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Kevin Durant trade news, ultimatum to Joe Tsai, reaction, updates, Brooklyn Nets, Ben Simmons

Things got ugly for Ben Simmons in Philadelphia and if Kevin Durant is not careful, he could be heading down a similar path in Brooklyn — if he is not already.

But could that be all part of the Nets superstar’s master plan?

Well, Durant certainly got the NBA world talking earlier in the week then he issued an ultimatum that left Nets owner Joseph Tsai in a tricky situation.

Durant, who requested a trade in June, reportedly told Tsai he needs to choose between the 12-time All-Star and the pairing of head coach Steve Nash and GM Sean Marks.

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A subsequent report from The New York Post laid out Durant’s specific grievances with the team, including a lack of consultation over the Nets’ firing of assistant coach and director of player development Adam Harrington.

But not everyone in the NBA world seems to think that Durant actually wants Nash or Marks fired from the organization.

That is certainly the opinion of Fox Sports’ Nick Wright, who said on ‘The Herd’ with Colin Cowherd that Durant’s ultimatum is all about achieving one “single goal”.

“I don’t think Kevin Durant actually wants those guys fired,” Wright said.

“I think he just wants to be traded. I think if he wanted Sean Marks and Steve Nash fired, he would have gone to Joe Tsai a month ago when he did the trade demand and quietly and privately said: ‘Listen, if you don’t fire these guys, I’m going to demand a trade’.

“I read this differently than most. I read this as Kevin Durant asking for something he knew he would not get in order to make it untenable for them to bring him back because he was starting to get concerned they were actually going to bring him back.

“This was him upping the ante to a level that is pretty unprecedented. It’s why I think Durant understood Joe Tsai is not going to do it and they also, I don’t believe, can ask Steve Nash to now coach Kevin Durant. I think it was a really smart move if his single goal is to be traded and I think that is his single goal.

Could Kevin Durant be heading down a similar path to Ben Simmons?  (Photo by Adam Hunger/Getty Images)
Could Kevin Durant be heading down a similar path to Ben Simmons? (Photo by Adam Hunger/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

You see, it is not like Durant has much leverage in this situation, as NBA front office insider John Hollinger explained in a recent article for The Athletic.

Hollinger pointed towards two numbers in particular to prove that point — 34 and four — Durant’s age and how many years he has left on his contract.

“Throwing both his coach and GM under the bus — in many cases for moves that came with a wink and nod from Durant’s camp — certainly makes it less likely the Nets will find it tenable to reunite everyone in the fall,” Hollinger wrote.

“Of course, this gambit offers no guarantees. The trade offers in front of the Nets today aren’t any different from the ones they rejected yesterday, and it’s not clear how or if Durant’s latest demand will compel action.”

What it could do though is lead to a similar situation to the one Simmons found himself in Philadelphia last year, although there are a few key differences as Hollinger also pointed out.

“Seemingly the sharpest arrow left in Durant’s quiver is pure hardball: a holdout, one that would cost him a chunk of his $44 million 2022-23 salary for every day he sat out,” he wrote.

“It would, ironically, be a near carbon-copy of the situation a year ago in Philadelphia with Durant’s occasional teammate Ben Simmons.

“Here’s the thing: The Nets are working on a different timeline than the Sixers were.”

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Hollinger is right. Philadelphia had to move relatively fast to capitalize on Joel Embiid’s prime and as such was more inclined to reach a swift resolution in the Simmons drama.

The same cannot be said for the Nets though, as Hollinger argued.

“If anything, they would seem to have the opposite motivation,” he wrote.

“Yes, Brooklyn’s first choice would be to run it back with Durant, Simmons and Kyrie Irving (or a suitable replacement). But in the absence of Durant, wouldn’t the Nets’ second choice be to tank the season and try again in 2024? And wouldn’t a Durant holdout do anything more than accelerate the Nets toward that endgame?

“Brooklyn’s best-case scenario may be waiting until midseason, when this summer’s free agents are eligible to be dealt with. It seems less likely they’d let a year of Durant’s contract wither on the vine at his age and wait until next offseason… but it ca n’t totally be ruled out either given the tanking incentive.

Durant has told Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai that he must choose between keeping Durant or head coach Steve Nash and general manager Sean Marks, The Athletic reported on August 8, 2022. (Photo by ELSA / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)Source: AFP

What was consistent among a host of voices in the NBA media landscape was a sense of uncertainty, not knowing what exactly was coming next, again similar to the Simmons saga.

“The whole situation is a mess, but the kind of mess Brooklyn might happily sweep under a rug and ignore, if only it could,” The Ringers Rob Mahoney wrote.

“It’s impossible to replace Kevin Durant. Hell, it’s hard enough just to set a fair return for Durant in a trade, much less one suitors can realistically meet. Every ask sounds ridiculous because Durant is a genuinely ridiculous player.

“That might be the only reason he’s still a Net some six weeks after requesting a trade—and maybe the real reason KD is stirring the pot with this ultimatum in the first place. Does he really want Marks and Nash gone? Or is he just looking to send a shock through the Nets’ system?”

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The Athletic’s Alex Schiffer, meanwhile, pointed towards Durant’s strong endorsement of Marks after the Brooklyn’s four-game sweep at the hands of Boston as proof of just how confusing it all is.

“If Durant wanted Nash out but didn’t feel like putting him on blast to the media 10 minutes after the season ended, he could have discussed Nash’s future with an ‘I don’t know’ or ‘Now’s not the time for that’ . But he didn’t,” Schiffer wrote.

Schiffer agreed one “plausible explanation” is that this is Durant trying to force Brooklyn’s hand, to make the situation so untenable that the Nets back down.

Durant wants out of Brooklyn. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

The Heat have been heavily linked to Durant since he first requested the trade but are unlikely to have the assets to make it work, at least in a traditional two-team deal.

The Miami Herald’s Anthony Chiang though Durant’s ultimatum was an important point in the drama, even if it still left “plenty of questions unanswered”.

“But in the wake of The Athletic’s report that Durant doesn’t want to work with Nash or Marks, the question is: Will this force the Nets to trade Durant prior to the start of training camp in late September to avoid any awkward tension and drama between the two parties? he wrote.

“That sort of deadline could take away some of the Nets’ leverage as the window to trade Durant before training camp shrinks as each day passes.

“The Nets could also decide to take Durant into training camp if a good enough offer doesn’t present itself, which would force Durant to decide whether to skip practices as he waits to be dealt or play through it.”

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NBA insider Brian Windhorst though was not so sure it would pay off, should Durant’s ultimatum have been a ploy to try speed up a trade out of Brooklyn.

“Doing it now is a manoeuvre, a manoeuvre that I don’t think worked because as I talk to teams out there, they don’t think this increased his trade demand. They think this hurt his trade value,” Windhorst said on ‘NBA Today’.

Windhorst brought up Tsai’s tweet earlier in the week as proof of it, in which the Nets owner claimed: “Our front office and coaching staff have my support. We will make decisions in the best interest of the Brooklyn Nets.”

“I want to point to the second half of the Joe Tsai tweet,” Windhorst said.

“I think it’s obviously important to look at the first sentence which is that he’s not going to fire Sean Marks and Steve Nash. But the second sentence is really the sentence that the league paid attention to it. And it seems benign when he says ‘We make decisions for the best interest of the Brooklyn Nets.’

“But I’m going to decode that for you. What he’s basically saying is despite what Kevin Durant is trying to do here, we’re not going to change what our expectations are for a trade and if you are not traded, we expect you to be reporting to camp to continue the four years you have left on your contract.”

At this stage though, we are no closer to either party getting what they want, with Schiffer putting it best in his summation of the drama.

“During’s ultimatum,” he wrote, “opened a chest’s worth of questions while the clock to training camp continues to tick more loudly”.

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Sports

Barcelona signings, news, debt, how did Barcelona sign players? Spotify sponsorship, Frenkie de Jong latest

Barcelona’s attempts to establish themselves once again as a force in La Liga and the Champions League this season have seen the heavily-indebted Catalans gamble with their future to enable a striking summer spending spree.

A year after being forced to let Lionel Messi go as eye-watering reported debts of 1.35 billion euros (A$1.96 billion) crippled the club, Barcelona have spent 153 million euros (A$222m) on transfer fees alone to strengthen their squad, with Robert Lewandowski the most notable new arrival.

“This is a really exciting season. Nothing would give me more pleasure than to make all the fans happy,” coach Xavi Hernandez said before last weekend’s 6-0 friendly win over Mexican side Pumas UNAM.

“That means winning trophies. That is our main objective.”

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After three years of struggles, on and off the field, the summer has seen hope return to the Camp Nou, with president Joan Laporta talking of an exciting “new era” when the club unveiled Lewandowski as a Barcelona player.

“Euphoria” was the headline on the cover of local daily Sport the same day. Even partisan Madrid-based sports daily Marca admitted that Barca were “frightening” in the wake of their drubbing of Pumas UNAM last weekend, when Lewandowski scored his first goal since his arrival from Bayern Munich.

Yet how Barcelona have gone about raising the funds to sign Lewandowski, as well as centre-backs Jules Kounde and Andreas Christensen, AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie, and Leeds United’s Brazilian winger Raphinha have raised eyebrows.

Faced with severe limits on spending in order to comply with La Liga’s financial controls, Barcelona knew they needed to raise money quickly to be able to invest in any signings and, crucially, to register any new players.

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– PULLING ‘LEVERS’ –

They quickly set about selling off assets to bring in money by activating a series of what have been called economic “levers”.

The club sold 25 per cent of their domestic television rights for the next quarter of a century to US investment firm Sixth Street for some 400 million euros.

Barcelona sold 24.5 per cent of Barca Studios, which manages the club’s digital business and audiovisual productions, to Socios.com for 100 million euros on August 1, and then another 25 per cent to US investment firm GDA Luma for 100 million euros more.

In the space of a few weeks, 600 million euros had been brought in to fill the coffers.

The aim was to clean up the club’s finances, make it possible to increase the salary limit set by La Liga and allow the new signings to all be registered for the start of the season.

On top of that, Barca signed the biggest sponsorship deal in their history with Spotify, bringing in a reported 435 million euros for the music streaming giant to feature on the club’s shirts and to have naming rights to the Camp Nou.

All up, that series of deals totals 1 billion euros – so Barcelona look well placed to become serious title contenders again as they prepare to host Rayo Vallecano this weekend.

Only time will tell if mortgaging part of the club’s assets in exchange for an immediate influx of cash will bear fruit.

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– DE JONG TO LEAVE? –

Yet, Barcelona are still waiting for La Liga to allow them to register their five new signings, although they hope to be able to do so in time for the season starting this weekend.

They are also hoping to further ease their financial problems by reducing their wage bill.

The Catalans have been trying to persuade Frenkie de Jong to leave, with suggestions even made that a contract he signed in 2020 was not legal. The Dutch midfielder says he wants to stay.

FULL STORY: Barca threaten legal action over contract drama — Rumor Mill

Martin Braithwaite, Samuel Umtiti and Memphis Depay are also candidates to depart the Camp Nou, with the latter reportedly a target for Juventus.

On top of that, efforts have been made to persuade certain players, including Gerard Pique and Sergio Busquets, to accept wage reductions.

Barca’s “economic miracle”, as the press have called it, still has to be transformed into a footballing miracle.

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Sports

Parramatta Eels Bryce Cartwright fronts court over AVO

NRL star Bryce Cartwright has fronted a Sydney court after police took out a restraining order to protect his anti-vaxxer wife.

The 27-year-old Parramatta Eels forward split from his former wife Shanelle early last year, after the couple caused controversy over their views on vaccinations.

Cartwright walked away from a $450,000-a-season contract with the Gold Coast Titans and returned to NSW in September 2020 with his then-wife and two children.

Months later, the pair split up following their three-year marriage.

It was revealed this week that police have now sought an apprehended violence order (AVO) against Cartwright on behalf of his ex-wife.

He fronted Waverley Local Court on Thursday but the matter was quickly adjourned.

Cartwright will have to face court again on August 25. He has not been charged with any criminal offence.

An interim order prevents the 27-year-old from assaulting, threatening, stalking, harassing or intimidating Shanelle.

Standard conditions of the interim order state he also must not damage her property or harm any animal she owns.

Neither the Parramatta Eels or NSW Police have commented on the matter.

The former couple received heavy criticism in 2020 after they expressed their beliefs about vaccinations widely on social media.

Cartwright and his ex-wife said they chose not to vaccinate their children, which was condemned by medical experts.

They called themselves “pro-choice” rather than “anti-vax”.

Both Shanelle and Cartwright were sent a number of threats due to the controversial stance.

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Sports

Tennis news 2022: Naomi Osaka retires from Toronto opener with back pain

Four-time grand slam champion Naomi Osaka retired from her opening match at the WTA Toronto Masters with lower back pain on Wednesday AEST, raising injury concerns with the US Open looming.

Estonia’s Kaia Kanepi advanced when Osaka retired trailing 7-6, 3-0.

Kanepi, a runner-up last week in Washington, needed 71 minutes on court as she broke three times before the Japanese star called it quits.

Defeat drove the emotional Osaka to tears.

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“I felt my back from the start of the match and despite trying to push through it, I just wasn’t able to today,” Osaka said.

“I’d like to pay credit to Kaia for playing well and want to wish her all the best for the rest of the tournament.”

Osaka has played only six matches with a 2-4 record since losing the Miami final in early April to world No. 1 Iga Swiatek.

Kanepi, 37, won their only prior meeting five years ago in three sets at the US Open.

“I tried to play my game and stay aggressive. It was a very tight match,” Kanepi said.

“I felt I needed a little more time to get used to new things, but after that I felt comfortable.”

Meanwhile, reigning US Open champion Emma Raducanu of Britain exited in the first round, losing 7-6, 6-2 to Italy’s Camila Giorgi.

Despite the setback in the city of her birth 19 years ago, Raducanu kept her spirits up as her US Open title defense draws nearer.

“It was a really good match, to be honest,” Raducanu said.

“The level was pretty high, especially in the first set.

“Camila’s a great opponent. She won this tournament last year. I just need to get better at dealing with players who play probably as quick as she does.”

Defending WTA Canadian champion Giorgi won a combative first set and ran away with the second against the 19-year-old Englishwoman, whose title defense in New York begins in less than three weeks.

The feisty Italian trailed by a break in both sets but showed her spirit by winning the last six games of the contest.

Giorgi needed just over an hour and three-quarters to advance to the second round over the ninth seed who broke into the top 10 ranking less than a month ago.

Raducanu had to hold on in a wild opening set, where serve was broken in six of the dozen games played.

The Briton saved a set point in the 12th game to bring on a tie-breaker, but collapsed to lose seven straight points as Giorgi took the set after 71 minutes.

Raducanu was broken three times in the second set as Giorgi finished off her victory.

– AFP

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Entertainment

How much did House of the Dragon cost HBO to make?

More dragons. More money.

HBO’s upcoming fantasy series House of the Dragon reportedly cost even more to make than game of Thrones, Variety reports.

The 10-episode debut season of HotDwhich will premiere its first episode on Binge and Foxtel in Australia on August 22, is said to have racked up a bill of around $300 million.

In comparison, the eighth and final season of GoT cost about $130 million.

While thrones had fewer episodes than HotD for its final season, coming in at just six episodes, the prequel still cost more on a per-episode basis at just under $28.75 million per episode, compared to the $22 million it took to make each episode of GoT.

Back in 2011, before it became an international phenomenon, Thrones’ The first season was allocated $9 million an episode.

But with more computer-generated imagery required thanks to the amount of dragons involved in the storyline (there’s apparently 17 dragons), not to mention immense pressure due to the popularity of thronesit makes sense HBO allocated a substantial amount of cash for the hotly-anticipated prequel series.

In thrones, only Daenerys Targaryen is blessed with owning dragons, which were incredibly rare. However, the mythical creatures fly rampant in HotDwith almost every key character owning one.

Stream House of the Dragon from August 22 on BINGE or on FOXTEL. New BINGE customers get a 14-day free trial. Sign up at binge.com.au

It’s certainly an expensive genre, with Amazon’s upcoming The Lord of the Rings prequel series The Rings of Power reportedly racking up an eye-watering $668 million bill to produce its first season, comprising of eight episodes.

House of the Dragon is set 200 years before the events of the hit fantasy series, and will focus on the rise and fall of House Targaryen after the family becomes embroiled in a nasty civil war.

It’s based on George RR Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire companion Book, Fire&Bloodwith Martin also having co-created the show alongside TV writer Ryan Condal.

House of the Dragon will premiere on Monday 22 August at the same time as the US, streaming on Binge. The series will also be available to watch on Foxtel in 4K Ultra HD

Read related topics:BingeFoxtel

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Sports

Wesley Fofana to Chelsea, Manchester United, Barcelona, ​​Frenkie de Jong contract, Arsenal, Chelsea, record transfer, defender

Barcelona have reportedly threatened legal action over Frenkie de Jong’s contract, after the Spanish giants claimed to have found evidence of criminality on “the parties who signed” the upgraded deal.

According to The Athletic’s David Ornstein, the Catalan club is hoping to either sell the Dutch star or revert the deal back to what it was before to help solve their financial woes.

De Jong has been heavily linked with a transfer to Manchester United, although Chelsea recently emerged as a potential suitor for his services.

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Meanwhile, striker Timo Werner is close to finalizing his death with RB Leipzig after arriving in Germany for his medical.

The 26-year-old rose to footballing stardom during his first stint with the club, and became one of the biggest names on the transfer market before being snatched up by Chelsea two years ago.

While Chelsea may lose Werner, the Blues are heavily linked with another emerging star who they could sign on a world record fee.

Here’s all the news and gossip in the latest edition of our Rumor Mill!

BARCA THREATEN LEGAL ACTION

Barcelona’s financial woes are in dire need of a solution recruit after La Liga rejected their attempt to register new players, including star Robert Lewandowski.

Frenkie de Jong has been linked with two of the biggest clubs in England, with a transfer shaping up as a potential solution to their money drama.

But the de Jong saga at Barcelona has reached a dramatic new twist with the club reportedly threatening legal action over the stars renewed deal.

Barcelona's Dutch midfielder Frenkie De Jong reacts during the 57th Joan Gamper Trophy friendly football match between FC Barcelona and Club Universidad Nacional Pumas at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona on August 7, 2022. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP)
Barcelona’s Dutch midfielder Frenkie De Jong reacts during the 57th Joan Gamper Trophy friendly football match between FC Barcelona and Club Universidad Nacional Pumas at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona on August 7, 2022. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP)Source: AFP

De Jong signed a two-year contract extension with the club on October 20, 2020, which kept him at the club for longer but reduced his salary in the short-term.

It’s believed the Netherlands international is owed €18 million ($26m AUD) in deferred wages, which the club is hoping to annul.

David Ornstein has reported that the deal presented by the club’s previous board involved alleged “criminality” and provides “grounds for legal action against those involved”.

Previously, Barcelona president Joan Laporta had insisted that he wants de Jong to remain at the club.

“Frenkie’s our player and we want him to stay at Barcelona, ​​he wants to stay too,” Laporta said.

“With him and his teammates, we have a very powerful midfield. He has offers, but we want him to stay.”

RED DEVILS TO SIGN FRENCH MIDFIELDER

Manchester United had identified midfielder Fabian Ruiz as a possible alternative to de Jong and it appears the deal is progressing, as Erik ten Hag looks to complete his fourth signing.

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Guardian revealed an agreement has been reached between Juventus and Manchester United for £15 million ($26 million AUD).

Rabiot has had a decorated playing career so far, having won Ligue 1 with Paris Saint-Germain on five occasions, and he’s also a Serie A winner.

WERNER TO COMPLETE MOVE

Chelsea striker Timo Werner is on the cusp of returning to RB Leipzig, after arriving in Germany for his medical.

Tim Werner.Source: AFP

Werner had an underwhelming spell at the Blues, but is set to return to the club where he really made his name in world football.

The 26-year-old scored 90 goals and had 40 assists in his 156 games for RB Leipzig, before leaving in 2020.

CHELSEA BIG SPEND CONTINUES

Leicester defender Wesley Fofana could be wearing another navy jersey this season, as Chelsea prepare to launch a world record bid this week.

Football Londonunderstand that the Blues will attempt to sign their second center back of the English summer, after announcing Kalidou Koulibaly.

It’s believed that Fofana is pushing for a move away from the Foxes, even though coach Brendan Rodgers has insisted that he’s not for sale. According to the report, Chelsea are preparing a bid that would smash the world record for the highest fee paid for a defender — currently the 87 million euros ($A127m) Manchester United paid for Harry Maguire in 2019.

ONE OR THE OTHER

Barcelona will not sell Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Memphis Depay, as both players continued to be linked with transfers away from the Camp Nou.

Football insider Fabrizio Romano has said that no discussions have been held between Chelsea and Barcelona over Aubameyang, although he is on their “list”.

BARCELONA, SPAIN – AUGUST 07: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of FC Barcelona celebrates after scoring his team’s fifth goal during the Joan Gamper Trophy match between FC Barcelona and Pumas UNAM at Spotify Camp Nou on August 07, 2022 in Barcelona, ​​Spain. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

The former Arsenal captain could be set for a sensational return to England with London rivals Chelsea, although he’s happy in Spain.

Meanwhile, Depay is reportedly negotiating a free agency with Juventus interested in acquiring his services.

BOLOGNA MAKE IT CLEAR

Bologna director Marco di Vaio has made it quite clear that the Italian club want to retain striker Marko Arnautovic, amid rumors of an offer from Manchester United.

The Red Devils reportedly had a bid for the 33-year-old striker rejected.

“Man United on Arnautovic? We’re proud of Man United’s interest for Marko bur we are not planning to sell him,” di Vaio said.

“We want to keep him at Bologna as president said, he’s a key part of our project – there’s not even a price tag.”

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Sports

Adelaide Crows pre-season camp, Caroline Wilson, San McClure, media coverage, Eddie Betts, Josh Jenkins, AFLPA

Veteran journalist Caroline Wilson has taken aim at the Adelaide media for its response to coverage of the Crows’ infamous 2018 camp amid more calls for club figures responsible at the time to take ownership.

The Crows on Monday night released a lengthy open letter to the club’s fans, apologizing to Eddie Betts, Josh Jenkins and any players who had a “negative experience” at the pre-season camp after shock new revelations emerged last week.

It comes after Adelaide journalist David Penberthy earlier this year slammed Nine’s Sam McClure and Wilson, who’ve both extensively reported on the camp, saying the latter’s coverage was a “miserable way to spend your post-journalistic career.”

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And speaking on Channel 9’s Footy Classified on Monday night, Wilson said she remained “baffled at the collective chip on the shoulder of certain sections of the Adelaide media where that camp was concerned”.

“I don’t know the above mentioned commentator (Penberthy), but I gather he’s flipped around a bit on the camp story since then,” Wilson said.

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“Graham Cornes in his Advertiser column recently tried to portray another side of the story, and talked about more brutal camps of days gone by, and asked where then was the Victoria media piled on. Seriously Graham?

“You boys, all of you, need to grow up, this is so childish. That story would’ve been a massive yarn wherever it’d taken place, and equally condemned. In fact it would’ve been a much bigger story if it had taken place at Collingwood or Richmond. Talk about shooting the messenger.”

The directors of Collective Mind, who organized the camp, Amon Woulfe and Derek Leddie told the Advertiser in February the Crows’ then chief executive Andrew Fagan and the club’s board had “full awareness” of the program.

The story also states the program was approved by senior club figures including coach Don Pyke, head of football Brett Burton, and doctor Marc Cesana who cleared every player as mentally and emotionally fit to attend, and was even pilot tested by one of the coaches.

And while current Crows bosses and the AFL have both apologized following last week’s revelations, McClure, who in 2020 broke the story of the camp’s details, still wasn’t satisfied those who oversaw the controversial pre-season event have taken ownership.

Jenkins full statement on infamous camp | 15:39

“We’ve talked a lot about the potential cover-up and to what extent it went. I know there’s been apologies and elements of contrition, but I stand here today still wondering who is going to take responsibility for some of the things that went on at that camp,” he said.

“They either knew about it and they deliberately lied, or they didn’t know. I’m not sure which one’s worse.”

Fox Footy AFL 360 co-host Gerard Whateley called for all Crows figures in power at the time who’re still at the club to depart.

“I hold to the view that those who were in positions of authority at the time and oversaw this and who have actively participated in the cover-up over four and half years should depart their positions,” he said.

“(Crows director of footy Mark Ricciuto) would be one, but I doubt he’s the only one within that club that would still occupy one of those positions.“

Wilson also hit out at the AFL’s lack of accountability and why it took so long for it to act.

“For Gillon McLachlan to take four years — given the AFL’s known since 2020 what went on — to actually apologize in a stand up at an airport with Channel 7 in an exclusively arranged interview is frankly quite pathetic,” she said.

“Our game betrayed him” Robbo on Betts | 01:02

“Why the AFL did nothing then still baffles me. The cover-up has been astonishing.”

The AFLPA (Players Association) last week indicated it would effectively reopen its investigation into the camp and contact all players for a “better understanding” of what occurred, saying it would’ve taken more immediate action had it known all the information from the outset .

However McClure believes putting the onus on the players to divulge the information is “classic victim blaming” and that more action should’ve been taken at the time.

“The last people who are responsible for what went on at that camp are the players,” he said,

“It is absolute garbage to think that we could sit here and label any of those players as part of the problem. And yet when people come out and speak the truth and show great courage, we suddenly turn around the responsibility on them.

“If the AFLPA wanted to know what was going in that camp, they could’ve asked, because from where we sat, it wasn’t that hard to find out.”

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Entertainment

Late mum wrote letter for kids and husband before dying

Before her tragic death in June, Dame Deborah James wrote down all she had learned about staying positive in the face of adversity.

The inspirational Sun columnist and podcaster was determined to share her life lessons in new book How To Live When You Could Be Dead, The Sun reports.

Here, in an exclusive extract, Emily Fairbairn shares Deborah’s beautiful final letter to husband Sebastien, son Hugo, 14, and 12-year-old daughter Eloise:

“I am currently sitting here next to the love of my life, Sebastien.

I never quite knew if you could really have a love of your life, but I now know what the very core of unquestioned love is between two people.

I have always loved my husband.

I fancied him from when I first met him, and I knew I would marry him after our third date.

It was clear to me that, while he wasn’t perfect, there was something about him that was right for me.

He respected me, and he never let me walk all over him or wrap him around my little finger.

He has always been, and always will be, the one person who can come and make everything better at 3am. He makes me feel safe.

If I look across any room 18 years later, I still find him the most attractive man there.

He had to mellow like a fine wine, because he has a stubborn side, which makes the three-year-old in me want to throw all my toys out of the pram.

He loves a feisty debate and loves to joke — sometimes I just prefer a movie and a glass of wine.

When I look back at our relationship and marriage, I realize that it didn’t just happen without work.

The complexities of daily life sometimes got in the way.

It’s easy to forget that the person you love is still there in front of you when things are clouded by the annoyance of childcare logistics, money pressures and living like ships in the night.

I wish I had learned at a young age that making time for your marriage to work should be as much a part of your time table as going to the gym or cleaning your teeth.

It’s important that you don’t allow the big arguments to build up, when all you really want is to forget about everything and cuddle the one person who you love.

As cancer brings my life to an end, I feel this cruel realization that I’m not fully able to be myself with the one person I have adored and needed in my life more than anyone else.

I feel robbed of the freedom of a body without pain to kiss with, the freedom for us to make whimsical plans for our future and retirement together.

Our goals and dreams have had to be adjusted week by week and day by day, depending on my cancer.

My husband has always been my rock. He holds me up when I can’t hold myself and wipes away my tears.

And yet I’ve wondered every day how it must have felt for him when the fairytale marriage he signed up for became a daily struggle to survive and fight for an extra moment of living.

I’ve wondered how he’s felt knowing he is about to become a widower.

I’ve wondered how he’ll remember me, and I’ve wondered if he will be OK.

To Hugo and Eloise, I can’t even speak about you without crying. You are my world.

I’ve learned that there are many ways to parent—nothing is right or wrong as long as there is love.

I’ve also learned that children are more resilient than we think.

There are mental snapshots of being a parent that will never leave you.

But the beautifully etched memories that will come to you in your death are not necessarily the ones you might expect.

One of my first is of Hugo when he was four days old.

He was lying next to me in our double bed in our flat, and he was looking for my breast to feed on — he was yellow and had a big conehead.

I remember looking at this little 6lb ball cradled against my tummy and thinking that it was only at this point that I had begun to understand what love was.

I now look at that same 14-year-old boy, who still takes the time to cuddle up next to me on the sofa, and I would give anything to continue being able to protect him in the way I did when he was just four days old.

I believe in self-fulfilling prophecies, I believe in rebellious hope and I believe my children will be OK when I die.

Because if I tell them they won’t be, then they might not be.

I want them to realize that life does not always go according to plan.

You can make plans, and you can have goals, but you have to be prepared for the fact that sometimes life is more interesting when you go off-piste — so be brave.

Take a chance and back yourself.

Remember to be your number one cheerleader.

Don’t leave the world and all it has to offer until retirement — experience it now.

Learn to balance living in the now and being present in the moment with your plans for the future (although this may be the hardest lesson of all).

Marry only for love.

Buy a dog — I bought Winston at one of the lowest points in my life and he has made me so happy. Nature and animals make me happy.

It is only towards the end of my life that I have really started to appreciate nature.

Take time out. Relaxing isn’t an indulgence — it’s a form of refilling ourselves. None of us can drink from empty cups.

Each day, do things that make you happy — build them into your life and never criticize others for the things that make them happy.

Every day we wake up not knowing if we will see the full 24 hours of the day, so as the sun comes up on a new day, we should feel blessed.

We are given 86,400 seconds every day, and we each choose how to use them.

It is only as they begin to slip away from us that we understand the value of each and every one of those seconds.

So, my greatest advice to you is that you can do whatever you want with those seconds. You can use them however you want.

The choice is yours, but the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.

Do you believe in yours?

Excerpted from How To Live When You Could Be Dead, by Deborah James (Vermillion, £14.99), out on August 18, 2022 © Deborah James.

This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission

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Categories
Business

Construction industry collapse: Sign sector is heading for a bust

In the history of Australia, the nation’s economy has often been defined by booms and busts. From the 1890s depression driven by a collapse in wool prices and housing price crash, all the way through to the current boom in thermal coal prices, Australia’s economy has thrived and dived on boom and bust cycles.

In October 2019, the Reserve Bank warned of yet another boom that would turn to a bust, this time in the construction sector. At the time RBA Deputy Governor Guy Debelle made a speech to warn of falling activity in the industry, stating that it would subtract around 1 percentage point from GDP growth and that there was some risk the decline could be even larger.

Around that time investment bank UBS was equally concerned, warning that construction job ads were pointing to around 100,000 jobs potentially being lost in the industry as activity levels dropped from its peak.

With every boom comes a bust

Looking at the data, it’s clear why Debelle and the RBA were concerned about the direction of the industry. Between April 2012 and November 2017, the construction sector underwent an enormous boom following a period of rapidly falling activity resulting from the end of projects driven by the Rudd and Gillard government’s first homeowner grants. During this period dwelling approvals rose by 119 per cent and the construction sector enjoyed a period of strong growth even while other parts of the economy struggled.

But the continued strength of the construction sector was not to be.

Between November 2017 and the pre-pandemic lows of January 2020, dwelling approvals fell by 41.5 per cent. Naturally in time, dwelling commencements also fell from their peaks, dropping by 31.8 per cent between March 2018 and September 2019.

The pandemic effect

At the start of 2020, it was all very much looking like the RBA’s concerns about the future of the construction sector were justified. But when the pandemic arrived on Australia’s shores just a few months later everything changed.

In just a few months the fortunes of the construction sector changed dramatically, from a slowly dwindling pipeline of projects to unprecedented levels of government support for the industry.

From June 4 2020, the federal government’s ‘HomeBuilder’ program provided a $25,000 grant for eligible new builds and large scale home renovations on homes that met the government’s criteria. According to the federal Treasury as of March 2022, HomeBuilder had cost a total of $2.1 billion and received more than 137,000 applications (113,113 for new builds and 24,642 for renovations).

According to an analysis from Master Builders Australia, the value of building work supported by HomeBuilder amounted to $41.6 billion.

Various state and territory government grants for new homes also helped increase the number of new homes under construction to all time record highs.

Meanwhile, as the way Australians live and work changed dramatically as a result of the pandemic, demand for home renovations surged. According to the ABS during 2021 Australians spent $12.3 billion on renovating their homes, up 33 per cent compared with 2020.

Amid all this stimulus and pandemic driven activity, the construction sector has at times suffered from materials and labor shortages as it attempted to keep pace with rising demand.

But with HomeBuilder and various state and territory grants now in the rear view mirror, a concerning picture of the future is now slowly emerging.

Concerning signs

Since peaking in March 2021, dwelling approvals have failed by 29 per cent as of the latest data for June this year. After hitting an all-time record high in June 2021, dwelling commencements are following approvals down, falling 27.5 per cent as of the March quarter.

While a relatively strong pipeline of work remains and tradies are still in huge demand across much of the nation, the various forward looking indicators for the industry are showing similar concerning signs to those displayed in 2019.

However, unlike 2019 the broader economic circumstances are quite different and there are risks that the fortunes of the construction sector could deteriorate more swiftly. With mortgage rates currently rising at their most rapid relative rate in Australian history and inflation tipped by Treasury to hit 7.75 per cent by the end of the year, in time Australians may be much more reticent to take the plunge and pull the trigger on building a brand new home.

In 2020 the construction sector became the latest example of the “Lucky Country’s” good fortune coming to the rescue at exactly the right time. But now with a very different backdrop of economic circumstances, the sector has become even larger and activity levels even higher than the previous peaks, from which the RBA and UBS warned that the falls from could prove quite challenging.

Ultimately, despite the deteriorating forward looking indicators it is still very much early days for the construction sectors eventually slow down. More government stimulus or social housing construction may yet still come to somewhat fill the gap, but whether the sectors good fortune will hold, remains very much up in the air.

Tarric Brooker is a freelance journalist and social commentator | @AvidCommentator

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Categories
Business

Collapsed building company Willoughby Homes taken to court to be liquidated

The stark reality of a building company’s collapse has been laid bare after the firm proposed that trade creditors would receive 10c back for every dollar they were owed.

On Wednesday afternoon, Sydney-based builder Willoughby Homes was brought to court with creditors calling for it to be put into liquidation because the business was “hopelessly insolvent”.

Gyprocking company Regno Trades initiated legal proceedings against Willoughby Homes early last month over an unpaid debt of $184,000.

That means if they followed through on Willoughby Homes’ proposal for receiving 10c in the dollar, Regno Trades would only recover $18,400 – leaving them $166,000 out of pocket.

Two business days before the hearing, Willoughby Homes appointed David Mansfield and Jason Tracy of Deloitte’s turnaround and restructuring department as voluntary administrators, causing creditors to suggest this was an “11th hour” attempt to save the company.

Judicial Registrar Claire Gistham, of the Victorian Supreme Court, granted the administrators of Willoughby Homes an adjournment until the end of the month to come up with an official Deed of Company Arrangement (DOCA), which is essentially a plan for creditors to get their money back.

In the heated court case, representatives of creditors argued that the company had “failed so miserably” and should be wounded up immediately because there was “an overwhelming case for insolvency”.

During the hearing, it was also revealed that Willoughby Homes owed up to $4.4 million to homeowners, trade creditors and the tax office.

Despite that, the construction firm has “minimal assets” and only has $14,000 in liquid cash in its accounts at the moment.

It comes after an extensive news.com.au investigation over the last month found Willoughby Homes has been non-functional for some time, with debts to creditors going unpaid, build sites stalling for as long as a year, the company’s home building insurance not being reinstated and finally, all its offices being cleared out and phone lines going straight to voicemail.

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Regno Trades acted as the plaintiff while three supporting creditors also joined the case – H & R Interiors owed $73,925, an ex-employee owed $53,000 in unpaid wages and Finese Electrical and Air Conditioning, owed $4531.

Another creditor, Kamaljit Pawar, also joined the case. The Sydney man built a house with Willoughby Homes in 2014, which was left with significant defects and he has been fighting to have them fixed ever since.

There are 44 impacted homeowners, 16 of whom have houses at “varying stages of construction” while the other 28 customers have handed over deposits but no building has commenced.

There are also a number of creditors and employees impacted. It’s understood employees are owed $67,000 in unpaid superannuation and about $600,000 is owed to deposit holders. Over a million is owed to the Australian Taxation Office.

There was debate about how much the company actually owes in total, with administrators putting the figure at $2.3 million but Mr Pawar’s lawyer Rodney Kent said he’d reviewed documents and said it was higher.

“There are substantial defaults” amounting to $4.5 million, he said.

Mr Kent also added that the owner of Willoughby Homes, Steve Willoughby, had four properties and possibly five, which could be sold to pay back debts.

SC Peter Fary, acting for the plaintiff and three supporting creditors, called for Willoughby Homes to be placed into liquidation because it had “failed so miserably”.

“This isn’t the first winding up application, in fact it’s not even the first winding up application this year,” he said.

“One has to ask why the director hasn’t caused the company to address its insolvency at an earlier point in time.”

He said it made no sense for the company to remain in administration because Willoughby Homes was unable to carry out any construction work.

“Is it seriously suggested that a company with no capital will continue building contracts in administration where it failed so miserably before?” I have asked the court.

“These matters go to another issue of commercial morality,” he added, urging the registrar to consider “Whether as a matter of commercial morality it’s appropriate for this company to continue in existence”.

Mr Fary said Willoughby Homes had “minimal assets and significant liabilities”.

In the hearing, it was stated Willoughby Homes only had $14,000 in cash as well as some motor vehicles, property and equipment that it could sell to pay back debts.

Administrators called in at the ’11th hour’

The lawyers representing creditors were also critical of the last minute appointment of administrators, last Friday, when they said it appeared likely that the firm had been trading insolvent for months.

“This is an 11th hour appointment, the appointment of an administrator at the last minute should be treated with skepticism,” Mr Fary said.

“One can’t escape the conclusion of these facts that there is likely to be an insolvent trading claim of a significant magnitude.

“One can readily infer that insolvency was some time ago.”

Mr Kent agreed, adding: “This is so late in the day and so inappropriate… Deposit holders have lost their money in circumstances where signing contracts was totally illegal.”

However, the administrator’s legal team argued that it was far from an 11th hour appointment.

QC Hugh Smith, representing the administrators, argued, “We’ve all been involved in 11 hour appointments, this is not that.”

Administrators were appointed late on Friday, giving them two business days – Monday and Tuesday – to sort out the company’s finances.

“As such this is not an 11th hour appointment,” Mr Smith insisted.

In another twist, the administrators insisted that a category of creditors – the deposit holders – be paid back in full while all the other credits only received 10c in the dollar.

The Deloitte administrators held a meeting for deposit holders only on Monday ahead of the court hearing and claimed a vote was 100 per cent in favor of the resolution to keep the company in administration so that they would receive their promised funds.

However, register Gistham grilled the QC on how many people actually voted, which turned out to be only 15 people.

“The priority here is quite extraordinary, on the one hand you’ve got 100c in the dollar, and the other hand is 10c to the dollar,” Mr Fary said.

“My client is as vulnerable as anybody else, all of their businesses are at risk of going under as well if they’re not paid,” Mr Kent added.

Later on, in a conversation with news.com.au, Mr Kent added: “It’s disappointing that their first meeting only involved certain creditors and not all of the creditors. I’ve never seen this done before. My client didn’t even know that meeting was taking place.”

After opposition, the administrator’s lawyer indicated they would reconsider whether 10c in the dollar was appropriate compared to 100c in the dollar for deposit holders.

The registrar added the case until August 31.

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