D'arcy And Goran

The Wellington Phoenix are viewing their recent break as timely in the context of their A-League season.The seventh placed 'Nix had an extra week off following their loss to Melbourne City to reflect and prepare for this weekend's match against Adelaide United.The Phoenix have one win to their name after four games.They haven't scored a goal for three games. Midfielder Alex Rufer told D'Arcy and Goran that it's down to the team to get the season back on trackLISTEN TO ALEX RUFER TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

LISTEN TO BUCK SHELFORD TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVEEleven starting changes and, yet, there is more continuity to the All Blacks in Rome than many may have expected as they attempt to rebuild self-confidence after a challenging two weeks.The need to continually fix key parts of their attack and kicking game, and the close nature of next year's World Cup, has seen All Blacks coach Steve Hansen resist the urge to get overly experimental for the final test of the season.Hansen said last week's loss to Ireland in Dublin did not influence selection, except that of Brodie Retallick reverting to the bench after signs of fatigue.Captain Kieran Read is again joined by Ardie Savea in the loose forwards, with Dalton Papalii listed to come off the bench.But the most topical selection is the retention of both Beauden Barrett and Damian McKenzie.While many fringe players are set for a run, Italy appeared the ideal arena to hand Richie Mo'unga his third test start to continue his development.Mo'unga will instead again c

New Zealand have delivered a cricketing miracle in Abu Dhabi.The Black Caps have taken the final six Pakistan wickets for 24 runs to dismiss their opponents for 171 and win the opening test of the three-match series by four runs.Left-arm orthodox spinner Ajaz Patel was man-of-the-match on debut, taking five for 59 in the second innings, including the final wicket of Azhar Ali lbw for 65.Patel says they never gave up, even with the score 130 for four at lunch.He's told Sky Sport it's a special feeling and the New Zealand way to believe anything's possible.Neil Wagner and Ish Sodhi also took two wickets apiece.LISTEN TO SHANE JURGENSEN TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Coach Steve Hansen admits the All Blacks have not adapted quickly to the new attacking structure being implemented this season.The rugby World Cup holders squandered several attacking chances during their loss to Ireland in Dublin, and have now scored just one try in their last two matches.Hansen says they have tried to change the way they've played this season."And we're stills tuck between the old way and the new way, and we haven't got it right yet. Did we think we were going to have it right by now? Probably not, but we've got a little bit of work to do over summer."Former All Blacks coach John Hart has his own take on the team's latest loss.He told D'Arcy and Goran that it wasn't a complete surprise. Hart says they will be concerned by their lack of discipline."Nine penalties to two at half time - that's a lot of ball you're giving to the other team." The All Blacks have arrived in Rome ahead of Sunday's test against Italy.LISTEN TO JOHN HART TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABVESee omnystudio.com/listener for

Football Ferns defensive midfielder Katie Bowen joins D'Arcy and Goran as the team leaves for New Caledonia tomorrow, attempting to qualify for the FIFA Women's World Cup out of Oceania.LISTEN ABOVE AS KATIE BOWEN SPEAKS TO D'ARCY AND GORANSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Listen above as Karl Budge joins D'Arcy and Goran to discuss the signing of Denis Shapovalov for the ASB Men's Classic next year.ASB Classic organisers have confirmed they've secured one of the hottest signatures on the ATP tour, teen tennis prodigy Denis Shapovalov.The 19-year old Canadian sensation is continuing to make an impression on the ATP tour, his explosive style of play propelling him up the rankings, seeing him reach a high of world number 23 in June, becoming the youngest player to be ranked in the Top 25 since Richard Gasquet in 2005.It's this form that saw him named the 2017 ATP Star of Tomorrow, being the youngest player to finish in the Top 100 after a season which saw him beating world number 1 Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin del Potro to reach the semi-final of the Montreal Masters.During his maiden year on the ATP tour, Shapovalov became the youngest quarter-finalist and semi-finalist ever an ATP Masters 1000 event, eclipsing the likes of Nadal, Federer and Djokovic.Known as one of the most en

Listen above as White Ferns player Sophie Devine speaks to D'Arcy and Goran following their 33 run loss to Australia in the World T20.The White Ferns are dreaming of a World Cup miracle, but they're about to be woken up.A 33-run defeat to Australia in their second game of the Twenty20 Women's Cricket World Cup has dropped the White Ferns to 0-2, and left them requiring a series of outcomes ranging from "Plausible" to "Preposterous" to have any hope of qualifying for the semifinals.What needs to happen for the Ferns to make the semifinals? Well, a lot:• Ireland need to beat India on Friday morning• Australia need to beat India on Sunday morning• The Ferns need to beat both Pakistan and Ireland• The Ferns need to end up with a higher net run rate than IndiaIn reality though, you could stop hypothesising after the first proviso.Remember Ireland? They were the team who the Ferns beat by 305, 306, and 347 runs in three ODIs earlier this year, and have been swatted by Australia (by nine wickets) and Pakistan (by 38

Football Ferns captain Ali Riley joins D'Arcy and Goran to discuss the face-to-face apology the squad received from NZ Football for the poor treatment under former coach Andreas Heraf.LISTEN ABOVE AS ALI RILEY SPEAKS TO RADIO SPORT BREAKFASTSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Tall Blacks will be without two of their best players for the upcoming FIBA world cup qualifying games.Europe based Isaac Fotu and Tai Webster won't be making the journey back to New Zealand, due to the arduousness of the travel.However coach Paul Henare has been able to call upon the Tom Abercrombie and Alex Pledger after the pair missed the last international window in September.The Tall Blacks play Jordan in Christchurch on November 29, before facing Syria in Wellington on December 2.LISTEN TO PAUL HENARE TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

LISTEN TO ANDREW DURANTE TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVEGoals were always going to be a problem for the Wellington Phoenix this season, especially early in the campaign, and so it proved on Saturday night.The Wanderers were good value for their 3-0 win — it perhaps could have been more — as the Phoenix had little of quality in the final third.A second half penalty, unfortunately conceded by milestone man Andrew Durante, sealed the result for the visitors, after they had opened the scoring in the 11th minute with a neatly constructed move.New coach Mark Rudan has built a stronger defensive base, but creating attacking combinations always takes much longer, and the Phoenix have a modest roster.The Phoenix relied on building pressure through frustration in their previous two games, and then exploiting space as the game opened up. But the Wanderers' early goal, and assured display in possession made that difficult.In trying conditions, the home side huffed and puffed, but the only fireworks on display were the e

A couple of Cantabrians are expected to add strength to the New Zealand cricket batting spine when the three-match one-day international series starts against Pakistan tonight in Abu Dhabi.Black Caps batting coach Craig McMillan expects Tom Latham and Henry Nicholls to make a difference in the middle, after a lack of experience in the 3-nil Twenty20 series defeat.He says batsmen need to give themselves time to settle in against the slowness of the pitches and the turn, and they can do that better in ODIs than T20s.Play is scheduled to start from midnight.LISTEN TO CRICKET COMMENTATOR CRAIG CUMMING TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Supercars organisers are focused on keeping Pukekohe successful, rather than a second round in New Zealand.110-thousand people showed up to watch the Supercars race around Pukekohe at the weekend, prompting calls for a second New Zealand event to be added to the calendar.Supercars CEO Sean Seamer told D'Arcy and Goran another NZ round is not a priority, but is being considered."We're going through a process of looking at 2020. Our priority for now is making sure we do a better job next year at Pukekohe."LISTEN TO SEAN SEAMER TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Black Caps are looking ahead to their ODI series against Pakistan. The cricket team lost their Twenty20 series against the international side, making a grim start for their 2018 series.However, the team is now in the United Arab Emirates and gearing up for the next part of their tour. Bowler Matt Henry says that the head space amongst the team is quite good."As a whole, it's always tough coming out here and playing them in their own conditions, and that's a good challenge for us moving forward." LISTEN TO MATT HENRY TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Australian Baseball League is a week away from getting underway, with a Kiwi team to join the mix,The Auckland Tuatara are preparing for their first matches as part of the league.Hitting and third base coach Darren Bragg is one of the key parts of the coaching season.He told D'Arcy and Goran that they are putting together a team. The Tuatara will play some pre-season games in Brisbane ahead of the league officially starting.LISTEN TO DARREN BRAGG TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A successful weekend for the contending Kiwis was an entree for what's to come in the final round of the Supercars championship.Shane Van Gisbergen and Scott McLaughlin won both races at the Auckland Supersprint in Pukekohe over the weekend, and are separated by a mere 14 points at the top of the championship table.Unlike Van Gisbergen, McLaughlin was contending for the title a season ago but finished second to seven time champion Jamie Whincup.McLaughlin says he's more prepared this time around.He credits his team in getting the win.LISTEN TO SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN TALK WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

LISTEN TO TONY IRO TALK ABOUT THE MATCH WITH D'ARCY AND GORAN ABOVEWith one test remaining and England series already lost, the Kiwis must now prove they are no false dawn.Increasingly, that's exactly how this looks; their one-off result over the Kangaroos creating a misleading impression of where this team is really at.Michael Maguire's youthful squad is attempting to carve a new era for New Zealand rugby league following last year's World Cup horror show.To this point they've won back some respect and, by all accounts, everyone has bought into Maguire's new vision by adopting professional attitudes.That's all well and good, but results and actions speak loudest.For the public, nothing else really matters.Winning in England has never been easy but after stunning the Kangaroos, prior this tour, the Kiwis arrived with confidence; sights firmly set on becoming the first team since 1998 to capture a three test series here.With a touch more composure, discipline and ball control, they could, should, be celebratin

LISTEN TO NIGEL YALDEN TALK WITH CRAIG CUMMINGS ABOVEStarting centre Matt Proctor and flanker Dalton Papalii will make their All Black test debuts against Japan in Tokyo, with six of the eight reserves also in line to win their first caps.They will inevitably be tagged as All Black second-stringers, but not all of the match-day 23 fall into that category and it will be a memorable occasion for all the newcomers, who include prop Tyrel Lomax, loose forwards Dillon Hunt and Gareth Evans, and backs Mitchell Drummond, Brett Cameron and George Bridge, all of whom have been named on the bench, but also starting hooker Dane Coles, who will make a welcome return from injury.It will be Coles' first test since November last year and, after limited minutes over two games for Wellington recently, he will wear the No 2 jersey with the hope of lasting up to 50 minutes before giving way to Liam Coltman. Coles' return after his nightmare 18 months of concussion problems and a knee injury will be welcomed by the All Blacks co

As far as introductions to international cricket go, spare a thought for new Black Caps coach Gary Stead.Hired as Mike Hesson's successor in August, Stead gets his first chance to showcase his imprint on the national side as they return from a seven-month hiatus tomorrow morning with a Twenty20 against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates.While Pakistan may not have the name recognition or fear factor possessed by the likes of India or South Africa, it's impossible to find a more dominant stretch than that produced by Mickey Arthur's men in the shortest format over the past two years.General consensus would insist that Twenty20 is easily cricket's most unpredictable format, but Pakistan are coming close to completely quashing that theory. In their last 30 T20 outings, Pakistan have remarkably only suffered four losses; in the process reeling off 10 consecutive series victories.It's no surprise they are ranked the world's best T20 side - having taken over from the Black Caps in January - and just last week swa

LISTEN TOM DOYLE TALK WITH CRAIG CUMMING ABOVEIt's not quite unchartered territory, but reasons for cautious optimism are emerging at the Wellington Phoenix.A 0-0 draw away from home against the Brisbane Roar is hardly a result to get the pulse racing, but considering the efforts of previous Phoenix iterations, perhaps it can be viewed as a step in the right direction.Not since the 2012-2013 season have the Phoenix accumulated four points through their first two games – a scenario new coach Mark Rudan would surely have accepted if offered in pre-season.For a team who only banked 21 points last season, it's a reasonably significant starting marker, and after only managing five points away from home in that campaign, an early away point can't hurt the confidence amongst the squad.Now, for the large dose of reality. Neither of the Phoenix's two opponents to date – the Newcastle Jets and the Roar – are tipped to make the playoffs, and the depth and top-tier talent within the Phoenix's squad still looks to be some

Michael Vink is the latest rider to don the yellow jersey on cycling's Tour of Southland.The Christchurch rider has won the138 kilometre third stage from Mossburn to Coronet Peak.The stage win has seen Vink nab the overall tour lead off form leader Matt Zenovich.Vink says it feels like the result's been a long time coming."I've been close on the stage before, but to get the win today after all the hard work that's been put in, it's really special."LISTEN TO MICHAEL VINK TALK WITH CRAIG CUMMING ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.