Into the final eight: Portugal and England have booked their spots in the quarter finals, scoring 1-0 victories against Holland and Ecuador respectively. Continuing the refereeing controversies at the tournament, the Portugal-Holland match set a World Cup record for bookings (16) and a new record for red cards (4). Russian referee Valentin Ivanov has already […]
Thanks to the Socceroos, Australia is in the grip of a full blown sporting fever. It’s a condition more often associated with AFL grand final week or the lead-in to the NRL final. Perhaps if we had a player in the Wimbledon final, you might find average citizens feverish with sporting patriotism, though it’s doubtful […]
Prior to last night’s announcement that Harry Kewell would not be suspended for his public tantrum over Markus Merk’s refereeing of the Australia v Brazil match, there was almost unanimous support for the view that he would be banned for the Croatia game. Chris Bambridge, an Australian referee who officiated at the 1986 World Cup, […]
A lot has happened to Lleyton Hewitt since January last year. He’s found a wife and had a baby. He’s had a very public falling out with friend and Adelaide Crows footballer Andrew McLeod, and has maintained the rage against organisers of the Australian Open for not providing “their boy” with a surface that suits […]
Questions about the size of the black market for World Cup tickets have been hiding in the shadows ever since the official FIFA ticket allocation late last year. Now the event is in full swing, the scalpers have emerged, and with them news that the black market for World Cup tickets is flourishing. Writing for […]
Now Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson has been re-appointed for the next two years he can get back to the business of trying to win a game for the Hawks. The re-appointment of a coach is something fans are justifiably interested in, especially when your team has lost its last six games. Early last year, Carlton […]
The wait is over. Not only has Australia made it to the World Cup, they’ve kicked a few goals and won a match. It’s fair to say the nation is in raptures, people who don’t usually follow sport are suddenly interested in the Socceroos’ progress, and proud footballing nations like Japan are being forced to […]
Australia’s two best female squash players, sisters Natalie and Rachel Grinham, ranked three and four in the world respectively, have withdrawn from the team to contest this year’s Women’s World Title as a public protest over the selection of this year’s Commonwealth Games team. The pair landed six gold medals between them at the Games, […]
During the Commonwealth Games, a few stories about athletes from other nations managed to slip through the media net, but viewers were left in no doubt that the event was all about us, our gold medals and our great athletes. With the Socceroos now cosily ensconced in their exclusive $560 a night hotel in Oehringen, […]
The background to today’s commentary on the future of the much-loved but often-maligned hip and shoulder is of course Blake Caracella’s serious neck injury from Saturday night. With an injury of that seriousness in the back of match review panel’s mind, it’s understandable they were a little more sensitive than usual to rough contact come […]
