna Fáil TD for Cork South Central Séamus McGrath said that the disposal of the MV Matthew is taking 'far too long'. 'The cost of keeping it on a weekly basis is extremely high,' he said. 'I doubt very much at this stage if the State will actually be any net better off as a result of the sale, given the amount of cost that was incurred in terms of the storage and maintenance of the ship.' The ship had been maintained to allow access for defence legal teams as it was at the centre of a major criminal trial. The Special Criminal Court authorised its release on December 2. It was only possible to dispose of the ship from that date. Mr McGrath said that it should have been ready for sale as soon as it was released by the courts. He said he has raised his concerns both with Revenue and with the Public Accounts Committee, and has requested further information on the sales process.
Irish Examiner
2 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Hiqa report shows non-compliance at two IPAS centres
Inspectors found areas of an asylum seeker centre in Kerry to be unclean, littered with broken furniture, and unsafe for use by residents. The most recent reports by the State's health regulator Hiqa, into the standards of accommodation for international protection seekers, formerly known as direct provision, show that two of the six centres inspected presented 'varying levels of compliance' in terms of acceptable standards. The Atlantic Lodge centre in Kerry — run by Cork-based Cromey Limited, a company with multiple multi-million euro contracts to provide asylum seeker accommodation — was found by inspectors to be in need of a 'deep clean', in particular the kitchen facilities which were found to be dirty, with cutlery and cooking utensils left unwashed at the time of the unannounced inspection. 'In two bedrooms broken furniture and stained carpet were observed by inspectors,' the Hiqa report said. It added that two of three cabins located to the rear of the centre had mould evident, with a 'distinct damp smell'. 'These spaces were not currently fit for purpose and required attention before they could be deemed safe or suitable for use by residents,' the report said, adding that the designated play area for children 'required maintenance in order to make it suitable, safe, and inviting for children to use'. In 2023, Cromey Limited received the highest individual payment to any company for the provision of accommodation services for asylum seekers, worth €7.7m. Millstreet Equestrian Services, whose parent company is Cromey, received €16m for the same services. The Towers centre in Dublin, operated by Fazyard Limited, was found to have compromised the 'privacy and dignity' of some families living there by accommodating children aged older than 10 with siblings of a different gender or their parents, in breach of the requirements of the 1966 Housing Act. Some 11 families were identified as being accommodated in such a manner. For instance, in one family unit, the room was divided by a wardrobe, with one side featuring a bunk bed and a single bed for three teenagers, while the other side contained a double bed for the parents. There have been 12 international protection accommodation (IPAS) centres closed in the last seven months, more than three times the number that were closed in all of 2024. The Towers and Fazyard were also noted in a previous Hiqa report into the standard of IPAS accommodation as having poor child safeguarding processes — after it was discovered that four children had absconded from the centre for more than two weeks while their parent was hospitalised, with staff having no idea of the childrens' whereabouts. Fazyard, in addition to The Towers, operates a second centre at the Montague Hotel at Emo in Co Laois. The four centres reviewed by Hiqa which displayed no non-compliances against standards were: Cuirt Uisce Accommodation Centre, Davis Lane Apartments, Glenvera Hotel, and Ocean View House. There has been a recent rise in IPAS centre closures amid concerns about the quality of accommodation provided for asylum seekers and poor governance structures. A total of 490 beds have been removed from the system due to the closures, which the department of justice said is due to issues of non-compliance with regulations or contractual breaches. The figures from the department are up to late July.
