There's no 'I' in team

There may well be no 'I' in team, but every sport has star players that stand out for their leadership, their silky skills and their dogged determination.

Headlines are also generated by athletes who fail spectacularly, and very publicly, achieving golden ducks and wooden spoons or 'bringing the game into disrepute'. And so, too, with politicians and other public figures who gave season-defining performances.

Former AFL Commissioner Sam Mostyn was the number one draft pick as Australia's new governor-general. In the battle of the leaders, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was accused of performing backflips, and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton of recycling a familiar conservative game plan. Nevertheless, both scored points in the argy-bargy of political debate. One ex-PM, Scott Morrison, hung up his boots in February and left parliament, and another, Kevin Rudd, climbed into the ring with former US president Donald Trump, as our ambassador to the United States.