The fifth round of the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield gets underway today.

The Auckland Hearts are set to take on the Northern Brave in a top of the table clash that also serves as the first of two matches taking place this weekend.

Prue Catton is a player for the Hearts, and she joined D'Arcy for a chat about the clash.

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It’s the opening weekend for Open Wheelers at Waikaraka Speedway.

Midgets, Sprintcars, TQs, and ¼ Midgets are on the cards in what’s set to be an exciting night of racing.

Michael Pickens is a long-time speedway driver and joined D'Arcy to discuss the event.

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After a long season, we’ve finally reached the business end of the National League.

Auckland City FC and Wellington Olympic are set to clash this afternoon in the finals in Wellington, in what promises to be an exciting game.

Mario Ilich is the captain of Auckland City, and he joined D'Arcy to preview the match.

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Two familiar foes are facing off in this weekend’s finals for the Premier Hockey League.

The Tridents and the Falcons are set to clash this afternoon in a rematch of last year’s final, in which the Falcons came away victorious.

Ella Hyatt Brown plays for the Tridents and joined D’Arcy to preview the game.

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It's finals weekend in the Tauihi Basketball competition with the Tauranga Whai travelling down to Christchurch to take on the Mainland Pouākai.

The Whai made it through with their 82-76 victory over the Tokomanawa Queens while the Pouākai claimed their spot by defeating the Southern Hoiho 99-92.

Tane Bennett is the head coach of the Whai, and he joined D'Arcy to preview the game and reflect on their season to date.

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The Breakers are having a bit of a mid-season resurgence.

After a rocky start to the season, they’ve now won three games in a row, and will want to keep their streak rolling when they take on the South East Melbourne Phoenix tonight.

Breakers shooting guard Sean Bairstow joined D’Arcy to preview the clash.

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I was fortunate enough to talk with Greg Barclay this week.

Greg Barclay served as the chair of the ICC for four years (2020-2024), a position he also held at NZ Cricket (2016-2020). He now sits on the board of NZ Rugby. It’s fair to say that Greg is very well schooled in the vagaries of our summer game and sport administration in general. Greg also had a stint as an independent director on the board of International Rugby League.

Greg, a measured and experienced administrator, made some very astute points around the turgid and weighty situation that NZC has found itself in over the future of its T20 programme.

The game is in a state of flux.

There are many self-interested parties pulling the game in different directions, with a CEO who finds himself on the rack, being stretched like a medieval torture victim. An uncomfortable situation for Scott Weenink to find himself in. Uncomfortable enough to take a week off. Whether this was planned leave or a convenient escape is a moot point. He’s not there, that’s all we can be certain of.

Plainly, a calm and considered process must be followed in order to arrive at a conclusion that is the best for the whole game, not just the gifted few who play cricket at the elite level.

Greg said this T20 space has been with NZC for over 15 years. NZ is now the only player in world cricket that doesn’t have a competition akin to the major pro leagues.

He made point that even without that foothold, has NZ Cricket actually suffered?

NZC is adamant that the Super Smash is about player development, nothing more, nothing less. The results and position the Black Caps hold on the international scene suggest that in this space, the Super Smash has hit all its marks.

Begs the question really, in grand scheme of things, and while the international calendar is still in flux itself, does anything need to change?

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There’s an exciting volleyball event taking place just across the Harbour Bridge this weekend – the North Harbour Open.

It’s a two-day beach volleyball tournment with national ranking points up for grabs.

Competitor James Sadlier was part of the winning duo last year and joined D’Arcy to discuss the event.

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