Rugby league legend Mal Meninga set to be inaugural coach of NRL expansion club Perth

Rugby league legend Mal Meninga set to be inaugural coach of NRL expansion club Perth

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — The National Rugby League's newest team will have one of its oldest coaches when it begins play in 2027. Australia head coach and ex-Kangaroos and Queensland Origin star Mal Meninga was unveiled Friday as thePerth Bears' inaugural head coach. The 64-year-old Meninga signed a three-year contract with the new franchise, meaning he could be 69 when his contract expires in 2030. NRL coaching great Wayne Bennett— now in charge at the South Sydney Rabitohs — is the oldest coach at the sport's elite level at 75. Craig Bellamy, who is 65, confirmed this week that he will continue coaching the Melbourne Storm into his 24th consecutive year next season. Meninga is one of the most decorated players and coaches inrugby leaguehistory, having coached Canberra (1997-2001) and Queensland (2006-2015) after playing 46 test andWorld Cupmatches for Australia's Kangaroos, 32 State of Origin matches for Queensland and captaining the Raiders to three national titles. Before becoming Kangaroos coach in 2016, Meninga led the Queensland Maroons to their most successful period in Origin history, winning nine of his 10 series in charge. Meninga will relinquish his Australia national team coaching duties later this year in order to have 18 months to begin putting together the Bears' initial lineup of players. "This is bigger than me," Meninga said Friday. "This new pioneering venture over to WA (Western Australia) and the opportunity to be involved in the growth of the game, to grow a club — the Perth Bears — is too good to refuse. I feel very honored, very nervous, and I think it's a huge responsibility." The sport's premier competition originated in Sydney but has expanded to include a team in New Zealand, a team in the Australian capital, Canberra, a team in the Victoria state capital, Melbourne, and four teams in Queensland state. Perth Bears will enter the NRL from Australia's west coast before a team from rugby league-mad neighboring Pacific country Papua New Guinea, whichis due to join in 2028and make it a 19-team competition. The league's ambition is a 20-team format. ___ AP sports:https://apnews.com/sports

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June 05, 2025

Rugby league legend Mal Meninga set to be inaugural coach of NRL expansion club Perth

Rugby league legend Mal Meninga set to be inaugural coach of NRL expansion club Perth BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — The National Rugby League...

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French Open: No. 2 Coco Gauff faces No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the women's final

French Open: No. 2 Coco Gauff faces No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the women's final

PARIS (AP) — The biggest differenceCoco Gauffsees between the player who lost her first Grand Slam final at the2022 French Open at age 18, and the one who will play for the trophy again on Saturday at 21, this time against No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, is the way she views the importance of the occasion. Three years ago atRoland-Garros, Gauff was making her debut on that sort of stage and with that sort of prize at stake. It felt like the outcome meant absolutely everything, a burden that was a lot at the time and made her nervous. Now,the No. 2-ranked Gauffsays, she understands "how miniscule" the result Saturday is in the scheme of things. "Everybody is dealing with way bigger things in life than losing a final," the American said after beating 361st-ranked French wild-card entryLoïs Boisson6-1, 6-2 in the semifinals Thursday. "I'm sure there are hundreds of players that would kill to win or lose a final, so just knowing that (makes) me realize how lucky and privileged I am to be in this position," Gauff said. "At first, I thought it would be the end of the world if I lost, and, you know, the sun still rose the next day. ... Regardless of the result, the sun will still rise." Here's another key difference: The Gauff of today is a Grand Slam champion. She wonthe 2023 U.S. Open; her opponent in that final just so happened to be Sabalenka. "I just remember kind of feeling," Gauff said, "like I was holding my breath to the match point." Their head-to-head series is tied 5-5 entering the first No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup in a French Open women's final since Serena Williams beat Maria Sharapova in 2023. Sabalenka beat Gauff in their most recent meeting, which came at the Madrid Open in May on the type of red clay used at Roland-Garros. So Gauff is well aware of Sabalenka's many talents, which were on full display during a 7-6 (1), 4-6, 6-0 semifinal victory overthree-time defending champion Iga Swiatek. "She can come up with some big shots and big winners pretty much at all areas of the court," Gauff said about the 27-year-old from Belarus. "She's a fighter, as well. She's going to stay in the match regardless of the scoreline." After getting pushed to a third set by Swiatek, who had won 26 matches in a row at the French Open, Sabalenka was pretty much perfect down the stretch. Even Sabalenka called the lopsided nature of that last set "shocking for me." She didn't make a single unforced error; Swiatek had 12. "The pace was from her (was) super fast," Swiatek said. "It was just hard to get into any rally." Sabalenka took over the top ranking from Swiatek last October and has remained there. Sabalenka is 40-6 this season with three titles and, whileher three major championships all came on hard courts— at the 2023 and 2024 Australian Opens and the 2024 U.S. Open — the work she's put in to improve on clay is clearly paying off. "I can go flat. I can (play) with the spin. I can go back and play in defense," Sabalenka said. "That's what works the best on the clay court for me." The truth is, regardless of the surface, Sabalenka still appears to be most comfortable when she hits the ball as hard as possible. Her high-risk style offers a contrast to Gauff, who has been making an effort to be more aggressive with her forehand but usually is at her best when she is making opponents hit shot after shot because she can get to everything with her speed, instincts and defense. "She's going to come out swinging," Gauff said. "I just have to expect that and do my best to kind of counter that." ___ Howard Fendrich has been the AP's tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here:https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich. More AP tennis:https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

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June 05, 2025

French Open: No. 2 Coco Gauff faces No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the women's final

French Open: No. 2 Coco Gauff faces No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the women's final PARIS (AP) — The biggest differenceCoco Gauffsees between...

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A's pregame broadcast shows security guards confronting fan wearing 'SELL' T-shirt

A's pregame broadcast shows security guards confronting fan wearing 'SELL' T-shirt

The team formerly known as the Oakland Athletics and soon to be known as the Las Vegas Athletics is currently dealing with a rather unhappy fanbase, so much so that one dispute played out on the team's own broadcast. Before the A's game against the Minnesota Twins on Thursday, one fan stood behind the pregame show set wearing a bright green T-shirt with a single word printed on the chest: "SELL." It wasn't long before a security guard at West Sacramento's Sutter Health Park came down to confront the fan. And it wasn't long before he was joined by two more guards and a pair of white polo-wearing employees. This all played out while the A's TV hosts were discussing a team that entered Thursday in last place in the AL West. The answer is more than you would think!pic.twitter.com/NEB09XsAs8 — Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing)June 5, 2025 The fan later identified himself as Joe Horton on social media, and revealed he was allowed to stay in his seat after the chat with security. His primary reaction when they first approached him: "You know this too is on TV right?" The A's organization remains in an awkward position and will continue to do so for at least a couple years. Hurt feelings abound from their move out of Oakland, but their new home in Las Vegas won't be ready until 2028 at the earliest. Until then, they'll be playing at a minor-league ballpark in West Sacramento. It's a situation bad enough that many fans want A's owner John Fisher out of the league. There are no indications he wishes to do so. Despite their struggles and fan backlash,the A's went on to beat the Twins 14-3 on Thursday, their highest-scoring game of the season. Young players Max Muncy, Jacob Wilson and Tyler Soderstrom (twice) all homered, with Soderstrom providing the exclamation point with a grand slam in the fourth inning.

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June 05, 2025

A's pregame broadcast shows security guards confronting fan wearing 'SELL' T-shirt

A's pregame broadcast shows security guards confronting fan wearing 'SELL' T-shirt The team formerly known as the Oakland Athlet...

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Thai military prepared for 'high-level operation' if Cambodia border row escalates

Thai military prepared for 'high-level operation' if Cambodia border row escalates

By Juarawee Kittisilpa, Panu Wongcha-um BANGKOK (Reuters) -Thailand's military said it is ready to launch a "high-level operation" to counter any violation of its sovereignty, in the strongest words yet in a simmering border dispute with Cambodia that re-erupted with a deadly clash last week. The army said in a statement late on Thursday that its intelligence gathering indicated Cambodia had stepped up its military readiness at their border while diplomatic efforts were ongoing, describing that as "worrisome". The statement was in sharp contrast with one from the government just hours earlier, when it urged Cambodia to positively engage in dialogue via an existing mechanism between them. "The army is now ready for a high-level military operation in case it is necessary to retaliate against the violation of sovereignty," it said, ahead of a meeting of its armed forces top brass scheduled for Friday. "Operations of units at the border have been conducted carefully, calmly and based on an understanding of the situation to prevent losses on all sides, but at the same time, are ready to defend the country's sovereignty to the fullest extent if the situation is called for." Cambodia's government did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Thai military statement on Friday. The governments of the two countries had for days exchanged carefully worded statements committing to dialogue after a brief skirmish in an undemarcated border area on May 28 in which a Cambodian soldier was killed. Although the two countries have a historic rivalry, their governments enjoy friendly ties, partly due to the close relationship between their influential former leaders, Thailand's Thaksin Shinawatra and Cambodia's Hun Sen, whose daughter and son respectively are now the prime ministers in their countries. The issue comes at a tricky time for the Pheu Thai Party-led administration in Thailand as it battles to revive a flagging economy that could be hit by steep U.S. tariffs, while facing a challenge to its popularity having paused a signature cash handout to tens of millions of people. The party of the billionaire Shinawatra family has a troubled history with the Thai military, which twice toppled its governments in 2006 and 2014 coups. Deadly clashes between Cambodia and Thailand last erupted in 2011 over the Preah Vihear, a 900-year-old temple at the heart of a decades-long row that has stirred nationalist sentiment on both sides. The International Court of Justice in 2013 ruled in favour of Cambodia in clarifying a 1962 decision to award it jurisdiction over the temple, saying part of the land around it was Cambodia's and Thai troops must withdraw from the area. Cambodia said this week it is committed to peace and plans to resolve the issue by referring disputes over four parts of their border to the ICJ and has asked Thailand to cooperate. Thailand says it does not recognise the court's jurisdiction. (Reporting Juarawee Kittisilpa; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by John Mair)

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June 05, 2025

Thai military prepared for 'high-level operation' if Cambodia border row escalates

Thai military prepared for 'high-level operation' if Cambodia border row escalates By Juarawee Kittisilpa, Panu Wongcha-um BANGKOK ...

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Retrofitting Qatari jet as Air Force One for Trump to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, Air Force says

Retrofitting Qatari jet as Air Force One for Trump to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, Air Force says

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It will cost hundreds of millions of dollars to retrofit a Qatari luxury Boeing 747 jetliner to fly as the new Air Force One, Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said on Thursday. Last month, the U.S. military accepted the gift from Qatar to transport U.S. President Donald Trump. Retrofitting the 13-year-old plane, which has a luxurious interior, will require significant security upgrades, communications improvements to prevent spies from listening in and the ability to fend off incoming missiles, experts say. "It's probably less than $400 million to retrofit that aircraft," Meink told lawmakers during a Congressional hearing. Democratic lawmakers have said it could cost more than $1 billion to retrofit the plane. Meink said a lot of those costs are ones the Air Force would have experienced anyway. "I think there has been a number thrown around, on the order of a billion dollars, but a lot of those costs associated with that are costs that we would've experienced anyway," he said, adding that this included buying additional platforms for training and spares. Legal experts have questioned the scope of laws relating to gifts from foreign governments that aim to thwart corruption and improper influence. Democrats have also sought to block the handover. Qatar has dismissed concerns about the aircraft deal. Trump has also shrugged off ethical concerns, saying it would be "stupid" not to accept the 747-8 jet. The Air Force One program has faced chronic delays over the last decade, with the delivery of two new 747-8s slated for 2027, three years behind the previous schedule. Trump toured the Qatari Boeing plane in February at a Florida airport. (Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart; editing by Diane Craft)

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June 05, 2025

Retrofitting Qatari jet as Air Force One for Trump to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, Air Force says

Retrofitting Qatari jet as Air Force One for Trump to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, Air Force says WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It will co...

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