Category Archives: Sport

Fans remain at fever pitch as Buddy closes on 1000 goals in Swans win

Posted on by

Lance Franklin’s quest to become just the sixth VFL/AFL player to kick 1000 career goals must wait another week

Lance Franklin’s bid to become just the sixth VFL/AFL player to kick 1000 career goals will have to wait at least another six days after the Sydney superstar was held to just one major against GWS.

Franklin entered Saturday’s match sitting on 995 goals, and he got off the mark with a goal at the 10-minute mark of the second term. But he couldn’t add to the tally from there, finishing the match with one goal to show from his eight disposals.

Continue reading...

Bruno Fornaroli named in Socceroos squad for crucial World Cup qualifiers

Posted on by
  • Uruguay-born striker could debut for Australia at age of 34
  • Atkinson, D’Agostino in squad to face Japan and Saudi Arabia

Bruno Fornaroli is in the running to make an unlikely Socceroos debut at the age of 34, after the Uruguay-born striker was included in an extended squad for Australia’s upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Japan and Saudi Arabia.

Fornaroli, who was recently granted Australian citizenship after arriving in the country in 2015, has opted to switch his national allegiance in the twilight of his career, having already represented Uruguay’s under-17 youth team in 2003.

Continue reading...

Demons win grand final rematch as Bulldogs downed in AFL season opener

Posted on by
  • Melbourne win 14.13 (97) to 11.5 (71) in front of 58,002 at MCG
  • Dees unfurl their first premiership flag in 57 years before game

Melbourne toppled the Western Bulldogs again, winning a topsy-turvy grand-final rematch by 26 points in the AFL season-opener at the MCG. The Demons stormed out of the blocks on a night when they unfurled their first premiership flag in 57 years, with the first-half playing out in eerily similar circumstances to last year’s decider.

After booting the first four goals of the match, Melbourne then had to withstand a blistering surge as the Bulldogs piled on the next eight majors. But just as they did several times in 2021, the Demons’ stars turned the game around in quick fashion to kick off their premiership defence in style, prevailing 14.13 (97) to 11.5 (71) in front of 58,002 fans.

Continue reading...

Uruguayan Bruno Fornaroli set for shock Socceroos call-up for World Cup qualifiers

Posted on by
  • Striker, 34, expected to be named in extended Australia squad
  • Must-win games coming up against Japan and Saudi Arabia

Perth Glory coach Richard Garcia predicts Bruno Fornaroli will become an asset for the Socceroos, with the Uruguayan set for a call-up for Australia’s crucial World Cup qualifiers. Fornaroli played for Uruguay’s under-17 youth team in 2003, but a change in the Fifa eligibility rules in 2020 means the 34-year-old is now eligible to represent the Socceroos.

Football Australia on Tuesday refused to confirm the star striker’s inclusion, but he is expected to be named on Wednesday morning in Graham Arnold’s extended squad for the crunch matches against Japan and Saudi Arabia this month.

Continue reading...

Australia v West Indies: ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup – live!

Posted on by
  • Updates from the fourth-round match at Basin Reserve
  • Play in Wellington starts at 11am local/9am AEDT/10pm GMT
  • Email James with any thoughts | Tweet @Jimbo_Cricket

Hello and welcome to the Basin Reserve in Wellington (by way of a sofa in South London) for this OBO of Australia v West Indies. This is the 14th match of what is proving to be a thrilling 2022 Women’s World Cup. The big question is, can anyone stop the Aussie juggernaut?

Meg Lanning’s side have swept away all comers in this format for the past few years and are three from three so far in the tournament, sitting satisfyingly atop the table whilst those below grapple it out.

Continue reading...

Roman Abramovich spotted at Israeli airport following UK sanctions

Posted on by

Photograph shows Chelsea FC owner in VIP lounge shortly before jet linked to him took off for Istanbul

Roman Abramovich, the billionaire owner of Chelsea FC who was subjected to sanctions by the UK government last week, has been spotted at a VIP lounge at an airport in Israel.

One of seven Russians who had their assets frozen last Thursday in an attempt to ratchet up the pressure on Vladimir Putin after the invasion of Ukraine, Abramovich was seen in Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport on Monday shortly before a jet linked to him took off for Istanbul.

Continue reading...

Australia crush New Zealand in Women’s World Cup walkover – as it happened

Posted on by
  • Australia win by 141 runs in Wellington
  • Kiwis collapse to 35-5 while chasing 270

5th over: Australia 14-0 (Alyssa Healy 6, Rachael Haynes 8)

Jess Kerr is finding some beautiful length this over and Haynes is doing her best to dig the ball out, but hasn’t been able to get it past the field early in the over. Kerr maintains her line and length and finishes with a valuable maiden.

Continue reading...

Roosters routed as red hot Knights continue round one upsets

Posted on by
  • Newcastle 20 – Sydney 6
  • Glamour club upset at home as Knights score four tries to one

The Newcastle Knights have spoiled the return to the SCG party for the Sydney Roosters, handing them a convincing 20-6 defeat and restricting the glamour club to just one try in their NRL season opener on Saturday afternoon.

The Knights scored four tries themselves and if it hadn’t been for a late four-pointer to the Tricolours’ Penrith recruit Paul Momirovski it would have been a complete humiliation for Trent Robinson’s men.

Continue reading...

Tennis star Coco Gauff attacks Florida law that marginalizes LGBTQ+ people

Posted on by
  • World No 19 says bill will halt important conversations
  • Law restricts instruction on sexual orientation

Tennis star Coco Gauff has voiced her opposition to a bill in her home state of Florida that would prohibit classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity for many young students.

“I’m against it,” Gauff told reporters on Wednesday in California, where she is preparing for the Indian Wells tournament. “I think these conversations are important, and for me, who has friends in the LGBTQ+ community, I couldn’t imagine not being able to talk about your identity. I feel that’s something that is normal.”

Continue reading...

Body of Shane Warne arrives in Australia on private jet after death in Thailand

Posted on by

Remains of former cricketer return to Melbourne ahead of funeral and state memorial service at end of March

The body of cricket great Shane Warne has arrived back in Australia almost a week after he died of a suspected heart attack in Thailand.

The 52-year-old died at a resort on the Thai island of Koh Samui last Friday sparking widespread grief as fans mourned the loss of one of the world’s best-ever spin bowlers.

Continue reading...

‘We fight, therefore we exist’: what lay behind Mexico’s brutal football riot?

Posted on by

Three people were left critically injured after violence at Querétaro v Atlas. But many observers said the scenes could have been prevented

The scenes that shocked Mexico and horrified the world of soccer on Saturday were caught on shaky cell phone videos: men wearing the red and black jerseys of the Liga MX champions, Atlas, lay prone while others in the blue and black of Gallos del Querétaro beat and stripped them. Hundreds of raging fans descended on the pitch in Querétaro’s Corregidora Stadium, chasing their rivals, who sought refuge in the Atlas players’ locker room. Many Atlas fans ripped off their shirts to avoid being attacked.

The riot that broke out during the match between the two teams from central Mexico left 26 injured, three in a critical condition, the governor of the state of Querétaro, Mauricio Kuri, told reporters at a press conference on Sunday. Kuri also denied reports that there had been fatalities.

Continue reading...

Kicking the habit: footballing nuns’ goal is to pass on word of God

Posted on by

The nuns, based in Italy, have heeded the advice of Pope Francis to get out more and avoid becoming ‘old maids’

The women huddled in the centre of the pitch, to briefly strategise, to pray for Ukraine. Then the whistle blew, and to cries of “Forza, sisters!” from their fans, they prepared for kick-off.

The youngest player is 27, the eldest 52, and they are among the 18 brought together from congregations across Italy to form the first national football team for nuns in the world.

Continue reading...

Shane Warne death: friend describes final meal of Vegemite toast at Thailand resort

Posted on by
  • ‘Geez, you can’t beat Vegemite … always great wherever you are’
  • Australian cricket great died from heart attack in Koh Samui

Shane Warne’s last meal was a plate of Vegemite and toast shared with a friend at the Thailand resort where he died hours later. The poignant detail was revealed by The Sporting News CEO Tom Hall, who was already on the island of Koh Samui when Warne and three mates arrived.

“I have dined with Shane in many fine establishments, but rather than sample some of the local Thai fare, we tuck into a plate of Vegemite on toast,” Hall wrote in an article on the outlet’s website.

Continue reading...

Russian gymnast with ‘Z’ symbol on podium next to Ukrainian faces long ban

Posted on by

Gymnastics’ governing body has condemned the “shocking behaviour” of the Russian gymnast Ivan Kuliak, who now faces a lengthy ban for wearing a symbol in support of the invasion of Ukraine on the medal podium of a World Cup event.

After winning bronze in the parallel bars final at the Apparatus World Cup in Doha, Kuliak taped the letter “Z” to the front of his outfit before standing next to the gold medallist, Illia Kovtun of Ukraine, for the national anthems.

Continue reading...

Liga MX suspended as Fifa condemns ‘barbaric’ riot that leaves dozens injured in Mexico

Posted on by
  • Three confirmed as critically injured after riot
  • Players were forced to flee from pitch during violence

At least 26 people were injured, including three critically, on Saturday when fans brawled during a football game in central Mexico.

The Liga MX match between the hosts Queretaro and Atlas from Guadalajara was suspended in the 62nd minute when fights broke out in the stands. Security personnel opened the gates to the field so that fans, including women and children, could escape the stands.

Continue reading...

Elizabeth Hurley mourns ‘Lionheart’ Shane Warne after shock death

Posted on by

Cricket star’s former fiancee among many to pay tribute to bowler after suspected heart attack

Actor Elizabeth Hurley paid tribute to her former fiance and “beloved Lionheart”, Shane Warne, as fresh details of the Australian cricket star’s sudden death in Thailand emerged.

Hurley, who was engaged to Warne for more than two years until they split in December 2013, said that “the sun has gone behind a cloud forever”.

Continue reading...

Women’s basketball superstar Brittney Griner detained in Russia

Posted on by
  • Brittney Griner detained at airport near Moscow on drug charges
  • American could face five to 10 years in prison under Russian law
  • Seven-time WNBA All-Star also plays for UMMC Ekaterinburg

Brittney Griner, one of America’s most decorated women’s basketball players, has reportedly been detained by Russian Federal Customs Service authorities after the discovery of vape cartridges that contained hashish oil in her luggage at an airport near Moscow.

The Customs Service confirmed “the detainee is a professional basketball player” who played in the Women’s National Basketball Association and won two Olympic gold medals with the United States in a statement issued on Saturday, but did not release the player’s name.

Continue reading...

Shane Warne death: authorities reveal attempts to save life of cricket legend

Posted on by

Thai police say Warne was taken to hospital after being found unconscious at the Samujana Villas resort

The desperate attempts to save the life of cricket legend Shane Warne have been detailed by police officers and rescue teams on the Thai island of Koh Samui, as the sports world mourns and the 52-year-old leg-spinner’s final moments are pieced together by authorities.

Warne was on a week-long holiday with three friends at the Samujana Villas resort, the start of a three-month lay-off after covering the 2021-22 Ashes series for Fox Sports.

Continue reading...

‘When I surf I feel so strong’: Sri Lankan women’s quiet surfing revolution

Posted on by

Women and girls have challenged conservative attitudes in the hallowed surf spot of Arugam Bay

Growing up in a small fishing village along the east coast of Sri Lanka, Shamali Sanjaya would often sit on the beach and look out at the boisterous waves. She would watch in envy as others, including her father and brother, grabbed surfboards, paddled out into the sea and then rode those waves smoothly back to shore. “I longed for it in my heart,” she said.

But as a local woman, surfing was strictly out of bounds for her. In Sri Lanka’s conservative society, the place for women was at the home and it was only the men, or female tourists, who were allowed to ride the hallowed waves in Arugam Bay, considered Sri Lanka’s best surf spot.

Continue reading...

‘The worst possible nightmare’: voices from Ukrainian football as war rages

Posted on by

Four players and a coach with Ukrainian clubs reveal how their lives have been turned upside down by Russia’s invasion

On the day the war began, I was in Kyiv with my family. I have been injured recently, so could not train with the team. At 5am my young son awoke, and my wife got up to calm him. Then we heard the explosions, one after the other. We thought there had been an accident, but then we read online that the war had begun. We quickly began to gather our belongings. I am Georgian, and was in Georgia in 2008 when Russia attacked our country, so this is not the first time I’ve been through a war. I told my wife: “Let’s get ready more quickly.” I drove the car closer to our house, loaded it with things and then waited for a couple of my teammates. They are foreigners and also have young families. We drove away from Kyiv together.

Continue reading...