War Pigs/Iron Man/Paranoid/Bliss: My 52nd blog of the year 2024 (AKA New Zealand triumph in the America's Cup (2024 edition) + my very last blog of the year)

Well, kia ora guys & girls (G'day), it is Whetu again here, & welcome to my last blog of the year of 2024, but first, the giants of world sailing of Emirates Team New Zealand have done it! The America's Cup is still ours after our epic win in race 9 against the true challenger of record INEOS Britannia (Who made many gains towards our Taihoro boat there in Barcelona, Spain, but it wasn't to be as they didn't get the result, although there had been a delay for 40 minutes earlier in the day due to a lack of breeze, then in all of a sudden that race 9 of the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup is all good to go, but I wonder the headlines say: BARCELONA MAGIC FOR EMIRATES TEAM NEW ZEALAND or more like: KA PAI: TEAM NEW ZEALAND DEFEND AULD MUG IN STYLE, or especially: THE DEFENDERS STILL REMAIN AC HOLDERS AFTER BRILLIANT RACE 9, or more likely: TNZ RULE ON THE WATERS OF BARCELONA AGAINST GREAT BRITAIN, or more appropriately: SWEET AS BRO: ETNZ CAPTURE AMERICA'S CUP GLORY ONCE AGAIN IN SPAIN ("What a disappointing end for INEOS Britannia (And what a nice way to finish for Emirates Team New Zealand to end an America's Cup campaign like this), what a race for our viewers right around the world, it's all happening" As retired cricket commentator as of today of ex-Aussie cricketer Bill Lawry would always say) in a heavyweight sailing contest for the ages with Team New Zealand made it onto the record books as we became the first foreign syndicate during modern times to win the Auld Mug 3 consecutive times (And it's 1,312 days between Team New Zealand's rentention of the Auld Mug on home waters in Auckland, New Zealand which was during St Patrick's Day on the March 17th 2021, until then in which Emirates Team New Zealand (The most successful America's Cup team in recent history in which our reign as the master of high-speed yachting stays intact as Britain's long, long wait goes on (And talk about the tension, the buzz, the drama, the atmosphere! "As they brought in the razzle dazzle (Yes boy), me oh my, boomfa!" As former All Black Justin Marshall (Who used to play for Southland, Canterbury, the Crusaders, Leeds Tykes, Ospreys, Montpellier & Saracens throughout his rugby career, but he currently works as a rugby commentator for New Zealand pay TV broadcaster Sky) would always say) who made history to complete the historic first ever threepeat on foreign waters in Barcelona during the modern era of AC racing for which I was stoked about the result, unlike our failed attempt that we had in 2003 in which we lost the Auld Mug in the hands of the Swiss syndicate Alinghi in Auckland) after we won it twice (In both San Diego 1995 (The America's Cup, is now New Zealand's cup!) & Bermuda in 2017 (Once again, the America's Cup is...New Zealand's cup!), then defended it twice (In Auckland not once but twice in 2000 (The America's Cup, is still, New Zealand's Cup!), then 2021 (The America's Cup, remains New Zealand's cup!), so let's recap the live updates provided to Stuff.co.nz (For which I have not been doing live updates of the America's Cup since 2021):

1:47 AM: Race 9 is live! The winds have picked up enough for racing to resume. There are shifting winds from one side of the course to the other.

1:50 AM: We're into the duel for the start line and Team NZ are leading Britannia towards the boundary edge. The Brits come across them to block their path and are using their circling tactic again, trying to tangle up the Kiwis. Here they come (This is where the fun begins), approaching the line (Just seconds away until the start, stand by), and the race is underway (And away we go! The America's Cup is on the line here on the waters of Barcelona. Let the party begin! Brace yourself ladies & gentlemen, it is showtime!). It's close in the start.

1:51 AM: Team NZ seem happy enough despite appearing to lose that start to the Brits. The Kiwis have the slenderest of leads for the first cross between the boats, but it's changed again so Britannia are in front. Nothing in it, with six legs due in this race.

1:53 AM: The two boats are heading towards the far side of the course from the start, where there were lighter winds, and the turn around the first mark will be interesting. Team NZ do have the lead after shifting towards the right.

1:56 AM: Team NZ hit the first gate almost 200m ahead and have the clear advantage in the first of six legs. Britannia are 19sec back but hit greater speeds in turning the mark. The Kiwis were more than 35 knots, the Brits touching 40, but it's Team NZ in control.

1:58 AM: The flatter waters appear to favour Team NZ and in the light air, too. Britannia can see the Kiwis in their sights, albeit trailing by more than 300m through the second leg.

2:00 AM: Team NZ pass the 2nd gate and are in a position where faultless sailing will surely retain the Cup. Britannia have fallen back, by 22sec, but they looked sharp for the start of leg three. Can they catch the Kiwis? We don't see much overtaking in match racing.

2:03 AM: The two boats are split across the course and Britannia divert to switch over to Team NZ's position on the left-hand side. The Brits are gaining on them (They're just punishing Emirates Team New Zealand right there, they've dug in the trenches). The deficit has narrowed massively! Team NZ will have to work to defend their lead. You can hear Sir Ben Ainslie telling his crew, "come on, let's go".

2:05 AM: Wow, this gap has closed up. The Brits can see the helmets of the Team NZ crew, the difference down to about 20m. That's so tight (Now, straight out drag race, can you answer this Kiwi charge?!). They approach the third gate and the Kiwis only lead by... well, they don't. It's split of 0sec (We're through the halfway point, & it is even Stevens at the moment).

2:07 AM: Britannia coach Rob Wilson says they got a route back in to catch Team NZ and the conditions have been tricky because of the building breeze, as well as the shifts around the course. 

The Kiwis have restored a greater lead and have made gains in taking their path down the right-hand side of the course for leg four.

2:10 AM: Team NZ have showed through the match race that they possess greater speed in the second half of races.

The Kiwis have brushed the water in a shaky manoeuvre around gate four and have extended their lead to more than 100m.

Kiwi coach Ray Davies says the nerves are "not bad" and the Brits are not letting them get away easily. He believes they will be okay in the race that might decide the America's Cup (Well, this could be the difference between winning the Auld Mug, or nothing).

2:12 AM: Britannia won't go away. We're into the penultimate leg and Team NZ are still ahead despite the Brits pursuing. This is as close as they've been in the match.

2:14 AM: This is the last mark. Team NZ are executing their last turn of the race and are through the gate with a lead of 17sec for the final downwind leg. Britannia will need the Kiwis to blunder to keep their hopes alive. Team NZ have pulled further away to lead by more than 300m (Keep a passionate heart and a cool head).

2:16 AM: Team NZ win the America's Cup again! (And it's going Kiwi, in 2024! For the 3rd time in a row! And for the 5th time ever! Emirates Team New Zealand, is still, champion, of the America's Cup!) They doubled their lead down the final leg and have retained the Auld Mug, beating Britannia 7-2 by 37 seconds in race 9 (But it's over! It's over! It's a 5th America's Cup for Emirates Team New Zealand!).

You can hear laughter and cheers from the Kiwi crew as they cross the finish and the party can start (Oh what a race! Haha, we got him. Oh yes!). The Cup is theirs and the sailors are out of the cockpit congratulating one another (The America's Cup, is yet again, New Zealand's Cup! And I've got to stop...Because I've got a lump on my throat).

2:20 AM: Team NZ helmsman Peter Burling says it's still just sinking in and that it's an amazing feeling.

Nathan Outteridge, the team's Aussie sailor who wins the Cup for the first time, says it's pretty special and is looking forward to the celebrations tonight.

2:22 AM: Sir Ben Ainslie says Team NZ are the best ever in the America's Cup and pays enormous credit to the Kiwis.

He says he can't thank his team enough for their efforts in Barcelona. 

"The best team won," he said.

Ainslie says they are getting closer each time and seems determined to keep going.

And what do I think of the race? Wow! Unbelievable! How cool is that! Tremendous (Terrific), that is glorious! As we crossed the line to win race 9 (In which the race that I watched was the key highlight for me in the Louis Vuitton Cup 37th America's Cup because not only I was over the moon & getting goosebumps once more just like in 2021 when I watched the race again that I've recorded on TV) & to win the series 7 - 2 in what is by far, my best sporting moment of this year for our country of New Zealand along with the record 10 gold medals that we won at the Summer Games in Paris (While race 9 of this years edition of the Auld Mug would have to be the best America's Cup race that I have ever watched on TV, & it was better than race 10 in 2021 in which Team New Zealand had beaten Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli to retain the Auld Mug on St Paddy's Day (And just after 2:16 am (New Zealand time), on the early hours in the morning of Sunday, October 20th (Saturday, October 19th in Spain), the current day voice of yachting Stephen McIvor told it like it was to a world-wide TV audience: "The threepeat is complete! And Emirates Team New Zealand, win the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup!" But the latest boat Taihoro (For which for me would have to be by far, my fave Emirates Team New Zealand boat of all time along with Pops, out of the 4 winning boats that we previously had such as NZL 32 long ago in 1995, NZL 60 way back in 2000, Aotearoa back in 2017 & Te Rehutai in 2021) was every bit as superior as the famous Te Rehutai that lifted the cup again in Auckland. Back then Jimmy Spithill twice could do nothing about it (So too is Francesco Bruni who was with Spithill in 2021). This time INEOS Britannia faced the same predicament) which was 4 months ago (+ Lydia Ko winning the AIG Women's Open in the UK fresh off from her Paris Summer Games triumph before adding another one in the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G at TPC River's Bend as she blitzed the field by 5 shots to claim her 3rd LPGA Tour championship of this years season for I haven't mentioned it up until that point), & this years triumph of the Auld Mug was better than the ones that we previously won in 1995, 2000, 2017 & 2021, & Peter Burling (The GOAT of modern day sailing & one of my favourite sailors because it used to be Russell Coutts, now it's Burling (Who was able to continue where he left off since his debut AC triumph in 2017 where he took over from Barker (And he has never put a foot wrong since he first burst onto the scene in 2017 in Bermuda. Oh hell yes! How good! How about that), before defending it for the 2nd time in 2021 & now he's done it & his syndicate for his unprecedented 3 in a row in which he has never experienced failure before), oh my word! He'll be a hero of our country that cements New Zealand's iconic sporting folklore (And how appropriate about that the best team had won indeed quite frankly, & that's what's happened throughout a Kiwi point of view, but the quality of racing on the waters of Barcelona reminds us of racing SWers straight out of Takapuna in Auckland as said by Burling during a post-race interview after one of our races, & what a beauty it was, but the partying has just started throughout the country about our heroes who triumphed on the water in Spain, while they'll be celebrations across in key New Zealand cities such as Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington, Dunedin, Hamilton & Tauranga (And my last thoughts before I sign off to wrap things up in the AC department? Emirates Team New Zealand have made history again, & man was it so sweet once more).

And in rugby news in the NPC competition here in New Zealand such as the top of the table Wellington (Who haven't won since 2022 (A year after Waikato had won the title in 2021 & a year before Taranaki became champions of the NPC last year) will host Bay of Plenty (Who'll appear in their debut full NPC final where they'll look to win the title after 48 years where they last did it in 1976 (That was the year that the NPC competition began, but there was no final back then until it was introduced long ago in 1992) at Sky Stadium in Wellington for the final (And it has been 11 years since Welly had last hosted a full NPC final back in 2013 where Wellington got defeated in the hands of Canterbury) after both sides recorded victories over Canterbury (BOP) at the Tauranga Domain in Tauranga, & Waikato (Wellington) at Sky Stadium in the Wellington (Including a yellow card from Wellington second-five of Riley Higgins that nearly derailed their aspirations of reaching the final) province in their respective semifinal games on Saturday, October 19th (Same day that the Auld Mug had gone in the way of Team NZ for the 3rd straight time in Barcelona, Spain, as well as for our 5th overall).

And onto the cricket stuff as the Black Caps (Who had Rachin Ravindra (Who is the next big thing in New Zealand cricket) scoring a century as he posted 134 in the 1st innings in which he was awarded standout player of the game) have won as they beat India (Who were bowled out for 46 runs in the 1st innings) by 8 wickets in the first test in Bengaluru to go 1 - 0 up in the series as well as ending a 36 year drought which goes a long way back to 1988 when we won in Mumbai in which the team was captained by John 'Wrighty' Wright, but continuing onto much better news as the White Ferns finally becoming champions of the world in the women's T20 format as well as our first major limited overs women's cricket tournament win since 2000 & our first for the country in cricket's shortest format, either men or women following our epic victory in the final in Dubai in the UAE against the tournament favourites South Africa (Who had beaten the defending champions at the time of Australia in the semi before we beat the West Indies in the other semifinal to reach our historic first ever final of the women's T20 World Cup) by 32 runs (Including Amelia 'Mellie' Kerr who had a great tournament she is having as she was the standout player of the final as well as the tournament (And what a player, what a women's T20 World Cup she's having), in a farewell game for our captain Sophie Devine (Who was part when New Zealand last played in the women's T20 World Cup final in 2010 along with Suzie Bates in which we didn't get the result in the end against Australia, & what a tournament that was, how good's that, how good is that!) as she bowed out in style in her final swansong to cap off a perfect sporting weekend here in our country of New Zealand on the 19th to 20th of October such as the America's Cup success in which Emirates Team New Zealand finally successfully complete a hat trick of America's Cup series wins (And that's the first time ever during modern times of the Auld Mug) along with the Black Caps ending a 36 year wait of beating India in India & the White Ferns (Who went into the tournament off the back of 10 straight defeats (Well, that's something I never heard of before) becoming the women's world champions in the T20 format for the first time against South Africa in the final that took place in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

And finally in motor racing news in the F1 department such as Monaco's Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari, secures the win in the United States Grand Prix at COTA in Austin, Texas as the 3 time defending world champion Max Verstappen's winless streak extends to 8 (His last win came in Spain this year, before the tide was turned as George Russell in the Mercedes-AMG won in Austria after both Norris & Verstappen (Who went downhill since after his win at the Spanish Grand Prix) collided during the Grand Prix as they both got together, then Russell's teammate Sir Lewis Hamilton at his home Grand Prix in Britain which was an ever popular victory for the multiple world champion, followed by Aussie Oscar Piastri driving for McLaren in Hungary for his first career win in F1 which was embroiled with controversy whether Lando Norris should've won the Grand Prix at the Hungaroring Circuit, before Hamilton won in Belgium in the aftermath of his teammate Russell getting stripped of his race win as a result of an underweight car which resulted in a disqualification, then Britain's Lando Norris as he spoiled Max Verstappen's homecoming in the Netherlands in which he surged back into championship contention, then Leclerc in Italy in which they sent the tifosi into a frenzy when Ferrari won at their home race in front of their adoring but passionate home fans cheering them on throughout the course of the Grand Prix, followed by Piastri who won it again in Azerbaijian as his constructor of McLaren that he races for, had taken over from Red Bull as leader of the constructors championship in Formula One for the first time since 2014 (And they have maintained their constructors championship lead since), before Norris won it in the dark on the streets of Singapore in the Singapore GP which was marred by Verstappen getting penalized by the race stewards for his erratic driving, in Daniel Ricciardo's last ever race in F1, & now Leclerc in the United States for which he hasn't won since Italy) which was overshadowed with Kiwi Liam Lawson (Who replaced the departed Aussie Daniel Ricciardo, but they have made security arrangements to safeguard him for the next race in Mexico (Which is Sergio Perez's home race as if he fails to finish strong, he may potentially lose a ride next year) due to the F1 fans becoming hostile towards Lawson (And my message to the fans who bear hatred towards him: "Leave our Kiwi alone") in the RB who finished a creditable but solid 9th to grab both points in the championship in his return to Formula One since last year in Qatar after starting from the rear of the field due to a grid drop, but continuing on to another sport which is football as the new Auckland City FC club get their highly anticipated first win in their A-League debut match with a 2 - 0 shutout victory over Brisbane City FC at Mount Smart Stadium in Auckland.

So that is my 576th blog of the year 2024 (MMXXIV) & my 52nd of this year, viva Ukraine & Palestine (And you have a very happy new year, so best wishes & thank you for all of my support covering my blogs this year, bring on 2025! (And my last thoughts before I wrap this blog up? Until next time it is bye from us).

Wonderwall/Kashmir: My 51st blog of the year 2024

Well, hi everyone & merry Christmas, it is Whet here on my Kiwiavenger blog on my penultimate blog of this year, but first in the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup such as INEOS Britannia has closed the gap on Emirates Team New Zealand who are leading 4 - 2 in the best of 13 first to 7 series, because the Brits are coming, the Brits are coming! And they must've had a change of fortune all over the place in Barcelona in Spain as INEOS Britannia are clawing their way back & are on the comeback trail...they are coming. But chance for New Zealand to regroup after both consecutive defeats inside 2 days as the chance of the biggest upset in America's Cup history is on for the Brits (But what happens if INEOS Britannia win the America's Cup? I would be stunned, absolutely stunned & shocked if they took the Auld Mug to the UK) looking to produce a shock result, game on, (But there has been an update as the Taihoro boat of Team New Zealand dominate the last 2 races (Including race 7 in which we bounced back after both defeats in the hands of the Brits) after falling flat when INEOS were on the board when they won a race before winning another one (In which we committed the errors that we made) including scoring a crucial win on race 8 to be on match point at 6 - 2 (The winning margins for races 7 & 8 are 36 seconds & 55 seconds respectively), therefore our aspirations of retaining yachting's biggest prize, the America's Cup (Which is the oldest competition in international sport) for the 3rd time in a row where no non-American syndicate had ever done that before (In which Emirates Team New Zealand are the most successful syndicate during modern times), is well & truly alive (And my last thoughts before the all-important race takes place in the early hours of October 20th? "There is no tomorrow! Today we crush INEOS Britannia once & for all! Now let's get a move on, we've got an Auld Mug to retain here!").

And news in the rugby department as here are the latest results from the NPC that we have just seen in the quarters:

Wellington 29 - 14 Counties Manukau

Bay of Plenty 19 - 17 Hawke's Bay

Taranaki 14 - 15 Waikato

Tasman 14 - 62 Canterbury

And here are the sides who are playing in the semi of this years Bunnings NPC competition:

Bay of Plenty Vs Canterbury

& Wellington Vs Waikato

And news straight out of Bathurst as Brodie Kostecki (The defending series champion who is heading to DJR next year had to overcome an illness to win the pinnacle event of the Supercars Championship) & his co-driver Todd Hazelwood (Who were pole-sitters a day before the biggest race of the year in Australia took place) has taken out the great race at the annual Bathurst 1000 touring car race at the Mount Panorama Street Circuit in Bathurst by holding off a pair of Red Bull Ampol Racing Chevrolets of Broc Feeney & his co-driver as well as team boss of Jamie Whincup who finished 2nd & championship leader Will Brown & his-co driver Scott Pye who rounded out the podium during that epic but gruelling 161 laps.

And finally the latest on the war in the Middle East as the leader of Hamas has been slain by Israeli forces where his remains had contained a bargaining chip, but Hamas has announced that they wouldn't free those hostages immediately that are still being kept in captivity, unless that sickening war ends & if Israel pulls out of Gaza by withdrawing their troops out of the country (And my message to the people of Israel for their war aggression towards the Middle East that it's still going is: "What the hell is wrong with you! Get over it.").

So that is my 575th blog of the year 2024 (MMXXIV) & my 51st of this year, viva Ukraine & Palestine.

Don't Look Back In Anger/Champagne Supernova/Roll With It: My 50th blog of the year 2024 (AKA my last blog prior to Christmas this year)

Well, hi everybody, this is Whet here on my Kiwiavenger blog that I'm always tuning into, but first, a year has been passed since the Springboks (Who currently have an 100%, unblemished record every time they appear in a final of rugby's global showpiece event undefeated with 4 wins out of 4, therefore becoming the most successful rugby playing nation in the world with a record 4 Rugby World Cups to their name (They first did it in 1995, then 2007, as well as 2019 in which they returned to power, & last year where they remained in power when the ref blew the final whistle of a rugby game which is like a chequered flag being waved at a motor racing event to signal the end of the race (But a yellow card in football & rugby is like a black & white flag in motor racing which indicates an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty whether it's timed, drive through or stop & go, while a red card is like a black flag in motor racing which signals a driver getting disqualified during the race), & they just become the 2nd side to defend the William Webb Ellis cup after New Zealand in 2015 (And their 3 main tactics of winning games for the Boks include the rolling maul (Which is their number 1 main skill employed in the game) as well as the kicking game, especially in the box kicking aerial bombardment department & the utilization of the bomb/nuke squad that close out matches, even players who are in the starting lineup begin to fall out in favour by bringing on a bench player early in the match) became champions of the world in the sport of rugby, again...in the aftermath of a victory by a single point (In which South Africa (Who last year became one of the oldest & most experienced squads to have ever won a Rugby World Cup, including players like Eben Etzebeth (Who has now taken over from Vic Matfield as the most capped Springbok player of all time) for example) became the first side to win all of their knockout games, by 1 point or less (First it was hosts at the time of France in the quarters, then England in the semis & the All Blacks in the final) against the AB's last year whose quest of regaining the Rugby World Cup had been derailed by a red card (And it wasn't a straight red, but it was a card under review being sent by the TMO bunker) by the captain at the time of Sam Cane for a high contact which was above the sternum on South African centre Jesse Kriel therefore costing our story dubbed as the scars of '23 (And there were 3 yellow cards had been handed out during the final against one All Black of Shannon Frizell for an illegal croc roll on Bongi Mbonambi as he deliberately damaged one of the Springbok hookers knees therefore injuring him in the process, then both Springboks of captain Siya Kolisi & Cheslin Kolbe respectively for dangerous high tackles on opposition players), compared to & inspired by the events of 1995 where South Africa won against New Zealand as the South Africans thwarted us of our aspirations of regaining the RWC due to our frontline players like the late Jonah Lomu (Who was rugby's biggest star during his generation from the mid 90s to the early noughties (2000s) period before Frenchman Antoine Dupont took over from him since the 2020s decade during our generation), Jeff Wilson & Josh Kronfeld had been dealt with food poisoning with captain at the time of Sean Fitzpatrick (Affectually known as Fitzy), & the Brooke brothers of both Robin (AKA Rob) & Zinzan (Zinny) being the notable exceptions, which united the host country under their leadership of the late great Nelson Mandela who was president of South Africa at the time (That's according to the blogs that I previously did) following Joel Stransky's drop goal at extra time, won them the final by allowing Francois Pienaar (One of 3 Springbok skippers to lift the famous William Webb Ellis trophy along with John Smit in 2007 then Kolisi not once but twice in both 2019 & last year) to collect the trophy from his great mate Mandela (Who was released from a prison in Robben Island way, way back in 1990, 4 years before becoming president of South Africa for which he served for 5 years until 1999 where Thabo Mbeki took over from him) in one of South Africa's most iconic sporting moments, then in late September that they've won the Rugby Championship this year for the first time since 2019 as they defeated Argentina in the decider during the last round of the Southern Hemisphere championship tournament at Nelspruit as they provided a bit of Mbombela magic, but there has been an update in the women's rugby as the Black Ferns led by Ruahei Demant & Kennedy Tukuafu got back to winning ways by getting the job done for their first victory against France at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada during the last round of WXV1 since 2022 during the delayed 2021 Women's Rugby World Cup in the semi, therefore snapping a 3 game losing streak which stretches back from the pre-WXV 1 test against England at Allianz Stadium London, then Ireland (Who is drawn in Pool C along with the Black Ferns in next year's Women's Rugby World Cup tournament, but if we lose to the Irish, it'll be the Red Roses England in the semi when the tournament is expanded to 16 teams) in the opening WXV 1 test in Vancouver in a historic upset of the ages & the England Red Roses (Dubbed as the Springboks of women's rugby who would later gone on to retain the prestigious WXV 1 championship following a comeback win against the defending Pac 4 champions Canada in the decider, & cement their status as the favourites to lift next year's Women's Rugby World Cup trophy on their home patch) again during the penultimate round of the competition just like in the London women's test.

And I have revealed about me being a relative to Norah who is my first cousin once removed according to the comment that I did to Pops on the 12th of October about my cousin Paige Ahearn's daughter for which I'll still be having the chance to both my first cousin & potentially my bestie of Paige (For which is my most likely person to have a selfie or have lunch or dinner with, along with one of my old besties Cathey) & Norah + my biological aunty Cathey Middelplaats (+ my number 2 bestie) when me & Pops go to the Windy City of Welly in Wellington in January next year (And it'll have to be from Friday to Monday, except the days of having the Graze Out meals every Tuesday to Thursday, but Pops will get the 2025 diary in early December this year & write down the dates that he is arranging for us) for my first holiday with Pops in which I am looking forward to since the infamous trip to the Northland province (Better known as the winter less North for which I'll be going again with both Carole & Pops in possibly 2027, a year after our 2nd Wellington trip in late next year/January 2026 for which I'll be going with Pops, Aunty Tan & Rejean) late last year in December (Just before Aunty Tan & Rejean touched down to our country to stay at our place as well as tiding up our home, even before they left in late January this year for which me & Pops have not seen both of them since, but I was reminiscing about me, Carole & Pops going to an Indian restaurant over in Kerikeri in Northland where I literally enjoyed except for me where my shirt did get curry stains on my sleeve, then in all of a sudden a year later this year that me & Pops went to Burger King to have dinner there where I always had a double whopper with cheese with large fries & a bottle of water because that was our last time me & Pops go out for a meal before Christmas this year) that we went with Carole where we saw Kathryn (Who I have not seen her since May this year when our Ngapo whanau clan turned up at Momiji for dinner including my half bro & Hollie-Rae Mete's half cousin Jans (Who needs to find another career after dealing with persistent back issues whilst doing his fencing job) & Ken & their dogs of Daisy & Yodi as well as the married couple/husband & wife duo of Andy & Kelsey (Who are both in Italy to attend a wedding of Zaki & his wife's daughter of Areje (Sister of Yasser & aunty of Kace) & her Aussie fiance) & their dog of Millie that I always enjoyed literally (+ there was Gail & Richard in due course).

And onto the gaming stuff that I finally pre-ordered a PS5 Pro which is due to come out on the 7th of November this year at EB to go with the PS5 disc drive that I got from the Warehouse for it (And the PS5 Pro didn't feature the disc drive so I wanted to get my hands on a disc drive that's all I'm saying) because not only I traded in my PS4 Pro that I've had for 5 years & my Xbox One S for 3 years that I've also had & I had to use my passport to an employee to show some ID/identification to complete that pre-order, but I have also revealed about my gaming related story that the PS5 version of Gran Turismo 7 (I've got the PS4 version that I used to play, but I still play the PS5 version now that was released in 2022 (Originally 2020 then 1 year later in 2021, but got pushed back to March 2022 due to delays regarding to the COVID pandemic) is by far, my fave video game that I have ever played along with the Xbox 360 version of GTA IV (It was released in 2008 (Originally in 2007, but had to be delayed to a year later) via backwards compatiblity on the Xbox Series X console that I've still got which is my 2nd fave (And I used to play that PS3 version during the early to mid 2010s decade when I once had that console before switiching it to the PS4, but the GTA IV game like I said that Dad said to me is an oldie but goodie) just like Dad whose fave video game that he ever played was the first Tony Hawk's Pro Skater on the original Playstation (I've got Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 (A remaster of the first 2 THPS games that was originally released in both 1999 & 2000 respectively) on both the PS4 & PS5 versions of the game which came out in 2020 (PS4) & a year later in 2021 (PS5), then Rugby League Live 4 on the PS4 which came out in 2017 ranks his number 2 fave that he has ever played.

And finally in America's Cup related news such as our defenders of Emirates Team New Zealand (AKA the All Blacks on water) has taken out the first 2 races of the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup against Ben Ainslie, Dylan Fletcher & co of the British challenger INEOS Britannia (The Louis Vuitton Cup champions who weren't so competitive compared to Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli in 2021, & now we are 4 wins away of our rentention of the Auld Mug for the 3rd time in a row (No foreign syndicate has ever done that before in history) in their first America's Cup involvement for Great Britain since 1964 (In which their boat Sovereign were on the losing side 4 times as they fell short against a heavily favoured American boat called Constellation) there in Barcelona, Spain (Which is a European Football Championship winning country as of today, but there was hostility between locals & tourists in which the locals actually think that the tourists shouldn't belong there for the duration of sport's oldest competition mainly due to political tensions whether they were in favour against hosting a pinnacle sailing event) during day 1, including the first race in which New Zealand had drawn first blood comprehensively in which we managed to outperform Great Britain (Who had some battery supply issues prior to the start) & outnumber them for the entire race, then dominating the 2nd for which I thought was a close one where the Brits became competitive as they made their gains towards us, but in the end, it wasn't good enough to draw level in order to keep up against Peter Burling & Nathan Outteridge's boys in black & red (And there has been an update as we go 4 - 0 ahead of the Brits during the latest race of the Auld Mug).

So that is my 574th blog of the year 2024 (MMXXIV) & my 50th of this year, viva Ukraine & Palestine.

B.Y.O.B./Drain You: My 49th blog of the year 2024

Well, what's up guys & girls, it is Whet on my Kiwiavenger blog but first, it is one year on since that dreadful war began on the 7th of October with Israel invading Gaza which resulted 40,000 casualties (Now 41,000 as of today because of that blatant but malicious, deadly invasion that they're currently having with both shootings & explosions all over the place, but I'm getting fed up about it just like Carole which is potentially shocking) in a sickening genocide massacre type of thing by the Israelis, but they now invading Lebanon against the forces of Hezbollah & Iran therefore pushing the Middle East closer to all-out war...but this could take forever to end this reign of terror bloodshed bloodbath stuff provided by the Israeli president Benjamin Nethanyahu with current US President Biden fully supporting Israel (Which is ruled by a far right government), compared to Carole is fully committed to Palestine along with Pops because of her Middle Eastern background as I saw on her phone when me, Carole & Pops went to Thai Villa on the 4th of October in which Carole has been heartbroken about the current situation in the Middle East as Pops told me on the 7th of October which is sickening, but recently they found that the crack down on antisemitism continues in the United States as it approaches the 1 year anniversary of that terrible conflict in the Middle East by Israeli troops as I saw a report on CNN that there still declaring war on silly, hateful abuse on Israeli people living in the USA as well as those Israeli-Americans including hate, vandalism & physical attacks which does count as a hostile act that shouldn't be accepted or treated according to the Anti-Defamation League (Well, I'm like Carole that she's been upset, but I'm sick about that damn war that Israel is having, not only they're damn incompetent with Pops labelling the Israelis as bullies (I mean Israel, what the hell happened to you! Get real), while more cops are dispatched/sent onto the streets & provide more adequate safeguarding to Jewish centres nationwide throughout America where cases of vile antisemitic rhetoric hate in the US had been risen to 200% (And there are calls for calm in the UK according to the PM Keir Starmer as I saw on the Google news website on the 7th of October that the hatred & hostility between the Jews against the Muslims must end now).

And there was once a motor racing related story about our country of New Zealand used to have a golden generation of racing car drivers in Formula One during the 1960's decade such as the late Chris Amon (A former Ferrari factory driver who was from Bulls in the Manawatu region), the late great Denny Hulme (New Zealand's one & only F1 world champ in 1967, but he passed away due to a cardiac arrest during a Bathurst 1000 race in Australia long ago in 1992) & also the late Bruce McLaren (Founder of the British sports car manufacturer & now global icon, McLaren for which currently leads the constructors championship during the current F1 season ahead of Red Bull), but now we have Liam Lawson (An ex-Formula 2 & Super Formula driver) as our current day Kiwi F1 star who is now a full-time driver racing for Team RB as he was the one who replaced the departing Aussie Daniel Ricciardo to join Japan's Yuki Tsunoda again in the team, then Brendon Hartley (Who is a world champion who started at the bottom as he used to compete in the old Toyota Racing Series, then worked his way up when he was once an F1 driver in 2017-18 when he drove for Toro Rosso in which he was the last Kiwi to compete before Lawson last year) in the WEC (World Endurance Championship), meanwhile both Scott's of Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing driver who is the longest serving tenure driving for the team & is a loyal servant of the team for 22 years after leaving PWR Championship Racing (For which he joined during his rookie season in 2001 as he captured just the one win at the old Nazareth Speedway in the hometown of the famous Andretti racing family of Nazareth, Pennslyvania) which folded because of a lack of sponsorship during the 2002 CART Champ Car season, & is now a huge sailing fan due to the fact that he is a passionate Emirates Team New Zealand supporter) & McLaughlin (A former 3 time title winner in the Supercars Championship who currently races for Team Penske since 2020) + Marcus Armstrong (An former F2 driver just like Lawson is due to race for Meyer-Shank Racing starting from next year) in Indycar then Shane van Gisbergen (Also a former 3 time Supercars Champion just like his fellow countryman Scott McLaughlin) in NASCAR, as well as both Nick Cassidy & Mitch Evans in Formula E (FE), & last but not least, the 5 Kiwis still lining up in this year's Supercars Championship grid such as Jaxon Evans (Who is currently a Porsche backed factory driver), Andre Heimgartner, Matt Payne (Ex-Toyota Racing Series champion in 2021 which was impacted by the global COVID pandemic), Richie Stanaway (Who is due to depart at the end of this season) & Ryan Wood (The one who drives for Walkinshaw Andretti United for which they'll be switching to Toyota from Ford starting from the 2026 season with the GR Supra model) with this year's edition of the great race which is the Bathurst 1000 sponsored by Repco coming up on the weekend of the 10th to the 13th of October (And this year's Bathurst 1000 is the first in history not to feature our own Kiwi Shane van Gisbergen (Who won last year alongside Richie Stanaway) as he is currently in the United States competing in NASCAR).

And the latest in the LV Cup final as the British syndicate of INEOS Britannia are closing in of challenging the All Blacks on the water of Emirates Team New Zealand for the ultimate prize of world sailing, the America's Cup as they are one win away from winning the Louis Vuitton Cup (And that is the equation all according to plan) against the Italian syndicate of Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli (Who had to farewell Jimmy Spithill as he's possibly but potentially calling time on his sailing career as this year's Louis Vuitton Cup campaign is his possible last) in the city of Barcelona, Spain on day 7 according to the comment from Carole at Thai Villa on October 5th, but there has been an update as the Brits are through to the 37th America's Cup during the 11th & decisive race of the Louis Vuitton Cup final as they beat the Italians of securing a place against Team New Zealand in a fight for supremacy of the Auld Mug for which I'll be looking forward to which starts on the 12th of October (In which race 11 of the LV Cup final was the best challenger selection series race that I have ever seen of my entire life), & it is the first time that Britain will challenge for the America's Cup since 1964 which was 60 years ago in which a British boat named Sovereign who got comprehensively beaten 4 - 0 against the American yacht Constellation (A boat part of the ultra successful New York Yacht Club), & it is Sir Ben Ainslie's 3rd tilt at the cup (And Dylan Fletcher's 1st) in which he was part of the Kiwi crew in 2007 against the Alinghi Challenge from Switzerland who were defenders at the time which resulted in defeat, then he switched allegiances to Oracle Team USA where he got called up to replace the out of form John Kostecki to be on the afterguard, & was part of the victorious but triumphant crew that had a successful AC glory in 2013 in one of the greatest comebacks of all time (And he got knighted following the success in which he had a loftier reputation just like the late great Sir Peter 'Blakey' Blake after the events of 1995) in which we didn't get the result, & now he has an opportunity & is ready to end New Zealand's quest of a threepeat of the Auld Mug as they are scheduled to square off against the current defenders, Emirates Team New Zealand who are led by our champion sailor who dominated the last 2 America's Cups of Peter Burling & Aussie Nathan Outteridge (Who was Burling's main opponent in which he was part of the Swedish syndicate Artemis in 2017 where they lost to New Zealand in Bermuda & now joins forces by teaming up with Burling in order for our successful chance of completing a hat trick of America's Cup series wins) who took over from Glenn Ashby as his replacement as the dual helmsmen (Outteridge on port & Burling on starboard).

And finally here are the list of quarterfinal match ups being staged on the weekend of the 11th to the 12th of October in this years NPC season (For which I haven't been doing it since 2022):

Wellington Vs Counties Manukau (It's the first match of the quarterfinal as both sides meet again since their last meeting between the 2 sides which resulted in Counties Manukau winning the Jonah Lomu Memorial Trophy for the very first time by paying tribute & respects to the late great Jonah Lomu who was one of the sport's all-time greats)

Bay of Plenty Vs Hawke's Bay (It's the battle of the bay as Bay of Plenty (Who brought themselves home with victory against Auckland at Auckland Grammar School during the last round robin game) get the chance to square off against Hawke's Bay in QF 2)

Taranaki Vs Waikato (It's Taranaki's first match since winning the Ranfurly Shield against Tasman in which shield fever has hit Taranaki following their Log O'Wood success by keeping it for the summer (I thought South Canterbury were going to challenge for the shield if they win the Heartland Championship, & if Tasman kept it, but it wasn't to be) when they face against Waikato in the 3rd quarterfinal match-up)

& Tasman Vs Canterbury (And Tasman are hoping to bounce back after losing the shield against Taranaki as they take on Canterbury who just managed to survive by sneaking into the playoffs with a win against Waikato in the last regular season match)

So that is my 573rd blog of the year 2024 (MMXXIV) & my 49th of this year, viva Ukraine & Palestine.

For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)/Devil Inside/Original Sin: My 48th blog of the year 2024

Well, kia ora guys & girls (Hey, it's me yet again as I'm about to post a hat-trick of blogs today), Whetu here on my Kiwiavenger blog that I'm always tuning, but first in the rugby where the AB's side have revealed our team for the 2nd & final Bledisloe Cup test against the Wallabies at Sky Stadium in Wellington (Our most recent meeting between the 2 teams was this year at Accor Stadium in Sydney where the Wallabies almost pulled it off during the test in which we were fast starters in the first 20 minutes of the game (And the AB's (Who had Beauden Barrett withdrawn through injury sustained in the warmup with Harry Plummer replacing him in the reserves while Sevu Reece is elevated to the starting lineup on the right wing position with Will Jordan moving to fullback) went on to retain the Bledisloe Cup on that occasion for another year after our narrow 3 point win against Australia therefore snapping a wretched 2 match losing run against the best in the world of South Africa), but my favourite Bledisloe Cup memories would have to be in 1996 at Lang Park in Brisbane where a Wallaby Michael Brial caused a punch up (Although he should've picked up a red card, but Brial was lucky to remain on the field when he got away with it when the Wallabies had been awarded the penalty for not releasing ball, but the Scottish referee Jim Fleming had reversed the penalty in which the Wallaby fans were livid about the decision) on Frank Bunce who later scored the game winning try at the death therefore having the last say, then in 2000 in Sydney, Australia just 2 months before the start of the Summer Games in that city where the late great Jonah Lomu (AKA the greatest rugby player of all time) also scored the match winning try (And it was Taine Randell who provided a brilliant try assist to the big marn who went all the way to the try line then score) against the defending world champions at the time to go 1 - 0 up in the series or should I say, draw first blood in one of by far the greatest rugby tests ever played in front of 109,874 people (A world record crowd back then which was during the first Bledisloe Cup game of the new millennium on the 15th of July way back in 2000, but we failed at Sky Stadium (Back then it was the WestpacTrust Stadium to replace the old Athletic Park) in Wellington where Wallaby lock forward who was the captain at the time of John Eales when he provided the clutch moment of scoring that winning penalty goal in Wellington to secure the Bledisloe for Australia, & to once again break New Zealand hearts), while in 2014 at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane where Malakai Fekitoa scored a try at the death to level the scores right before Colin Slade kicked the winning conversion & the rest was history (Although Australia had to sack their coach Ewen McKenzie after that game following New Zealand's win in Brisbane, & brought in Michael Cheika as his replacement), & finally in 2015 where Dan Carter made a sidestep to one of the Australian players before connecting the pass to Dane Coles who sprinted all the way to score in which we retained the Bledisloe in Richie McCaw & Carter's farewell Bledisloe Cup game for the All Blacks (And others including Tony Woodcock, Keven Mealamu, Ma'a Nonu (Who is a fan of the late American rap musician 2pac, but still plays rugby for San Diego Legion in Major League Rugby) & Conrad Smith (Who is a Mumford & Sons listener, & is learning the ways of becoming a referee in which he did by officiating a game between Classic Taniwha & the Classic All Blacks in Whangarei just before an NPC game as part of the curtain-raiser), just right before our another successful Rugby World Cup glory/triumph in England in the same year which was our most recent to date (And we had to face Australia again in the final in which we successfully did) in Sam Cane's 100th All Blacks test since he made his debut back in 2012 against Ireland in Christchurch & last but not least, TJ Perenara (Who made his debut 10 years ago against England in Auckland also back in 2014) is playing his farewell home game in our last Aotearoa test of 2024 before heading to Japan to play for a club competing in the Japanese club rugby competition (And it looks like that Cortez Ratima, Noah Hotham & Finlay Christie (And potentially Cam Roigard is fit & available) will be the 3 halfbacks for the All Blacks when they go on tour to both Japan & Europe this year) as well as the final round of this year's Rugby Championship (Which will be decided in Nelspruit between the world champion Springboks & Los Pumas of Argentina, but whoever needs to finish with a win would guarantee the title), so here is the starting lineup according to Razor:

STARTING XV

FORWARD PACK

FRONT ROW

1 (Loose head prop): Ethan de Groot (Highlanders/Southland)

2 (Hooker): Codie Taylor (Crusaders/Canterbury)

3 (Tight head prop): Tyrel Lomax (Hurricanes/Tasman)

SECOND ROW

4 (No.4 lock): Scott Barrett (Captain, Crusaders/Taranaki)

5 (No.5 lock): Tupou Vaa'i (Chiefs/Taranaki)

LOOSE FORWARDS

6 (Blind side flanker): Wallace Sititi (Chiefs/North Harbour)

7 (Open side flanker): Sam Cane (Chiefs/Bay of Plenty)

8 (Number 8): Ardie Savea (Moana Pasifika/Wellington)

BACK LINE

HALVES

9 (Half-back): TJ Perenara (Hurricanes/Wellington)

10 (First five-eighth): Beauden Barrett (Blues/Taranaki)

MIDFIELD

12 (Second five-eighth): Anton Lienert-Brown (Chiefs/Waikato)

13 (Centre): Rieko Ioane (Blues/Auckland)

OUTSIDE BACKS

11 (Left wing): Caleb Clarke (Blues/Auckland)

14 (Right wing): Sevu Reece (Crusaders/Southland)

& 15 (Fullback): Will Jordan (Crusaders/Tasman)

& REPLACEMENT PLAYERS

16 (Reserve hooker): Asafo Aumua

17 (Reserve loose head prop): Tamaiti Williams

18 (Reserve tight head prop): Pasilio Tosi

19 (Reserve lock): Patrick Tuipulotu (Who is healthy again & raring to go as he takes Sam Darry's spot at the reserve lock position)

20 (Reserve loose forward): Luke Jacobson

21 (Reserve half-back): Cortez Ratima (Who is dropped to the pine with TJ Perenara being elevated to the starting lineup to start at halfback)

22 (Reserve midfielder): Damian McKenzie (Who is dropped to the bench as he replaces his great mate Anton Lienert-Brown who is elevated to the run-on team to replace the injured Jordie Barrett at second five)

& 23 (Reserve back): David Havili (Who replaces Harry Plummer to be on the pine as he covers the reserve back position)

And continuing onto the rugby as the All Blacks secure another win against the Wallabies in Sam Cane's 100th test as well as TJ Perenara's farewell game for New Zealand (Which is the land of rugby that I didn't know when I was playing Tony Hawk's Pro Skater PS1 game in 2002 where skateboarding is the most popular extreme sport in our country, but during one of the NPC matches on TV where sideline commentator Nathan Harris (Who was a former All Black during his rugby playing days) had referenced the garryowen kick AKA the up & under as seen in the Jonah Lomu Rugby PS1 video game (The greatest rugby video game of all time along with Rugby 08 on the PS2 which was good) that he was alluding to) before departing overseas, but it was a good decision made by the AB's coach Razor of putting Beauden Barrett as the starting 10 while McKenzie would be dropped to the pine as the reserve first five (And it must've worked that made the difference of winning another test match), & I mean how appropriate & how good the AB's were of finally breaking a 6 year win drought at that hallowed ground of Sky Stadium in Wellington since against France in 2018 (Before we went downhill since that we lost both against the French in 2021 & last year in the opening match of the tournament during the Rugby World Cup), but we managed to keep the Wallabies (Who were fast starters compared to the Sydney test) scoreless in the 2nd half meanwhile there was a yellow card to All Blacks two try hero Caleb Clarke for an intentional offside even though we finished the game with 14 players on the field (Although he got penalized for tackling a player in the air which was perilously close to a sin binning offence, but he got away with it with just a penalty), but our next game is against Japan in Yokohama on the 26th of October then the 3 most difficult weeks of our lives against England (Who New Zealand haven't played since July in which we won a 2 match test series against them on our home patch) first in London at the newly named Allianz Stadium London followed by the formidable Ireland side in Dublin in a rematch of last years Rugby World Cup quarterfinal & France at the Stade de France (Venue for much of the Summer Games this year & the site of the Black Ferns rugby sevens team (Which features the ever impressive star Michaela Blyde) getting the job done of claiming gold again against Canada in the women's gold medal match, then Hamish Kerr finally becoming the Summer Games champion in the men's athletics high jump when he defeated American Shelby McEwen in a deciding sudden death jump off) in Paris in a replay of the RWC opener before wrapping the test year off against Italy in a rematch of the pool game in Lyon during the RWC last year at another ground in Torino being known as Allianz Stadium Torino (And there has been an update in the rugby as Los Pumas couldn't even stop the Springboks from winning the Rugby Championship during the decider in Nelspruit where South Africa came out on top with authority to claim the Southern Hemisphere rugby tournament for the first time since 2019 as they ended a 5 year drought between winning the Rugby Championship, nearly a year on from their Rugby World Cup success yet again (First it was the RWC last year, & now they've got the Rugby Championship this year as well as the Freedom Cup to put in the trophy cabinet, but moving on to gaming related stuff that I'll be getting the digital copy of both the PS4 & PS5 versions of the Rugby 25 game (For which I'll pre-order the physical copy of that game on the PS5 for Dad, so that he can update both the players & teams just like in the Rugby League Live 4 PS4 game that he always does) once it comes out but I'm not sure about the release date whether it's December this year (And it'll feature the likes of Super Rugby Pacific in Australia, Fiji, New Zealand & the Pacific Islands, the Gallagher Premiership in England, the Top 14 competition in France, the URC (United Rugby Championship) in Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa & Wales & Major League Rugby (MLR) in both the United States & Canada + international teams such as the All Blacks, the Springboks, the Wallabies, England, les Bleus of France, los Pumas of Argentina, Scotland, the Azzurri of Italy, the Brave/Cherry Blossoms of Japan, the Flying Fijians of Fiji & other international sides appearing in the video game).

And something is very interesting has happened as Dad told me during our phone call on the 27th of September that I have a step cousin as well as Jansi's half-cuzzie named Hollyrae Mete (The one that she went to St Marcellin alongside Jans during her primary school days) who got a hat-trick for the Manawatu Cyclones against the Otago Spirit during the final of the Farah Palmer Cup championship which was played on September 22nd this year, ironically speaking (And she plays in the midfield at centre by the way but I was watching it on the internet on the same day on the 27th, a day before I recorded & watched that game a day later on the 28th where Mete is rocketing to stardom after scoring 3 tries during the final in the best Farah Palmer Cup game I have ever seen of my life (And I would like to meet her one day, but she's kinda tied up with her job in Papaioea Palmerston North just like Paige of being a full-time mum to her daughter Norah (Who I always say her name daily because I'm still convinced as part of my influence on my blogs about her, but I always chat to Pops about the trip to Wellington in January next year every day) & I'll even follow her games that she plays according to Dad during our phone conversation on the 29th of September this year).

And finally that I've got 3 planned holidays coming up to deal with over the next 3 years such as the 1st Welllington trip with Pops in January next year for which me & Pops have not been since 2016 because I'll be dying to meet Cathey & Paige to relive the glory days as well as Norah for the first time, then our second Wellington trip which I'll be going with Pops again & with both Aunty Tan & Rej (Who are here in New Zealand every 2 years which is ideal for both of them) in either December next year to January 2026 to see Cathey Middelplaats, Paige Ahearn & Norah again, & finally to Northland with Carole & Pops for our proposed holiday to Northland (Which had its power outage lately affecting 88,000 customers) in 2027 for which I'll be seeing both Kathryn & Ken in which I haven't been there since December last year where we had a great epic holiday that I have experienced throughout my life.

So that is my 572nd blog of the year 2024 (MMXXIV) & my 48th of this year, viva Ukraine & Palestine.

The Emptiness Machine: My 47th blog of the year 2024

Well, g'day guys & girls (Hello again), it is Whet here indeed on my Kiwiavenger blog but first in sport, after back to back defeats against the best in the world of the Springboks in which we are winless against them since August last year although our quest of defending the Rugby Championship has been short lived, the AB's have named their team to play against the Wallabies (Who haven't beaten New Zealand since 2020 in Brisbane in which Ofa Tu'ungafasi copped a red card for a high contact on Tom Wright, then a Wallabies player of Lachie Swinton did the same on Sam Whitelock, but a late yellow card by All Black lock Scott Barrett has cost New Zealand the test therefore blowing our opportunity over there, but the Aussies have last won a Bledisloe Cup way back in 2002 (Same year that Helen Clark was in charge as the Prime Minister of New Zealand (It's Christopher Luxon as of today), compared to John Howard who was the Prime Minister of Australia back then (It's now Anthony Albanese), while Austin Powers in Goldmember (Which featured the likes of Canadian actor Mike Myers, famous American singer Beyonce Knowles, British actor Michael Caine & the late Verne Troyer as the movie stars appearing in that famous movie, but I love gooold) was the number 1 movie of the year here in our country (And I mean, very shagadelic baby!), then the average house price in Auckland were a whopping NZ$290,000, meanwhile the New Zealand Warriors made our historic first ever NRL grand final, in which we went downhill after that famous try scored by Stacey 'Stace/Jonesy/the Lil' General' Jones, while Jeff 'Goldie' Wilson was playing cricket again & Mils Muliaina was a sevens rugby player when he triumphed in Manchester with a Commonwealth Games gold for the New Zealand men's rugby sevens team (Before it was known as the All Blacks sevens), then Scott Robertson in his rugby playing days when he was winning Super Rugby championships with the Crusaders which was during the Super 12 era (And somethings had never changed), meanwhile famous New Zealand cricketer Nathan 'Nath' Astle went berserk when he got a double hundred which was the fastest 200 in test cricket history for the Black Caps as he posted 222 against England (Who had to cling on to win by 98 runs after Astle became the last man to be dismissed) at the old Lancaster Park ground in Christchurch in the Canterbury province in which he became the Kiwi master blaster, while Canadian rockers Nickelback (The most hated rock band in the world (Compared to Jos Verstappen (Max's dad) being Formula One's most hated driver) as of today (But I love them because it is by far my fave Canadian rock band (And my old bestie Sophia Ong likes them), compared to both African American hip hop musician Timbaland & the lead singer of the UK pop rock band Coldplay of Chris Martin who seemingly favour towards Nickelback according to the Wikipedia page that I saw during the 2000's), but why the hate & hostility towards Nickelback? Because of the average rock listeners who mainly criticized them online in the process that the band had ever faced after being so much loved when 'How You Remind Me' being the most successful rock song to date by the band which rose to fame in the noughties (Although they had humble beginnings in a rural area in Hanna which is located in the Canadian province of Alberta, but way back in 2002 they had covered a System of a Down song at a music festival in Portugal which was a not so good place where the local fans started booing them as they pelted projectiles such as rocks towards the band meaning that had hardly got any Portuguese Nickelback fans out there where they had never won the respect they gave by losing a bit of fan support, but the band had never returned to that country again since (Just like Shihad have never been back to the United States since after they left the country & once they arrived back home in NZ that they were forced to change the name of the band to Pacifier in 2002 because of the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks a year earlier in 2001 when they toured over there (And I remember a comment from Leon Benbaruk last year about Shihad changing their band name to Pacifier after September 11th, 2001) according to the blog that I did in 2021 about the story of Shihad becoming Pacifier following the September 11th tragedy (And Pacifier was indeed the worst band name ever, but it's been 20 years since they had to change their old name back to Shihad way back in 2004, a year before they hosted a free concert at Aotea Square in Auckland also way back in 2005 where the loyal fans have paid back their respects by thanking them in due course as I mentioned in my blog that I did in January this year) according to the doco that they recently came out last year called Hate to Love: Nickelback) reached number one in the New Zealand music charts at the time where they ruled on top, yes, Nickelback rule with their smash hit song 'How You Remind Me' which initially came out or should I say, released in 2001 from the album Silver Side Up, & last but not least, John Mitchell (Who is now the England women's rugby team coach) & Eddie Jones (The current Japan men's rugby team coach) were the coaches of the AB's & Wallabies respectively back then, but will it be Razor's time? Or will it be a Schmidt who'll definitely come out on top this year?) at Accor Stadium in Sydney for our highly anticipated first Bledisloe Cup test of the year (Our most recent meeting between the 2 teams was last year at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin in our last Aotearoa test of last year in which we had a tough game to start with including that we rested our first choice players for the return clash, but we did win courtesy of Richie Mo'unga slotting that winning penalty goal) as well as the penultimate round of this year's Rugby Championship, so here is the starting lineup according to Razor:

STARTING XV

FORWARD PACK

FRONT ROW

1 (Loose head prop): Ethan de Groot (Crusaders/Canterbury)

2 (Hooker): Codie Taylor (Crusaders/Canterbury)

3 (Tight head prop): Tyrel Lomax (Hurricanes/Tasman)

SECOND ROW

4 (No.4 lock): Scott Barrett (Captain, Crusaders/Taranaki)

5 (No.5 lock): Tupou Vaa'i (Chiefs/Taranaki)

LOOSE FORWARDS

6 (Blind side flanker): Wallace Sititi (Chiefs/North Harbour)

7 (Open side flanker): Sam Cane (Chiefs/Bay of Plenty)

8 (Number 8): Ardie Savea (Moana Pasifika/Wellington)

BACK LINE

HALVES

9 (Half-back): Cortez Ratima (Chiefs/Waikato)

10 (First five-eighth): Damian McKenzie (Chiefs/Waikato)

MIDFIELD

12 (Second five-eighth): Jordie Barrett (Hurricanes/Taranaki)

13 (Centre): Rieko Ioane (Blues/Auckland)

OUTSIDE BACKS

11 (Left wing): Caleb Clarke (Blues/Auckland)

14 (Right wing): Will Jordan (Crusaders/Tasman)

& 15 (Fullback): Beauden Barrett (Blues/Taranaki)

& REPLACEMENT PLAYERS

16 (Reserve hooker): Asafo Aumua

17 (Reserve loose head prop): Tamaiti Williams (Who is dropped to the bench to replace the out of form Ofa Tu'ungafasi with regular starter Ethan de Groot returning from injury to start at loosehead prop)

18 (Reserve tight head prop): Pasilio Tosi (Who replaces Fletcher Newell who is ruled out with a calf injury to get his first taste of Bledisloe off the pine)

19 (Reserve lock): Sam Darry

20 (Reserve loose forward): Luke Jacobson

21 (Reserve half-back): TJ Perenara

22 (Reserve midfielder): Anton Lienert-Brown

& 23 (Reserve back): Sevu Reece (Who is also dropped to the bench as he makes way for Beauden Barrett who is elevated to the starting lineup, replacing Will Jordan who is moved to the right wing side)

And there has been an update in the rugby as the All Blacks (Who had lost Beauden Barrett before the game with an injury, then his brother Jordie who got replaced at halftime with a knee injury) retain the Bledisloe Cup for another year following their narrow 3 point win against the Wallabies in Sydney, but our performance in the 2nd half was slightly disappointing as we conceded both tries in the 2nd half just like the first half in which we led at halftime, as well as getting both yellow cards against Caleb Clarke & replacement player Anton-Lienert Brown for infractions such as a deliberate knockdown & offside (In which the AB's fans were mad at each other about the 2 yellows which resulted in New Zealand having to play with 13 players for around 10 minutes, but both of our All Black tries had been overturned by the TMO during the 1st & 2nd halves with the Wallabies fans cheered every time a potential All Blacks try would be ruled out) & we managed to pile on the pressure such as holding up a Wallaby maul in the dying seconds which resulted in a scrum to us before Ardie Savea had broken off with the ball at the back of the scrum, then kicking the ball out for the final whistle, while in the other game that this year's Rugby Championship will be decided in Nelspruit following a close win by Los Pumas who became the 2nd side after Ireland to defeat the best in the world of South Africa (Who just needs to finish with a win at Mbombela Stadium to collect the maximum 4 points required (That's 1 for an attacking bonus point & 5 for both a win & an attacking bonus point), & the Rugby Championship is theirs in which the South Africans have never won a Southern Hemisphere rugby competition since 2019 (Same year that South Africa would eventually win a Rugby World Cup in Japan, 4 years before retaining the William Webb Ellis trophy in France last year) in Santiago, including where Manie Libbok had missed a penalty goal that needed to secure the championship which resulted in victory to the Argentinians.

And the latest in the Louis Vuitton Cup in Barcelona, Spain such as the final of the America's Cup challenger series is set, it'll be the best of the challengers of INEOS Britannia (Led by Sir Ben Ainslie which features the Olympic champion in the 49er class at the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympics in 2021 of Dylan Fletcher) who beat the favourites to lift the Auld Mug of Alinghi Red Bull Racing in semifinal 1, set to square off against Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli (Led by both Aussie Jimmy Spithill & Francesco Bruni who defeated American Magic once more in the 2nd semifinal) yet again, in a rematch of the 2021 Prada Cup with the right to challenge our own defender of Emirates Team New Zealand led by Peter Burling, in the America's Cup match coming in October.

And there has been an update in Formula One such as Australia's Oscar Piastri in the McLaren (In which their car had made significant upgrades of getting the car faster such as prior to both the Miami & Dutch Grands Prix), has won his second Formula One career race in Azerbajian which was embroiled with controversy once again as he is finished ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc from Monaco in the race (But Piastri's car had been checked whether it was illegal or not that it featured a mini-DRS thing in the car), but the next race will be in Singapore in which Carlos Sainz won the Grand Prix last year, breaking Red Bull's winning streak of 15 races dating back to Abu Dhabi in 2022 (And it was our own Kiwi Liam Lawson in the now defunct Alphatauri who finished in the points in 9th in which he had his best result of his F1 career) until Italy last year at the Parco di Monza circuit, meanwhile in the Supercars Championship at the last Sandown enduro event where one of the Red Bull Ampol racing drivers won the race prior to the big one which is the annual Bathurst 1000 of either Will Brown or Broc Feeney (Who was born in 2002 along with young New Zealand Formula One racer Liam Lawson & the son of a famous Samoan rugby player of young All Black Wallace Sititi), but back to the F1 department as there has been an update in Singapore which is all about Norris when he won the Grand Prix, therefore edging closer of taking over the lead of the championship from his main rival Max Verstappen (Who had recieved a penalty against him for an infraction but grabbed the fastest lap in the race, & I fear that his dominance in F1 which began in 2021 might be the beginning of the end of him because of Lando Norris (Who trails behind Max by 52 points in terms of the championship) taking over as the new fastest driver in Formula One (Just like former US president Donald Trump (Who survived another assassination attempt in which another gunman was detained by cops eventually) had retaken the lead ahead of US Vice President Kamala Harris (Who currently still leads in terms of most polls) according to some polls in September just 2 months prior to the US election in Trump's comeback bid of returning to the White House (Which is the world's most protected building according to one of the movies of White House Down in 2013), but my thoughts would be if Trump wins the election: "America sucks! America sucks!" But the result of the US election could decide the outcome of starting World War III (And it's not until 2032 with the collapse of the United States according to the prediction or in 2034 if there's a nuclear war just in case) while many American people especially the left wing Liberals don't want Trump to win, except the right wing Conservatives do) as well as McLaren taking over as the fastest car in this year's F1 grid where they've taken over from Red Bull as the new leader in the constructors championship when Piastri won in Azerbaijan in which McLaren have never won the constructors title for 26 years since way back in 1998, but the latest as Daniel Ricciardo (Who made his F1 debut in 2011 with the now defunct Hispania Racing Team) announces that he'll step aside in Formula One after Singapore, with our own Kiwi Liam Lawson (Who hasn't competed in Formula One since last year in Qatar, but recently he copped it when Lawson was the victim of abusive silly threats online about the Aussie losing his seat in which the loyal followers of Ricciardo were outraged & aghast right through the thick of it which is potentially shocking) all but confirmed at RB starting from the United States Grand Prix at COTA in Austin, Texas).

And finally that me & Pops have finally got an idea for a place to stay in Wellington when we go over there in January next year, but we could go again as a matter of fact in either December in the same year or in January 2026 with Pops, Aunty Tan (Who had a phone conversation with her along with Pops on the 21st of September) & Rejean in an effort of meeting Cathey (Whose son & another one of my cousins Luca is heading to uni when Pops alluded to me on the 27th of September), Paige & Norah (For I have not seen both of these women since over 8 years ago but never met that baby girl before) which is John & Lim's place for which I have not been there since 2016, but I haven't met both John Coburn & Lim Chin Keong since ages ago when they visited Whanganui here according to the phone conversation from Dad on the 19th of September then at Caroline's where I had a chat to Carole about it which was a day later (And I have confirmed our next visit to Northland when I go with both Carole & Pops, it'll be 2027 for sure because it might be a possibility in fact (But it's a long way).

So that is my 571st blog of the year 2024 (MMXXIV) & my 47th of this year, viva Ukraine & Palestine.

All in My Head/Make It All Right: My 46th blog of the year 2024

Well, kia ora guys & girls to all our Maori colleagues for Te Reo Maori language week here in New Zealand from the 10th to the 16th of September this year tuning into this Kiwiavenger blog...But first, there is exactly no men's international rugby on the weekend of the 15th to 16th (Except in the Pacific Nations Cup that they're having) due to a week off in the Rugby Championship so that the teams can prepare for their tests on the 21st of September, especially the All Blacks against the host nation of the next Rugby World Cup in 2027 of Wallabies at Accor Stadium in Sydney in the arvo in our bid of defending the Bledisloe Cup after we have blown the opportunity not once but twice against the best in the world of the Springboks (Who are chasing their 5th Southern Hemisphere rugby championship in the aftermath of a 4 & 0 start, but are now on a 5 game winning streak since their last defeat against Ireland in the 2nd & final test during the 2 match test series at Kings Park in Durban), but there is NPC rugby on at the moment with the Ranfurly Shield game scheduled for the 16th of September between new holders the Tasman Mako who is set to square off for their first Log O'Wood defence against challengers Wellington (Who have last held onto the shield since their loss last year against Hawke's Bay who held on until a defeat against Tasman who produced a shock win against the holders at the time on the 7th of September to claim the Ranfurly Shield for the first time via a match winning penalty goal from reserve first five Campbell Parata (A former Western Force player) in front of a sell-out crowd at Lansdowne Park in Blenheim not only because of tickets were popular on demand just like round 3 of the Gran Turismo World Series in Tokyo, Japan as well as the last 2 rounds in both Montreal, Quebec, Canada & Prague, Czechia (And there has been an update as Tasman went on to defend the Log O'Wood against Welly, in an epic shield defence that I've just seen throughout my life when the match was played in Blenheim, but their next shield defence is against Auckland in a mid-week game at Trafalgar Park in Nelson during storm week)...And also the pre-WXV 1 women's international rugby friendly between next year's Women's Rugby World Cup hosts as well as the defending WXV 1 champions & the world number 1 ranked England (Now coached by the former All Black coach John Mitchell who took over from the departing Simon Middleton & led by the best women's rugby player in the world of Marlie Packer) & the current women's rugby world champions the Black Ferns (Led by both Ruahei Demant & Kennedy Tukuafu who returned from injury, then she recently tied the knot to her new husband) in front of a 50,000 crowd at the home of English rugby, Twickenham in London, England in a rematch of last year's WXV 1 decider at Go Media Stadium in Auckland in which the Black Ferns didn't get the result which meant that the English were the champions of the inaugural WXV 1 competition, but the last time New Zealand defeated England in international women's rugby was in 2022 during the 2021 Women's Rugby World Cup final at Eden Park in Auckland where Black Ferns lock Joanah Ngan-Woo providing the hand of goddess with that winning lineout steal that won us the WRWC championship again (And there was a try by Stacey Waaka which was the try of the final as well as the 2nd most key pivotal moment of the game, but there has also been an update that England go into their defence of the WXV 1 competition with a win against the Black Ferns who had Katelyn Vaha'akolo socring a double, but it wasn't good enough for New Zealand who were unable to overpower the overwhemingly dominant English side who were far too good & far too superior).

And in rock newswire such as Linkin Park (Who announced that they'll continue making & playing music just like the Foo Fighters last year when they continued operating under a new touring drummer of Josh Freese who took over from the late Taylor Hawkins who passed away in 2022 (Same year that lead singer Dave Grohl's mother Virginia passed), & unlike Led Zeppelin in which in 1980 decided not to continue after one of the most important band members of John Bonham had passed away along with Soundgarden in 2019 that they cannot continue without the late Chris Cornell who passed in 2017 (Same year as Bennington did) begin the post-Chester Bennington era with a new single called 'The Emptiness Machine' in which the song will be part from a new album due to release on November the 15th this year, but they have brought in changes to their personnel such as drummer Colin Brittain for Rob Bourdon who decided to move on from contuing playing with the band, meanwhile the new lead singer is revealed with Emily Armstrong from Dead Sara (Whose vocals remind me of Lzzy Hale, the frontperson of Halestorm according to the previous blogs that I did, but there has been a bit of controversy about the new singer according to the late Chester Bennington's mother who is still alive most recently), takes over from the late great Chester Bennington (Who passed already in 2017 (The year that Linkin Park had last released a studio album, until 7 years later this year in which the new name of the upcoming album will be called: From Zero) as their new band member as their co-lead vocalist with Mike Shinoda (One of the founding members of course), but the biggest headline in the rock music industry would be British rockers Oasis (One of my fave British rock bands now along with Bush, the Rolling Stones, Coldplay, Blur & Muse) who are returning after a lengthy hiatus period which lasted about 15 years due to the feud between the Gallagher brothers of Liam & Noel, is ending with the band announced a new tour starting from next year (And I was celebrating of listening to Oasis on the 13th of September with their album (What's the Story) Morning Glory featuring 4 hit songs from that album such as 'Roll With It', 'Wonderwall', 'Don't Look Back In Anger' & 'Champagne Supernova' since the Britpop icons have announced their intentions of making a comeback, in which they successfully did) including a concert at Wembley Stadium which is going to be a sell-out just like any other concerts being scheduled as mentioned in the ACC presents: Game of 2 Halves show on Sky (In which experienced broadcaster Laura McGoldrick (Wife of ex-cricketer Martin Guptill who is a mum of 2) is the host while both Matt Heath & Manaia Stewart (Then James McOnie) from the Alternative Commentary Collective are the team skippers respectively & their celeb guests including dual Olympic gold medalist at both the Tokyo & Paris Olympics in women's rugby sevens of Michaela Blyde (The girl who once met Hollywood A-lister Matthew McConaughey (And don't forget her idol is track athlete from Jamaica of Shelley-Anne Fraser-Price) & took a photo with him & one of Blyde's Black Ferns sevens teammates in Rio for when during the Olympics was on back in 2016, but she is a bit of a lookalike of both British Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley & Greek tennis player Maria Sakkari) & New Zealand rugby player Angus Ta'avao (Who is both an Auckland & Blues player (He once played for the Waratahs in 2018) & once played for the AB's (Including in 2019 during the Rugby World Cup).

And it's just 1 month to go until me & Pops go on a planned holiday to Wellington in January next year to catch up with my biological aunty Cathey Middelplaats, my dear cuzzie Paige Ahearn & Paige's daughter Norah (For which I haven't seen both Cathey & Paige since 2016 & never met Norah before in my whole life, but I have seen pictures of Paige's daughter on social media taken from Pops cellphone), in what would by my first holiday in 13 months since Northland last year (In which was by far, my best holiday to date of all of the other trips that I have been, but I prefer Wellington as my fave holiday destination for which I have not been there since over 8 years ago) where I had to connect with my grand-aunty Kathryn Ngapo, Kathryn's partner Ken Branch, Carole's son Andy Webb & Andy's wife Kelsey Nicolls (And don't forget it was my historic first ever trip post-COVID era (Compared to my last pre-COVID era holiday to the South Island, in 2019 with Pops, Aunty Tan & 'Rej' of Rejean Gatineau), & my first holiday with Carole Webb (Who is one of my most important members of our whanau along with Pops, Aunty Tan, Dad & Raewyn Ngapo since Ben Blain's departure to the Philippines in July 5 months ago) since I went with her & Pops, but I wasn't at Dad's place on Christmas day last year, & I'll be at his place with Pops this year during Christmas time even though Carole is heading to the UAE in the Middle East to link up with her bro Zaki who I haven't seen him since 2020 in a year marred by the global COVID pandemic for which I have never got that disease for my entire life along with Pops, Carole (Whose hopes of travelling to the Middle East could eventually be cancelled due to the rising costs of travel) & Leon Benbaruk).

And finally in the motor racing department in the United States such as Spain's Alex Palou (A Chip Ganassi Racing driver) who is now a 3 time Indycar Series champion (He first did it in 2021, then last year (Including the race in Portland where he clinched it with one race to spare) & now this year in which he retained the Indycar Series crown (First time they had done that since the great Scot of Dario Franchitti was a repeat title winner in 2011) in which Palou becomes Spain's most successful racing car driver as he eases past Fernando Alonso & his 2 Formula One world championships that he won (And I often label Palou as motor racing's equivalent of football's Pedri), but it has been a totally awesome year in Spanish sport, such as young talented tennis sensation of Carlos 'Charlie/Carlito' Alcaraz who triumphed in both the French Open (In which he beat the German competitor of Alexander 'Sascha' Zverev in the men's singles final) & Wimbeldon (In which he defeated the GOAT of Serbian tennis mega star Novak 'Nole/the Djoker/the Serbinator' Djokovic (The one who would gone on to win gold at the Summer Games in Paris, France as he was the one who gained a bit of payback against Alcaraz after losing to him in Wimbeldon as Djokovic became the oldest Olympic champion in singles tournament since 1908 therefore completing a golden slam when an individual is able to complete all 4 grand slam tournament championships as well as getting the gold at the Summer Games) again in the gentlemen's singles final just like last year) grand slam tournaments, then the Spain Sail GP team who triumphed in Sail GP as they ended the lengthy but prolonged reign of Australia who dominated since 2019 by taking the Sail GP title, while the Spain football team side (Led by the mercurial Alvaro Morata) who have successfully have won the Euros this year against the Three Lions of England in the final (On the same day that Alcaraz won at Wimbeldon against Djokovic) at the Olympiastadion in Berlin in July (The 4th time La Furia Roja did that of winning the European Football Championship to become the most successful from the European continent, & their 1st since Euro 2012 where they last won, up until that point), as well as their men's under 23 football team winning gold at the Summer Games for the first time since 1992 against the hosts France during the gold medal match in the men's (Under 23) football at the Parc des Princes in Paris in which the Spain under 23 men's football team spoiled France's party, & now Palou with his 3rd Indycar Series crown that he won most recently, but he has the same number of championships won along with Sam Hornish Jr, Bobby Rahal, Rick Mears, the late great Al Unser & 3 others, & is one behind Franchitti, Frenchman Sebastien Bourdais & the very famous Italian American of Mario Andretti) after he managed to beat Aussie Will Power (Who had a faulty seat belt (Or a safety belt that had gone astray/awry, but what happens if he crashes when his seatbelt is loose? Because he might get an involuntary ejection just like in the GTA IV game that I've always got on the Xbox 360 via the Xbox Series X console by getting hurt therefore causing a serious injury just like a rugby player (Although his title rival Palou had been told by his race engineer after Power (Who congratulated Palou after the race by appreciating him) had an issue with his safety belt (Well, that's fine on road courses but it's a no-no on oval tracks) was not to push too hard that the championship is his) during the race in which he finished 4 or 5 laps down the order, therefore derailing/thwarting his chances/aspirations of regaining the Indycar Series title) of Team Penske to remain the champ during the championship decider at Nashville Speedway in Nashville, Tenessee which was won by an American of Colton Herta (Andretti Global driver who was championship runner up behind the Spaniard after Power's disaster when he had a problem with his seatbelt during lap 12 of the season decider) who celebrated his maiden oval win at his home race where he resides near Nashville now (And originally he was born in his home state of California where he was raised by his famous father Bryan), but one of our Kiwis of Scott McLaughlin (Who finished 3rd (His best result in the Indycar Series in terms of the championship) in the championship behind Herta, but ahead of his Penske teammate Power) narrowly misses out on claiming his maiden Indycar title following a disappointing result, but hopefully he'll be strong next year when the new season commences in March in St Pete, Florida, but there has been an update during the offseason driver market news that one of our own Kiwis of Marcus Armstrong (The Indycar Series rookie of the year from last year) is making the jump to Meyer Shank Racing next year as he leaves Chip Ganassi Racing for good to join a new team (And his best result was a podium finish in 3rd in Detroit this year) mainly because he wanted a change of scenery.

So that is my 570th blog of the year 2024 (MMXXIV) & my 46th of this year, viva Ukraine & Palestine.

California Waiting/King of the Rodeo/Four Kicks/Where Do I Belong?: My 45th blog of the year 2024 (AKA my infamous meeting of Stephen Perofeta @ Frank Bar)

Well, hi everybody (Hi everyone), it is Whetu here on my Kiwiavenger blog but first in sport, the All Blacks side (Who were without both Caleb Clarke (Back) & Ethan Blackadder (Hamstring) for this Cape Town test as the pair succumb to injuries sustained in the previous match against the Springboks, therefore joining the likes of Ethan de Groot, Stephen Perofeta & Patrick Tuipulotu as the list of AB's players unavailable that are part of the casualty ward) has been named for round 4 of the Rugby Championship test against the world champion Springboks side on September 7th at DHL Stadium in the Cape Town in the 2nd & final part of the best rivalry of not just of international rugby but of sport as well as the rematch of the previous test in Joburg, but the most recent test between the 2 countries was on the 31st of August which was this year during round 3 of the Rugby Championship where South Africa went on to win the test as they beat New Zealand (Who had Ofa Tu'ungafasi been shown the yellow card for collapsing the maul & that winning try scored by reserve Springbok halfback Grant Williams (Who put New Zealand's last nail in the coffin during the 75th minute), cost us of potentially winning the test) at the famed Ellis Park rugby ground in Johannesburg, so here is the starting lineup according to Razor:

STARTING XV

FORWARD PACK

FRONT ROW

1 (Loose head prop): Tamaiti Williams (Crusaders/Canterbury)

2 (Hooker): Codie Taylor (Crusaders/Canterbury)

3 (Tight head prop): Tyrel Lomax (Hurricanes/Tasman)

SECOND ROW

4 (No.4 lock): Scott Barrett (Captain, Crusaders/Taranaki)

5 (No.5 lock): Tupou Vaa'i (Chiefs/Taranaki)

LOOSE FORWARDS

6 (Blind side flanker): Wallace Sititi (Chiefs/North Harbour)

7 (Open side flanker): Sam Cane (Chiefs/Bay of Plenty)

8 (Number 8): Ardie Savea (Moana Pasifika/Wellington)

BACK LINE

HALVES

9 (Half-back): Cortez Ratima (Chiefs/Waikato)

10 (First five-eighth): Damian McKenzie (Chiefs/Waikato)

MIDFIELD

12 (Second five-eighth): Jordie Barrett (Hurricanes/Taranaki)

13 (Centre): Rieko Ioane (Blues/Auckland)

OUTSIDE BACKS

11 (Left wing): Mark Tele'a (Blues/North Harbour)

14 (Right wing): Sevu Reece (Crusaders/Southland)

& 15 (Fullback): Will Jordan (Crusaders/Tasman)

& REPLACEMENT PLAYERS

16 (Reserve hooker): Asafo Aumua

17 (Reserve loose head prop): Ofa Tu'ungafasi

18 (Reserve tight head prop): Fletcher Newell

19 (Reserve lock): Sam Darry

20 (Reserve loose forward): Luke Jacobson (Who is healthy again as he returns from injury, therefore taking Samipeni Finau's place to cover at the loose forward position)

21 (Reserve half-back): TJ Perenara (Who is dropped to the bench to make way for Cortez Ratima with Ratima being elevated to the starting lineup as the starting halfback)

22 (Reserve midfielder): Anton Lienert-Brown

& 23 (Reserve back): Beauden Barrett (Who is also dropped to the bench to replace Mark Tele'a with Tele'a being promoted to the starting lineup on the left wing side as he replaces the injured Caleb Clarke)

And there has been an update where it's all fun & games for the All Blacks until they lose to the world champion Springboks side (Who claim the Freedom Cup for the first time since 2009 in which New Zealand (Who have dropped their 3rd under current coach Scott Robertson following another tough game that we had, in just 2 games but our last win was against Argentina at the garden of Eden at Eden Park in Auckland during round 3 of the Rugby Championship, & the first time since last year that we have been defeated twice in a row on the bounce (First against the South Africans during a pre-RWC friendly & then against France during the opening match of the tournament, & now it's the Boks this year in both Johannesburg & Cape Town) held it from 2010 until most recently this year, but South Africa have always been ultra-competitive since they began their reign as the world champions in 2019 in which they won their 3rd out of 4 Rugby World Cups) again at DHL Stadium in Cape Town during the 2nd & final part in the best rivalry in not just of international rugby, but of sport as well which has been concluded in which we were totally gutted about the result (And I only watched the first half (Including a yellow card by All Black winger Sevu Reece for taking Willie le Roux out in the air on a Springbok player in which for the 4th game in a row that an AB's player had to be sent to the sin bin (So too is Tyrel Lomax in the last 10 minutes for flooring South African winger Cheslin Kolbe without the ball on the kick chase which meant the Springboks went in for the kill, as Malcolm Marx got the winning try similar to Grant Williams did in Joburg after a yellow card against Ofa Tu'ungafasi for cynically collapsing the maul that derailed us of a certain Rugby Championship test victory, off a rolling maul which sent the All Blacks come crashing down to earth for another test defeat), but our discipline is far worse than the rest of the tier 1 rugby playing nations because of the legislations being made as part of the rulebook) but I didn't watch the 2nd because of South Africa I fear were always gonna win, & they did by successfully pulling it off once again to win 4 in a row against New Zealand for the first time since 1949, & are now on track of winning the Rugby Championship for the first time since 2019 according to the comment from Dad during Father's Day that he fears that the South Africans might gain the upper hand of winning the Southern Hemisphere rugby tournament (And in the other game that the Wallabies of Australia got comprehensively beaten by Argentina in Santa Fe which was the Aussies worst test defeat to date against the Argentinians), & they could be the team to beat) just like in the previous test in Joburg in which we were totally gassed out during the 2nd half despite we fought themselves back in the contest (And it might be the AB's bench that has been lacking by causing a bit of weakness of losing another test in which we scored no tries but just penalty goals, so that's what went wrong for us) for a tiny bit (In which we led at halftime but we kept losing our lead in the 2nd half as the South Africans always turned it around not once but twice), but it wasn't to be as New Zealand's quest of retaining the Rugby Championship, has been short lived (And we're not playing the Boks again until next year, but Australia is our main focus next in our bid to retain the Bledisloe when we square off against our Trans-Tasman foe on the 21st of September at Accor Stadium in Sydney for the penultimate round of the Rugby Championship).

And it was at Frank Bar on the 7th of September this year that I went with both Carole & Pops where I saw a man looking like Taranaki, Blues & All Blacks player Stephen Perofeta (The one who went to Whanganui Collegiate, & he once played for Whanganui in the Heartland Championship in 2015 whilst at school, moments before being signed by Taranaki in 2016 then the Blues a year later in 2017, & has been there since), & then all of a sudden that it was indeed him when Pops came over to meet the man known as 'Stevie P' to have a chat then he took a photo of me & Stevie twice (Although Pops posted it on Facebook but he told me about Leon missing me according to the comment below), but I didn't know that he's in my hometown of Whanganui maybe that he didn't want to go on trip with the AB's to South Africa because he is currently injured at the moment so he is such a nice but friendly, polite & respectful man in which Perofeta was my first famous person I've ever met since Otago & Highlanders rugby player Jona Nareki (Brother of current Whanganui Heartland Championship player Peceli Malanicagi) in 2020 & of course, was my first celeb sighting since Stan Walker (A famous singer who was the former champion of Australian Idol in 2009) last year in which me, Pops & Carole were at Mud Ducks (And I remember that comment about me not trying to recognize that guy but I saw him anyway), & I was like wow when I reacted after I saw & met him.

And finally in the sports department as we head into the tennis as both Americans of Jessica Pegula & Taylor Fritz fell short in the women's & men's singles finals of the US Open (Which was overshadowed by the Olympic champion Novak Djokovic's defeat in the hands of an Aussie of Alexei Popyrin during one of the matches that Carole watched which went down to the wire, just like Tasman winning the Ranfurly Shield for the first time against Hawke's Bay in Napier on September 7th) respectively against Aryna Sabalenka & Italian Jannik Sinner who both picked up grand slam championships where they started & ended the year as champions, but the latest on the Louis Vuitton Cup in Barcelona, Spain as Emirates Team New Zealand pick up the victory against the returning Alinghi Red Bull Racing in one of the races which was during the tricky conditions (And in the motor racing department as our own Kiwi of former 3 time Supercars Champion & also 3 time Bathurst 1000 winning driver of Shane van Gisbergen is set to compete full time with Trackhouse Racing with their 3rd car in next year's NASCAR Cup Series championship season), but there has been an update in the yachting department as Orient Express Team France are out of the Louis Vuitton Cup in Barcelona with a poor 1-7 record while the defenders Emirates Team New Zealand have a 8-2 record (And our chances of a win in one of their races against Luna Rossa were exactly robbed by a thunderstorm, moments before getting disqualified for persistently sailing over the boundary line), then INEOS Britannia is the best of the challengers so far of making it to the semifinal stages of the challenger series competition.

So that is my 569th blog of the year 2024 (MMXXIV) & my 45th of this year, viva Ukraine & Palestine.