Hayden Meikle

The master of fear continues to prove he has more than a single string to his bow.

My 10 favourite moments from the 2013 Otago Ranfurly Shield reign. 

Otago coaches Tony Brown and Phil Young are weighing up their options for a forced backline reshuffle for the first defence of the Ranfurly Shield on Sunday.

Hundreds of Otago rugby players have tried and failed to win the Ranfurly Shield, but the group of successful challengers includes some of the province's greats. Hayden Meikle picks out some Otago shield heroes.

Ding dong, the witch is dead. Immortal words, uttered by rugby league coaching great Jack Gibson when he finally guided the Parramatta Eels to their first title in 1981.

A picture tells a thousand words, but Stephen Barnes can sum up his Ranfurly Shield memories in just six.

They're back. Welcome to the fourth annual Otago Daily Times sports power rankings. Your guide, as always, is Hayden Meikle.

Read this. Read the story of Damien Echols and tell me you still support the death penalty. I dare you.

Bravo to the North Otago Rugby Football Union for drawing a line in the sand over the growing issue of referee abuse.

Bevan Lawson is just your ordinary run-of-the-mill Mosgiel boy playing korfball in the Netherlands.

The best of the best on snow and ice are back. The third Winter Games, starting next week, will light up Wanaka, Queenstown and Naseby with some of the world's elite skiers, snowboarders and curlers. Hayden Meikle and Alistair McMurran look at the events and the stars who are coming.

The new English Premier League season kicks off in 11 days, and how New Zealand fans will consume the exotic mix of football and drama has drastically changed.

Otago could be missing all three of its imports when it chases Champions League glory in India next month.

Otago will have to do without imports Brett Lee and James Fuller when it plays in the Champions League in India next month.

Jesse Ryder will be an Otago cricketer on October 1 and it may not be long before his international career is revived.

Byron Wells, from the first family of New Zealand freeskiing, will be one of the star attractions at the third Winter Games in Queenstown-Wanaka next month. Beyond that, he is eyeing an Olympic debut. He talks to sports editor Hayden Meikle.

Otago coach Vaughn Johnson has rolled out the welcome mat for Jesse Ryder but also stressed the exiled Black Cap will be treated like any other player.