G'day sport fans,

Monday Motivation: "Most people give up just when they’re about to achieve success. They quit on the one yard line. They give up at the last minute of the game one foot from a winning touchdown." - Ross Perot.

In today's edition of Sport Journal:

🇦🇺 Tasmanian-based team makes sense

⚽️ Final is set

🏉 Origin Teams

🇦🇺 AFL

🏟 Footy crowds set to return to MCG next weekend: After a month without crowds at Melbourne games, fans are set to return to the MCG for Round 15. Richmond’s clash with St Kilda on Friday is likely to be the first game at the MCG with fans since round 10.

But what will the ‘magic number’ be?

❌ North Melbourne great David King has called for the AFL to consider the viability of the Gold Coast Suns amid another disappointing season for the east-coast based club.

And King believes a Tasmanian-based team is “starting to make sense”, but more “at the expense of the Suns if they can’t get their act together”. (Fox)

💰 VFL Clubs have been given a financial boost as the struggles with COVID-19 continue, with the Victorian Government handing out nearly $1 million across the competition. (AFL)

🤕 Geelong has confirmed Mitch Duncan sustained a PCL injury in Friday night’s win over the Western Bulldogs.

Duncan is expected to miss up to two months on the sidelines as he recovers from the injury he sustained in the first quarter against the Bulldogs.

🏉 NRL

📺 Every try from Round 15 — www.nrl.com

Sit back and enjoy every try from Round 15

Blues Origin II team: Crichton, Finucane in for Trbojevic (NRL)

Maroons Origin II team: Grant hamstring puts greater strain on Green (NRL)

Warriors prodigy Reece Walsh is tipped to land a call-up for Queensland, earning a Maroons jersey just seven games into his NRL career.

👋🏼 Bulldogs star Dallin Watene-Zelezniak will depart for the Warriors effective immediately after being farewelled with a haka. (nine)

📺 Brisbane Broncos coach Kevin Walters has answered his critics and reports of a player revolt, in a revealing interview. (nine)

🎩 A record $4.1 million has been raised for the @MarkHughesFdn over the course of the NRL Beanie For Brain Cancer Round. More than 160,000 Beanies were sold, surpassing the target of raising $3 million!

⚽️ Football

🏟 Melbourne City will take on Sydney FC in a second consecutive A-League grand final after Stefan Colakovski scored one goal and assisted another to lead the premiers to a 2-0 win over Macarthur FC.

The A-League will plan for Melbourne City to host the A-League grand final against Sydney FC in front of fans at AAMI Park.

✍🏼 A-League Deals: Gary Hooper re-joined Wellington (2y deal), Matti Steinmann joined Brisbane, Adama Traore joined Western Sydney (2y deal).

📣 Want to see Matthew McConaughey dressed like The Riddler, leading a capacity Austin FC crowd’s chants on home opening night against San Jose Earthquakes? -> (Twitter)

📱 Cristiano Ronaldo has become the first person in history to reach 300 million followers on Instagram.

🇪🇺 Euro 20201: Italy 1-0 Wales in Rome - Pessina scores winner for Azzurri, who top Group A.

Switzerland beat Turkey 3-1 in the other Group A match; Wales finish second on GD (+1) from Swiss (-1)

Wales will face Group B runners-up (Belgium, Russia, Finland or Denmark) in last 16, next Saturday.

🌍 World Sport

🏎 Max Verstappen fought back to pass Lewis Hamilton and take a brilliant win in the French Grand Prix to extend his championship lead.

Verstappen's Red Bull team gambled on an extra pit stop, sacrificing the lead to come back at Hamilton on fresher tyres to pass the Mercedes with two laps to go.

And Mercedes were ruing a strategic blunder in which they left Hamilton out one lap too long and lost the lead.

That came after Verstappen had himself gifted Hamilton first place with a mistake at the first corner of the race.

🏍 Honda's Marc Marquez won the MotoGP German Grand Prix to claim his first victory since 2019.

🏀 The Perth Wildcats still battled bravely but Melbourne United proved again to be too strong and deep to go up two games to nil in the Grand Final Series with an 83-74 win at RAC Arena on Sunday.

Melbourne has now won all four of its matches in Perth this season and it puts them in a commanding position to take out the 2021 NBL championship. 

🥇 Ryan Crouser broke the men's shot put world record after a 23.37m throw at the United States Olympic track and field trials.

🥊 Japan’s Naoya Inoue knocked Michael Dasmarinas down three times in three rounds to easily retain his WBA and IBF belts in a bantamweight world title bout.

🏏 New Zealand wrestled the initiative from India on a fascinating third day of the World Test Championship final.

The Black Caps battled through India's constant pressure to close on 101-2, 116 runs behind in Southampton.

India began in a good position at 146-3 but lost captain Virat Kohli lbw to Kyle Jamieson in the third full over of the day for his overnight score of 44.

Jamieson took a superb 5-31, including the wickets of Ishant Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah in consecutive balls.

⛳️ Louis Oosthuizen’s long eagle putt sets up US Open final-round thriller

• South African co-leads alongside Hughes and Henley at -5

• McIlroy, DeChambeau (-3), in chasing pack at Torrey Pines.

• The Final round is now underway.

🐴 Racing

🏔 The Everest field is starting to take shape with Nature Strip selected by slot holder Chris Waller Racing, Masked Crusader (Max Whitby, Neil Werrett and Col Madden), Lost And Running (TAB) and Gytrash (Inglis).

Defending champion Classique Legend is back in light work at trainer Les Bridge’s Randwick stables and is certain to be selected in owner Bon Ho’s Everest slot.

With slot-holders like Coolmore, Godolphin and Aquis more inclined to choose one of their own sprinters for The Everest.

Eduardo’s connections will probably have to rely on the remaining slot-holders James Harron, The Star, Yulong or James Kennedy to select the sprinter in their Everest slot.

But Pride is confident Eduardo will eventually be picked up for The Everest, run at Royal Randwick on October 16.

🏉 Rugby

🏆 The Blues narrowly came out on top over the Highlanders as they edged a hugely physical battle 23-15 to clinch the Super Rugby Trans-Tasman crown in front of a crowd of 36 000 at Eden Park. The Blues broke an 18-yr wait for the trophy.

👶🏻 Louis Lynagh, son of former Wallaby great Michael Lynagh, has scored a try in a fantastic Harlequins comeback that saw the London side reach English club rugby's Premiership final.

In a thrilling game against table toppers Bristol Bears on Saturday, Quins looked certain losers when moments before the halftime whistle they trailed 28-0 - but they hit back to record an extraordinary victory 43-36.

🙋🏻‍♀️ The Super W season kicked-off with a bang, with the NSW Waratahs outclassing the Queensland Reds 47-26 in Brisbane in front of a healthy crowd. 

The ACT Brumbies got their Super W campaign underway with a 30-5 win over a tenacious Melbourne Rebels.

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📺 Live sport 👇🏼

⚽️ 07:00 - Copa America - Venezuela v Ecuador (Optus Sport 2) 

🎮 07:04 - Formula E-Prix Mexico (Fox Sports) 

⚽️ 10:00 - Copa America - Colombia v Peru (Optus Sport 1) 

🤼 10:00 - WWE Hell in a Cell (Main Event) 

🏀 10:00 - NBA Conference Semifinals - Philadelphia 76ers v Atlanta Hawks (ESPN 1)

🏒 10:00 - NHL Conference Finals - Montreal Canadiens v Vegas Golden Knights (ESPN 2)

🏏 19:30 - Test Match - India v New Zealand (Fox Cricket) 

🎾 20:00 - ATP Eastbourne International, Round 1 (BeIN Sports 1) 

🎾 20:00 - WTA Eastbourne International, Round 1 (BeIN Sports 1) 

🎾 21:30 - ATP Mallorca Championships, Round 1 (BeIN Sports 3) 

TUESDAY

⚽️ 07:00 - Copa America - Uruguay v Chile (Optus Sport 3) 

⚽️ 10:00 - Copa America - Argentina v Paraguay (Optus Sport 1) 

🏒 10:00 - NHL Conference Finals - Tampa Bay Lightning v New York Islanders (ESPN 1)

⚾️ 12:10 - MLB - San Diego Padres v Los Angeles Dodgers (ESPN 2)

🏏 19:30 - Test Match - India v New Zealand (Fox Cricket) 

🎾 20:00 - ATP Eastbourne International, Round 1 (BeIN Sports 1) 

🎾 20:00 - WTA Eastbourne International, Round 2 (BeIN Sports 1) 

🎾 21:30 - ATP Mallorca Championships, Round 2 (BeIN Sports 3)