Rugby-Proud All Black Kirifi keen to sink teeth into Argentina
The Hurricanes hard-man soaked up his first All Blacks minutes off the bench against France in Dunedin last month and finished the series with a full match in Hamilton as a late replacement for the starting openside Luke Jacobson.
He has retained the All Blacks' number seven jersey for the first test against Argentina in Cordoba on Saturday, beating out a raft of quality loose forwards, including Samipeni Finau, who was named in the reserves.
"It's obviously another proud moment, officially being named to start for the first time," Kirifi told reporters in a video call on Friday.
"But I'm kind of glad that the first couple of tests are over and all the noise around me becoming an All Black is behind me.
"Now I can just focus on training hard and playing well."
Named after former South Africa captain Morne du Plessis by a rugby-loving dad, 28-year-old Kirifi has waited a long time for his moment in test rugby.
Five years ago he was called up to Ian Foster's All Blacks squad as injury cover but he never got to pull on a jersey.
Current coach Scott Robertson also gave him a call-up during the Northern Hemisphere tour last year, but he missed out on selection again.
While processing the disappointment, Kirifi flirted with a move overseas to take up a "juicy deal" with a Japanese club which would have meant shelving his test rugby ambitions.
Instead, he re-signed with the Hurricanes and New Zealand Rugby in March after his father urged him to give the All Blacks one more crack.
Little wonder there were warm cheers when Kirifi took the field in Dunedin and finished his victorious All Blacks debut with a blood-soaked collar from a cut to his ear.
Kirifi said post-match he would give the jersey, unwashed, to his father to hang in the hallway of the family home.
Starting alongside enforcer Ardie Savea on Saturday, Kirifi will be ready to spill more blood for New Zealand against a ferocious Argentina back row featuring Marcos Kremer and Pablo Matera.
"We're pretty aware of the challenge that's in front of us and the environment that we're walking into over the next couple of weeks," he said.
"We're really looking forward to sinking our teeth into some pretty solid opposition."
(Reporting by Ian Ransom in Melbourne; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
Sinner dominates Cincinnati Open
DEFENDING champion Jannik Sinner cruised past Felix Auger-Aliassime with a commanding 6-0 6-2 victory in the Cincinnati Open quarter-finals. The world number one extended his hardcourt winning streak to 25 matches, capitalising on Auger-Aliassime's 29 unforced errors. 'Today I felt great on court,' Sinner said. 'Every day is going to be different, but we will prepare for the semis.' The Italian became only the fifth man this century to achieve 25 consecutive hardcourt wins, joining Djokovic, Nadal, Federer, and Murray. He will next face French qualifier Terence Atmane, who stunned seventh seed Holger Rune 6-2 6-3. 'I cannot believe it,' Atmane said. 'Breaking into the Top 100 and reaching a Masters 1000 semi-final means everything.' Canadian Open champion Ben Shelton advanced to the quarter-finals with a 6-4 6-4 win over Jiri Lehecka. 'I'm hungry and in a good rhythm,' Shelton said. 'I want to prove myself every match.' Shelton will now face German third seed Alexander Zverev. In the women's draw, Coco Gauff secured a 6-2 6-4 win over Lucia Bronzetti. 'I played aggressive but had to adjust to the light balls,' Gauff said. The American will next meet Jasmine Paolini, who defeated Barbora Krejcikova in a Wimbledon final rematch. - Reuters
The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
Sinner dominates Cincinnati Open, extends hardcourt streak to 25 wins
DEFENDING champion Jannik Sinner cruised past Felix Auger-Aliassime with a commanding 6-0 6-2 victory in the Cincinnati Open quarter-finals. The world number one extended his hardcourt winning streak to 25 matches, capitalising on Auger-Aliassime's 29 unforced errors. 'Today I felt great on court,' Sinner said. 'Every day is going to be different, but we will prepare for the semis.' The Italian became only the fifth man this century to achieve 25 consecutive hardcourt wins, joining Djokovic, Nadal, Federer, and Murray. He will next face French qualifier Terence Atmane, who stunned seventh seed Holger Rune 6-2 6-3. 'I cannot believe it,' Atmane said. 'Breaking into the Top 100 and reaching a Masters 1000 semi-final means everything.' Canadian Open champion Ben Shelton advanced to the quarter-finals with a 6-4 6-4 win over Jiri Lehecka. 'I'm hungry and in a good rhythm,' Shelton said. 'I want to prove myself every match.' Shelton will now face German third seed Alexander Zverev. In the women's draw, Coco Gauff secured a 6-2 6-4 win over Lucia Bronzetti. 'I played aggressive but had to adjust to the light balls,' Gauff said. The American will next meet Jasmine Paolini, who defeated Barbora Krejcikova in a Wimbledon final rematch. - Reuters
The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
Sabalenka stunned by Rybakina in Cincinnati Open semi-final
DEFENDING champion Aryna Sabalenka was dismantled 6-1 6-4 on Friday by Elena Rybakina who powered into her first Cincinnati Open semi-final with a display of clinical serving. The Kazakh ninth seed delivered a brilliant performance to secure her seventh career win over a top-ranked player and set up a blockbuster clash with Poland's Iga Swiatek in a showdown of Wimbledon champions. Rybakina fired 11 aces throughout the match, earning an impressive 81% of points on her first serve, while saving all five break points she faced as she secured her fifth win over Sabalenka in 12 meetings. 'I'm happy with the serve. It was the key,' former world number three Rybakina said. 'We're both big hitters. Today I served really well. If Aryna serves well, it's completely different. Hopefully I continue like this.' Earlier, third seed Swiatek advanced to her first WTA 1000 semi-final in 15 months, beating Russia's Anna Kalinskaya 6-3 6-4. Kalinskaya, who had defeated Swiatek in their only previous meeting, put up a spirited fight by saving four match points, before the six-times Grand Slam winner converted her fifth opportunity on serve to seal the victory. 'I just played my game,' Swiatek said. 'For sure, it wasn't easy. Just happy I was solid and had the intensity to apply pressure.' Veronika Kudermetova breezed past Varvara Gracheva 6-1 6-2 to reach her first Cincinnati semi-final. The Russian seems to be back to the form that once carried her into the Top 10, earning her first WTA 1000 last-four spot since 2023. She will next face either second seed Coco Gauff or seventh-seeded Italian Jasmine Paolini in the semis. In the men's draw, second seed Carlos Alcaraz survived a three-set battle against Russian ninth seed Andrey Rublev, claiming a 6-3 4-6 7-5 win to reach the last four. The Spaniard was far from his best, committing 15 unforced errors and three double faults in the decider, but capitalising on his lone match point, courtesy of a Rublev double fault, to secure his 15th consecutive Masters 1000 win. 'Playing someone like Andrey, when you lose focus on two or three points, it can cost you the set or the match. I just stayed strong mentally and that's what I'm most proud of,' Alcaraz said. 'It's just accepting the moment, accepting that I am playing a third set, that it's going to be a really tough battle, and I love that,' he added after setting up a showdown with either third seed Alex Zverev or American fifth seed Ben Shelton. Five-times Grand Slam champion Alcaraz, winner of 37 of his last 39 matches, advanced to his 12th Masters 1000 semi, equalling the mark of Italian top seed Jannik Sinner, who faces Frenchman Terence Atmane in the other last-four clash. - Reuters
