Latest from Best of Sport Analysis

Hugh McGahan: Toovey sacking should make Manly fans wary

I feel sorry for Geoff Toovey, who is paying the price for being at a dysfunctional club.

Christian Cullen: Don't allow the Wallabies a sniff

The bigger picture of the World Cup is constantly in the background but the most important thing about next weekend's game against Australia is winning.

Wynne Gray: Never mind the nerds, sometimes there's magic

Rugby is choking in its complexity and becoming increasingly confusing, but moments like Richie McCaw's try redress the balance, writes Wynne Gray.

Scotty Stevenson: Racial stereotyping is alive and well in sport

I remember my first and only club rugby final. I was playing for Takapuna in the North Harbour under-19 title match against Silverdale, a team we had beaten earlier in the season in a muddy and....

Chris Rattue: Smith far better fit at fullback

It's time for Israel Dagg to make way because this is Ben Smith country.

Wynne Gray: Woe betide those who fail to note champions' motto

Poise under pressure - three small words which capture the thrust of the All Blacks' distinction.

Richie Barnett: NRL hits jackpot with rule changes

The NRL has hit the jackpot with its recent rule changes, particularly the reduction in the number of interchanges permitted.

Chris Rattue: Hansen's wobbly proves rolling maul an issue

Crikey. All it took was a couple of rolling Argentinian mauls and the rugby world is in uproar, as if no one had ever seen a pile of slowly moving bodies on a rugby field before.

Wynne Gray: Barrett fitness should go under microscope

There's been no mention of any other problem with Beauden Barrett.

David Leggat: Top players miss Olympic cut

If the Olympic Games golf tournament was to start today, Ryan Fox would be in the field.

Possibility of dream pairing at World Cup

It seemed a classic either/or scenario but the All Black selectors have decided they can solve the Sonny Bill Williams or Ma'a Nonu dilemma by including them both.

Scotty Stevenson: Buffet of brawn vast, yet plate so small

The classics remain in this team - the meat and potatoes of the All Blacks' degustation, the players who have satisfied even the fussiest of palates, writes Scotty Stevenson.

McKinnon has right to vent

Alex McKinnon's frank views of the way Cameron Smith dealt with the tragic tackle situation did not go down well, writes Dana Johannsen.

Rattue: Heads must roll after debacle

What looked like the closest thing to a guaranteed place in the Olympics for our young footballers has turned into a farce involving an ineligible player, writes Chris Rattue.

David Leggat: American star on the cusp of being greatest

Comparing stars of different eras is a funny business, but it's hard to imagine there's been a player to better an on-song Serena Williams, writes David Leggat.

Wynne Gray: Lack of control and messy delivery mars win

We were uncertain what Samoa would bring and got a strong response; we know what we expect from the All Blacks and did not get it, writes Wynne Gray.

Carter fails to exert control

Oh dear. What an ugly war, but there was a lesson or two dished out at Apia Park and a reminder of what World Cup games can turn into, writes Chris Rattue.

Wynne Gray: Crunch time for fringe All Blacks

As the historic rugby tension reaches new levels today at Apia Park we need to reset marking guidelines for the All Blacks.