Phil Gifford is a Contributing Sports Writer for NZME. He is one of the most-respected voices in New Zealand sports journalism.

At the age of 12, I penned my first sports piece in 1959 for the Waihi College school magazine—a report on the final test of that year’s series with the Lions. In the early hours, my father and I caught a bus from Waihi, queued up outside Eden Park, and stood on the muddy Dominion Rd end terraces as the Lions secured the victory with a score of 9-6. Reflecting on that day, it's still incredible to me that my journey, beginning in 1965 as a cadet at the Herald, allowed me to make a living based on watching sport all over the world and connecting with great athletes. From meeting legends like Sir Edmund Hillary, Dame Valerie Adams, Stirling Moss, and Richie McCaw, to attending events ranging from the Olympics to the Rugby World Cup and Commonwealth Games, I've been able to claim it as work. Yet through it all, one thing has remained a constant. In the minutes before a big rugby game, I still feel the frisson of anticipation that country kid did at Eden Park in ’59.