After the lord mayor's show, it is said, comes the dust-cart. On that basis, New Zealanders approached this sporting year with some trepidation.

This will forever be remembered as the year in which a sporting legend was brought down. American Lance Armstrong, cancer survivor and multiple Tour de France winner, was crushed by an inquiry into doping.

New Zealand's first foray into Fast5 netted mixed results, with the Fast Ferns drawing their opening match against Jamaica, but wowing the crowd with their array of tricks.

Athletic Jamaicans seen as main rivals in Fast5 tournament, with radical rule changes for shooting and substitution designed to excite the fans.

Auckland teenagers Elisapeta Toeava and Malia Paseka have been plucked straight from high school into a professional sporting environment signing with the Northern Mystics.