Mike Kilpatrick

Reliving the great Olympic moments

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 01:17:55 -0800

As readers of this blog will know, I love football. Passionately. I also dread the end of rugby season as it means I'm going to have to do other things at the weekend, like mowing the lawns.

But there is, and always has been, something incredibly special about the Olympics. ...

Are we calm enough to discuss this yet?

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 02:59:10 -0800
Have we all sufficiently vented and calmed down enough to examine things without sounding like demented sports fans with a penchant for finger pointing?

I deliberately left it a few days before writing about both the Sonny Bill Williams saga and the All Blacks performance on Saturday night as I wanted that visceral, gut reactions displayed in print, on air and on the internet to have died down and for people to be able to discuss the situation with a clear ...

We're supposed to feel sorry for Ronaldo?

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 04:32:11 -0800
As a huge information addict I surf countless websites ever day to satisfy my need for knowing what's happening in the world.

This includes many blogs in which the language is unmoderated and, at times, offensive. ...

Stop the whining, it's a man's game

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 06:45:05 -0800
What is it with opposing rugby teams coming here and whinging?

First we had eternal bad loser (when it comes to matches against the All Blacks) Brian O'Driscoll moaning about just about everything.

Then we had Rob Andrew griping about forward passes killing his team in the first test at Eden Park.

And finally John Smit dropped his four-day late apoplexy enough to launch a barbed tirade against the All Blacks earlier today. ...

The ICC further proves it is out of touch. . .

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 22:52:55 -0800
It's been a mixed week for us sports fans – we've had the excitement of Wimbledon (including the complete capitulation of the top women players) and the final State of Origin game of 2008 mixed with Jimmy Cowan's latest alcohol incident and the Tall Blacks continuing their poor form. ...

Spare me the outrage, Black Caps

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 23:06:51 -0800
First of all, I want to congratulate the Black Caps for an excellent win against the Poms this morning.

Many wrote off the team after a dreadful Test series in Mother England, and they have (at last) shown some fortitude to come back and take a lead in the ODI series with only one match remaining.

However, let's get past the whole Grant Elliott run-out debacle, please. Certain Black Caps (I'm looking at you, Brendon McCullum) seem to have pretty short memories. ...

The lack of loyalty is disturbing. . .

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 04:39:58 -0800
There's nothing like a bit of controversy to stir up debate – as my colleague Neil Reid discovered with his blog about Brian O'Driscoll this week.

(My take on O'Driscoll? It's hard to rate his as world class, because I don't think I've seen him perform too well for Ireland in six matches against the best team in the world – the All Blacks. ...

Evans dropped and sanity ensues

Wed, 28 May 2008 02:36:32 -0800
I can't believe people are getting worked up about Nick Evans being left out of the extended All Blacks' training squad.

Seriously? I would have thought it made perfect sense.

Ironically, it seems the majority of people doing the complaining are the same people who have slagged Graham Henry off for not playing the same team enough to enable combinations to form before the World Cup. ...

Bats, Balls, Black Caps and a bloody good Test

Mon, 26 May 2008 01:58:28 -0800
Conventional wisdom states cricket test matches are boring and only one-day internationals and Twenty20 games deserve to be watched.

I know this from experience - I once had a spare ticket to see New Zealand play the West Indies at Eden Park in a private box, grog included and I couldn't give the damned thing away.

So I watched the game with a beer in my hand, with only my internal monologue for company. And what a fantastic day it was. ...

Alcohol and sport - a dangerous mixture

Fri, 16 May 2008 03:26:11 -0800
Some of you have undoubtedly read about the riots in Manchester following the UEFA Cup Final between Zenit St Petersburg and Rangers.

As a Rangers fan, first and foremost, I have absolutely no complaints about the result of the game. Zenit was the better team and fully deserve having its name inscribed on the cup. ...