New Zealand Football Chief Executive Andy Martin Steps down

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New Zealand Football’s chief executive Andy Martin has decided to call it a time in order to focus more on family life. The 51-year-old says that he is retiring at the end of the month and will be leaving the role as the Chief Executive. He has come under a lot of controversy over the last four years and it primarily has to do with his handling of the criticism surroundingcoach Andreas Heraf. New Zealand football has been in the decline for the last couple of years and it is a surprise considering that the team created history back in 2010 by reaching the finals in South Africa.

Heraf came up with the controversial comment after the 1-0 defeat for New Zealand against Japan back on June 10. After the defeat,Heraf claimed that there were no issues in the New Zealand camp but there have been several reports that all is not well within the camp since March. However, Martin tried to dismiss most of the issues surrounding the comments made byHeraf. It appears that Martin has set his sights upon leaving his role when the path was rosy, as a review has just been called upon. Heraf was subjected to complaints from as many as 13 players back in June 18.

U18s Prepare For 2019 Internationals

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The U18s squad of England has been selected for participating in Aon U18 International Series; they have been named ahead before the upcoming tournament to be held in South Africa.

The fixtures have been fixed against countries like France whom England will play in 10th August; England team will play against Wales in 14th August and against the South African Schools in 18th August. The group comprises of U17s mostly and the tour would lead to start of the international season of U18. The plan is to allow the coaches to have a maximum time of contact within the squad; this would give the players enough time to learn and gain further experience. They can continue with their preparations for the international season which will culminate in April 2019 when the U18 Six Nations festival.

England Women Lose To Ireland

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At the Rugby World Cup Sevens England was defeated by Ireland, which shocked the England team. The match had been held in San Francisco; Ireland had been on a winning spree in this tournament, winning the Women’s Trophy against Russia in the finals which were held in the month of June.

England women’s team was out of the competition when they were beaten by Ireland with a score of 19-14. This defeat got England into the Challenge event; here they beat their opponent Mexico with a score of 59-0. This was in the quarter finals. Ireland lost with a score of 45-0 against New Zealand; this happened in the quarter finals of the Championship.

Super Rugby Final Approach

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There might have been some doubt as to whether the Crusaders would be able to go through the semi finals but apparently they did. Now they are in the Super Rugby finals. This would certainly help them seek a ninth title that would extend their record.

Elton Jantjies of Lions is one of the many players who are excited about the Lions being back in the finals as well. The semi finals saw the Crusaders take up Hurricanes while the Lions took up Waratahs at the Ellis Park stadium; this was in Johannesburg in South Africa.

Waratahs See Success In Super Rugby

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The Waratahs were able to upset Highlanders in the quarterfinals that were held for Super Rugby last weekend. Israel Folau was lauded for the calming and wise demeanor that he maintained throughout. The Aussies were stunned on the other hand that the Waratahs is now one game away from the final.

The formula that is used for determining the finalists at Super Rugby is a complex one that even ardent fans find difficult to follow. However, everyone understood that every region gets a prize as even prizes for the 19th place are handed out in Super Rugby.

Title Sponsor Required For All Ireland League

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IRFU needs a new sponsor for the title of All Ireland League since the existing title sponsor; Ulster Bank has decided to step down. It is unlikely that the Union would be able to attract a sponsor in time before the 2018-19 season commences. The Ulster Bank has taken the decision to step down after being the title sponsor for nine years. This is the final year for the current format of the league that is split into divisions 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B and 2C. The fixtures are already announced.

Ulster Bank had taken over sponsorship position for All Ireland League since 2010 when they succeeded AIB who had held that position for the previous timeline of 13 years. The original sponsors of the tournament had been an Insurance Corporation of Ireland.