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April 19, 2025 • 13 mins

James McOnie from the The Crowd Goes Wild host joined Piney to discuss Auckland FC's latest win and the ongoing Super Rugby season.

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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Vine
from NEWSTALKSB.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
It might be Easter Sunday, but that doesn't mean a
day of rest for James mconey.

Speaker 3 (00:17):
Hello mate, No, indeed, hello Piney. Yes, it is the
Great Easter egg hunt today. I'm on a bit of
a diet, so it's just actual normal, just size seven eggs.
But they're currently more expensive than the chocolate ones as
far as I'm concerned, so it is very expensive eggaund
either way.

Speaker 2 (00:35):
Yeah, economically challenging, that's for sure. Auckland f C. Auckland
f C continue to hunt the silver where they almost
got the Premier's plate last night. Inevitable? Isn't it that
they'll they'll win the premiers played at home next weekend?

Speaker 3 (00:50):
Yes they should, and yeah they will. But I did
appreciate your tweet, Poney. Can we call it a tweet
on X where I Yes, you said to see it
go media next weekend. Bring a plate, nice pony, very good.

Speaker 2 (01:06):
That would appeal to your niche kind of you know,
perhaps sort of eighties nineties sense of occasion. Yeah, bring
a play, ladies, bring a plate, they used to say.
I know that you can say that anymore.

Speaker 3 (01:16):
You can't. You can't. But hey, look, the thing is
that they're going to win the Premier's plate. I noticed
Steve Carriker and the team. There's a big deal, but
there is the big battle for the toilet seat, which
is the big one for the Grand Final. If people
don't know what I'm talking about, it's a big silver
circle that looks a lot like a toilet seat.

Speaker 2 (01:36):
Yeah, two bits of silver up for grabs. You'd have
to think, wouldn't you that if they win the Premiers played,
that means they finish top. That means if they make
the Grand Final, they host the Grand Final. I just
can't see anybody coming to Auckland and beating them there
in a in a grand final situation, can you.

Speaker 3 (01:53):
Well? Yeah, possibly, thing because they've drawn a lot of
games at home lately, piny and you've called them all
have drawn four five, but maybe even I think they've
had had five out of six draws before this win.
At the weekend. One thing I was going to say
is it's there's three things on the field and two

(02:14):
crucial things off the field. I think they've got right
the Auklam they've seen so on the field I think
they built from the back. Right. They the cheeky signing
of goalkeeper Alex Paulsen from the Phoenix. The captain Haduky
Sarkais played World Cups for Japan, including the last one,
so lots of good defenders and a great holding midfielder

(02:36):
and Louis Vastrada from Belgium. And the other thing they
got is they got a respective coach, a respected coach
and Steve Coriker who's one titles as a player and
a coach. And then getting players. This is the thing,
getting their ex factor from players with unfulfilled potential, because
it's one way to get them to settle, if you like,
for the A League to rebuild their brand and their career.

(02:56):
And we've got that with guys like Francis the Reeve,
cam Howison and even the South Americans who are in there.
You know, mid to late twenties should be peaking up
for one reason or another their career had so they
did that perfectly. And then I mean, I guess you
could say off the field, they made it attractive for kids.
I mean there's a giant slide there, for goodness sake.

(03:18):
Even you'd love that.

Speaker 2 (03:18):
Pinty, Yes, I've watched it from Afar. I haven't quite
had the opportunity or actually the deep seated desire to
go down it because I can only imagine it would
end in disaster.

Speaker 3 (03:31):
Well I'm banned apparently because they see in terms of
gravity and physics there is a chance I'd go through
a hot dog cart and end up on the field.
So I mean that's the issue. That's why they actually
put in that sand pit barrier the other beach to
maybe allow me to go on the slide. But then
also the port. You know, those fans, the ultras, the
ones who provide the atmosphere, you know, packing out the

(03:54):
terraces behind the southern goal. I mean, just having that
kind of support straight away off the bat has been
incredible and that's why it's just been such a great
occasion in the afternoon games at mounts mart yep perfect storm.

Speaker 2 (04:07):
Indeed, so next Sunday likely to be another very very
big crowd as they perhaps look to secure that first
piece of silver where the premier is played before they
go on, as you say, to have a crack at
the toilet seat just before we move from football. Cost
of Barbarusis has been a bit of a bright shining
light in what has been a fairly disappointing season for
Wellington Phoenix.

Speaker 3 (04:29):
Indeed, I mean, I feel like Costa barbarusis we need
to give him as flowers. He's got ten goals again,
which is you know in the A League season, that's
like twenty in the Premier League season, right, it's a
half of the amount of games. So he's gone past
ten goals again. He's what mid to mid thirties and
he's still doing it at such a high level. I

(04:50):
just think he's been underrated a bit too long. And
after that World Cup qualify, Piney, you and I were
in the press conference and I asked him about how
he felt about that last World Cup qualifier against Costa Rica.
He got to remember he got a red card, he'd
been on the field for nine minutes, and he said
that that haunted him every single day. Yeah, thought about

(05:11):
it every single day, And I just thought, well, that
just shows how much the guy cares for starters. But
also look back at that game, we should have started him.
He was pretty much at Pete Costing come back from injury.
I know you've got Chris Wood, but not having someone
like that on the field, I think really costs you

(05:31):
because he is that good and just because he said
most of his career in the A League, don't get
it twisted, and he could have played in Europe and
he did play in Europe. But he's sort of found
his groove down here. And it doesn't mean that you're
lesser than a spiker. He's playing in Scotland or second
division in England, right, that's correct.

Speaker 2 (05:52):
I'm just looking back at the team for that game,
and with no disrespect, yeah, Alex Greeve started that game
ahead of cost of Barbarusis presumably, and look, as I say,
with no disrespect to Alex Greeve, and hindsight's always twenty twenty,
I wonder whether Costa should have started that match.

Speaker 3 (06:09):
Yeah, I mean it's kind of like a Ben Smith scenario.
Steve Hanson said, I regret not picking him at the
twenty nineteen World Cup. I think when you've got someone
like Costa assist goals, he does it all, works tirelessly,
cares so much about the game that it haunts him
every single day since twenty twenty two. That's kind of
player one playing for me.

Speaker 2 (06:30):
Yep. Indeed, and I really really hope and I think
he will get the chance to go to his World
Cup in twenty twenty six. Of course, goalscorer in the
game against New Caledonia which secured their place. Hey you
super rug But there are five games to go for
most of these teams. I think the Reds have got
one extra to play because they had to buy over
the weekend. Chiefs thirty two points, Crusaders thirty two points.

(06:52):
It's the good old fashioned two horse race, is it.

Speaker 3 (06:56):
It's bad baby, the Chiefs. They had such a shoka
last week. But we had to take the listen to
what Steve Hanson said all those years ago, flush the
dunny and move on, probably the wisest thing he's ever said.
And we did that. The Chiefs, Damien McKenzie looking back
to his old self and mornin aadaway just having a

(07:19):
really outstanding game, and Sompeny female like finding some form.
I mean, he has been an all black guy. I
sort of wanted that to happen. But meanwhile the Crusader
has just been so clutch in the wet James O'Connor
now a Canary place, Crusaders region zero.

Speaker 2 (07:38):
Thank I know, I know, even saying the sentence yesterday,
you know James O'Connor has sealed the victory for the Crusaders.
Such an odd sentence to say, it's been quite weat
actually over the weekend, hasn't it for some of these
some of these games. But I mean they are I know,
not anymore, but they are. Rugby is a traditionally a
winter sports. So is rugby league.

Speaker 3 (08:00):
So as football, yeah, I mean, well, the thing about
the wet weather, I think it hurts rugby the most
because you know, the forward stay in their pods, the
rolling mall. You know the Brumbies for example against More
on the PACIFICA. They will stack the life out of
any game. They have the vampires of rugby and so

(08:21):
any wet weather kind of kills rugby. I think at
the professional level. It's still good. Good at club level
because you know there's the classic we're the game and
a bog. You know, it's just a toss of the coin.
But when you're asking people to come and watch and
see something entertaining, I would say get a roof on
as many places as possible. Obviously, Cross she is about

(08:42):
to get theirs. Wellington, We're looking at you, even Hamilton,
come on, now Auckland hopefully eventually somewhere is going to
be a roof. But I think it would actually help
super rugby and protectively because this is the time of
year where it just slows down. I don't think the
rain affects league as much. And obviously as a football
guy yourself, pony, there's plenty of good games in the rain.

(09:05):
Just the ball skids on a bit about.

Speaker 2 (09:06):
That, Yeah, And you ask anybody who plays football and
they'd say, I'd rather, you know, a wet day than
a windy one. I think the wind is the thing
that ruins more sport than anything else. You know, you'd
much rather play with a bit of drizzle than than
a howling gale.

Speaker 3 (09:22):
You know. There was one other thing that I noticed
with your Hurricanes. It was a shame because they had
a drawer over at the Western Force of Perth, but
there was a deliberate knockdown in the last final move
of the game. Is there refree just ignored And I'm
just thinking, well, that's a yellow card and because the
tribe scored a penalty, Try any other minute of the

(09:43):
game except for clearly extra time in Perth and know
if you saw it, but it'll be on CRADO as
well tomorrow night. I will highlight it, piny.

Speaker 2 (09:52):
I look forward to that highlighting of that, of that
absolute miscarriage of justice. But I thought, did you see
did you see Kellum Harken They run away with the
ball and then he for some reason passed it as
he was approaching the try line. Do you think he
I don't know what was he doing?

Speaker 3 (10:09):
Yeah, Callum harckin this is he was going to school.
There was Nick White chasing him, he already had him
for gas. I think Nick White was just doing damage control,
forcing him out wide. He passed an inside balled at
cameroy guard that went to ground and when he finished,
after he passed the ball, he was standing on the trailine.
So this is how crazy it was. That's one of

(10:30):
the most unbelievable bomb tries this that will be on
Crago's wild I feel sorry for Callum Harkin. He just
needs a few I guess workshops and spatial awareness pony
and it should be fine. But yeah, that was a
bit of a shocker.

Speaker 2 (10:45):
It was a strange one, A very strange one. Hey,
Warry is just before you go. I was pleased to
see them win that game last night. Of course, I'm
always pleased when the Warriors when they almost blew it,
didn't they eighteen six ahead. Luke Metcalf was not the
happiest night off the t but he now the one
that mattered at the end.

Speaker 3 (11:01):
Yeah, exactly. It had his James O'Connor moment. I think
the worry is just they look like they boss that
game nicely given the I always look at the Broncos
and think, how do they fit under the salary cap?
There is no way. But we've talked about him before,
Lequa Halasima. Finally we've got to play. He can throw
the ball to and just say do something. You know,
he's just lightning quite powerful, too much zip when he's

(11:23):
around those bigger forwards as well, because he's just a
you know, he's nuggety and sort of squat. And that
was then it was kind of got the Warriors on
the board and you can see them building confidence. So
good old liquor as well. And by the way, I
was just thinking, while we're at it, we should mention
incredible moments Hoskinsatutu's reverse parts against the Crusaders. Oh my goodness,

(11:49):
go and watch it if you haven't seen it. Could
that be his micdrop moment because we know he wants
to leave you see and rugby, but wow, of all
the highlights of the weekend, that stood out well.

Speaker 2 (12:00):
I mean, is that likely to beyond the crowd goes
well tomorrow night?

Speaker 3 (12:04):
Oh? I think it will be, and I think will
be on there. And I'll tell you one other thing.
I'm thinking Boulders that we can talk about that next time,
Ryan Pony. But I think Brady McAllister from Shurley Boys
shout out to Shirley Boys, remember the name. I think
he will be an all black of well and then
the very near.

Speaker 2 (12:22):
Future, well, he's keeping some a sort of Talkiah out
of the starting fifteen. So you've got to be reasonably
decent player to be doing that, don't you.

Speaker 3 (12:30):
Yeah, exactly. He's just made every post to winner since
his moved and it means that Razer can choose another
crusader without him being a crusader.

Speaker 2 (12:37):
So it's win win, absolutely win win, all right, James, wellot,
great to get the chance to chat to you on
Easter Sunday. Back to the egg hunt for you and
if available, let's chat Nick Sunday, at which point we
might be only a couple of hours away from that
premier's plate touching down in Auckland.

Speaker 3 (12:55):
Sounds good. Let's resurrect the chat Nick Sunday, Happy East everyone.

Speaker 2 (12:59):
See you, mate. James mcconey huge part of our Sundays,
including public holidays, long weekends. On any other weekend that
other people might decide they're not available, he always says, yes,
I'll take the call. I'll take the call, and I'm glad.

Speaker 3 (13:14):
That he did.

Speaker 1 (13:15):
For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine. Listen live
to News Talk said B weekends from midday, or follow
the podcast on iHeartRadio.
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