Talofa, Ma’lele’i, Bula and welcome to Season 07 Episode 75 of Breakfast Bites, the FIJI & PACIFIC SPORTS NEWS PODCAST, by TeivovoSports.com – a wrap of Pasifika people’s sports news, on a sunny and bright Wednesday morning 20 December 2023.
Coming to you with tons of hanisi from the 180th meridian, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
Talofa, Ma’lele’i, Bula and welcome to Season 07 Episode 75 of Breakfast Bites, the FIJI & PACIFIC SPORTS NEWS PODCAST, by TeivovoSports.com – a wrap of Pasifika people’s sports news, on a sunny and bright Wednesday morning 20 December 2023.
Coming to you with tons of hanisi from the 180th meridian, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
In rugby league
The Cronulla Sharks have secured the prized signature of Tongan enforcer Addin Fonua-Blake on a four-year deal from 2025.
The Bulldogs and Tigers fell out of the race, while the Dragons were believed to be the frontrunners, but the Sharks came out of nowhere to lock him up.
Fonua-Blake has played 159 NRL games, 97 for Manly and 62 for the NZ Warriors, in addition to 11 international games for Tonga, including the 2021 World Cup, and one Test for New Zealand.
Following his impressive 2023 season, where he played 26 games for the NZ Warriors, who finished fourth on the NRL table, Fonua-Blake was named alongside Payne Haas as a front rower in the Dally M Team of the Year.
In rugby union
All the talk around the kava bowls in Fiji today is that the Management and Coaching team of the Fijian Drua, led by CEO Mark Evans and Head Coach Mick Byrne should be appointed to take over the Flying Fijians lock, stock and barrel.
In football
Former England and Man U star Gary Neville on Tottenham’s Aussie Manager, Ange Postecoglou.
“What he’s done in such a short period of time is quite staggering,” Neville said on Sky Sports.
“He’s put something in place that’s breathtaking to watch.”
“Spurs fans won’t like this but he is amazing, and if you’re Manchester City losing Pep Guardiola in a year or two, you’d be looking at Ange Postecoglou now thinking ‘wow that’s exactly what we want to see’,” he said.
“But for the time being Spurs fans can enjoy one of the best brands of football I’ve seen since I finished playing. I love watching Tottenham Hotspur play.”
In Combat Sports
Deontay Wilder is hoping to deliver a “devastating knockout” against Kiwi-Nigerian Joseph Parker. “Parker should be worried, I always say women lie, men lie, but numbers don’t lie. I am the hardest punching boxer in history,” Wilder said.
“Every guy I’ve faced I’ve either knocked them out or put him on the canvas so I’m very dangerous and he should be aware of that.”
In SportsBiz
World Cup cricket champion Mitchell Starc has been sold for a record sum in yesterday’s Indian Premier League Auction.
Starc, who has not made an IPL appearance since 2015, was snapped up by the Kolkata Knight Riders for A$4.42Million, the highest price in the competition’s history, following an intense bidding war with the Gujarat Titans.
If the left-armer bowls four overs in every match during the six-week tournament, he’ll make approximately A$13,185 per delivery.
Other Australians sold in the 2024 IPL Auction:
- · Pat Cummins — $3.66M to Sunrisers Hyderabad
- · Spencer Johnson — $1.78M to Gujarat Titans
- · Travis Head — $1.22M to Sunrisers Hyderabad
- · Jhye Richardson — $892,000 to Delhi Capitals
- · Ashton Turner — $178,000 to Lucknow Super Giants
In US Sports: NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has been hospitalised after falling at a concert and suffering a broken hip, according to a statement on Sunday 17 December.
Abdul-Jabbar, 76, is a six-time NBA champion and six-time Most Valuable Player in his 20 league seasons.
The statement did not say what concert Abdul-Jabbar was attending when he fell, but I’m guessing he’s a Swiftee!
And that’s a wrap!
For TEIVOVOsports.com I’m Culden Kamea – Mahalo, vinaka and thank you. Please hit the subscribe button below if you would like to receive more Pasifika sports highlights on Breakfast Bites. And tank you all too mas for all your love and support.
Mahalo, vina’a and tank you all too mass for all your love and support.
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