Photo: Shane Wenzlick / Phototek.nz
Football
American Samoa have won their very first FIFA Women's World Cup qualifier match, beating Tonga 3-0.
The result in Rarotonga at the weekend was the first win in 27 years since American Samoa competed in their first qualifying campaign for the global finals in 1998.
Hosts Cook Islands defeated Tahiti 1-nil in the second qualifier game.
The results means American Samoa and Cook Islands will meet in the next match on Monday, Cook Islands time, with the winner advancing into the second round of the Oceania qualifiers in February 2026.
Sevens
Former All Blacks Sevens playmaker Gillies Kaka will be part of an invitational team that will compete at the Coral Coast Sevens tournament in Sigatoka, in January 2026.
Coral Coast Sevens tournament organising chairman Jay Whyte said Kaka will join the Mike Friday-coached invitational team.
Whyte said Kaka is a name synonymous with excellence in sevens, and having a player of his calibre was important for the event.
Kaka said he is excited to have the opportunity to play alongside and against some of the best in the world.
Rugby
Moana Pasifika have included 12 new players in their 2026 Super Rugby Pacific squad.
The list includes Japanese player, hooker Mamoru Harada, and former All Blacks Augustine Pulu and Ngani Laumape.
Head coach Fa'alogo Tana Umaga said the squad is a talented and experienced group, with players from their 2025 campaign supplemented by the new additions.
He said the franchise wants to build on their 2025 record, and they're making the hard yards already in the off-season, ahead of pre-season games in January.
Netball
Tonga, the only South Pacific island team at next year's Commonwealth Games netball competition, will roll off their campaign against Australia on 25 July, 2026.
The draw released by World Netball sees the Tongan Tala also facing South Africa on 26 July in Glasgow.
The team will then take a two-day break before playing their third pool match against England on 28 July, and have Malawi as their final pool opponent on 29 July.
Surfing
The Vanuatu Surfing Association is sending a three-member team to the World Junior Surfing Championship in Peru, scheduled for this week.
The Vanuatu Daily Post reported junior surfers Danylo David, Manoa Tarroux and Sacha Ferry will represent the country at the renowned surf break of Punta Rocas, where the world championship will run from 5-14 December.
Surfing association officials said the team's participation is a step towards expanding Vanuatu's junior surf squad, with the goal of fielding larger and more inclusive teams in future competitions.
The team will be led by Vanuatu's national surf coach Ben Johnson.
Rugby
The Nauru Rugby Union has taken a serious step in promoting the code in the country, with a first women's team tour of Kiribati completed.
The union said Nauru and Kiribati took part in matches in the new T1 Rugby version.
T1 is a no-contact version with 10 minutes per half, seven players a side, and half the regular field size - but match length, player numbers and pitch size can be adjusted.
Nauru Rugby has also been hosting former sevens player of the year, Jerry Tuwai, who has been holding clinics with clubs and the national sevens team.
The Nauru team will travel to Kiribati to compete in the Friendly Bairiki Sevens Series this month.
