Bonnyrigg Rose, a Scottish football club that plays in Scottish League Two, was docked six competition points earlier this month because their home field is on a slope. Now, they are trying to raise close to $200,000 to level it.

Not to make light of what sounds like an uphill battle for Bonnyrigg Rose but I read that story and thought playing soccer on a slope sounded quite fun.

As it turns out, Skråningsfotball (football on a slope) is actually a sport and it does look quite fun.

6
The number of birdies shot by Aussie golfer Lucas Herbert to help him take the lead after round one of the Australian Open in Melbourne. Herbert also scored an eagle (two shots under par) during the round. The 28-year-old is closely followed by Japan’s Rintaro Nakano and American Ryggs Johnston, who are both one shot behind him. In the women’s tournament, Australian Su Oh is the joint leader alongside South Korea’s Hyojin Yang.

"I was caught off guard with a question at the end of a press conference last night about a scratch which had appeared on my face and explained that a sharp fingernail had accidentally caused this. My answer was in no way intended to make light of the very serious issue of self-harm."
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola in a post to X. In a press conference after his side’s 3-3 draw with Dutch club Feyenoord (which saw them waste a 3-0 lead), Guardiola was asked about the origin of a cut on his nose and said: "With my finger, my nail. I want to harm myself."

In 2019, American ultra-swimmer Sarah Thomas became the first person to complete four consecutive crossings of the English Channel. She covered approximately 135km in 54 hours and 10 minutes. Remarkably, Thomas achieved the feat a year after undergoing treatment for breast cancer.

⚽ Liverpool have beaten Real Madrid in the Champions League for the first time in 15 years, winning 2-0. The win means the club has guaranteed itself a place in the Champions League round of 16. In the first season under Dutch manager Arne Slot, the club also sits atop the English Premier League, eight points ahead of the second-placed Manchester City. 

⛳ Australian former professional golfer Greg Norman is reportedly set to be replaced as the CEO of LIV Golf by American sports and entertainment administrator Scott O’Neil. Norman was the architect of LIV Golf, a tour established in 2022 to compete against the PGA Tour which has since dramatically changed men’s professional golf. Norman will reportedly remain on the board of LIV.

🏀 The 2024/25 NBL season reaches a midpoint tonight with the 10th of 20 weeks commencing. The first fixture of the week will see a blockbuster clash as the Illawarra Hawks (3rd) host the New Zealand Breakers (2nd) tonight. Melbourne United are leading the competition having won 10 of their 14 games so far. The top three players in the conversation for MVP at the halfway point are the Breakers’ Parker Jackson-Cartwright and Adelaide 36ers duo Kendric Davis and Montrezl Harrell. 

⚽ Australian football club Sydney FC will play their fifth group stage match of the AFC Champions League Two tonight, against Hong Kong Premier League club Eastern SC on their home soil. Despite leaving Brazilian star Douglas Costa at home, Sydney are favourites to win the match after beating Eastern 5-0 in September.

The Matildas will play the first of two friendlies against Brazil tonight at 8:00pm (AEDT). The match will be veteran defender Clare Polkinghorne’s last for the Matildas after an 18-year career with the national side. Polkinghorne’s appearance at her home stadium tonight will be her 167th international, the most of any Australian soccer player –- male or female.

Brazil is the 8th-ranked team in the world and won the silver medal at the Paris Olympics. The Matildas, ranked 15th, will enter the match as underdogs, particularly without the likes of marquee players Sam Kerr, Mary Fowler, and Cortnee Vine. However, the last time Brazil visited Australia for two friendlies in October 2021, the Matildas came out on top with one win and a draw.

Interim coach Tom Sermanni said: “In elite sport, it’s not often that a player or an athlete gets to go out on their own terms and in such special circumstances, If anybody deserves it, it’s Polks. We use the word legend very loosely these days, but it describes her. She’s been, not just within the team on the field, but off the field, when people talk about the team player, the absolute team player.”

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The first match of the Women’s Big Bash League finals series, the Knockout, was played last night between the Sydney Thunder and Hobart Hurricanes. The Thunder won the match by six wickets with six balls remaining, led by a patient batting display from captain Phoebe Litchfield.

The Hurricanes took to the crease first and set a total of 127 runs for the Thunder to chase. Elyse Villani was the standout batter for the Hurricanes scoring 49 runs.

The Thunder didn’t get off to an ideal start to their run chase, with opener Georgia Voll losing her wicket for a duck. Fellow opener Chamari Athapaththu added momentum with 31 runs, before Litchfield was the game-changer. The captain scored 46 runs, surviving a couple of scares and losing her wicket with only two runs to chase.

The result means the Hurricanes have not won a finals match in four attempts. The Thunder are two-time WBBL Champions seeking a third.

Litchfield said: "Take the leadership off me and I'm still a leader with the bat in this line-up, and having my international experience now makes me a player who has to finish off games like that and I really pride myself on that. But it was extra special to be able to be a skipper and win the game.”

The Thunder will head to Brisbane for the Challenger match against the Heat on Friday night. The winner of the Challenger will face the top-ranked Melbourne Renegades in the WBBL final on Sunday.

The Thunder will head to Brisbane with plenty of confidence that they can make the Grand Final, knowing that when they played the Heat during the regular season, the result fell their way.

You can watch the WBBL Finals on Channel 7, Foxtel, or Kayo.

ICYMI: TDA Sport has a new game on Instagram called Blurdle. IYKYK.
Today’s answer: Serena Williams
Useless clue: clear, tranquil

Helping athletes get back to their best

Deakin University research is changing how we think about athletic development. Led by Associate Professor Steve Swanson, the study looks at how sports can support athletes during their return to play after injury.

The work is part of the Australian Institute of Sport's "Win Well" strategy, which emphasises that success in sports needs four key elements:

The study focuses specifically on athletes who are returning to play after injury or surgery.

Research shows that well-being issues increase during recovery times. There's an important difference between an athlete simply getting back to play versus returning to their previous performance level.

Through interviews with psychologists, coaches, physios, and wellbeing managers, the research team is learning how sports staff can work together better. They've found that:

The goal is to help athletes succeed both in sport and life while making sure the people supporting them have the resources they need.