JOURNALISTS in New Zealand - along with many other workers - are bearing the brunt of the Covid 19 crisis.
Just this week media company NZME cut the number of sports journalists in the group from around 40 to a dozen.
Provincial journalists - already battling due to a lack of resources - have been hit hard.
A respected journalist put this in perspective writing:
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for adding value to what we had attempted to do in our nuclear coverage of sports in the region.
"Towards the end of our tenure, we were always having to cherry pick events, teams and individuals to cover on any given day. It wasn't always easy and as we got older our ability to burn the candle at both ends became harder to maintain.
"If we did not do justice to coverage at any stage I hasten to emphasise it was never due to our lack of effort or passion for the job but, more so, out of frustration to do so due to a lack of time and resources."

 "WE no longer require your services.
You've got 30 minutes to clear your desk and leave the office."
Welcome to the Covid-19 crisis and the appalling way some employers are treating staff - many of them long serving - in New Zealand.
If you thought this was a myth then think again.
Emails sent to me this week confirm that staff are being treated like this and, unfortunately, it is becoming common.
There's no question companies are suffering considerable stress but to treat employees with disdain is unacceptable.

THE death of cult-hero Jock Edwards has evoked memories of a swash-buckling cricketer who thrilled fans. A legend of Nelson and Central Districts cricket the stocky right-hand batsman who hook and cut with intense ferocity would have been an integral part of any modern-day T20 outfit.
He also ensured fans on Sports Roundup would stay "glued" to the radio when he was batting!
Here's a great read on Jock from respected cricket writer and sport historian Lynn McConnell.

OUR mates across "The Ditch" live in hope of lifting the Bledisloe Cup if this is anything to go by.
It's probably the only way the Wallabies can win!
Good luck to them!
(Thanks to one of our Northcote Point readers for forwarding this to me.)