Latest news with #Nicholas'
South Wales Argus
3 days ago
- Sport
- South Wales Argus
Pakistan Super League needs marketing, says Mark Nicholas
A separate panel will debate the question of whether cricket is 'cool' – and Nicholas believes there is work to do in that regard. 'The answer is, currently, it is not cool enough,' he said. 'In its shortest format, certainly in India, maybe with The Hundred and the Caribbean Premier League, and probably with SA20, there is an increasingly younger audience and more examples of kids saying to their parents 'I want to go to the cricket' rather than the other way round. 'It's getting cooler again and I would say India and the IPL has driven that. 'People throw stones at marketing, but good marketing is unbelievably powerful. 'I would say that here (England) with the Hundred, South Africa, India, they do it well. 'I did two weeks of the Pakistan Super League, and one outstanding observation would be that they don't market as hard or as successfully as some of the other leagues.' World Cricket Connects, which brings together influential figures from across all aspects of cricket, was Nicholas' brainchild and is expanding to a two-day event in 2025 after a successful start last year. A 13-strong World Cricket Connects Advisory Board, chaired by Kumar Sangakkara, has been established since the inaugural forum was held and one of its members, Mel Jones, has had a significant impact in helping Afghanistan's displaced women's team find opportunities to play in Australia. The MCC founded the Global Refugee Cricket Fund earlier this year and its initial focus is supporting the Pitch Our Future campaign - an Australian-led programme that empowers and supports players from the former Afghanistan Women's Cricket Team – after the topic was raised at World Cricket Connects. 'People wanted action, they were horrified by what had happened to Afghanistan's women's cricketers,' Nicholas said. 'Once it became obvious there was a way to support it through our foundation, we were very quick to do so. 'One of MCC's great strengths is that we give back to cricket to an extraordinary level, a level that cuts our surplus every year in half. 'I feel we should always try and help initiatives like that, that's exactly where MCC can fit. I really feel that was in our wheelhouse.'
NBC Sports
4 days ago
- General
- NBC Sports
With half of New York seemingly behind him, emotional James Nicholas achieves dream
SUMMIT, N.J. – Upon qualifying for his first United States Open Championship, James Nicholas ran straight into the arms of America. That's his fiancée's name, America Richmond. Fitting, right? Richmond was among the 50 or so family and friends following Nicholas' quest at Monday's 36-hole U.S. Open final qualifier at Canoe Brook, a little over an hour – without traffic, of course – from Nicholas' hometown of Scarsdale, New York. As Nicholas approached the North Course's 18th green, with a tricky third shot from the rough upcoming but two shots clear of the field, his faithful gallery was just a few steps behind, nearly engulfing him in anticipation. The scene resembled an off-Broadway matinee of Phil at Kiawah, and Nicholas was playing lead. Though he three-putted for bogey, it was just his third of the day, and at 7 under after rounds of 67-68, the 28-year-old Nicholas, a former three-sport athlete with a gifted lineage, was punching his ticket to Oakmont as medalist. 'It means the world. My support system is everything to me…,' started Nicholas, before choking up. He needed a few seconds. The morning on the adjacent South Course had begun with a few scrappy par saves and somehow a couple early birdies. 'Rocky … really rocky,' as Nicholas described it. 'I was in the trees, punching out sideways and getting up and down and making some good pars.' America, who had just watched all 72 holes of last week's Korn Ferry Tour event in Raleigh, North Carolina, was there from the start. Then Nicholas' mom, Eileen, showed up. Then one of his brothers, Brian. Then a sponsor. 'And then I had what felt like half of New York and Scarsdale coming out and following me,' Nicholas added. 'That's what it's all about. You don't play this game for yourself; yeah, you want to push yourself and see where you can go, but it's the experiences with other people that make it so special.' Nicholas was always going to go far; he just didn't always know in what. His late grandfather, James, was a renowned orthopedic surgeon and pioneer in the field who famously did Joe Namath's first right-knee surgery just weeks after Namath was drafted by the Jets – he operated on the Hall of Fame quarterback's knees four times – before founding the world's first hospital for the treatment and prevention of sports injuries. Nicholas' father, Stephen, followed in his father's footsteps, and young James was pre-med at Yale until he qualified for match play at the 2017 U.S. Amateur at Riviera, sparking the belief that he could play golf professionally. Before that, Nicholas lettered in three sports in high school – golf, football and hockey. The latter he competed in until he was 18 years old. A three-time, first-team All-State forward, Nicholas also was a member of the New Jersey Avalanche, a nationally ranked travel team, and shared ice with several current NHL stars, including Auston Matthews, Charlie McEvoy and Jake Oettinger. Nicholas' last hockey game came in the final of the 2015 Toyota-USA Hockey Youth Tier I 18U National Championships, where Nicholas' Avalanche lost a 5-4 thriller in overtime. He could've played hockey in college, but that would've required the New York state champion golfer to retire the clubs. Instead, Nicholas went to Yale, where he could continue the family tradition of playing multiple NCAA sports. Stephen attended Harvard, where he played football and baseball. James' sister Erica won six NCAA titles at D-III Middlebury College between field hockey and lacrosse. Brother Stephen was on the golf and football teams at Franklin and Marshall, where sister Michaela starred in field hockey. Brian is currently on Brown's hockey team while Eileen, James argues, might be the best athlete of the bunch, a skilled surfer among her many sporting talents. James Nicholas played one season at strong safety for the Bulldogs' football team before deciding to focus solely on golf. He ended his Yale career as the 2019 Ivy League Player of the Year. Despite his privileged upbringing, Nicholas developed the reputation of a grinder, and when he turned pro, he was eager to earn his way through the developmental ranks, unafraid of this game's ability to humble often. Seven years later, he's still grinding. He earned conditional Korn Ferry Tour status just months after finishing school, though he didn't get into his first event until June thanks partly to the pandemic. He lost his card after that super season and would only log nine starts on that tour over the next two years with a few PGA Tour appearances sprinkled in. Two winters ago, he opted to try his luck in Europe; he got his DP World Tour card through qualifying school and then made each of his first three cuts. Unfortunately, he'd see the weekend just four more times the rest of the season and then missed out on keeping his card at Q-School, which led Nicholas back to America – the country, not his fiancée. 'That really tested me as a person and as a player,' Nicholas said of his year of globetrotting. 'Just traveling from week to week, new places, people speaking different languages. And then playing on much, much tighter golf courses. I had to learn to hit it straighter.' Nicholas is currently No. 61 in Korn Ferry Tour points; the top 20 at season's end lock up PGA Tour membership. So, after catching fire Monday afternoon with four birdies in a five-hole stretch around the turn and joining Chris Gotterup (71-65), Roberto Diaz (65-71) and amateur Ben James (67-70) in qualifying for the U.S. Open, Nicholas had little choice – he had to fly at 8 a.m. the next morning to Greenville, South Carolina, for the KFT's BMW Charity Pro-Am. The grind never stops. But moments like Monday are what keep Nicholas fighting. This one meant so much, it didn't feel real yet. 'I've had this circled on my calendar for years,' Nicholas said, through tears. 'When I was 15 years old and got through locals for the first time, that was just a kid with a dream. I was just so raw, I was not ever going to make it through. … But I told myself one day I'm going to be playing in a major championship, one day I'm going to win a major championship, and this is that first step. 'I'm playing on the Korn Ferry Tour this year, and it's hard. There are so many good golfers, and to have this day, like this is my day, and I played awesome. It's just really special. And I know it resets, and now it's, ok, you gotta go actually prepare for a U.S. Open, and that's a much different beast, but I'm just really thrilled with everything right now.' And with that, Nicholas, with America in hand, set off to continue his journey.
NZ Herald
08-05-2025
- NZ Herald
Former policeman John Dewar revealed as Hamilton businessman convicted of theft, fraud charges
When he left the force in 1999, after 25 years, Dewar was given a $250,000-plus payout despite being investigated for over-claiming on travel expenses. But in 2004, it emerged that he had been involved in covering up Nicholas' allegations against the officers. The sentencing judge, Justice Rodney Hansen, said the aggravating features of Dewar's crime were overwhelming. It had harmed Nicholas psychologically and financially, and had also damaged the reputation of several institutions. 'The cash cheques, weedkiller, and Hush Puppies shoes' Now, Dewar has been back before the courts, spending eight days defending theft and obtaining by deception charges. Dewar was on trial for three charges, each of theft by a person in a special relationship and of obtaining by deception, between 2015 and 2018. The charges relate to his time as a chief executive of a company from which he stole about $111,000 to help pay off a personal loan and to buy weed killer, a spray unit, a toastie machine maker, and Hush Puppies shoes. Part of his defence was that he was never told not to act in the way he did. The jury began their deliberations at 4.40pm yesterday before returning with their verdicts at 4.25pm today. Dewar was convicted and remanded on bail for sentencing in June. 'They didn't tell me not to do it' In his closing to the jury, Dewar admitted he'd 'struggled' having to represent himself in the proceedings. 'I probably should have gotten a lawyer,' he said. Throughout his closing, he admitted there was a 'blurring of lines', that his management of the company was 'chaotic' and 'inept'. He said he was simply doing a 'good deed' for a finance broker who he'd offered to go 50-50 on fees as he was going 'through a hard time'. Advertise with NZME. 'All I did was try to help [the broker] through a hard time by putting some work his way ... but it's not a crime. 'I helped him out because he was having trouble surviving ... and maybe that was a bad call from me, but I didn't obtain anything [fraudulently]. 'I obtained nothing whatsoever.' After listening to the witnesses – comprising board members, a staff member, and the finance broker – he accepted that it appeared as though he ran the company 'in an autocratic style'. Dewar said the board never said he couldn't act in the way that he did and admitted making the purchases and cashing cheques. 'I am disappointed in myself that I let them down and didn't do a good job. 'That makes me a bad manager, but it does not make me guilty of these charges.' He said he made all the purchases, including the weedeater and Hush Puppies shoes, but he never made any false representations. He cited a former staff member's evidence, who confirmed that he did all the cleaning and maintenance. 'I cleaned the toilet and vacuumed.' As for the cash cheques, Dewar said it was 'pretty obvious' he couldn't confirm where the money ended up. 'It doesn't look so good, but you heard the evidence of [a staffer] where the payments of cash and cheques being made to brokers and [others]. 'I ran [the company] like it was my baby.' 'They're basic duties of a CEO' But Crown solicitor Tom Sutcliffe said there 'clearly was' an expectation by the company's board of directors that their company would be run 'in an ethical way with best practice in mind'. A board of director, in his evidence, earlier read out an excerpt from Dewar's employment contract to the jury stating that the employee shall comply with reasonable and lawful instructions. The board expected the company to be run 'ethically, responsibly, and lawfully, and complying with the requirements of the industry'. 'For a man of [Dewar's] experience, you could not have expected them to think anything else,' Sutcliffe said. Sutcliffe said the allegations were things that they wouldn't expect a CEO to do, and if he did, he should have kept a record of where the money went. Advertisement Advertise with NZME. 'These are basic duties of the CEO of a finance company.' The Crown didn't need to prove that the defendant benefited from money allegedly taken; it was simply the fact that he took it. '[The board] should have been able to look at the ledger, and it should have told them where the money had gone.' As for his defence that he was never told not to act in that way, Sutcliffe said: 'Why would you have to spell that out for a CEO of a company?' As for the obtain by deception charges, relating to Dewar allegedly giving himself a benefit by cashing the $600 broker fee cheques, the board knew nothing of his deal with the finance broker. 'It was quite deliberate and intentional.' The defendant would have known that using company money to put towards his own loan was a conflict of interest, Sutcliffe submitted. 'You just can't treat it like your own revolving credit facility. '[Dewar] can't claim ignorance, he's an experienced operator and made conscious decisions to operate like that,' Sutcliffe alleged. Paying company funds against his own loan 'beggars belief quite frankly', he said. As for the Hush Puppies shoes and care kit, the defendant suggested they were 'safety boots'. 'How could Hush Puppies be a business expense for a finance company?' Sutcliffe said.
NZ Herald
07-05-2025
- NZ Herald
Former cop John Dewar revealed as Hamilton businessman convicted of theft, fraud charges
When he left the force in 1999, after 25 years, Dewar was given a $250,000-plus payout despite being investigated for over-claiming on travel expenses. But in 2004, it emerged that he had been involved in covering up Nicholas' allegations against the officers. The sentencing judge, Justice Hansen, said the aggravating features of Dewar's crime were overwhelming. It had harmed Nicholas psychologically and financially, and had also damaged the reputation of several institutions. 'The cash cheques, weedkiller, and Hush Puppies shoes' Now, Dewar has been back before the courts, spending eight days defending theft and obtaining by deception charges. Dewar was on trial for three charges, each of theft by a person in a special relationship and of obtaining by deception, between 2015 and 2018. The charges relate to his time as a chief executive of a company from which he stole about $111,000 to help pay off a personal loan and to buy weed killer, a spray unit, a toastie machine maker, and Hush Puppies shoes. Part of his defence was that he was never told not to act in the way he did. Yesterday the jury began their deliberations at 4.40pm before today returning with their verdicts at 4.25pm. Dewar was convicted and remanded on bail for sentencing in June. 'They didn't tell me not to do it' In his closing to the jury, Dewar admitted he'd 'struggled' having to represent himself in the proceedings. 'I probably should have gotten a lawyer,' he said. Throughout his closing, he admitted there was a 'blurring of lines', that his management of the company was 'chaotic' and 'inept'. He added that he was simply doing a 'good deed' for a finance broker who he'd offered to go 50-50 on fees as he was going 'through a hard time'. Advertise with NZME. 'All I did was try to help [broker] through a hard time by putting some work his way ... but it's not a crime. 'I helped him out because he was having trouble surviving ... and maybe that was a bad call from me, but I didn't obtain anything [fraudulently]. 'I obtained nothing whatsoever.' After listening to the witnesses - comprising of board members, a staff member, and the finance broker - he accepted that it appeared as though he ran the company 'in an autocratic style'. The man said the board never said he couldn't act in the way that he did and admitted making the purchases and cashing cheques. 'I am disappointed in myself that I let them down and didn't do a good job. 'That makes me a bad manager, but it does not make me guilty of these charges.' The man said he made all the purchases; the weedeater, Hush Puppies shoes, but he never made any false representations. He cited a former staff member's evidence, who confirmed that he did all the cleaning and maintenance. 'I cleaned the toilet and vacuumed. As for the cash cheques, the man said it was 'pretty obvious' he couldn't confirm where the money ended up. 'It doesn't look so good, but you heard the evidence of [staffer] where the payments of cash and cheques being made to brokers and [others].' 'I ran [company] like it was my baby.' 'They're basic duties of a CEO' But crown solicitor Tom Sutcliffe said there 'clearly was' an expectation by the company's board of directors that their company would be run 'in an ethical way with best practice in mind'. A board of director, in his evidence, earlier read out an excerpt from the businessman's employment contract to the jury stating that the employee shall comply with reasonable and lawful instructions. The board expected the company to be run 'ethically, responsibly, and lawfully, and complying with the requirements of the industry'. 'For a man of [defendant's] experience, you could not have expected them to think anything else,' Sutcliffe said. Sutcliffe said the allegations were things that they wouldn't expect a CEO to do, and if he did, he should have kept a record of where the money went. 'These are basic duties of the CEO of a finance company.' The Crown didn't need to prove that the defendant benefited from money allegedly taken; it was simply the fact that he took it. '[The board] should have been able to look at the ledger, and it should have told them where the money had gone.' As for his defence that he was never told not to act in that way, Sutcliffe said, 'Why would you have to spell that out for a CEO of a company?' As for the obtain by deception charges, relating to the defendant allegedly giving himself a benefit by cashing the $600 broker fee cheques, the board knew nothing of his deal with the finance broker. 'It was quite deliberate and intentional.' The defendant would have known that using company money to put toward his own loan was a conflict of interest, Sutcliffe submitted. 'You just can't treat it like your own revolving credit facility. '[Defendant] can't claim ignorance, he's an experienced operator and made conscious decisions to operate like that,' Sutcliffe alleged. Paying company funds against his own loan 'beggars belief quite frankly', he said. As for the Hush Puppies shoes and care kit, the defendant suggested they were 'safety boots'. 'How could Hush Puppies be a business expense for a finance company?' Sutcliffe said.
