"Poly flair" adds spark to Super Rugby Pacific competition
What a weekend it was for the two Pasifika Super Rugby teams, who recorded good wins for their fans on Saturday.
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Midday Sports News for 21 August 2025
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Football: A-League draw 'chaos' if Western United lose appeal
Western United won the A-League in 2022. Photo: While A-League clubs wait to find out the fate of Western United, their thoughts have turned to the players at the embattled club as well as what it means for their own teams for the upcoming season. Western United on Wednesday night lodged an appeal of Football Australia's decision to withdraw its A-League licence . Football Australia is expected to announce its decision on the appeal next week. Western United have been in financial turmoil for months, with the club's current owners unable to satisfy the financial criteria required to maintain their licence The men's A-League competition is set to kick off on 17 October but until a decision is made on Western United's involvement no draw has been released. Auckland FC coach Steve Corica has been part of the A-League, firstly as a player then as a coach, for 20 years and has seen clubs come and go in the competition. "It's obviously not great to lose a club at this time of the season," Corica said of Western United's potential exit. "You feel bad for the players that are there as well that are preparing for a season and they're not really sure what's happening. "We hope we don't lose them and we continue as normal but it will be a bit of chaos if we do lose them as well with the draw and everything like that but I'm sure they'll work that out." Auckland FC manager Steve Corica speaks to Francis de Vries (L) and Nando Pijnaker during the A-League match against Western United. Photo: photosport Western United joined the A-League in the 2019/20 season as an expansion club and won the grand final two seasons later. The last club to be kicked out of the A-League was Gold Coast United who were involved between 2009 to 2012. Prior to that North Queensland Fury were around between 2009 and 2011 and the New Zealand Knights had a similarly short stint from 2005 to 2007. Corica said planning for Auckland FC was impacted by late release of the draw. "Western is the team we will have to play three times this year so obviously if they disappear then there is no byes anymore and the draw will have to be completely re-done. "It's just more about the planning side of things for us at the moment, we have to travel a lot and we have to make sure we've got the hotels and the training grounds in place but we can't do that while we don't know the draw." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
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Football: Phoenix sign Canadian defender Manjrekar James for next A-League season
Atalanta's Ivorian forward Amad Diallo (L) shoots on goal while challenged by Midtjylland's Canadian defender Manjrekar James. Photo: MIGUEL MEDINA / AFP The Wellington Phoenix have signed Canadian defender Manjrekar James for the upcoming A-League season. The centre back is the team's fifth and final visa player for the upcoming season. James, who stands 1.93m tall, has been a professional for 13 years in Europe, North America and Central America and has won titles in Denmark, Canada and Costa Rica, most recently with LD Alajuelense. The 32-year-old has also played 17 times for Canada at senior level since making his full international debut as a 21-year-old in 2015. Phoenix head coach Giancarlo Italiano said James was a physically dominant centre back. "Manjrekar fits the profile of the defender that I've been wanting to recruit," Italiano said. "He's aggressive, he's strong, he's very good with the ball, he has good experience across a number of leagues around the world and he's an international. "Manjrekar's got all the attributes I want from a centre back. He's very good man-to-man, very mobile, quick and makes very good decisions in very hard situations. "He's also very good in the air and always on the front foot so I think stylistically and in terms of aggression he'll give us an edge. James, who will join the squad once he obtains his New Zealand work visa, can't wait to play for the Phoenix. "One of my old teammates at Midtjylland, Bozhidar Kraev, used to play for Wellington so I've heard a lot of good things about the Phoenix and the A-League." James was born on the small Caribbean island of Dominica in a cricket-mad family and was named after former Indian batsman Sanjay Manjrekar. His family moved to Canada when he was eight and he started playing football in North York, Ontario a year later. He will wear the No 4 shirt for the Wellington Phoenix with the club now having 22 men's players contracted for the 2025-26 A-League season. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
