Boxing Day Test filled with cheer and hope but nothing can be taken for granted

The first stop for the self-anointed “Yobbo Crew” when they had arrived at cricket’s mecca was the statue of Shane Warne. The group – just one of hundreds who had dressed up for the big day at the MCG – wore thongs, mustard yellow bucket hats brandishing their name, and denim shorts with less leg coverage than a 7-2 field.As the clock ticked past 9am, they appeared happy to be at Australian cricket’s great festival, but looked less than comfortable with the temperature. After the coldest Christmas in Melbourne in two decades, Boxing Day had brought wind, spits of rain, and a top temperature in the mid-teens. And so, before taking their photo under the bronzed leg-spinner, the Yobbo Crew took off their hoodies to reveal matching yellow singlets, and offered a zinced grimace

Better late than never: fans relive watching their teams end a long wait for a trophy

Several teams got their hands on silverware at last in 2025. Here supporters talk about the pain and pleasure of finally winning16 March 2025: Won Carabao Cup, beating Liverpool 2-1 at Wembley, their first trophy in 56 yearsDad’s view: As a baby boomer, it seemed to me that Cup success was a God-given right. We’d triumphed in 1951, 52 and 55. Wembley was our second home. But it took nearly two decades to return for the FA Cup – in 1974 – for a loss to Liverpool, compounded by the crowing Emlyn Hughes

Sale squad’s ‘honest’ meeting with owners has reset ambitions, says Sanderson

Alex Sanderson has said an “honest” meeting of Sale’s owners, players and coaches this week has set their intention for the Boxing Day encounter with Harlequins and beyond.The Sharks are seventh in the Prem table, with two wins from seven, and were soundly beaten by Northampton at Franklin’s Gardens last Saturday. Their most recent Prem victory came against Newcastle on 10 October, and the director of rugby knows they need to start winning to have any chance of reaching the playoffs for a fourth straight season.“It wasn’t a crisis meeting, but honest – about what kind of team we want to be,” Sanderson said. “Not an inconsistent one, a one week on, one week off team

I was there: Rory McIlroy’s Masters triumph was the ultimate moment

At 7am on 14 April in an Augusta rental home, Rory McIlroy awoke and immediately spotted a Green Jacket draped over a chair. “You think: ‘Yeah, that did happen yesterday,’” he says. “That.” McIlroy was now the sixth man to win all four of golf’s majors.The detail of what lay around in the bedroom of my own Augusta billet is of no interest to anybody

The Jukebox Man can lead them a merry dance in vintage King George

There is a case to be made for seven of the eight runners in what promises to be a memorable renewal of the King George VI Chase, but the horse with the most appealing profile going into the Boxing Day showpiece is Ben Pauling’s The Jukebox Man (2.30), the fourth-favourite in the betting at around 6-1.The strongest recent form on offer in Friday’s race is undoubtedly the thrilling contest between the Willie Mullins-trained pair Gaelic Warrior and Fact To File, the top two in the King George betting, in the John Durkan Chase at Punchestown in late November. Gaelic Warrior raced into a clear lead before being closed down by Fact To File going to the second-last, then stayed on again to win by a neck.While it was a candidate for race of the season, however, it was also an unusually punishing return to action for both horses, with a timefigure close to Gold Cup-winning standard

‘Am I allowed to hold it?’: behind the seams of the MCG’s Shane Warne exhibition

Pivotal items from the legendary leg-spinner’s career, including the ball of the century, make up the exhibit“I feel like a medieval pilgrim being ushered into a chapel to behold some holy relics,” whispers Tom Holland as we head deeper into the bowels of the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The historian and The Rest Is History Podcast co-host, his wife, Sadie, and producer Dom are getting an exclusive look at some of the items that make up the new Shane Warne “Treasures of a Legend” exhibition soon to be unveiled at the Australian Sports Museum inside the famous ground. I’m lucky enough to be tagging along.Jed Smith, the genial manager of the museum, is giving us Pom pioneers the sneak peek. Money can’t buy this access, but a global juggernaut of a podcast seemingly can