The Weekender 13/12/2009

Sport

The Wellington Phoenix missed out by one on a home wins record when they were beaten by Sydney FC 1-0 in their A-League soccer game this weekend. They were tied with Sydney FC's record of not being beaten for the last 14 home game.

Caroline Evers-Swindell got married this weekend to another Olympic rower Carl Meyer. Her sister Georgina got married in January.

NZ has won the second round of the rugby sevens after being Fiji 21-12 in the final of the South African leg this weekend.

The NZ mens hockey team, the Black Sticks, beat Argentina 3-2 in this mornings semi-final and will play Pakistan in the final after Pakistan beat India 6-3. On the way the Black Sticks had a 2-2 draw with China, beat Belgium 4-1, drew 2-2 with India & they led pool A.

The NZ Breakers lost a home game while seeming to be well in control for the second week in a row when they were beaten by the Perth Wildcats 100-106, but they bounced back to beat the Adelaide 36ers 92-85 for an away victory.

Auckland City have done very well in soccer's Club World Cup at Abu Dhabi, they beat home team Al Ahli 2-0 but lost their quarter-final match against Mexico's Atalante 3-0.

Cycling star Alison Shanks got some expected bad news this week, the Olympic Committee has cut the individual pursuit from the London games. The event is Alison's favourite event & the world champion would have had a good chance at a medal had. She will stick with the individual pursuit for a couple of years since there are three world champs and the Commonwealth Games but she may switch to another event for the next Olympics.

The NZ Rugby Union has backed down on their long held view to cut the provincial competition to 10 teams. A number of the smaller unions were ready for legal action, but it wasn't necessary with many of the top level players airing their views that all the teams should be retained. The last couple of seasons, the NZRU's plan to drop some of the 'smaller' teams has seemed crazy with the likes of Hawke's Bay doing so well in the competition (& having better support!).
The All Blacks have this saying that "better men make better All Blacks". It makes you wonder what Australia's equivalent saying is, after one of their players Quade Cooper was arrested on burglary charges. His lawyers have asked people not to judge him until all the facts come to light.
Finally Michael Witt is leaving Otago rugby after signing a rugby league deal with Welsh club Crusaders. He only played seven games for Otago in the Air NZ cup and six of those were as a substitute.

Adam Minoprio has added the Monsoon Cup title to his match racing title he won last Sunday. He beat Britain's Ben Ainslie 3-0 in the Cup final on Monday!

NZ News

Lisa Tamati was due today to complete running 2200 kms over the length of New Zealand, raising money for kids charities. Due to injury it has taken a bit longer than the originally planned 33 days, but she still managed the equivalent of 52 marathons in 45 days - wow.

In a first of it's kind, NZ & Australian police have had a joint operation cracking down on alcohol related crime this weekend. Each police district in both countries were doing things like targeting licensed premises, and drunk drivers. I got checked too! While I think it's a good thing to do, I don't quite understand why it has to be a joint Australasian deal - for all those drunk Aussies who sneak from Sydney to Melbourne via Auckland? (or vice-versa!).

There is a total fire ban inland from Dunedin after lots of dry windy weather.

The government has indicated it wants to work with Labour on a solution to the foreshore & seabed law - despite Phil Goff trying to use it as political brownie points last week (& failing).

Otago University philosopher Donald Evans was elected president of the International Bioethics Committee of Unesco - the UN Education Scientific & Cultural Organisation.

The Numbers Game

5: richter scale earthquake for Tuatapere this week
5.1: richter scale earthquake off the Kapiti Coast
6: drownings for November, well down on the October toll of 15 & the average of 10
7: % is the expected peak in unemployment according to Treasury
15: min past his stop a train driver chatting with colleagues realised he'd overshot his stop! (but it was only an empty coal train)
40: fire fighters battled a blaze at a Waikato lumber mill - visible from Mum & Dad's place
60: % drop in some ticket prices as the Crusaders try to lure back fans
165.9: c/L for 91 petrol after a 3c drop this week
180: $/yr more in ACC levies after steep rises (now $1300) & worth every penny to avoid American style lawsuits!
230: kg of pseudoephedrine heading for "P" labs was intercepted by Customs causing PM John Key to claim that we're winning the war on P
3,000: children with behaviour problems will have their parents offered free parenting programmes in a $9m government plan
55,000: $ stolen from car park ticket machines by a former employee of SkyCity
73,000: $ raised for charity by an Auckland man running seven great walks in seven days
500,000: $ fine for Telecom over misleading claims for promoting it's Xtra Go Large broadband package which wasn't unlimited
9.6m: $ Blue Water Black Magic - a Tribute to Sir Peter Blake is on at the maritime museum in Auckland

Finance NZ Dollar

GBP 0.4464 (+0.0108)
EUR 0.4967 (+0.0138)
USD 0.7257 (+0.0085)
AUD 0.7955 (+0.0107)

The Weekender NZer of the week

Charles Upham
VICTORIA CROSS AND BAR
Acknowledged widely as the outstanding solider of the Second World War, New Zealander Charles Upham is the only combatant solider to receive the Victoria Cross and Bar for his exceptional bravery in Crete and in the Western Desert.

Joke of the Weekender

Record Store
A woman meant to call a record store, but dialled the wrong number and got a private home instead. "Do you have 'Eyes of Blue' and 'A Love Supreme?'" she asked.
"Well, no," answered the puzzled home-owner. "But I have a wife and eleven children."
"Is that a record?" she inquired, puzzled in her turn.
"I don't think so," replied the man, "but it's as close as I want to get."

Weekender Photos

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