Went to see Counties Manukau play Mid Canterbury for the Ranfurly Shield this past July 9th. It was…read moremy first game as we do not have rugby back home! The stadium was great and was only 5$ to park. Beer and food were also cheap!

My first game ever of rugby, it had to be the defence of The Ranfurly Shield, colloquially known as…read morethe Log o' Wood. It was a glorious Spring like Sunday afternoon. I had never sat on a mud embankment for a sports games before. Like the 12,000 other attendees a good game was played. The facilities were basic, but this is rugby as it should be, so I am told. Would I go again, hell yes I sure would. Bring something suitable to sit on if the ground maybe wet, and enjoy !!!

I have been a premium member of 'Next Gen' for the last 6-7 months. Predominantly, I go to Pilates,…read moreYoga & Barre classes. They offer a good selection of weekday and weekend classes (not Barre). Mostly, the instructors have been excellent. Sometimes I play tennis - there are about 3 indoor and 8 outdoor courts, I think. My only complaint is they get booked up weeks in advance, which is ridiculous. Onsite cafe sells cabinet & hot food, also Allpress coffee which definitely gets them some brownie points! Next Gen staff have improved over the last few weeks, a lot more friendly and helpful than when I first joined. Great sauna, spa & pool facilities. Change rooms are due to be upgraded. Members are generally professionals and high-end. I enjoy the club, however it has a hefty price tag, so you need to go often!

I have been coming to Next Generation for a few months now. My Dad has been a member since it…read moreopened and he always has exciting things to say about it. So, I finally took the plunge and joined...my first ever gym! I wanted to try all of the facilities before writing a review just to see whether Next Generation really lived up to the hype. So far, the gym has been great, the Zumba classes challenging (but fun) and I went swimming today - it was very refreshing! But the best thing is definitely being able to play tennis! There are about 11 courts to choose from, and all you have to do is book the court in advance and voila, you're set for the day! And if it's sunny, jump in one of their pools to cool down - either the indoor one or the outdoor pool on the roof! Another great thing about the gym is that they have a cafe/restaurant onsite plus a lounge which is a great place to relax and unwind after a work out or come down to one of their monthly quiz nights! Highly recommend Next Generation - all the facilities are spot on plus you will have loads of fun!!!

PRSC is an odd Papatoetoe institution - part of the community's landscape for decades, PRSC has…read moretaught legions of people to skate, play roller hockey and roller derby. The oddity of PRSC stems from the fact that it is incredibly hard to find - tucked in behind a line of trees in a New World carpark, many people have no idea that this place actually exists. A number of sports clubs hold practices at PRSC, but there are also opportunities for beginner skaters to give it a go at public skate sessions on Thursday nights and Sunday afternoons. But be warned, this is no frills skating at its best - PRSC features an old dusty floor, rickety tables and walls that can do with a lick of paint. If you can see through the age of the place, you'll have fun.

Auckland City Athletics (ACA) is a well-established athletics club for athletes of all ages and all…read moreabilities, from internationally competitive cross country runners to casual track runners wanting to improve their fitness. The ACA website provides you with a range of coaches across all running, track and field disciplines, and most of these coaches have quite social, friendly training groups who would all make you feel quite welcome if you wanted to come along. These coaches, such as Barry Magee and Neil Bartlett, do this training for a nominal retainer, which shows that they have a genuine passion for their discipline and are not motivated by financial gain. The home base of the track athletes, Mt Smart, has had a recent upgrade and also has a gym available for club athletes at a small fee.

I play indoor netball here and everything is well organised. Once you've set up your team you can…read morepay your fee weekly or in a lump sum. Then you show up, put on clean bibs that you don't even have to wash yourself afterwards and play some sweet netball (sweet? I totally mean sweaty) with a referee that has also been organised for you. Basically you can just turn up and play! There are tables, chairs and a couple of couches to hang out at before your game or collapse into afterwards. There are toilets in the building as well. Conveniently located across the road is a park with courts if you want to practice/warm-up before the game, although there are only baskethall hoops and it's often very busy with others playing social sports and families hanging out.

Indoor Netball is not just for girls. No, no, no. It's fierce, fast and even at social level, super…read morecompetitive. I play in a mixed team once a week at Balmoral and love it. The competition is well graded, usually the games are very close. They are well organised, everything runs extremely smoothly. I can't even moan about the refs, they are focused (which isn't always the case with social sport) and fair. It's not too expensive, and it's a really fun way to break up the week while getting a mega fitness kick. The Balmoral courts are small and the venue has a laid back community feel

I love the grounds of the AURFC, otherwise known as Colin Maiden Park. It's home to social touch…read morerugby teams throughout the week (summer), pre-season training and of course its the place to be during rugby season (winter). The grounds are always well-looked after and even the drive through from Merton Road to the heart of the park is a nice one! I have a younger cousin that plays for the varsity juniors so I've been here several times to watch games and help out with events. The clubrooms here are awesome, and for someone who generally doesn't bother with rugby, its great to see how rich this club is in history. The clubrooms lead right out to the fields, so there's a great view if you're siting down and having drink or snack (they also have a great bar, for anyone that wanted to know that!), The space is also great for private events- its really spacious and could fit quite a lot of people in there too.

A small portion will have been introduced to the game of bowls by an affectionate grandparent, but…read morefor the majority of people, bowls will conjure up pictures of bowed old people in white outfits and caps. Thankfully, I was in the former of these groups and noticed the master stroke of coupling Epsom Bowls with George FM. A live DJ, BBQ and beer on a Sunday? The perfect disguise to lure my friends to the slow lane. During summer afternoons all this was offered, with unlimited games, for only $10 but any day you can play the greens for only $5. The patrons there will be genuinely happy to show you the ropes, an easy game to pick up but tricky to master. Less aggressive than ten-pin bowling, this game involves more control than speed. With two all-weather greens and pétanque you are basically guaranteed a game. A great way to catch up with friends or challenge workmates and get out in the sun with some competition and super cheap beers.

Te Pai Courts used to be a shit hole. It was just the outdoor courts with hardly any parking and an…read moreold ugly as building filled with cranky middle aged women upset at the world because they aren't championship netball players. These days, those women are still there, but instead Te Pai looks great with a new centre that is modern, spacious,a full parking lot, and plays host to a bunch of courts and also some tennis courts that are on the other side of the parking lot. Come any Saturday morning and you'll have tons of school kids playing early morning netball, anywhere from eight in the morning. They host social netball here too if you ever want to get a team together, but it's pretty expensive. On Saturdays they've got drinks and hot food for sale, and it's always great to see young Kiwi kids out there playing sport, getting fit and having fun.