New Zealand Bookmakers Blog – News, Odds and Information https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog Wed, 20 May 2020 04:54:51 +0000 en-AU hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.4.1 New Zealand Rugby May See End to Northern Hemisphere Raiders https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/new-zealand-rugby-may-see-end-to-northern-hemisphere-raiders/ Mon, 18 May 2020 04:53:13 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=892 Necessary, or are the salary cuts to players of rugby players have had to swallow an instance of opportunism by the salary payers? News has crossed our desk that the pay cuts are going to last well beyond the resumption of play. The Times reported that the clubs in Premiership Rugby might never again pay … Keep Reading "New Zealand Rugby May See End to Northern Hemisphere Raiders"

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Necessary, or are the salary cuts to players of rugby players have had to swallow an instance of opportunism by the salary payers?

News has crossed our desk that the pay cuts are going to last well beyond the resumption of play.

The Times reported that the clubs in Premiership Rugby might never again pay their players at the level they were paid before the corona virus altered the rugby landscape and made it bumpier than Sydney Cricket Ground.

What impact does that have for New Zealand?

Thank you for that question.

The answer is that many of the Premiership clubs are homes to Kiwis who fled north to seek opportunities to be paid well above what they could earn Down Under.

The odd twist in it all is that while there is no football being played, zero, the pay cut was 25 percent.

Not much sympathy from those of us who have been cut by 75 percent, or further still.

Naturally, the move did receive a positive reaction from the players, but their resistance is reportedly not motivated by the cut in pay, but by the fact that they do not feel they were adequately involved in the process.

Players are also concerned, rightly, over the uncertainty of how long the salary trimming might persist.

In a perverse faction, this chain of events might prove beneficial to New Zealand rugby. It will not be quite as easy in the future for Premiership clubs like Saracens and Harlequins to poach New Zealand players.

It was only months ago that we took some delight in Sonny Bill Williams collecting a huge payday, $10 million for two years, to play for Toronto Wolfpack in English Super League.

Different leagues, we understand, but SBW could take a 25 percent cut while standing on his head.

What Williams, and some of the Kiwis who tried their fortune with Premiership, needs is something no one can give.

Time.

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New Zealand Rugby Frist to Resume Top Grade Football https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/new-zealand-rugby-frist-to-resume-top-grade-football/ Mon, 11 May 2020 04:39:40 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=889 Super Rugby is going to restart in New Zealand, with the teams from the New Zealand division only. This is good news, along with the reality that there are more players on a Super Rugby club than there have been deaths in New Zealand from Covid-19. That may sound a bit morbid, but the country … Keep Reading "New Zealand Rugby Frist to Resume Top Grade Football"

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Super Rugby is going to restart in New Zealand, with the teams from the New Zealand division only.

This is good news, along with the reality that there are more players on a Super Rugby club than there have been deaths in New Zealand from Covid-19.

That may sound a bit morbid, but the country deserves some sort of recognition for taking advantage of its natural defenses, combined with a realistic response by the Government, to the pandemic.

The plan is for an opening match between the Highlanders and the Chiefs in Dunedin, to be followed next day with the Blues playing the Hurricanes in Auckland.

The fifth team in the New Zealand Conference, the Crusaders, play watchers, with a first-round bye.

The matches will be played in closed stadiums. The New Zealand-only competition is scheduled to run for 10 weeks, with four matches each weekend.

A sixth team would be nice in terms of matchups, but five is fine, as rugby starved Kiwis are grateful for anything at this point.

Another precaution being taken is that the games will initially be confined to three stadiums, with looks being given to including Eden Park in the mix.

It is a bit odd that the weekend matches will be played two on Saturday and two on Sunday, with the two games on each day starting at the same time. On the surface, staggered times might provide an opportunity for increased television viewership.

Super Rugby will conclude, barring the unforeseen, on August 16.

“This is great news for the game right across the country,” CEO Mark Robinson was quoted as saying. “It’s been a challenging time right around the country and if this can act in any way to provide leadership and inspiration for Kiwis doing it tough, then that’s fantastic.

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NRL Players with Covid-19 Symptoms Barred from Training Grounds https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/nrl-players-with-covid-19-symptoms-barred-from-training-grounds/ Mon, 04 May 2020 05:09:45 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=887 Four or five months ago, Latrell Mitchell might have dismissed respiratory symptoms as a mild head cold, but one thing is definitely certain-this is not four or five months ago. Mitchell was one of four South Sydney Rabbitohs players told he was unwelcome at training. He and the others have been tested for Covid-19, with … Keep Reading "NRL Players with Covid-19 Symptoms Barred from Training Grounds"

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Four or five months ago, Latrell Mitchell might have dismissed respiratory symptoms as a mild head cold, but one thing is definitely certain-this is not four or five months ago.

Mitchell was one of four South Sydney Rabbitohs players told he was unwelcome at training. He and the others have been tested for Covid-19, with the outcome still to be determined.

Wayne Bennet told the Sydney Morning Herald about Mitchell, but he would not disclose the identities of the other players over privacy concerns.

“We are all following protocols. We all want to be back playing footy and we all understand what it is going to take – there wasn’t one complaint today,” Bennett told The Sydney Morning Herald on Monday night.

Mitchell and some of his mates went on a hunting trip and posted a picture of a group 12, a group that included Josh Addo-Carr.

Judging by the look of it, the NRL could have easily fined the whole lot for excessive flannel.

Mitchell was fined $30,000 by the league for violating social distancing regulations. He was stopped at the fence to the Bunnies’ training ground. Each club has put strict screening protocols in place.

Some might say those measure are draconian, but no one can accuse the league of not being specific regarding their health expectations.

The NRL is absolutely frantic to get play resumed by the end of May, so the slightest hint of a health issue sets the alarms shrieking.

Addo-Carr was permitted into Melbourne education day, as was Tyrone Robert-Davis with the Newcastle Knights.

Bennet related that every player was subjected to the same battery of questions, asking about symptoms such as sore throat, runny nose or coughing.

If the players’ tests come back negative, they will be allowed to enter the Souths training facility.

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NRL Finds Brilliant Fix for Resuming with New Zealand Warriors https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/nrl-finds-brilliant-fix-for-resuming-with-new-zealand-warriors/ Mon, 27 Apr 2020 05:06:54 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=884 It seems so common sense that we wonder why no one thought of it sooner. Someone other than us, that is. The NRL wants to resume playing, but border restrictions meant that the Warriors would have either to shift the club to some locale in Australia, or be left out of the May 28 restart. … Keep Reading "NRL Finds Brilliant Fix for Resuming with New Zealand Warriors"

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It seems so common sense that we wonder why no one thought of it sooner.

Someone other than us, that is.

The NRL wants to resume playing, but border restrictions meant that the Warriors would have either to shift the club to some locale in Australia, or be left out of the May 28 restart.

The simple solution was to grant an exemption for the Warriors and given some of the head-scratching news and decisions we have seen from the NRL in the past, the logic of the border exemption is startling.

Neither New nor Australia has had much of an issue with the global pandemic. Australia reports as of today indicate 6,720 cases of Covid-19, with 5,586 cases of people who contracted the virus and then recovered.

New Zealand reports 1,122 confirmed cases with 1,180 recovered.

Both countries have nearly flattened the graph of new cases from peaks at the beginning of April.

The NRL want to restart. Football fans want the NRL to restart.

Even though the Warriors are atypical when it comes to rugby prowess, keeping them out of the abbreviated fixture made little sense.

Santitise the dickens out of the Warriors, send them across the ditch, isolate them for a fortnight, during which they could train, and then follow the remarkably effective regimen that has made Australia and New Zealand poster children for how to deal with a viral outbreak.

We do not exactly know who or which entity came up with the idea, but you-know-who was not far from the scene.

“We appreciate the federal government in giving us an exemption to allow the Warriors to come into the country,” ARLC chairman Peter V’landys told the Sydney Morning Herald. “We are now working with the NSW state government to get approval that will allow them to train while in isolation.”

A potential base for the Warriors is Tamworth, NSW.

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Glass Half Full Hansen Uncovers Upside to Halt in Play https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/glass-half-full-hansen-uncovers-upside-to-halt-in-play/ Mon, 20 Apr 2020 11:44:57 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=882 The ability to find the positive side of a situation is apparently something ex-All Blacks coach Steve Hansen possesses. Rather than lamenting over the situation that has caused rugby to call a halt, Hansen views it as an opportunity to make some changes to how the international side of the games is conducted. Hansen is … Keep Reading "Glass Half Full Hansen Uncovers Upside to Halt in Play"

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The ability to find the positive side of a situation is apparently something ex-All Blacks coach Steve Hansen possesses.

Rather than lamenting over the situation that has caused rugby to call a halt, Hansen views it as an opportunity to make some changes to how the international side of the games is conducted.

Hansen is confident that there will eventually be a restart, which he sees as a chance to reset some facets of the game for the betterment of everyone involved.

It is going to require flexibility and creativity once it is safe to resume. Hansen backed the position of Warren Gatland, who is looking at some one-offs to replace extended tours.

This would involve a one-Test match between the New Zealand team and the British Lions ahead of a scheduled tour of South Africa by the All Blacks next year.

Hansen did not always have much in the line of success when he helmed New Zealand and it was the British and Irish Lions lining up on the other side. The one that must still stick in his craw was the loss to England in last year’s World Cup.

Still, Hansen’s optimism is commendable. “We have an opportunity now to start with a blank page because you have got everybody putting self-interest to the side,” he told Wales Online.

Hansen recently left a temporary post with Japanese team Verblitz.

Hansen spoke of a prevailing mood of change and cooperation, but that does not seem to be the case for World Rugby, where there is currently a power struggle between Bill Beaumont and his deputy Agustin Pichot for the top job.

Hansen also sounded a dire note, saying, “There has been a lot of self-interest and if we don’t do the right thing we could lose the game and that would be a tragedy.”

It might be an instance of whistling past the cemetery, as some of the smaller unions are either bankrupt, or on the verge.

Even Australia and England are not exempt from the threat of a shutdown that extends beyond any financial reserves.

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Warriors not Privy to NRL Plans to Restart Competition https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/warriors-not-privy-to-nrl-plans-to-restart-competition/ Mon, 13 Apr 2020 13:53:52 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=879 The New Zealand Warriors deserve better. They have yet to learn their fate with regard to the NRL’s plans to restart the competition at the end of May. No fuss, you say? The end of May is a long ways away. But in order to participate, the Warriors club would have to embark on a … Keep Reading "Warriors not Privy to NRL Plans to Restart Competition"

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The New Zealand Warriors deserve better.

They have yet to learn their fate with regard to the NRL’s plans to restart the competition at the end of May.

No fuss, you say? The end of May is a long ways away.

But in order to participate, the Warriors club would have to embark on a flight to Australia well ahead of May 28 in order to fulfill a requirement that the club be quarantined for a minimum of 14 days before they could be cleared to play.

Cameron George, as chief executive of the Warriors, sent an email marked urgent to the league to inquire about the club’s role in a re-formatted Telstra Premiership competition.

He now knows the feeling many of us experience when we contact customer support and receive an automated reply telling us only that our message has been received and that someone will get back to us sooner or later.

Hopefully, George did not get the automated reply. It does seem that he has gotten only crickets in response to his questions about the revised fixture, where the players will be based and if their families will be permitted to join them in Australia.

Asked about his inquiry, George told reporters, “No – I haven’t had any feedback as of yet. Obviously they’re working through it at their end with a number of points. I did mark it urgent, so … Until we hear, we can’t make any firm decisions.”

The NRL does seem to have a sense of urgency about restarting, but that urgency apparently does not include the CEO of the Warriors and the rest of the club.

The truly interesting aspect of all this is that the NRL is proposing a conference system, but one of the sticking points of resuming play is the necessity of broadcasters giving their blessing to a reformatted NRL fixture.

Apparently, the game broadcasters’ preference would be for the NRL to play its complete fixture by stretching the competition into November.

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Possible NRL Restart in Late May Might Exclude NZ Warriors https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/possible-nrl-restart-in-late-may-might-exclude-nz-warriors/ Mon, 06 Apr 2020 05:15:03 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=876 For all the success the country of New Zealand has enjoyed when it comes to rugby, the struggles of the New Zealand Warriors are something of an anomaly. The club joined the NRL in 1995, but from roughly 25 years of trying, the Warriors have nothing other than runner up finishes from 2002 and 2011 … Keep Reading "Possible NRL Restart in Late May Might Exclude NZ Warriors"

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For all the success the country of New Zealand has enjoyed when it comes to rugby, the struggles of the New Zealand Warriors are something of an anomaly.

The club joined the NRL in 1995, but from roughly 25 years of trying, the Warriors have nothing other than runner up finishes from 2002 and 2011 and a minor premiership in 2002.

They finished 13th in the 2019 NRL season and the current talk is that the Warriors might be booted from the NRL because of strict border restriction measures imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The NRL is mulling a restart, with the decision expected in about two weeks. The league is targeting a resumption in late May or early June.

History provides an example of returning too soon. Social distancing measures invoked during the three-year influenza epidemic that broke out in 1918 showed that as soon as social distancing measures were relaxed, a second wave of influenza made an appearance.

Trying to resume the NRL minus the Warriors would have an impact on the other clubs. One easily imaginable scenario is that without New Zealand, an easy fixture for much of the NRL, some of the other clubs might not have the luxury of a soft fixture to help their cause in finishing in the top eight.

Warriors’ chief executive Cameron George is of the opinion that his club would indeed be playing if the NRL resumes.

“I’m optimistic things are starting to take shape over here and go in the right direction,” he said.

This is the sort of optimism we have encountered in many realms where financial considerations are never far out of mind, but with even medical experts having a difficult task in predicting the course of the global pandemic; it is hard to imagine relying on the opinion of a rugby official.

“I’m hearing a lot of different things that the Government may start relaxing (the lockdown) in the next couple of weeks,” George said in a statement, but the view of the NRL is that it is desperate to get back underway as soon as possible.

Making decisions from a perspective of desperation seldom results in good choices.

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National Rugby League Suspends Competition Indefinitely https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/national-rugby-league-suspends-competition-indefinitely/ Mon, 23 Mar 2020 05:29:33 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=873 Hours ago, the NRL announced it is suspending play indefinitely and the New Zealand Warriors’ CEO Cameron George is doing everything in his power to get his players out of Australia and back to New Zealand. The stoppage by the NRL seemed the right thing, even though, to some, it was the last remaining vestige … Keep Reading "National Rugby League Suspends Competition Indefinitely"

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Hours ago, the NRL announced it is suspending play indefinitely and the New Zealand Warriors’ CEO Cameron George is doing everything in his power to get his players out of Australia and back to New Zealand.

The stoppage by the NRL seemed the right thing, even though, to some, it was the last remaining vestige of some sort of sense of normalcy in times that are anything but normal.

Australian Rugby League Commissioner Peter V’landys announced the decision Monday evening and while he described the decision to suspend play as catastrophic, it is important to remember that the entire world is currently enmeshed in what could rightly be described as a catastrophe.

Warriors’ CEO George has told the media, “My focus as it has been when this all started 10 days ago has been about the players and their families. We’ll look to get the players home ASAP, to be back with their loved ones.”

The New Zealand government had put travel restrictions in place that would have prevented the Warriors from returning from Australia.

The NRL had already taken the step of moving the Warriors’ game with Canberra to Gold Coast. The club had played its opening game to the Telstra 2020 NRL Premiership competition in Newcastle.

The Warriors’ Round 3 game was to have been with Manly in Sydney. The club’s first home game was to have been with Wests in Auckland.

All the Warriors’ players and staff will have to spend 14 days in isolation when they return, but with Australian states going into lockdown, the NRL had zero choice over whether to keep playing.

Speculation is rife over the future of the NRL at the moment. There have been suggestions that when play resumes, a conference system might be enacted to alleviate the necessity for interstate, and in the case of the Warriors, international travel.

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Major Rugby Upheaval Affects Super League and NRL https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/major-rugby-upheaval-affects-super-league-and-nrl/ Mon, 16 Mar 2020 05:08:48 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=870 Super League has tapped the brakes on the current season, as Great Britain and Europe have now become a primary danger zone for the coronavirus. They have shut down until sometime in April, which has affected a couple of notable southern hemisphere natives, Sonny Bill Williams and Israel Folau. We may have missed it, but … Keep Reading "Major Rugby Upheaval Affects Super League and NRL"

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Super League has tapped the brakes on the current season, as Great Britain and Europe have now become a primary danger zone for the coronavirus.

They have shut down until sometime in April, which has affected a couple of notable southern hemisphere natives, Sonny Bill Williams and Israel Folau.

We may have missed it, but so far as we can tell, Folau has not taken to Twitter with anything along the lines of, “See, I warned you.”

His phone might be in quarantine.

Williams on the other hand, was unequivocally supportive of the Super League decision to suspend play.

Recent reports inform that four players from Williams’ Toronto Wolfpack club reported symptoms that mildly mimicked those of the coronavirus.

Williams reports that he and his family are fine.

Super League went ahead last weekend and was one of the few sports in Britain to carry on, but Williams was quick to voice support, tweeting, “God willing the authorities lead by example and put the fans/staff and player’s health first.”

The NRL carried on with business and played the opening round of the Telstra 2020 NRL Premiership competition, but the Warriors are reportedly thinking of abandoning the NRL season after their Round 2 game with Canberra.

We did not see a development of that sort coming.

It seems hard to imagine that one club could call a halt without the blessing of the league, but this is not the business as usual situation we normally encounter.

The game between Warriors and Raiders has been moved to Gold Coast. The NRL’s current plan is for games to go on as planned, but without spectators in attendance.

Melbourne Storm captain Cameron Smith favours shutting the NRL down.

“This thing is bigger than rugby league,” Smith said.

Of course, businesses such as the NRL, Super League, Super Rugby and others have to weigh the economic against the human risks, but many players feel, as does Smith, that the risks to players and their families supersedes the monetary consequences.

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Super League Clubs Threaten to Sue Catalans for Signing Folau https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/super-league-clubs-threaten-to-sue-catalans-for-signing-folau/ Sat, 14 Mar 2020 02:12:59 +0000 https://www.freebetsbonus.co.nz/blog/?p=862 It would appear, judging from the amount of unfriendly fire being drawn by Israel Folau, that the world is made up entirely of drunks, homosexuals and adulterers. The storm surrounding Folau continues unabated, as Super League clubs are revolting over Folau’s recent signing with Catalans Dragons. Catalans were caught off guard by the vehemence of … Keep Reading "Super League Clubs Threaten to Sue Catalans for Signing Folau"

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It would appear, judging from the amount of unfriendly fire being drawn by Israel Folau, that the world is made up entirely of drunks, homosexuals and adulterers.

The storm surrounding Folau continues unabated, as Super League clubs are revolting over Folau’s recent signing with Catalans Dragons.

Catalans were caught off guard by the vehemence of the objections, calling the hysteria (our word) a “chorus of condemnation.”

Aye, those who preach inclusivity would love to be judge and jury over who is worthy of inclusion.

Hull KR owner Neil Hugdell is actually pondering a course of legal action to prevent Folau’s playing in the Super League.

Hugdell said, “I reserve my position to take proceedings v Catalans Dragons,” he said in an email obtained by the BBC.

Hugdell concern is that sponsors would pull away from backing Super League because of the baggage of controversy Folau carries with him everywhere he goes.

We have seen beer ads connected to sports, but none of the other lifestyle choices intent on punishing Folau seem to be in direct sponsorship relations with any sports, so far as we can determine.

How long before some Islamic or Arabic group decides that Folau’s first name offends?

To outline his case, Hugdell said, “For example, if title sponsor withdraws, or external investment is not secured, or quantifiable reputational damage is caused to the brand of Super League and its members.”

Hugdell said he has the backing of other Super League clubs.

The main ruffling of feathers, it would seem, is the fact that Catalans did not seek the blessing of the other Super League clubs, a group Hugdell implied as “Nearly all,” of the league.

Folau did not play the opening round of Super League over the past weekend, but he could be on the ground for round two, although it would seem that it would be accompanied by much wailing, gnashing of teeth and rending of garments.

Might we say torn lawsuits?

Catalans might have to issue Folau a kit with a target on the back in lieu of a number.

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