5 months ago
The highly anticipated Ashes was quickly torn isolated by Travis Head’s cameo astatine nan apical of nan bid that has since turned into a overmuch longer stay. The NRL expansive last was different segment for an all-time breathtaking display, arsenic nan Broncos joined nan AFL’s Lions successful making Brisbane nan epicentre of Australian sport. Here are our writers’ sporting highlights of 2025.
Reece Lightning strikes down nan Storm
It will beryllium a agelong clip earlier location is an NRL finals run for illustration that of Brisbane successful 2025. From an improbable triumph complete insignificant premiers Canberra successful aureate point, done nan melodramatic second-half turnaround to extremity Penrith’s dynasty, to nan eventual destination connected expansive last day.
Brisbane’s fightback complete favourites Melbourne to triumph nan Broncos’ first NRL premiership successful 19 years was improbable by itself, but for it to headdress disconnected a snowballing tally of finals comebacks was fairytale material.
Central to it each was Reece Walsh, nan electrical yet unpredictable fullback who until those fewer weeks successful outpouring was much imaginable than proof.
Fans thought they had already seen nan top expansive last capacity possible. Two years agone Nathan Cleary single-handedly wrested nan premiership trophy from nan hands of Walsh and his teammates pinch 14 of rugby league’s finest minutes.
But against nan Storm, Walsh was everywhere. His superb first-half try, 3 effort assists and protect deeds marked a show fewer would disagree was nan champion ever – and successful a title not decided until nan last minute. Then Melbourne leaked done nan Brisbane line, threatening to snatch triumph pinch a two-on-one. There again was Walsh, Reece Lightning, nan Southport plumber. King Walshy, proclaimed connected this day. Jack Snape
Sprinters surge onto world stage
There is nan curiously acquainted moving stride and mesmerising smile. The viral videos and celebratory selfies. The sold-out athletics meets that unrecorded up to nan hype.
The accelerated emergence of teenage sensation Gout Gout has brought Australian eyeballs backmost to nan track. It has quickly sparked nan imagination for what mightiness beryllium imaginable for homegrown sprinters astatine nan Brisbane Olympics successful 2032.
The sprint prodigy, who turned 18 this week, continued to break records and soon outgrew inferior events this year. He completed precocious school and astatine nan aforesaid clip recovered clip to train pinch sprint royalty and formally denote himself to nan world. A 200m semi-final berth successful his first elder world championships successful Tokyo confirmed Gout’s spot arsenic athletics’ – and, arguably, Australian sport’s – breakout star.
Then location is Lachlan Kennedy, who upstaged Gout successful his pet arena complete 200m astatine a meet successful Melbourne early successful nan year. The 22-year-old sprinter had earlier won silver complete 60m astatine nan world indoors, and later became only nan second Australian to tally a ineligible 100m successful nether 10s. Kennedy missed nan world championships owed to a backmost injury, but looms arsenic Gout’s top rival connected location turf arsenic nan duo look group to push each different further – and faster – for years to come.
Australia’s fastest woman, Torrie Lewis, besides stepped up connected a world stage. The 20-year-old broke her ain 100m nationalist record and group a 200m individual champion erstwhile reaching nan semi-finals successful some events astatine nan world championships.
Gout is undeniably nan shooting prima of Australian athletics. But he is far from alone. Martin Pegan
Lions roar arsenic modern dynasty beckons
I don’t cognize a batch astir hip-hop but erstwhile Snoop Dogg walked retired connected nan MCG pinch a aureate microphone and a marching band, I suspected it would beryllium an AFL expansive last to remember.
Geelong were favourites to win. They hadn’t mislaid since July and convincingly hit Brisbane 3 weeks earlier. The Cats’ skill, acquisition and polish would surely flooded nan younger Lions. The first half was cervix and neck. But past Jeremy Cameron collapsed his limb successful a conflict pinch teammate Patrick Dangerfield. The Lions sewage stronger arsenic nan crippled went on, running nan Cats into nan ground to declare back-to-back premierships. A modern Brisbane dynasty beckons.
Like galore Melburnians, I watched nan crippled connected TV pinch friends, including an avid Lions fan, Tash, who grew up successful Brisbane supporting nan Bears earlier they merged pinch Fitzroy successful 1996. “Some of my first puerility memories are watching nan Bears play astatine nan Gabba and marvelling astatine really elephantine nan players seemed from nan grassy sidelines,” she says.
“My family were fortunate capable to spot nan Lions triumph their first expansive last astatine nan MCG successful 2001. So erstwhile nan siren sounded this year, much than 20 years later, moreover though we weren’t there, that was special.” Rick Goodman
Travball thumps England astatine their ain game
Had Usman Khawaja not holed retired connected 82 and missed retired connected completing nan eventual revenge ton successful Adelaide, this introduction mightiness look a spot different. As it is, thing connected nan cricket pitch, aliases arguably connected immoderate sporting section successful 2025, compared pinch Travis Head’s barnstorming, series-defining century successful Perth.
England’s Bazballers arrived successful Australia espousing their awesome intermezo project, and nan swashbuckling but surely now doomed accuracy played its portion successful an enthralling time and a half of cricket earlier Head came to nan crease for a 2nd time. By then, 30 wickets had already fallen, and conscionable 468 runs scored.
With England arguably connected apical successful nan helter-skelter lucifer and sensing blood, Head, either bravely aliases stupidly, put his manus up to open successful nan absence of nan injured Usman Khawaja. But pinch nan unit on, nan moustachioed man from nan bluish suburbs of Adelaide made ray of it, and quickly justified his decision.
No fear, nary hesitation, Head took nan crippled to England, smashing everything nan visitors threw astatine him to each parts of nan crushed – fittingly by nan end, his wagon instrumentality resembled an exploding firework. The measurement nan packed location saluted their latest hero, some connected reaching nan milestone and past arsenic he yet departed for 123, said to nan magnitude of his thrilling knock.
Head had taken connected England astatine their ain crippled and won. Travball was calved and nan reside for nan remainder of nan bid had been set. Mike Hytner
Mitch Brown’s bravery offers a turning point
A acheronian on-field infinitesimal was followed by a hopeful 1 distant from nan action that helped uncover nan highs and lows that athletics tin bring us, acold beyond nan wins and losses.
While nan shot world waited pinch impatience for nan AFL to manus down its sanction to Adelaide’s Izak Rankine for utilizing a homophobic slur during a game, I, for illustration galore others, became progressively furious. First, that nan incident happened, that its awfulness was compounded by nan league’s lumbering response, and that truthful galore successful footy still don’t – aliases won’t – spot nan problem.
Then, a week later, Mitch Brown became nan first AFL player, past aliases present, to come retired publically arsenic bisexual, and nan acquisition was nan polar other to what had travel before. The erstwhile West Coast subordinate told his communicative and footy’s cautiously constructed wall of indifference came crashing down.
While Brown shared immoderate of nan horrible things he witnessed arsenic an AFL player, his connection was resoundingly hopeful. In nan discourse of Rankine’s slur and nan surrounding vitriol of nan preceding week, Brown’s courageousness was immeasurable, and truthful excessively was nan joyousness and spot he allowed others to return from his words.
I wish this wasn’t a infinitesimal of specified significance. But because of nan civilization of homophobia successful men’s footy, it is. Brown’s determination – and bravery – to speak publically may beryllium nan turning point that nan athletics truthful desperately needed. Jo Khan
