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Otago Daily Times
7 days ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
League makes way for RUNIT
For Hornby Panthers rugby league player Champ Betham, the pros of 'running it straight' outweigh any potential cons. Betham returned home this week from Dubai, after finishing third in the RUNIT Championship League, pocketing AU$25,000 (NZ$27,000) in prize money. It adds to the $20,000 he won at a trial in Auckland in May, qualifying him for the finals – meant to be held at Trusts Arena, which hosted the trials, before the venue pulled out due to safety concerns, and the finals were held in the Middle East. It is life-changing money for the 30-year-old and his growing family, which includes four children and a baby due in August. '(I'll be) stocking up the cupboards and fridges for my young babies, and prepping for my new boy, so (I'm) grateful for that,' he said. RUNIT is a full-contact collision sport where competitors sprint into each other, with the winner decided by who 'dominates the collision'. The format has drawn widespread criticism over its dangers, with sporting bodies and medical experts warning against participation. Last month, a Palmerston North teenager died after sustaining a brain injury while mimicking the sport with friends. At the Dubai event, former Kiwis rugby league international Kevin Proctor was knocked out and reportedly suffered a seizure during an exhibition match against Australian influencer Jordan Simi. Betham admitted there were risks involved, but believes they're no worse than those in other contact sports. 'It's almost like footy – in rugby league you pretty much run it straight from the kick-off, but you're not running into one person, you're running into three or four,' he said. "You've just got to try and prepare for it, and fingers crossed you don't come out knocked out.' He first heard about RUNIT through a friend of his partner, who was working as a videographer and graphic designer at the Auckland event. Organisers were looking for competitors from Christchurch, and Betham was keen. 'It got my attention straight away when I found out. It's pretty much just up the guts,' he said. 'Personally, I've been a guy who likes to crash and bang in the footy game. I didn't think I was going up to win, I was genuinely just giving it a shot.' After his surprise success, Betham is now considering whether he could make a career out of running it straight, especially with the potential for more events later this year. 'I definitely see myself doing it if it does go pro. I definitely think I could do it.' For now, Betham is back to his day job as a youth worker, with one heck of a story to tell people. 'All the kids were pretty shocked when they saw it, they were like, 'that's my youth worker, what the hell?'' He will likely not feature for Hornby in the CRL Premiership this season, wanting to save himself for RUNIT events.
Otago Daily Times
22-06-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Call-up for Manu Samoa sees another code switch for Lam
Joel Lam has returned to play for Burnside ahead of linking up with the Manu Samoa squad. Lam switched to rugby league earlier this year, playing twice for Hornby Panthers before a move to Australia. PHOTO: SIDELINE PHOTOGRAPHS Rugby league convert Joel Lam has made a surprise pivot back to union after being named in the Manu Samoa squad to play Scotland next month. The 23-year-old, who previously made eight appearances for Canterbury and one for the Crusaders, switched codes earlier this year to chase a rugby league career. He featured twice for the Hornby Panthers in the CRL Premiership before heading to Australia in April to join Brisbane club Souths Logan Magpies. However, last week Lam was named among 11 uncapped players in the Manu Samoa squad for their match against Scotland at Eden Park on July 18, as well as August's Pacific Nations Cup. The halfback qualifies for Samoa through his maternal grandfather William Lam, who was born in the island nation. 'I've always had the dream to represent Samoa and play for my granddad. He passed away when I was in high school, but he'll be smiling up there, that's for sure,' he said. Lam is related to Samoan international Ben Lam, his brother, Blues midfielder AJ Lam, and their uncle Pat Lam. Joel Lam playing for Burnside ahead of linking up with the Manu Samoa squad. PHOTO: SIDELINE PHOTOGRAPHS Pat Lam played 34 times for Samoa in the 1990s and also coached the Blues from 2009-12. 'We've got 300-plus cousins, uncles and aunties. The Lam family's pretty big over in Samoa, so we're related somewhere down the line,' he said. 'My granddad's one of 21 siblings, and obviously those brothers and sisters have all had children of their own, then those children have had daughters and sons, so we're all related.' Lam marked his return to union on Saturday, coming off the bench to score a try for Burnside in their 64–35 Metro Premier win over Christchurch. He will continue playing for the club until he links up with the Samoa squad on July 9. Lam said despite his switch back to the 15-man game he was still keeping his sporting options open. 'You want to take every opportunity, and I went and gave (league) a crack and there's nothing saying that door's closed either.'
