Errol Gulden,Nick Daicos and Will Ashcroft are among the young batch of AFL stars making their mark on the game.
Analysis
AFL 2025

Cripps,Bont and Petracca better watch out;the kids are coming for them

It’s young talent time in the AFL,with a host of up-and-coming players making their mark. By season’s end,it’s possible one or more of them will have usurped the league’s modern greats.

  • byMarc McGowan

Latest

Fed chairman Jerome Powell has been reluctant to speculate about how Donald Trump’s policies might affect the central bank’s decisions.

The Trump fire is burning on Wall Street

The American people are losing confidence in Donald Trump,sending shockwaves through Wall Street. And that’s before “Liberation Day”.

  • byStephen Bartholomeusz
Max Jorgensen leaves the field injured against the Hurricanes
Analysis
Super Rugby

Hip-drop tackles are a blight on the game and rugby bosses need to stamp them out

There is a lot of debate about what constitutes a “hip drop” tackle,but common sense tells you they’re an accident waiting to happen.

  • byPaul Cully
Peter Dutton visits a mosque

From yum cha to a mosque:Dutton sells himself as a multicultural champion

In his first weekend on the campaign trail Peter Dutton visited a mosque before a church,synagogue or a Hindu temple,inviting voters to take another look at him.

  • byMatthew Knott
Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese deserve some credit for our economic good fortunes.

Debt and deficit:Labor’s budget naysayers ignore the cold hard facts

When it comes to the budget,there’s been an element of good management as well as good luck,for which Chalmers and Albanese deserve some credit.

  • byRoss Gittins
Forty per cent of voters now rank Peter Dutton (left) and the Coalition as best to manage the economy,with only 24 per cent naming Anthony Albanese and Labor.

What the major parties avoid could be as important as what gets their focus

A Dutton government would no doubt be very different from the Albanese government,but the differences being debated are mostly minor.

  • bySean Kelly
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

After months in the doldrums,the government has its mojo back,right when it was really needed

Despite the good news in the latest Resolve Political Monitor,it is a strange world when Labor finds comfort in any poll that has its primary vote at just 29.

  • The Herald's View
square PM dutts

Labor has finally found a more convincing message. The mystery is why it took so long

Australians’ opinions have flipped in just a few weeks on whether Anthony Albanese or Peter Dutton will be victorious in the federal election.

  • byDavid Crowe
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No end to the tales of element

Animals hold their own

Richmond’s Rhyan Mansell has been offered a three-game ban by the AFL’s match review officer for rough conduct after he shoved his Saints opponent Liam O’Connell into a marking contest.
Four Points
AFL 2025

Rhyan Mansell and Richmond should cop his three-match ban

Also in Four Points this week:much of what’s gone wrong at Carlton has been out of Michael Voss’ control. But the Blues have won just two of their past 10 games,and face a huge match against Collingwood this week.

  • byMichael Gleeson
Daly Cherry-Evans and Manly fans on Sunday.
Analysis
NRL 2025

Brookvale faithful deliver a (pleasantly) shocking verdict on DCE

Daly Cherry-Evans’ decision to leave the Sea Eagles after 15 years was met with understanding and appreciation,not the vitriol usually synonymous with sport.

  • byNeil Breen
Peter Dutton in his campaign outfit on Sunday.

A hung parliament is just what our stagnant political system needs

Whenever any idea that’s even slightly transformational is proposed,it’s met with a massive scare campaign,writes Graham Meale.

Latrell Mitchell and James Tedesco.
Analysis
NRL 2025

Latrell and the Roosters - rugby league theatre at its finest

Why do the biggest moments around Mitchell - the biggest personality in the game - always seem to come against his former club?

  • byDan Walsh
A generic photo of ADF soldier (main) and Melbourne-based academic Samantha Crompvoets (inset).

Whoever wins the election,stop the rot in Defence. We’re in peril as never before

Australia confronts the greatest ever threats to its security,yet our bloated defence aristocracy is intellectually stunted. We need urgent action – and that includes a debate on the introduction of national service.

  • byMick Ryan
Gout Gout and Lachlan Kennedy after the 200m.

The AFL created a TV vacuum. Gout and Kennedy filled it

Teen sprint sensation Gout Gout now has something in Australia he hasn’t had before – competition. And it will be on show again next week.

  • byMichael Gleeson
US President Donald Trump and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth in the Oval Office.

Hillary Clinton on Trump’s ‘dumb power’:it’s feeble,friendless,stupid and lethal

The blundering Signal chat may be the least of the Trump administration’s dangerous moves. As a former senior spy put it,“we’re shooting ourselves in the head,not the foot”.

  • byHillary Clinton
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Research showed Woolworths customers are paying as much as 3.7 per cent more for a basket of groceries than they were last year.

Why a bikini wax and a block of chocolate suddenly have a lot in common

We’ve all noticed the cost-of-living crunch in big things such as rent and mortgage repayments. But the micro-stings continue to bite.

  • byMelissa Singer
Veteran nous:Jack Gunston played an important role in the Hawks’ win over the Giants on Saturday night.

In the game of the season so far,Hawks showed they are the team to beat in 2025

In what shaped as the game of the season to date,it was the Hawks who prevailed in a tactical masterpiece against the Giants in Launceston on Saturday night.

  • byJon Pierik
Daly Cherry-Evans
Opinion
NRL 2025

The real reason Cherry-Evans fell out of love with the Sea Eagles

The spin that there are no issues between club and player is difficult to swallow,given two incidents where the skipper was sledged in public by a significant Manly figure.

  • byDanny Weidler
Naureen Choudhry and her father Jamil Choudhry hold hands.
Opinion
Religion

Ramadan is a time to find peace and solace. For Naureen it has been so much more this year

Ramadan is a time for Muslims to reflect. When it coincides with personal grief,it can also become a channel for healing.

  • byNaureen Choudhry
Many workers have been stung by non-compete clauses in their employment contracts
Opinion
Employment

As a business owner,I’m glad non-compete contracts are getting the boot

It may seem like a strange thing for a government to be prioritising in an election year. But when you break down the numbers,it quickly becomes clear why.

  • byVictoria Devine
Calculating what will leave you better off out of a mortgage vs paying rent isn’t as easy as it may first seem.

Should I buy a house before I retire,or keep renting?

Calculating what will leave you better off between a mortgage and paying rent isn’t as easy as it may first seem.

  • byPaul Benson
Brayden Maynard is a heart-and-soul figure at the Pies.
Analysis
AFL 2025

Why Maynard’s decision to stay or go really matters

What value do you place on the intangible impact of a player who’s beloved by teammates,and whose absence would be keenly felt in the locker room? Brayden Maynard is no Glenn Archer,but he’s that type of player.

  • byJake Niall
A very cross bench
Opinion
Teals

Why do some men find the teals so triggering?

The powerful movement might hold the fate of the nation in its hands come election day.

  • byJacqueline Maley

If Dutton is to beat Albanese,he must abandon this matchy-matchy phase

Peter Dutton convinced voters he was a credible alternative PM by making difficult choices,not easy ones.

  • byParnell Palme McGuinness
Today’s fast-moving,high-tech environment can make some people feel overwhelmed

Sure,Trump’s stooges messaged their secret war plans to the world,but who hasn’t done something similar?

Haven’t we all written something nasty about someone,and accidentally texted it to them,or shared top level national secrets with an investigative journalist?

  • byElsie Flanagan-O'Neill
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Peter Garrett warns that Peter Dutton’s nuclear plan will help unleash a “carbon bomb”.

I’ve spent my life fighting nuclear. Here’s what Dutton isn’t telling you about his reactors

This deceptive proposal has all the Trumpian hallmarks:a quasi policy announcement intended to serve sectional interests – in this case fossil fuel giants.

  • byPeter Garrett
Mortgages can be a murky business.
Opinion
Hip pocket

All the ways to save money on your mortgage

From redraws to offsets to reducing interest,we unravel some common mortgage mysteries.

  • byDominic Powell
Julie Walton is an expert on traffic and cities.

The metro’s already proved its worth. But will Sydney’s transport mandarins get on board?

We now have all the evidence we need that building new freeways is not the solution to traffic congestion in the harbour city. We need to change.

  • byPeter FitzSimons
Woke in fright.
Opinion
Diversity

Being called ‘woke’ used to be a compliment. Wasn’t it?

I recently experienced a flush of delight when it was suggested I was “virtue signalling” in one of my articles.

  • byJo Pybus
<p>

Tap on to get true patronage

The Sun-Herald reports that traffic on the Parramatta Light Rail is below projections

It doesn’t matter if you’re organising a golf weekend,a hens night,or a tactical strike against Houthi strongholds in Yemen;we must all abide by the unspoken group chat rules.

Whether making weekend plans or war plans,these are the unspoken rules of the group chat

Whether you’re organising a golf weekend or a tactical strike against the Houthis,the rules of the group chat apply to us all.

  • byThomas Mitchell
Election campaign. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison visits the Davenport Strikers Soccer Club in the seat of Braddon. The Federal election will be held on Saturday 21st May 2022. Photographed Wednesday 18th May 2022. Photograph by James Brickwood. SMH NEWS 220518 ausvotes22. With MP Gavin Pearce - Liberal MP for Braddon. Photo shows the PM tripping into one of the kids on the field whilst playing soccer with them.

Watch your step:Campaign disasters Albanese and Dutton must not repeat

The number one rule for political leaders on the campaign trail is simple:never take a backward step. You never know what you’ll step into.

  • byTony Wright
Simon Letch

From Palaszczuk to Crisafulli:Clock is ticking for Brisbane 2032

The last week’s events in Queensland won’t have assuaged any fears over planning for the biggest show on earth.

  • byDarren Kane
Foreman in 1974.

I interviewed George Foreman three times. This was the most surprising thing about him

The former heavyweight champ was a compelling character,who spoke in depth about the Rumble in the Jungle and his lasting friendship with his conqueror,Muhammad Ali.

  • byPeter FitzSimons
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during a press conference after visiting Government House to call for an election.

We’re prepared for election of small targets,which is deeply disappointing

Australians deserve better than the kind of visionless politics being dished up by the major parties.

  • The Age's View
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AFL football executive Laura Kane.
Opinion
AFL 2025

The AFL’s female footy boss is a victim of unconscious bias from clubs dominated by men

Some of the criticism of Laura Kane is difficult to fathom.

  • byCaroline Wilson
Investors are bracing for April 2,when Donald Trump is set to reveal more details of his tariff plans.

Why your super is at the mercy of Trump

A growing share of superannuation assets are scattered around the world,particularly in the US. This means Trump-induced volatility affects us all.

  • byClancy Yeates
A change in deeming rates would alter pension payments for retirees.

As we head to an election,does either party care about retirees?

The budget and budget reply were clearly targeted at families and younger workers,with little more than crumbs offered to midlife and older Australians.

  • byBec Wilson
No matter how flush you are,or how reliable your repayments,once you hit a certain age it can be tough to get a credit card.

I have $1.6m in super but can’t get a credit card. Am I too old?

No matter how flush you are,or how reliable your repayments,once you hit a certain age it can be tough to get a credit card.

  • byNicole Pedersen-McKinnon
Graphic by Marija Ercegovac

Sanity and superficiality to the fore as campaign kicks off. That can’t last

Election offerings so far,from both sides,are coherent,but insignificant. As one political observer quipped,it’s like a “battle of the Band-Aids”.

  • byPeter Hartcher
Albanese,Ken Henry,Dutton tryptich

Cowardly politics is robbing our children blind. It’s time to be brave

Whoever wins the May 3 federal election,this is their challenge:dare to end decades of intergenerational theft.

  • byKen Henry

Why we have nothing to fear from a hung parliament

There are constitutional conventions to cover every eventuality after the election,so don’t believe the doomsayers.

  • byAnne Twomey
How many chip packets fit into a ballot box?

Voters hoped for something meaningful,all they got was a bag of sweets

Rosslyn Jeffrey wonders why people get so excited over fuel discounts and taxes,rather than a lack of useful plans.

Opinion
Diversity

I’ve been here for 40 years. When do I stop being an immigrant?

Immigration is again an election issue. But who do we count as an Australian?

  • byMax Jeganathan
Veruca Salt,patron saint of spoilt – or should that be spoiled – brats.
Opinion
WordPlay

Is the brat spoilt or spoiled? The debate rages on

Few questions in the English language rankle like the mess of spoil.

  • byDavid Astle
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese listening as Treasurer Jim Chalmers delivers the budget speech.

Cost-of-living election campaign looms as long-term issues press in

The federal election is being fought on domestic issues,but it comes at a crucial moment for our country and the world.

  • The Herald's View

The key issues that will define the election – and where the major parties stand

Tax is a latecomer to the campaign agenda,Medicare has taken centre stage,and a nuclear energy fight will keep climate change in the conversation.

  • byNatassia Chrysanthos
Daly Cherry-Evans.
Analysis
NRL 2025

DCE’s future is about more than just cash. Only a few clubs fit the bill

A premiership? His family? The pay cheque? These questions shape the Manly skipper’s thinking as he ponders his next move.

  • byDan Walsh
Analysing the key messages and themes in the opening speeches from Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton.

In Dutton’s first 10 seconds,he invoked Trump (and 28 other takeaways from the leaders’ speeches)

Our experts break down Anthony Albanese’s opening remarks after calling the election – highlighting the strategy behind his message.

  • byNatassia Chrysanthos andJames Massola