The Weekender 26/04/2009

Welcome to another weekend - the last of April!

Sport

Stacey Jones couldn't replicate his drop goal heroics of the previous game against the Melbourne Storm this weekend, the game ended in a 14-14 draw.

Netball's ANZ Championship continues to run & most of the NZ teams don't seem to be doing very well. The Southern Steel went down 48-31 to the Melbourne Vixens and Central Pulse had a horror final quarter to lose 54-60 to West Coast Fever, and the Waikato/BOP Magic lost to the Queensland Firebirds 53-42.
Last weekend the West Coast Fever beat the Northern Mystics 46-57, and the Southern Steel beat the Canterbuy Tactix 52-48, and Irene Van Dyk scored a perfect 100% shooting record for the second week in a row as the Waikato/BOP Magic beat the NSW Swifts 63-45 in a repeat of last years final.

In the Super 14 the Hurricanes were the only shinning light for NZ teams with a 56-7 thrashing of the ACT Brumbies, the Crusaders were beaten 20-13 by the Cheetahs, the Chiefs were beaten 33-27 by the Bulls, and the Blues lost 24-31 to the Reds! and the Highlanders ended their hopes of a semi spot losing 11-18 to the Stormers. The Force thrashed the Lions 55-14.
Table (all teams have played 10 games): Hurricanes 34, Bulls 33, Chiefs 32, Sharks 31, Blues 30, Force/Waratahs 28, Crusaders/Brumbies 27, Highlanders 23, Stormers/Lions 19, Reds 18, Cheetahs 11.
In other rugby news, Luke McAlister has been allowed to join the All Blacks without having played provincial rugby after returning to NZ & being needed for the next tour - the question of course is what about all the other players returning (like Chris Jack who has just re-signed with the NZRU). Also Mike Brewer, the former All Black loose forward is putting his name forward for the Scotland rugby coach's job.

The NZ under-17 football (soccer) team has qualified for the World Cup in Nigeria with a 2-0 win over Tahiti in the Oceania age group champs in Auckland.

NZ News

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has paid tribute to NZ soldiers before Anzac Day, acknowledging the landing of the Anzacs at Gallipoli on April 25 1915.

The Royal NZ Air Force had some fun this week when they flew two bad-tempered salt water crocodiles from Northern Territory and Cairns to Manukau's Butterfly Creek Zoo. The two crocs broke their head restraints and began thrashing around shaking the plane but they were given muscle relaxant & they calmed down.

The NZ Geographic Board has continued to cause problems, this time by "discovering" that there are officially no names for the North & South Islands. The board has said they will consult the public and iwi on what they should officially be called. Of all the surprises, most people want status quo. Michael Laws who has had a run in with them of the naming of Wanganui has renamed the NZ Geographic Board as "cultural zealots".

Scheduled international flights from Hamilton International Airport ended this week with Air New Zealand's last trans-tasman flight on Thursday.

And finally, 10 Auckland students who have just returned from a school trip to Mexico have tested positive for Influenza A which can be an indicator of the Swine Influenza.

The Numbers Game

4: years in a row a Merino fleece grown by a South Canterbury couple has been judged NZ's best wool ($2,950/kg)
14: dead after a horror weekend on the roads
10: c charge per plastic bag at the Warehouse is going to community groups
88: % satisfaction rates for hospital treatment throughout NZ
220: % increase in rates for Kawau Island property owners
483.4: kg blue marlin caught by Ross Jameson - he will be making a claim for NZ's biggest fish
900: paua taken by 5 people who were caught by fishery officers - the biggest illegal haul in a year
1,000: people have been employed so far to build & modernise state houses
2,600: $ stolen from an RSA during yesterday's Anzac Day commemoration - gutless
10,000: estimated to have turned out at Auckland, Wellington & Christchurch
160,000: tonnes to be exported to China by Fonterra this year, three times usual
300,000: $ fine for TV3 for screening adverts on Sunday morning during the Rugby World Cup in 2007
650,000: US$ embezzled from Dame Kiri Te Kanawa by a Californian bank manager has been reimbursed

Finance NZ Dollar

GBP 0.3886 (0.0054)
EUR 0.4315 (-0.0032)
USD 0.5715 (0.0042)
AUD 0.7907 (0.0060)

The Weekender NZer of the week

Lester Waugh
Lester continues the great tradition of NZer's working on space programmes, read all about him here.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid;=10567479&ref;=rss

Joke of the Weekender

Salt Lake vs. Denver
I couldn't decide whether to go to Salt Lake City or Denver for vacation, so I called the airlines to get prices. "Airfare to Denver is $300," said a cheery salesperson.
"And what about Salt Lake City?"
"We have a really great rate to Salt Lake. It's $99.00, but there is a stopover."
"Where?"
"In Denver."

Weekender Photos

Check out my photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/dunwich42

Darren Harrison: darren@harrison.gen.nz
The Weekender: mailed weekly (Sunday nightish)
Website: www.dunwich.co.nz/weekender/
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