Category: 6. Sports

Told through the voices of those who lived it – legends like David Kirk, Buck Shelford, John Kirwan, and Grant Fox – By the Balls is more than a sports story. It’s a raw, personal account of a turbulent era when rugby collided head-on with politics, and where teammates were divided by principle, protest, and national expectation.

From the controversial 1986 Cavaliers tour to the groundbreaking victory in the inaugural 1987 Rugby World Cup against arch rivals France, the documentary uncovers the personal toll of the era’s intense political climate — from tensions on the field and public backlash off it, to deep divisions within the All Blacks camp. Kirk’s reflections on being ostracised by some teammates and Shelford’s unflinching honesty about his decision to tour South Africa offer rare insight into the emotional weight behind the game.

Loaded with unforgettable moments—from gritty match footage to candid interviews – the film paints a vivid portrait of a time when the future of New Zealand rugby, and its moral compass, hung in the balance.

By the Balls is essential viewing – not just for rugby fans, but for anyone interested in how sport can challenge, fracture, and ultimately help heal a nation.

Now streaming on NZR+. Don’t miss it.

Jai is a seasoned journalist with more than two decades of experience across India and the UAE, specialising in sports reporting. Throughout his distinguished career, he has had the privilege of covering some of the biggest names and events in sports, including cricket, tennis, Formula 1 and golf.

A former first-division cricket league captain himself, he brings not only a deep understanding of the game but also a cricketer’s discipline to his work. His unique blend of athletic insight and journalistic expertise gives him a wide-ranging perspective that enriches his storytelling, making his coverage both detailed and engaging.

Driven by an unrelenting passion for sports, he continues to craft compelling narratives that resonate with readers. As the day winds down for most, he begins his work, ensuring that the most captivating stories make it to the print edition in time for readers to receive them bright and early the next morning.

Lyon currently has a total of 556 Test wickets to his name, which is third on the list for Australian bowlers behind fellow spinner Shane Warne (708) and former quick Glenn McGrath (563).

With two Tests remaining in the West Indies this month and the visit from England later this year still to come for the Aussies in 2025, there’s every chance Lyon overtakes McGrath quickly and closes in on Warne’s magical mark in the coming months.

But Lyon is not focused on potentially becoming Australia’s greatest wicket taker and wants to focus on winning games of Test cricket for his side.

“Warney’s a long way away,” Lyon said.

“And in my eyes, he’s the greatest to ever play the game. I’m just lucky to be part of a pretty special cricket team at the moment. We’re on our way to becoming a great cricket team, we not there (yet) as I always say. But to be part of this bowling attack and play my role is special. That’s the reason why I keep playing.”

Asia/East Asia-Pacific

Regional Final: October 1 to October 17Qualification Spots Available: 3Teams: Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Nepal, Oman, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Samoa, UAE

The event with perhaps the most intrigue, budding qualifiers across two regions will combine in a nine-team Asia/East Asia-Pacific tournament, with three tournament available.

Almost 16,000 kilometres stretch between Eastern-most Samoa and Western-most Kuwait at the tournament, and the unknowns of opposition and styles of play make this Qualifier arguably the most open.

By virtue of their 2024 T20 World Cup participation, Nepal, Oman and Papua New Guinea were automatic entrants for the hybrid Qualifier, with the other six coming from two Sub-Regional events across each region.

Over in East Asia-Pacific, Samoa shocked the field to win their spot through Sub-Regional Qualifier A, beating out Cook Islands, Vanuatu and Fiji on home soil in Apia.

Caleb Jasmat’s side qualified in a final-over thriller on the last day of the competition, beating Vanuatu in a tense defence of 145, breaking the hearts of Cook Islands players watching on having been overtaken by the Samoan victory.

The Western Force thanks departing players Ryan Coxon, Tom Horton, Atu Moli, Reesjan Pasitoa, Matt Proctor and Sio Tomkinson for their service to the Club.

The departure of the sextet comes after Saturday’s tour game against the British and Irish Lions following the conclusion of the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific season.

The Club acknowledges their contributions and service, wishing them all well for the future. They are forever Force.

Coxon, 27, spent two seasons with the Force, joining the Club in the 2024 season on an injury cover contract. The affable loosehead prop played 19 Super Rugby games for the Force.

Horton joined the Force prior to the 2023 season and started every game in the 2024 season. The tough 28-year-old hooker played 34 Super Rugby games for the Force across three campaigns.

Former All Blacks front-rower Moli, 30, spent two years at the Force, overcoming a significant hip injury in his first season to play 10 games off the bench in the 2025 Super Rugby season.

Homegrown utility back Pasitoa joined the Force in 2022 after a stint with the ACT Brumbies. He played 20 Super Rugby games for the Force, having missed the 2023 and 2024 seasons due to significant injuries before making a return in 2025. The Club have released him early at his request in order to play NPC in New Zealand.

One-cap All Blacks midfielder Proctor joined the Force prior to the 2025 Super Rugby season but missed the whole campaign with a shoulder injury, before running out in Force blue for the first time in Saturday’s Lions game.

Tomkinson also joined the Force prior to the 2025 Super Rugby season. The 29-year-old New Zealand-born midfielder played 10 games, all starts, and scored one try.

#ForeverForce

By Weston Blasi

Portuguese star’s deal with Saudi club Al Nassr is set to be the most lucrative sports contract ever in average annual value

Cristiano Ronaldo has signed a record-setting new deal with Saudi Arabian football club Al Nassr for what, at almost $700 million over just two years, amounts to the highest average annual salary for a player contract in sports history. And if the money weren’t sweet enough, the lucrative contract comes with an array of nonsalary compensation and perks.

According to reporting by the widely followed Italian sportswriter Fabrizio Romano and the Sun, Ronaldo will earn approximately $244.4 million per year in salary, plus a bevy of additional compensation including $33.6 million as a signing bonus; a 15% equity stake in the Riyadh club, to which Ronaldo jumped from Manchester United (MANU) (UK:0Z1Q) in 2023; a $5.5 million bonus if he leads the Saudi Pro League in goals; $5.5 million in private-jet credits; $82.4 million in sponsorship pacts with Saudi Arabian businesses; and the provision of 16 full-time personal staff members.

Personal staff as perk

Those 16 employees are said to include three drivers, four housekeepers, two chefs, three gardeners and four security guards.

Another bonus for Ronaldo: that there is no income tax in Saudi Arabia.

“He’s probably getting paid as much as the entire league is generating in revenue,” Victor Matheson, an economics professor at the College of the Holy Cross who specializes in sports, told MarketWatch.

Ronaldo, 40, widely ranked among the best footballers of his generation, is arguably the highest-profile player to join the Saudi league. The SPL has in recent years sought to lure big-name players from top European leagues with eye-popping contracts and extensive perks.

“A new chapter begins. Same passion, same dream. Let’s make history together,” Ronaldo said in an Instagram post, alongside a picture showing him holding up a jersey reading “Ronaldo 2027.” The five-time Ballon d’Or winner, born on the Portuguese island Madeira, came to fame as a forward with Sporting Lisbon; Manchester United, where he had two stints; and Real Madrid, where he played nine seasons.

Shades of Beckham

Perks like those reportedly afforded Ronaldo are headline grabbers, but he is not the first player to receive atypical contract considerations.

“The closest thing we have seen to this is probably David Beckham’s deal with LA Galaxy in MLS [2007],” the sports economist Matheson said. “When he was signed, he was making more personally than any other team, and making as much as the bottom eight teams combined in payroll with just his salary. And part of that deal included rights to have his own franchise in the future, which turned into Inter Miami.”

Beckham’s deal back in 2007 included a clause that would allow him to purchase the rights to an MLS team at a later date for a set fee of $25 million, with some stipulations, per the Athletic.

Matheson added that the Beckham deal and its perks “worked out well for the MLS,” which has seen a revenue boom and further expansion in the years that followed.

Another athlete who received an unusual contract add-on was Lionel Messi, Ronaldo’s longtime archrival in the top echelon of Spain’s La Liga. He now plays with Inter Miami.

When Messi signed with the Miami club in 2023, the deal contained unique clauses that compensated him outside the bounds of a traditional salary. Messi negotiated revenue-sharing agreements with MLS kit maker Adidas (XE:ADS) (ADDYY) and MLS TV partner Apple (AAPL). As part of his contract, Messi earns a cut of all revenue from Apple TV’s MLS Season Pass streaming service, according to the sports-business publication Sportico.

Contracts that feature compensation beyond salary are not permitted in major U.S. sports leagues including the NFL and the NBA, however, because they would circumvent salary-cap rules.

Outside sports, high-profile business leaders have historically been offered perks and nontraditional compensation, too.

For example, Meta (META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg and the company’s then-chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, were reported to have spent more than $6 million of company money on private jets in 2022.

Salesforce (CRM) CEO Mark Benioff was eligible for as much as $3 million in personal security expenses, plus $1.6 million in private-jet costs, in that company’s 2024 fiscal year, according to a proxy statement.

The latter is a popular perk, as S&P 500 SPX component companies spent $65 million on private-jet travel for executives in 2022. That was a 50% increase from 2019.

Some executives continue to enjoy costly perks even after stepping down. Former Morgan Stanley (MS) CEO James Gorman, for example, has reportedly been granted access to a company car and driver, as well as $400,000 a year in compensation, in his new “nonemployee adviser” role.

-Weston Blasi

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  06-30-25 1837ET
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