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Commonwealth Games 2022: A historic day for golden Kiwis – day six wrap

Commonwealth Games 2022: A historic day for golden Kiwis - day six wrap

Hamish Kerr makes history with high jump gold. Video/Sky Sport

All you need to know from yet another successful day at the Commonwealth Games for New Zealand athletes as they claimed historic gold medals.

king of the mountains

Ben Oliver (L) and Sam Gaze celebrate yet another one-two finish for New Zealand in Commonwealth Games mountain biking. Photo / Photosport
Ben Oliver (L) and Sam Gaze celebrate yet another one-two finish for New Zealand in Commonwealth Games mountain biking. Photo / Photosport

Day six began with a bang for New Zealand as Sam Gaze made it back-to-back Commonwealth Games golds in the men’s mountain bike event after a dominant display that also produced silver for fellow Kiwi rider Ben Oliver.

Gaze was in commanding form on Thursday, finishing 31 seconds ahead of Oliver to make it three straight Games that New Zealand has completed a one-two, after Anton Cooper pipped Gaze in Glasgow and before that outcome was acrimoniously reversed on the Gold Coast.

The race was denied the chance of reigniting Gaze and highly-ranked Cooper’s heated rivalry after the latter withdrew from the event due to Covid-19. That left Oliver the opportunity to make his way up the field and he did so well, improving from his fourth place on the Gold Coast in 2018.

Check out or full report from the circuit here.

Paul Coll rallies to new height

Paul Coll with the gold medal he's been dreaming of all week long. Photo / Photosport
Paul Coll with the gold medal he’s been dreaming of all week long. Photo / Photosport

Coll has capped off a huge few years at the top level of men’s squash by winning gold in a tough five-set battle with Wales’ Joel Makin.

After winning silver four years ago on the Gold Coast, Coll briefly ascended to No 1 in the world earlier this year and in 2021 became the first Kiwi man to win the prestigious British Open title, while defending that crown again in April.

History was made again today as Coll became the first Kiwi man to win a gold medal in squash at a Commonwealth Games.

Earlier in the day, Joelle King blew a 2-0 lead in her bronze medal playoff to lose in five sets to world No 6 and hometown favorite Sarah Jane Perry.

Check out Albie Redmore’s full report from the court here.

White men can jump

Hamish Kerr is building an impressive resume amongst the world's best high jumpers. Photo / Photosport
Hamish Kerr is building an impressive resume amongst the world’s best high jumpers. Photo / Photosport

Christchurch’s Hamish Kerr became the first Kiwi man to win a Commonwealth Games high jump medal, claiming a shiny new gold for his cupboard.

Kerr ended up in a head-to-head battle with Australian Brandon Starc, the 2018 gold medal winner and younger brother of cricketer Mitchell Starc.

Both cleared 2.25m and failed at 2.28m, but Starch had earlier failures at lower heights whereas Kerr had been clear.

Kerr joins Tania Murray (nee Dixon) and Tracy Phillips, who claimed gold and bronze respectively in the women’s event at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland.

Maddi Wesche was a cool customer on the Commonwealth Games days. Photo/Getty
Maddi Wesche was a cool customer on the Commonwealth Games days. Photo/Getty

Kerr’s medal was one of two in athletics for the day, with shot putter Maddi Wesche taking out bronze with a throw of 18.84m, a touch shorter than her throw of 18.98m in the final of the Tokyo Olympics. Canada’s Sarah Mitton won gold with a throw of 19.03m.

In the women’s 100m final, Kiwi sprinter Zoe Hobbs finished sixth with a time of 11.19s. She would’ve needed to better her personal best of 11.08 to challenge for the podium.

Olympic champion Elaine Thompson-Herah of Jamaica took out gold with a time of 10.95, with St Lucian Julien Alfred second in 11.01 and England’s Daryll Neita third in 11.07.

Check out our full report from the athletics here.

Liti salvages silver from tough day

David Liti poses with his silver medal besides coach Tina Ball. Photo / Photosport
David Liti poses with his silver medal besides coach Tina Ball. Photo / Photosport

Popular Kiwi weightlifter David Liti fell short of a second straight Commonwealth Games gold medal but still came away with a silver on a day when he couldn’t find his best form.

Liti set a new Games record in 2018 with a combined weight of 403kg and lifted a total of 417kg at last year’s Olympics. However, he could only muster a total of 394kg on Thursday, leaving the door open for Pakistan’s Nooh Dastgir Butt to claim the gold with a total of 405kg.

The loss to Butt has sparked a desire for revenge in Liti, who says he’s now looking forward to a repeat match up at the world championships.

“He did really good to keep himself ahead, and next time I face off with him it’ll definitely be a good one,” Liti said. “If he comes to worlds, I’ll show him what’s up.”

Check out our full report from the weightlifting here.

Three medal haul for Judo team

Kody Andrews was a proud silver medalist on Thursday. Photo / Photosport
Kody Andrews was a proud silver medalist on Thursday. Photo / Photosport

It was a superb day for the New Zealand judo team with Kody Andrews leading a three medal haul with silver in the men’s 100kg event after being pinned by Canada’s Marc Deschenes early in the gold medal bout to lose by Ippon.

Moira De Villiers claimed bronze in the women’s -78kg after defeating Ayuk Otay Arrey Sophina of Cameroon by Ippon with 28 seconds left. It’s her second medal from her after winning silver in Glasgow eight years ago. She defeated fellow Kiwi Hayley Mackey in the quarter-finals, one of her her students at the judo club she runs with her husband Jason Koster in Christchurch. She was then beaten by England’s Emma Reid in the semifinals who went onto win gold.

The bronze bout was a close thing but de Villiers kept her calm and got the win just at the end.

“[It’s] super special. It wasn’t what I wanted but I’m still glad I was able to represent New Zealand and get another medal. I just knew she would gas after a minute I just had to keep going and be a little bit of a dogfight. I’m ruthless on the ground so I knew I was going to get it,” she told Sky Sport.

Gisborne’s Sydnee Andrews also claimed bronze with the 19-year-old promising gold in four years’ time after defeating Sarah Hawkes of Northern Ireland in their women’s +78kg bronze bout.

Clareburt bags a bronze

Lewis Clareburt has added a bronze to his medal collection. Photo / Photosport
Lewis Clareburt has added a bronze to his medal collection. Photo / Photosport

Lewis Clareburt’s quest for a third gold medal fell just short as he picked up a bronze to end his campaign.

The Kiwi finished third in the 200m individual medley final with Scotland’s Duncan Scott taking the gold ahead of Tom Dean of England.

18-year-old Erika Fairweather qualified fastest for the 400m freestyle final but couldn’t match world record holder Ariarne Titmus and young Canadian star Summer McIntosh in the final.

Fairweather battled Aussie Kiah Melverton for bronze, just missing out on the medals by 0.60 seconds in a time of 4:03.84. Fellow Kiwi Eve Thomas was seventh in 4:09.73.

To view a full list of every result by every Kiwi athlete and team, check out our full schedule and results.

Medals today:

Gold – Paul Coll – Men’s squash
Gold – Hamish Kerr – Men’s high jump
Gold – Sam Gaze – Men’s mountain bike
Silver – Ben Oliver – Men’s mountain bike
Silver – Kody Andrews – Judo – Men’s 100kg+
Silver – David Liti – Weightlifting – Men’s +109kg
Bronze – Sydnee Andrews – Judo – Women’s 78kg+
Bronze – Moira Koster – Judo – Women’s 78kg
Bronze – Lewis Clareburt – Swimming – Men’s 200 IM
Bronze – Maddi Wesche – Athletics – Women’s shot put

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Commonwealth Games 2022: Tahlia McGrath masterclass steers Australia to victory over Pakistan, cricket news

Commonwealth Games 2022: Tahlia McGrath masterclass steers Australia to victory over Pakistan, cricket news

Tahlia McGrath just can’t be stopped.

The Australian put together another superb all-round performance in Wednesday’s Commonwealth Games match against Pakistan in Birmingham, extending her golden run in the T20 format.

McGrath top-scored with an unbeaten 78 (51) before claiming three wickets to help the Aussies secure a convincing 44-run victory at Edgbaston.

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The 26-year-old smacked 10 boundaries and a six over fine leg in the penultimate over, combining with opener Beth Mooney for an unbeaten 141-run stand as Australia registered a team total of 2/160.

It ranks as the largest third-wicket partnership for Australia in women’s T20Is.

McGrath later collected career-best figures of 3/13 from three overs with the ball, finding herself on a hat-trick in the 17th over after removing Bismah Maroof and Tuba Hassan in consecutive deliveries.

The South Australian’s career stats are nothing short of absurd – since making her T20I debut in October last year, McGrath has scored 339 runs at 169.50.

Her strike rate of 156.22 is arguably even more impressive.

McGrath has only been dismissed for less than 70 eleven in 12 T20 internationals; during last week’s thrilling victory over India.

“When I got out the first time, I did joke that I was going to retire and keep that average for the rest of my career,” McGrath told reporters after the win.

“I’m quite enjoying the T20 format, I just get to go out there, play with a bit of freedom, play my shots and I know that if it doesn’t come off, I’ve got that many explosive batters coming in behind me

“(My form) is a big surprise and I’m still pinching myself. But I just love playing in the Australian shirt and I love every moment I get to do it.

“So at the moment, it’s nice that I’m contributing to some team success and I’m just riding the wave and enjoying my cricket because it’s been a lot of fun.”

McGrath’s bowling has been equally as damaging in the T20 format, taking 10 wickets at 11.00 with a strike rate of 10.2.

She joins Pakistan’s Mohammed Hafeez on an illustrious list of cricketers to score 70+ runs and take 3+ wickets in a T20I more than eleven.

McGrath has essentially made herself undroppable, pushing superstar all-rounder Ellyse Perry out of the national T20 line-up.

“She just seems really clear on her role in our team, and also has got some great clarity on her own process within her own game,” Mooney said.

“She just comes out and takes the pressure off the other batter out there, which was me today, which I was really grateful for.

“She’s just really clear on her own game plan and she comes out with that confidence when she first walks out there, too, so that helps as well.”

Australian wicketkeeper Alyssa Healy and skipper Meg Lanning were cheaply dismissed in the Powerplay, each returning to the sheds for 4.

Healy’s form with the bat in the game’s shortest format may be cause for concern – since the start of 2021, she has averaged 8.77 with the bat in T20 internationals.

Aussie seamers Megan Schutt and Darcie Brown each snared early breakthroughs in the Powerplay before McGrath combined with spinners Jess Jonassen and Alana King to roll through Pakistan’s middle order.

Lanning’s side, who were undefeated in the group stage and remain red-hot favorites to win the coveted gold medal, will next face either England or New Zealand in the semi-finals on Saturday.

“Pressure is a bit of a privilege in my eyes,” Mooney said.

“There’s certainly no amount of pressure that’s more than what we put on ourselves to perform day in and day out.

“The challenge that awaits us is really exciting. Semi-finals are sometimes harder than finals. You have to be on your game from ball one.

“You want a spot in that gold medal match. We know on our best day we can beat anyone.”

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NRL 2022, Peter V’Landys, NSW Government, Dominic Perrotet, Stadium funding updates

NRL 2022, Peter V'Landys, NSW Government, Dominic Perrotet, Stadium funding updates

ARLC Chairman Peter V’Landys AM says he’s disappointed by the actions of the New South Wales government and premier Dominic Perrottet over their reversal of suburban stadium funding plans.

V’landys appeared on The Today Show on Thursday morning demanding answers from the government over the decision to withhold funding, which could result in the 2022 Telstra Premiership Grand Final being moved away from New South Wales.

“We have an agreement [in place] since 2017 [and] we’ve been very patient with them,” V’Landys said of the New South Wales government.

“The money is set aside to be spent.

“There’s billions of dollars in infrastructure funds available to him. We’re only talking $300 million that’s left to be done — and that’s available to the government.

“We’ve compromised [already],” he said.

“There was supposed to be $800 million spent but because of his budget pressures, we negotiated it down to $600 [million]. They went to an election with this $800 million promise; the opposition at the time were against it [but] they went to an election and won an election on spending this money on sporting infrastructure which is very important for the state of New South Wales.”

V’Landys was highly critical of the timing by Perrottet to announce the priority for funding for flood victims over investment into new stadiums.

“He’s spinning it,” he said. “He’s using human tragedy to get himself and weasel himself out of an agreement. So to us, this excuse is the hardest thing for us to accept because this is the fourth excuse he’s used.

“He gave me his word, we trusted him. He didn’t want to make an announcement because of other political issues.


We waited and waited patiently and then we were just left at the door.



ARLC Chairman Peter V’Landys AM

“He always had a commitment — he shook my hand and we had an agreement. We agreed when it should be announced and he hasn’t come through with it.

“That’s disappointing.

“It’s all about integrity,” V’Landys added. “How can anyone do an agreement with the state of New South Wales, not knowing if that agreement will be honored? I stress, they’ve got the money and can do it — we just can’t understand why they’re doing this .”

With a venue for the 2022 Telstra Premiership still unconfirmed, V’Landys said options would be looked at to potentially move the game away from New South Wales, whilst also highlighting his desire to keep the game in the state.

“We can’t punish the people of New South Wales because of the [lack of] integrity of the New South Wales government,” he said.

“They’ve had two very hard years — we haven’t played the Grand Final here last year or the State of Origin — and the last thing we want to do is punish them.


A strong crowd was in attendance for the 2021 Telstra Premiership Grand Final at Suncorp Stadium.

A strong crowd was in attendance for the 2021 Telstra Premiership Grand Final at Suncorp Stadium.
©NRL Photos


V’Landys said a decision on where the 2022 Telstra Premiership Grand Final would be played would likely be made over the weekend or on Monday at the latest because of the necessity to have ticketing options on sale for the public.

The 2022 Telstra Premiership Grand Final will be played on October 2.

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NRL 2022: Sydney Roosters vs Brisbane Broncos, teams, Matt Lodge exit from Broncos, payout, Kevin Walters

NRL 2022: Sydney Roosters vs Brisbane Broncos, teams, Matt Lodge exit from Broncos, payout, Kevin Walters

Further details of Matt Lodge’s exit from the Broncos have emerged as the front rower braces to face his former side when Brisbane battle the Roosters on Thursday night.

The Broncos agreed to pay up to $1 million of Lodge’s salary to facilitate his departure from Red Hill, a move that came under intense scrutiny at the time.

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“You try not to be critical of Brisbane as a former player but I don’t think we can believe anything that’s coming out of that place at the moment,” former Queensland representative Brent Tate told NRL tonight in the wake of Lodge’s exit to the Warriors.

“Kevvie came out and said they’d stay and if Matt Lodge goes, honestly, I think clubs are built on trust and at the moment there doesn’t seem to be that at that club.

“There’s different messages coming from all different people within the ranks and I hope for Matt Lodge’s sake he gets to go to a club because he’s been so up in the air and I know how difficult that would be for a player who plays on passion and emotion.”

Now though, a report from news corp has revealed more details on Lodge’s exit while chairman Karl Morris also explained why Brisbane was willing to chip in to speed the process up.

“Matt Lodge was a redemption story and it was great to have him back,” Morris told news corp.

“He did all the tough work he had to do while playing for Redcliffe to get back into the NRL. He completely gave up the drink and was a model citizen while he was with us.

“For whatever reason, culturally, it didn’t work with him and the new coaching staff and we decided to part ways.

“Kevvie wants a certain type of player and person at the Broncos and he just didn’t suit the type of team Kevvie was trying to build.”

the news corp report claims that Lodge’s character was not the best match for what Walters was trying to build at Red Hill, with suggestions he cut corners at training.

Lodge is also said to have been sprayed by one Broncos official for his attire around the club.

But speaking to news corp ahead of Thursday’s game, lock forward Pat Carrigan was full of praise for his former teammate.

“Lodgey always plays well and I’m sure he will step up against us, I’m excited for him,” he said.

“He’s a halfback in a front-rower’s body, he’s actually a very smart footballer and he taught me a lot about the game.

“I am grateful for a lot of the stuff Lodgey did for us younger blokes here. He gave us that introduction to first grade. We had some good battles on the training ground so he will be up for this one and we will be too.”

Originally published as ‘He just didn’t suit’: Key issue behind Matt Lodge’s $1 million Broncos exit revealed

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Twomey’s update on Taranto, Banfield, Rioli and more

Twomey's update on Taranto, Banfield, Rioli and more

AFL Media’s Cal Twomey has provided an update on the future of a number of players at various clubs.

One of the biggest names that will be prominent in this year’s trade period is that of GWS midfielder Tim Taranto.

Twomey was asked on SEN Breakfast – Will Taranto be at the Giants next season?

“I think it’s highly unlikely, at this point,” he said.

“The way that things are moving, he’s had offers in front of him, a two-year deal, a four-year deal, longer and shorter-term options there for him.

“The way that Victorian clubs, particularly Collingwood and Richmond, are coming for him, I think it’s unlikely for him to be at the Giants next year.”

He then updated listeners on a number of other players.

Callum and Tyler Brown (Collingwood)

“That’s been a little bit of a holding pattern for those two guys.

“Tyler’s played some more footy this year and Cal’s been in and out as well.

“The most likelihood is that they remain at Collingwood but yet to receive new deals the both of them.”

Xavier Duursma (Port Adelaide)

“He’s contracted for another couple of years.

“I know he’s been in and out of the side at Port Adelaide but I think he’s pretty happy there from all accounts and is a part of that future.

“He’s had some more midfield time this year, whether he goes back to half-back next year we wait and see.

“His sister has just joined the AFLW side and has moved in with Xavier over there. His brother of him is coming through the draft next year.

“I’d be very surprised if we see Xavier Duursma move in the off-season given he’s contracted and an early pick from a couple of years ago.”

RIVAL CLUB FLAGS INTEREST IN DONS SKIPPER AS COLLINGWOOD BIG MAN HITS GAMES TRIGGER

Willie Rioli (West Coast)

“Weighing up a multi-year offer to stay at West Coast where he’s obviously a premiership player.

“You have been in no rush to make a call on his future. Clearly the Eagles want to keep him and have put that deal in front of him.

“Willie has had a tragic few weeks with the death of his father, but even before that had been waiting until deeper into the season on what he does.

“Rival cubs looking for forward line class are watching though.

“He’s got links to Victoria where he went to school and also in South Australia where he was drafted from.

“So there’s a few clubs watching that space but the Eagles have a deal in front of him.”

James Stewart (Essendon)

“He returned to the side on the weekend and booted three goals.

“He’s gone back to playing as a forward.

“He’s in negotiations on a two-year extension at the Bombers.

“They see him as a good player at both ends of the ground.”

Bailey BanfieldFremantle

“Fremantle free agent Bailey Banfield hasn’t been offered a new deal yet, but he’s keen to stay at the Dockers.

“He’s been a regular sub this season.”

Robbie Fox (Sydney)

“He’s been an interesting one. He has come into the Swans line-up over the past six weeks or so and they’ve been winning.

“They’ve been in really good shape since he’s been in.

“He struggled to break into the side in the first half of the season. He’s out of contract and fighting for a new deal and is yet to receive an offer.”





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Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag labels Cristiano Ronaldo’s actions ‘unacceptable’

Newly appointed Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag was left fuming after a handful of first team players left a preseason match early, including wantaway star forward Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Portuguese superstar was filmed by fans leaving the ground along with a group of fellow teammates prior to the final whistle of the Red Devils’ pre-season game against Rayo Vallecano, leaving Ten Hag unimpressed.

Ten Hag described the act as “unacceptable,” in an interview with Viaplay. “We are a team and that means you stay until the end,” he said.

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The incident came as rumors emerged suggesting Ronaldo and agent Jorge Mendes made it clear the six-time Ballon D’or winner wanted a summer move away from Old Trafford, in search of Champions League football ahead of the new season.

Despite the talk over a potential move elsewhere, Ten Hag remains certain the 37-year-old will stick around for the upcoming campaign, saying the former Real Madrid and Juventus striker was “in our plans” for the new season and “not for sale.” .”

Amongst all the current drama surrounding the highly decorated English club, Ten Hag has remained upbeat and positive with his new squad, ahead of Sunday’s season-opener against Brighton.

“Overall I am happy.” Ten Hag said, looking back on his first pre-season at the club. “We make good progress and we’re ready for the season.”

However, the former Ajax manager has made it clear “there is a lot of room for improvement” for his side, especially considering the Reds had dropped to their lowest ever finishing points in the Premier League era just last season.

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The backstories and controversies that have ignited feuds involving athletes

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Tennis 2022: Nick Kyrgios wins over American with classy act for fan in win over Tommy Paul at Washington Open

Tennis 2022: Nick Kyrgios wins over American with classy act for fan in win over Tommy Paul at Washington Open

Nick Kyrgios has continued his preparation for the last grand slam of the year with a strong win over Tommy Paul at the Washington Open on Thursday (AEST).

The Australian was challenged in just his second singles match since Wimbledon and had to play his best tennis to defeat Paul 6-3 6-4.

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Kyrgios was locked in, firing off 15 aces including one rocket at 218km/h.

He was superb in the clutch moments — saving all four break points he faced and converting three out of four of his own break point opportunities.

Kyrgios was up to his usual antics when he got stuck into the umpire after he was given a code violation for ball abuse.

But the Washington crowd was in his corner and he showed his soft side in the first set, when an elderly fan was hit in the face by a ball that took a wayward bounce into the stands.

Kyrgios went over and handed the spectator one of his towels.

He is chasing his second title in Washington and will next face fourth seed Reilly Opelka in the round of 16 on Friday.

After pulling out of the singles draw at the Atlanta Open last week with a knee injury, Kyrgios has shown impressive form in his two matches in Washington against Marcos Giron and Paul.

He needed just 59 minutes to beat Giron in straight sets and was his usual entertaining self, engaging with the crowd.

He won the doubles title in Atlanta playing alongside fellow Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis and is a favorite to win the title in Washington ahead of the US Open, which begins later this month.

It wasn’t such good news elsewhere among the Australian contingent in Washington, with Alexei Popyrin and Alex de Minaur losing to Taylor Fritz and Yoshihito Nishioka, respectively.

Read related topics:Nick Kyrgios

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Ariarne Titmus says media scrutiny around Kyle Chalmers had potential to impact the whole team

Ariarne finishes a race with a serious expression on her face.

As the curtain closed on another stellar Commonwealth Games swimming campaign from the Australian Dolphins, one of the stars of the team has revealed how Kyle Chalmers’s unwanted media attention and mental health struggles had rippled through the squad she describes as “a family.”

“I think we all kind of feel part of it,” said Ariarne Titmus, moments after winning her fourth gold medal of the week, for the 400m Freestyle.

“Because we are all so close, we are such a close team, and I think that’s why we perform so well, because we have each others’ backs.

“I think it potentially can affect us emotionally because they’re our friends, they’re teammates. We’re like a family and we don’t like seeing people upset and put through durations.

“And we’ve come out here and done our best and done our country proud and I think the swimming does the talking. We’ve killed it this week and I hope that Australia is proud of our performance and we’ve done our absolute best for the country and we’re going to go home with some extra luggage.”

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Charisma Amoe-Tarrant’s emotional tribute after taking out weightlifting bronze

Charisma Amoe-Tarrant, Australia’s strongest woman, won weightlifting bronze for Australia just four years after claiming the silver for Nauru.

The Tokyo Olympian, who won silver for the small Pacific Island nation at the Gold Coast four years ago, finished third in the women’s 87kg division, behind England’s flag-bearer Emily Campbell, who hoisted a Games record 286kg to win.

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Tarrant had an early hiccup with a miss on her second lift before topping out at 100kg.

She missed on her third lift in the clean and jerk but a 139kg lift was enough to put her just one kilogram ahead of Canada’s Emma Friesen in fourth.

Campbell took out the event with a Commonwealth record 286kg total, followed by Samoa’s Feagaiga Stowers.

“I’m proud to be Australian and I’m also proud to be Nauruan so at the end of the day, I’m representing both countries you know,” a beaming Tarrant said.

The 25-year-old began weightlifting at the age of 11 in Nauru with her uncle, who was a coach at a weightlifting gym. Her mother de ella passed away in 2009 due to kidney problems, leading her grandparents de ella to eventually move her to Australia, becoming a citizen in 2016, competing for Australia from 2020.

She looked to the heavens after her final lift, in a tribute to her mother and an uncle who recently passed away.

“I couldn’t help looking up to both up there. All the lifts were for them,” she said afterwards.

Cikamatana was in tears at the medal ceremony and also paid tribute to coach Paul Coffa and his wife Lilly.

“I was emotional because I really appreciative of getting to represent the green and gold and standing on the podium, listening to the anthem,” she said.

“Representing the green and gold is once in a lifetime opportunity and it’s a dream come true.

“They (the Coffas) made all these impossible dreams come true.”

The weightlifter admitted she copped some backlash from fellow Naurans when she initially decided to compete for Australia.

“If I’m being honest, I had that, but I had to tell them, ‘I’m one of you too, I’ve got Nauran blood running in me.’ It took a while but they’re coming back now.”

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Commonwealth Games in pictures: Scottish runner Eilish McColgan breaks mother’s 32-year record with thrilling gold medal

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LIV Golf stars including Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau on the PGA Tour

Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau and nine other players who defected to the Saudi-funded LIV Golf filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour, the first step in a legal fight that could define the boundaries of where players can compete.

The lawsuit, filed in US District Court in San Francisco, claims the PGA Tour has used monopoly power to try to squash competition and has unfairly suspended players.

A separate motion was filed asking for a temporary restraining order to allow Talor Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford to play in the FedEx Cup playoffs, the PGA Tour’s postseason, which begins next week.

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The lawsuit also revealed that PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan suspended Mickelson for two months in March for his role in recruiting players to LIV Golf. It said Mickelson’s request in June to be reinstated was denied because he played in a LIV Golf event and that he was suspended until March 2024 for playing in another one.

Monahan responded to the lawsuit with a terse memo to his players in which he referred to “11 of your former colleagues” suing the tour and continued to refer to LIV Golf as the “Saudi Golf League.”

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is the primary source of the money paying exorbitant signing bonuses and providing $36 million purses for 48-man fields. Several players are in their 40s and no longer ranked among the top 50 in the world.

Monahan said players knew the consequences of signing up for the rival league.

“We have been preparing to protect our membership and contest this latest attempt to disrupt our tour, and you should be confident in the legal merits of our position,” Monahan wrote.

“Fundamentally, these suspended players — who are now Saudi Golf League employees — have walked away from the tour and now want back in,” he wrote. “It’s an attempt to use the tour platform to promote themselves and to freeride on your benefits and efforts.”

LIV Golf said in a statement: “The players are right to have brought this action to challenge the PGA’s anti-competitive rules and to vindicate their rights as independent contractors to play where and when they choose. Despite the PGA Tour’s effort to stifle competition, we think golfers should be allowed to play golf.”

Its CEO, Greg Norman, has said LIV Golf would be willing to financially support any legal matters. Last month, four European tour players won a temporary stay from a UK judge that allowed them to play in the Scottish Open.

Mickelson reportedly signed a deal worth $288 million to join the Saudi-funded venture, with DeChambeau in the $216 million range. And those are just signing bonuses. Seventeen players already have made more than $1.4 million in three tournaments or fewer.

The PGA Tour denied releases for players to compete in LIV events and suspended them as soon as they put a ball in play. Some players, like Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed and Sergio Garcia, chose to resign their PGA Tour membership.

At the heart of the lawsuit are allegations the PGA Tour is using its might as the strongest tour in golf to bully players and anyone else that could get involved with LIV Golf. It accused the tour of intimidating a tent vendor and a technology company, among others, with whom LIV Golf was trying to do business to launch its series.

It also claims the tour’s threats to ban players ultimately forced LIV Golf to pay more in signing bonuses to get the players it wanted, and forced the rival league to change its startup plans to only eight events this year. LIV Golf announced a 14-tournament schedule for next year.

“The Tour’s conduct has substantially diminished and impaired the entry of the promoters that could meaningfully threaten the PGA Tour’s monopoly, which has stood unchallenged for decades,” the lawsuit contends.

The tour has stood by its belief that it is a membership organization with regulations that players choose to accept. That includes a code of conduct and a requirement to play at least 15 tournaments a year to keep full membership.

Players typically are allowed three releases a year to play overseas events held the same week as a PGA Tour tournament. The tour does not allow releases for conflicting events in North America.

Two LIV Golf events were held in the US, first in Oregon last month and then last week at Trump National in New Jersey. Three more this year are scheduled for courses near Boston, Chicago and Miami.

Monahan has been forceful in his comments about LIV Golf, referring in June to the tour being unable to compete with “a foreign monarchy that is spending billions of dollars in attempt to buy the game of golf.”

“We welcome good, healthy competition. The LIV Saudi golf league is not that,” he said. “It’s an irrational threat, one not concerned with the return on investment or true growth of the game.”

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The stars who’ve signed with Greg Norman’s LIV Golf tour