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Sport Nation
Passion and opinions: Sport Nation Afternoon's best moments of 2025
Logan Swinkels • January 15th, 2026 7:00 am
Sport Nation is ‘the Kiwi voice of sport’ and that voice includes our listeners. From midday is when those voices are heard the loudest on 0800 150 811 and that will continue in 2026.
With Daniel McHardy returning for Mondays with McHardy from midday January 19, and Mark Stafford back on Sport Nation Afternoons from 12pm on January 20, let’s look back at some of their best moments from last year.
Tom Jordan In Studio
‘Goosebumps’ – that’s how Staffy described it upon hearing NZ-born Tom Jordan’s story of his Scotland debut at the legendary Murrayfield.
The Bristol Bears first five was a special in-studio guest back in July. During the interview, the kilted Kiwi recalled in detail the moment he led the team off the bus into the stadium, surrounded by thousands of passionate Scottish fans, and the raw emotion of the national anthem.
“It’s a pretty awesome experience – it’s hard to get over, you just want more of it every time,” Jordan said.
When a Kiwi-born Tom Jordan debuted at Murrayfield | Sport Nation Afternoons
The Netball NZ saga
It’s no secret that Staffy loves his netball – but 2025 proved to be a challenging year for the sport as conflict and drama embroiled Netball New Zealand and Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua.
Not afraid to speak out and champion those affected, the Afternoons host shone a light back in October on how players had become targeted by ‘keyboard warriors’ and ‘misinformed media’.
This moment alone showed Staffy at his finest.
Staffy on the biggest crime of the Netball NZ coaching saga | Sport Nation Afternoons
The NPC
That wasn’t the only time in 2025 that Staffy got fired up about a topic dear to his heart.
With the NPC season fast approaching at the end of July, the Manawatu man aired his grievances about a lack of promotion and information from New Zealand Rugby on the nation’s premier provincial rugby competition.
“It’s almost like they don’t want us to get excited,” he lamented.
Staffy slams NZR for lack of NPC promotion and information | Sport Nation Afternoons
The NPC: Part II
Upon kickoff, that excitement for the NPC escalated as a memorable season unfolded.
The poet Stafford penned this special tribute one week into the 2025 campaign: “Oh, NPC…forever may you reign.”
Staffy's touching tribute to the NPC | Sport Nation Afternoons
Lessons, Not Learnings
There are two things that bug Staffy: Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline blasting at stadiums, and how many in New Zealand sport choose to say ‘learnings’ rather than the grammatically correct ‘lessons’.
Back in April, Crusaders assistant coach Matt Todd rose high in the host’s books.
Matt Todd chooses lessons over learnings | Sport Nation Afternoons
Mondays with McHardy
Last year, Sport Nation made a change to their afternoons programming that saw The Saturday Session host Daniel McHardy take the reins at the start of the week for Mondays with McHardy.
A leading voice in our live sport commentary, McHardy has seen a lot and called his share of memorable sporting moments.
And he’s not shy of voicing his concerns around the All Blacks as they continue to build towards the 2027 Rugby World Cup – in particular, their kicking game and the back three.
Daniel's kicking concerns for the All Blacks | Mondays with McHardy
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