A Suns star is still off-contract—and the Crows are preparing to pounce.
Plus the intriguing contract situation surrounding a young Magpies forward.
Get the latest player movement news and updates in AFL Trade Whispers!
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CROWS KEEPING TABS ON SUNS STAR
Adelaide is making a major play for homegrown forward Izak Rankine in what would be one of the biggest coups of this year’s trade period.
Gold Coast officials have long been confident of retaining Rankine after already re-signing fellow South Australian Jack Lukosius, as well as Ben King, Ben Ainsworth, Elijah Hollands and Mac Andrew.
The Suns are also expected to soon ink Lachie Weller on a four-year contract.
Rankine, who was drafted from SANFL club West Adelaide with the No. 3 pick in the talent-laden 2018 class, is out of contract at season’s end but is not a free agent.
The Crows would likely need to part with their first-round draft selection, which is currently No. 4 after their weekend win over Carlton, if they convince Rankine to leave, but that may be only the start of what was required.
However, the 22-year-old’s contract status, and the possible threat of Adelaide grabbing him in the pre-season draft, could complicate any potential negotiations.
Izak Rankin of the Suns. Picture: Russell FreemanSource: Getty Images
The Blues did exactly that with ex-Gold Coast footballer Jack Martin three years ago after discussions between the clubs broke down, heavily front-ending his deal to ward off other suitors.
Essendon already made a lucrative pitch to Rankine’s management this year to try to lure him to Victoria, with the young star’s career-best season catching rivals’ attention.
His agent, Garry Winter, of W Sports and Media, was previously on Adelaide’s board, and it could be worth up to $800,000 per season for Rankine to become a Crow on a long-term deal.
Rankine’s three-goal performance against West Coast on Sunday was his seventh match with multiple majors in 2022, along with averaging 14 disposals and six score involvements.
He would be a significant upgrade on rebuilding Adelaide’s small forward corps and could form a deadly duo with last year’s first-round draftee Josh Rachele.
Rachele’s 17 goals rank fourth at the Crows – behind tall targets Taylor Walker (42) and Darcy Fogarty (22), as well as spring-heeled forward Shane McAdam (18) – while Ned McHenry and James Rowe have each kicked only 10.
They sit in the bottom four on the ladder and for scoring, so Rankine would provide an excellent boost ahead of a season where Matthew Nicks’ team hopes to take a leap.
Suns keep finals hope alive | 01:25
Adelaide’s list management team met with Melbourne goals neak Kade Chandler, another South Australian, during last year’s trade period before he decided to stay at the Demons.
The Crows were linked with Western Bulldogs midfielder Josh Dunkley for many months but it’s now believed Port Adelaide would be the South Australian club he would join if he left the Kennel.
Dunkley’s girlfriend, Tippah Dwan, plays netball for the Adelaide Thunderbirds.
Asked last week about the delay in Rankine re-signing, Gold Coast coach Stuart Dew said they were “still confident” he would be at the club in 2023.
“There’s always a process. Things happen at different rates and different speeds,” Dew said.
“A number of contracts we’ve done have actually taken longer, so as long as the conversations are happening, that’s where the confidence comes from.
“It’s when it goes quiet (that you get concerned), and it’s certainly not like that – the dialogue’s still there.”
—NCA Newswire
HENRY, PIES ‘NOT OVERLY CLOSE’ TO FRESH CONTRACT
Collingwood and young forward Ollie Henry are “not overly close” on signing a new deal, but both parties remain confident a contract will be signed soon, reports SEN’s Sam Edmund.
Henry has had a promising yet rollercoaster 2022 season with the Magpies so far, booting 21.15 from 14 games. He started as the sub against Freo in Round 10 but came on to kick 4.1, while he was the unused medical sub against the Adelaide Crows in Round 18 and has spent the past two weekends in the VFL, booting 4.2 and 3.1 respectively.
The 20-year-old is uncontracted beyond this season. In May I told AFL Media he wasn’t in a rush to sign a new contract but declared he was “loving his time at Collingwood”.
Goodwin and Fagan discuss trade rumors | 03:43
Edmund reported on SEN Breakfast on Tuesday that talks between Henry’s management and the Magpies were ongoing, adding they’d met “in the last week or two”.
“Not overly close at this stage at Collingwood, but I think this one gets worked out. Both parties expect that to be the case,” Edmund told SEN Breakfast.
“The Pies want him to stay and Henry wants to stay, but with (Dan) McStay coming in there’s some things to work out around what his future looks like on game day.”
“I think they’ll get there, no real reason to think otherwise at this stage. It just needs to be worked through with the pieces coming back the other way like Dan McStay and the like.”
Two Fox Footy pundits have urged North Melbourne to make a “Luke Hodge-style play” for outgoing Docker David Mundy to boost the bottom-placed club’s leadership prospects.
Mundy, Fremantle’s games record-holder, on Monday called time on his celebrated AFL career, three days after making his 371st appearance.
It places Mundy in the 10th spot on the all-time VFL/AFL games played table, with Scott Pendlebury (352), Joel Selwood (350) and Lance Franklin (335) the closest to him among active players.
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Speaking on Fox Footy’s On The Couch on Monday night, Mundy, 37, said he was pretty happy and content” with his decision after a pre-season ankle injury kickstarted retirement thoughts, but said there was “nothing set in concrete” for post-footy life.
Asked if he would’ve played on at Freo had his body allowed him to, Mundy told On The Couch: “No I don’t think so. I’m really proud to still be able to strongly contribute on gameday in the 22nd.
“I’ve been thinking for a long time that I’d feel really guilty if I hung on and battled my way through a year and ended as a broken, crippled old man. To go out on top I feel a great deal of pleasure in.”
But Herald Sun Journalist Jon Ralph reported Mundy “just wasn’t offered a new deal and he would’ve played on”.
“I asked his management … Two weeks ago, he said ‘I’ll keep playing at this club until they kick me out’ … He was hopeful with contract negotiations as recently as two weeks ago and it didn’t happen,” Ralph told On The Couch.
“That’s not a pot on Fremantle, they just decided to go another way and that’s fine.”
St Kilda champion Nick Riewoldt said it was a “surprising” call by Mundy, who was awarded AFL Coaches’ Association MVP votes for his 35-disposal, 15-contested possession and 10-clearance display against Melbourne last Friday night.
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It’s why Riewoldt encouraged the 18th-placed Kangaroos to target Mundy this off-season
“I understand his reasons because you want to go out maintaining that really strong level of performance, but he wasn’t showing any signs of slowing down,” Riewoldt told On The Couch.
“He sounded definitive then, but if you’re North Melbourne, would you say to him: ‘Dave, come play for two years, stick around and be an assistant because we need some leadership’ – would you make the phone call?”
Fellow Fox Footy panelist Garry Lyon added: “It’s not the silliest idea you’ve ever had.”
David Mundy of the Fremantle Dockers addressing the media after announcing he will be retiring. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Herald Sun chief football writer Mark Robinson echoed Riewoldt’s thoughts minutes later, saying the Kangaroos should look at what Brisbane did in late 2017 when it traded in four-time premiership Hawk Luke Hodge as its young group moved into finals contention.
“I think North Melbourne should go after him and offer him a one-year deal to come over to Victoria and help the young kids at North Melbourne,” Robinson told Fox Footy’s AFL 360. “Like (Luke) Hodge, like the first-year Giants in James McDonald and a few others (in 2012).
“I think if he wants to continue playing, North Melbourne should look at a Luke Hodge-style play for David Mundy.
“He’s playing good enough. He’s not ‘at the end’, so if he’s a really good footy club person, give him a deal that (includes a) coaching role as well.”
If you thought the chaos at airports over the July school holidays was enough to send you mad, experts say a whole lot more pain is coming – and not just when it comes to flying.
With Christmas holidays creeping up and the busiest holiday period just around the corner, Aussies hoping for a breezy summer escape are being warned to book now – or face being left out in the cold.
Accommodation platform Stayz revealed one-in-five Aussies have already booked their end of year holiday, with newly released data predicting a possible sold out summer in top holiday home destinations over the Christmas break.
“Booking for year-end Christmas holidays in July is now the norm” says Simone Scoppa, travel expert at Stayz.
“Prior to the pandemic, we knew that travelers mostly booked Christmas holidays in the month of September. But, the last two years have seen this peak period move to July as travelers get in early to secure their holiday home.”
According to the research, families heading into the silly season are increasingly searching for whole holiday homes with pools, in a waterfront or beachside location, and for the accommodation offering to be pet friendly.
Ms Scoppa said heading into July and August, the most popular destinations that have seen a spike in summer bookings include the Fraser Coast in QLD, the South West region of WA, the Barossa wine region in South Australia and smaller coastal towns along the Great Ocean Road in Victoria.
Airbnb, who recently launched the ‘Categories’ section for unique-style homes, predict this summer will have an increased interest from the international market now that border restrictions are over.
“While traditional holiday destinations continue to be popular, last year we saw guests seeking stays in those lesser-known locations that might be slightly further afield,” Susan Wheeldon, Airbnb’s Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand, told news.com.au.
“This summer, Aussies won’t be the only ones snapping up fun and unique homes on Airbnb, with international travelers also looking to experience Down Under – from our world-famous coastal cities and towns, to breathtaking rural landscapes.”
Ms Wheeldon tips locations like Rye, Apollo Bay and Bright to be popular once again this summer, along with South West Rocks and Nelson Bay in NSW.
With airports and airlines across the country – but particularly along the east coast – battling staff shortages, flight cancellations and delays coupled with the post-Covid travel boom, experts warn travelers could be in for long wait times over the summer holidays for both domestic and international travel.
On Monday alone, 21 flights were canceled in Sydney across the Qantas, Virgin Australia, Jetstar and Rex networks. Virgin dumped 10 flights, Qantas nixed eight, with two pulled from Jetstar and one from Rex.
Melbourne Airport faced similar struggles, with 20 flights scrapped as of 8.30am.
This included seven flights from Qantas, five from Emirates and Virgin Australia, two from American Airlines and one from British Airways.
The flights canceled at both airports were between 6.30am and 7pm on Monday.
With airlines struggling to keep up with demand amid staff shortages, Qantas announced they would be reducing flights in July and August.
Domestic and International CEO Andrew David apologized to customers as a result of the ongoing chaos being faced at airports across the country.
“We are the national carrier, people have high expectations of us, we have high expectations of ourselves and clearly over the last few months we have not been delivering what we did pre-Covid,” he said.
“We have reduced some of our flying this month and we’re planning to do the same next month, recognizing the operation pressures we have.”
It is understood the airline will be rostering on extra staff for the Christmas period, and any large widebody aircraft will be deployed to assist with domestic flights if need be.
In 2022 alone, Aussies have faced a string of rising cost of living pressures and accommodation reservations have been no exemption.
It hasn’t exactly been cheap to holiday domestically for many years, but staggering figures show that it has gone from bad to worse in the past 13 months.
Data from trivago released in June – recorded hotel price shifts from more than 400 booking sites for over 2 million hotels around the world in its Hotel Price Index. The survey uncovered an astronomical increase in the price of an Aussie getaway.
It shows the average price of a hotel in Sydney has arisen almost 25 per cent over the past year while hotel rooms in Melbourne have seen a 24 per cent spike in the same period.
This means the average cost of a hotel room in Sydney is now above $240 per night, up from $206 a night a year ago. For Melbourne, the average cost is now $239, up from $200 in August last year.
The CEO of Tourism Accommodation Australia, Michael Johnson said the hike in prices came down to staff shortages still plaguing the industry, with many hotels forced to operate at 70 to 80 per cent capacity which was impacting revenue.
“I know hotels that are still looking for 30 to 40 staff, instead of running two restaurants they are only running one,” he said.
“They’re not taking conference bookings, because they just don’t have the staff to manage those bookings.”
But despite the angst and frustration following travelers to airports both domestically and internationally, Australians have not been deterred from traveling and there’s no sign of it waning off in the future, according to Finder’s Consumer Sentiment Tracker.
More than one-in-two (57 per cent) of Aussies are planning a getaway in the next 12 months, including 32 per cent who plan to travel within Australia, 12 per cent who plan to travel internationally, and 13 per cent who plan to travel both domestically and overseas.
This is up from 49 per cent last December.
According to Finder’s Covid Comfort Indicator, Aussies rank their level of comfort with overseas travel at 4.3 out of 10, up from 2.7 in January. They feel slightly more at ease with domestic travel, ranking it 6.1 out of 10.
“The travel industry is finally seeing some normalcy for the first time in over two years. People aren’t as concerned about prices, they just want to travel again,” said Angus Kidman, travel expert at Finder.
“The key to making the most of any travel sale is to be flexible with dates and open-minded about destinations. Don’t forget to book your travel insurance as soon as you’ve locked in your trip.”
Ms Scoppa agreed, saying with many Australians missing out on travel plans due to Covid-19 interrupting plans in 2021 – the advice was to be organized and book now.
“The advice is simple, we recommend that you book now for your Christmas holidays, rather than leaving it to the last minute, where there may be limited choice,” Ms Scoppa said.
“The Mackay and Central Coast NSW regions are typically favorite summer destinations, that in years past have been close to a sell out, so it is good news for travelers looking ahead to book for Christmas that availability is still looking good for these destinations.”
Several employees of a collapsed footwear company suspected the retailer was on its last legs for some time as they were accosted by angry creditors and customers on a daily basis, endured pay runs that were weeks late and never received their final entitlements.
Controversial luxury shoe retailer Sneakerboy went into voluntary administration in early July but two former staff members told news.com.au this was not surprising.
Five companies were included in the administration notice, Sneakerboy Pty Ltd and two related companies under the Sneakerboy name, and Luxury Retail Treasury Pty Ltd and Luxury Retail Group Pty Ltd (Sneakerboy’s parent company).
ASIC documents seen by news.com.au show the embattled company and its related companies owe $17.2 million to more than 100 creditors, including $200,000 to Nike.
A whopping $500,000 is also owed to 120 past and current staff members through unpaid wages and entitlements.
Elliot* worked for Sneakerboy since 2017 and is owed $15,000 from 220 hours of annual leave and roughly 12 months of superannuation that he never received after quitting in January this year.
“Since 2018 there were a few warning signs (at Sneakerboy), pay was occasionally a tiny bit late, like a day late,” he recalled to news.com.au.
“Then over the years it started to get out of control, in the last year it would be one to two weeks late. It was insane.”
The Melbourne worker, 34, was struggling to pay rent and groceries from the late payments and now works elsewhere, adding: “You get paid on time (at this new place), it’s crazy, it feels like such a treat.”
Elliot said from the beginning of his stint at the company he had doubts about the way Sneakerboy made money
“I felt like it wasn’t a sustainable business model, it was predicated on taking money from customers and using that as a loan to buy the shoes which is insane,” he said.
Customers would fork out cash for a pair of shoes, which was usually thousands of dollars as Sneakerboy sells sneakers by brands like Balenciaga and Canada Goose for well north of $1000. This money would then be used to actually buy the shoes — but the products would usually arrive weeks or months later as it was a pre-purchase order.
Wait times for sneakers usually blew out to weeks or months, causing angry customers to ring stores multiple times a day requesting for refunds.
Elliot said his store got “a lot of refund calls.”
“You would try to delay it as long as possible,” he added.
Things reached a head when one customer spent between $40,000 to $50,000 on sneakers — with plans to sell it on at a higher price at her home country of China. However, the shoes didn’t arrive for months.
“She put her own lock in front of the store, she put a bike lock on the front door,” Elliot said with a laugh.
“They had to get a locksmith. Some people were mad about it, but she spent tens of thousands of dollars and had n’t received her product from her so it was fair enough”.
It’s understood from creditors there are in excess of 1000 customers who prepaid for products which may now never arrive.
News.com.au has contacted Sneakerboy and its two co-owners for comment.
Do you know more or have a similar story? Continue the conversation | [email protected]
Struggling to pay rent
There were times when Elliot couldn’t afford rent because his pay arrived so late and he had to sell some of his own stuff.
“You’d have weeks where it’s like ‘cool, gotta sell a bunch of my own sneakers to pay rent’, it’s pretty cooked,” he said.
Although it looked like superannuation was being deposited into his account according to his pay slip, he knew this wasn’t the case.
“We’d all known for a couple of years our super wasn’t being paid properly, when you got the pay slips it said you were getting super but obviously they weren’t,” he added.
The Fair Work Ombudsman confirmed to news.com.au that it was investigating Sneakerboy over concerns from workers regarding their wages and entitlements.
A spokesperson told news.com.au the government department “has ongoing investigations in relation to Sneakerboy”.
“As these matters are ongoing, it is not appropriate for us to comment further at this time.”
Elliot said he could “tell Sneakerboy was going badly” because it was doing 40 per cent off sales even when they didn’t have stock available.
“It was fully desperate,” he said. “They were struggling for cash flow all the time.”
‘Blocked the exit’
Adam* worked at Sneakerboy’s Sydney store for four years and he claims the run-ins with angry customers and creditors made him develop depression.
“The constant pressure from management to keep selling on my day off and angry creditors have affected me mentally,” he told news.com.au.
“I had to visit a psychologist and psychiatrist to combat my depression.”
The 26-year-old resigned three months before Sneakerboy collapsed and said his mental health has improved since then as he has “moved on to better things”.
He alleges one of the worst interactions he had was with the landlord of his store who had not been paid rent for months.
“They were shouting at me and acting aggressively,” he said. “They blocked the exits, spoke very rudely and kicked me and other staff members out of the shop.”
He also said they got angry calls from contractors, including third party cleaning companies and delivery partners over unpaid bills.
“Customers were the most frequent and the worst,” Adam continued.
“They would abuse the staff members by shouting, swearing, acting aggressively, throwing fits, and threatening the staff member.
“Imagine you are getting this at least seven to nine times a day through phone calls or coming to the store.”
He added: “From my observation, every time Sneakerboy desperately needed money, they always start massive sales by offering high discounts for branded products.
“If you recall, last year, they did four or five massive warehouse sales, which is unusual for a business.”
Stephen Dixon from insolvency firm Hamilton Murphy Advisory was appointed as administrator at the beginning of July.
There are 36 potential buyers circling to try to acquire Sneakerboy, according to Mr Dixon.
“This interest has come from a range of international and Australian parties across a broad industry spectrum,” a statement from the company read.
“We appreciate and understand the concerns that all stakeholders to the Sneakerboy Group have, especially employees and customers,” Mr Dixon said.
“We continue to urgently work towards a sale of the business, as we believe that this will be the best outcome for creditors. Employee obligations are a critical part of the negotiations we are having with potential buyers.”
A member of the 17 Manly players who did support the Pride jersey against the Roosters has anonymously blasted the seven players who boycotted the game and put the team’s final hopes in danger.
WWOS’ The Mole reported the Manly player, who asked not to be identified, painted an ugly picture of a team still very divided over the jersey saga that engulfed the club.
“They (the seven) are still saying they weren’t consulted about the pride jersey and it went against the religious a cultural beliefs,” the player told WWOS.
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“We weren’t consulted when a betting sponsor was placed on our jersey – the guys wear that every week… I’m not sure what their god would say about that.
“No one asked us when our oval was renamed after a brewery (4 Pines Park) – I don’t think their god would have been crazy about that either.
“And I can tell you very few young blokes in our club live by the 10 commandments – nor most young blokes in Australia for that matter.
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The Manly Pride Jersey.Source: Getty Images
“Yet these guys take a stance over a good move by the club to make the gay community feel inclusive in our game.”
The player also believes the fact that Manly’s loss to the Roosters could cost them the final spot in the top eight, will make it very hard for the rift in the squad to be healed.
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Manly Sea Eagles press conference | 08:29
“They could have said they didn’t support the initiative but to refuse to play with their mates, it doesn’t sit well, and there is something of a rift in the group as a result,” the player said.
“If those two lost points – and we are confident we would have won (against the Roosters) – cost us a place in the finals, it will take a long time for us to get over it.”
Cody Simpson has gone from the music charts to off the charts in his swimming career.
The 25-year-old has ticked off everything he wanted to in his Commonwealth Games campaign and the biggest tick came on Wednesday morning in his pet event — the 100m butterfly — where he lined up alongside Aussie national champion Matt Temple.
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In a thrilling final, Temple picked up the silver medal in a swim where the top three swimmers all finished within 0.16 seconds of each other.
Temple shared the silver with England’s James Guy after they were both pipped in the reach to the wall by the strong-finishing Joshua Liendo-Edwards of Canada.
Simpson, meanwhile, was slow out the blocks and it looked like being a disaster for him when he made the turn after the first 50m before he powered home in the second 50m to finish fifth — an extraordinary result.
His time of 52.06 seconds was the second-quickest of his career, but it was still outside his personal best of 51.79 seconds.
The pop star started his swimming comeback journey just two years ago after 10 years away from the pool and he did it as something of a sideshow alley attraction. Now he’s proven he is box-office on his swimming credentials alone.
Aussie swimming legend Cate Campbell told Simpson in his post-race interview he was changing the game as a mature-age converter to the sport.
“It has been a meteoric rise, a phenomenal effort and you are really re-writing what people can do in this sport,” she said.
“We are usually seeing people coming in as teenagers and you are told, if you are entering as a teenager, you’re too late.”
Simpson responded: “I want to inspire young people to know that they can do whatever it is they want to do, even if they feel like it’s too late or they’re too old to pick something up, because it’s never too late,” I told Channel 7 after the race.
He said he is well ahead of where he thought he would be in his dream of chasing a medal at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
“I think with experience comes confidence. And I’m still gathering the experience, so still gaining confidence,” he said.
“I am happy to be here. And I think, win or lose today, I’m going to go back to the drawing board and make sure I come back stronger. I’m already way ahead where I thought I would be at this stage.”
The Queenslander’s journey from music artist to swimming star has captivated Australia this year since he qualified for the Commonwealth Games at the Australian Swimming Championships in May.
His swimming career changed forever earlier this week when he picked up a gold medal in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay, where he swam in the heats before missing out on a spot in the final.
His dream of representing Australia had already come true this campaign when he competed in the semi-finals of the 50m butterfly.
But it has always been the 100m butterfly that he has had his eye on.
He was able to move through to Wednesday’s final with the fifth-quickest overall time, swimming at 52.16, well outside the personal best time of 51.79 he set at the Australian National Championships in May.
A young Aussie traffic controller has hit back at trolls who made fun of her job by revealing she can make up to $750 a day working on the roads.
Road worker Chloe Brianna took to TikTok to clap back at trolls who said she was “standing around doing nothing” and told her to “get a real job”.
The young woman responded to the cruel comments by revealing just how much she makes each week as a road worker.
In a now-viral video, Chloe, who works in Victoria, claims she earned an eye-watering $3073.75 in a week as a FIFO worker – which totaled $2280.75 after tax.
“What I make in a wheel, nightshift and living away as a traffic controller” she wrote.
“Monday 13 hours – $672.44 + $76.88 living away allowance. Tuesday 12 hours – $606.22 + $76.88 living away allowance.
“Wednesday 12 hours – $606.22 + $76.88 living away allowance. Thursday 12 hours – $606.22 + $76.88 living away allowance.
Chloe’s video rapidly went viral and now sits at over 1 million views.
In a few other follow up videos, she showed that her weekly rate can differ depending on where she works and her hours.
While she might make over $3,000 one week, another week she took home $2,379.
If Chloe makes an average of $2,500 a week, this would still see her bring in $130,000 a year.
She also cleared up that when working away from home, her accommodation if paid for – but she still needs to buy her own groceries, like she would at home.
“Honestly this is one of the best jobs in the world” she wrote on her TikTok page.
“It can be mentally challenging sometimes but tt’s so worth it.
“So much traveling and meeting new people every day. Wouldn’t change it for the world.”
While many applauded her success and inquired as to how they could get into the industry, others attacked Chloe’s career choice.
“Ridiculous how much they get paid to stand with a stop sign, listening to music and scrolling on your phone” one person said.
“Paid for just standing there, what a world.”
“Half a brain, twice the $$$, any mentally challenged person could do this” one troll taunted.
“Way to choose an easy and unskilled job.”
Many in the industry jumped to Chloe’s defense and to test that the job is not as “easy” as some perceive.
“People need to understand it’s not just standing around” one person said.
“We need to be always on our game for anything.”
“It’s actually harder than people think” another said.
“I’m a traffic controller and some of the abuse we get is brutal.”
Carlton’s loss to Adelaide has been compounded by a string of injuries.
Plus the latest on a star Richmond duo.
Get the latest AFL injury news in our Round 20 Casualty Ward!
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CARLTON has suffered some significant injury blows after the loss to Adelaide.
corey durdin is set to miss a week with a shoulder injury he suffered during the game, while George Hewett’s back issue will see him miss a second straight game, which this one being a crunch clash against Brisbane at the Gabba.
Nick Newman is set to miss the rest of the regular season after sustaining a shocking cut to his knee.
Newman was injured by his opponent’s footy boots which dragged across his leg as he attempted to lay a tackle.
late in the contest matt kennedy was assisted from the field after a head knock, with scans revealing he suffered a fractured jaw, which will see him sidelined for at least a fortnight.
Crows surprise Blues at Adelaide Oval | 01:31
RICHMOND admits it is “doubtful” star defender Dylan Grimes will play again in the home-and-away season after his latest hamstring injury.
Grimes suffered the injury in the second half of Sunday’s thrilling win over Brisbane, adding to a streak of soft tissue injuries for the 31-year-old.
Tigers fitness boss Peter Burge said on Tuesday that Grimes’ injury required “further investigation”.
“At this stage it’s probably looking doubtful that he’s going to play in the last three home and away games of the season.
“So, we’re going to need to have a look at what lies beyond that. We’ll gather some information over the next couple of days and we’ll give everyone an update.“
Meanwhile, Dustin Martin remains in a “holding pattern” with his hamstring injury.
The club says it’s “hopeful” a round 23 return is still on the cards, but admits, “if we’re not able to progress significantly in the next week or so, that starts to become a little less clear.”
The Lions Also Lost Zack Bailey in the first half of Sunday’s contest, with the mid-forward taken to hospital with a chest issue after a collision with Richmond’s Marlion Pickett.
Remarkably, despite Bailey spending Sunday night in hospital as his teammates returned home without him, the Lions are yet to rule him out of Round 21.
Scans cleared the 22-year-old of any serious injury and he was able to be discharged.
“Bailey spent the night in hospital in Melbourne after receiving a knock to his sternum in Sunday’s match with Richmond at the MCG,” the Lions said in a statement.
“Bailey was released from hospital on Monday and cleared to fly home to Brisbane.
“He will be further assessed to determine his availability for Sunday’s match against Carlton at the Gabba.”
COLLINGWOOD will be without star taylor adams for the remainder of the home and away season after he limped off in the win over Port Adelaide.
Coach Craig McRae confirmed Adams’ suffered a groin injury.
After scans, the club released a statement confirming the extent of the injury layoff.
“Collingwood vice-captain Taylor Adams will miss the remainder of the AFL home and away season after scans revealed a strain to his groin,” the statement read.
“The 28-year-old will be assessed further in the coming weeks.”
But there is good news for defending Jeremy Howeafter he suffered a heavy knock.
“Howey just got a knee in the backside and unfortunately just couldn’t function,” McRae said.
“He’ll be fine but he just couldn’t get back on the ground.”
Howe was able to complete a pool recovery session with teammates on Monday.
“He is expected to complete limited training on Tuesday before being assessed on Thursday,” the club said.
Brodie Grundy is no certainty to receive an AFL call up for Round 21, while Brody Mihocek is in a race to provide his fitness after missing Round 20 with a hip injury.
Grundy made his return in the VFL last weekend after 13 weeks on the sidelines with a PCL injury.
“Grundy played into the fourth term and collected the typical bumps and bruises sustained during a first game back,” the club said.
“He will also be assessed on Thursday.”
GEELONG are set to be without Gary Rohan for the clash with St Kilda after he was subbed out with a head knock.
Coach Chris Scott was unsure if Rohan was officially concussed, but said he was told Rohan “couldn’t go back on”.
“He said to me he’s perfectly fine, so that’s a good sign,” Scott said post-match.
“You never know how these guys are going to pull up.
“You know when it’s bad… but this isn’t one of those if appearances are anything to go by.”
Feet pip Port to the points at the MCG | 02:20
HAWTHORN coach Sam Mitchell is counting the cost of the loss to St Kilda.
The Hawks gallantly fought back in the final term, despite being down to three on the bench.
mitch lewis injured his knee early in the contest but tried to run it out, Josh Morris suffered a shoulder injury while Jacob Koschitzke suffered a cork.
“We lost three today,” Mitchell said.
“Tank Morris, he was going really well. I was sad for him – he finally got his chance. He’s put together a really good month of footy.
“He popped his shoulder, it came back in but obviously wasn’t going to come back on the field.”
Mitchell said the club wasn’t going to risk Lewis even though he tried to play on with his knee injury.
“Mitch Lewis has had a little bit of a sore knee for a while and just landed on it awkwardly,” he explained.
“It wasn’t OK to keep going.
“It’s one of those injuries where there’s a small amount of risk to it… the game was put away so we weren’t going to risk an important player like him.”
Mitchell praised Koschitzke’s ability to play on despite being clearly hampered by injury.
Saints survive fast-finishing Hawks | 01:00
“Kossie really worked hard. He has got a really nasty corky – he could hardly walk even to half time but we were already three on the bench so we needed him to soldier on,” he said.
“I have committed to that and gave us what I could. He couldn’t run or lead very much but he gave us a reply.
“Sometimes as a young player having to fight through when your body is nowhere near its best is an important lesson to learn.”
MELBOURNE coach Simon Goodwin says young ruckman Luke Jackson will be right to go against Collingwood after passing his concussion test in Perth.
Jackson came from the ground in the win over Fremantle appearing to be dazed but was given the all clear.
“He just had a little knock late in the game. He was checked by the docs and got the all clear,” Goodwin said.
“There’s nothing wrong with him, he’ll be fine. He’ll be ready to go next week.
“He got checked and passed his test.”
Goodwin also said Christian Salem would be able to back up after a blow to his face left him bleeding from the nose.
“Salem had a bit of a cut to his face, but we’ve come through unscathed,” Goodwin said.
james hames (concussion) and ben brown (knee soreness) will both need to provide their fitness to face the Pies on Friday night.
“Brown, following two weeks on the sidelines due to knee soreness, has ramped up his training program this past week and will also look to be available for selection,” the club said.
Joel Smith played his first VFL minutes since suffering a serious ankle injury back in Round 7.
the WESTERN BULLDOGS are sweating on star Adam Treloar‘s fitness ahead of this weekend’s must-win game against Fremantle.
Treloar has been battling a calf complaint and finished his past two matches early.
“Adam suffered some calf tightness in the game against Melbourne,” Dogs head of sports medicine Chris Bell said.
“He still wasn’t 100% during his fitness test last Thursday, so was unavailable for selection.
“We will again assess Adam as this week progresses and make a call on his availability towards the back end of the week.”
Anthony Scott (concussion) and hayden crozier (ankle) remain in the hunt for selection.
Scott was now “symptom-free” after being convicted in the clash with Sydney in Round 17, while Crozier has made steady progress since his ankle injury suffered in the VFL a month ago.
“We couldn’t be happier with how he has progressed over the last two weeks since coming out of the CAM boot,” Bell said.
“He will start to integrate back into training this week and we will determine if he returns to playing this weekend or next.”
Jarrod Brander‘s first season with GWS is over after the utility injured his hamstring playing the VFL.
Jacob Wehr is also unavailable for selection this weekend through injury.
Wehr suffered a calf strain against the Swans, ending his run of 10 straight game since debuting in Round 10.
Matt Flynn (ankle) and Conor Stone (hamstring) will have to provide themselves fit to face Essendon on Saturday.
In some good news for the club, Bobby Hill has been medically cleared to return after undergoing surgery for testicular cancer.
Hill hasn’t played since his shock diagnosis back in May.
PORT ADELAIDE are confident Travis Boak may back up against Richmond, despite fracturing his hand in the loss to Collingwood.
The 34-year-old was able to play out the match, after suffering the injury in the second term.
“He will be monitored throughout the week with an expectation that he will be able to take on the Tigers,” the club said in a statement.
Darcy Byrne-Jones will need to pass a fitness test after spraining his ankle early in the clash with the Pies.
The club expects Riley Bonner to be available for selection after he clears the AFL’s Health and Safety protocols, while dan houston could come into the mix after serving his 12-day concussion break.
FREMANTLE will be without skipper Nat Fyfe until at least Round 23 as he recovers from a hamstring injury.
Fyfe hasn’t played since the Round 19 draw with the Tigers and remains no guarantee to play before finals.
“We’ve got a target of round 23 for Nat, obviously there’s a bit of work to do before we get there but that’s our target,” Dockers footy boss Peter Bell said.
Sam Switkowski is another Docker pushing to return before finals, as he recovers from a serious back injury.
“Sam’s a really important player for us, so if he is to come back it will be really positive,” Bell said.
The club it was still to put a line through Jye Amiss despite the rookie’s kidney injury landing him in hospital.
“Jye is going pretty well, we’ll be in constant dialogue with the specialist,” Bell said.
“Every day he’s getting better, it’s great to have him back out there. We haven’t put a line through him for the season, that’s for sure, so he’s training well.”
It’s called the silly season for a reason but this is just getting stupid.
A dramatic series of events played out in Formula One overnight – and at this point nothing has been resolved.
Watch Every Practice, Qualifying & Race of the 2022 FIA Formula One World Championship™ Live on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
The circus began when Fernando Alonso stunned Alpine by revealing he was fleeing the team to join Aston Martin, which needed a new driver after Sebastian Vettel’s retirement.
That left Alpine with egg on its face and in an attempt to remove said egg the fourth-ranked outfit announced it was promoting Australian young gun Oscar Piastri to the vacant seat.
Piastri, who has served as Alpine’s reserve driver this season after winning back-to-back F2 and F3 championships, is destined to join the grid in 2023 and appeared to have his future decided when this release was posted just after 2am (AEST).
But less than two hours later Piastri embarrassed Alpine further by rubbishing its claim he had agreed to the promotion.
“I understand that, without my agreement, Alpine F1 have put out a press release late this afternoon that I am driving for them next year,” Piastri said. “This is wrong and I have not signed a contract with Alpine for 2023. I will not be driving for Alpine next year.”
But that’s only half the story.
The other uncomfortable development for Aussie racing fans were reports Piastri is on a collision course with his compatriot Daniel Ricciardo.
Ricciardo last week re-affirmed his commitment to McLaren but has endured the rockiest of times as Lando Norris’ partner in recent years.
It appears Piastri – and his manager Aussie F1 legend Mark Webber – read the tea leaves and were eyeing off Ricciardo’s seat before they knew Alonso was about to make room at Alpine.
There was even a report that claimed they had a deal in place with the British manufacturer, which will no doubt be tested in court if Alpine believes it breaches its agreement with the 21-year-old from Melbourne.
Oscar Piastri began racing go-carts in Victoria at age 11.Source: Herald SunPiastri has enjoyed a sparkling junior career.Source: Supplied
Piastri has been made to bid his time as Alpine’s reserve driver this year, despite winning three consecutive titles in a stellar junior racing career.
F1 commentator Martin Brundle had predicted last month the Aussie would find a way to the 2023 grid.
“Piastri has got to be in F1 next year whatever it is and whatever comes his way he has got to take it,” Brundle said.
“He has to outperform whatever he gets as Mark Webber did at Minardi and (Ayrton) Senna did at Toleman for example.
“It won’t be easy for Oscar but it’s not out of the question.”
There was speculation he could be loaned to Williams as a replacement for underperforming Canadian Nicholas Latifi but Alonso’s exit has created a domino effect that’s left the only three Aussies to race at the top level since the early 1990s suddenly at odds.
Team Australia dominated the Commonwealth Games medal tally in Birmingham in the opening four days, sitting comfortably in front – thanks largely to more dominance in the pool.
Australia claimed a stunning eight gold medals on day one, including five of a possible seven in the pool! On day two, Australia added five more golds.
The gold rush continued with nine on day three, highlighted by Emma McKeon making history with a record-breaking 11th Commonwealth Games gold medal when she took out the Women’s 50m freestyle final.
Australia has dominated again on day four with another NINE gold medals, coming in judo, lawn bowls, cycling and gymnastics — along with the usual big haul in the pool.
Australia has opened day five with a 72nd medal of the Games, this time a bronze in the men’s vault in artistic gymnastics.
DAY 5 LIVE: Athletics begins as Browning opens 100m campaign; McKeon and Simpson eye final swim day
DAY 4 WRAP: Aussies win NINE golds in wild Games medal blitz; Chalmers win ‘hard to enjoy’
Read on for more details and the full medal tally.
Australia sit on top of the medal tally with 31 gold, 20 silver and 21 bronze (71 total!), ahead of England and New Zealand.
The Aussies topped the tally with 198 medals — including 80 gold — in the Gold Coast four years ago.
You can track the live medal tally for every country here, with key Aussie wins and updates as they happen.
Click here for a full list of EVERY Aussie medal winner!
Commonwealth Games kick off in style | 00:34
SCHEDULE: Sport-by-sport guide to every day
AUSSIES: Our top hopes to watch
INTERNATIONALS: The big names set to light up the Games
COMMONWEALTH GAMES MEDALS TALLY (AS OF 5:30AM WEDNESDAY)
RANK/COUNTRY/GOLD/SILVER/BRONZE/TOTAL
1. Australia — 37, 28, 30, 95
2.England—28, 30, 17, 75
3.New Zealand—13, 7, 5, 25
4. Canada — 10, 14, 19, 43
5. South Africa—6, 5, 5, 16
6. India — 5, 4, 3, 12
7.Scotland—3, 8, 15, 26
8. Wales—3, 2, 8, 13
9. Malaysia — 2, 2, 3, 7
10. Nigeria — 2, 1, 4, 7
See the full live medal tally here.
DAY-BY-DAY MEDAL LIST
DAY FIVE
James Bacuetti claimed Australia’s first men’s gymnastics medal of these Games, winning bronze in the men’s vault. 20-year-old English sensation Jake Jarman won gold – his FOURTH of the Games – ahead of Fellow Englishman Giarnni Regini-Moran.
Aofie Coughlan took home the gold medal in the women’s 70kg judo final while Eileen Cikamatana set a new Games Record en route to a gold medal in the women’s 87kg weightlifting final.
in the swimming, Mollie O’Callaghan produced a stunning upset to win the gold in the womens’ 100m freestyle as Elizabeth Deckers won the women’s 200m butterfly.
nina kennedy secured the gold in the women’s pole vault.
DAY 5 LIVE: Athletics begins as Browning opens 100m campaign; McKeon and Simpson eye more gold
DAY FOUR
Australia ended day four with 31 gold, 20 silver and 21 bronze (71 total!), ahead of England and New Zealand.
Georgia Goodwin narrowly won gold in the women’s vault over Canada’s Laurie Denommee, while at the track, matthew glaetzer won gold in the men’s 1,000m time trial. Ellen Ryan won gold in the women’s lawn bowls singles and Tinka Easton caused an upset by claiming gold in judo.
in the pool, Kyle Chalmer won the 100m freestyle, Kaylee McKeown won the 200m backstroke and matthew levy claimed gold in the men’s 50m freestyle S7. Emma McKeon then narrowly clinched gold in the 50m breaststroke to extend her Games record to 12 golds, while the Aussies ended the night with victory in the men’s 4x200m freestyle.
Aussie weightlifter robbed of Gold?! | 00:26
Elsewhere, 49-year-old legend Jian Fang Lay has led the Aussie team to bronze in the women’s table tennis team event.
It began with victory in doubles alongside Yangzi Liu, who won her own singles game before Jian Fang Lay sealed the 3-0 over Wales with a singles victory of her own.
Kyle Bruce claimed silver in the men’s 81kg weightlifting after a heartbreaking jury decision overruled his final, gold-winning lift.
The Aussie men’s triples claimed silver in the lawn bowls, fighting back from 12-1 down in the final to level the score at 12-12 against England before falling 14-12.
DAY 4 WRAP: Aussies win NINE golds in wild Games medal blitz; Chalmers win ‘hard to enjoy’
GOLDEN HEARTBREAK: ‘Devastated’ Aussie in tears after gold ‘stolen away’
CHALMERS GOES ALL IN: Legends not surprised by last-minute withdrawal
BIG BLOW: Diamonds’ dream run soured as star sidelined with calf injury
Jian Fang Lay led the Aussies to bronze in table tennis!Source: Getty Images
DAY THREE
Australians Sam Harding and Jonathan Gorlach kicked off the day with superb silver and bronze medals in the men’s PTVI triathlon final.
Emma McKeon and Kaylee McKeown then added two more gold in the pool taking out the Women’s 50m freestyle and the 100m backstroke respectively.
McKeon led home meg harris in silver with Shayna Jack (24.36) finishing third.
In the men’s 50m breaststroke, Zac Stubblety-Cook (59.52) took home bronze.
The Women’s 4x200m freestyle relay team then completed a dominant campaign in the pool by breaking the world record.
Georgia Godwin won the all-round rhythmic gymnastics women’s final.
Australia’s Women’s 7s rugby side then put the pain of Tokyo behind them to claim gold in the final against Fiji.
In track cycling, matthew richardson won the men’s final sprint.
Kristina Clonan took home gold in the 500m time trial.
Georgia Baker won the women’s 25km points race, while Jessica Gallagher picked up her second gold medal of the Games in the Women’s tandem 1000m time trial with pilot Caitlyn Ward.
Day 3 WRAP: ‘Extraordinary’ Aussies break world record, McKeon makes history
‘It is shocking’: Thorpe stunned as England World record holder toppled in ‘unbelievable’ boilover
SHOCK CRASH: Cyclist catapults into crowd in horror scenes after Comm Games crash
‘Lost my s***’: Boxall goes bonkers AGAIN as Aussie coach celebrates WR win
‘Took all my courage and energy to swim’: Chalmers stuns in raw, emotional interview
DAY TWO
madison de rosario took out the women’s T53/54 marathon in style, dominating the field to win with a Commonwealth Games record time of 1:56:00.
Jess Stenson won the women’s marathon with an incredible run, going better than her two bronze medals in Glasgow and the Gold Coast.
It was another ripping day in the pool, with katja dedekind winning a gold meal in the women’s 50m freestyle S13 while both the men’s and women’s 4 x 100m freestyle relay finished first.
There were silver medals for maeve plouffe in the women’s 3000m individual pursuit, Brendon Smith in the men’s 400m IM, Emma McKeon in the women’s 100m butterfly and the artistic gymnastics team.
DAY 2 NEWS
WRAP: McKeon makes history amid swim gold rush; rugby stars win thriller
‘A load of s***’: Chalmers explodes at media for ‘ruining it all’ over love triangle claims
‘Dream big’: ‘Extraordinary’ journey behind ‘one of the great’ Aussie athletics triumphs
‘I was just guessing’: New Aussie cult hero’s shock reveal after ‘epic’ career-best run
DAY ONE
matt hauser had the honor of being the first Australian to win a medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, taking home the silver medal in the Men’s Triathlon Sprint Distance Final.
Ariarne Titmus won gold in the women’s 200m freestyle, 18-year-old Aussie Mollie O’Callaghan claimed silver in an unbelievable late charge, ahead of Madison Wilson.
Elijah Winnington won gold in the men’s 400m freestyle, ahead of fellow Aussies Sam Short and Mack Horton. Zac Stubblety-Cook won gold in the men’s 200m breaststroke while Kiah Melverton took silver in the women’s 400m Individual Medley.
In the final race of night one, Australia won gold in the mixed 4x100m relay.
