The 1,500 metres showdown between Mack Horton and drug cheat Sun Yang is not to be. The self-proclaimed King, Sun Yang bombed out in the heats of his pet event. Couldn’t even break 15 minutes, which is 1,500 metres for dummies these days. Afterwards, he was full of excuses. He was sick, he said. Had…
Tag: Matildas
Matildas sound the perfect Peter Allen tribute
If Peter Allen’s hit song I Go To Rio doesn’t make it back into the Top 40 this week, I’ll eat my maracas. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the celebrated ditty from the bloke who, no matter how far or how wide he roamed, still called Australia home. I’ve been thinking of a…
We’ll come a-waltzing, Matildas
“Holy sh*t. Holy sh*t!” was how US sports website Deadspin began its match report on Australia’s defeat of Brazil in the FIFA Women’s World Cup. It was that big a deal, the first time an Aussie team, male or female, had won a World Cup knockout game. And to do it, they had secured Brazil’s…
The one thing missing from women’s soccer
If there’s one thing that stands out about the FIFA Women’s World Cup, it’s the distinct lack of diving. There are no amateur dramatics like this. Maybe it’s because there’s not enough pay in the women’s game to cover acting lessons. Or because throwing yourself around on artificial turf is like going ten rounds with…
Friday Funnies: thrills, spills, a couple of dills
It’s one of my favourite clips so far from the Women’s World Cup. Swiss striker Ramona Bachmann gets the ball at the halfway line, evades one, two, three, four, five defenders, then the goalie, sets herself for an angular shot at goal… and then falls over. Not one of those I’m-in-the-penalty-box-so-let’s-milk-it-for-all-its-worth dives but a legitimate…
kazblah 