Opals shine to beat NZ in Trans-Tasman Throwdown
Debutant Miela Sowah's sharp shooting and captain Stephanie Reid's dogged defence have carried the Opals to an 88-70 win over New Zealand in the opening game of the inaugural Trans-Tasman Throwdown.
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News.com.au
11 hours ago
- News.com.au
Auckland City's amateurs take unpaid leave for Club World Cup adventure
The revamped Club World Cup starting on Saturday brings together some of the most celebrated teams and players in global football. And Auckland City. In a tournament boasting $1 billion in prize money and featuring superstar multi-millionaire players including Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, the New Zealand side are a striking anomaly. Auckland City are an amateur club, their players balancing football with university studies or full-time jobs as teachers, real estate agents and sales reps. They don't earn a salary for playing. Their first game at the Club World Cup in the United States brings them face-to-face with German champions Bayern Munich and their prolific England striker Harry Kane. Benfica and Boca Juniors, two other storied heavyweights, come next. Auckland City striker Angus Kilkolly cannot wait. "It's probably our dream group," he told AFP by telephone as he made his way to training from his day job in sales. "For us to be able to experience playing against those teams is a dream for us. To be actually on the same pitch is a little bit crazy." The 13-time Oceania Champions League winners have been an almost constant presence at the Club World Cup since 2006. The Navy Blues finished third of seven sides at the 2014 edition, beaten by Argentina's San Lorenzo in extra time in the semi-finals. The tournament this time is a different beast after FIFA pumped in huge resources and made it a 32-team competition that includes Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City and Inter Milan. - After-game drinks - Kilkolly describes Auckland City as "a family club where everyone's welcome, you know everyone, you see the same people at every game". Their picturesque Kiwitea Street ground is nestled in a residential area in New Zealand's biggest city and matches typically take place in front of crowds of between 200 and 2,000, Kilkolly said. "We've got a nice boutique club room and everybody enjoys a drink after the game," said the 29-year-old, who averages a goal every other game in his nearly 140 appearances for the club. Auckland City are currently second, a point behind leaders Birkenhead United AFC in the amateur 12-team Northern League. So against the highest level of opposition they have ever faced, what would represent success against Bayern and the rest? "If we can leave there and say, 'we played our style, we've done our best', I think that's a positive outlook," said Kilkolly. "If we leave there with regrets, going 'we didn't do all we could', that would be a sour feeling." He says the team will stick to the club's "DNA" of attractive possession-based football and playing out from the back. "We don't concede a lot of goals in New Zealand so obviously we're aiming not to concede too many goals at the Club World Cup as well," he said. - Unpaid leave - Kilkolly's typical week day is a busy one and he has not taken a proper holiday for three or four years because football eats up all his leave days. A manager in sales for a power tools firm, he is in the office at 7:30 am, does a day's work, trains three or four times a week, home by 9:00 pm, off to bed, repeat. He does not receive a wage for playing football. Rather, there is a cap of 150 New Zealand dollars (US$90) a week for amateur footballers in the country covering basic expenses such as gym membership. The Auckland City players will be in the United States for nearly a month -- thankfully Kilkolly's boss is understanding and likes football. "It's not easy, it's four weeks' leave, but I don't have four weeks' annual leave so there's unpaid leave going there," Kilkolly said. "But it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Playing at the World Cup gives us the ability to compete on a world stage and have that feeling of being a professional footballer, without being one." As a forward, Kilkolly will have eyes on Kane's number nine jersey after their game at the 26,000-capacity TQL Stadium in Cincinnati. "I think he earns more in a week than I earn in a year working," he said with a laugh.
News.com.au
3 days ago
- News.com.au
Brumbies seal Super Rugby semi final berth with win over the Hurricanes
There's still a pulse in Australia's ailing Super Rugby teams. Not for the first time, the ACT Brumbies have saved Australian rugby's blushes with a thrilling 35-28 quarter-final win over the Hurricanes in Canberra on Saturday. They now face the dreaded prospect of having to win twice in New Zealand to take the title but that's a problem for another day because the good news is that at least they're still alive. Australia's other teams all folded like cheap suits and have already crashed out of the tournament, leaving the Brumbies to fly the flag alone against the three remaining Kiwi sides. If it wasn't for an officiating blunder that cost them victory in their final regular season clash with the Crusaders, the Brumbies would be hosting a semi next week but instead they're off to Waikato Stadium in Hamilton to tackle the Chiefs. It's a tough assignment but the Brumbies have always been a side willing to roll up their sleeves and grind out wins through hard work. Twice they found themselves trailing the Hurricanes inside the first quarter of the game but both times they levelled the scores with tries off the back of rolling mauls after spurning the chance of easy points from penalties. It's not pretty but it's a highly effective tactic that the Brumbies have mastered and the Wallabies should consider using in their upcoming series against the British and Irish Lions. Four of the Brumbies' five tries against the Hurricanes were scored by frontrowers, two by hooker Billy Pollard and one each from props James Slipper and captain Allan Alaalatoa, who returned to the side from injury. 'It felt good to earn ourselves another week,' Alaalatoa said. 'We knew it was probably going to take everything we had. Physically, we spoke a lot about our tackle area and our tackle completion from the last time we played them. 'We backed ourselves. We knew that if we were going to beat the Hurricanes, we had to score some tries. 'The last time we played him, we didn't get many A-Zone opportunities, so we wanted to take as many as we could.' Only Tom Wright, who had an impressive game at fullback, chalked one up for the backline after he combined with powerhouse backrower Rob Valentini. If the Brumbies have a weakness it's with their defence. They conceded 50 tries during the normal season and gave up four more against the Hurricanes to keep the visitors in the game right until the final whistle. There was some added pressure before the game when the Auckland Blues scored in the last minute to beat the Chiefs in New Zealand, meaning the Brumbies' match was sudden-death. Had the Chiefs won, both the Brumbies and the Canes would have been assured a place in the semis regardless of the result but it was the Aussies who survived to fight again. 'It's good for us to experience that pressure now, especially heading over to Hamilton now where it is going to be do or die,' Alaalatoa said. 'To have that feeling for the game I think it's gonna be good for us heading into next week.'
News.com.au
3 days ago
- News.com.au
Cronulla Sharks forward suffers sickening injury after horror head clash
Cronulla were blown off the park on Saturday night as the New Zealand Warriors ran riot at Sharks Stadium. If the 40-10 scoreline wasn't bad enough, the Sharks had some injury to add to the one-sided beat down. FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every game of every round in the 2025 NRL Telstra Premiership, LIVE with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer. In the first half second rower Briton Nikora attempted to lay a tackle on Jackson Ford but it all went horribly wrong. Nikora's head slammed into Ford's head with the Sharks player coming off second best. The 27-year-old was slow to get back to his feet as cameras zoomed in to show a nasty cut that looked more like one you'd see inside the UFC Octagon. Watch the moment Nikora is split open in the video player above The incident came shortly after the Warriors had taken a 10-0 lead inside the opening 20 minutes before the Sharks responded. Mawene Hiroti crossed first before KL Iro etched his name into the NRL record books with a try in the 33rd minute. He becomes the first player in the NRL era (since 1998) to score a try in their first nine games of the season. 'He's had a season hasn't he,' Greg Alexander said. 'KL Iro, he has been a revelation on this left hand side of the field hasn't he,' Warren Smith added. Sadly that's as good as it got for the Sharks who were completely blown away in the second half with the Warriors running in 28 unanswered points. The Warriors were in complete control of the contest, scoring five tries to leave Cronulla fans in disbelief. Cronulla's second half display left league legend Greg Alexander stunned, failing to record a simple point. 'I can't believe what has happened in the second half … but boy, everything has gone wrong,' Greg Alexander said. For the Warriors it was their fifth win in a row in Australia and moves them level with the Bulldogs at the top of the table just a few months after there were fears they'd get the spoon following a heavy loss in Las Vegas.
