All Blacks coach Ian Foster could have two World Cups on his mind this year after his daughter Michaela Foster made her international debut for New Zealand’s soccer team against Argentina.
Called up to the “Football Ferns” squad last week, Wellington Phoenix defender Michaela Foster was introduced on the hour-mark of the 2-0 defeat at Hamilton’s Waikato Stadium on Monday.
A long-serving flyhalf and coach for Waikato in provincial and Super Rugby, the proud father returned to his old stomping ground to watch his 24-year-old daughter’s debut after offering her a few words of encouragement.
Photo: AP
“He’s always trying to give me advice,” Michaela Foster said jokingly yesterday. “No, he’s pretty good. He was just telling me to kind of enjoy the moment... I guess we were both unsure whether I would get on the field this tour or not, but he said just go in with an open mind, open eyes and just soak it all up.”
“He knows it’s a high pressure environment, but as long as you’re kind of open to everything and learning you’ll get the most out of it,” she said.
Just as her father is hoping the All Blacks can peak at the Rugby World Cup in France this year, Michaela Foster is hoping her international breakthrough can lead to a place in New Zealand’s squad for the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
New Zealand are cohosting the July 20 to Aug. 20 showpiece with Australia, and it is a big deal for the game in a rugby-mad country.
Ian Foster has played no small part in the All Blacks’ rise into a global branding powerhouse as a former assistant coach to Steve Hansen’s World Cup winners in England in 2015, before taking the top job after the 2019 tournament in Japan.
Despite living and breathing rugby his whole life, Foster’s enthusiasm for the sport did not extend to his two daughters playing it.
He has instead been right behind Michaela Foster’s development as a soccer player, even if long rugby tours have often kept them apart.
“I did a little bit of rugby and enjoyed it, had a lot of fun with it, but I think dad tried to push me and my sister away from rugby a little bit,” she said. “He probably saw that I enjoyed football a little more, I think.”
“He’s been to as many [of my] games as he can — him and mum are always trying to get to them... It’s pretty cool to have them in the crowd,” she said.
If his daughter is picked for the World Cup, Ian Foster might struggle to catch much of the action while on All Blacks duty. The international season starts in early July.
Michaela Foster’s soccer commitments could also disrupt plans to support her dad at the Sept. 8 to Oct. 28 Rugby World Cup in France.
Both will be proud supporters, whether from the terraces or from a distance.
“I’m extremely proud of what he’s achieved in the rugby world and what he’s continuing to achieve,” Michaela Foster said. “Either way, I’ve always been watching All Blacks games he’s been coaching, no matter where I am in the world.”
Taiwan won a back-and-forth match at the Unions Cup in Singapore yesterday, but the hosts claimed the trophy due to a better points differential over the tournament. Singapore’s players celebrated with the cup, despite losing a match in which they seized the lead three times, but ultimately fell to a 19-16 defeat. Their points advantage was due to their strong opening game against the other team in the competition, Thailand, who they beat 30-8 on Saturday last week. Taiwan narrowly lost to Thailand on Tuesday and went into yesterday’s match facing a steep challenge. They responded well, opening the game with sustained pressure
A buzz of excitement crackled through the hushed arena as the rider gripped the reins of her stuffed steed. Welcome to the strangely exacting world of hobby-horsing, the Finnish sport guaranteed to put a smile on your face. Immaculately coiffed equestrians leap athletically over fences just like in horse jumping, going as fast as they can against the clock straddling their stick steeds. Things are more stately in the dressage, with riders trotting their stick horses with intricately decorated stuffed heads before the discerning eyes of the judges. About 260 riders from 22 countries — most women and girls aged 10 to 20 —
Taiwan’s men’s national basketball team is set to upgrade its depth in the paint after signing Brandon Gilbeck of the P.League+’s Formosa Dreamers to a naturalized player’s contract. The 27-year-old big man from the US landed in Taoyuan early on Monday, where he was welcomed by Chinese Taipei Basketball Association deputy secretary-general Chang Cheng-chung. The two signed the deal, which still has to be approved by the Sports Administration and the Ministry of the Interior. Chang said he is confident that “the proceedings would go smoothly.” If approved, Gilbeck would become the third naturalized basketball player in Taiwan, following the New Taipei Kings’ Quincy
Luka Doncic fouled an opponent to try to get the ball back with Slovenia up by 27 points in the final seconds. Goga Bitadze tried to ensure that Georgia — his own team — would not win in regulation by attempting to score in an opponent’s basket as time was expiring. On the other hand, the Philippines, down by three as time was running out in its game, had no interest in trying to win. And here is the thing: All those plays made a lot of sense. Tiebreaker scenarios in the Olympic qualifying tournament games on Thursday led to some rather