Latest - The Wellington Phoenix will play its home matches at Win Stadium in Wollongong for the upcoming A League football season.
Phoenix fans Photo: Photosport
The Phoenix have spent the past three weeks conducting a pre-season training camp in Wollongong, and will now base themselves there for the competition which kicks off just after Christmas.
Their first game will be away to Brisbane Roar on December 29th, with their first 'home' game in Wollongong against the defending champions Sydney FC on January 2nd.
Wellington Phoenix General Manager, David Dome, said Wollongong was a "solid alternative home" for the club in Australia and the locals "have been keen to 'adopt' us for the season."
Wood helps Burnley to first win
All Whites striker Chris Wood scored the only goal of the game as Burnley moved out of the English Premier League relegation zone with a 1-nil win over Crystal Palace.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
It was Burnley's their first win of the Premier League season.
The result moves Burnley out of the bottom three up to 17th place, on five points from eight matches, while Palace drop to 10th on 13 after nine games.
Sean Dyche's side, who had not scored a home goal in this campaign, ended the barren run when Palace defender Cheikhou Kouyate made a mess of a high cross by Johann Berg Gudmundsson, the ball falling to Jay Rodriguez who fed Wood to drive home.
Palace suffered a blow before the game with the news that their influential winger Wilfried Zaha had been ruled out after testing positive for Covid-19.
In the days other game Wolves and Southampton drew 1-all.
-Reuters
Young Manly player dies
Manly Sea Eagles forward Keith Titmuss has died aged 20 after falling ill at a training session.
Photo: MANLY RL
Titmuss, who rose through the ranks at Manly, reported feeling sick at the club's Narrabeen base and was transported to the Northern Beaches Hospital. He was then taken to Royal North Shore Hospital where he passed away.
"We are all devastated by this news," Manly coach Des Hasler said in a statement on the club's website.
"Keith was a very popular character amongst the playing group. He will be sorely missed but never forgotten by the Sea Eagles."
Titmuss scored the game-winning try for Manly in the 2017 under-20s grand final and was included in the Sydney-based club's full-time squad for the 2021 NRL season.
-Reuters
Harbour pip Otago
North Harbour have beaten Otago 58-47 in their national women's basketball League game in Auckland.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
It was a far from convincing performance, but the win means Harbour join Auckland at the top of the NBL ladder, both teams with a 2-0 record.
Based on dogged defence Otago trailed by just three points with under four minutes to play.
On a night when neither team shot well, Keeley Tini was an exception making 4 from 7 from beyond the arc for Harbour. Tini tallied 14 points, Brooke Blair scored a dozen whilst Jess Moors was all energy with 12 rebounds including five offensive boards.
Zoe Richards had 12 points and 8 rebounds for Otago.
Otago captain Bronwyn Kjestrup finished the night shift at Dunedin hospital at 8am on the day of the game before flying to Auckland to lead her team on the court.
Spurs suffer big loss
Tottenham Hotspur suffered a net loss of $123 million in the last financial year as the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted schedules and forced games to be played in empty stadiums.
Spurs said revenue for the year ended June 30 was $774 million, down from $886 million in the previous year.
"We are currently in the midst of one of the most challenging times ever experienced," chairman Daniel Levy said.
"The impact of the pandemic on our revenue is material and could not have come at a worse time, having just completed a 1.2 billion pounds (NZ$2.3 billion) stadium build which is financed by club resources and long-term debt."
Levy also said Spurs, who top the English Premier League standings with 20 points from nine games, face losses in excess of $289 million next year if fans are not allowed back into stadiums.
-Reuters
Some fans likely to return to British sport
Up to 4,000 spectators will be allowed to attend outdoor sports events in lowest-risk tier one areas of England when a month-long national lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19 is lifted next week.
As part of new Covid-19 restrictions, a total of 2,000 fans will be allowed to attend sporting events in tier two areas but none can do so in tier three areas.
English Premier League matches have continued behind closed doors during the lockdown announced on Nov. 1. Supporters have not been allowed into sporting venues since the first lockdown was announced in March, barring a few exceptions.
Members of Parliament are set to cast a vote on plans before they are confirmed and the government will announce on Thursday which areas will go into which tier.
-Reuters
NBA players meet with Pope
Five NBA basketball players have met with Pope Francis at the Vatican to discuss their work on social justice issues.
The delegation included Kyle Korver of the Milwaukee Bucks, Sterling Brown of the Houston Rockets, Jonathan Isaac of the Orlando Magic, Anthony Tolliver of the Memphis Grizzlies, Marco Belinelli of the San Antonio Spurs and National Basketball Players Association executive director Michele Roberts.
"We are extremely honored to have had this opportunity to come to the Vatican and share our experiences with Pope Francis," Korver said in an NBPA news release. "His openness and eagerness to discuss these issues was inspiring and a reminder that our work has had a global impact and must continue moving forward."
-Reuters