Aoife Cunningham recaps the latest round of AFLW. Hawthorn have pulled off one of the biggest upsets in AFLW history, ending North Melbourne’s 32-game winning streak with a seven-point victory in Cairns. The Hawks fought back from 10 points down at half-time to defeat the reigning premiers 32–25, bringing North’s remarkable run to an end after almost three years. The Kangaroos have not lost a match since the 2023 AFLW Grand Final against Brisbane, going undefeated through the

Aiofe Cunningham reports on why actress Sydney Sweeney’s new sports ad is making women angry American actress Sydney Sweeney has come under fire from female athletes over her new sports betting advertisement for Novig, with the campaign being accused of sexualising women. The Novig sports betting app campaign, titled ‘Just Sports’, features Sweeney posing almost naked while using basketballs, footballs, tennis racquets and ice hockey sticks to cover her body. After the compan

AFLW games have bigger venues and bigger crowds. Aiofe Cunningham asks can the league build an that growing popularity? AFLW have celebrated their biggest crowds in the opening two rounds of the 2026 season at major stadiums in four double-header games. A stunning 66,996 fans attended the games and the AFLW now face the challenge of turning increased exposure into a lasting audience. The season began in April, with four AFLW games played at major stadiums across Victoria and

Amelia Myles reports on H5 Bird flu in Victoria, and what the future holds for native Australian wildlife With 94 confirmed cases of Avian influenza found in the state since early July, concern is high for the future of Victoria's bird life. H5N1 Avian Influenza, commonly known as bird flu, is a highly contagious and fatal illness that causes severe neurological problems and mortality in bird species. The virus has never been detected in Australia until July, 2026, and is now

By Aoife Cunningham Teams walk through the banner together for the Good Friday Appeal’s SuperClash (Daniel Pockett/Getty Images) North Melbourne have continued their dominant run through the 2026 AFLW season, handing Carlton their first defeat with a 33–23 victory at Arden Street Oval. The Blues entered the clash unbeaten after four rounds but faced their biggest test yet against the reigning premiers, who were looking to extend their remarkable winning streak. Carlton got

(Photo: ABC.net) By Abbie Gargett New research from Deakin University has found the education system still shows a bias towards white Christian perspectives. In a paper published January 5, 2026, two sociologists of religion - Dr Anna Halafoff and Dr Ruth Fitzpatrick - published a paper published called, "The myth of a white, Christian nation versus Australia’s diverse worldview reality: rectifying post-truth Christian privilege in the Australian curriculum." They analysed th

Aoife Cunningham kicks off a new weekly column rounding out the highlights ifrom each AFLW round. Round 4 of the 2026 AFLW Season saw a wide array of results around the weekend, a double-header at Princess Park resulted in wins from both Fremantle and Carlton, who continued their unbeaten run. Carlton have continued their impressive start to the season with a commanding 68–29 victory over Collingwood at IKON Park on Sunday, establishing themselves as one of the competition’s

By Lily Nicolitsopoulos Petition promotion (Photo: Richard Welch, MP website) After a year-long battle to scrap the Blackburn Station activity centre project, residents have been handed a partial win as amendments and budget-funding address their key concerns. Blackburn Station is one of 60 train and tram activity centres proposed by the State Government in 2025. Activity centres are a designated zone for increased development, centred around public transport activity hubs.

By Abbie Gargett Nigel Farage has won the Clacton-on-Sea seat with 63.3% of the votes, ending one of the strangest by-elections in British history. Despite the absence of all major parties, there were 34 candidates, including many satirical candidates and serious independents. Most notably, one with the alter-ego ‘Count Binface’, who came second with 26.9% of the vote. Farage triggered the by-election last month when he resigned from parliament, amid inquiries into a £5 milli

Charlotte Sanderson reports on Victorian women's football teams finally getting a fair go The growth of local Victorian women’s football teams has contributed to building a more equal and fair environment for women of all ages in local AFL clubs. North Ringwood Saints Football Club - in one of Melbourne’s eastern suburban football leagues - has shown a drastic increase in the number of female players since the 2019 debut of their women’s team. North Ringwood Saints Footb

Hayley Price reports on a short documentary to raise awareness, shot by Swinburne student Emerging filmmaker Luke Pafumi has directed a trailblazing short documentary on the Victorian Deafblind Community in conjunction with Swinburne University. The World in Your Hands is a short documentary Pafumi has been working on since March, 2026, as a second-year Film and Television student at the university. Pafumi, who experiences colour-blindness, says the documentary aims to sp

Mark Lucas reports on a new challenge facing Melbourne engineering students hoping to win a top F1 race. Melbourne engineering students compete in SAE race Melbourne university students will be facing a new challenge in their quest to win the internationally-recognised SAE-A (Society of Automotive Engineers – Australasia) car race. After 20 years based in Melbourne, this December the race moves to the South Australian desert. Over 1200 engineering students from Australia, Asi