'One of the WORST' – Cheese on Origin I
NRL: Brandon Smith has declared the 2025 State of Origin opener as one of the softest games between the Blues and Queensland.
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News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
GPS artist's epic large-scale sketch of Lionel Messi ends in disaster after king tide swallows his car
A fitness enthusiast who creates large scale digital sketches using GPS and a run tracking app copped a messy surprise after completing his latest creation. Peter Mitchell spent most of Friday running and jogging to a specific set of coordinates along a stretch of remote sand dunes near Sandy Point, about three hours from Melbourne. After five hours and some 15 kilometres of distance covered, his epic drawing of football legend Lionel Messi was complete. The feeling of satisfaction was short-lived, after he returned to his red Toyota Yaris parked on the sand and found an unusually high king tide had swallowed it. 'I came around the corner and saw it, and I thought: 'Oh no, how am I going to get out of here? How am I going to get home?' Mr Mitchell told 'It's quite remote out there and there's not a lot around.' Dusk was rapidly approaching, the mercury had dropped significantly, and the 50-year-old was drenched from wading through the water. The nearest town was about a 30-minute drive away and Mr Mitchell faced the prospect of having to walk there. He grabbed a few essentials from his submerged car, including his diabetes medication, and ventured to the road. 'My hands were going blue because I'd been standing around in the water for so long. I thought maybe I'd be best to go for a bit of a jog to get down to the town. And then I saw this lady and asked for her help.' Ironically, the woman had come down to the beach to check out the king tide, which she'd heard was a sight to see that day. She drove Mr Mitchell to the town of Forster, which is a thriving hub in warmer months but slows right down over winter. 'I had a few wee dramas there because I was soaked right through. I had to get food into me because I hadn't had lunch – it was in the car and all wet. I went down to the pub, but I'm like, I can't go in bare feet, but my shoes and socks were absolutely soaking. 'I used a few tea towels, wrapped them around my feet as socks to absorb some of the water, and rocked into the pub and had a meal.' Warm and with a full belly, Mr Mitchell turned his mind to how he was going to salvage his beloved little car – and get home to the Mornington Peninsula. 'I spoke to a mechanic, who put me onto a few other people, they'd give me numbers, and it went around in circles. Finally, I got a hold of a guy with a tractor and he said he'd pull it out for $500.' A few friends from Melbourne were prepared to hire a trailer, drive to Sandy Point, and take Mr Mitchell and the Yaris home. 'I thought, OK, I'll go down to the beach as early as I can to check out the situation and see how bad it looks before I ring this guy with the tractor. But there's no taxis. I rang the one place, and it went to their answer machine, because it's the off-season. 'I'm just about to try hitchhiking when the taxi lady rang me back. So, she drove me there. We had an interesting conversation on the way.' In the bright light of day, and with the tide out, his car 'didn't look too bad' and Mr Mitchell had expected it to sink into the wet sand overnight. He sat inside it to survey the damage. It was full of water. But out of interest, he tried to turn it over – and it started. 'I thought, there's no way in hell. I literally closed my eyes and prayed. It started. Then I thought, this thing isn't going to move, but it did, and I drove straight off the beach. 'I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to turn it off again, but I phoned a mate who knows a bit about cars and asked what I should do. He said I should have a go driving it home. At least if it died, I'd be on the side of a road and could get help.' Miraculously, Mr Mitchell made it all the way to his house – about 155 kilometres away. 'Every time I stopped or went around a corner, all the water inside the car would slosh around. It was splishing and splashing all over the place.' The entire ordeal stretched for more than 24 hours and he described it as 'a rollercoaster' of emotions. 'It went from doing a really good Strava and feeling good about that to seeing the car and worrying, then being stranded and wondering if I was going to get hypothermia, to the car starting and actually working, then next thing I'm home. 'It was a relief. My car is pretty old anyway, it's got 240,000 kilometres on it, so I'm pretty amazed. But it was a long day. I'm still kind of unpacking it.' Mr Mitchell shared a video clip of the saga to his social media channels, where he has built a loyal global following over the past several months. To mark his 50th birthday last year, he created a large-scale map of the world by doing 170 kilometres of running through inner-city Melbourne and shared it on Strava, the run tracking app, and it went viral. After that, he started posting his creations to Instagram and later TikTok, receiving millions of views and occasionally generating international media buzz. For example, his sketch of LA Lakers star Kobe Bryant saw him interviewed on ESPN and CBS News in the United States. 'I've been working more on the high precision stuff at parks or the beach with smaller detailed elements. Using street routing, you can't get that same level of detail and there are lots of constraints. 'But if you're doing it in a big open area, you can do almost anything. It's amazing. I enjoy everything about it.' What started out as a bit of fun and a way of adding an additional challenge to his regular running regimen has taken Mr Mitchell somewhere he never imagined. 'I'm new to social media. I hadn't really used it before this. It's incredible to see how people respond to them. It's just nuts.' He has partnered with Strava and Telstra on a few projects and has a few more lined up with Foot Looker and the Melbourne Marathon. 'I would never have believed any of this happening in my wildest dreams.' While it's far from big bucks, it's a sign that Mr Mitchell has found a strong niche and could turn his burgeoning brand into something special. Until then, he's now wondering how he will go about replacing his Yaris. While it got him home, it's almost certainly a write-off. A friend from his running club started a Go Fund Me appeal on his behalf, calling for fans and supporters to chip in a few bucks to help ease the financial burden. 'I told them, there are a million good causes out there and people have got better things to spend their money on, but they insisted and set it up. It's nice, but I was reluctant. I'm just rolling with it.' When he has enough to buy himself a new car, there's no doubt what brand he'll consider. 'A second-hand Toyota, I think,' he laughed. 'I mean, it's proven to be pretty reliable and resilient.'
The Australian
2 hours ago
- The Australian
Murder trial date set in Samantha Murphy case
You can now listen to The Australian's articles. Give us your feedback. You can now listen to The Australian's articles. A trial date has been set for the man accused of murdering Ballarat mother Samantha Murphy. Patrick Orren Stephenson, who stands charged with Murphy's alleged murder, will stand trial from April 8 next year following an extended pre-trial process that will stretch into late 2025. The trial will begin shortly after the Easter period in 2026, bringing the case into the spotlight more than two years after Murphy's death. It comes after the accused was transported from Melbourne Assessment Prison to Enfield State Park, south of Ballarat, where excavators were used to dig up an undisclosed area. It was the second time Mr Stephenson was escorted to the site by police, after a similar operation in November last year. No human remains were located during either search. Murphy, a mother of three, vanished on February 4, 2023, after setting out on a 14km run through the Canadian State Forest, which she was known to frequent. Her disappearance triggered a major search involving police and volunteers, spanning bushland areas including the Canadian State Forest, Enfield State Park, and Buninyong Bushland Reserve. Mr Stephenson was arrested a month later and charged with her murder. He has pleaded not guilty and was committed to stand trial in the Supreme Court. Police have not disclosed what led them to return to the Enfield site, and there is no suggestion that Mr Stephenson's attendance indicates he knows the whereabouts of Murphy's body. In June last year, Murphy's credit cards, driver's licence, and iPhone – which was inside a teal-coloured cover – were recovered from the bottom of a dam in Buninyong. The phone was reportedly in near-perfect condition. Mohammad Alfares Journalist Mohammad Alfares, a journalist and a keen fisherman. Growing up, I would film and edit 'productions' I made with family friends every holiday. Combined with my love of writing and storytelling, being a journalist was the perfect fit! I obtained a Bachelor of Communication at Massey University in New Zealand and was lucky enough to get my first taste of the industry in broadcast journalism. Outside of work, I keep my hunger for adrenaline satisfied by chasing a big fish! I'll also find time to relax too, either with a cup of coffee or enjoying some fresh air and sunshine. Mohammad Alfares
News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
Ferrari heavyweight replaces Scott Barlow as Sydney FC chairman
Scott Barlow's 13-year tenure as Sydney FC chairman has come to an end as part of an 'evolution' aimed at increasing the A-League club's 'international profile'. Ferrari Australasia president Dr Jan Voss, who joined the Sky Blues board last season, will replace Barlow as chairman. Voss is fluent in five languages – English, German, Italian, French, and Dutch – and 'brings a global perspective and deep experience in brand, performance, and strategic growth' As part of a 'broader strategic restructure', inaugural club chairman Walter Bugno returns to Sydney's board, while technology entrepreneur Sebastian Gray has also been added to the board. 'This is a pivotal moment for Sydney FC,' Voss said. 'I am honoured to be appointed chairman and to work alongside a board that is deeply passionate about football and our club's future.' The club's ownership structure hasn't changed, with the Barlow family remaining as 98 per cent investors, with the other two per cent owned by the Crismale family and two other Australian shareholders. 'With a strong and stable ownership base and a renewed focus on innovation, commercial growth, and elite performance, Sydney FC is more ready than ever to embrace the challenges of the modern football landscape,' Voss said. Barlow has not only departed as chairman but also as board member after two decades of service. 'I wish to thank Scott for his extraordinary leadership and commitment,' Voss said. 'His 13 years as chairman have laid the foundations for the club's next era of growth and international ambition.' Gray – who co-founded Dugout, a digital media company co-owned by a host of top European clubs, including Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, PSG, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Juventus, and Manchester City – will strengthen Sydney's focus on 'innovation, digital engagement, and sustainable investment'. Sydney's board also includes technical director Han Berger, Michael Crismale, Suzie Shaw, and Peter Paradise. The Ufuk Talay-coached Sky Blues failed to reach this season's A-League finals series, finishing seventh on the ladder. They reached the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League Two competition before being knocked out by Singapore club Lion City Sailors.
