Chiefs vs Blues

The Chiefs narrowly scraped to a win over the Blues by one point at Hamilton’s FMG stadium in a nail-biting match for everyone. It was an anxious watch for fans of both teams as the points climbed up the board, but in the end, the Chiefs managed to snatch the victory. This was a game partnered with Marvel comics, so we saw the Chiefs decked out in Black Panther gear while the Blues repped for Spider-Man.

The Blues had previously lost three of their last four Super Rugby Pacific games, while the Chiefs had won a whopping eighteen of their last twenty. Several tries throughout the game came off of penalties on both teams, and as well as this, both the Chiefs and Blues had players sent off the field into the sin bin with yellow cards throughout the match. This game also saw the Chiefs return Damian McKenzie returning from a knee injury that had recently taken him off the pitch, along with Luke Jacobson who was fresh off a broken nose.

The initial points of the game went to the Chiefs, with a try assist from Shaun Stevenson to Daniel Rona, who scored the first try. Whereas, in the last few moments of the game, a missed kick on a sideline conversion by Xavi Taele after Rieko Ioane’s try hit the post, putting away the Blues last chance at taking the win. Prior to the game, a member of the team – Patrick Tuipulotu – had revealed that there had been blunt evaluations of the Blues’ performance recently. So the Chiefs took the win by one point, further extending their lead and keeping them up in the top position in the Super Rugby Pacific Standings.

As of writing this column, the very first round of the 2025 Formula One season has just passed. The season calendar has returned to form with its traditional season opener around Melbourne’s Albert Park. I’d love to say it started with a bang, but I think it would be more appropriate to say that it started with a splash. With five rookies (six if you count our very own, Liam Lawson) and mixed and intense weather conditions, it’s unsurprising that only 14/20 drivers finished the race.

Isack Hadjar of VCARB unfortunately didn’t even start his debut race after sliding off the track and crashing on the formation lap. Helmut Marko, advisor at Red Bull Racing, had some old man ramblings for the media, criticising Hadjar’s distraught reaction to his crash calling it “embarrassing”.

In my opinion, it is completely understandable for Hadjar to have reacted so strongly to this crash. It was his debut race, something he’s been working towards for most of his life, AND he had qualified top of all the rookies. If anyone was in the wrong in this situation, it was the camera people who followed Hadjar all the way back to the paddock, filming him in this incredibly vulnerable state.

However, Hadjar wasn’t completely alone, Anthony Hamilton, father of Hadjar’s F1 hero, Lewis Hamilton, came to Hadjar’s aid. Anthony comforted Hadjar, leading him to privacy from the cameras, reportedly telling him “Keep your head up”. Knowing how much Hadjar looks up to Lewis Hamilton, I can just imagine this would have meant the world to him.

Aside from the personal stories, these were my key take aways from this Grand Prix:

– McLaren have built a Rocketship.

– Never discount Max Verstappen, no matter what car he’s in.

– Carlos Sainz made a good choice going to Williams.

– Maybe the Kimi Antonelli hype is justified.

Australian Grand Prix Round-Up

IS THIS A SPORT?

Is Tickle Fighting a Sport?

Introduced to the wider world by David Farrier, tickle fighting is part endurance competition and part porn subgenre. In this venture, people, usually young athletic men, are restrained and tickled by fellow participants. This is commonly filmed and posted online for spectators to enjoy. Indeed, the deed is hard on the mind and body, requiring a lot of mental fortitude and skill.

But is tickle fighting a sport? In short, no. Not only can competitive endurance tickling not be won, it’s dubious ethical and legal issues remove it from the list.

SPORTS CRUSH OF THE WEEK

Stephen Curry

Stephen Curry, a Golden State Warriors icon, revolutionised basketball with his unmatched shooting skills. A four-time NBA champion and two-time MVP, he holds numerous records, including recently being the first player to surpass 4,000 career three-pointers.

Last week, Curry celebrated his 37th birthday. Sadly, the Warriors lost their 7-game winning streak 105-114 to the Denver Nuggets. But he wasn’t going down without a fight as he shot 6 or 21 overall and 4 for 14 3-pointers in less than 36 minutes, solidifying his relevance and legendary status.