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panaloko777 Cricket fans go wild over Isa Guha's commentary in the Boxing Day Test - for a VERY surprising reason

Ireland ran out 22-19 winners in Dublin but the Wallabies have restored pride on their European tour, after a dismal World Cup campaign last year. Australia had chances to win and looked a thoroughly different side to the one that was thumped 40-6 by Wales in September last year. Coach Joe Schmidt has shown the Wallabies have enough firepower to challenge the British and Irish Lions next year when at one stage it looked like the upcoming series would be a completely one-sided affair. How Australia’s players fared against Ireland 1) James Slipper - 6.5 Gave his all for 50 minutes but was penalised for collapsing a scrum just before half-time that led to an Ireland three-pointer. In Dublin in 2022, Slipper made the bold call that he wanted to play against the Lions and at 36 next year, looks set to do so. 2) Brandon Paenga-Amosa - 7 Australia didn’t lose a lineout all night, with Paenga-Amosa having a pleasing end to the tour. It was a major improvement from last week against Scotland. Jake Gordon sprints away for the Wallabies. Credit: AP 3) Taniela Tupou - 7.5 Picked off an intercept and streaked down the field but threw a loose pass to ruin the good work. His scrum work was good but certainly not dominant like we know he can be. Came off after 45 minutes in a more polished performance than some this year. 4) Nick Frost - 6.5 Second on the tackle count for Australia (17). Won five lineouts, the same as Ireland’s James Ryan and Tadhg Beirne. Was excellent in Dublin two years ago and backed that up here. Involved in a nice breakaway link play with Harry Wilson that once again highlighted Frost’s athleticism. 5) Jeremy Williams - 6.5 A solid 59-minute shift from someone who was not in the Wallabies frame last year. Did his job at the lineout and will feature next year against the Lions after a good spring tour. 6) Rob Valetini - 8 Valetini’s bad games are few and far between. Made 14 carries - four more than any other Australian player - to go with 10 tackles. Was almost yellow-carded for a forearm while carrying the ball into his former Brumbies teammate Mack Hansen. Pictured next to Hansen after the match, with the latter enjoying a Guinness. 7) Fraser McReight - 8.5 One of his best games in a gold jersey. Pulled off three turnovers at critical moments that gave the men in gold a major energy lift. Only blemish was an inaccurate, rushed pass to Tom Wright that was put down with four minutes to go with the Wallabies searching for a match-winning try. Tim Horan described McReight’s timing at breakdowns “amazing”. Topped the tackle count with 21. 8) Harry Wilson - 7.5 The sight of red headgear in space is becoming more common as Wilson and Frost combined with Ireland on the back foot. 13 tackles and 10 carries rounded out a productive day for the skipper. After not featuring for the Wallabies at last year’s World Cup, it has been some turnaround. 9) Jake Gordon- 7 A reasonable 61-minute shift with no major issues. Kicked high in midfield for Suaalii, a play which we could see more of during the Lions series. Service was solid as always and gets to rucks quickly. 10) Noah Lolesio - 7 Nailed all his kicks at goal, including a 48-metre penalty in the final quarter of the match. His wrap-around and service out the back in the lead-up to Jorgensen’s try was outstanding and shows what he’s capable of at this level. The Wallabies have lost their final game of 2024 to Ireland. Credit: AP 11) Max Jorgensen - 7 Finished off a nice team try in the 18th minute to put Australia up 8-0 but barely got his hands on the ball after that. Eight tackles across his 80 minutes. 12) Len Ikitau - 7 Tried to get into the game but didn’t have as big an impact as other games on the tour. Is No.12 his best position? Jury is out. How the Wallabies backline shapes for the Lions will be fascinating. Made more tackles than any Wallabies back (13). 13) Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii - 6 Certainly not as spectacular as he was on debut. Put a huge shot on Keenan early. Not as effective winning balls back from restarts. Five carries for 15 metres. Threw the ball away with three minutes to go and the Wallabies searching for a five-pointer. Got found out a few times defensively in the notoriously difficult No.13 channel. 14) Andrew Kellaway - 7 Ever reliable. Won a turnover and made nine carries for 25 metres. Great try-saving tackle that knocked the ball clean out of an Ireland player’s hand. 15) Tom Wright - 6.5 Standard showing without any major highlights. Ran the ball for more metres (42) than any Wallaby. Threw the final pass for Jorgensen’s try. 16) Billy Pollard - 5: No dramas with any throws after coming on with 23 minutes to go. 17) Isaac Kailea - 5.5: A late replacement with Angus Bell ruled out ill. Footwork into contact a highlight. Made eight tackles in his 30-minute stint on the park. 18) Allan Alaalatoa - 6: Did his job and the stuff no one looks closely at. Gave Ireland prop Cian Healy a hard time. 19) Lukhan Salakaia-Loto - 5: Came on with 21 minutes to go. No real highlights. Seven tackles. 20) Langi Gleeson - 5: Same boat as Salakaia-Loto, coming on with six minutes to go. 21) Tate McDermott - 6: Ireland kept a close eye on McDermott in a period where the home side had a lot of the ball. Loading 22) Tane Edmed - n/a: Beaming with pride at becoming Wallaby No.709, Edmed’s debut only lasted three minutes as he came off for a Head Injury Assessment. He looked shattered. “Are you serious?” Edmed said as he walked off. 23) Harry Potter - n/a: Came on with 95 seconds to go. Not enough time for any wizardry. Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. License this article Wallabies Australian rugby Ireland rugby Tom Decent is a journalist with The Sydney Morning Herald. Connect via Twitter or email . Most Viewed in Sport Loading

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One week into a new Syria, rebels aim for normalcy and Syrians vow not to be silent again DAMASCUS (AP) — A transformation has started to take place in the week since the unexpected overthrow of Syria’s President Bashar Assad. Suddenly in charge, the rebels have been met with a mix of excitement, grief and hope. And so far the transition has been surprisingly smooth. Reports of reprisals, revenge killings and sectarian violence are minimal, looting and destruction has been quickly contained. But there are a million ways it could go wrong. Syria is broken and isolated after five decades of Assad family rule. Families have been torn apart by war, former prisoners are traumatized, and tens of thousands of detainees remain missing. The economy is wrecked, poverty is widespread, inflation and unemployment are high. Corruption seeps through daily life. Christians in Syria mark country's transformation with tears as UN envoy urges an end to sanctions DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — In churches across long-stifled Syria, Christians have marked the first Sunday services since Bashar Assad’s ouster in an air of transformation. Some were in tears, others clasped their hands in prayer. The U.N. envoy for Syria is calling for a quick end to Western sanctions as the country’s new leaders and regional and global powers discuss the way forward. The Syrian government has been under sanctions by the United States, the European Union and others for years as a result of Assad’s brutal response to what began as peaceful anti-government protests in 2011 and spiraled into civil war. Israel will close its Ireland embassy over Gaza tensions as Palestinian death toll nears 45,000 DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel says it will close its embassy in Ireland as relations deteriorate over the war in Gaza, where Palestinian medical officials say new Israeli airstrikes have killed over 30 people including children. Israel's decision to close the embassy came in response to what Israel’s foreign minister has described as Ireland's “extreme anti-Israel policies.” Ireland earlier announced that it would recognize a Palestinian state. And the Irish cabinet last week decided to formally intervene in South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, which accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. The Palestinian death toll in the war is approaching 45,000. The GOP stoked fears of noncitizens voting. Cases in Ohio show how rhetoric and reality diverge AKRON, Ohio (AP) — Ohio's Republican secretary of state and attorney general sought to reassure voters before the November election that the state's elections were being vigorously protected against the possibility of immigrants voting illegally. That push coincided with a national Republican messaging strategy warning that potentially thousands of ineligible voters would be voting. The officials' efforts in Ohio led to charges against just six noncitizens in a state with 8 million registered voters. That outcome and the stories of some of those now facing charges show the gap both in Ohio and across the United States between the rhetoric about noncitizen voting and the reality that it's rare and not part of a coordinated scheme to throw elections. South Korean leaders seek calm after Yoon is impeached SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s opposition leader has offered to work with the government to ease the political tumult, a day after the opposition-controlled parliament voted to impeach conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol over a short-lived attempt to impose martial law. Liberal Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, whose party holds a majority in the National Assembly, urged the Constitutional Court to rule swiftly on Yoon’s impeachment and proposed a special council for policy cooperation between the government and parliament. Yoon’s powers have been suspended until the court decides whether to remove him from office or reinstate him. If Yoon is dismissed, a national election to choose his successor must be held within 60 days. Storms across US bring heavy snow, dangerous ice and a tornado in California OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Inclement weather has plagued areas of the U.S. in the first half of the weekend, with dangerous conditions including heavy snow, a major ice storm and unusual tornado activity. An ice storm beginning Friday created treacherous driving conditions across Iowa and eastern Nebraska. More than 33 inches of snow was reported near Orchard Park, New York, which is often a landing point for lake-effect snow. On Saturday, a tornado touched down in Scotts Valley, California, causing damage and several injuries. In San Francisco, a storm damaged trees and roofs and prompted a tornado warning, which was a first for a city that has not experienced a tornado since 2005. Small businesses say cautious shoppers are seeking 'cozy' and 'festive' this holiday season With a late Thanksgiving, the holiday shopping season is five days shorter than last year, and owners of small retail shops say that people have been quick to snap up holiday décor early, along with gifts for others and themselves. Cozy items like sweaters are popular so far. Businesses are also holding special events to get shoppers in the door. But there’s little sense of the freewheeling spending that occurred during the pandemic. Overall, The National Retail Federation predicts retail sales in November and December will rise between 2.5% and 3.5% compared with same period a year ago. US agencies should use advanced technology to identify mysterious drones, Schumer says After weeks of fear and bewilderment about the drones buzzing over parts of New York and New Jersey, U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer is urging the federal government to deploy better drone-tracking technology to identify and ultimately stop the airborne pests. The New York Democrat is calling on the Department of Homeland Security to immediately deploy advanced technology to identify and track drones back to their landing spots. That is according to briefings from his office. Federal authorities have said that the drones do not appear to be linked to foreign governments. West Africa regional bloc approves exit timeline for 3 coup-hit member states ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — West Africa’s regional bloc ECOWAS has approved an exit timeline for three coup-hit nations. It comes after a nearly yearlong process of mediation to avert the unprecedented disintegration of the grouping. The president of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Touray, said in a statement: “The authority decides to set the period from 29 January, 2025 to 29 July 2025 as a transitional period and to keep ECOWAS doors open to the three countries during the transition period." In a first in the 15-nation bloc’s nearly 50 years of existence, the military juntas of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso announced in January that they decided to leave ECOWAS. Pope Francis makes 1st papal visit to France's Corsica awash in expressions of popular piety AJACCIO, Corsica (AP) — Pope Francis on the first papal visit ever to the French island of Corsica on Sunday called for a dynamic form of laicism, promoting the kind of popular piety that distinguishes the Mediterranean island from secular France as a bridge between religious and civic society. The one-day visit to Corsica’s capital Ajaccio, birthplace of Napoleon, on Sunday is one of the briefest of his papacy beyond Italy’s borders, just about nine hours on the ground, including a 40-minute visit with French President Emmanuel Macron. It is the first papal visit ever to the island, which Genoa ceded to France in 1768 and is located closer to the Italian mainland than France.Top Dolphins-Patriots prop bet predictions from Chris Perkins, David FuronesOne week into a new Syria, rebels aim for normalcy and Syrians vow not to be silent again DAMASCUS (AP) — A transformation has started to take place in the week since the unexpected overthrow of Syria’s President Bashar Assad. Suddenly in charge, the rebels have been met with a mix of excitement, grief and hope. And so far the transition has been surprisingly smooth. Reports of reprisals, revenge killings and sectarian violence are minimal, looting and destruction has been quickly contained. But there are a million ways it could go wrong. Syria is broken and isolated after five decades of Assad family rule. Families have been torn apart by war, former prisoners are traumatized, and tens of thousands of detainees remain missing. The economy is wrecked, poverty is widespread, inflation and unemployment are high. Corruption seeps through daily life. Christians in Syria mark country's transformation with tears as UN envoy urges an end to sanctions DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — In churches across long-stifled Syria, Christians have marked the first Sunday services since Bashar Assad’s ouster in an air of transformation. Some were in tears, others clasped their hands in prayer. The U.N. envoy for Syria is calling for a quick end to Western sanctions as the country’s new leaders and regional and global powers discuss the way forward. The Syrian government has been under sanctions by the United States, the European Union and others for years as a result of Assad’s brutal response to what began as peaceful anti-government protests in 2011 and spiraled into civil war. Israel will close its Ireland embassy over Gaza tensions as Palestinian death toll nears 45,000 DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel says it will close its embassy in Ireland as relations deteriorate over the war in Gaza, where Palestinian medical officials say new Israeli airstrikes have killed over 30 people including children. Israel's decision to close the embassy came in response to what Israel’s foreign minister has described as Ireland's “extreme anti-Israel policies.” Ireland earlier announced that it would recognize a Palestinian state. And the Irish cabinet last week decided to formally intervene in South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, which accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. The Palestinian death toll in the war is approaching 45,000. The GOP stoked fears of noncitizens voting. Cases in Ohio show how rhetoric and reality diverge AKRON, Ohio (AP) — Ohio's Republican secretary of state and attorney general sought to reassure voters before the November election that the state's elections were being vigorously protected against the possibility of immigrants voting illegally. That push coincided with a national Republican messaging strategy warning that potentially thousands of ineligible voters would be voting. The officials' efforts in Ohio led to charges against just six noncitizens in a state with 8 million registered voters. That outcome and the stories of some of those now facing charges show the gap both in Ohio and across the United States between the rhetoric about noncitizen voting and the reality that it's rare and not part of a coordinated scheme to throw elections. South Korean leaders seek calm after Yoon is impeached SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s opposition leader has offered to work with the government to ease the political tumult, a day after the opposition-controlled parliament voted to impeach conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol over a short-lived attempt to impose martial law. Liberal Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, whose party holds a majority in the National Assembly, urged the Constitutional Court to rule swiftly on Yoon’s impeachment and proposed a special council for policy cooperation between the government and parliament. Yoon’s powers have been suspended until the court decides whether to remove him from office or reinstate him. If Yoon is dismissed, a national election to choose his successor must be held within 60 days. Storms across US bring heavy snow, dangerous ice and a tornado in California OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Inclement weather has plagued areas of the U.S. in the first half of the weekend, with dangerous conditions including heavy snow, a major ice storm and unusual tornado activity. An ice storm beginning Friday created treacherous driving conditions across Iowa and eastern Nebraska. More than 33 inches of snow was reported near Orchard Park, New York, which is often a landing point for lake-effect snow. On Saturday, a tornado touched down in Scotts Valley, California, causing damage and several injuries. In San Francisco, a storm damaged trees and roofs and prompted a tornado warning, which was a first for a city that has not experienced a tornado since 2005. Small businesses say cautious shoppers are seeking 'cozy' and 'festive' this holiday season With a late Thanksgiving, the holiday shopping season is five days shorter than last year, and owners of small retail shops say that people have been quick to snap up holiday décor early, along with gifts for others and themselves. Cozy items like sweaters are popular so far. Businesses are also holding special events to get shoppers in the door. But there’s little sense of the freewheeling spending that occurred during the pandemic. Overall, The National Retail Federation predicts retail sales in November and December will rise between 2.5% and 3.5% compared with same period a year ago. US agencies should use advanced technology to identify mysterious drones, Schumer says After weeks of fear and bewilderment about the drones buzzing over parts of New York and New Jersey, U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer is urging the federal government to deploy better drone-tracking technology to identify and ultimately stop the airborne pests. The New York Democrat is calling on the Department of Homeland Security to immediately deploy advanced technology to identify and track drones back to their landing spots. That is according to briefings from his office. Federal authorities have said that the drones do not appear to be linked to foreign governments. West Africa regional bloc approves exit timeline for 3 coup-hit member states ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — West Africa’s regional bloc ECOWAS has approved an exit timeline for three coup-hit nations. It comes after a nearly yearlong process of mediation to avert the unprecedented disintegration of the grouping. The president of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Touray, said in a statement: “The authority decides to set the period from 29 January, 2025 to 29 July 2025 as a transitional period and to keep ECOWAS doors open to the three countries during the transition period." In a first in the 15-nation bloc’s nearly 50 years of existence, the military juntas of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso announced in January that they decided to leave ECOWAS. Pope Francis makes 1st papal visit to France's Corsica awash in expressions of popular piety AJACCIO, Corsica (AP) — Pope Francis on the first papal visit ever to the French island of Corsica on Sunday called for a dynamic form of laicism, promoting the kind of popular piety that distinguishes the Mediterranean island from secular France as a bridge between religious and civic society. The one-day visit to Corsica’s capital Ajaccio, birthplace of Napoleon, on Sunday is one of the briefest of his papacy beyond Italy’s borders, just about nine hours on the ground, including a 40-minute visit with French President Emmanuel Macron. It is the first papal visit ever to the island, which Genoa ceded to France in 1768 and is located closer to the Italian mainland than France.

Pep Guardiola: If I can’t reverse Manchester City slide then I have to goEDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (AP) — Ray'Sean Taylor had 27 points, Ring Malith scored 24 with 10 rebounds and SIU Edwardsville beat Ball State 82-69 on Sunday. Taylor went 9 of 22 from the field (7 for 15 from 3-point range) for the Cougars (6-4). Malith hit 7 of 13 shots and 9 of 10 at the free-throw line. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Get updates and player profiles ahead of Friday's high school games, plus a recap Saturday with stories, photos, video Frequency: Seasonal Twice a week

With the 2025 session just around the corner, legislative leaders from the four caucuses have expressed their varying views on the causes of Washington state’s projected $10 billion to $12 billion operating budget deficit, including how to address the gap. Those differences were articulated during a legislative preview at Tuesday’s Washington Observer 2024 Re-Wire Conference in Tacoma, which brought together state elected officials and others to discuss political hot topics. The state Office of Financial Management projects an operating budget deficit of between $10 billion and $12 billion over the next four years, despite the state’s record $72 billion budget. OFM blames slowing revenue forecasts, rising costs and expanding need for the looming budget gap. Democratic legislative leaders seemed to buy that rationale. “The first step ... is that we are going to need to scrub the budget,” Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle, said. He went on to reference a Nov. 8 memo by the OFM director. “And Gov.[Jay] Inslee, of course, has asked, and Pat Sullivan as the OFM director [has] asked agencies to do a serious scrub of their budgets and propose cuts, right?” Pedersen said. Earlier this month, Inslee issued a directive freezing hiring, services contracts, goods and equipment purchases, and travel. House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon, D-Burien, blamed rising costs for the budget shortfall. “Our budget situation is driven by a number of factors,” he said, going on to note that “the cost of maintaining a strong workforce is growing in our state.” That includes escalating prices related to health care, child care, housing and transportation, Fitzgibbon explained. Republican legislative leaders had a different take. “It’s not as if this economic crisis, if you may, just dropped in our laps,” House Minority Caucus Chair Peter Abbarno, R-Centralia, said. “We saw it coming. There were red flags and people warned us about this, that we shouldn’t be creating new programs with unsustainable revenue sources, and now we’re stuck creating a bureaucracy that we’re going to have to start cutting back on.” Deputy Senate Majority Leader Chris Gildon, R-Puyallup, also expressed skepticism regarding the nature of the budget deficit, referencing the fact that revenues for 2025-2027 are forecasted to be more than $5 billion higher than 2023–2025 revenues. “Just to be clear, we don’t have a shortfall of revenue,” he said. “We will have about 5 billion more dollars next budget cycle than we had the last budget cycle – 5 billion more dollars, okay?” Gildon said he does not know where the projected shortfall comes from specifically because he hasn’t seen a line-by-line accounting of the budget. Potential solutions to the budget deficit generally broke down along party lines. “If revenue is paired with important purposes, then I think we have a signal from the voters that they’re willing to accept that, and they largely upheld the work that we’ve done over the last six years,” Pedersen said, a reference to voters’ rejection of three initiatives on the fall ballot that would have repealed Washington’s capital gains tax, repealed the Climate Commitment Act, and allowed anyone to opt out of the WA Cares Fund, which provides money for long-term care insurance. Pedersen went on to say, “So, you know, for those reasons, we are going to be seriously looking at a variety of options that might increase taxes on wealthy individuals and wealthy companies.” Revenue options will be considered, according to Fitzgibbon. “So, I think that means we will be pursuing revenue in our caucus, and we will be looking at the revenue options that ensure fairness,” he said. “Are there places where something is taxed but there’s a comparable service that is not being taxed where there is an inequity in how the tax is structured? Are there places where businesses or individuals with extraordinary wealth and extraordinary profits are not contributing their fair share to pay for those public services that our constituents rely on?” Abbarno said tax hikes are a bad idea. “Looking at efficiencies in government is going to be absolutely essential,” he said. State government should be focused on becoming more efficient, cutting waste and prioritizing spending, Abbarno stated. “At a time when people are struggling to make ends meet, looking at tax increases at any level, I think, is the wrong approach,” he said. Fitzgibbon wasn’t entirely unsympathetic, saying Democratic lawmakers would do what they could to “avoid making cuts or tax increases that do involve pain.” He explained, “I don’t think that there’s a scenario where you would see us get out of town without some cuts to the budget. I think within that we have to prioritize. We have to look at spending increases that are in law that haven’t taken effect yet. We have to look at things where one-time expenditures ... have continued and ask hard questions about whether or not those are delivering what they promised...” The 105-day 2025 legislative session convenes on Jan. 13.Sullinger leads Kent State past Div. III-Heidelberg 84-80

'Quite a debate': Alabama, Miami first teams out of CFP field