Winger secures switch from Bayern Munich to Watford
Move should delight Australia coach Tony Popovic ahead of 2026 World Cup
English soccer fans can brace themselves for plenty of dazzling backflips after the young Socceroos star Nestory Irankunda secured a five-year deal with the Championship outfit Watford.
The Hornets announced the signing on their website late Friday, with the club’s sporting director Gian Luca Nani taking great pride in welcoming Irankunda.
Continue reading...Compatriot Kyle Lee takes bronze in men’s 10km race in Singapore
Events were postponed multiple times due to water quality concerns
Moesha Johnson has won Australia’s first 10km open water world title as compatriot Kyle Lee opened the team medal tally with bronze in the men’s race.
It is Australia’s fifth open water world title over all distances with Johnson and Lee in the quartet that will defend the mixed-team title at the Singapore world aquatics championships.
Continue reading...Third Test, day three: Australia 225 and 121; West Indies 143 and 27
Australia wrap up 176-run victory and claim 3-0 series sweep
Mitchell Starc has produced one of the all-time great bowling spells and Scott Boland taken a hat-trick as Australia bowled West Indies out for 27 to win the third Test.
On a historic day in Jamaica, Australia’s quicks ran riot to wrap up a 176-run victory and claim a 3-0 series sweep of the Frank Worrell Trophy.
Continue reading...Wallabies star plays down feud with Sione Tuipulotu
21-year-old was sent off in State of Origin debut for NSW Blues
Wallabies gun Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii has avoided throwing fuel on the fire ahead of a possible spicy rematch with British and Irish Lions centre Sione Tuipulotu in Saturday’s opening Test in Brisbane
The star league recruit and the Melbourne-raised Scotland captain had to be separated in a skirmish in their first meeting at Murrayfield last November.
Continue reading...Third Test, day two: Australia 225 and 99-6; West Indies 143 at stumps
No 3 batter hits 42 not out after Sam Konstas falls for a duck
Australia’s selectors have four Sheffield Shield matches to sort their openers for the Ashes, after the team’s top order crumbled under lights in Jamaica.
The tourists went to stumps on night two at Sabina Park at 99-6 in their second innings, leading West Indies by 181 but with the game firmly in the balance.
Continue reading...Kim hits eagle-birdie-eagle on 18th and two playoff holes to pip Thitikul
24-year-old becomes fifth Australian woman to lift major golf trophy
Grace Kim has produced one of the most astonishing golfing fightbacks in history to join Australia’s illustrious group of major champions.
Kim recovered from four shots behind in a most dramatic final round to clinch victory over world No 2 Jeeno Thitikul on the second playoff hole at the Evian Championship in France.
Continue reading...Munster given time to grieve with his family after death of his father
But he still plans to lead Maroons in Origin III to honour his dad
The death of Cameron Munster’s father Steven has come as devastating news just days out from the State of Origin series decider.
The Queensland captain, in a brave decision to honour his dad, plans to still lead the Maroons on Wednesday night after taking time away to grieve with his family.
Continue reading...Australian beats Italian Luciano Darderi 6-4 6-4 3-6 6-3
Battling veteran now faces No 5 seed Taylor Fritz
Jordan Thompson’s adventures at Wimbledon have continued with the wounded Australian storming into the fourth round of his favourite event for the first time in his career.
Still troubled by a debilitating back injury that had him protesting after his two previous courageous five-set wins that even “snails move faster”, Thompson looked in much sharper nick as he had too much grass-court nous for Italian Luciano Darderi in their third-round clash on Friday, prevailing 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.
Continue reading...Sam Konstas out for a duck, Usman Khawaja makes just two runs
Sam Konstas and Usman Khawaja’s fledgling opening partnership is on shaky ground after Australia’s openers were again dismissed cheaply against the West Indies. Australia slumped to 12-2 at stumps on day two of the second Test in Grenada, leading by just 45 after bowling the Windies out for 253.
Konstas was left shattered after he was out for a duck, playing on to his stumps from a Jayden Seales delivery. The 19-year-old, in just his fourth Test, looked better in the first innings with 25, after scores of 3 and 5 during the opening match of the series in Barbados.
Continue reading...Second Test, day one: Australia win toss and make 286 at stumps
Tourists had slumped to 93-4; Steve Smith dismissed for three
Wickets tumbled either side of Alex Carey and Beau Webster’s 112-run stand as Australia were dismissed for 286 at stumps on day one of the second Test against the West Indies.
Alzarri Joseph’s 61-4 helped restrict Australia, who are gunning for an unassailable 2-0 series lead in Grenada. The tourists were clearly struggling at 93-4 at lunch but Webster (60) and Carey (63) combined to restore some order in the second session as the tourists reached 209-5 at tea.
Continue reading...Australian beats France’s Arthur Cazaux 4-6 6-2 6-4 6-0
No 1 says grass tournament is like a ‘second home slam’
Alex de Minaur has been left relieved to blast back from being a set down and avoid joining the legion of seeds who have already been scattered at this shock-laden Wimbledon.
In perfect sunny conditions on Thursday morning, Australia’s big hope brushed off a woeful first set against French qualifier Arthur Cazaux before regrouping, asserting his superiority and eventually prevailing 4-6 6-2 6-4 6-0 to ease into the third round again.
Continue reading...Josh Inglis loses his spot to make way for returning No 4 batter
Pat Cummins says Smith won’t be back in the slips ‘too often’
Steve Smith will complete a rapid return to Test cricket, just 20 days after suffering a nasty compound dislocation of his finger.
The batter will bat at No 4 in Australia’s second Test against the West Indies in Grenada, starting at Friday midnight AEST.
Continue reading...Australian beats Benjamin Bonzi 7-5, 6-7 (2-7), 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
He next meets Luciano Darderi, ranked No 59, or Arthur Fery
Jordan Thompson came into Wimbledon with a large box of painkillers, a thick black brace for his back, and a dream that somehow he would defy his body long enough to make an impact at the tournament he loves so much. Two titanic five-set matches later, the Sydneysider is still standing on the green lawns of SW19, just.
With Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt, the last Australian man to win at Wimbledon, watching on, Thompson beat Benjamin Bonzi 7-5, 6-7 (2-7), 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 in nine minutes shy of four hours. After Bonzi hit a return into the net on the second match point, Thompson let out a primal scream into the evening sky, smiled and pointed to his heart.
Continue reading...Kasatkina beats Emiliana Arango in one of four Australian wins on day two
Alex de Minaur, Aleksandar Vukic and Rinky Hijikata also victorious
Australia’s Wimbledon challenge has been reinvigorated after a disastrous opening day, with the national No 1s Daria Kasatkina and Alex de Minaur leading a four-win revival.
On another sweltering day in London on Tuesday, the pair raced into the second round by early afternoon and were joined by Aleksandar Vukic and Rinky Hijikata. Seven Australians had lost in Monday’s calamitous start, with only an injured Jordan Thompson battling through, but there’ll now be five in the last-64 draw.
Continue reading...Much-fancied 20th seed suffers opening day upset
Jordan Thompson brightens gloom for Australian contingent
One of Australia’s biggest Wimbledon hopes, Alexei Popyrin, has crashed out of tournament to a British player ranked No.461 in the world while only a wonderful trademark comeback from Jordan Thompson could rescue a poor start for the Australian contingent on the sun-drenched grass-court grand slam.
Big-serving Popyrin, the 20th seed and the biggest Australian men’s hope beyond Alex de Minaur, tumbled out to French-born English wildcard Arthur Fery 6-4 6-1 4-6 6-4 in one of the biggest upsets of the opening Monday.
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