Latest news with #Nankivell
RTÉ News
2 days ago
- Sport
- RTÉ News
'He is as a man will align really well with Munster' - Alex Nankivell excited by Clayton McMillan arrival
Alex Nankivell wasn't quite sure what former policeman Clayton McMillan wanted when he received a random text message up on his phone. "Hey bro, are you free for a call?" wrote Nankivell's old coach at Chiefs towards the end of January when McMillan's move to Munster was in the works. "When you get to meet him, he can be quite an intimating fella so when you get those sort of messages you a bit like, s**t, what does he want? Am I in trouble?" said the New Zealander, who moved to Munster in 2023 after six seasons with the Super Rugby team, with a smile. "I thought that maybe something I had done at the Chiefs had maybe crept back up on me or something like that." But McMillan, who will finish a four-year stint as head coach with the Waikato outfit this summer, wasn't chasing an old lead on one of Nankivell's off-field escapades. He wanted to get the lie of the land at the 28-year-old's new haunt. After being confirmed as the incoming boss, McMillan even came over to Limerick for a week to see for himself. "We had a call back then - this is when he was shortlisted - and he was just asking about the place and he was being really honest around would he be a good fit with the people that we have here and I said, #yeah 100%, he'd be awesome,'" explained the Munster centre ahead of tomorrow's BKT URC quarter-final against Sharks in Durban (5.30pm). "And then we got to - myself and [prop] John Ryan - being Chiefs men, we got to catch up with him when he came over and he was just asking questions about it, talking about things so he get a good grasp on where we were at and a few ideas that he could potentially implement. "It's a pretty cool sign. I know the lads said they were amazed that he came over in his week off to do that so it shows where he wants to be in terms of his preparation when he turns up to the place. "It's pretty impressive." McMillan (above) will arrive in summer, taking over from interim head coach Ian Costello, who oversaw a mixed season for the province. They finished sixth in the URC table and bowed out of Europe at the quarter-final stage to eventual champions Bordeaux Begles. Nankivell, who has scored seven tries in 33 appearances, believes his old boss is the right man to get Munster back on track. "When I found it he was in the shortlist to get the job, I was quite excited by that fact," he added. "He's a great man. He's quite a reserved guy, he'll kind of do his work in the background but he's really good at managing people, managing players and getting everyone really aligned. "Also at the Chiefs, the cool thing I found with him as a player is he wants to empower you to be the best you can be. "Every player has got different strengths and whatnot and he really wants to bring them out and let you express yourself so that will be huge for us. "Also, his standards. He challenges people. "He will challenge players, coaches and staff around what we're doing in the building and how we can be better and how we can make this team better so I'm really excited for that and I think he will fit in really well. "I think his values and who he is as a man will align really well with Munster and the people that are in this club so it's going to be cool. "He's massive on culture, massive on the environment that we have. "To him, the environment will drive our performance. "It will drive our standards at training and our performances at training and ultimately how we perform in the games so I'm sure he'll look to create a real connection around us as a team and the Munster community around the place, which will be cool to get out in the province, meet the people, meet the supporters. "I think in pre-season there will be a little bit of that stuff so he'll be huge for our culture." John Plumtree's Sharks stand in the way of a third successive semi-final appearance for the visitors. They finished third in the regular season and beat Munster comfortably last October, the 41-24 defeat signalling the end of Graham Rowntree's tenure. Nankivell feels how they deal with and implement their own transition ball will be crucial against a side boasting Lukhanyo Am, Makazole Mapimpi, Aphelele Fassi and Jordan Hendrikse among others. For their part, Munster's Diarmuid Kilgallen, Calvin Nash and Thaakir Abrahams are forming a dynamic back-three combo. "Transition is going to be huge for us so, our ability, our speed to connect those moments are massive but they have a load of world class players, a lot of Springboks but a lot of opportunities," said the Kiwi. "If we work hard in our transition, when we are transitioning in attack and we feel we can put them under pressure around their speed to set and try and play around them. "Hopefully they will snowball during the game and things will present themselves later in the game. So, working hard, getting into position quick and being ambitious to take opportunities when they present themselves."
Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Nankivell ready to step into departing leaders' shoes
Munster's ability to negotiate the pressure-filled challenge of reaching the URC play-offs has given Alex Nankivell the belief his side has the right tools to go into Saturday's quarter-final at the Sharks with confidence. Having dug a hole for themselves with back-to-back league defeats following their Champions Cup quarter-final exit at Bordeaux-Begles last month, Munster rescued their campaign to secure a place in the knockout rounds with bonus-point wins on successive weekends over Ulster and Benetton. The upshot has been a trip to South Africa and a serious examination of their title credentials at Kings Park in Durban on Saturday evening when they face a powerhouse Sharks side brimming with Springbok quality. Yet the New Zealander believes the switch to a knockout rugby mentality for those final two matches of the regular season has primed Munster well for the task ahead. 'I think we've learned a lot from those games,' Nankivell said. 'We weren't perfect in both of those games but the stuff you learn through game management, moments becoming so much more important in these games, it comes down to the little moments and how many you can win. 'So we definitely can take a lot of confidence that we have been there, even though they weren't finals in the last couple of weeks, and learn from those to know that we can go deep. That 'been there, done that' kind of thing will give us confidence, definitely, going into Saturday.' The former Chiefs centre, who moved to Ireland in the summer following the 2023 URC title success, said he had not been aware of Munster's winless record at Kings Park. A 22-22 draw came in their championship-winning campaign two years ago, in between two heavy losses, a 50-35 Champions Cup Round of 16 defeat in April 2023 and a 41-24 loss last October. 'I didn't really know that, to be honest. Obviously, the URC is young and we haven't been playing over here too often but the Sharks are traditionally a very strong team. That hasn't been touched on yet from the coaches and I'm not sure it will be, because it's a quarter final. 'In my opinion, if you start thinking about that too much it might be in the back of your mind and might create a bit of pressure for the lads. So we are purely just focused on our preparation and then winning the quarter-final so that we get another week in the semi-final. Obviously it's a thing but if we get our stuff right, I genuinely believe we can beat them and break that.' Those are the kind of words which back up Ian Costello's assertion after the Ulster victory that Nankivell was one of the 'great leaders' poised to fill the vacuum about to be created by the departure of dressing-room veterans Stephen Archer, Dave Kilcoyne, Conor Murray, and Peter O'Mahony. Now 28, and with a new two-year deal signed in December to extend his stay at Munster to at least the summer of 2027, Nankivell's imagination about his leadership potential has been sparked by the interim head coach's statement. 'It was nice (to hear) firstly,' he said. 'To be honest, I wouldn't have ever looked at myself like that, I feel like I'm a part of the cog but I'll challenge people and keep people accountable. 'And then I have a different experience coming from a different place that plays a different style of rugby so I feel like can be helpful at times, just challenging ideas and getting people to think outside of the box. Read More Calvin Nash aims to raise the bar with Munster at business end of the season 'I guess I've never really thought about, well I've thought about leadership obviously and how I can influence people, but probably not to that extent. It's probably something that I've got to think about as I'm ageing a wee bit now and a few of those big guys are leaving. 'We need people that are going to step up and drive standards and be leaders and show the younger guys how to be a professional. So it's definitely something since that conversation that I've been thinking about in the background. 'It's something I'll dive a bit deeper into over the summer I'd say. Talk to a few people who have been in those positions before because it is hugely important for a team to be successful is to have good leaders. I'll try to find my own way of doing that.' A reunion with incoming head coach Clayton McMillan, his former Chiefs boss, in pre-season could well accelerate the process. It was Nankivell whom McMillan sought out for advice when he was in the frame to be a potential permanent successor to Graham Rowntree and the pair chatted in person when he visited the High Performance Centre during a Chiefs bye week in the Super Rugby season at the end of March. 'He was just asking about the place and he was being really honest around would he be a good fit for the people we have here and I said, 'yeah 100%', he'd be awesome. 'Myself and John Ryan, being Chiefs men, we got to catch up with him when he came over and he was just asking questions about it, talking about things so he get a good grasp on where we were at and a few ideas that he could potentially implement. 'It's a pretty cool sign. I know the lads said they were amazed that he came over in his week off to do that, so it shows where he wants to be in terms of his preparation when he turns up to the place. It's pretty impressive.'
Irish Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Munster need a specific 2024/25 'first' if they are to beat Sharks
Munster have been living life on the cliff edge these past few weeks. The penultimate URC game with Ulster was the equivalent of a knockout game when it came to quarter-final qualification as was the last game against Benetton. Positive results, 38-20 and 30-21 respectively, hoisted the Reds to a sixth place finish, the single most important detail being it guaranteed Champions Cup next season. Sixth meant an away quarter-final and Munster duly found themselves in with Sharks, ostensibly the post-New Year form team in the URC and a third knockout game in succession. Munster have not won three games in a row at any point this season. "It was an awesome challenge, I guess when we started Ulster we knew we had to win those two games to ensure we made the play-offs," says star centre Alex Nankivell of Saturday evening's game. "That's probably the exciting part of rugby, when you are in those positions you have to play a big game. Those are the ones in which you want to be involved and fortunately we did enough to get the two wins which was great and make the play-offs from the team point of view. "For myself there is a bit of nerves at times being like sh*t you think about the one-off, but we've got a good team around us in terms of management and players give you confidence, focus on the process and nail the week. "It's a bit of a cliché but you nail the week and the game takes care of itself." Nankivell is pleased to be back talking about winning again as, returning from a hamstring injury, sustained in late December, on the last day of February there was a run of five defeats in the six games previously. "It's been tough personally," admits the New Zealander. "Probably one of my more interesting years for myself and my career so far. "I guess continuity and playing and then trying to be consistent on my performance like at the end of the first round I thought I had a good pre-season and then I tearing my hamstring "I'd been out for ten weeks and then that Six Nations block where you got a game and you get a week two weeks off, you are playing with different people, new combinations. "That has been really challenging but looking back on it now the amount that you learn has been huge and you take that forward. "These last two games I've been able to string together, they always give you confidence in terms of this week and just building those minutes and those combinations, relationships on the field, can't really beat that so good learning I'm happy where I'm at the moment. By contrast the Durban-based Sharks have won eight of the last URC 10 games, the shock 7-10 reverse against Leinster's 'seconds' five games back their last defeat. It was, coincidentally, their only defeat at home in the competition this season. "Transition is going to be huge for us so, our ability, our speed to connect those moments are massive but for us like I said they have a load of world class players, a lot of Springboks but a lot of opportunities. "If we work hard in our transition, when we are transitioning in attack and we feel we can put them under pressure around their speed to set and try and play around them. "Hopefully they will snowball during the game and things will present themselves later in the game. "So, working hard, getting into position quickly and being ambitious to take opportunities when they present themselves." The opportunity is there to make the semi-finals, it's all to play for. "The Sharks are traditionally a very strong team. That hasn't been touched on yet by the coach or anything. I'm not sure if it will be because it's a quarter-final and, in my opinion, if you start thinking about that too much . "It might be in the back of your mind and it might create a bit of pressure for the lads so we are purely just focused on our preparation and then winning the quarterfinal and getting another week in the semi-final so. "Honestly if we get our stuff right, I genuinely believe we can beat them." Beating Sharks on home soil will be a tough task and to see Ian Costello namecheck Nankivell as a key part of the Munster collective, as a 'great leader'. 'It was nice to hear firstly but, to be honest, I wouldn't have ever looked at myself like that. "It's something I'll dive a bit deeper into over the next the summer I'd say. Talk to a few people who have been in those positions before because it is hugely important for a team to be successful is to have good leaders. I'll try to find my own way of doing that. "I kinda feel like I'm part of the cog but I'll challenge people and keep people accountable. I have a different experience coming from a different place that plays a different style of rugby so I feel like can be helpful at times, just challenging ideas and getting people to think outside of the box. I guess I've never really thought about, well I've thought about leadership obviously and how I can influence people but probably not to that extent. It's probably something that I've got to think about as I'm ageing a wee bit now and a few of those big guys are leaving. "We need people that are going to step up and drive standards and be leaders and show the younger guys how to be a professional so it's definitely something since that conversation that I've been thinking about in the background."
BBC News
10-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Munster centre Nankivell cleared to face Bordeaux
Munster's Alex Nankivell has been cleared to face Bordeaux-Begles in Saturday's Champions Cup quarter-final (15:00 BST). Nankivell was handed a two-game suspension following his red card against Connacht last month, and while he remained banned for last week's win over La Rochelle, he is available this weekend after his appeal was upheld. The New Zealand-born centre, 28, was dismissed in Munster's United Rugby Championship win over Connacht by referee Craig Evans after making head contact with Cian appeal panel consisting of chair Rod McKenzie (Scotland), Achille Reali (Italy) and Rory Bannerman (Scotland) upheld Nankivell's appeal after reviewing the case on Wednesday. Munster travel to Stade Chaban Delmas on Saturday after edging La Rochelle in a gripping encounter in France last weekend. The Irish province have not reached the Champions Cup semi-finals since 2019. Munster will name their team to face Bordeaux at 13:00 BST on Friday.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
In an NJ town without varsity HS football, the girls carry the flag
In an NJ town without varsity HS football, the girls carry the flag HARRISON − Football in Harrison is alive and well. It's just that now, the Blue Tide logo wears a white belt with two flags around its waist. The quarterback throws the ball flat-footed, if she throws it at all. Most importantly, Harrison wins almost all the time. Advertisement The small Hudson County school − a New Jersey soccer powerhouse forever − dropped the boys football program after the 2023 season for multiple reasons, mainly a lack of willing players, but the girls flag football program has filled the void. The Blue Tide has become a powerhouse, reaching the state semifinals last year. For the Harrison players, flag football has become something they grew to love in a short period of time. Check out the photo gallery, then continue reading. For the Harrison coaches, like so many others of flag programs, it's been refreshing, a chance to teach football to a whole new audience. Advertisement 'To those that think that Harrison might not have football anymore, I would tell them we do, and they should come here and watch them,' Harrison flag football coach Dan Nankivell said. 'Once they see it once, I think they'll believe that this is something special.' Building the girls flag football program Nankivell, 'Nank' to everyone, would know. He played football for the Blue Tide and coached in the boys program before it folded. 'It's devastating for me as an alum,' Nankivell said. 'I coached in 2017 and we went to the playoffs that year. To watch it go from there to a non-existent program is heartbreaking.' Apr 3, 2025; Harrison, NJ, USA; Ridgefield Memorial flag football at Harrison. H #10 Alma Camila Garcia Diaz celebrates as her team scores in the first half. When then-athletic director Kim Huaranga asked Nankivell about coaching the flag football program at Harrison, she assumed he would say no, but something about the job appealed to him. He could run his Wing-T offense − Harrison's offense looks more like a single wing than anything else − and he could work with his friend Chris McKnight to run the defense. Advertisement As far as the players, Harrison doesn't have a track program in the spring. The softball program struggles to compete at a high level. So there were female athletes walking around Harrison, they just needed a chance to show it. 'My whole family, my brothers, they all played football, so we were very involved in the sport already,' Harrison senior quarterback Hailey Scocco said. 'I knew I wanted to play. I always had the arm. As soon as they were doing tryouts, I wanted to play right away.' 'When I came to my parents and said I am going to play flag football, they said, 'whaaaat?' I said I didn't know what it was, but we will find out together,' Harrison junior Mya De Jesus said with a laugh. 'They never said no, that's a guys sport. They have been open and supportive of me and they know how much I love it.' Apr 3, 2025; Harrison, NJ, USA; Ridgefield Memorial flag football at Harrison. H #15 Mya De Jesus on her way to scoring in the first half. Finding success in Harrison Nankivell has gone all in on flag. His coaching staff includes two women: Jenn Svec (special teams) and Kate Gigl (offense assistant). He runs the social media account with help from Camilla Garcia and Francisco Apollo. Advertisement The Instagram account has highlights and pictures from each game. The Blue Tide did a 'schedule drop' video that included a walk through the hallways and a meeting with school principal Matthew Weber. You can't help but think everyone is having a blast. Winning certainly helps. Entering this season, the Blue Tide were 22-3-1 all-time in the regular season, 24-6-1 overall. 'I think they might not say it, but there is a bit of a chip on their shoulder,' Nankivell said. 'I grew up here and can attest to it, but people always count out Harrison kids and it's especially true of female athletes here. They grow up in an environment where outsiders − the town has always been supportive − but outsiders have the idea that you're just a kid from Harrison and this is your ceiling, and I think they take that personally.' On the field, Harrison takes no prisoners. Last Thursday night, they routed Ridgefield, 48-0. The score wasn't a huge surprise, Ridgefield is a new program, and the Blue Tide looked like a well-oiled machine. They scored on offense, defense and special teams. Advertisement The crowd grew to around 80 people. They girls ran through blue smoke coming on to the field. After every touchdown, 'Twist and Shout' blared over the loudspeakers. Apr 3, 2025; Harrison, NJ, USA; Ridgefield Memorial flag football at Harrison. Harrison celebrates defeating Ridgefield Memorial. De Jesus said it's disappointing not to have a boys program. 'Every school has one and you have Friday Night Lights. It got to a point where we had to look forward to watching soccer on Friday nights. It's not normal. I'm not saying it's bad − our soccer team is good − but it's not the same feeling as going to a football game.' Nankivell loves the idea of the girls playing on a Friday night. 'Maybe we could work that out,' he said. 'We usually play on Thursdays and Wednesdays, and it's not the same,' De Jesus said. 'We look at Harrison and it's known for soccer, but we want to make it known for something else… flag football.' What comes next? Flag football has grown exponentially in New Jersey since the New York Jets and Nike partnered up four years ago. Advertisement It's still considered a 'club' sport, meaning it's not officially sanctioned by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association and athletes could participate in both flag football and another spring sports. But it looks like it will become sanctioned for the 2027 season. There are concerns from coaches in other spring sports, notably softball and track, that flag football will take away talented athletes and leave their programs depleted. Those concerns are valid, but flag football is a fun, exciting alternative. Girls clearly want to play. Colleges are adding the sport. The Jets are sponsoring a regional club team. The tide is rising. Harrison is too. 'I hear that Harrison is not a football town anymore, I would argue that it is, it just looks different,' Nankivell said. 'Girls football is the thing now. I hope we can be trailblazers on the field.' This article originally appeared on Harrison NJ girls flag football becomes a dynamo despite no boys team
