A familiar face returns... (Paul Marriott Photography)

Flying Kiwis will keep you up to date on the endeavours of New Zealand sports folk overseas. Not the battlers, mind you, but the genuine overlooked and underappreciated superstars that for some ridiculous reason don’t get a look in on local media.

Chris Wood – Leicester City (English Championship)

Nothing from Woody this week, as he missed both games for Leicester, though he made it back onto the bench for the second (LCFC won both games, by the way). Wood, after suffering a hamstring injury in mid-December, only played 10 minutes in all of January. Manager Nigel Pearson did say that Wood had been in contention for the mid-week game, but chose to rest him as his recovery hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing. As it stands, the Foxes are now 10 points clear at the top, and absolutely killing it. Despite a blip in the FA Cup (losing to Stoke) midway through the streak, they’ve won 9 straight league games. It took a controversial Kevin Phillips (remember him?) winner to keep that streak alive over the weekend, but then luck always seems to go in favour of the team that tries to earn it. Automatic promotion is looking more likely every week.

Up Next: 4 am Sunday morning vs Watford

Tommy Smith – Ipswich Town (English Championship)

180 more solid minutes from Tommy Smith. A draw at Leeds was an OK result midweek, followed by a solid 1-0 win over Bolton on Sunday. Smith was typically good, making a few tackles, competing in the air and getting the ball out of the box. His partnership with Scotsman Christophe Berra must have manager Mick McCarthy up giggling all night; it’s exactly the kind of pairing he likes – tough and uncompromising, and usually error-free. Not especially skilful but above all dependant. It was a penalty given away on the right (by fullback Luke Chambers) that cost the Toffees a short held lead in Leeds, and a penalty of their own that won it against Bolton. Surprisingly, Tommy Smith has only had 4 yellow cards in 28 league games – he almost has as many goals (3) as that! The four combined points has Ipswich up to 7th place, just four points of a playoff spot.

Up Next: Away to Barnsley, 4 am Sunday

Marco Rojas – VfB Stuttgart (Bundesliga)

Somewhere along the line, Marco seems to have picked up a knee injury. At least that’s what’s being reported – it’s pretty hard to work the sources when you rely on google translate for the language (Sprechen Sie Deutsch?). Don’t expect to hear too much from this corner any time soon, but remember that Rojas is only 22 and as frustrating as I’m sure his injuries are, the experience of just being a part of a very good club in an elite European league will be more valuable than anything. Some bad form has seen Stuttgart drop back to just a few points off the relegation zone, having lost 5 of their past 6, and their last 3 all by a score of 2-1.

Up Next: Monday morning 3.30 am vs Augsburg

Winston Reid – West Ham United (English Premier League)

He’s back! After 17 games out, in which the Hammers conceded 40 goals, Winnie made his return off the bench, playing 11 minutes in the 2-0 win over Swansea. Kevin Nolan scored a first half double, and Reid helped steady the show late on after Andy Carroll was sent off (Fat Sam was not happy) with half an hour remaining. Reid is expected to be challenging for his starting role once more next game, having been arguably the best player at the club for the first few months of the season. Welcome back, Winston, you’ve been missed.

Up Next: Aston Villa away, 4 am next Sunday morning