We’re just over a week away from the first rugby union Test between the Wallabies and British and Irish Lions.

Today marked an important milestone as Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt named a 36-player squad to take on the touring side. 

The most notable inclusion was that of 35-year-old playmaker James O’Connor, who has not played Test rugby since 2022. O’Connor steps up in place of the injured Noah Lolesio. He will compete with Ben Donaldson and Tom Lynagh for a starting spot at fly-half. 

O’Connor started for the Wallabies in all three Lions tour matches in 2013.

Five
The number of years a Collingwood fan will be banned from attending any AFL matches or any event at the MCG after threatening Carlton coach Michael Voss. The AFL said that the unnamed fan sent a text message to the MCG’s anti-social behaviour hotline during last Friday’s clash between Carlton and Collingwood. Tony Keane, the AFL’s integrity and security boss, said: "We understand there is passion in the game, however the text message in question sent to the MCG hotline on Friday crossed the line."

"I was telling [the crowd] that, 'Yeah, I've got ice in my veins'."
Australian tennis player Rinky Hijikata after winning the semi-final of the men’s doubles at Wimbledon. Hijikata is playing alongside Dutchman David Pel. The two players both signed up as alternates before the event and were called into action when another pairing withdrew. They had never spoken to each other before teaming up. The pair saved two match points and won a dramatic third-set tiebreaker against the top-seeded pairing of El Salvador's Marcelo Arévalo and Croatian Mate Pavić. They are set to take on British pair Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool in the final on Saturday (local time). 

The Hawthorn Hawks have a second home (outside of the MCG) at the University of Tasmania Stadium in Launceston. The club has played four games a season at the stadium since 2001 and has won 64 of the 85 matches there. As a result, the airport at Launceston is covered in Hawks signage.

🏟️ The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that South African athlete Caster Semenya was not given a fair trial when she contested a World Athletics policy that required her to lower her testosterone levels to compete in women’s events. The two-time Olympic champion is a woman who produces a higher level of testosterone than others. The court’s decision will not change the ruling, but will allow Semenya to take the case back to Switzerland’s federal court for reconsideration.

🏉 The Brisbane Lions beat Carlton by 37 points on Thursday night, as they continue their campaign to win back-to-back premierships. The victory came at a cost for the reigning premiers as defender Noah Answerth left the field in the second quarter with an Achilles injury. Lions midfielder Josh Dunkley had 28 disposals and 13 tackles and was awarded the inaugural Robert Walls medal. 

🏉 The Bulldogs remain undefeated after two rounds in their first NRLW season after beating the Wests Tigers 12-8 on Thursday night. Leading 12-0 at the half-time break, the Bulldogs held off a late surge from the Tigers to seal victory. Bulldogs lock Holli Wheeler told ABC Sport: "We were lucky to score those early first tries and we just hung in there at the death. We want to be a team that's known for fighting hard and to show there's a lot of heart behind the jersey.”

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On Saturday, the British and Irish Lions continue their tour of Australia with a match against the AUNZ XV. 

Having played four matches so far, the Lions will be looking to continue their unbeaten streak on Australian soil. 

The AUNZ XV is a combined squad of players from Australia and New Zealand who are not playing for their respective national teams. The team has only been formed to play against the Lions once in 1989. The side was voluntary for New Zealanders and only included three. The Lions won the match 19-15.

This year’s AUNZ XV is being coached by incoming Wallabies coach Les Kiss. Kiss has named a 23-man squad which includes 17 players with international experience. The team will be co-captained by Australian lock Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, who has 41 caps for the Wallabies, and Kiwi centre David Havili, who has made 30 appearances for the All Blacks and captained the Crusaders to a Super Rugby Pacific title this year. 

The AUNZ XV will take on a starting Lions side which is completely different from the one that beat the ACT Brumbies 36-24 on Wednesday night. 

Coach Andy Farrell said: “We are in a great position just over a week out from the First Test. The players now have another chance to put in a strong team performance and put a hand up for selection for the Test matches against the Wallabies.”

This match will be the last that the Lions play before they take on the Wallabies next Saturday in the first of three Test matches.

The match will kick off at 8:00pm on Saturday. You can watch it on Stan Sport. 

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The women’s singles final at Wimbledon is set after the U.S’ Amanda Anisimova and Poland’s Iga Świątek won their respective semi-finals overnight. 

Here’s what happened and what you need to know before the men’s semi-finals tonight and the women’s final on Sunday morning (AEST). 

Anisimova upset world number one Aryna Sabalenka in a thrilling three-set battle (6-4, 4-6, 6-4). The result prevented the Belarusian from advancing to her fourth straight grand slam final. Sabalenka said: “This experience shows that next year I'm only hungrier and angrier. These tough defeats help me to come back much stronger. I have huge hopes for the next year.”

Anisimova, who was ranked 189 in the world this time last year, said: “To be able to come on top, I knew that I wasn't just going to win off her mistakes. I really had to bring my game and do as much as I could, especially when it came to being aggressive."

Świątek was supreme against Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic, beating the 2021 Olympic champion in straight sets (6-2, 6-0). The 24-year-old has improved dramatically on grass this season, finishing runner-up in the Bad Homburg final and now making her first Wimbledon final. Before this year, she had never made it past the quarter-finals in the women’s singles draw at Wimbledon (although she did win a junior Wimbledon title in 2018). 

Świątek said: “Honestly, I never even dreamt it was going to be possible for me to play in the final. I’m just super excited. I thought I experienced everything on the court but I didn’t experience playing well on grass.”

The women’s final will be played on Sunday at 1:00am (AEST). It will be the first time that Świątek and Anisimova have played each other at the professional level. They played once as juniors, and Świątek beat Anisimova.

Eighth seed Świątek is a five-time Grand Slam champion seeking her first Wimbledon title. Świątek has won every slam final she has played in her career so far. A Wimbledon title would make the 24-year-old the youngest since Serena Williams to win a title on all three surfaces. 

13th seed Anisimova is playing in her first grand slam final and becomes the first American in a Wimbledon final since Serena Williams in 2019. A win on Saturday (local time) would see her become the first American woman to win the Wimbledon singles title since 2016 (also Williams). 

For the eighth straight year, the Wimbledon women’s singles title will belong to a first-time winner. 

In the first men’s semi-final, two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz will face fifth seed American Taylor Fritz. Alcaraz is seeking to become the first player to win the French Open and Wimbledon in consecutive years since Bjorn Borg. Fritz is playing his first Wimbledon semi-final and hoping to become the first American to make the men’s singles final since Andy Roddick in 2009. The two have played each other twice, and Alcaraz has won both matches.

Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic will meet in the other semi-final. It comes a little over a month after Sinner, the world number one, beat the 24-time slam champion in straight sets in the French Open semi-finals. Djokovic has reached the final of Wimbledon in its last six editions and will be extra hungry this year as he races father time to capture an elusive 25th Grand Slam.