Time for the NFL Wildcard Weekend!

The 12 NFL teams that will play beyond the new year have been found.

Denver, New England, Seattle and Carolina have finished 1st and 2nd in the AFC and NFC respectively meaning they have the first weekend of the new year off - Denver and Seattle have also earned the right to stay at home throughout the playoffs if they keep winning as they finished numero uno in each league.

The wildcard playoffs will be played next weekend and if the weekend just gone by is anything to go by, this could very well be a lottery on both sides.

The wildcard weekend is like this -

Kansas City at Indianapolis, Saturday, 4 January, 4:35pm, NBC
New Orleans at Philadelphia, Saturday, 4 January, 8:10pm, NBC

San Diego at Cincinnati, Sunday, 5 January, 1:05pm, CBS
San Francisco at Green Bay, Sunday, 5 January, 4:45pm, FOX

The most intriguing tie has to be Drew Brees and Sean Payton's Saints versus Chip Kelly and Nick Foles' Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. The Saints have been brilliant at home but more suspect away from home. They may have a very good defence but they do have to play on Saturday night in what will be very cold conditions in Philadelphia so there is a good chance that Chip Kelly's dream debut season in the NFL could roll on to Seattle or Charlotte depending on what happens at Lambeau Field.

That game at Lambeau Field will also be pretty interesting. The 49ers aren't quite the force they were last season but did have the NFC's 3rd best record and are only in this situation because the Seahawks won the division. They do face a rejuvenated Green Bay Packers side with Aaron Rodgers back - Jim Harbaugh and Colin Kaepernick might have sighed a bit when Randall Cobb strolled in unopposed for the touchdown to seal their place for the 5th season in a row in the playoffs; the Packers at Lambeau Field will be out to avenge their defeat at the hands of the 49ers this time last year.

The AFC wildcard games will also be tight ones to call. Consistency isn't a word that you'd associate with these sides and Cincy, San Diego, Indy and KC have all had their issues this season. San Diego might fancy their chances against an erratic Andy Dalton but the Bengals' secondary is a key threat even for a Pro Bowl QB in Phil Rivers, and Kansas City have got the best secondary in the whole country and could really rattle Andrew Luck - who has taken his fair share of hits this seasons.

This is where the fun starts in the NFL so bring it on!


 

Predictions for 2014?

2014 is set to be a bumper year of sport with the FIFA World Cup in Brazil set to grab the most attention. However, the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and Winter Olympic Games in Sochi will also be worth following along with the usual regular season sports that we follow.

Here's what I predict will happen in 2014.

Auburn to win BCS National Championship game.

Seattle Seahawks beat Denver Broncos for Super Bowl in New York.

New Zealand to win their first ever gold medal at the Winter Olympics.

Manchester City to win Premier League title and FA Cup.

Bayern Munich to become first side ever to retain their European and German titles.

Paris St Germain, Barcelona and Juventus to be champions in their leagues.

Miami Heat to win the NBA title again.

Chicago Blackhawks win Stanley Cup again.

Brazil beat Spain to win World Cup at home - their 6th title.

San Francisco Giants win World Series.

Crusaders to win the Super Rugby title in 2014.

All Blacks to break world record for longest winning streak in test rugby in Wales (current record is 21 not out held by Cyprus and the ABs are on 13 at the moment)

South Sydney Rabbitohs win the NRL Grand Final.

Queensland break record for most consecutive State of Origin series wins.

Sydney Swans win the AFL Grand Final.

Sebastian Vettel wins his 5th F1 drivers title in a row.

The Premier League Halftime Report!

The 2013/14 Premier League is approaching its "half time" will all clubs having played 19 out of their 38 games for the season.

It has been quite an intriguing season so far with no clear team taking control. In the absence of a Ferguson led Manchester United, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea and even both Merseyside clubs, Liverpool have laid claim to be the best team in England but each have stumbled in their quest to pull away from the rest at the top of the table.

It is quite difficult to say at this point who might have the edge in this most thrilling of seasons - City and Chelsea have the home form, Arsenal have the away form, Liverpool have Suarez, easily the best striker in the Premier League right now and don't write off Everton who have just about hung around thanks to their terrific home form. Indeed, you could say only Arsenal have been the most consistent, but only just while City and Chelsea have had their struggles away from home.

Everton have won their first game at Old Trafford against Manchester United in eons

Even though Roberto Martinez only took the reins at Goodison Park in the summer, Everton looked to become even better although their form has dipped in recent times. Ross Barkley has taken over where Marouane Fellaini left off while loan signings Robert Lukaku, Gareth Barry and Gerard Deulofeu have really made an impact in the blue half of Merseyside.

At this stage, even Newcastle, Tottenham and Manchester United have a chance to get back into the title race - or at worst push their claims for a Champions League spot.

Manchester United needing to get back into the title race? Perhaps, it was to be expected in United's first year without Ferguson and the start of what looks to be a major transition period not just on the coaching panel but also in the player personnel. It is clear that David Moyes has to reform the team if they are to become consistent title contenders, particularly in midfield and defence. Indeed, it is only through Wayne Rooney's sparkling form that United are still in the top half of the table.

With Gareth Bale now at Real Madrid, Wayne Rooney could be favourite for PFA Player of the Season, contending with Liverpool's Luis Suarez and Arsenal's Aaron Ramsey at this stage.

Everton and Newcastle have reaped the benefits of stability to be in contention for Champions League football next season.



Meanwhile, on Tyneside, the faith from the top in Alan Pardew, despite a woeful last season, has paid off and the Magpies are sitting quite pretty in the top 10 of the Premier League. Papiss Cisse may have stopped scoring goals but Loic Remy has taken over as Newcastle's key talisman with 10 goals this season.

Eriksen has looked quality

Speaking of stability, Tottenham have shown none of that this season. The profitable sale of Gareth Bale may have been made the most of with the biggest signing spree of the summer by any Premier League side - Paulinho, Etienne Capoue, Vlad Chiriches, Erik Lamela, Christian Ericksen, Roberto Soldado, etc. all signed in summer. Out of that lot, Paulinho and Christian Ericksen have looked the most convincing but the rest have taken their time - which is what Daniel Levy does not appear to have, making the ridiculous decision to sack AVB despite being aware that this was always going to be a major season of transition.

AVB is gone

Tim Sherwood might turn out to be a genius at management but the decision to get rid of AVB must be the second most contentious managerial decision of the season - more on the most contentious shortly - and it looks like Spurs will struggle to even finish in the European spots this season.

Besides AVB, there have been some major managerial decisions this season - Paolo di Canio was the first casualty of the season, replaced by Gus Poyet at Sunderland, then Martin Jol, Steve Clarke and AVB in almost the same week.

However, the most contentious managerial decision probably of the season has to be the sacking of Malky Mackay - even if it was not surprising after a horrific month as manager and chairman failed to see eye to eye. Quite remarkable really given Cardiff's respectable introduction to the Premier League this season where they beat Manchester City, drew Manchester United and Everton and beat their bitter rivals, Swansea City in the first ever Welsh derby in Premier League history. Dato Vincent Tan had gripes over Mackay's spending in the summer and felt that despite the money spent on Steven Caulker, Gary Medel and Andreas Cornelius, Cardiff had failed to deliver in their first season in the Premier League.

Last season, Southampton's chairman, Nicola Cortese, made the controversial decision to sack Nigel Adkins with the Saints in a respectable position in the Premier League table, replacing him with former Espanyol - and still-monolingual - manager, Mauricio Pochettino. In hindsight, that move appears to have been a masterstroke with Southampton having their best start to the season even if they are winless this month, after surviving last season.

One wonders if Vincent Tan has got the next Pochettino lined up in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Craig Bellamy or Sven-Goran Eriksson if the rumours are to be believed.

Southampton's Adam Lallana has been one of the standout players of the season

Speaking of Southampton, they along with Hull City have been the surprises of the season but appear now to be just holding their head above water in what looks set to be the most open relegation battle in Premier League history.

While the odds are not with Gus Poyet and a cash-strapped Sunderland who were in the dreaded bottom spot at Christmas, in my opinion, anyone from Swansea City who are currently 11th on 21 points is in danger of being dragged into the relegation battle.

Fulham and Crystal Palace are fighting hard to survive

The London clubs, Fulham, West Ham and Crystal Palace are right in the mix of the survival battle - this despite Adidas' big money on Fulham and West Ham, with Palace's form whilst inconsistent but still good enough to keep them in the Premier League if they were lucky.

As are West Ham and Sunderland

Indeed, consistency could very well be the deciding factor in this most thrilling of Premier League seasons as we head into the 2nd half of the season - and it could very well be a string of single digit games that settles the championship and survival this

Goal of the Season (so far)? Pajtim Kasami, Fulham v Crystal Palace

Player of the Season (so far)? Luis Suarez

Team of the Season (so far)?
GK - Simon Mignolet, Liverpool

LB - Leighton Baines, Everton
CB - Dejan Lovren, Southampton
CB - Phil Jagielka, Everton
RB - Aleksander Kolarov, Manchester City

CM - Yaya Toure, Manchester City
AM - Aaron Ramsey, Arsenal
AM - Adam Lallana, Southampton

FW - Wayne Rooney, Manchester United
FW - Loic Remy, Newcastle United
FW - Luis Suarez, Liverpool

(Not the) Player of the Season (so far)?

Erik Lamela or Stevan Jovetic for me. Tottenham and Manchester City paid big money for both players and while they need time to bed in and haven't been helped by injury, they just haven't delivered on the field as much as their clubs paid for them.

Moment of the Season (so far)? Fabio Borini's winner against Newcastle, Sunderland 2-1 Newcastle

Game of the Season (so far)? Everton 3-3 Liverpool

How Did I Go with My Predictions for 2013?

At the start of 2013, I made my usual predictions for the sporting year ahead - http://twominutessport.blogspot.co.nz/2013/01/top-20-sports-predictions-for-2013.html.

Here they are again and here's what actually happened.

Denver Broncos beat Seattle Seahawks to win the Super Bowl - well off but try this again for 2014 and it might be right!

Manchester United win Premier League & FA Cup - got one part right!

Barcelona win La Liga & Champions League - got one part right!

Radamel Falcao moves to Manchester City - nope, went to Monaco and City got Stevan Jovetic instead

Tottenham Hotspur finish 4th and qualify for next season's Champions League - nope, 5th again and nowhere nearer to getting there!

Leicester, Cardiff and Leeds promoted to the Premier League - got one right!

New York Knicks win the NBA title - not even close!

Stormers win Super Rugby title - oh ye non-Chiefs Kiwi fan of little faith

British & Irish Lions beat Wallabies 2-1 in the test series - BULLSEYE!

Queensland win record State of Origin series - Jackpot - but it was pretty predictable to be honest

All Blacks retain Rugby Championship and Bledisloe Cup - Yes amongst other accolades...

England retain the Ashes - Sort of correct until December this year.. Back to back Ashes?

Alberto Contador wins the Tour de France - Should have had faith in that Kenyan dude

Hawthorn win AFL Grand Final - Shot!!

Sydney Roosters win NRL Grand Final - Shot!! Thanks SBW!

Canterbury win the ITM Cup - 6 in a row!

Fernando Alonso wins the F1 drivers' title - Nope, that German guy who loves Monty Python won it.. again (yawn). 

Sir Richard Hadlee Outraged at Piers/Lee Stunt #TearsforPiers

New Zealand's greatest ever bowler has voiced his outrage and anger at the Piers Morgan v Brett Lee stunt two days ago during the tea break at the MCG.

Sir Richard Hadlee gave his opinion today on the Sunday Star Times and stuff.co.nz as below -

As a former fast bowler I was appalled and outraged at what I witnessed during the tea break on the second day of the fourth Ashes cricket test at the MCG when former Australian fast bowler Brett Lee faced off British media host Piers Morgan in the nets.

I am so incensed I felt I needed to make comment.

While there were media jibes and a build-up to this bowling and batting contest on Friday, I could not believe my eyes - Lee's brutal assault on Morgan was extremely dangerous and unnecessary.

It was clear that Morgan could not bat or defend himself against Lee's pace and intimidation - this was an unfair and one-sided contest that could have had severe consequences. Sadly, in the past batsmen have died from receiving blows to the body.

I only hope that Brett takes a few minutes to reflect on his stupidity - this was a brain explosion of the highest order - it was a deliberate attempt to hit, injure, hurt and maim his opponent that I viewed as a form of grievous bodily harm or a human assault that could have proved fatal. Morgan, aged 48, was hit four times on the body and if he was hit on the head or across the heart the result could have been devastating.

Lee bowled only one ball at the wickets, and the other five were directed at the batman's middle to upper body and head.

Morgan had only 0.4 of a second to react and play a shot or try and defend himself against a hard, 156-gram flying missile hurled down at him from 20.12 metres at 140kmh - believe me this is not an experience the common man or players wants to endure.

I have always admired Lee as a person and as a quality fast bowler but yesterday his bowling exhibition damaged his reputation and credibility - in fact I believe he has brought the game of cricket into disrepute.

If an umpire had been standing or controlling the encounter, Lee would not have been allowed to complete the six-ball over such was his brutal assault on Morgan - he would have been removed from the crease for persistent intimidating bowling.

The ICC has an edict of fair play and upholding the spirit of the game, but that exhibition compromised those values.

I only hope that officialdom will review the incident and if necessary take some action against Lee's behaviour - perhaps a censure, fine or even a suspension for his act of stupidity and misjudgment.

Lee will have to accept there are no words than can be used to justify his decision-making and how he executed that six-ball over - it was beyond comprehension.

Given the same situation, if I wanted to embarrass Morgan for tweet jibes I would have taken more pleasure out of trying to hit the stumps six times than deliberately trying to hit him.

I believe Lee has erred badly and on reflection may realise that he has damaged the image of the game of cricket. There will be many mums and dads around the world who saw that exhibition and may decide to stop their kids from playing the game, such was the brutality and the risk to someone's life.

This should not have been shown on live television - people could have witnessed a tragic accident that the game of cricket never wants to see. Some people may have viewed this as fun and entertainment but it was not cricket - that sort of bowling against an inexperienced opponent was unacceptable.

To me there is no skill as a fast bowler to run in from 20 metres and bowl the ball halfway down the pitch, directing the ball at the batsman's body - especially when he is backing away to protect himself.

In fact I would suggest former players Mark Nicholas, Shane Warne and Michael Vaughan, who compered the exhibition, would not have enjoyed or even handled the way Lee bowled to Morgan - with all the batting experience they have had, I am sure they would not have placed themselves in that situation.

Perhaps Morgan needs to ponder whether he should have accepted the invitation to face off - he certainly has the battle scars and body blows to prove that this was "bodyline" bowling at its best, or should I say worst.

Whatever people may think, I can guarantee that most cricketers (if not all) who have played the game at the highest level would say that Lee's actions were dangerous and very wrong.

While I can see where Sir Richard is coming from, I don't think Piers should be given any sympathy given he was the one who initiated the dare - having made many brave, foolhardy dares in the past through his time as head of News of the World and presenter on CNN, including that ill-advised jab at the NRA and gun owners in America in the wake of the Sandy Hook massacre. Piers was also warned by many cricketers on twitter not to go ahead with it, but he still went with it anyway and he knew what he was going to get.

To be honest, I think he actually told Lee to bowl some beamers and bouncers at him for the sake of TV so if he got killed by one of those, I don't think it should be Lee's fault.

Having met Brett Lee, I can say he's quite a fair and decent chap and always looked after the welfare of the batsmen he bowled his quickies too. And Lee always made sure Morgan was alright during their dare only for Morgan to rebuff him with some "f*** off" and continue to charge at Brett Lee.

Sir Richard, some people are just not worth defending, even if they are facing the former fastest test bowler in the world.

Piers Morgan v Brett Lee #TearsForPiers

Pommie and CNN loudmouth, Piers Morgan took on former Australian test bowler and record holder for fastest ball ever bowled in cricket, Brett Lee for 6 balls today at the MCG.

Morgan had challenged Lee to a duel in the nets following his comments that he'd do better than the English batsmen against Mitchell Johnson.

I'll leave this to you to comment.

2013 in Review - Looking Back at the World of Sport!

2013 will be remembered as the year, the dark side of sport reared its ugly head, particularly right at the start with two of its biggest stars embroiled in crime and controversy.

However, there were plenty of wonderful success stories on and off the field as well as some very emotional farewells.

But firstly, to the "bad" sports stories of 2013 and these were almost forgotten given how early they occurred in the year but were pretty significant at the time.

The year started off with a bang when (then) 7-time Tour de France champion, Lance Armstrong confessed that he took performance enhancing drugs en route to the mayo jour in Paris all those years ago. In the most bizarre and questionable - yet in hindsight fitting manner, the Texan made his confession public via a two-part interview with television diva, Oprah Winfrey.

The reaction in the days after was naturally massive with the most obvious, the stripping of all of Armstrong's Tour de France titles, with the name of the winner left blank, harking to an era which cycling would much rather forget. Surprisingly, there has been little word on any legal action against Armstrong during those times he lied about his drug usage.

If that wasn't enough, in February, South Africa's Blade Runner and Olympic/Paralympic star, Oscar Pistorius was arrested and charged for murdering his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp in their home in Johannesburg. Pistorius claimed to have shot his girlfriend in the toilet by accident - a trial next March will determine if this is really the end of the road for a man who was just about to embark on a highly lucrative athletic career despite having his lower legs amputated at a young age.

Finally, there was the drug controversy which hit the Jamaican athletics programme like a bad smell. Asafa Powell, Sherone Simpson and Veronica Campbell-Brown were amongst the five Jamaican athletes who tested positive in the summer, shocking the small Caribbean nation which had just emerged as a track and field superpower on the crest of Usain Bolt's success.

Bolt himself, remains clean but suffered in the wake of the drug controversy to hit his fellow countrymen and women. He continued his domination of the track but admitted that 2013 wasn't his best year - not surprising given events off the track.

To some real sport and a look back at some brighter moments on the field.

The weirdest sporting moment of the year had to be when the lights went out for nearly half an hour during Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans. The power outage happened halfway through the 2nd half in the middle of a San Francisco 49ers drive and interrupted play for 34 minutes. John Harbaugh's Baltimore Ravens led brother, Jim Harbaugh's 49ers 28-6 at the time of the power outage, but when play resumed, it was younger brother, Jim's side who took the initiative, finishing the 3rd quarter only 28-23 down.

Baltimore and John Harbaugh would have been outraged had the 49ers won - they clearly would have had some assistance from the power outage. Alas they held on, to win 34-31 in one of the most memorable and bizzare Super Bowls in history.

Britain had another memorable year of sport - even if it did end with the Ashes ending up in the hands of their arch enemy from down under.

Kenyan born Chris Froome made it two wins to British riders in a row in the Tour de France - the 100th edition in fact, dominating all the way to Paris as Team Sky made it two from two in two years, despite the best efforts of rising Colombian star, Nairo Quintana and Spanish riders, Joachim Rodriguez and Alberto Contador.

On a more personal note, my good buddy, Jack Bauer, finally cycled in his first ever Tour de France - he was doing a respectable time as a domestique only for him to crash out just two days out from the finish (and with a face quite badly scratched and cut, although fortunately, those scars healed by the time he got to Scotty Donaldson's wedding!)

And then there was Andy Murray.

Oh Andy, Andy, Andy.

Britain had waited for another homegrown winner at Wimbledon since 1936 and the years of frustration that came with the waiting were just released along with the joy that memorable sunny July afternoon in SW1 as Andy Murray finally leapt out of Fred Perry's shadow and crushed Serbian ace Novak Djokovic in 3 sets.

It was painful at times but it was joyous at the end and worth the wait.

For me though, the most saccharine sporting moment of the year had to be the Boston Red Sox winning the World Series only a year after finishing bottom of their division and only 6 months after the devastating Boston Marathon bombing that killed 3 people and maimed many others. If there was evidence that you can be driven by tragedy to success, this was it, as new coach, John Farrell and the likes of Dustin Pedroia, David Ortiz and Jack Lester wore the #BostonStrong logo on their sleeves and won game after game to win the division, then the championship and finally the World Series. The perfect balm for a wounded city.

2013 will also be remembered as the year when two greats of sport announced their retirement - Sir Alex Ferguson and Sachin Tendulkar bowed out on top of their game this year - Fergie with another league title, and Tendulkar with his 200th test cap, more than any other player in history - with their replacements set for a huge task to even mimic a tenth of what they achieved in their fields. There will never be a Fergie or a Tendulkar ever again in history - and their unique achievements should ensure their legendary status is maintained.

And then there was the passing of another man who had immense influence on sport - Nelson Mandela, the man who used sport to rebuild and reunite a nation, just before the close of the year.

No doubt his presence wearing the Springboks jersey at Ellis Park - the colours of a team that was very much a white man's game in the Republic before and a symbol of apartheid - inspired the Boks to Rugby World Cup victory but also filled the divide between blacks and whites in the newly reformed Republic and the effect while slow is very much evident today. The Boks are now definitely a team backed by all South Africa, not just by one race, and cricket and football in South Africa have also seen the destruction of racial walls.

RIP Madiba.

What a 2013. Let's hope 2014 with the Commonwealth Games, Winter Olympic Games and of course, the World Cup Finals can deliver more on the field and less off it.

Best Rugby Tries of 2013!!

Without further ado, here are the best tries of 2013!!

2013 in Review - A Look Back at New Zealand Sport!

With less than a week to go in the 14th year of the 21st century, it is time to look back at what has been quite an eventful and era-defining year for New Zealand sport - and myself as a sports blogger and follower.

One thing's for certain, sports blogging and following will not be the same following the departure of prominent New Zealand sports blogger, Scotty Donaldson, from our shores to greener pastures in Ecuador in pursuit of happyness with his new wife.

Even if and when Scotty returns to New Zealand, this definitely marks the end of an era - our last ever sports game together was the 2nd day of the 2nd test between the Blackcaps and West Indies.

Alas, there is more to sport than a man who looks like Rhys Darby and life thankfully goes on.

2013 may have lacked the glory and glamour of the previous years - after all, 2012 was Olympic year and the year before that was Rugby World Cup year - but it was still a pretty decent year for New Zealand sport.

For a small country pushing just over 4 million people, the level of success achieved and enjoyed is still absolutely remarkable - a sign of how much Kiwis love their sport, whether it is participating, playing or following it.

Our most successful sporting successes of 2013 on the international front, were no doubt Valerie Adams, Lydia Ko Hamish Bond/Eric Murray, and the All Blacks. I'll mention the ABs eventually but first must mention our women - add Lauren Boyle, Sophie Pascoe and the New Zealand Womens Sevens team. Indeed, 2013 was the year which saw New Zealand's women match the men on the sports field in terms of success and highlighted our remarkable ability to produce men and women athletes of equal and high calibre.

Valerie Adams continued to boost her position as our number 1 track and field athlete as she dominated womens' shotput - her success now untroubled by drug controversy which took down her formerly-great rival from the Belarus. But her limelight as New Zealand's number 1 could be moving towards teenager Lydia Ko who decided to turn professional after much success as an amateur and has had quite a start to life as a pro.

Lydia Ko must surely be the person to watch in 2014 as she embarks on her first ever professional season in the USA.

Speaking of the USA, another young Kiwi is looking to spread his wings and soar there - Steven Adams is continuing his introduction to the big time with the Oklahoma City Thunder, featuring prominently in his first season as the Thunder look to make a return to the Finals.

Then of course, there are the All Blacks. The fact that the ABs have such a tremendous winning record means that we've gotten used to saying the same things about them at the end of each non-RWC season, but the ABs of 2013 definitely deserve the highest praise. Statistically, they finished 100% but there was more to that record as the reigning world champions went from strength to strength and played some sumptuous attacking rugby to compliment their mean defence. What is more impressive is that the ABs achieved it with plenty of youngsters (Piutau, Cane, Barrett, Luatua, Retallick, etc.) complimenting the very experienced members of their team - no other team in the world now can name 3 test centurions - McCaw, Mealamu and Carter - in their starting lineup when fit.

There were quite a few other notable New Zealand successes on a more domestic level with the Chiefs and New Zealand Breakers successfully defending their titles for the 2nd and 3rd seasons in a row respectively - the Chiefs will be hoping to emulate the Breakers' success next season and given how much they have stengthened for 2014; they've signed Mils Mulia'ina back from Japan as well as unwanted Whopper Jamie Mackintosh from the Highlanders.

It's a shame it doesn't look like the Breakers can go four in a row - they're currently struggling to find the form that got them to three ANBL titles since the departure of head coach, Andrej Lemanis at the end of last season.

Some mention should also go to Canterbury's ITM Cup team too - they won their 6th title in a row, tying Auckland's record from the late 80s and early 90s. Wellington again were the side on the wrong end of the ledger, and again at home, despite having finished the season top of the Premiership and having lost only one regular season game.

Indeed, New Zealand's beloved provincial game was a South Island affair with Tasman, South Canterbury and Mid Canterbury winning all the silverware at stake - Tasman were definitely the surprise story of the year; New Zealand's youngest union completed their remarkable turnaround from near insolvency to earn the right to play the big guns in next season's Premiership thanks to some scintillating rugby.

It's a shame that the provincial game appears to be getting the least coverage in its history with much of the media almost showing total disdain and neglect for our grassroots competition and breeding ground for future Super Rugby and international players (I say international, as it seems more and more that the next Irish, English, Scottish and heaven forbid, Australian stars have spent some time running around Okara Park or Lansdowne Road). Our provincial competition may be almost back to amateur days but it has never been in better health - even if the crowds aren't turning up to grounds, unions are in pretty good health for the first time since the global financial crisis plunged many of them into the red back in 2009.

And then there's the Ranfurly Shield which had one of its busiest seasons on the road in its history - Otago being part of that journey was definitely my sporting highlight of the year.

The romance with the Shield is very much alive as evident with the way Otago, Hawkes Bay and Counties Manukau reacted when they won the shield, turning up to grounds in record numbers to see their sides defend the shield for the first time in so long. Otago and Hawkes Bay may not have been able to muster a successful defence but the effect on their communities was immense and positive.

I guess this is a good time to segway to disappointments of the year.

For once, the Blackcaps don't quite fall into this category. Indeed, I think their season has been fairly satisfactory bar a disappointing one day international series defeat in Bangladesh - their form in the longest form of the game has been encouraging and improvement has been clear to see on the field on the back of a promising fast bowling lineup comprised of Trent Boult, Tim Southee and Neil Wagner which appears to be working very well. The Blackcaps finally won their first home test series against a top 8 nation in 7 years - funnily enough it was the Windies they beat in their last home test series win all those summers ago - but it could have come earlier had managed to claim that big scalp in England - they just couldn't quite get out Panesar or Anderson on that epic last day of the last test at Eden Park.

The Warriors and Kiwis probably could be considered disappointments of the year but one must consider a) the Warriors had a new coach and play in the toughest professional sports competition in the world, and only just missed out on the top 8, b) the Kiwis did make the World Cup Final and played the Kangaroos who have always consistently been the best international rugby league team in the world. Ok, the way both sides capitulated is disappointing but perhaps to be expected given their history at the business end.

How about the All Whites? Again you have to consider that they did have to play 20th ranked Mexico for a place in the World Cup Finals with preparation comprised of their last competitive fixture being in June and friendly matches against American club sides playing in lower grade competitions. It was always going to be a tough ask even against the worst Mexican international side in history - one that just about struggled to finish 4th in their regional qualifying group. Think Russia playing the All Blacks for a place in the Rugby World Cup quarterfinals.

Ok, their performances weren't what we'd expected them to be but it was always going to be tough to expect the same players to deliver the same tactics from 4 years ago - just as well that Ricki Herbert is stepping down, as New Zealand football definitely needs a new direction to ensure 2010 isn't the last World Cup for another 28 years.

Ultimately, the disappointment of the year had to be the failing to win the America's Cup despite holding match point for a record 7 days. Yes Team New Zealand did us proud and couldn't do much against the financial power of the hosts who could quickly add a critical improvement in no time to turn around the series, but Dean Barker and his men definitely had their chances to wrap up the series and bring the Auld Mug back to Auckland.

The most galling was that match on the afternoon of Friday, September 20 (Saturday morning NZ time) where Team New Zealand were 1000 m ahead of Oracle only for the race to be called off with 90% of it complete due to a ridiculous rule regarding the time limit (races had to be 40 minutes for TV purposes).

Perhaps the disappointment should lie in the way the rules were set up to favour the hosts. Morally, we would have been still toasting the return of the Auld Mug even after these months. Alas, luck definitely deserted us during that week in September, and Oracle completed the most sensational comeback in sporting history as they rallied to win the series 9-8.

So that was 2013. Bittersweet as usual. There is plenty to look forward to in 2014 - the World Cup of football being one of them even if New Zealand is not involved, along with the prospect of the record for most wins in a row up for grabs for the ABs.

Bring it on!

Christmas Euro Football Report!

It's Christmas time and Europe's major football leagues now head into their annual mid-season break. While the Bundesliga is not back until towards the end of the January, La Liga, Serie A and Ligue 1 should be back by the 2nd weekend of the new year.

In the meantime, here's a look at the season so far in Europe.

Spain

The usual suspects of Real Madrid and Barcelona are up there although it is not Real who are the leading Madrid team, with Atletico Madrid putting on a surprisingly compelling case for the title, sitting tied with Barcelona at the top of the league going into the festive period. Barca and Atletico will play each other in the 2nd weekend of the new year in what could be an absolute cracker given how well Diego Simeone's men have played. 

As usual, the rest of La Liga has been pretty tight with Athletic Bilbao just ahead of a very tight chasing pack led by Real Sociedad. Athletic's form at their new home and in the 2nd halves of games has been the key in keeping them in the last Champions League spot.

Disappointment? Real Betis would naturally be chosen - for such a big club, to be stuck at the bottom so far from safety is a huge disappointment - and it did result in a managerial change with Pepe Mel sacked, replaced by Juan Carlos Garrido in December. Things are looking grim for Seville's 'other' club along with Rayo Vallecano and Almeria but given how tight the bottom of La Liga is, that could all change.

Germany

To say that this has been Bayern Munich's season so far doesn't quite do justice to their campaign up to this point. Sure, they've been helped by the inability of their closest rivals, Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund, to play catch, but the current world champions have warmed up to their new coach and infused the Guardiola culture of football.

Indeed, it would be a huge shock if Bayern didn't win their 2nd title in a row at a canter at this time.

Borussia Monchengladbach are clearly Germany's 4th best team at this time and making another push for Champions League football next season, while another former German champion, Eintracht Braunschweig, have definitely struggled in their first season back in the top flight, fighting off last season's surprise packages, SC Freiburg and FC Nurnberg.

Italy

Serie A's revival may be slow at this time, but there is no denying that Italy's top flight is short on goals nowadays. It has been quite a start to the season with Napoli then Roma taking turns to lead the table -
Roma thanks to their impressive 100% start. However, with Juventus now 5 points clear at the top, one wonders if the signs are ominous for the rest of the league.

It is pretty tight as ever behind the top 3 with Internazionale, Fiorentina and newly promoted Hellas Verona pushing hard for European football - the Veronese have definitely been the surprise of the season so far thanks to former Italian international Luca Toni's goals.

It's also pretty tight at the bottom with newly promoted Sassuolo initially looking out of depth but slowly finding some form. They're still favourites to go down with their strength lacking compared to seasoned campaigners, Bologna and Chievo who have found form. Livorno and Catania are in the bottom 3 at the moment with them.

France

Paris St Germain have continued their recent dominance of French football even if as things stand, they are still "only" 4 points clear of fellow billionaires, AS Monaco and "ugly yet efficient" Lille. They should win the title in the new year given the strength of their squad and the power of Cavani and Ibrahimovic although Monaco should be quietly satisfied if they finished 2nd and in the Champions League spots in their first season back in France's top flight.

It's tight again with Marseille, Bordeaux, Saint-Etienne and newly promoted Nantes pushing for the Europa League spot. At the bottom, Sochaux and Ajaccio looked doomed at the moment with Valenciennes, Evian and former champions, Montpellier fighting to stay above water.

Elsewhere..
In Holland, Ajax Amsterdam and Vitesse Arnhem are fighting hard for the Eredivisie title with Feyenoord having recovered fully from their disastrous start to the season to be 4 points behind them.

In Portugal, it is extremely tight at the top with Sporting Lisbon, Porto and Benfica all tied on 33 points at the top of the Liga, well ahead of Estoril. This could very well be the league to watch in the new year.

Team of the Season So Far...

Manuel Neuer, Bayern Munich (GK)

David Alaba, Bayern Munich
Dante, Bayern Munich
Jerome Boateng, Bayern Munich
Phillipp Lahm, Bayern Munich

Koke, Atletico Madrid
Miralem Pjanic, AS Roma

Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid

Diego Costa, Atletico Madrid

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paris St Germain

Alexis Sanchez, Barcelona

My Sporting Christmas Wishlist for 2013!

Christmas time is such a wonderful time of the year. A time of giving and receiving.

If sport was as easy as getting a Christmas present, what would you wish for this Christmas?

1. Liverpool remaining top of the table at Christmas.

2. Blackcaps winning their first test series at home in 8 years.

3. New England Patriots winning the Super Bowl next year.

2013 in Review - Best (and Hilarious) from New Zealand Sport!

With New Zealand winding down for the year, it is time to have a look back at the highlights from quite an epic and often hilarious year for this sports-mad little nation that is God's own.

So enjoy the best - and not quite the best - sporting moments of 2013!!

2013 in Review: Cricket!

2013 will forever be remembered as the year a true cricketing great retired.

Indeed, the departure of the little maestro after 200 tests, 664 internationals, 34,357 runs and 100 tons was greeted with celebration and sadness in equal measure in Sachin Tendulkar's home country and home city of Mumbai that India's series against the West Indies was named in his honour.

No other player has ever worn that honour although in these media-savvy times, the next great in cricket might very well win that honour.

Tendulkar's retirement marked the end of an era - an era which most of us of the 80s-90s generation will fondly remember growing up with the likes of Sir Richard Hadlee, Brian Lara, Ricky Ponting and Shane Warne.

One wonders who will be the next great although if this year has been anything to go by, it looks like the player once known as Pup could be it.

Most controversial moment of the year?

He may have had his critics in his past, but Australia's long term faith in Michael Clarke has finally been vindicated. Indeed, as skipper, Michael Clarke appears to be playing on another level, not dissimilar to Tendulkar in his prime.

Clarke is not just scoring tons, he's scoring massive tons, and I wouldn't be surprised if we see him come close to breaking the world record in the near future - such is his ability to hang around and play the fast and slow ball.

His captaincy may have been in question in England as Australia capitulated 3-0 in the series, but after Cricket Australia's selectors finally came on board along with more support for coach, Darren Lehmann, Clarke has been able to get the best out of what has always been a talented side and regain the Ashes for the first time since 2007.

Is this the start of a revival for Australian cricket? It has to be said that this English side is in a bit of transition with the likes of James Anderson, Jonathan Trott and Alistair Cook in a bit of a decline. There is talent in English cricket and the likes of Joe Root, Michael Carberry, Ben Stokes, etc. can win back the Ashes in the near future - hopefully Andy Flower will stay around as he is a pretty good coach.

And perhaps that's the reason why you don't really play back to back Ashes. Mind you, much as we like to see Australia lose, it is good to see the Ashes move around so it is nice to see Australia win it after so long, to keep the competitive spirit of the series alive.

South Africa remain numero uno in the test game, especially in the test series although they have had a pretty quiet year.

New Zealand cricket continues to remain constant although before this article goes to press, they are on the verge of their first test series win in 8 years - it just shows you what a tough last couple of years it has been for Sonny Shaw and other Blackcaps fans. Ross Taylor continues to press claims that he is one of our best batsman and probably one of the most consistent batsmen in the world.

New Zealand cricket fans have plenty to look forward to in 2014 with a series against India and hopefully more improvement for a still very young side but now with a lot of tests under the belt -the fast bowling lineup of Trent Boult, Neil Wagner and Tim Southee with Doug Bracewell also waiting in the wings could be one of the best in the world.

So here's to a great 2014 with plenty to look forward to!

Here are my teams of the year!

Test XI of the Season
Graeme Smith, South Africa
David Warner, Australia
Michael Clarke, Australia
Hashim Amla, South Africa
Ross Taylor, New Zealand
AB de Villiers, South Africa (wk)
Sajeed Ajmal, Pakistan
Rangana Herath, Sri Lanka
Ryan Harris, Australia
Vernon Phillander, South Africa
Dale Steyn, South Africa

ODI XI of the Season
Hashim Amla, South Africa
AB de Villiers, South Africa
Virat Kohli, India

Kumar Sangakarra, Sri Lanka
George Bailey, Australia
Mahendra Dhoni, India (wk)

Shakib al Hasan, Bangladesh
Sajeed Ajmal, Pakistan
Dale Steyn, South Africa
Steve Finn, England
James Anderson, England

Twenty20 XI of the Season
David Warner, Australia
Alex Hales, England
Brendon McCullum, New Zealand

Kumar Sangakarra, Sri Lanka (wk)

Yuvraj Singh, India
Virat Kohli, India
Shane Watson, Australia

Mohammed Hafeez, Pakistan

Saeed Ajmal, Pakistan
Sunil Narine, West Indies
Steve Finn, England

Luis Suarez Snubbed By Little Girl!!

Luis Suarez is a controversial character on the field and his antics have definitely made the backpages.

This time though, Liverpool's top goalscorer of the season had his thunder stolen by a little girl!

Watch this footage -


The culprit was 10-year-old Olivia Brown who did the cheeky snub as part of a bet with her dad to win 20 quid. Naturally, Des was trying to pretend that he didn't see his daughter's cheeky actions.

I'm a Liverpool fan but I agree that Suarez is a bit of a knob and after his antics with Patrice Evra, probably deserved it.

Still you wonder if Olivia will ever be a mascot again after this. Oh well, perhaps she could go and find her soulmate in this fellow - and get a hair cut while she does if she wants to play football.

2013 in Review: Football!

It has been another big year for the world's most followed sport.

While there may not have been a big international football tournament in the Northern Hemisphere summer for us to really care about - to be honest, no one really cares about the Confederations Cup which for the record, was won by Brazil at home against current Euro and world champions, Spain - there was still plenty of football to keep us interested.

Bosnia made their first ever World Cup Finals

Indeed, 2013 witnessed the business end of World Cup qualifying with the 32 participants in next year's big football party settled. There were no big surprises although Brazil will definitely not see two of the best attacking players in world football.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic's Sweden just missed on a spot in the World Cup Finals after an epic playoff tie against Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal, while Gareth Bale's Wales were well off the pace behind a resurgent Belgium who look set to be considered favourites at next year's tournament thanks to their talented team based in the Premier League.

Belgium - dark horses at the 2014 World Cup?

Indeed, thanks to the likes of Kompany, Mirrallas, Benteke, Chadli, Vertonghen, etc. Belgium is clearly the flavour of the moment in England.

Also something that appears to be endemic in football at the moment in England is the race of be first to sack the manager.

AVB has been the highest profile sacking in the new EPL season

The occupation of football manager continues to rise past coal miner and oil driller as the most stressful and insecure profession in the world - indeed, in the last two weeks, we've seen the likes of Martin Jol, Steve Clarke, Gianfranco Zola and Andre Villas-Boas all lose their grip on their clubs. Consider too, the likes of Roberto Mancini who lost their jobs in the summer and it has never been harder to be a football manager this season.

As more money pours into the world's most followed league, one wonders if the Premier League - and to a certain extent, the Championship - has become so far apart from reality and closer to video games, while clubs set such high expectations and demand them fulfilled in short times.

Moreover, the mid-season drop-in-form appears to be taboo with boards now refusing to acknowledge that even the best do go on losing runs in the middle of the season whether it's through injury, etc. Goodness, had Sir Alex Ferguson got into management in this age, he'd have never survived.

Which is just as well for David Moyes, his successor, who is right in the middle of a tough patch of trying to rejuvenate a Manchester United side, champions the season before, but now an aging wreck in midfield and defence. Thankfully, Manchester United's board still have faith unlike some other clubs in blue and white.

It wasn't quite a vintage Premier League season with United winning fairly comfortably but it was probably an apt ending for a great managerial career that spanned 27 years.

Elsewhere in Europe, Barcelona, Juventus, Paris St Germain and Bayern Munich were comfortably crowned champions in the summer - their muscle evident throughout the season as they streaked clear from the rest in a fairly quiet season.

The Champions League Final provided some much needed thrills as Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund played out the first all-German final - at Wembley Stadium of all places, with Jupp Heyneckes getting the perfect farewell into retirement thanks to Arjen Robben.

German football's rise has been evident this year with the Bundesliga finally usurping Serie A as the third best league in Europe and of course this Final, as well as scoring the coup of the century - getting super coach Pep Guardiola to Bayern Munich.

German football fans will be hoping this is a good sign going into 2014 and World Cup year.

So here's a look back at the best of football this season!

Story of the year
Sir Alex Ferguson announces his retirement


Game of the year
Sweden v Portugal, Solna


Goal of the year
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Sweden v England


Other great Premier League goals!


Player of the year
I'm gonna go a bit left field here from the usual (and boring) choices of Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi and pick...

Gareth Bale

Why not? He was unanimously PFA Player of the Year and earned himself a record transfer move to Real Madrid where he has finally found his feet amongst illustrious company including Mssrs Ronaldo.