Brisbane Lions coach Chris Fagan has announced he is stepping down.

Days after leading the Lions to a third consecutive AFL premiership, Fagan has told the club he will not see out the final year of his contract.

In a statement, Fagan said: “This job is all encompassing; I’ve given it my absolute all and I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved, but now is the right time to go.”

The 65-year-old has coached the Lions since 2017 and has overseen an extraordinary period of success, with the club making finals in each of the past eight years, Grand Finals in the past four, and winning premierships in the past three.

The Lions will now have to chase a fourth straight premiership without Fagan (or Lachie Neale), can they do it?

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The number of balls Shubman Gill needed to reach 200 runs in Wednesday’s second ODI against the West Indies in Guwahati, setting a new record for the fastest double century in one-day international history. Gill finished unbeaten on 223 from 133 balls as India chased down West Indies’ total of 405 with 39 balls to spare, beating the previous record of 126 balls set by Ishan Kishan against Bangladesh in 2022. Elsewhere, Australia avoided an ODI series whitewash, beating South Africa by 45 runs (DLS method) in a rain-affected third match in Potchefstroom. Alex Carey top-scored with 74 runs. South Africa still won the series 2-1.

“I’ve had that many tests, seen that many doctors and it just wasn’t getting any outcome. But my health just kept declining. And then recently in the last few weeks I was actually diagnosed with motor neurone disease, which has been extremely challenging and overwhelming.”
Former Wallabies hooker Nathan Charles revealing he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND) at 37. MND is a degenerative neurological disease which affects muscle function. Charles is already known for his resilience, having forged a career in professional rugby union despite living with another disease, cystic fibrosis. He’s the only known person to have played professional contact sports with the disease, which affects the lungs, pancreas, and other organs. Charles played four Tests for Australia in 2014 and Super Rugby for the Western Force and Melbourne Rebels before retiring in 2018.

Australian Ryan Rowland-Smith is a former baseball pitcher who played for the Seattle Mariners in Major League Baseball, North America’s top professional baseball league. His nickname is ‘The Hyphen’ because he was the first player in the league to have a hyphenated last name. He also helped Australia win a silver medal in baseball at the 2004 Olympics. 

🏉 Penrith Panthers halfback Nathan Cleary won his first Dally M Medal on Tuesday night, polling 67 votes to beat Cronulla Sharks five-eighth Braydon Trindall by 14. Cleary accepted the award from his parents’ home as he recovered from the broken leg he suffered in Sunday’s preliminary final loss to the Newcastle Knights. In the women’s award, Brisbane Broncos fullback Tamika Upton won her third Dally M Medal in four seasons, edging out Wests Tigers’ Raecene McGregor by two votes. Upton is the only women’s player to have won the award more than once.

⚽ Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal’s all-time leading goalscorer, left the national team’s training camp in Copenhagen on Wednesday after coach Jorge Jesus dropped him from the starting side for Thursday’s Nations League clash with Denmark. Ronaldo said on Instagram he left “following a conversation with the President of the Portuguese Football Federation”. The 41-year-old was an unused substitute in the previous match against Norway, which Portugal won 2-1. Speaking to the media ahead of the Denmark match, Jesus said: “There was no incident whatsoever…I decided not to bring him on. It’s nothing to make a fuss about”.

🎾 American tennis player Emma Navarro has opened up about a long-running health battle. The 25-year-old, who reached a career-high ranking of world No.8 in 2024, revealed on social media that she was diagnosed with relative energy deficiency in sport (RED-S) and Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism, an autoimmune disease, in late 2025. Navarro said: “I was off. I was experiencing emotions I had never experienced before, at least not to this severity. Irritability, frustration, perfectionism, worry, and bizarrely for me, anger…like I wanted to smash every racket in my bag (something I had never done or wanted to do).” She also struggled with “headaches, dizziness, brain fog, fatigue, anxiousness and mood swings”. Navarro is sitting out the Asian swing to focus on her recovery.

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Olufemi Komolafe, the winner of the 2026 men’s Stawell Gift in April, has been stripped of the prestigious running race’s title, the $40,000 in prize money that came with it, and suspended for 12 months after testing positive for a banned ADHD medication.

Here’s what to know.

The Stawell Gift is an annual short-distance running race with handicaps held every Easter weekend in Stawell, Victoria.

This year, 21-year-old Komolafe won the 120 metre men’s handicap, running from a five metre mark to post a personal best and claim the $40,000 first prize.

A subsequent drug test returned a positive result for an ADHD medication prohibited under the World Anti-Doping Code. Sports Integrity Australia (SIA) handed down the ban, stripping Komolafe of his title.

According to reports, Komolafe, a medical student, had been taking the substance to help with his studies despite not having a prescription.

Earlier this year, SIA chief executive Sarah Benson said ADHD medications are restricted because they can be abused for performance gains, and that a diagnosis obtained after a positive test does not clear an athlete. She also said that failed tests because of ADHD medication were becoming increasingly common.

In a statement, he said: “I want to apologise for all this. I won’t keep the title of Stawell Gift winner, but the experience of winning it was invaluable, and I’m eager and confident that I can take it to the next level when I return.”

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The biggest weekend on the rugby league calendar is here. The Newcastle Knights and Sydney Roosters will contest the NRL Grand Final on Sunday, with the Brisbane Broncos and Roosters playing for the NRLW title earlier in the day. Both deciders will be played at Accor Stadium in Sydney.

Here’s what you need to know before kickoff.

Let’s start with the underdogs.

Newcastle completed a remarkable turnaround this year, finishing seventh on the ladder and securing a spot in finals after coming last in 2025. Now, the club has reached its first Grand Final since 2001 with three consecutive finals upsets against the South Sydney Rabbitohs (6th), New Zealand Warriors (2nd) and the Penrith Panthers (1st).

Last week’s 22-14 victory over the Panthers saw the Knights play most of the second half with twelve men after hooker Phoenix Crossland was sent off for a dangerous tackle which broke Nathan Cleary’s leg. Crossland will miss four games, including Sunday’s match, because of the suspension.

A win on Sunday would not only hand the club its first premiership in 25 years, but also make them the first team to win the NRL Grand Final after finishing seventh on the ladder.

Now to the favourites. The Roosters finished fourth on the ladder after a strong regular season. In the finals, they were upset by the Panthers (1st) in their qualifying final. They then avoided elimination by thumping the Cronulla Sharks (5th) before completing the job with a win over the Dolphins (3rd) in last week’s preliminary final.

The Roosters are full of star power, with the likes of Daly Cherry-Evans and Sam Walker in the halves and Mark Nawaqanitawase on the wing.

A win on Sunday would be the Roosters’ first premiership since 2019, and the club’s 16th title overall.

Earlier in the day, the Brisbane Broncos and Sydney Roosters will meet in a rematch of last year’s NRLW Grand Final.

Brisbane, who finished third on the ladder this season, are playing in their fifth Grand Final after beating the Gold Coast Titans 20-8 in last week’s preliminary final. It will be the last game of five-eighth Ali Brigginshaw’s decorated Broncos career while Dally M-winning fullback Tamika Upton is chasing a sixth premiership.

Meanwhile, the Roosters have gone through the season unbeaten, defeating the Canberra Raiders 20-10 in their own preliminary final. The Sydney-based side will be looking to avoid a repeat of last year when the only game they lost all season was the Grand Final, also against the Broncos.

The NRLW kicks off at 4:00pm (AEDT), with the NRL Grand Final to follow at 7:30pm. You can watch both on Channel 9 and 9Now.