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New Zealand driver Liam Lawson has qualified tenth for Sunday's Formula One, Qatar Grand Prix Sprint Lawson, 22 beat his Red Bull seat rivals to qualify for the race having bult an interesting contest with senior driver Sergio Perez, who qualified 16th, the latest in a string of disappointing performances by the struggling Mexican. LATEST HEADLINES: Hillier up, Kobori fades at Australian Open Black Caps drops put England ahead Rugby Awards dominated by ABs, Sevens NZ All Whites up in FIFA world rankings Breakers well-beaten by Illawarra Hawks Another team rival, Japan's Yuki Tsunoda joined Perez in the bottom five and will start 17th. The top eight finishers in the sprint race are in the points. There's just the main race in Qatar and final of the season in Abu Dhabi for all three drivers to claim their seat for next year. McLaren's Lando Norris took pole position for the Qatar Grand Prix sprint with Mercedes' George Russell denying the Formula One leaders a front row lockout by pushing Oscar Piastri down to third. World champion Max Verstappen was sixth.

Three late wickets have the Black Caps looking at almost certain defeat in the first test against England in Christchurch. New Zealand were behind by 151 runs on the first innings after dismissing England for 499 including a couple more dropped catches along the way. LATEST HEADLINES: Lawson ahead of Red Bull rivals in Qatar Hillier up, Kobori fades at Australian Open Black Caps drops put England ahead Rugby Awards dominated by ABs, Sevens NZ All Whites up in FIFA world rankings Harry Brook eventually went for 171 caught behind by Tom Blundell off the bowling of Matt Henry while Ben Stokes was out for 80 and Gus Atkinson 48. - The best of the Kiwi bowlers was Henry taking 4-84, Nathan Smith 3-141 and Tim Southee 2-85. Will O'Rourke was the other wicket taker. At bat in their second innings New Zealand are 155-6 with Nathan Smith on one and Mitchell 31 with a lead of just four runs and limited batting to come. Tom Latham was out early for just one, followed by Devon Conway who again struggled to make a significant score. He was out for eight. Rachin Ravindra again looked comfortable but was guilty of a rash shot when he was on 24. Kane Williamson did his best to take the game to a fourth day scoring 61 off 86 balls, his 57th half century before he was out lbw to Chris Woakes on an umpires call. Out-of-form Tom Blundell then fell the next ball before Glenn Phillips survived the hat-trick and then looked positive and was out for 19 lbw, also on the umpires call in the last hour of play.

Auckland FC have made it five wins from their first five A-League matches after overcoming Newcastle Jets 2-0 in the rain at Mt Smart. Neyder Moreno was the hero for the home team, the Colombian recruit came off the bench and broke the deadlock with seven minutes of regular time remaining and Francis De Vries sealed the points six minutes later. LATEST HEADLINES: Black Caps lose late wickets in first test Lawson ahead of Red Bull rivals in Qatar Hillier up, Kobori fades at Australian Open Black Caps drops put England ahead Rugby Awards dominated by ABs, Sevens With the victory, newcomers and league leaders Auckland became just the second team in Australian national men’s league history to win their first five games after Sydney’s Western Suburbs in 1977. With both sides struggling in the conditions to get past the respective keepers in the first half it was Dan Hall who challenged Ryan Scott before the Newcastle keeper pushed the shot just over the bar with 25 minutes remaining. The Jets then caused some concerns 17 minutes from the end when Clayton Taylor forced a big save from Paulsen before a follow-up effort flashed just wide of the post. Moreno broke Newcastle’s resistance in the 84th minute with his first goal for the club after his volley found the back of the net. Justin Vidic thought he had equalised three minutes later but the Jets forward’s goal was ruled out offside before De Vries made sure of the points for Auckland in the 89th minute. Steve Corica's Auckland side are top of the standings, five points clear of Wellington, who have the bye this weekend while Newcastle are 11th and six points outside the top six.

Daniel Hillier is once again the best of the New Zealand players at the Australian Open at the Kingston Heath Golf Club in Melbourne. Hillier had a two-under third round to sit tied 13th and nine-under overall. He shot a birdie on the first hold followed by a bogey and then three consecutive birdies. LATEST HEADLINES: Auckland FC still unbeaten in A-League Black Caps lose late wickets in first test Lawson ahead of Red Bull rivals in Qatar Hillier up, Kobori fades at Australian Open Black Caps drops put England ahead Later there was a bogey on the seventh and 15th with a birdie at the 12th. Hillier is five shots behind joint leaders Ryggs Johnston from the United States and Australia Lucas Herbert. Next best of the Kiwi players is Josh Geary at five-under and tied 33rd while Kazuma Kobori is one shot further back after a par round. Nick Voke had a two-over third round to fall to tied 54th. Momoka Kobori is tied 31st at eight-over in the women's tournament 22 shots away from the leader Jiyai Shin.

Daniel Hillier is the leading New Zealander after the second round of the Australian Open at Kingston Heath in Melbourne. Hillier scored a second round 68, equal to his first to move into a tie for 12th at seven-under overall, seven shots behind runaway leader Lucas Herbert. Hillier hit five birdies and two bogeys - on the eighth and 13th holes. LATEST HEADLINES: Black Caps drops put England ahead Rugby Awards dominated by ABs, Sevens NZ All Whites up in FIFA world rankings Breakers well-beaten by Illawarra Hawks Kobori with leaders at Australian Open Kazuma Kobori dropped down the order from tied fourth after a two-over second round with just bogeys on the 10th and 11th holes to be four-under and tied 29th. Josh Geary scored his second 70th to sit tied 37th at four-under while Nick Voke looks to be the only other Kiwi to make the cut at three-under. In the women's tournament Momoka Kobori has made the cut at tied 25th at three-over. 12 shots behind the leader, amateur Hyojin Yang (Korea). On the Asian Tour in Doha, Qatar Ben Campbell is tied 28th after two consecutive rounds of 70.

A case of the dropsies has let England charge into the better position after two days of the first test in Christchurch. Harry Brook scored an unbeaten century but only after he was dropped four times in his score of 132 not out. Otherwise things could have been very different. The Black Caps dropped six overall, three by captain Tom Latham, in England's 319-5, which is 29 runs behind New Zealand's first innings total. LATEST HEADLINES: Rugby Awards dominated by ABs, Sevens NZ All Whites up in FIFA world rankings Breakers well-beaten by Illawarra Hawks Kobori with leaders at Australian Open First day honours shared NZ v England Some outstanding New Zealand bowling reduced the tourists to 71-4, including 21-year-old Jacob Bethell out for 10 on his Test debut. Brook combined with Ollie Pope for a fifth-wicket partnership of 151. Pope, standing in as wicketkeeper, was pushed down to number six from his usual number three and made 77, the first time he has passed 29 in seven test innings. It a gravity defying moment Glenn Phillips held a spectacular flying catch at gully from a full-blooded cut at Tim Southee to dismiss Pope. England captain Ben Stokes, playing in the city of his birth, was at his best for 37 not out in an unbroken stand of 97 with Brook, although Stokes was another put down by Latham on 30. Debutant Nathan Smith ended the day with 2-86 from 18 overs while Tim Southee, Matt Henry and Will O'Rourke all took a wicket each. Earlier New Zealand were bowled out for 348, pace bowler Brydon Carse taking the two wickets to fall in the morning to end with 4-64. It took just over half an hour for the visitors to actually get to 90 overs which they were meant to have bowled on day one. Tim Southee added five more runs to his overnight total, while Phillips made to 58 not out with more powerful hitting. Eventually O'Rourke was out for a duck as Carse decided to bowl at the stumps with a yorker. England will guilty of some wayward bowling with 42 runs coming from extras.

Three All Black forwards and three Black Ferns forwards are in contention for the top honours at the New Zealand Rugby Awards. Prop Tyrel Lomax, lock Tupou Vaa'i plus loose forward Wallace Sititi are the finalists for All Blacks Player of the Year. Front rower Georgia Ponsonby, loosie Alana Bremner and number eight Kaipo Olsen-Baker are the finalists for Black Ferns Player of the Year. LATEST HEADLINES: NZ All Whites up in FIFA world rankings Breakers well-beaten by Illawarra Hawks Kobori with leaders at Australian Open First day honours shared NZ v England Devine named in WBBL Team of Decade Lomax is also in the running for the Tom French Memorial Māori Player of the Year, while Olsen-Baker is also up for Super Rugby Aupiki Player of the Year. North Harbour and Chiefs player, Sititi was this week named World Rugby's Breakthrough Player of the Year. Three members of the Olympic gold medal winning Black Ferns Sevens side, Jorja Miller, Risi Pouri-Lane and Michaela Blyde are contenders for women's Sevens Player of the Year. The Blues men and women are both recognised after their success in 2024 with Hoskins Sotutu, Harry Plummer and Katelyn Vahaakolo in contention. The Kelvin R Tremain Memorial Player of the Year will be awarded to one of the winners of the major Player of the Year categories. The Coach of the Year and Team of the Year will be announced on the night, with all teams in black and their respective coaches eligible. International referee Ben O'Keeffe along with Canadian-born Aucklander Maggie Cogger-Orr and James Doleman who has been in charge of Six Nations games among others. The awards evening will be held December 12. Rugby award nominees: New Zealand Rugby Referee of the Year: Ben O'Keeffe Maggie Cogger-Orr James Doleman Super Rugby Pacific Player of the Year: Hoskins Sotutu (Blues) Damian McKenzie (Chiefs) Harry Plummer (Blues) Billy Proctor (Hurricanes) Super Rugby Aupiki Player of the Year: Katelyn Vahaakolo (Blues) Layla Sae (Hurricanes Poua) Kaipo Olsen-Baker (Matatū) Kennedy Tukuafu (Chiefs Manawa) Tom French Memorial Māori Player of the Year: Risi Pouri-Lane (Ngāti Kuia, Ngāti Koata, Ngāi Tahu) Tamaiti Williams (Ngāpuhi) Tyrel Lomax (Ngai Tuhoe, Muaupoko) Katelyn Vahaakolo (Ngāti Whātua, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Maniapoto) Richard Crawshaw Memorial All Blacks Sevens Player of the Year: Fehi Fineanganofo Tepaea Cook-Savage Dylan Collier Black Ferns Sevens Player of the Year Jorja Miller Risi Pouri-Lane Michaela Blyde Black Ferns Player of the Year: Georgia Ponsonby Alana Bremner Kaipo Olsen-Baker All Blacks Player of the Year: Tyrel Lomax Tupou Vaa'i Wallace Sititi

New Zealand has moved up two places to 89th in the FIFA men's rankings after big wins over Samoa and Vanuatu. It is the highest ranking for the All Whites since 2016. The next match for the All Whites is against Fiji in the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier semifinals at Wellington, March 21 2025. LATEST HEADLINES: Breakers well-beaten by Illawarra Hawks Kobori with leaders at Australian Open First day honours shared NZ v England Devine named in WBBL Team of Decade Mooar returns to Crusades as assistant if New Zealand win that match they'll face either New Caledonia or Tahiti in the final at Eden Park three days later for the much sought after place at the FIFA World Cup. Fiji are captained by former Wellington Phoenix star Roy Krishna who will potentially struggle against a full strength All Whites side. The last time the two nations played in 2022 New Zealand were 4-0 winners. Meanwhile at the top of the FIFA rankings is Argentina followed by France and Spain, England and Brazil. Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium and Italy are next while Germany round out the top 10.

The NZ Breakers have suffered a heavy 109-71 defeat to Illawarra Hawks in Wollongong on Thursday night. From the get-go it was Illawarra scoring strong with 32 points to just 12 in the first quarter and went on with the job from there to end up blowing it out late for the 38-point win to improve to 8-4 on the season. LATEST HEADLINES: Kobori with leaders at Australian Open First day honours shared NZ v England Devine named in WBBL Team of Decade Mooar returns to Crusades as assistant Black Caps select predictable first test team The Breakers welcomed in the NBL's tallest ever player for the first time with the 228cm (7'6") Fall playing having been signed to replace the departed Freddie Gillespie. In his 14 minutes in the game, Fall showed some signs that he can be a dominant presence at times in the league at both ends when he is around the basket. He made four points and pulled down five rebounds and had five blocks. Despite the Breakers losing by 38 points, Fall was only -10 in his time on the floor where he finished with four points, five rebounds and five blocks. However, the Hawks had too many weapons and were on top right from the start ending up with 51 rebounds to 33 for the game with six players scoring in double-digits led by Lachlan Olbrich with a career-high 21 on 8/9 shooting. Trey Kell III also had 17 points, four rebounds and four assists, It was a tough night for New Zealand who shot just 35 per cent overall with Parker Jackson-Cartwright finishing with 19 points, three rebounds and three assists while Mojave King returned from injury for 11 points in 21 minutes. Both teams had a host of players back from international duties over the FIBA break, but it was the Hawks who came out ready to fire including scoring 15 consecutive points in the first quarter capped off by a Wani Swaka Lo Buluk three-pointer. Lachlan Olbrich then finished off the quarter with a dunk in transition after a dribble around his back to get by his defender and the Hawks were well on top with the 32-12 advantage by quarter-time. It was another 20 points to 17 from the Hawks in the second quarter to see the home team remain in control at 52-29 going into the break with Swaka Lo Buluk the star with 13 points on a perfect 4/4 shooting. The Hawks also had 31 rebounds to 20 with New Zealand only shooting at 27 per cent from the floor and an abysmal 2/17 from downtown with Tacko Fall playing his first seven NBL minutes for two points, five rebounds and five blocks. The Breakers did come out a different looking unit in the third quarter and they put up 27 points on the back of just 29 in the entire first half. That included going 4/8 from downtown as their shot started to fall and the Breakers had cut the Hawks lead back to 16 by three quarter-time. Illawarra scored the first 10 of the final quarter and that was enough to secure the eventual 38-point victory thanks to their 37 points in the final quarter. Parker Jackson-Cartwright again showed his worth with 19 points, but lacked any backup. King was the only other player to make double figures with 11, which Sam Mennenga made nine and six rebounds. The Breakers head west to take on the Perth Wildcats on Sunday in the 'Distance Derby'. Illawarra Hawks 109 (Lachlan Olbrich 21, Trey Kell III 17, Tyler Harvey 15) NZ Breakers 71 (Parker Jackson-Cartwright 19, Mojave King 11, Sam Mennenga 9)

New Zealand golfer Kazuma Kobori is up with the leaders after the first round of the Australian Open at Kingston Heath Golf Club in Melbourne. Kobori carded a first round 65 to be six-under in a tie for fourth, just two shots of the sole leader, Lucas Herbert from Australia. LATEST HEADLINES: First day honours shared NZ v England Devine named in WBBL Team of Decade Mooar returns to Crusades as assistant Black Caps select predictable first test team Plunket Shield side changes for 3rd round There was one solitary blemish for 23-year-old Kobori on the seventh hole as he hit seven birdies overall. Daniel Hillier is two shots back at four-under and tied 14th while Daniel Ieremia is three-under tied 27th. Of the other New Zealanders, Josh Geary is at one-under, Nick Voke at par and Sam Jones and Tyler Hodge at one-over while Tyler Wood and Kerry Mountacastle are three-over. Meanwhile on the Asian Golf Tour Ben Campbell is midway on the leaderboard after round one in Qatar at the Doha Golf Club. Campbell is two-under after an opening round 70.

An intriguing opening day of the first test between New Zealand and England at Hagley Oval in Christchurch. Opting to field first on a green pitch England competed with a strong breeze while the home side struggled at times batting through to 319-8. LATEST HEADLINES: Devine named in WBBL Team of Decade Mooar returns to Crusades as assistant Black Caps select predictable first test team Plunket Shield side changes for 3rd round All-Auckland final in NZF National League Kane Williamson made 93 and looked comfortable once he got going. He was involved in half-century partnerships with all of Tom Latham, Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell, but the Black Caps were guilty of loose strokes. Latham was sharp until he was caught behind by Ollie Pope off the bowling of Brydon Carse for 47, while Devon Conway was smartly caught and bowled by Gus Atkinson for two. Ravindra was looking superb, but was too impatient on a shot and went for 34 while Daryl Mitchell was just getting started on 19 when he was out. Williamson cut a Atkinson short ball to Zak Crawley when another century beckoning. The Williamson wicket was an invite for Shoaib Bashir to take advantage. He ended the day with figures of 4-69 from his 20 overs. England bowled 83 overs, seven short of the regulation 90 for the day. The off-spinner accounted for Tom Blundell on 17 and debutant Nathan Smith 3, then ended a rapid eighth-wicket partnership of 46 when Matt Henry was caught at long-on for 18.. Glenn Phillips, dropped without scoring by a diving England captain Ben Stokes, remains unbeaten on 41 having started slowly by upping the ante later in his innings Tim Southee is not out on 10 with Will O'Rourke still to bat.

White Ferns captain Sophie Devine has been named in the Women's Big Bash League Team of the Decade among some of the biggest names in the sport. Devine is listed at number five in the batting order which features numerous a top four of Australia's greats in Beth Mooney, Alyssa Healy, Meg Lanning and Ellyse Perry who is listed as captain. LATEST HEADLINES: Mooar returns to Crusades as assistant Black Caps select predictable first test team Plunket Shield side changes for 3rd round All-Auckland final in NZF National League Young stars add to ASB Classic's depth Thirty-fvie-year-old Devine was the Perth Scorchers’ WBBL|07 winning captain and twice a Player of the Tournament and has earned selected in the Team of the Tournament seven times. She is the competition’s third leading run-scorer with 3960, while also being one of just 13 players to pass the 100-wicket mark. The Wellington player recently led the White Ferns to the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 title in the UAE. Devine initially played for the Adelaide Strikers from 2015/16-2019/20 WBBL season. South African Marizanne Kapp is the only other non-Australian. The WBBL Team of the Decade is: 1. Beth Mooney (Brisbane Heat, Perth Scorchers) 2. Alyssa Healy (Wicket-keeper – Sydney Sixers) 3. Meg Lanning (Melbourne Stars, Perth Scorchers) 4. Ellyse Perry (Captain – Sydney Sixers) 5. Sophie Devine (Adelaide Strikers, Perth Scorchers) 6. Grace Harris (Brisbane Heat, Melbourne Renegades) 7. Jess Jonassen (Brisbane Heat) 8. Marizanne Kapp (Sydney Sixers, Perth Scorchers, Sydney Thunder, Melbourne Stars) 9. Amanda-Jade Wellington (Adelaide Strikers) 10. Sarah Aley (Sydney Sixers) 11. Megan Schutt (Adelaide Strikers) 12. Molly Strano (Melbourne Renegades, Hobart Hurricanes)