nicholasdejong.com

BRIAN SMITH said his confidence in the Sydney Roosters' title hopes had been eroded but the coach and his captain Braith Anasta were cracking jokes last night after securing a de facto home final against Wests Tigers.

Sydney Roosters will face Wests Tigers in the opening round of the NRL finals after beating the North Queensland Cowboys 18-8 in an unconvincing display in Townsville on Saturday.

A FRANK Pritchard hat-trick helped the Panthers cement outright second position on the ladder and they head into the NRL finals for the first time since 2004 with a second-chance guarantee after punishing a deplorable Sharks outfit at CUA Stadium last night.

Penrith backrower Frank Pritchard is doing his best to ensure a memorable farewell, scoring a hattrick to the Panthers secure second spot on the NRL ladder with a 50-12 win over a deplorable Cronulla on Saturday night.

Melbourne Heart bounced back from their gut-wrenching late draw last week to finally post their first A-League win - a 1-0 triumph over North Queensland Fury at AAMI Park on Saturday.

Several All Blacks have spoken of their harrowing experiences during the earthquake that wrought havoc in Christchurch and surrounding areas.

Australian rugby boss John O'Neill has hailed a big step forward for the young Wallabies side a year out from the Rugby World Cup.

A suicide bomber has rammed into a Russian firing range killing five people and wounding scores in the volatile North Caucasus region of Dagestan.

All Blacks coach Graham Henry was full of praise for the Wallabies' attack in their 41-39 win over the Springboks.

The rain has eased but the emergency is not over, with many towns in Victoria set to be flooded in the next few days.

Australia’s Diamonds claimed a valuable psychological edge for the Commonwealth Games when they defeated arch-rivals New Zealand 46-40 in the deciding third netball Test.

While the season was one to forget for the Storm who were caught rorting the NRL salary cap, Ryan Hoffman's last NRL match will be a memory he treasures.

The Indian government is reportedly looking at proposals to legalise the country's underground gambling market to tackle corruption in cricket.

Nearly 2000 homes around South Australia are without power on Sunday night, after a weekend of wild weather caused havoc with electricity infrastructure.

Japanese teenager Ryo Ishikawa won his eighth career title on Sunday, defeating Shunsuke Sonoda on the fourth playoff hole at the Fujisankei Classic.

It wasn't the lap of honour the Storm had imagined when they kicked off the NRL season, but the fans didn't seem to mind after a 34-4 win over Newcastle.

Australia's Diamonds claimed a valuable psychological edge for the Commonwealth Games when they defeated arch-rivals New Zealand 46-40 in Auckland.

Two large explosions struck central Baghdad on Sunday morning, just days after the US military declared an end to combat operations in Iraq, AFP journalists reported.

The Sydney Swans overcame Carlton in a titanic battle to win their AFL elimination final by five points at ANZ Stadium.

Attitudes need to be changed to realise that protecting children from abuse is everyone's responsibility, the NSW government says.