Spotlight on Southland Sport: Sunday Special
The Southland Tribune wraps up some key moments in the Southland sporting weekend. Enjoy.
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Stags: Flame of hope quickly extinguished
There was a period early in the second half when those emotionally attached to the Southland Stags sat up in their armchairs and dared to dream in its game against Canterbury. (READ MORE HERE).
New Zealand wins Davis Cup tie in Invercargill
New Zealand won the first three matches in straight sets at ILT Stadium Southland, securing the tie in front of a strong Invercargill crowd. Thailand then won the last singles match. (READ MORE HERE).
South Island Horse of the Year Award comes south
For the second time Invercargill couple Sabin and Clare Kirkland have owned the winner of the South Island Horse of the Year Award in thoroughbred racing. (READ MORE HERE).
From The Tribune’s stats department…
Invercargill Marist man Bill McCaw has taken over the mantle of the oldest living All Black.
All Black No 515 Roy Roper died this week weeks after he had celebrated his 100th birthday. He was the first All Black to reach 100 years and up until his death was the oldest living All Black.
That stat has now been picked up by 97-year-old Bill McCaw. McCaw played 50 games for Southland from 1949 to 1955. In the time he also made five appearances for the All Blacks.
The loose forward played his club rugby for Marist.
Meanwhile, there was another former Southland representative that surfaced in discussions this week in terms of the age department.
Dane Coles on Saturday became the second oldest player to line up for the All Blacks at 36 years and 279 days.
But the oldest All Black honour will take some beating with that held by Southland’s Ned Hughes who played as a 40-year-old in 1921.
Hughes played 23 games for Southland from 1903 to 1908.
Athletics: National selections, Aussie Champs attendance, Diamond League podium finish
As usual, there are some pretty cool things coming out of athletics in Southland at the moment. It includes James McLeay and Siena Mackley’s selection to head to Kenya to race in 2024. Southland product Toti Peeters also produced an impressive performance on the global stage at the weekend. (READ MORE HERE).
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In case you missed it….
Southland connection: Tennis New Zealand CEO Julie Paterson knew there was a venue that needed to be chucked into the mix for its latest Davis Cup. When it became obvious that Tennis New Zealand needed an indoor complex for a September Davis Cup showdown, Paterson quickly threw up ILT Stadium Southland in Invercargill as an option. (READ MORE HERE).
King of Te Anau: “All of the top [New Zealand] players have played events in Te Anau before and I was really keen to get a Davis Cup event in this region, especially Te Anau. So, it’s great that we are close by.” (READ MORE HERE).
Pacy Stags wing living out little kid's dream
“I was born down here so I thought it would be pretty cool. I wrote down when I was six years old a dream to play for the Stags. So I thought, ‘I’m going to jump on this and see where it takes me’. Here I am.” (READ MORE HERE).
