A quick hello…

Here it is. My maiden intro as TDA’s Sports Journalist. Let me tell you a little bit about myself before we jump into today’s sports news.

I’m from Sydney so naturally I support the Roosters in the NRL/NRLW and the Swans in the AFL/AFLW. In terms of my sporting history, I was a rower for over a decade so I have a soft spot for the Olympics (only 32 days away!) and endurance sports. Now, I play rugby union and tennis for fun.

On the whole, I’m a massive sports fan. I especially love seeing Australia punch above its weight on the world stage and I can’t wait to share the very best stories of sport with all of you every day.

I’ve got 10 seconds

Stat of the day

34
The age of Amy Yang, who this morning became the oldest woman to win her first major golf tournament since Angela Stanford won in 2018 at the age of 40. The South Korean won the Women’s PGA Championship, one of five majors on the LPGA.

Quote of the day

"It's never easy losing in a final but I really tried my best today.”
Australian tennis player Ajla Tomljanovic after she lost to Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva in the final of the Birmingham Classic. With Wimbledon set to begin on 1 July, Tomljanovic will enter the tournament with an improved world ranking of 135. After 15 years of professional tennis, Tomjlanovic is still chasing an elusive WTA victory, having lost five from five finals. 

Random fact of the day

The youngest known gold medallist in Olympic history is Marjorie Gestring who won the diving 3-metre springboard diving competition at the Berlin 1936 Games. Gestring was 13 years and 267 days old when she won. 

I’ve got 30 seconds

In case you missed it…

🏎️ Red Bull’s Max Verstappen won the Spanish GP last night. McLaren’s Lando Norris and Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton rounded out the podium in second and third.

⛳ Scottie Scheffler won his sixth golf tournament of the year at the PGA Travelers Championship. He is the first man to win six tournaments before July since Arnold Palmer in 1962.

🛹 Aussie skateboarders Arisa Trew and Keegan Palmer both claimed gold medals in the women’s and men’s park events at an Olympic qualifier series competition in Budapest over the weekend. 14-year-old Trew and Tokyo Olympic champion Palmer (21) are both strong contenders for medals in Paris.

🏒The Edmonton Oilers tied the Stanley Cup finals series 3-3 with the Florida Panthers on Saturday after losing the first three games in the best-of-seven series. If they win Game 7 tomorrow (10:00 am AEST) they will be the first team to come back from a 3-0 deficit since the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs.

I’ve got 1 minute

Australia suffered a shock loss to Afghanistan in the Twenty20 World Cup over the weekend. It is the first time that Afghanistan has beaten Australia in any format of the game. The loss means Australia must win their final Super 8 game against India to advance to the semi-finals.

How it went down

Australia won the toss and elected to bowl. Afghanistan’s opening batters, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran recorded an impressive 118-run partnership, the highest opening partnership ever made against Australia in men’s T20s.

Australia struggled to chase the 149-run total set by Afghanistan and eventually fell 21 runs short in the last over when they lost their final wicket.

The player of the match was Afghani bowler Gulbadin Naib who took four wickets.

What they said:

Australia’s captain Mitch Marsh said: "It becomes really clear now we just need to win, and there's no better team to do it against than against one of the biggest challenges in world cricket.”

Player of the match Gulbadin Naib said:  "We [have been] waiting for a long time. It's a great moment… not only for me, for my nation, for my people. It's a big achievement for our cricket."

How to watch Australia v India

All matches of the T20 World Cup are being streamed on Amazon Prime. Australia will play India in a do-or-die matchup tomorrow at 12:30 am (AEST).

We want your feedback…

If there is something we’re not covering that you think we should, or you have any feedback or questions at all, please leave a rating and comment at the bottom and I’ll get back to you!

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I’ve got 2 minutes

State of Origin is on this week. In the lead-up to Game II of the men’s series on Wednesday evening we are taking a look at what’s making headlines. Tomorrow, we’ll preview Game III of the women’s series which is being played on Thursday.

Blues lineup

The Blues have seen four changes to their starting side with Dylan Edwards, Latrell Mitchell, Cam Murray, and Mitch Moses set to join the Blues for the first time this series. Mitchell, Murray, and Moses all have prior Origin experience while Edwards, who has won three premierships in three years with the Penrith Panthers, will make his debut.

Utility Roosters player Connor Watson has also been named on the Blues bench. It will be his first game for NSW.

Maroons lineup

The biggest change for the Maroons was the omission of Selwyn Cobbo, who starred in Game I. Cobbo is replaced by Kurt Capewell, who is no stranger to Origin.

After being knocked out by Sua'ali'i in Game I and serving a mandatory 11-day stand-down for signs of concussion Reese Walsh, arguably Queensland’s most threatening attacker, will return for Game II.

How to watch

NRL State of Origin will be streamed live on Channel 9 and 9Now. As mentioned, Game III of the women’s series is being played on Thursday. We will preview the match tomorrow!

A message from our sponsor

6 months on, how has the FIFA Women's World Cup changed Australian sport?

Whether you were gathered around a mate’s TV, or watching the game on the big screen at your local pub, it felt like almost every Australian tuned in to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup – in fact, the Matildas’ match against England became the most watched TV program of the year, reaching 11.15 million Australians nationally!

Research from Dr Jordan Bakhsh at Deakin University set out to measure the impact of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

The key finding: Australians in all capital cities (except Adelaide and Perth) were more interested in hosting the event - or similar events - in the future and were more interested in women’s sport than they were pre-tournament (except Adelaide).

Dr Bakhsh observed that, in order to build a sense of unity across the country for future multi-city sporting events, like the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, all Australian cities should be considered - not just the traditional “big ones” of Sydney and Melbourne.

Wherever the action, one thing is for sure - we’re going to see more women’s football in Australia for decades to come. We don’t have to wait decades for the next Tillies game, though - they’ll be back in action on 26 July when they face Germany in their first Olympic match in Paris!

Think Beyond The Field. Study sport at Deakin.

Looking back…

Looking forward…(All times are AEST)

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