Daily Archives: February 5, 2022

SEOUL (XINHUA, REUTERS) South Korea New Zealand and Hong Kong reported a record number of Covid-19 cases on Saturday (Feb 5), mostly fuelled by the highly infectious Omicron variant.

South Korea reported 36,362 more cases of Covid-19 for the past 24 hours, up from 27,443 the previous day and surpassing 36,000 for the first time, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.

The recent resurgence was driven by cluster infections in the Seoul metropolitan area amid the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, which became a dominant strain.

Of the new cases, 8,564 were Seoul residents. The number of the newly infected people living in Gyeonggi province and the western port city of Incheon was 10,419 and 2,494 respectively.

The virus spread also raged in the non-metropolitan region.

The number of new infections in the non-capital areas was 14,685, or 40.6 per cent of the total local transmission.

Among the new cases, 200 were imported from overseas.

The number of infected people who were in a serious condition stood at 269, up 12 from the previous day.

Twenty-two more deaths were confirmed, leaving the death toll at 6,858. The total fatality rate was 0.71 per cent.

The country has fully inoculated 85.9 per cent of the population and 54.5 per cent have had their boosters.

New Zealand too warned of more Covid-19 cases coming its way as it hit a record 243 community cases on Saturday.

Officials urged people in the highly vaccinated nation not to panic.

The country of five million people has kept its borders closed since early 2020. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Thursday a full reopening will happen only by October.

The border closure, combined with lockdowns and strict social distancing rules have limited the spread of the coronavirus, with just over 17,000 infections and 53 related deaths.

Originally posted here:

South Korea, New Zealand and Hong Kong report record Covid-19 cases - The Straits Times

As a nation, New Zealand has a reputation for proudly wearing its do-it-yourself ethos on its sleeve. National hero Burt Munro is, of course, a particularly potent example. The builder and pilot of the Worlds Fastest Indian motorcycle is quite naturally also revered by bike and speed enthusiasts around the world. Still, theres a completely understandable national pride in being able to say yep, hes one of ours.

That DIY reputation perfectly explains why Invercargill, New Zealand-based hardware shop E Hayes and Sonsand not some museumis the home of a massive Burt Munro collection, including The Bike. Well, that and the fact that the Hayes family had a lifelong friendship with Munro, and also the fact that Irving Hayes supported much of Munros racing habit financially. Even beyond that, though, its a match that makes absolute sense, given the fact that the man spent over 20 years fettling his record-setting machine in his Invercargill home before heading off to set that record.

Knowing all that, then, perhaps it should be less surprising than it is that in 2022, E Hayes just discovered some previously unknown old video footage of Burt Munro getting ready to head out to Bonneville. As often happens in families, one day, a Hayes family member mentioned some old film footage that could come in handy for celebrating E Hayes and Sons 90th anniversary year in 2022.

According to E Hayes marketing manager Nick Hawes, he was quite surprised once he realized what was on the film.

[I was] going through it and bang up comes Burt at Oreti, and Burt on the Bluff Hill before they sealed the road. Burts bike on the back of float at the centennial of Southland A&P Show in an exhibition for the motorcycle club, he told Stuff.co.nz.

Irving Hayes, along with his son Norman, were heavily involved with Munros racing effortsand its believed that Norman likely shot this recently unearthed film footage. In any case, Hawes said that theyre currently sorting through the hours of footage found and creating clips that E Hayes plans to release throughout 2022. You can view the first of these at the Stuff.co.nz link in our Sources, and if you happen to be in the Invercargill, New Zealand area, you can also go visit the Burt Munro collection at E Hayes & Sons. Its free to view as long as the store is open, so you can go pick up some supplies and also contemplate all the wonderful things you can make with them in one place.

Link:

Rare Burt Munro Film Footage Unearthed In New Zealand Collection - RideApart

Aijaz Rahi/AP

New Zealand's captain Kane Williamson, left, greets Australia's captain Aaron Finch ahead of their Twenty20 World Cup final in Dubai in November.

Seven scheduled white ball games between the Black Caps and Australia this summer are set to become none.

The three-match Twenty20 series between New Zealand and their trans-Tasman mens cricket rivals due to be played in Napier in March is likely to be cancelled, due to the unavailability and uncertainty of MIQ places and self-isolation restrictions.

That follows the cancellation of the three one-day games and solitary T20 encounter the two sides were set to contest in late January-early February in Australia. That series was abandoned as there were no managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) beds booked for the Black Caps, meaning they had no guarantee as to when players and staff could return to New Zealand.

Its understood New Zealand Cricket has been working through the Governments most recent border announcement to see if the tour by Australia could go ahead, but it is likely to prove too difficult to arrange and it also appears Cricket Australia is resigned to not sending a team.

READ MORE:* Pat Cummins fails to endorse Langer before crucial board meeting* Cricket Australia rejects reports of Justin Langer meltdown as it decides his future* Black Caps set to play more matches in Wellington next summer after capital loses test* Black Caps tour of Australia postponed with no guarantee of return home

That will leave the Black Caps with just two more home series this summer the two tests against South Africa in Christchurch this month, and one T20 and three one-day internationals versus the Netherlands in Mount Maunganui and Hamilton in late March-early April. New Zealand and Bangladesh drew their two-test series here in January.

ANDREW VOERMAN/STUFF

Cricket World Cup boss Andrea Nelson speaks on the impact of the shift to the red traffic light setting.

The Australian side for the tour was set to be a below-strength outfit, coached by current assistant coach Andrew McDonald, with the top side away in Pakistan at the time for a tour consisting of three tests, three ODIs and a T20 game.

See more here:

Australia's T20 tour of New Zealand set to be canned due to MIQ unavailability - Stuff.co.nz

Caroline Douthwaite (left), of Queenstown, with partner Kurt Wilson and their dog Benny. Photo / Guy Williams

Queenstown woman Caroline Douthwaite is running out of time and needs an answer.

The British citizen, who has been living in the resort town since relocating from Australia in 2018, must leave the country by March 10.

Douthwaite was issued a deportation liability notice by Immigration New Zealand after inadvertently breaching the terms of her visa.

After contacting Southland MP Joseph Mooney for advice, she wrote to Minister of Immigration Kris Faafoi last September, and later to Associate Immigration Minister Phil Twyford's office.

Five months later, she still does not have an answer.

Douthwaite said that as March 10 loomed closer, she was desperately hoping not to have to turn her life upside down and use up all her savings living abroad while she applied for a new visa.

A year after arriving in New Zealand, she found a job that came with a five-year sponsorship visa, but the employer reneged before she could start.

So she "took the initiative" and started a digital marketing business in which she finds potential clients for solar power companies.

However, when Immigration NZ found out last year she was not working for her sponsor, it issued her with the deportation liability notice.

She was "negligent" in not checking the rules, she said.

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She was now eligible to apply for a partnership visa with her Kiwi partner Kurt Wilson, as well as one of the recently announced residency visas, but could not apply for either while she was in the country.

Having to leave risked losing her business, and would require the couple to find a country to live in, make arrangements for their dog, as well as booking flights and finding accommodation, she said.

They could not afford to spend $10,000 flying to the United Kingdom and back.

"This is going to take all our savings, and it's honestly heartbreaking.

"We would have to relocate to another country, with no pathway to come home for months, and do all this during a global pandemic.

"Is it reasonable, based on the fact I made a simple error of judgement, that we're being put through all of this?"

She had "ambition and drive", and was helping other businesses make money and keep staff, she said.

After the Otago Daily Times contacted Faafoi's office about the matter, it was passed on to Twyford's office, then to Immigration NZ, before a spokesman for Twyford finally confirmed the associate minister was considering her case.

"A decision on this is still pending," the spokesman said.

Douthwaite said finally knowing who was reviewing her case gave her a "glimmer of hope".

The couple have started an online petition to support their case.

- ODT

Read more:

British woman in Queenstown issued deportation notice after visa breach - New Zealand Herald

Cricket lovers know the scenes well.

New Zealand play Surrey during the 1973 tour. Bev Brentnall is the wicketkeeper. Photo: Supplied / Ina Lamason Collection, NZ Cricket Museum

On a golden English summer evening in 1975, the West Indies men's team beat the mighty Australians to win the first World Cup in London.

Except it wasn't.

Two years earlier seven women's teams headed to England play cricket's actual first World Cup.

It was the idea of England women's captain Rachael Heyhoe-Flint and financed by businessman Jack Hayward.

The year before New Zealand toured Australia and South Africa, winning test series in each country.

Now, a similar team was to head overseas again, for a month of cricket and plenty of travel.

The 14 women were skilled athletes, but cricket wasn't their profession. They had jobs, or families to care for.

Over summer they played club matches and a 10-day provincial tournament, but in the months leading to the World Cup much of the preparation was solitary in the winter gloom.

Captain and wicketkeeper Bev Brentnall, a primary school teacher from North Shore who turns 86 next month, would go running after work and practice her catching using a net at home.

Others had similar routines, and then there was the matter of raising funds. Each woman had to come up with $1000 to make the tour.

Finally, in June, they were off. Even that was not plain sailing, with flight delays and long lags en route ensuring a weary team arrived in London.

The trip was still quicker than the six weeks the team spent travelling to England by boat just seven years earlier.

The 1973 World Cup team. Maureen Peters is in the back row at right. Lynda Prichard is in the second row at left, and Judi McCarthy at right. Bev Brentnall is second from right in the front. Photo: Supplied / Etha Rouse Collection, NZ Cricket Museum

"We had to pay our own airfare and I dare say that lovely man Jack Howard paid for a lot of the accommodation," said Maureen Peters, then Maureen Dunlop.

"It's quite funny because we ended up staying in Baker Street, London, at the Sherlock Holmes Hotel, so that was quite something as well."

The accommodation varied as the team wound their way around England.

"We did stay in other places and there was three in a room, two in a double bed, one in a single. One of the rooms had a bathroom from Lord Nelson's ship," said Peters, 79.

It was a busy tour with plenty of functions, as well as six international matches and other games against local sides.

The teams had a reception with prime minister Ted Heath, and a cocktail party with the New Zealand men's team also touring England.

There, the two captains, Bev Brentnall and Bev Congdon, revelled in the rarity of the men's and women's leaders having the same first name.

"There was a big article in the paper about the two Bevs," Brentnall recalled.

But the tour was about cricket and the New Zealanders did not have long to get up to speed with the new format of one-day, 60-over matches.

The players wore whites, and played in culottes, not trousers.

Opening batter Judi McCarthy, then Judi Doull, said the side were aware the tournament was making history, but they were also working out new tactics.

"We did know we'd beaten the men to play the World Cup, because there hadn't been a men's World Cup before. There hadn't been any World Cup in cricket before that."

McCarthy, 84, thought the team selection was not right for the one-day game.

She said she was too slow at the top of the order, but in the test game she was a serious player, averaging more than 40.

Peters said she enjoyed playing on English grounds.

An opening bowler who specialised in out-swing, she finished her one-day career with a remarkably miserly economy rate of less than two runs an over.

At the 1973 World Cup she even bowled seven overs for four runs against eventual champions, England.

Not everyone was sure about the new limited-overs matches, however.

Team manager Ina Lamason said it was hit and giggle, funsy sport.

Brentnall, too, preferred the longer game, and still does.

"We actually hadn't been playing limited-over cricket here, but it was something new for us. To be honest, although I felt very honoured to be named captain, I would rather have been captaining a test series. That's proper cricket," she said.

"We had a good team. They were good cricket players, so we adapted quite quickly. We didn't just sit around and let people beat us."

The New Zealand and Trinidad and Tobago teams line up before their 1973 World Cup match. Photo: Supplied / Ina Lamason Collection, NZ Cricket Museum

Coverage of women's sport was varied, often depending on individual journalists taking an interest.

Some reverted to tropes about looks, rather than ability.

As detailed in The Warm Sun on My Face: The story of women's cricket in New Zealand, former Australian men's all-rounder Keith Miller wrote in Britain's Daily Express newspaper: "It was bras off and chestplates on when Australia's whirlwind bowler Tina Macpherson was bumping them down on the opening day of the women's World Cup...

"Gone were the days of flat chests and hairy legs. These girls had curvaceous figures and beauty... My vote for the cutest-looking cricketer goes to opening bat Donna Carmino, a 16-year-old schoolgirl from Trinidad."

Unlike the men two years later, no women's games were held at London's famous Lord's ground.

The Marylebone Cricket Club president Aidan Crawley said if women's cricket proved itself as graceful as other sport, "Lord's would be sympathetic to any appeals for a match if there was ever another women's World Cup".

"I think we just ignored it. pompous gentleman wanting to hear the sound of their own voice," said New Zealand top-order batter Lynda Prichard, then Lynda Powell.

"I don't think that any of us really had the expectation of wanting to perform at the top grounds throughout the world. We were happy to play a test at St Kilda in Melbourne rather than the MCG.

"That didn't matter for us, it was the fact that we were playing international cricket and we were playing to the best standard that we could produce."

Peters though said some were disappointed they could not play at Lord's, and by Crawley's comments.

"We all went, 'Oh wow, that's typical'. It was off putting to start with. Not the greatest."

Prichard, 71, scored 70 in New Zealand's first game against Trinidad and Tobago, as the team made a winning start.

They were scheduled to play the tournament's opening match against Jamaica, but the likely victory for New Zealand was rained off.

This came at a huge cost. The system used at the tournament allocated four points for a win and just one for a no-result.

New Zealand went on to beat England, losing to Australia and an International team. But for the rain they could have finished second, and even had a shot at winning if other results had fallen their way.

"I know that we were disappointed, but what can you do?" McCarthy said. "It was the first time and I guess it was a learning experience for everybody running it."

"Yes, we were disappointed by that, but you can't dwell on it forever, can you?" Brentnall said.

Memories of the tour, however, are happy ones, as Peters describes.

"We got good crowds. They love their cricket over there.

"Before we left we played a test match against Australia and I think there were 20 people there, and about four or five of those were my family.

"When we got over there it felt a lot different. It was lovely... We were pioneers, weren't we?"

Prichard, too, has fond recollections about a month that altered her life.

"I think the romance really started after the tour. I was more interested in playing cricket during the tour.

"I got to know my husband Roy. He was our coach driver and we just got friendly. He was with us all the time."

Lynda and Roy wrote to each other for a while, before Roy moved to New Zealand. They are about to celebrate 48 years of marriage.

It came about by luck too. The team's original bus driver was replaced when it became obvious he did not know his way around London.

A newspaper clipping describes how Lynda and Roy Prichard met. Photo: Supplied / Lynda Prichard

New Zealand has won one World Cup, at home in 2000, after twice losing finals, to England at Lord's in 1993 and to Australia in India in 1997.

Peters played for New Zealand until 1982 and for more than 20 years for Wellington, before becoming a national selector. She still loves cricket and hopes to attend World Cup matches this year.

Prichard played for New Zealand until 1975 and, during the 1982 World Cup in New Zealand, was a tournament liaison officer in Auckland. She also watches cricket and has tickets for the World Cup.

McCarthy also last played for New Zealand in 1975. She was a national selector and ran the Silver Fern Club for everyone who had played for New Zealand, until handing that over to New Zealand Cricket. She plans to attend the World Cup. More recently McCarthy has been involved in golf and lawn bowls.

Brentnall retired after the 1973 World Cup. She was president of the New Zealand women's governing body for a while, but has not been involved in cricket since its administration merged with the men's and her role abruptly finished. She has also played golf. She prefers following test cricket.

Acknowledgements: Penny Kinsella; New Zealand Cricket Museum curator Owen Mann; The Warm Sun on My Face: The story of women's cricket in New Zealand, by Trevor Auger, with Adrienne Simpson; Ng Taonga Sound and Vision.

Read more from the original source:

New Zealand set to host women's Cricket World Cup 49 years after the first one - RNZ

Supplied/Stuff

Kmart is releasing whiteware in Australia. Theres a chance it will come to NZ eventually too.

Retail giant Kmart is launching its own range of whiteware but New Zealand shoppers shouldnt get too excited about the prospect of new washing machines, dryers, dishwashers and fridges just yet.

The appliances are the Kmart brand Anko, and will be released as an online exclusive to Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia customers on February 17, a Kmart spokeswoman said.

A silver fridge will cost A$449 (NZ$528.08), a 60cm dishwasher is A$399, a 7kg dryer A$349 and an 8kg top-load washing machine costs A$419.

Maia Hart

Ever dreamed of shopping at Kmart and having the place to yourself? (Video first published in August 2019)

But while there isnt hope for local shoppers yet, there is a chance the range will arrive in Kiwi stores in future.

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We are looking to explore this in the future for New Zealand, the spokeswoman said.

She said Kmart saw a gap in the market for affordable appliances, and would release them as part of its latest living range.

The new white goods range was seen as a gap in the market, a Kmart spokeswoman said.

The range is offered as an online exclusive to provide customers with the convenience of having the products delivered straight to their door, she said.

See the original post here:

Kmart may launch whiteware brand in New Zealand stores - Stuff.co.nz

The Indian womens cricket teams ODI series against New Zealand will now begin on February 12, a day later than originally scheduled, as the host board announced revised fixtures on Friday to give the two sides more time between games.

The Indian team was scheduled to play five ODIs and a T20I, starting February 9 across three venues but New Zealand Cricket (NZC) moved all matches to John Davies Oval in Queenstown last month in order to limit travelling and reduce the chances of a COVID-19 outbreak.

With the teams not having to travel, the NZC has rescheduled fixtures to give the two sides more time between each match.

NZC has made changes to the dates of the KFC India Tour of NZ between the WHITE FERNS and India Women, to be played exclusively at John Davies Oval in Queenstown.

The date of the first KFC T20I remains the same but there has been some adjustments made to the subsequent five match KFC ODI series, a statement from NZC read.

The bilateral series, which is crucial for India ahead of the World Cup in March-April, will begin with the one-off T20I which is still slated to be played on February 9.

However, the first three ODIs have been pushed back from their original dates.

The ODI series-opener will now be played on February 12 rather than February 11.

The second ODI, which was slated to be played on February 14, has also been pushed a day back and is now scheduled for February 15, while the third ODI is now slated for February 18, rather than February 16.

There is no change in the dates of final two matches which will be played on February 22 and 24.

The Indian team is currently undergoing the mandatory Managed Isolation and Quarantine (MIQ) in Christchurch.

Original post:

Indian womens ODI series against New Zealand to begin on February 12 as fixtures revised - The Indian Express

A Highlanders team huddle during last year's Super Rugby Transtasman. Photo / Photosport

New Zealand Rugby has confirmed the decision to relocate the six New Zealand-based Super Rugby Pacific squads to Queenstown to mitigate against the risk of Covid-19.

NZR general manager of professional rugby and performance Chris Lendrum said the move would provide the best chance of the inaugural season of Super Rugby Pacific kicking off as scheduled on Friday, February 18.

"Under current Covid-19 regulations it would only take one positive case entering a squad environment to shut down an entire squad for 10 days. The knock-on effect for the rest of the competition would be the postponement or cancellation of matches," Lendrum said.

"By moving the teams to a secure hub, we believe we have a good chance of preventing a Covid-19 infection, or close contact event, sidelining one of our teams for a prolonged period. The plan is currently for the teams to move to Queenstown early next week and remain in Queenstown for the opening three weeks of the competition."

The Blues, Hurricanes, Moana Pasifika, and Chiefs will fly to Queenstown on charter flights, while the Crusaders and Highlanders will bus south over the coming weekend.

The squads will operate in separate bubbles with exclusive use of training facilities in the Queenstown area. Day matches will be played in Queenstown at the Wakatipu Rugby Club whereas teams will bus to and from Rugby Park in Invercargill for any night matches.

Matches are scheduled to be played according to the revised Super Rugby Pacific draw announced last December with all matches broadcast live and exclusive on Sky. All matches will be played without crowds at the red level of the traffic light settings.

Teams will stay in local hotels and will use Covid-19 protocols successfully implemented by the All Blacks during last year's Northern Tour. While players and staff will be able to undertake some outdoor activities during their stay, they will remain in their team bubbles at all times and will be subject to regular rapid antigen tests.

Lendrum stressed the move to Queenstown was seen as a temporary measure with plans in place for teams to return to their home bases and regular venues in March. The timing of the move is based on recent modelling of likely infection rates.

"We are committed to bringing the teams home in early-March regardless of the Covid-19 landscape.

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"We realise there is a significant sacrifice in leaving whnau behind to play these matches and we are grateful for the cooperation of our players, the New Zealand Rugby Players' Association, Sky and also the Queenstown Lakes District Council who have accommodated our requests at short notice and providing facilities for our teams to train and play in the region."

Lendrum also said NZR was committed to playing Super Rugby Aupiki and is weighing the options on how to manage the tournament and four Super Rugby Aupiki squads, and would announce those details in due course.

More:

NZR confirm relocation of Kiwi Super Rugby teams ahead of new season - New Zealand Herald

New Zealanders stuck offshore say its another slap in the face to see Tourism New Zealand advertisements encouraging people to travel here, when theyve been trying to for months.

Kiwi Adam Borich, who runs his own business in the US state of New York, saw the ads pop up on Facebook and was initially thrilled to see one which started with the words: This is a message from New Zealand.

I thought, Wow, theyre finally opening the border for us. I must have missed the announcement on Stuff, he said.

Knowing 100% NZ is a Government agency, I thought this was it. There was nothing in the ad to indicate the borders were still closed.

ADAM BORICH/Supplied

In New York, US, Adam Borich saw New Zealand's advertising and thought the borders had finally opened.

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Tourism NZ, a Crown entity which advertises under the 100% Pure New Zealand brand, launched the new online advertising campaign at the start of January, targeting countries such as the US and United Kingdom.

The Message from New Zealand campaign started on January 2, and was targeted at people living in the US and Britain, according to Facebook data.

Since March, Borich said he had been logging into each round of the MIQ releases online often scheduled in the middle of the night for Kiwis living in the US.

Im there for every lottery, but the highest I ever got was 16,000th in the queue, he added.

He said he had booked tickets as soon as it was announced citizens would be able to isolate at home early this year, but he said he was giving up all hope after the Government delayed those changes in December.

Supplied

A Tourism New Zealand advertising campaign, "A Message from New Zealand", has been offending Kiwis offshore - who haven't been able to make it back.

Borich, like many others, had to cancel their flights and plans once again.

He had been trying to see his whnau, especially his young nieces and nephews who were growing up fast.

Living overseas right now, you always get your hopes up, he said. Adverts encouraging people to visit New Zealand proved to be another example of hopes being dashed, and another slap in the face for Kiwis living overseas, he said.

I dont want to be dramatic, but we dont even feel like Kiwis any more. It feels like the country has turned its back on us.

ROBERT KITCHIN/Stuff

ACT leader David Seymour says Kiwis stuck offshore have contacted him about Tourism NZ advertising during the pandemic.

ACT leader David Seymour said Kiwis stuck offshore, including Borich, had raised the ads with him.

Their advertising is whistling in the wind, wasting taxpayers money, and severely offending New Zealanders for whom just the thought of being able to return to New Zealand as a citizen is a fantasy, he said.

He said it may be the case that Tourism NZ scheduled the posts in advance of the Government delaying MIQ-free entry to New Zealand, and was therefore a victim of the same disorganisation everyone else faces.

But Seymour asked why the agency was spending money to promote something nobody could access. Advertising when youre out of stock never makes your shop more popular.

Speaking at Mondays post-cabinet press conference, Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson said the prime minister would be speaking about reconnecting New Zealand during a speech on Thursday.

Tourism NZ was approached for comment but did not respond by deadline.

Link:

Tourism NZ restarts global advertising, while the border remains closed - Stuff.co.nz

If it feels like the rugby season only finished a few weeks ago, you're not alone. Add to that the fact that Rugby Australia has this week been drip-feeding its 2021 awards, and you could be forgiven for wondering whether the players have had a break at all.

Or maybe you were able to switch off and enjoy the cricket and the Australian Open, at least after Novak Djokovic departed Tullamarine with his tail between his legs?

No matter which way it's been, the reality is that the official kick-off of the Australian and New Zealand rugby seasons is now just two weeks away.

A bumper 10-month calendar awaits, highlighted by the inaugural Super Rugby Pacific, the visits of Ireland and England to New Zealand and Australia respectively, Rugby World Cup 2021 [delayed from last year] and of course the Rugby Championship and spring tours.

As usual, there will be just as much happening off the field as on it as both nations continue to struggle with the realities of professional sport amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read on as we cover some of the major storylines to across in 2022.

CAN MOANA PASIFIKA AND FIJIAN DRUA SAVE SUPER RUGBY?

After two years of separation - and the successful Aotearoa and AU tournaments - the five New Zealand franchises and their five Aussie counterparts are fully reunited in Super Rugby Pacific. They have been joined by fledgling outfits Moana Pasifika and Fijian Drua, with the teams to be based in New Zealand and Australia respectively.

Given the success of Super Rugby AU; the way the competition appeared to resonate with fans; the fact it supplied Australian winners week in, week out, and it's gripping finale; Rugby Australia faced pressure to retain the tournament on its own - and those calls only grew louder when the Kiwi franchises dominated the crossover Trans-Tasman series 23-2. But there was always the belief from both NZR & RA that the competition was better - and stronger - together. Certainly the other school of thought for Australian rugby is that its franchises needed to be playing their Kiwi counterparts more, not less.

Fast forward six months, and the competition draw has already been revised, while this week NZR sent its six teams south to Queenstown to mitigate the risk of COVID infection across its playing cohort. Western Force, meanwhile, have headed east to escape Mark McGowan - or the state's hard border at least - and there remains the very real possibility the tournament will have to be finished in Australia once the Kiwi teams head to Melbourne for Super Round. All options remain on the table.

The hope is, however, that the two new Pacific teams bring a different element to the tournament and that there is considerable improvement across the five Australian franchises. If the wider Australian sporting audience is to be engaged at all, the Brumbies, Reds, Waratahs, Force and Rebels must mix it with the Kiwis. While that will be a key indicator of the tournament's success, there is a quiet belief that Super Rugby at last has its props in a row: A tournament that rugby supporters actually want to watch.

WHAT IS GOING ON WITH THE GITEAU LAW?

For a few months last year, the vagaries of Rugby Australia's updated Giteau Law appeared hugely beneficial for Australian rugby. Samu Kerevi and Quade Cooper first returned to the Wallabies, having an instant impact across a four-Test winning streak during the Rugby Championship, while Sean McMahon also joined the party but only managed a short cameo.

The whole scenario smelt of roses, until Wallabies management decided to select the trio despite the lack of a firm guarantee they would travel onto Europe after the team's Japanese stopover. Almost inevitably, the three men got cold feet and instead opted to do right by their clubs and prepare for the League One preseason.

So out went Cooper, Kerevi and McMahon, and in came Rory Arnold, Tolu Latu, Will Skelton and, later, Kurtley Beale. While none of the quartet had the same impact as Cooper or Kerevi, all but Latu suggested they were worth persisting with if the situation presents.

And that's exactly the problem: What is the situation? The Giteau Law has been under review by RA board members Phil Waugh and Daniel Herbert, alongside chief executive Andy Marinos who told ESPN in late October that "we are going to be looking at our eligibility policy at the end of this year".

That was to involve a report from Wallabies coach Dave Rennie, who was clearly chastened by the dramas in Japan, which also may have played a part in the non-renewal of director of rugby Scott Johnson's contract. But the report is still a no-show.

The sooner the updated restrictions are released, the better.

EDDIE RETURNS HOME, WITH ENGLAND; IRELAND TO NZ

Just what shape the Giteau Law eventually takes will determine which of Australia's overseas based players will be eligible to face England in a huge three-Test series in July. Japan's League One season will have concluded by then, so it's reasonable to suggest that Rennie will have presented a case that sees Kerevi available at least [Cooper was already eligible under the original guidelines].

Whatever the case, the series represents Australia's best opportunity to snap a run of eight straight defeats by England. After he oversaw a 3-0 sweep in 2016 - which started the miserable run for the Wallabies - Eddie Jones will bring his usual mind games and mischief Down Under, alongside a squad that has already undergone some transition, and has since been forced into even more for the Six Nations following a raft of injuries.

Meanwhile, Ireland head to New Zealand for three Tests of their own, coming off an impressive last-start win over the All Blacks when they largely dominated Ian Foster's side. But Ireland have never won a Test in New Zealand, and the All Blacks will be intent on revenge after a poor outing in Dublin in November.

All in all, for three straight weeks in July, it's a rugby paradise.

FOSTER TO FEEL THE HEAT?

It won't be paradise for All Blacks coach Ian Foster if he drops even one of those Tests against Ireland, however.

Having retained the Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship last year, Foster had quietened the doubters who believe he is not the man to get the best out of this current bunch of All Blacks. But then they lost to the Springboks, so too Ireland and France, and suddenly the wolves were barking once more.

Any other nation would largely be thrilled with 12 wins from 15 Tests. But not New Zealand. One defeat is understandable, even two ... but three? That's cause for alarm.

Certainly the expectation will be that they sweep Ireland 3-0 in July, deal with the Wallabies as per usual, so too the Pumas, and then battle with the Springboks for Rugby Championship supremacy. That would leave just the spring tour, when they came unstuck last year.

If things don't go to plan, then you can expect calls for Scott Robertson to be catapulted into the top job a year out from the World Cup won't just be coming from the South Island. Foster believes he knows where he went wrong last year - the proof will be in the All Blacks' 2022 results.

PRIVATE EQUITY DEBATE WILL ROLL ON

Having already dragged on for much of 2021, New Zealand Rugby's dalliance with private equity continues as the fight between the governing body and the Players' Union shows no sign of abating.

NZR is desperate to secure the investment from PE firm Silver Lake to reinvest into its grassroots, but the Players Union believe a better solution is to have NZR listed as a public company and be truly owned by the fans.

Silver Lake, who recently invested $130mAUD for 33% of Australia's A-Leagues football competition, was to buy 12.5% of a newly created commercial arm of NZR, while the Players Union proposed an initial 5% public floating as a means to raising badly needed capital.

Meanwhile, across the ditch, Rugby Australia is keeping a close eye on developments in New Zealand having already engaged Silver Lake in discussions of its own. There is, however, a seemingly more accepting acknowledgment from all stakeholders in the game that without PE investment the Australian game, from the professional right down to grassroots, is on borrowed time.

Australian rugby has also long courted the big end of town so a deal with an international PE firm perhaps appears less frightening. We are, however, yet to hear from Australia's Rugby Union Players Association on the matter, and that may be where a deal hits the same stumbling block as it has across the ditch.

It's very much a "watch this space" situation.

A MASSIVE YEAR FOR WOMEN'S RUGBY

Delaying Rugby World Cup 2021 wasn't ideal, but it was the only possible solution amid the COVID-19 pandemic and New Zealand's international border restrictions.

What the postponement to 2022 has done, however, is give each of the competing 12 nations an extra year of preparation, which will be particularly valuable for both the Black Ferns and Wallaroos. Both playing cohorts have been short on rugby in recent times, the Wallaroos in particular whose 2022 Test calendar was wiped completely.

The Black Ferns did travel north to Europe, where they were walloped by both France and England in a huge reality check before they host the tournament later this year. The launch of Super Rugby Aupiki will be the first point of improvement, with New Zealand's women at last having a proper professional tournament of their own.

Australia's Super W has been up and running for a few years, but was shoehorned into a tighter window and shifted to Coffs Harbour amid the pandemic last year. ESPN has been told the 2022 draw isn't too far from being released and that the "intention" is to include a Fijian Drua team as part of the tournament as well.

Both the Wallaroos and Black Ferns will then contest the Pacific Four series with the United States and Canada later this year, alongside other Test matches in their build-up for the World Cup.

If all goes to plan, this should be a watershed year for women's rugby in both New Zealand and Australia.

WHO WILL TOUTAI KEFU ENTICE OVER TO TONGA?

Firstly, it has been brilliant to see the global rugby community rally around Tonga since the tsunami struck the Pacific island a few weeks to go. Money has been raised in all corners of the globe, while on Saturday the Queensland Reds are staging a fundraising legends match as the curtain-raiser for their trial against the Force.

Playing in that match will be Tonga coach Toutai Kefu, who has recovered from a violent home invasion in Brisbane last year, and who also now has access to an even greater talent pool following World Rugby's Test eligibility change that was mandated last year.

Suddenly the likes of former All Blacks Charles Piutau, Vaea Fifita, Steven Luatua and potentially Ngani Laumape are all eligible - or they will be by the time the 2023 World Cup rolls around -- so too exiled former Wallabies fullback Israel Folau.

Kefu is a beloved figure not just in Australian rugby, but far beyond it, too. And he may yet bring together a squad that will have the likes of Pool B - where Tonga will land providing they qualify - rivals Scotland and Ireland looking over their shoulder.

Samoa and Fiji, too, will have access to a greater playing pool, but it's Tonga who look like being the big beneficiaries of World Rugby's historic decision.

The rest is here:

The rugby storylines to follow in Australia & New Zealand in 2022 - ESPN Australia