🗞 Upset of the Year

AUSSIE NEWS
Feel old yet?

🚴🏻‍♂️ Ben O’Connor rode himself into the red leader's jersey and completed the Grand Tour stage win hat-trick with victory on stage six of the Vuelta a España on Thursday. 

The Australian was initially part of a 13 rider strong breakaway, but pushed on with Gijs Leemreize (dsm–firmenich PostNL) across the hilly terrain in Andalusia with 55 kilometres to the finish. O’Connor was evidently on superb form, and later distanced his Dutch breakaway companion with a stinging attack on the penultimate climb of the day, the category three Puerto Martinez.

💰 Ex-Macarthur team leader Ulises Davila and midfielders Kearyn Baccus and Clayton Lewisall faced Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday over the alleged bet-fixing scheme.

Davila, a Chelsea academy graduate and Mexico youth international, allegedly acted as the conduit between the southwest Sydney team's players and an unnamed criminal group in Colombia. He allegedly paid Baccus and Lewis up to $10,000 to deliberately receive yellow cards through an illegal bet-fixing scheme.

Both matters have been adjourned until Oct. 17.

NRL NEWS
Huge Upset

📄 The Sea Eagles spoiled their push for a top-four finish after going down to an inspired Wests Tigers outfit, 34-26.

Manly jumped out to an early 16-nil lead before inviting the hosts back into the match.

The Wests Tigers then went on a run of 30 unanswered points — a hat-trick to Tom Trbojevic not enough as a trifecta of sin bins hurt the Sea Eagles.

🏅 icymi: Forty-six years after he hung up his boots, South Sydney and Eastern Suburbs champion Ron Coote has been elevated to the highest echelon of rugby league greatness, after being named the 14th Immortal in an emotional ceremony in Sydney.

🗣️ Out of favour Raider Corey Horsburgh is in the Broncos’ sights after meeting with coach Kevin Walters this week.

That is according to the Courier Mail, who report Horsburgh flew to Brisbane on Wednesday to sit down with Broncos powerbrokers.

The fiery 26-year-old signed a $1.7 million extension until the end of 2027 just last year, but patchy form and a reported “communication breakdown” with Canberra coach Ricky Stuart has seen him make just three NRL appearances this year.

AFL NEWS
Ban Upheld

👨🏻‍⚖️ Port Adelaide failed to downgrade Dan Houston's five-match ban at the AFL Appeals Board, meaning the star defender's season is now over.

A remorseful Houston pleaded guilty to rough conduct at the AFL Tribunal on Tuesday night for his brutal bump on Adelaide's Izak Rankine.

The Power, who argued for a three-match ban, launched an appeal when the tribunal handed down a five-match suspension.

🪜 A dramatic conclusion to the 2024 AFL home and away season has arrived, with 10 teams still in the hunt for finals footy entering Round 24.

Four teams are guaranteed to play in September, but every position in the top eight remains up for grabs, with a long list of scenarios still possible.

AFL LIVE LADDER (Entering Round 24 - All times AEST)

1. Sydney Swans (64 pts, 126.3%) - To play: Adelaide Crows at SCG, Saturday 7:40pm

2. Port Adelaide (60 pts, 114.2%) - To play: Fremantle at OS, Sunday 6:10pm

3. GWS Giants (60 pts, 111.7%) - To play: Western Bulldogs at Mars, Sunday 12:30pm

4. Geelong (56 pts, 107.7%) - To play: West Coast Eagles at GMHBA, Saturday 1:45pm

5. Brisbane Lions (54 pts, 121.6%) - To play: Essendon at Gabba, Saturday 7:30pm

6. Western Bulldogs (52 pts, 123.8%) - To play: GWS Giants at Mars, Sunday 12:30pm

7. Hawthorn (52 pts, 111.8%) - To play: North Melbourne at UTAS, Saturday 4:35pm

8. Carlton (52 pts, 110.7%) - To play: St Kilda at Marvel, Sunday 3:20pm

Essendon, Melbourne, St Kilda, Gold Coast, Adelaide, West Coast, North Melbourne and Richmond cannot play finals.

Friday night: Melbourne vs Collingwood, 7:40pm at the MCG

- Collingwood must win and make up a percentage gap equivalent to 30 goals to pass Carlton, so realistically this game does not impact the finals race - If they win, the Magpies cannot be eliminated until after the Blues play.

WORLD NEWS
Stay Positive

📺 Cristiano Ronaldo breaks YouTube record: Cristiano Ronaldo has launched a YouTube channel, and more than a million subscribers signed up within the first 90 minutes (now at 15 million) - a new record for the platform. The channel - called "UR" - will see the 39-year-old discuss football, as well as his other interests, "including family, wellness, nutrition, preparation, recovery, education and business." Check it out here.

🏎️ Lewis Hamilton’s long-time race engineer Peter Bonnington will not be joining the seven-time champion at Ferrari next season.

Bonnington, who has worked with Hamilton throughout the driver’s 12-year Mercedes career, has been promoted to head of race engineering.

🇮🇪 Following Zach Tuohy announcing his retirement from the AFL - 2024 will be his last year playing for the Geelong Cats - Everyone back home in Ireland is excited that he will return to Gaelic Football.

Last year Tuohy broke the late Jimmy Stynes’s 264-match record for the most number of AFL senior game played by an Irishman.

“I will be playing for Portloaise at the end of 2025 because I will be going straight home one way or another. That’s definitely on the cards," Tuohy told The Irish News.

🏈 Remember the name: Jett Washington, the nephew of late NBA star Kobe Bryant, is one of the top recruits in the college football Class of 2026.

Washington is listed at 6-foot-5, 200 pounds as a safety and, is ranked as the top player in Nevada and a top-100 player in the country.

⚽️ Manchester United have been offered the chance to sign England defender Ben Chilwell by Chelsea after the 27-year-old was told he does not feature in boss Enzo Maresca's plans. (Talksport)

🏉 Brad Arthur has signed a contract keeping him at Leeds Rhinos for next season.

The former Parramatta Eels head coach was appointed until the end of the season on July 10, following the departure of Rohan Smith.

🏎️ The Stake F1 team will be forced to change its name for this weekend's Dutch Grand Prix due to the country's strict gambling laws.

As the sport returns from its mid-season break, local gambling laws mean the team, known formally as the wordy Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber, will drop more than half that name and compete just as Kick Sauber.

Although known to fans just as Sauber, it's the fourth time the team has been forced to make the change, having also done so in Australia, Spain and last time out in Belgium.

🎾 Jannik Sinner's positive tests has divided the tennis world with the Italian facing backlash from fellow players.

Sinner's inclusion in the final grand slam of the year (US Open) has left some players infuriated after he tested positive twice in March for a banned anabolic steroid.

The Italian tested positive clostebol, an anabolic steroid that can be found in ointments and sprays sold over-the-counter in some countries, such as Italy, and used to treat cuts or scrapes.

It's a case that no one knew about until Wednesday and one that has drawn all sorts of questions — and, in some instances, criticism — from other players who wonder whether there was a double standard at play because of Sinner's success.

Most of the players on tour are confused about why it was all kept under wraps, and want to know why Sinner was allowed to keep competing before there was a resolution.

SHARE SPORT JOURNAL

The best thing you can do to help us grow, is share Sport Journal with your friends & colleagues, even that bloke at the pub…

📲 Share it with the group chat via WhatsApp HERE

🧑🏻‍💻 Share the link with a friend to sign up HERE