Matty’s On the Five: Savea breaks scoring record, Parker busts heavyweight bruiser and Wahs beaten at home ground

How good was it to see Julian Savea break that scoring title? Joseph Parker stepped up against the man who beat the man who beat him! And my beloved Wahs weren’t able to bring it home in round one. It was another thrilling yet agonising weekend of sports and we’re here for it.

1. Julian Savea breaks Super Rugby scoring title

Sixty-one tries for the “bus” Julian Savea! On Saturday the veteran added to his stacked resume; over 150 caps with the Hurricanes, 54 caps with the All Blacks and 131 tries totalled in his professional career.

Savea scored in his new colours for Moana Pasifika, his first try for the side since signing last year. He has featured in all three matches for Moana this year, playing at 12 for the first time compared to his usual wing position.

Savea debuted for the Hurricanes in 2011, scoring 60 tries in his 12 seasons at the club. After the match he said he was grateful for the feat, but wanted to celebrate a team win before his own milestone.

Moana Pasifika v Melbourne Rebels 23 - 29

2. Joseph Parker busts heavyweight bruiser Zhilei Zhang

A quick three month turnaround after his shocking win against heavyweight knockout artist Deontay Wilder, and Joseph Parker is back in the win bracket. Parker won a majority decision against the WBO interim champion Zhilei Zhang in Saudi Arabia.

His opponent Zhilei Zhang, was also responsible for knocking out Joe Joyce twice, another heavyweight who knocked out Joseph Parker in 2022. But, Parker was able to nullify the Chinese brute’s KO power with brilliant work in the clinch.

Parker was able to outbox and outspeed Zhang in the latter rounds, who noticeably slowed down compared to earlier in the bout. Zhang was shocked when Parkers’ hand was raised, but the Samoan flag was thrown on Parker's back after his win.

This was Joseph Parker's fourth fight in the past twelve months, and hopefully this puts him back into title contention as the new interim WBO Heavyweight Champion.

3. Wahs beaten at home ground

It was a near perfect opening twenty minutes for the “Wahs” who were up against the Cronulla Sharks for their first NRL game of the year. The Warriors were up by 12, the crowd was amped and the world of rugby league was at peace.

But, before half-time the Sharks pounced over from dummy-half scoring in the corner, which was just the start of their onslaught against the home side.

The Sharks marched down the field in the second half and scored a try in the first minute, followed by another in the 57th from Tongan bolster Siosifa Talakai.

The Warriors weren’t able to execute their attack with a few handling errors, and a determined Sharks defence that was able to nullify the Warriors flair. A last ditch effort by Rocco Berry on the right edge wasn’t enough, as an offload was knocked on by Dallin Watene-Zelezniak.

The Warriors now head to Melbourne, where they will face the Storm this week.

4. Kilikiti at the Basin celebrates Pacific sport

Three matches of kilikiti at Wellington's iconic Basin Reserve was the first of its kind, celebrating the Pacific version of the “gentleman's game” kilikiti.

On Saturday saw teams hosted from Porirua and the Hutt Valley in the capital. It was a day of celebration for kilikiti, with performances, food stalls and more on offer for those in attendance.

It’s a huge milestone for our Pacific community in the capital, as it was the first time the version of cricket took place on the famous Basin Reserve where many international tests have been played.

The first game was between Porirua United vs Atafu Porirua Tokelau, followed by a Celebrity Showdown and then it finished with the Valley Bears vs Puluafi.

5. The Rock gets slapped in versace shirt

Things are heated up on the road to WrestleMania between the Bloodline and the team of Cody Rhodes and World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins. The Rock joined Roman Reigns in the ring on the latest episode of Smackdown.

The pair were interrupted by Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins, who stormed to the ring intent on laying their claim on their matches at WrestleMania.

The Rock proposed a tag-team match between the four stars on night one of WrestleMania, awaiting the response from Rhodes and Rollins. Rhodes grabbed the mic and just before he gave their answer, the Rock stopped the promo and started insulting him.
The Rock continued his usual promo, but was interrupted by Seth Rollins who laid a verbal beatdown on the Rock, accepting his proposal for a tag-team match. The Rock continued to insult the pair, and Rhodes slapped the Rock after comments made about Cody’s family.

Matty’s Golden Point

Matty’s Golden Point is a point of advice shared every week on his segment ‘Overtime with Matty’ on the Pacific Grandstand Show on 531PI.

“Took a couple L’s but that’s part of the game: live and learn”

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