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Champion Sydney Swans midfielder Josh Kennedy suffers injury blow

Champion Sydney Swans midfielder Josh Kennedy suffers injury blow

Sydney officials are sweating on the severity of champion midfielder Josh Kennedy’s potentially season-ending hamstring strain suffered in the VFL on Sunday morning.

Kennedy hurt his left hamstring lunging towards North Melbourne’s Tarryn Thomas as the Kangaroo burst out of the center in the second quarter at Arden Street Oval.

The Swans are referring to the 34-year-old’s setback as a strain but remain unsure of how serious it is. He won 10 disposals before limping from the field.

Kennedy’s injury coincided with Kangaroos star Ben Cunnington playing his first game in 379 days since being diagnosed with testicular cancer.

Cunnington, who won the first center clearance of the match, finished with 18 disposals and three tackles before calling it a day at three-quarter time.

Kennedy’s hopes of forcing his way back into the Swans’ senior side for finals now hang by a thread.

He was Sydney’s medical substitute last week but has otherwise played at second-tier level for the past month since missing eight weeks recovering from a serious right hamstring tendon injury against Carlton in May.

Swans coach John Longmire has consistently praised Kennedy’s attitude and leadership this season while he adjusts to going from an all-time club great to being a fringe member of the squad.

Kennedy is yet to indicate publicly whether he plans to continue into a 17th AFL season next year that would give him the chance to bring up his 300-game milestone.

The former co-captain has appeared only 11 times at senior level this season, which would be the lowest in his 13 seasons in Sydney after crossing from Hawthorn.

Kennedy’s honor roll includes playing in the Swans’ 2012 premiership, winning three Bob Skilton Medals as the club’s best and fairest and being a triple All-Australian.

He has won the most contested possessions (4006) of any AFL footballer since the statistic was recorded.

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A-League: Danny Vukovic signs with Central Coast Mariners

A-League: Danny Vukovic signs with Central Coast Mariners

Veteran goalkeeper Danny Vukovic’s bid for regular first-team football to secure a spot in the Socceroos’ World Cup squad has brought him back to the A-League.

The 37-year-old gloveman has returned to the Central Coast Mariners, where he has spent five seasons from 2005 to 2010.

Vukovic has since spent time at four other A-League clubs – Wellington Phoenix, Perth Glory, Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC – and had spells in Turkey (Konyaspor), Japan (Vegalta Sendai), Belgium (Genk) and the Netherlands (NEC Nijmegen). ).

However, a lack of first-team football last season with NEC forced him to look elsewhere to help his chances of maintaining his spot in Australia’s World Cup squad.

Central Coast coach Nick Montgomery said Vukovic was a “massive signing” for the Mariners, who recently lost keeper Mark Birighitti to Scottish Premiership club Dundee United.

“He is a top class goalkeeper and a great person who will add so much value and experience to this young squad,” Montgomery said.

“He has played at the highest level in Europe, is a real family man and is well known in our community.

“To bring him home to play in Australia and hopefully help him make selection for the World Cup at the end of the year would be a special thing.”

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Golf: Aussie world No.2 Minjee Lee within striking distance at British Open

Golf: Aussie world No.2 Minjee Lee within striking distance at British Open

World No.2 Minjee Lee took the opening day honors in the British Open super group and is well placed to not only emulate compatriot Cameron Smith but also seize the No.1 ranking.

Lee recovered from a flat start and made three crucial birdies in the last seven holes to finish three shots off the lead as she chases her second major of the year.

Playing with world No.1 Jin Young Ko and No.3 Nelly Korda, Lee was one over par after six holes but turned for home at even par after a birdie on the seventh at Muirfield in Scotland and then began her climb up the leaderboard.

Lee finished the opening day three shots behind former champion Hinako Shibuno in the $10m event and will be back in action on Friday afternoon Australian time with an early second-round tee time for the Open super group.

“I made really quite a few good up-and-downs on the back nine,” Lee said.

“And to be three under the back nine I think is quite good considering how 14 and 15 play really tough.

“The wind got up – it was pretty similar to yesterday when I played in the pro-am – so I think I got a little used to the conditions while I was out there yesterday

“But I feel like I was quite committed on every shot that I hit because it was so windy, and I just think I did that really well today.”

Korda finished two shots back from Lee after opening with a one-under 70, while Ko struggled to five-over after shooting 76.

Steph Kyriacou is the best of the other Australians in the field with a one-under 70, placing her equal 13th.

Hannah Green posted an even-par 71 and Whitney Hillier a one-over 72, but Su-Hyun Oh never recovered from dropping three shots on the opening two holes, finishing with a 77.

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Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson reacts to Sam Walker copping spray from teammates

Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson reacts to Sam Walker copping spray from teammates

Roosters coach Trent Robinson has welcomed and applauded a heated on-field exchange between two of his senior forwards and young halfback Sam Walker during his side’s comfortable 34-16 win over Brisbane at the SCG on Thursday night.

Immediately after Angus Crichton scored the Roosters’ third try early in the first half, prop Jared Waerea-Hargreaves turned and pointed at Walker, admonishing him for a previous play that hadn’t worked out.

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Sydney Roosters Press Conference | 08:18

Victor Radley also joined in, looking at the No.7 and tapping at his head as if to say “think about it”.

Walker took his medicine without complaint, going on to play a key role in an important win that keeps the Roosters well and truly in the finals race.

Robinson was more than happy to see his players criticizing each other’s performance on the run.

“Jared’s coached as many players as I have, so that’s his role (on the field),” Robinson said.

“We care about the way that we play the game and we feel like we can get better.

Roosters coach Trent Robinson likes his players ‘coaching each other’. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images

“These guys are coaching each other to go ‘Come on. We want more. Come on, let’s get beyond that. Don’t do that. Let’s get better’.

“We’ve got more in us and the coach isn’t going to decide that, it’s those guys on the field nailing it.

“Our best is yet to come because of what we’re talking about with Jared.

“Jared wants more and Teddy (James Tedesco) talked about it after the game to the team (saying) ‘I like some of the stuff but I want more’.

“But we feel like we’ve worked hard enough this year and tried different things that it’s time to play better.”

The Roosters will finish round 21 in seventh or eighth, just hanging inside the top eight but still a chance at a coveted top-four finish.

They play North Queensland, Wests Tigers, Melbourne and South Sydney over the final month of the regular season.

Nat Butcher celebrates after scoring a try against Brisbane. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

Tedesco said: “It’s so tight. There’s probably 10 teams within four points, so for us it’s about winning every week and just getting better.

“I feel we made a statement (against Brisbane) but we’re still chasing that 80-minute performance.

“We’ll learn our lesson from tonight and look forward to next week.”

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Warriors coach Stacey Jones says Nelson Asofa-Solomona should have been charged for head-rattling hit

Warriors coach Stacey Jones says Nelson Asofa-Solomona should have been charged for head-rattling hit

Storm hardman Nelson Asofa-Solomona is getting away with too much according to Warriors interim coach Stacey Jones who remains “baffled” he wasn’t charged by the NRL match review committee for an incident which left Wayde Egan with two cracked teeth.

Jones went even further and said given Asofa-Solomona’s record of four charges in 2022, which have all resulted in fines, he could be due to a suspension if only to make him think more about his behaviour.

Egan was “rattled” by the incident in which Asofa-Solomona came down on top of him in a tackle last Friday which forced him from the field but was missed as only “minor contact by match review committee manager Luke Patten.

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Asofa-Solomona, who is yet to be suspended this season despite being charged three times for high tackles and one for making dangerous contact with a defender using his forearm, wasn’t even fined for landing his elbow on Egan’s face.

Patten said it was just a case of “two big men on a smaller man” in a prerecorded video shown at football boss Graham Annesley’s weekly media briefing on Monday and there was “no force applied to Egan’s neck”.

Jones, however, saw things differently and thought a chance was missed to send a signal to players about making contact in tackles.

“It’s not a good message,” Jones said, “It’s baffled me a little bit, like everyone else.

“We’re all about protecting our players. The game is so tough and physical.

“Wayde was really rattled. It could have been worse but I thought (Asofa-Solomona) could have at least been charged.”

‘KNOW WHAT YOU BLOKES ARE SAYING’: O’Brien blow-up exposes Knights divide

Carrigan cops 4-game ban for tackle | 02:14

Jones said Asofa-Solomona, a New Zealand international, might need to be shown, though a suspension, that he needs to change his ways when tackling.

“It’s about protecting Nelson too, in some sort of way,” he said.

“He plays a physical game and the size of his body and the damage he could do to someone, it could turn out very nasty.

“I’m sure Nelson doesn’t want to have that on him.”

Jones confirmed both departing playmaker Chanel Harris-Tavita and Jazz Tevaga are unlikely to play again this season.

Harris-Tavita has suffered an MCL injury in his knee while Tevaga has a shoulder injury.

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AFL: Mabior Chol makes most of opportunity given to him by Gold Coast Suns

AFL: Mabior Chol makes most of opportunity given to him by Gold Coast Suns

Mabior Chol continues to make the most of the chance given to him by a Gold Coast Suns side whose slim AFL finals hopes could rest on the boot of the former Richmond forward.

With three rounds of the regular season remaining, the Suns remain a mathematical chance of playing finals football for the first time in the club’s history.

It’s a tall order and the Suns will need other results to go their way, but with Chol in stellar form, it’s not yet impossible.

Having joined the Suns this year from the Tigers, where the regular top-flight football was craved wasn’t forthcoming, Chol has rewarded Gold Coast coach Stuart Dew for believing in him.

The 25-year-old, 200cm giant has kicked 43 goals this season, including a career-best single-game haul of five in the Suns’ three-point weekend win over the West Coast Eagles.

“I’ve been seeking an opportunity for a very long time to show what I can do at the highest level,” Chol said ahead of the Suns’ trip to Tasmania for Saturday’s clash against Hawthorn in Launceston.

“I knew coming up here I wasn’t just going to walk straight in. I knew I was going to have to work hard and earn my position.

“There’s been a lot of hard work since the start of the pre-season and it’s just been an exciting season … I knew what I was capable of doing.”

As did Dew, who said Chol was a “real leader” who gave the Suns “great energy”.

“He’s a real thinker of the game,” the Gold Coast mentor said.

“He sees the game really well, he can understand what’s happening, patterns of play, so when he comes to the bench, he’s really aware of how the game’s going.

“The more he gets confidence to voice that to the greater group he’s going to improve his leadership.
“We’re excited by not only what he’s done, but what’s to eat.”

Chol said the Suns weren’t looking ahead to the finals but instead on the immediate task of beating the Hawks for a second time this season after disposing of them by 67 points in Darwin in May.

“We’re just focusing on each game, each week – we’re not trying to look too far ahead. It’s been exciting,” he said.

The Suns are hopeful another former Tiger, Brandon Ellis, overcomes a shoulder problem to play this weekend after he was a late withdrawal from the team that beat the Eagles.

Dew said of Ellis: “We anticipate he’ll be on the plane to Tassie.”

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North Melbourne considering immediate AFL return for cancer survivor Ben Cunnington

North Melbourne considering immediate AFL return for cancer survivor Ben Cunnington

The prospect of throwing cancer survivor Ben Cunnington straight into the North Melbourne team to play Sydney this weekend is “really exciting” and would serve as a huge source of motivation against the top-four contenders, according to caretaker coach Leigh Adams.

Cunnington hasn’t played a senior game since round 19 last year after battling two bouts of testicular cancer that required a tumor to be surgically removed and a nine-week course of chemotherapy respectively.

The star on-baller’s return was further delayed recently by a calf strain and a bout of Covid.

While he’s more likely to line up in the VFL this weekend, if Cunnington gets through training on Thursday, he will be considered for a senior return against the Swans at Marvel Stadium on Sunday.

“Pretty sure I know what his preference will be and the coach’s preference, it’ll just be what’s best for his body going forward,” Adams said at Arden Street on Wednesday.

“But at this time of year, it’s a great story for us, for the motivation of the group and the footy club, really.

“It’s been an amazing journey which will hopefully be capped off very soon.

“The last thing we want to do is put him in there and he breaks down and then he’s out for the rest of the year.

“We’re thinking it’s probably going to be the VFL even though we’d probably love it to be straight back in (the senior team).

“Deep down I know he’d love to play seniors, particularly being a game in Melbourne this weekend and we travel next weekend, so to have his support network and his family that have been through so much with him to be at the game would be fantastic.

“But … it’s only an hour flight to Adelaide (for the game against the Crows in round 22), take his family over there so it’s not too far.”

Adams admitted Cunnington had left a void in the North Melbourne midfield for the past 12 months that the Roos had struggled to fill. The bottom-ranked club remains on course for back-to-back wooden spoons for the first time in 87 years.

Paul Curtis and Aaron Hall are pressing for senior recalls after missing last week due to Covid, but Jack Mahony and Lachie Young will be line ball as they entered protocols on Sunday, which means they would exit them on game day.

Super coach Alastair Clarkson continues to be linked to North’s vacant senior coaching position for next season and Adams was excited by the possibility of the four-time premiership mentor signing on.

“The credibility as a footy club that would be gained by bringing in someone like him would be fantastic,” Adams said.

The future of Cam Zurhaar remains under a cloud after the out-of-contract forward put off talks until the end of the season, and Adams said the club would “love” the talented 24-year-old to stay at Arden Street.

“He’s obviously a fantastic player for us and a little bit of a barometer when we’re playing well,” Adams said.

And the North caretaker had similar feelings about Todd Goldstein, who is strongly rumored to be joining another club next season.

“I’ve got a soft spot for ‘Goldy’, I got drafted the same year as ‘Goldy’,” Adams said.

“I’d just love to see him be a one-club player.”

North/s 1996 premiership players will be in attendance on Sunday, and Adams said their presence would give the players an extra boost.

“It’ll be awesome,” Adams said. ”It’s exciting to have such great footy people around our footy club to impart some knowledge to our younger boys.”

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AFL: Brisbane Lions searching for end-of-season form

AFL: Brisbane Lions searching for end-of-season form

Lions forward Eric Hipwood insists Brisbane can win the AFL premiership from anywhere in the top eight, saying form – rather than ladder position – was the key heading into next month’s finals series.

Brisbane has dropped to fifth spot after their seven-point weekend loss to Richmond at the MCG.

With three rounds of the regular season remaining, the Lions should still make the top four if they can beat Carlton, St Kilda and Melbourne this month.

But if Brisbane has to settle for a spot in the bottom half of the top eight, Hipwood believes his side can still win the flag, provided form and consistency is found in the next three weeks.

Under the current finals system, the Western Bulldogs are the only team to clinch the premiership from outside the top four, having won the flag in 2016 after finishing seventh on the ladder.

“That’s what you strive for at the start of the season, to get that double chance (by finishing in the top four), but you’ve seen teams win the grand final from outside the top four,” Hipwood said.

“We’d like (a top-four spot), but we just want to be competitive come the end of the season.”

Hipwood was adamant Brisbane would find form before the finals, saying there were “positives” to take from the loss to the Tigers, who fought back from 42 points down to win and keep alive their hopes of playing football finals this season.

“It was disappointing that we did lose, but we’re still optimistic. We had a lot of opportunities to win the game and we just couldn’t ice it,” Hipwood said.

“We played some really good footy, especially in that first half.”

“What hasn’t been spoken about enough is that Richmond are a bloody good team.

“They’re certainly up there with the best and they brought that on the weekend. I don’t think the ladder position (ninth) represents where they’re at.”

Despite Brisbane’s loss, the towering Hipwood had his best game since returning in round nine after 10 months on the sidelines following a knee reconstruction.

He kicked four goals and grabbed six marks in an encouraging sign with the finals approaching.

“I’ve been quite inconsistent and I’m quick to identify that myself but I am building,” Hipwood said.

“I didn’t really have any practice games or anything like that prior to coming (back) into the AFL.

“I’m getting better week-in, week-out – that’s all that really matters.”

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AFL: Star Collingwood midfielder Taylor Adams to miss Magpies’ top-four push

AFL: Star Collingwood midfielder Taylor Adams to miss Magpies' top-four push

Collingwood midfield star Taylor Adams will resume running this Friday having “had a sook” over the groin injury which he’s adamant won’t keep him out of this year’s finals.

Adams was subbed out of the Magpies’ six-point win over Port Adelaide at half-time last Saturday and subsequent scans confirmed he suffered a groin strain.

The 28-year-old said on Tuesday he was extremely disappointed when the initial prognosis was delivered with the Magpies on a 10-game winning streak and a chance to finish in the top four under first-year coach Craig McRae.

But he quickly focused on the “silver lining” which was the chance to return in time for the first final, aided by the pre-finals bye which should give him enough time to be ready to play.

“I’ve got all the sooking out of my system. It could be better but it could be far worse,” Adams told RSN.

“I’m seeing the silver lining. I will start running again on Friday and that will give me a really good lead in to make sure that I come back fit and strong and able to sustain a full game.

“You have to shift your mindset from a situation that’s not ideal to turning it into something which is really positive. I’ve been in this situation before .. you can either sook about it for four or five days or you can get over it and put a plan in place and get back to work.

“I’m in that headspace at the moment and I’m confident if I put the work in I’ll be right. I’ve got a plan in place now and I’ll get to work and get ready to come back.”

Adams had until now played every game this season bar two, missing the round 4 defeat to West Coast while in the AFL’s Covid protocols then sitting out the narrow round 18 win over Adelaide because of a concussion.

He is first at the club for contested possessions this season, second in tackles and inside 50s, third in groundball-gets and sixth in disposals, so he is a significant loss for Craig McRae’s team at a crucial juncture.

The Magpies have won 10 matches in a row, including seven by single-digit margins, to move into third place on the ladder with reigning premier Melbourne, in-form Sydney and Carlton to come.

Only eighth-placed St Kilda, which has three fewer victories, has a worse percentage than Collingwood’s 106.2, so it will likely need to win at least twice in the final three rounds to maintain a top-four spot.

There are reinforcements on the way, with Brodie Grundy (knee) successfully negotiating his VFL comeback on Saturday, while McRae said after the Power victory that he expected Brody Mihocek (hip) to be available.

The coach stopped short of guaranteeing Grundy’s return but he played almost a full match while amassing 11 disposals, 21 hit-outs and eight tackles.

Mason Cox will be the player to make way if Grundy is recalled, unless Mihocek fails to prove his fitness.

Defender Jeremy Howe (corked buttock) sat out most of the last quarter at the weekend but should be fine for Friday night’s clash with his old side the Demons.

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Inside Ash Barty’s secret wedding to long-term love Garry Kissick

Inside Ash Barty's secret wedding to long-term love Garry Kissick

Ash Barty is notoriously secretive about her private life but pictures from her intimate Queensland wedding have pulled back the curtain.

The tennis great married her long-term love Garry Kissick in a private ceremony earlier this month, breaking the news on social media on Saturday night.

Captioned ‘Husband and wife’, the pair revealed little about the day they said ‘I do’.

Barty stunned in a Suzanne Harward-designed dress, whose gowns can cost upwards of $10,000.

The pair also tagged the Balter Brewing Company, suggesting the craft brewery provided refreshments for the evening.

Barty’s friends and family kept the news of the nuptials under wraps until the couple posted on social media.

Guests included Australian tennis stars Pat Rafter, Alicia Molik and Casey Dellacqua, according to the Courier Mail.

Kissick popped the question in November last year.

Barty revealed the happy news in an Instagram post, sharing a photo of the couple embracing with an engagement ring visible on her finger.

Barty has, for the most part, kept her relationship with Kissick relatively quiet.

The couple met at the Brookwater Golf Club in 2016. The sporting duo immediately clicked and went public with their relationship in 2017 when they attended the John Newcombe Awards together.

Kissick is an aspiring professional golfer, and works as the irrigation technician for the greens at the Brookwater Golf & Country Club in Brisbane.

The 29-year-old is a passionate Liverpool supporter and part of the PGA Trainee programme.

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