It had certainly come at a bad time.

With All Black great Aaron Smith retiring after last year’s World Cup, new coach Scott Robertson getting his feet under the table and Roigard having lit up the Super Rugby season, the 23-year-old was presumed by most to be New Zealand’s new first-choice scrum-half.

In a talent pool of such prodigious depths, though, spend some time out of the set-up and you can soon sink without trace.

Forced to rest for a couple of weeks after being sliced, stitched and fixed, Roigard stewed over a prognosis of at least six months out.

“I wouldn’t say I got into a hole, but I guess there are times you feel sorry for yourself, especially early doors after my operation,” he says.

But Roigard has never felt sorry for himself for long.

As a small, slow kid, he had to sharpen his skills to make up the gap on more naturally gifted players.

As an emerging teenage prospect, his local selectors in Waikato still had doubts, thinking Roigard had already maximised his potential and peaked.

Each time, he doubled down. He upped sticks, leaving home to find a new pathway and working harder, in steel mills and on building sites, as well as on the pitch, to prove them wrong.

“When I was really young, I was the smallest,” he remembers.

“I got told pretty early on that I needed to learn to pass off both hands because I wasn’t big enough to run through everyone and wasn’t fast enough to either.

“So having a good skillset was what I thought would set me apart from other kids. That was what I prided myself on, along with my fitness.

“There were certain talent identification people in my home region saying I wasn’t going to get any better when I was 17.

“Those decision and opinions can have a big influence on young kids’ careers, but I was able to push that aside.”

Mercedes has been forced to stop the development of its current Formula 1 car after a recent spate of crashes.

The German manufacturer has endured some costly accidents since the summer – including Andrea Kimi Antonelli‘s practice crash in Monza, plus George Russell‘s offs in Austin qualifying and Mexico practice.

With the repair bill adding up, especially with Russell damaging a chassis last weekend, Mercedes says that cost cap restrictions mean there is no money left to bring any more upgrades.

Speaking about the situation, Wolff said: “In the cost cap landscape, it is a tricky situation.

“These three shunts put us on the back foot, and certainly the one that happened [on Friday in Mexico] was massive. We had to opt for a completely new chassis and that is a tremendous hit in the cost cap.

“We probably have to dial down on what we put on the car. So we’ll be having two upgrade packages in Brazil, two floors, but that’s basically it. There’s nothing else that’s going to come.

“We have certain limitation on parts where we need to be creative how we’re managing them. And certainly there is an impact on how many development parts we can put on the car, because the answer is zero.”

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes F1 W15, walks away from his damaged car after a crash in FP1

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

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Despite the cost cap fears, and the potential for a bigger headache if there are any more crashes, Wolff said no consideration was given to stopping Lewis Hamilton and Russell fighting hard for position in Mexico.

“They are so good and so experienced that we allow the racing,” he explained. “There was not a feeling where I thought it’s getting a bit hairy.

“I think we made the call to George at the end, where it was clear that Lewis was the faster car, to maybe [tell him] that one defence on the straight was a bit of a late move. But I don’t have any doubts in the two.”

Split packages

While Mercedes will have two new floors available in Brazil, with Russell’s repaired Austin version now ready, Wolff thinks the team may still split packages across its cars.

Asked what the plan was, Wolff said: “I’m always open-minded about what the drivers think.

“If I’m certain that George is going to go for the new, Lewis may want to back-to-back the old floor now in Brazil. We will certainly talk with him and see what his preference is.”

Hamilton potentially going back to the old version comes with Mercedes still having doubts about whether the new package has introduced some aero imbalance that is triggering incidents.

Wolff added: “There may be something in the aero update package that causes something that we don’t understand because we had two massive crashes in the same corner in Austin. But then we had a crash on the old car too.

“These cars are so on the knife’s edge that it will be an interesting experiment in Brazil, to see whether there is a high-speed instability or a low-speed factor. I don’t think we can just extrapolate that one is better than the other.”

Ballon d’Or 2024 had its share of controversy, when Manchester City’s Spanish defensive midfielder Rodri won the coveted award over favourite Vinicius Jr of Real Madrid, at Theatre du Chatelet in Paris.

The 28-year-old was named the best player at Euro 2024, after Spain beat England 2-1 to clinch their fourth title. He had also led his club to a fourth successive Premier League trophy last season. German great Lothar Matthaus was the last defensive midfielder to win the Ballon d’Or, in 1990.

Following the snub, Vinicius Jr said he will continue his fight against racism even if it cost him the Ballon d’Or. Real Madrid boycotted the event in support of their Brazilian forward.

ALSO READ: Real Madrid unhappy with Rodri winning over Carvajal

However, a notable absentee at the event in Paris was Rodri’s teammate and Norwegian striker Erling Haaland, who was one of the nominees for the Ballon d’Or. The 24-year-old chose to travel to Sweden instead where his friend Erik Botheim won the Swedish league title with Malmo FF.

Haaland was seen in the stands as the defending Swedish champions beat Goteburg 2-1 to win the title. Botheim plays as a forward for Malmo, who are eight points clear of Hammarby in the points table They have won the Swedish title a record 24 times.

Haaland and Botheim, who became friends while playing for the Norwegian junior national team, also featured in a rap video together with fellow footballer Erik Sandberg!

Haaland posted a story on Instagram, wearing a Malmo FF jersey.

SNOOKER star Antoni Kowalski has seen red during a bad-tempered clash with Joe Perry.

The 20-year-old was given a ticking off by the match referee after taking his frustration out on his cue.

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Kowalski faced Perry in a Scottish Open qualifying match on Tuesday night.

The World No. 104 cut a tetchy figure throughout and lost his cool in the sixth frame.

Leading 3-2 in the best-of-seven matchup, Kowalski missed a regulation red to the bottom right pocket.

Walking back to his chair, the visibly frustrated youngster smashed his cue hard into the ground.

He was given an immediate telling-off from the match referee, who held his arms out wide in exasperation.

It came after an earlier incident where Kowalski fluked a pink on his way to a 63-49 fifth frame.

As the ball dropped into the pocket after hitting two cushions, Perry could be heard appearing to say “p***k” from his seat.

One fan gasped on X: “Why would you do that, especially against a young inexperienced player. Unbelievable.”

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Another said: “A lot going on in this match!”

While a third argued, referencing Kowalski’s rush of blood: “I don’t understand why the ref had a go there to be honest. A bit of emotion makes for good viewing.”

Kowalski held on to win the bad-tempered match 4-3.

It continued a poor run of form for Perry, who has now won just three of his last 10 matches since July.

Rising star Kowalski has earned a two-year tour card after impressive performances on the amateur circuit.

He courted controversy earlier this year after claiming seven-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan was “arrogant.”

Speaking to the Metro, he said: “My hero when I was six or seven years old was Shaun Murphy.

“Mostly because I met him then, the first professional I met, as well as Mark Selby.

“I also love John Higgins, I like how he plays, he’s just class.

“Also Judd Trump, just a great player.”

Referencing O’Sullivan, he added: “I don’t know how to say it, but he’s pretty arrogant.

“No, he’s a good guy, genius on the table for sure, he’s one of the best players of all time, but he’s not one of my favourites, if I put it like that.”

NEW YORK — Before a do-or-die Game 4 at Yankee Stadium, Jazz Chisholm thought about wearing Timberlands on the field for batting practice. They were gifted to the team by outfielder Alex Verdugo, who “just wanted to do something cool for the boys.” 

For three games to start the World Series, a Yankees offense that had launched more homers and taken more free passes than any team in baseball looked like a shell of itself. At the time Freddie Freeman launched another go-ahead first-inning blast in Game 4, he had knocked in more runs during the series than the entire New York lineup.

The Yankees entered Tuesday night with a total of seven runs through three games and only four hits with runners in scoring position. They looked tight. Verdugo, whose ninth-inning homer the night before provided their only runs in Game 3, sought to loosen things up. Well, that, plus he “felt like Timberlands just feel like New York” and he “wanted to get the boys some steppin’ shoes.” 

“Mine was more just give them that, give them something to lighten it up,” Verdugo said. 

Whether the gift helped at all, or the Yankees offense simply enjoyed seeing a Dodgers bullpen game featuring a parade of their lower-leverage arms, the group finally ignited in an 11-4 rout. 

A mindset change was part of the equation. 

[RELATED: Full coverage of the World Series] 

“The situation we were in, I think that we just kind of needed to say, ‘Screw it,’ and go after it and have fun because some guys may never come back to the World Series again,” catcher Austin Wells said. “So, enjoying the game, I think that allowed us to play a lot looser tonight.”

Anthony Volpe’s go-ahead grand slam, which finally gave Yankee Stadium a reason to erupt, didn’t hurt, either. Wells said he thought that hit allowed the rest of the lineup to take a deep breath. 

It also forced Dodgers manager Dave Roberts to think long term. He essentially punted the rest of the way, the same way he did in Game 2 of the NLCS when the Mets jumped ahead early in a bullpen game, so as not to overwork the relievers he trusts the most or allow the opposition to see them in a game they were unlikely to take anyway. It worked then. 

The danger of that decision on Tuesday is it helped a group of scuffling Yankees hitters to break out and gain confidence. 

Wells, who was 4-for-43 to begin the postseason and was given the previous game off, followed three innings after Volpe’s blast with a home run. Then came a five-run barrage in the eighth, when Gleyber Torres put the game away with the Yankees’ third home run of the night. 

A Yankees offense that had not scored more than three runs in a game during the series broke out with nine hits and six free passes against a medley of Dodgers relievers. The bottom of the lineup provided a spark, but eight of the nine players in the lineup reached base. Perhaps most encouragingly for the Yankees, Aaron Judge demonstrated some promising signs, reaching base four times and knocking in a run in his final at-bat of the game. 

“Once he’s on base, I feel like everybody gets going,” Chisholm said. 

The World Series had gone 11 straight years without a sweep. The Yankees awoke from their slumber to run that streak to 12. The 11-run fusillade was tied for the second-most ever by a club facing elimination in the World Series. 

The offensive approach that got them to the World Series finally showed up to help them keep their season alive.

“Knowing that this was the last guaranteed day of baseball for the season, definitely didn’t want to take it for granted and wanted to enjoy the moment,” Wells said. “I think if you put too much pressure on it at this point, like, it’s just going to … you’re going to fail yourself, and you’re not going to enjoy the journey.”

That journey will now continue on Thursday, when the Yankees have to feel good about their chances of sending the series back to Los Angeles. 

If they’re able to do that, they’ll make history in the process. The Yankees are the 25th team to face a 3-0 deficit in the World Series. Twenty-one of the previous 24 teams to face that margin were swept. The other three lost in Game 5. 

But the other three didn’t have Gerrit Cole on the mound. 

“Every time G goes out there, we feel we’re in a great spot,” Chisholm said. “He’s like the best pitcher in the world. You see him out there, you see confidence.”

Cole allowed just one run and only four baserunners in six innings to start the series. He departed with the lead in a game that ended with a walk-off grand slam off the bat of Freeman, who has made his mark in every game this series. Freeman followed those late-game heroics with a solo homer in Game 2, then quieted the Yankees’ crowd with a two-run shot that sapped the energy from the stadium in Game 3. 

When Freeman did the exact same thing again in Game 4, setting a major-league record with a home run in his sixth straight World Series game, it looked like he might have delivered the dagger to the Yankees’ season. 

This time, though, they answered back. 

The 2004 Red Sox are the only MLB team to dig its way out of a 3-0 hole in a best-of-seven series, when it did so against the Yankees in the American League Championship Series. 

But the Yankees, with three more games to play for their lives, aren’t thinking that far ahead. Anthony Rizzo, whose 2016 World Series champion Cubs emerged victorious from a 3-1 deficit in the World Series — where the Yankees find themselves now — knows the danger of that. 

“It was all about just getting to Game 6,” Rizzo said. “We knew Game 5 was going to be really hard.”

If the offense that showed up Wednesday reveals itself again, especially with Cole on the mound, the Yankees have a real chance of extending the series. Even if they can’t wear Timberlands to batting practice. 

“We’ve got to focus on, ‘Win another game,’” Judge said. “We’ll look up at the end of it and see what happens.”

Rowan Kavner is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the L.A. Dodgers, LA Clippers and Dallas Cowboys. An LSU grad, Rowan was born in California, grew up in Texas, then moved back to the West Coast in 2014. Follow him on Twitter at @RowanKavner.

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Footballers are a competitive bunch. The will to win is rarely ever consigned to the pitch.

So when Manchester United strikers Diego Forlan and Ruud van Nistelrooy faced each other on a tennis court at Nike’s HQ in Portland during a 2003 pre-season tour, there was tension.

Sir Alex Ferguson and their United team-mates were watching. Fergie had apparently put money on Forlan winning the pre-training tie-break tussle.

“Everyone wanted to see who was going to win. I had all the pressure,” remembers 45-year-old Forlan, who is gearing up for a professional tennis debut in his native Uruguay next month.

“Ruud played a lot – not as much as I played, but still he knew how to play.”

After a few serving jitters, Forlan beat Van Nistelrooy “in the end”.

What the now-interim United manager did not know – the wily Ferguson had typically not missed a beat – was Forlan had quite the pedigree.

Initially for Forlan, tennis was simply fun. After retiring in 2019, external, Forlan had more time for tennis. Focusing on the fitness and social benefits, he played with friends in the Montevideo club league.

His competitive spirit was sparked and, in 2023, the left-hander made his ITF Masters Tour debut. Now he is ranked 113th in the world in the over-45s category.

A greater reward came when he was given a wildcard into the Uruguay Open doubles on the ATP Challenger Tour – the tier below where Novak Djokovic et al compete.

“If you asked me when I was playing football if I was going to play on the ATP Tour, I would not have imagined it,” said Forlan, who counts Boris Becker, Ivan Lendl and Goran Ivanisevic among his idols.

“I didn’t know if I was going to play tennis even though it was a sport I really liked.”