Matty’s On the Five: Finals footy at last for the mighty New Zealand Warriors

Matty's On The Five is our weekly wrap focusing on five of the biggest moments in Pacific sport, as determined by Matt Manukuo.

​1. The Warriors finish an astonishing season in the top 4

It’s the first time since 2007 that the NZ Warriors have finished in the top four on the NRL ladder. Twenty-four years ago it was the barnstorming front row of Ruben Wiki and Steve Price dominating up front, and 16 years later it’s Addin Fonua-Blake and Mitchell Barnett leading the charge.

But in their last game, the Warriors were unable to finish the season strong, getting pummeled by the Redcliffe-based Dolphins 34-10 at Suncorp Stadium.

Head coach Andrew Webster decided to rest a number of key players for the finals, so the make-shift team wasn’t able to combat a firing, full-strength Dolphins side.

The Warriors will need to pull together a strong performance in the first round of finals, as they face back-to-back premiers the Penrith Panthers. With their star players back in the side, the team will have to clean up on the defensive end to combat the relentless Panthers' attack.

2. 2023 Rugby World Cup kicks off this week

The Rugby World Cup kicks off this weekend in France, as 20 teams compete for glory and the chance to be crowned world champions.

While most eyes will be plastered on the opener between the All Blacks and France, fans from the Pacific will be eager to see how Fiji, Samoa and Tonga play in this year's World Cup after some astonishing pre-tournament performances.

The Flying Fijians might be the dark horse for their pool, and will need to make a statement early in their first match against Wales. But given their historic win against England, the Fijians should be able to bring the same intensity to topple the Welshmen.

Manu Samoa have looked strong in their pre-World Cup hit outs and will take confidence into the tournament after a narrow loss against France. Samoa have strong competitors in their pool, and will need their mix of experience and youth to encourage good performances.

‘Ikale Tahi named a “World Cup winning squad” earlier in the year, but were dealt several injuries to key players during the pre-tournament games. The Tongan side can take some confidence following their wins against Canada but they will need to put in some strong 80 minute performances to get out of a tough pool.

​3. Tafa picks up first UFC win and Max Holloway honors Hawaii

UFC Heavyweight Junior Tafa is back in the winner’s circle after knocking out Parker Porter in the UFC Fight Night 225. Tafa lost his first fight earlier in the year against Mohammed Usman by decision, and was eager to bounce back from the defeat.

Tafa knocked out Porter in the first round with a barrage of punches, eventually ending the fight with one punch in a close exchange. Porter suffered his second knockout to Tafa, after Junior’s brother Justin knocked him out last year.

In the main event, Samoan-Hawaiian fighter Max “Blessed” Holloway stopped featherweight legend the Korean Zombie in the third round by TKO.

It was an emotional week for Holloway following the Maui wildfires, he carried the Hawaiian flag in his entrance and dedicated his win to those affected.

Holloway now looks towards a possible title fight against featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovoski, who he has suffered three loses to.​

4. South Island stuns the North Island across rugby codes

The South Island has seen some recent success in the oval ball codes, with two teams from the south winning the national first XV and first XIII competitions.

Southland Boys High School celebrated their first ever national secondary schools first XV championship, beating Palmerston North Boys High School by one point on Saturday.

Meanwhile, St Thomas College from Christchurch beat St Pauls College in the rugby league secondary schools first XIII championship winning 12 points to 6 on Sunday.

There were a number of strong Pacific players in the St Thomas side, who beat the three heavy hitters of St Pauls, Kelston and De La Salle on their way to victory. St Thomas’ victory breaks a 23 year drought and returns the winner's shield to the South Island for the first time in many years.

​5. ​​Tall Blacks finish FIBA World Cup on a high

The Tall Blacks ended their FIBA World Cup campaign with a narrow two point win against Egypt 88 - 86 in a game that came down to the wire.

New Zealand were spearheaded by strong bench efforts from Izayah Le'afa (27 points and four steals) and Isaac Fotu (14 points), while game MVP Finn Delany scored 27 points on 8-from-12 shooting.

Delaney reflected on the tournament and told RNZ about his biggest takeaways from the World Cup.

"The Tall Blacks and New Zealand we always compete with the superpowers around the world, we say that a lot and we did that this week - my mission and our mission was to push that further and not accept just competing with the heavyweights, we wanted to come in and win and get to the second round. We fell short of that, but we learned a lot and we kept pushing," he said.