Motor Racing:

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Stormy times on and off the track

The Formula 1 world championship is in its final quarter, and Australian title favourite Oscar Piastri’s fans fear his McLaren team will dud him.

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Piastri led by 22 points after 18 of 24 races, but there is a perception that McLaren would prefer its British driver Lando Norris to become champion. Piastri’s future may be at Ferrari.

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The Bathurst 1000 has been called the Great Race for decades, but the 12 October edition was arguably the greatest.

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In torrential conditions with little visibility, young New Zealander Matt Payne added to the long line of Kiwis to win the classic. It was his veteran co-driver Garth Tander’s sixth victory. The pair drove a Ford Mustang.

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Toyota joins the Supercar series next year.

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AFL/NRL:

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Is Brisbane our new sporting capital?

Has Brisbane taken over from Melbourne as the nation’s new sporting capital? In both the NRL and AFL grand finals, Brisbane beat a Melbourne team (although to be fair, Geelong is about an hour down the highway from Melbourne). Brisbane also won the NRL women’s premiership. And, remember, the Queensland capital will host the 2032 Olympic Games.

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For some, it was amusing that no Sydney team made either big dance especially because the NRL showpiece was played there.

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The NRL Grand Final was a tough and nailbiting affair, with the injury-hit Broncos able to win narrowly, withstanding late charges by the Storm, who had been in control in the first half. More than 80,000 watched the game at Accor Stadium, and 4.46 million tuned in on TV.

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In the AFL, Geelong stayed with Brisbane until halfway through the third quarter but, in the end, could not match the tough and talented Lions. The day was a triumph for the back-to-back premiers, with more than 100,000 at the game and a TV audience of 6.1 million, making it the year’s most watched program so far.

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Not sure about the performances of Snoop Dogg (AFL) and Teddy Swims (NRL). Why don’t we just save the money and give Paul Kelly both gigs for the rest of his life? Mr Dogg and Mr Swims cost millions. Was it worth it?

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Cricket:

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England pins Ashes hopes on pace

England has named a pace-heavy but injury-plagued squad the Ashes. The squad of 16 includes 11 who have never played a test in Australia.

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England’s six pacemen are headed by the lightning fast Jofra Archer and Mark Wood. Archer played two tests against India in the northern summer after enduring four years of injuries. Wood, who turns 36 during the Australian summer, missed the whole series in England after having a knee operation. Captain Ben Stokes (shoulder) may not be able to bowl but is in no doubt for the series.

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Australia has its own injury concerns, with captain Pat Cummins (back) in doubt for the first test beginning in Perth on 21 November. Keeping key players on the park will be crucial for both sides, with five tests in 7 weeks.

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Australia’s batting looks shaky, and England will be relying on its pacemen to lead it to victory. But history is against the visitors. They last won a test in Australia 11 years ago and have won only six of the past 43 tests Down Under.

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It goes against the grain to even give England a chance, but I suspect Australia’s bowlers are getting on a bit, and, if the Poms can find enough fit players, they could sneak away with the Ashes. I’m tipping a 3-2 result their way – but I hope like hell I’m wrong.

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Aussie women keep finding a way to win

Australia is finding new and more unlikely ways to win in the Women’s World Cup in the sub-continent. After tumbling to 7/76 against Pakistan, Beth Mooney (109) and tailender Alana King (51 not out) put on a record century stand to lead Australia to 9/221. The unbeaten Aussies then skittled Pakistan for 114.

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Then, a few days later, Australia triumphed in a runfest against the might of India, chasing down the home side’s 330 with an over to spare. Captain Alyssa Healy (142) spearheaded the successful chase, the largest in women’s one-day internationals.

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The Australians now face Bangladesh, England and South Africa in the last of the round-robin matches.

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Rugby union:

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Changing of the guard?

Are Australia’s Wallabies finding their mojo at last, and can they match it with the world’s best?

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That’s what rugby fans were asking after the Wallabies’ 38-22 defeat of world champions South Africa in Johannesburg and an honourable 30-22 loss to the Springboks in Cape Town in the Rugby Championship (formerly known as the Tri Nations Series).

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Then a try in the dying moments took the Wallabies to a 28-24 win over Argentina’s Pumas, who led 21-7 at half-time in the match in Townsville, but the Pumas got their revenge with a 28-26 win in Sydney.

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In the last round, the Wallabies met the super-powerful All Blacks twice in the Bledisloe Cup. Predictably, the Australians had their moments but couldn’t sustain the pressure over the full 80 minutes, losing 33-14 in Auckland and 28-14 in Perth.

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South Africa and New Zealand finished equal top, with four wins and two losses, with the Springboks winning on points difference. The jury is still out on the Wallabies, who finished third, just in front of Argentina.

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Soccer:

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Fairytale ends in extra-time heartbreak

The Uber drivers, students and shop assistants who play for Heidelberg United, in Melbourne’s north, had the biggest night of their semi-professional sporting lives in the Australia Cup final, but came up short against A-League team Newcastle Jets at a packed Lakeside Stadium.

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After Heidelberg (known as the Bergers) scored in the eighth minute to wild excitement from their fans, the Jets replied in the 21st minute and the 1-1 scoreline remained into extra time.

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The Bergers ran out of gas in extra time, and the Jets scored twice, for a final score of 3-1.

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It was the first time a semi-professional team had made the Australia Cup final after the Bergers defeated two other A-League teams, Western Sydney Wanderers and Wellington Phoenix.

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Golf:

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Loutish crowd behaviour mars Ryder Cup

Golf’s famous team event, the Ryder Cup, in which the best European players clash with those from the United States, turned into a display of ill-mannered, foul-mouthed abuse of the European players by a hostile crowd at the Bethpage Black course in New York.

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Rory McIlroy, one of the European stars, backed out of putts many times due to insults and other crowd noise. At one stage, beer was thrown at McIlroy’s wife. Tournament officials eventually got the message and increased security, including police dogs, to maintain order.

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“There was a lot of language that was unacceptable and abusive behaviour,” McIlroy said. "It should be off-limits, but obviously it wasn't this week.”

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Who said golf is a gentleman’s game? Not in America at the moment. The Europeans had the last laugh, winning the event 15-13, and they have now taken out 11 of the past 15 Ryder Cups.