Welcome to The Wrap, a weekly podcast covering women's sports news.
Bez, what have we got around the grounds this week?
The Wallaroos opened their WXV2 campaign with a win.
The Sharks have upset the Broncos to put themselves a grand final spot.
And the Brisbane Lions are starting to look like defending premiers,
getting a two-point win over the Adelaide Crows.
For the key story, we'll discuss the inaugural women's track event
in celebration of women's sports, Athlos, which is launched in New York City this week.
Athlos. Did I say it right?
I thought about it a lot.
It gets in the mouth, though, doesn't it?
Yeah, I think I want to say Athlos.
Doing a bit of low plugging lately.
I know, a lot of free advertising for lows.
Let's take a look around the grounds.
In sports climbing, Aussie Sarah Larkham has come home with a silver medal
in the AL2 event at the 2024 Para Climbing World Cup in Italy.
Whilst we're on the climbing topic, we just wanted to make a quick apology.
So last week, we said that Oceana McKenzie had won Australia's first
Climbing World Cup medal, but she actually won Australia's first
World Cup boulder medal because it was actually Sarah Larkham
who won the first ever climbing medal back in 2022 at the World Cup.
So I just wanted to clear that one up.
Our apologies to Sarah, but massive congrats on your silver medal in Italy.
In rugby union, the Wallaroos have claimed revenge.
They've won the silver medal in Italy.
They were looking for with a 37 to 5 victory over Wales in the opening game
It comes after the Aussies went down to the Walls by just seven points
heartbreakingly at the end of the week before.
What is the WXV situation for people who don't know?
So we have WXV1, 2, and 3.
What does WXV stand for, Chloe?
Look at that little bit of Roman numerals.
Rugby loves a Roman numeral.
Rugby does love it.
It's very traditional, isn't it?
So WXV2 is obviously second division.
There's six teams in each, 1, 2, and 3.
And I think the best thing about this WXV, it's now second year running.
Second year running is it's in the calendar.
It's giving a lot of these top tier nations,
they have test matches planned every year.
But a lot of the lower nations, I guess lower ranked nations,
it's giving them consequences.
And it just matters so much.
You've got teams like Samoa, Fiji, Spain playing in WXV3.
Even, to be fair, even the Wallaroos.
It's been a long time since we've had a calendar that looks, you know,
that we can look at and say, okay, the girls are playing 11 test matches this year.
And it's really great for the game.
The Wallaroos opened the scoring in the 21st minute when Mae Stewart continued
her brilliant form and a quick tap from Leigh Morgan caught Wales napping
Lane needs to do more of that.
I love it when Lane goes quick.
Wales were quick to respond and it was their rolling maul that did the job
like Harris Phillips.
Eva Capani, though, produced whatever Capani does.
You would just get out of the way, wouldn't you?
She just rolled over half the team and put the Aussies ahead at half time.
There was a penalty to Fartala Maleka that extended their lead before Mae Stewart,
who, again, inside ball, off the back of a line,
out, beat six players.
She was just dragging them along with her like a big forward,
even though she's a winger.
She's got some big forward quads on her, that girl.
Maleka crossed two minutes later after a lovely team try that saw forwards
and backs combined to put Desi Miller into space with a fly half,
diving over a phase later to skewer the bonus point.
Miller and Kramer then combined to put the game well out of reach
with 10 minutes to go.
And the best was yet to come, Stewart's second try.
Actually, I've got my Stewart's tries mixed up,
but the second one.
The second one was the inside ball that was just an absolute delight to watch.
In NRLW, the Sharks and the Roosters are both into this year's NRLW big dance
after a big weekend of semifinals.
First up, it was the Cronulla Sharks who orchestrated a 14-0 win
over the minor premiers, the Brisbane Broncos in Brisbane.
We were at, all of our TFAP team were at the Giants AFLW game,
keeping an eye on the score.
I couldn't believe it.
No, and I think...
Sharkies had lost three in a row coming into finals.
And we know they started incredibly strong.
Did they win the first five or something?
Yeah, they were looking the goods early.
But then Brisbane, I just think the shock for me is to be held to nil.
Is that the first time?
It was the first time in Brisbane's history that they've been held scoreless.
Like, that is impressive defence.
No wonder I was shocked.
Yeah, because it was a first.
Skipper for the Sharks, Tiana Penitani, put in an inspirational shift in the centres,
putting her hand up for 19 carries that led to 169 metres,
in addition to scoring the opening try.
While on the other edge, Kiwi Fern's powerhouse, Anessa Biddle,
was a commanding figure in defence,
who got on the scoreboard early in the second half with a crucial strike.
It breaks the Sharks' four-game losing streak.
And sends them into the final.
In the other semi, the Roosters powered past the Knights 25-16
to book their spot in the grand final.
Sam Bremner scored a first-half brace to help her side to an 18-point lead
at the end of the game.
It was the break from which they never looked back.
While the final scoreline gave the appearance of a bit of a close contest,
it was always in the Roosters' control,
who leaked a couple of late tries when the result was already all but confirmed.
Sounds a bit like the men's grand final on the weekend.
Swans snuck a few late ones in.
I don't think it got close.
Yeah, it didn't get close at all, though.
Oh, gosh, no, not close.
But, like, you were kind of watching, like,
one of the Swans boys kick, like, three goals in the full.
Like, imagine kicking three goals in a grand final,
and it means absolutely nothing.
Anyway, sidetracked.
Roosters captain Isabel Kelly took her place in the centres
despite dislocating her elbow joint.
Oh, I forgot about the dislocated elbow.
How did she play?
She had some pretty intense strapping going on.
And I'm guessing some jab-jab beforehand, but.
Whoa, that's pretty full on.
Roosters coach John Strange told media,
two prelims in a row we lost.
I don't think there's been a day gone by from the last semi
that I haven't thought about that and thought about making sure
as a coach that that doesn't happen again.
As a coach, you don't want to see pain on your players' faces.
I didn't want to see that again.
In cricket, our Aussie cricketers have completed a clean sweep,
defeating New Zealand by five wickets in the third of three matches
in their T20 series.
Georgia Wareham starved with the ball and produced a smart cameo
with the bat as the Aussies secured a five-wicket win over the Kiwis.
Needing 147 to sweep the series, Georgia Wareham's knock was backed up
by a 61-run stand from Elyse Perry and Ash Gardner
as Australia, despite a late stumble, reached their target
with five balls to spare.
Wareham also claimed two for 21 with the ball.
Some really good all-rounders in this Aussie team at the moment.
Yeah, tough to start.
To be able to contribute with the ball and the bat matters in T20.
The game was the final hit-out for both teams before their departure
for the T20 World Cup in the UAE.
Interestingly, the Kiwis barely had time to pack their kitbads
following the post-match presentations before they were beating a hasty path
to Brisbane Airport to board a 2 a.m. flight to Dubai.
What date are we starting?
October 3rd, isn't it?
I mean, you obviously want a bit of time to acclimatise and whatnot,
but that seems like poor planning.
That does seem very much like poor planning.
That is not a fun time to get on a plane at 2 a.m.
Not great recovery.
Not great recovery at all.
In netball, the Aussie Diamonds have claimed the 2024 England Series,
winning the third test 69-56 to run out as champions.
The Diamonds piled on the pressure from the very start
with a renewed Jamie Lee Price adding another layer to a strong defensive start
that put the Aussies three points ahead at quarter time.
They propelled forward in the second quarter running away with a nine-goal lead,
but England pegged back the scoreline to just six at the main change.
With heavy challenges around the court and the likes of Paige Hadley
and Keira Austin running rampant,
it did not take long during the final quarter for the Aussies to switch up another gear.
Two important final quarter gains.
A 23-goal haul at 83% helped claim the 13-point win
alongside defensive efforts from Ah Yang, Clough and Price.
Sophie Garvin's 43-goal haul was off the back of Liz Watson's
and Paige Hadley's 23 and 17 respective goal assists.
The Diamonds will have a two-week break
before they take on the New Zealand Silver Ferns
in the annual Constellation Cup from October 20.
In AFLW, the Brisbane Lions have pulled off a last-minute victory
beating the Adelaide Crows.
They led it every break,
but it was the Crows who dominated in the last quarter
with two quick strikes giving them the lead.
The Lions appeared down and out
when Adelaide's prime mover Ebony Marinoff rolled through a stunning 55-meter goal
to put the Crows nine point ups.
I saw, because I think the AFL Women's posted it
and collabed with AFL Men's page,
and so you just, well, I guess it's just the whole AFL page,
which should be posting more AFLW,
but that's a story for another day.
And there was this guy in the comments who were like,
why don't the girls put someone on the goal line like they do in the men's?
I'm like, it was in general play.
She wasn't taking a set shot, you idiot.
Like, would you like in general play when they're trying to exit
out of their D50 for someone to stand on the goal line?
Apparently there's a goalkeeper in that man's.
We don't have goalkeepers in this game.
In that man's mind, there should be a goalkeeper.
Anywho, the Lions.
The Lions rallied with two goals in 50 seconds
and then a 55-metre set shot from Taylor Smith
with just 100 seconds remaining delivered the Lions an impressive victory.
That's a big win for them.
That's a big win for them.
Because they had a slow, interesting game against North Melbourne.
They got whacked.
And so I think there was some questions being raised
about what they were going to be like this year.
And I think the Crows were probably – I've got a soft spot for the Cats.
They've let me down after picking them early, early doors.
That was an early.
But if you – I mean, realistically, we're talking Lions, Crows and Kangaroos
as probably three standouts at the moment.
Yeah, the Ds have fallen off the perch a bit, haven't they?
They didn't have a very happy game on the weekend.
They got absolutely smacked by the Bombers.
There's been an interesting format over the last few weeks.
So it started maybe two weeks ago where there's a game of AFLW
every single night of the week except a Monday.
Four weeks straight.
Isn't that insane?
And so what it meant with this week – I think it was slightly different this week
with it being the men's grand final weekend on Saturday afternoon.
But seven hours of –
And also a random public holiday on Friday in Melbourne.
It's a weird city.
I must admit, like, what was I doing?
I was working and then I had a look at the telly because maybe it was lunchtime.
I think in my defense it was lunchtime.
And I was like, there's live AFLW on?
I mean, I should have known, but I just – I was like –
And I was like, oh, that's right.
Melbourne gets a whole day off the day before the grand final.
Yeah, must be nice.
If it wasn't lunchtime, would the TV have been on?
Anyway, it'll be interesting to see the data that comes out of these midweek games.
I like the idea because it means that people at home can potentially tune in
on a Wednesday night when they might have had dinner and just put the footy on.
Whether there was enough marketing done for people to actually know that's what was
happening, I'm not sure.
Yeah, I think you're right.
I think numbers on television are probably better.
However, numbers at the game, like Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday night,
who's getting the kids ready after school to go and watch the footy?
In cycling, Australia has claimed victory by less than a second over Germany
in the road cycling world championships mixed relay team time trial.
That was so many words.
That was a lot of words.
That was a lot of words.
Did I get them all right?
Italy clinched bronze just eight seconds further behind when the three top nations
riders entered the final quarter of an extremely long, remorselessly rugged course
running across the hills around Zurich.
They were still only separated by a scant five seconds in Australia's favor.
They've had some pretty ordinary weather there too.
That's not nice on the bicycle, is it?
A last-ditch effort by Grace Brown, already a winner of the world's individual time trial
last Saturday, and teammate Brodie Chapman then just managed to win the final quarter.
To keep Australia atop of the results table by the finish, by the tiniest of margins.
It's actually really, it's pretty cool.
Like for Australia to win this is really significant in cycling.
To do it in a mixed teams event.
Even though we're about to lose one of the best cyclists in there in Grace Brown.
I'm not having it.
Did we talk last week about the retirement?
We did, didn't we?
I've not accepted it.
I was ready to talk about it again.
And I must admit, you know, I've got a little inside track on the TFAP awards nominations.
If you haven't nominated yet, people, make sure you get in because Grace Brown's getting
a few noms in there.
Yeah, I'm not surprised by that.
We had people in the comments and I said, make sure you get nominating because she's
been exceptional.
Yeah, so that team time trial mix relay, that's so many words, isn't it?
It's a relatively new event offering a chance for men and women to compete together, even
if they ride in different moments.
First as a trio of men and then as a trio of women.
The times of the two teams.
Yeah, combined to decide the final results.
I'm actually loving all of these mixed relay events that have been adding to different
It's more common these days, isn't it?
Yeah, it's becoming a bit of a thing and I'm here for it.
It's just, I love that there's an additional level of kind of tactics and decisions to
Oh my gosh, the swimming one in the Olympics was crazy, wasn't it?
In some football news, North Korea secured a record-eating third victory in the FIFA
Under-20 Women's World Cup.
On Sunday, beating Japan 1-0, they became the joint most successful side in the football
tournament's history, equaling powerhouse nations, Germany and the United States.
Cho Il-sung's 15th minute winner capped a superb tournament for North Korea, who won
every single game in Colombia.
The 17-year-old forward finished as the competition's overall top scorer, winning the Golden Boot
North Korea competing on the world stage.
How long had it been?
I think so, yeah.
Let's take a look.
Let's take a look at the key story.
The inaugural women's track event and celebration of women's sports, Athlos, has launched in
New York City this week.
The brainchild of Alexis Ohanian, who is Serena Williams' husband.
Mr. Serena Williams.
Athlos, which is the Greek word for athlete, brought 36 of the world's most elite women
track stars to NYC to compete, including Aussie Tori Lewis.
That's pretty cool.
And she's held just six races, the 100-meter dash, 200, 400, 100-meter hurdles, 800, and
1,500, with six women competing in each event.
The star-studded field of athletes, which hold 30 collective Olympic medals between
He found the best of the best.
That's star power.
Competed for a record-setting purse, totaling $110,000 per race.
With $60,000 awarded to the winner.
I already muted my laptop and I'm still getting notifications.
When the athletes arrived on the scene at Icahn Stadium, they got the chance to flex
their personal style with a red carpet entrance.
Before the races, runners received individual introductions complete with sparkling lights
and walkout songs.
Chloe Dalton, tell me what would be your walkout song?
I think it'd probably be Nice For What by Drake.
Olympics gold medalist, Masai Russell.
Do you want your turn?
I haven't thought about it.
Mine was Ready To Go On The Spot.
So you've actually thought about messaging.
Well, I don't actually know if you know, but I'm a professional athlete who needs pump-up
A little bit of Here Comes The Hot Stepper, I reckon.
I did have that for a while in my highlight reels from Sevens.
With my long legs.
Made one for you.
She called me the hot stepper.
And put that song over my highlight reels because my legs are just too lanky.
Olympic gold medalist, Masai Russell told media,
people might just come to see me in the stallion and end up becoming a track fan.
It's so empowering.
And at the end of the day, I'm just glad to be a part of that history just because I feel
like people only know about track during the Olympics.
It's like, all right, this isn't just an every four years thing.
This is a job and people are doing it on a consistent basis that you want to watch, you
want to tune in, and we could possibly invest into.
It's like, I think, swimming in this country is a bit like that.
Every four years, everyone's frothing over.
Then they forget about it.
If we can have more things like this, events where the athletes get an opportunity to be
on that world stage, to be getting paid, to making them better at what they do, I'm here
10% of all revenues from ticketing, commercial sponsorships, and broadcasts will be redistributed
to all participating athletes, making this the biggest prize offering in the history
of women's track only events.
Athos is also introducing bibs designed specifically to fit a woman's frame.
This innovation keeps athletes.
It's at the forefront of every detail, enhancing both performance and comfort.
So they've opted for adhesive bibs instead of using their traditional uncomfortable safety
Can we discuss the safety pins?
At like the pinnacle, like in the Olympics and Paralympics, they're still using safety
Netball's really ahead of the game with the Velcro, aren't they?
I don't understand.
I don't understand.
If someone from athletics can give us a little.
Insight into why still safety pins, I'd be very grateful.
It's always been that way.
A nod to the history or it's just like, it's always been that way.
They're dangerous.
They are dangerous.
Co-founder Alexis Sahanian told Vogue, the players capture global attention every four
years, as you said, Bez, during the World Cup, only for the fanfare to fade immediately
after the tournament.
The American women have always been exceptional in track and field.
We're all captivated by these women during the Olympics.
Then for four years, it seems like they disappear.
I mean, Alexis, we know things.
I also, I also do love the 10% of all revenues from ticketing, commercial sponsorships and
broadcast going back to the athletes.
It motivates them.
They, and then therefore, obviously prize money motivates them in general.
But again, it's about them wanting to put on a show and be entertaining and all of those
things because they're going to get bang for it.
And we've discussed for.
I feel like years.
On this podcast about the fact that female athletes put in a huge amount of effort on
their building their own social channels and promoting their own events and tournaments
But it's really great to see them get a kickback of that.
And for that to be acknowledged that their profiles carry value.
Absolutely agree.
And that was clearly evident when you were so quick to tell me your walkout song because
you knew you're ready.
Alexis, call her.
What, what event would we, you'd be in 400, I reckon.
I like the cacid.
You've got a big engine though.
No, it won't be enjoyable.
I'm just thinking about what's best for you.
I'm always here thinking about what's best.
Thank you so much for looking after me.
Let's take a look at what to watch.
The Women's T20 World Cup is back.
Australia will be looking for their record fourth consecutive trophy.
The Aussies kick off their title defense early on Saturday morning at, oh no, 1am.
You can catch World Cup exclusively on Prime Video, every game live.
How good is that?
In NRLW, the big dance is finally here with the Roosters taking on the Sharks this weekend.
The game kicks off at 3.55pm AEST and is live and free on the Nine Network.
Talk to me about grand finals in regard to this weekend at Homebush.
There'll be four different clubs there, so two individual, what's the word I'm trying
Four separate clubs, so there's no double ups I guess effectively.
I had a think about this, I had a little think about it and I'm not sure, I think the double
header in a grand final, I'm not here for it.
I think that the women need to be on their own stage for this grand final.
Because how does it work with tickets?
I think that's the big question for me.
That's right, you have to buy a ticket.
Yeah, I totally agree with you in that case.
And that's when I was talking about double ups, like if I'm a Sharks fan and the Sharkies
men are in the grand final afterwards, I'm like okay, it's worth it.
But if I'm a Sharks or a Roosters fan and then I'm watching Penrith and Melbourne afterwards,
it's probably not worth the investment, well sorry, it is worth the investment, it's always
worth the investment, but it's a pretty big investment.
And I think that they could play that game at Allianz Stadium.
Especially two Sydney teams, and that's obviously not something you're going to know,
but, and get a really, really good crowd at Allianz.
Yes, I think you make a great point.
I think if that's the case, I remember I went to the one where it was Parramatta, they had
NRLW and then NRL afterwards, Parramatta was in both.
And I think that made a huge amount of sense and it was really cool to see a huge audience,
a huge fan base from Parramatta supporting both teams.
Yeah, I think there was about 50 odd thousand in by the time the girls finished the game,
which is awesome.
Yeah, but I think in this scenario in particular.
It should be separate tickets.
Yeah, and it is that argument between are the women ready to stand on their own?
And I think they are.
In some Wallaroos rugby news, very excited, we're back in action, hoping to continue our
perfect start to WXV2, we take on host South Africa on Sunday morning, again, another 1am
That's not fun, but you can catch it live on Stan Sports, set the alarms and cheer the
girls on for the Wallaroos.
In AFLW, the fourth placed Forks will take on the sixth place Dockers this Sunday.
With both teams coming off some nice wins, first bounce is 5.05pm AEDT this Sunday.
Oh, AEDT, the clock's changed.
When's it happening?
This weekend, Sunday morning.
Ready for the confusion.
See you next week, friend.
One hour differently.