How one perfect gamble put Lions on path to glory... and defined Fagan’s AFL masterpiece

It is an audacious passage that defined the brilliance and precision with which Brisbane broke a 21-year premiership drought when destroying the Swans by 60 points at the MCG.

NRL Qualifying Final - Panthers v Roosters

NRL

Cleary near-perfect as milestone man shines; Sharks’ standout amid costly flops — Player Ratings

Nathan and Ivan Cleary speak following Penrith's prelim win

NRL

‘Wayne’s 100 per cent right’: Ivan unloads on Bunker over baffling call in big grand final warning

AFL

Lions’ epic day out as 21yo gun explodes, Swans weapon blunted — Player Ratings

AFL

‘Any more... do you want us to wait?’: Moment Gutted Swans nearly loses his cool

Panthers book a fifth straight grand final spot

NRL

Panthers break Sharks’ hearts, book 5th straight GF but suffer Cleary scare after masterclass

NRL

‘Hurts so bad losing... just f**k’: Fitzy’s slip of tongue as Sharks coach makes big admission

A devastated Craig Fitzgibbon couldn’t hide his disappointment with a slip of the tongue after his side had their season ended by the Panthers 26-6 in the preliminary final.

AFL

‘Had it the whole finals series’: Shattered Heeney’s shock GF injury reveal

Swans star Isaac Heeney has revealed he played the finals series with a stress fracture in his ankle after he finished a horror grand final for Sydney on the bench.

Nathan Cleary lifts his arm up to prove his shoulder is fine.

NRL

Cleary’s act to hose down concern as Panthers sweat on star’s shoulder in GF injury scare

The Penrith Panthers will be sweating on a shoulder injury to Nathan Cleary from a tackle late in their preliminary final win over the Sharks.

AFL

‘It’s just cruel’: Lions star hits back at Fagan critics, reveals fresh injury amid wild GF celebrations

Oscar McInerney has revealed the criticism of premiership coach Chris Fagan this season is “just cruel” as the injured Lion watched from the sidelines as Brisbane won their first premiership in 21 years.

Legend's loving embrace melts AFL hearts
1:32
Cleary heroics gifts Penrith early spark
0:45
'I wonder what that means?!'
0:46
Talakai takes out Luai with late shot!
0:43
How on earth did Hipwood kick this?!?
0:42
Katy Perry's FIREWORKS light up the MCG
3:03

AFL

‘Embarrassing’: AFL great slams Swans’ GF no-show, players left in ‘tears’ in dressing sheds

Sydney has relived its worst grand final nightmare, copping a 73-point trouncing at the hands of Brisbane in Saturday’s decider — and it has been blasted by a Swans great.

AFL

‘Something snapped’: Neale lifts lid on GF injury battle as Lions star opens up on blockbuster trade

Dual-Brownlow Medallist Lachie Neale felt something snap in his foot in the final term of Brisbane’s 60-point grand final triumph over Sydney at the MCG.

Lachie Neale was spectacular while Isaac Heeney was not.

AFL

Why Norm Smith call should’ve flipped as Swans ace, forwards all flop — Every player ranked 1-46

Was Lachie Neale robbed of another addition to his trophy cabinet? The dual Brownlow medallist was the best player on the ground in Brisbane’s 2024 Grand Final win.

John Longmire in his post-match press conference.

AFL

‘Don’t think we gave it our best shot’: Longmire points to clear Swans flaw, defends selection call

Sydney coach John Longmire was at a loss with his side’s inability to apply pressure against Brisbane, which he said was the root cause of a second grand final capitulation in three seasons.

AFL

‘In my corner’: Fagan admits to ‘tough time’ amid Hawks saga, reveals Lions ‘secret weapon’

Brisbane coach Chris Fagan thanked family, friends and his club for helping him through a “pretty tough time” dealing with the fallout of Hawthorn’s racism scandal to win his first flag.

AFL

‘Hard to believe’: Zorko reveals ‘little secret’ that nearly ended flag trio’s career

Premiership star Dayne Zorko has revealed how he contemplated stepping aside to “play the kids” amid a mid-season form slump in 2024.

NRL

Walters’ furious reaction to scathing review as Broncos stars informed of No.1 target

It’s been revealed axed Broncos coach Kevin Walters unleashed on staff in a meeting after being delivered the findings of an end of season review.

Siosifa Talakai was placed on report for a late tackle on Jarome Luai.

NRL

‘Levelled him’: Sharks star slammed out over ‘cheap shot’ as greats stunned over sin bin call

Sharks centre Siosifa Talakai was lucky to escape a sin bin after an ugly late tackle on Panthers five-eighth Jarome Luai in the first half of the second preliminary final.

NRL

‘Isn’t working’: Great urges Robbo to ‘tear it up’ as Roosters coach to begin 2025 ‘under pressure’

League legend has called on the Sydney Roosters to “tear up” their style of play in order to beat the Storm and Panthers and win a premiership.

Leigh Matthews and Chris Fagan embrace after Brisbane's premiership triumph.

AFL

‘What a day’: Emotion ‘boils over’ for beloved Lions coach in touching embrace with AFL legend

The Lions are the 2024 premiers, and the post-game scenes were encapsulated by a touching moment between coach Chris Fagan and the legendary Leigh Matthews.

AFL

Lion’s touching tribute to late mother 14 days after having ‘one foot in Mad Monday’

Last week Jarrod Berry held back tears in the Lions rooms paying tribute to his late mother after an epic preliminary final win over Geelong. This week he’s a premiership player.

NRL Elimination Final - Cowboys v Knights

NRL

‘Didn’t understand’: Mal’s surprise reveal over Ponga call, declares Kangaroos saga ‘dead and buried’

Mal Meninga has confirmed Kalyn Ponga “has made himself available” to represent Australia in the Pacific Championships following a “really good conversation” between the pair.

Rugby

‘Gutted’: Same old story as Wallabies’ horror record extended despite gutsy effort v All Blacks

The Wallabies fought hard, but the class of the All Blacks and a double to Caleb Clarke proved too much in a five tries to one 33-13 victory in Bledisloe II in Wellington.

The Lions have stunned the Swans at the MCG

AFL

Kings of the jungle! Lions’ 21-yr drought ends as Swans cop another MCG massacre

The Brisbane Lions have dominated this AFL decade, but the winningiest team of the 2020s was yet to summit the mountain. Until now.

Motorsport

‘Almost unbelievable’: The ‘shambolic’ truth over Red Bull‘s Ricciardo ‘own goal’

Daniel Ricciardo’s treatment being sacked by Red Bull was unbecoming of the Aussie’s status and of his and the brand’s long and successful Formula 1 relationship.

Motorsport

‘Don’t know what happened... we would’ve helped’: RB boss’ regret over baffling Ricciardo slide

Red Bull motorsport adviser Helmut Marko says Daniel Ricciardo’s lack of killer instinct cost him his drive to Liam Lawson in a brutal driver swap with six rounds to go.

Motorsport

‘Leave him alone’: Ricciardo fans called out over ugly, ‘ridiculous’ abuse of replacement

Daniel Ricciardo’s Formula 1 replacement found himself on the receiving end of furious fans as details surrounding the move were revealed.

Motorsport

MotoGP leader re-lives horror memory; Aussie’s big reason to believe: Insider’s Guide

Jorge Martin hopes a new approach can bury memories of his season-defining crash in Indonesia last year, while Jack Miller praised Yamaha’s hunger before his move next year.

Motorsport

‘Wild and wonderful journey’: Ricciardo’s axing made official as F1 peers, legends pay tribute

Daniel Ricciardo has raced in his last grand prix, with Red Bull promoting young gun Liam Lawson to his seat for the rest of the season ahead of a full-time campaign in 2025.

Cricket

‘We were thoroughly outplayed’: Aussies utterly demolished by England in horror collapse

England has levelled the ODI series at 2-2 after demolishing Australia by 186 runs in a rain-affected match at Lord’s on Friday.

Cricket

28 runs in one over: Starc breaks unwanted record after England star‘s brutal assault

Mitchell Starc has broken the unwanted record for most runs conceded by an Australian bowler during an over in ODIs.

Cricket

‘Could be significant’: Aussie gun ruled out of England tour after injury setback

Australian all-rounder Cameron Green has been ruled out of the remainder of the ODI series in England after sustaining a back injury.

Cricket

Best since Bradman: Sri Lankan star destroys Kiwis in ‘ridiculous’ 75-year first

New Zealand was flailing at 2-22 after middle-order maestro Kamindu Mendis reached 1000 runs in just eight Test appearances.

Cricket

Tense final-over drama after cult hero’s late heroics as Vics remain undefeated

Queensland’s stunning mid-innings collapse enabled Victoria to stay unbeaten after two matches of the one-day cup.

Boxing

‘This is history’: Superstars Latrell, Daicos feature in spine-tingling new Tim Tszyu vid

Tim Tszyu has received the heavyweight backing of some of the biggest names in Australian sport ahead of his upcoming world title fight.

Boxing

‘Shocked the world’: Rematch ‘a given’ after AJ floored by 'one of the shots of the decade’

Daniel Dubois has caused a boxing boilover, retaining his IBF world heavyweight title with a fifth-round knockout of Anthony Joshua in an all-British spectacular at Wembley.

Boxing

Teen’s stunning upset announces himself as Tszyu rival, Horn beaten by new ‘household name’

A teenager from Melbourne’s western suburbs has announced himself as the Next Big Thing of Australian boxing – and a potential rival for no less than undefeated star Nikita Tszyu.

Boxing

Team Tszyu prodigy’s wild rise to 200 fights … and why he wants two more this year

Long before Billy Polkinghorn stood among the brightest prospects in Australian boxing, he was an English schoolboy on a run of seven straight losses.

Boxing

Boxing world title blockbuster heading to Australia on mega sporting weekend

One of the world’s premier boxers is set to throw down in Sydney on the same weekend as the NRL Grand Final – and for an IBF strap once contested by no less than Australian boxing greats Anthony Mundine and Daniel Geale.

Basketball

NBA contender lands $318m superstar in blockbuster trade

The Knicks have made a blockbuster trade to well and truly signal their championship ambitions ahead of the new season.

Basketball

‘Unbelievably hard’: Rising Aussie star reveals brutal NBA reality... and honest Boomers admission

While he didn’t end up leaving Las Vegas with an NBA contract, emerging Brisbane Bullets star Josh Bannan did come away from Summer League earlier this year with something.

Basketball

From NBA mates to NBL rivals: The Kings’ bounty binding rival Melbourne imports

Melbourne’s bitter NBL rivalry is set to go up a notch with opposing imports Ian Clark and Derrick Walton Jr set to abandon NBA friendships and past club allegiances.

Basketball

Explosive NBL double act; coach who must stop ’whingeing’ — Great’s Harden Up or Hooyah

NBL champion Damon Lowery has given his verdict on Round 1 of the new season, with a Wildcats duo sending a big warning, while last year’s winning coach is under heavy fire.

Basketball

Aussie named MVP as young rising stars impress at Basketball Without Borders camp

South Australian Alexander Dickeson was a standout, being crowned Kim Bohuny Camp MVP, as the 14th edition of Basketball Without Borders drew to a close in Perth on Sunday.

Football

Ange’s Spurs off to European flyer despite early red card but top star suffers injury scare

Tottenham started their Europa League campaign with a 3-0 win against Qarabag despite playing more than 80 minutes with 10 men and Son Heung-min’s injury scare.

Football

Ange calls out football’s ‘dangerous’ issue that ‘needs to be addressed’

Ange Postecoglou has called on football’s congested schedule to be addressed, declaring it is getting to a “real dangerous level” in support of outspoken Tottenham star Son Heung-min.

Football

‘Can’t give away a goal like this’: Man Utd slammed after big blunder in Europa League stunner

Manchester United stuttered to a 1-1 draw at home to FC Twente in their opening Europa League game as Christian Eriksen scored but then made an error that led to the equaliser.

Football

‘Didn’t feel the same’: Wayne Bennett’s three blunt questions to Arnie that sealed Socceroos call

In his first interview since stepping down as Socceroos coach, Graham Arnold reveals how a conversation with Wayne Bennett was pivotal in reaffirming what he likely already knew.

Football

Fury over 'coward’ act as horror blow to shape title race; ‘narky’ Ange called out: Talking Pts

Drama from a spiteful clash between the two title favourites is simmering away well after the final whistle, while there are concerns over Ange Postecoglou’s growing irritation.

AFL

Kings of the jungle! Lions’ 21-yr drought ends as Swans cop another MCG massacre

The Brisbane Lions have dominated this AFL decade, but the winningiest team of the 2020s was yet to summit the mountain. Until now.

AFL

‘You deserve this more than anyone’: Selfless coach makes good on two-year promise with beautiful act

We’ve seen some lovely moments on the AFL premiership dais over the years. And Chris Fagan’s determination for loyal veteran Lion Dayne Zorko to lift the cup on Saturday afternoon was right up there.

AFL

‘Wonder what that means?’: Lions star’s ‘beautiful’ GF celebration amid bombshell report

Brisbane Lions key forward Joe Daniher is reportedly mulling his AFL future ahead of Saturday’s grand final against the Sydney Swans.

Katy Perry performs at the AFL Grand Final

AFL

AFL GF entertainment: Fireworks as Katy Perry makes MCG roar... on a giant vacuum?

US pop star Katy Perry has headlined the pre-game entertainment at the MCG before the 2024 AFL Grand Final in rather spectacular fashion, bringing out the hits.

Reece Walsh and Ezra Mam in hopital. Photo: Instagram.

NRL

Broncos superstar Walsh photographed in hospital after another holiday incident

Brisbane superstar Reece Walsh has been photographed in his underwear inside an Indonesian hospital after an incident.

Eric Hipwood's incredible GF goal and celebration

AFL

‘Aker would’ve enjoyed that’: Iconic celebration after all-time grand final goal blows minds

But the pièce de résistance of Brisbane’s stunning grand final burst was an Eric Hipwood’s goal — and celebration — that will live long in the memory.

NRL Preliminary Final - Panthers v Sharks

NRL

Panthers’ huge Cleary scare; Storm sweat on star trio ahead of Grand Final — NRL Casualty Ward

The Panthers had their hearts in their mouth after Nathan Cleary re-aggravated his shoulder injury, while the Storm are sweating on three stars. CASUALTY WARD >>>

AFL

Lion becomes youngest Norm Smith medallist ever... and his brother could go No.1 this year

Will Ashcroft has become just the third Lion in history to claim the Norm Smith Medal, after being named best on ground in Saturday’s decider.

AFL

‘No lesson learned’: Swans GF selection gamble backfires AGAIN as star hobbles off

Sydney have been accused of failing to learn their lesson after star Logan McDonald hobbled from the ground with just one kick to his name in Saturday’s grand final horror show.

SYD	9.6.60
BRI	18.12.120

CAI	101
ADL	97

TAS	81
MEL	72

GWS	–
WCE	–

POR	–
CAR	–

PEN	26
CRO	6

WAR	23
STH	22