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Auckland coach Pat Lam beamed with pride as he cradled his 6-month-old daughter Bethany-Faith at an awards bash. And he had two good reasons to smile.
Lam scooped the NZ Community Trust Coach of the Year Award at the Auckland Sports Awards held at Eden Park and watched as his team took the Team of the Year Award.
World champion rower Mahe Drysdale was named the overall winner. The 28-year-old beat off ironman Cameron Brown and Ireland-bound rugby star Doug Howlett to win the men's award for the second time since his 2005 victory.
Drysdale also picked up the overall Sporting Excellence Award after defending his single scull title at the World Championships in Munich earlier this year.
The single sculler who won gold at the world championships in Munich was among the notable absentees along with All Black Doug Howlett.
Howlett was among the finalists for Sportsman of the Year but was also nowhere to be seen last night.
Olympic Gold Medallist and champion triathlete Hamish Carter was given a special recognition award for his dominance over the triathlon for the past decade.
Carter, 36, who now works for an Auckland software development company said his ward was an "absolutely wonderful surprise".
He said: "I had no idea I was up for this award. I just thought we were going for a flash dinner."
Carter told the Herald he had become "a bit stale" after his gold medal win at the Athens Olympics.
But even though he had given up the sport competitively, he admitted to going "stir crazy" if he didn't do gruelling work outs regularly.
Ironwoman Jo Lawn was named Sportswoman of the Year ahead of tennis player Marina Erakovic and rugby player Anna Richards.
Lawn won the New Zealand Ironman for the fifth time in 2007 and finished fourth in a record time at the Hawaiian Ironman for the New Zealand woman in October.
US Open junior quarter-finalist Sacha Jones won the junior sportswoman category after qualifying for the tournament's top 16 for the second year in a row. Despite several injuries Jones managed to gain a top 400 WTA as well as make the semifinals of a US$25,000 ITF event in Spain.
Winston Stanley, the nephew of former All Black Joe Stanley was named SPARC Junior Sportsman of the Year ahead of Ben Dallas, Jacob Matthews and Henry Poor.
Matt Stanish was named Referee of the Year.
The He Oranga Poutama Maori achievement award was won by Ramona Belmont for billiards.
