Count Folau in for hybrid game

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DUAL-code superstar Israel Folau has declared his interest in the mooted hybrid match between the Wallabies and England rugby league team later this year.

Folau believes the idea of the hybrid union and league game would "attract a lot of fans" from both sports.

As a star of league and union, Folau would be the player most likely to succeed in a hybrid game and would also be the most obvious choice to market the contest, tentatively floated for December 6 at Wembley Stadium as organisers attempt to land a UK broadcasting deal.

"I think it would be a pretty good concept," Folau said.

"It would certainly be good for the fans, for them it would be interesting.

Israel Folau would be keen to play a hybrid game against the England rugby league team. Source: Getty Images

"I'm certainly up for it, I wouldn't mind being a part of that.

"It would be a good test, and a good challenge for both games to try to adapt to the two different games.

"I think it would be a lot of fun and you'd attract a lot of fans to watching the game."

The game would fuse the rules of union and league while incorporating new parameters, such as the introduction of a "shot clock".

League rules apply in a team's own half, and union rules are used in the attacking half. Each team has 60 seconds to get over halfway, and then another 60 seconds to score points once in the opposition half, with the shot clock timer restarting once teams cross the halfway line.

There will be an exhibition hybrid match held at Hitchcock Park in Avalon on March 15, organised by former Wallabies coach Bob Dwyer and playmaking legend Mark Ella, both who are part of the campaign to stage the Wallabies versus English league hybrid game.

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Meanwhile, Folau has backed NSW State of Origin powerhouse Andrew Fifita to make a successful switch to rugby if he chooses to quit the NRL.

The off-contract Fifita has been strongly linked to a code switch, and was in the stands last Sunday to watch Folau score three tries for the Waratahs at Allianz Stadium.

"I think he's a great player," Folau said.

"They're two different games, rugby league and rugby union, but he's a great footballer and I'm sure if he decides to come across he'd be good enough to go well."

Folau also welcomed news of South Sydney star Sam Burgess's decision to join English rugby at the end of the NRL season, while also giving a strong indication that he intends to remain in the 15-man game long term.

"I'm really focused on myself and enjoying my time here," Folau said.

Sharks NRL player Andrew Fifita has been linked with rugby union. Picture: Brett Costello Source: News Corp Australia

"For whatever reasons those guys are thinking about coming across, they've obviously got different reasons.

"Sam Burgess deciding to come across as well, I think it's good for the game.

"All the best to them for their transition.

"I was lucky enough that when I was playing rugby league, I managed to achieve my goals within two years.

"For me coming across to rugby, I want to be the best I can in the game, and I want to play at the highest level.

"I got to do that last year with the Wallabies but one year is not long enough for me. I want to keep doing that from year to year, experience different things, the World Cup is coming up next year.

"I want to work really hard to be a part of that.

"After that, I don't look too far ahead. I'm just thinking about this year right now."

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Cheika works magic for titanic clash

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THE combative Michael Cheika has not yet given his rip-the-Reds-apart speech in 13 months as NSW coach. It's coming tomorrow night.

Cheika is a wonderful addition to rugby's coaching landscape in Australia because he gets how important the fierce Queensland-NSW rivalry is.

He had two shots at Queensland last year as a first-year coach and on neither occasion did he start tearing up his Reds voodoo doll in front of his players.

Round 2 with a new team was too early and Round 20 was too late because the clash was ridiculously downgraded by being scheduled a week after the British and Irish Lions megatour.

A boiling speech evoking past NSW deeds against Queensland would have fizzed because his new hot-and-very cold Waratahs outfit was still forming an identity.

"You can only make those type of speeches once or twice a year," Cheika said.

"Before you evoke all the history you have to clearly identify with the past and it's now that we are building that as a running team in the tradition of NSW.''

Cheika has skipped generations to attach the Tahs identity with the vibrant teams of Nick Farr-Jones, Simon Poidevin, Steve Tuynman and co in the 1980s and early 1990s.

Randwick product Cheika loved Poidevin's passion for the annual stoushes with Tony Shaw in the old days.

"Rugby fans need a strong rivalry between all our provinces but especially between NSW and Queensland,'' Cheika said.

"It should be an event not just rugby followers connect to.''

Cheika coached Dublin side Leinster to trophy success in Ireland over Limerick's Munster in a rivalry which is as fierce as Queensland-NSW.

"When I was at Leinster, Munster was the dominant partner and they schooled us for a while,'' Cheika said.

"The Reds have dominated us. It's pretty clear they are ahead of us. It's up to us to master them. If we can, we know we'll be at the top of the tree somewhere.''

The Reds should be wary of Israel Folau but more concerned that the Waratahs' attitude has been transformed by Cheika. The coach and his men are mad for a scalp.

Just listen to the dressingroom walls quaking at ANZ Stadium in Sydney before kick-off on Saturday night.

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Pup: our biggest game of summer

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TEST cricket does not get any better than this.

The third Test against South Africa, beginning in Cape Town tomorrow, shapes as one of the biggest Tests of my decade-long career.

We all know the Ashes is special and to beat England 5-0 was amazing.

But to be lining up for the deciding Test of a delicately balanced series against the top-ranked team in their own back yard is as exciting as this game gets.

Shane Watson is hoping to return to the Test team after overcoming a calf injury. Source: Getty Images

It is a wonderful opportunity for us to finish the summer on a high.

I'm so proud of what the guys have achieved over the last few months and hope we can continue that at Newlands.

South Africa proved what a great team they are by coming back hard in Port Elizabeth but it was only a week earlier that we had a strong victory at Centurion Park, so we know that if we play our best cricket we can beat them.

It's been attacking, high-quality cricket from two very competitive teams that has seen both Tests finish in four days.

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The intensity of the cricket against South Africa has never been any different.

The last time we came here two and a half years ago the series was tied at one-all after two remarkable Tests but sadly there was no decider.

This time there is and we can't wait.

Exactly what conditions we will face in Cape Town remain a bit of a mystery. Traditionally it has helped seam bowlers, but with South Africa comfortably winning in Port Elizabeth on a dry, grassless wicket I'm not quite sure what to expect.

Shane Warne speaks to Nathan Lyon during an Australian nets session at Newlands. Source: Getty Images

There was such a contrast between what we faced in Centurion Park during the first Test and more recently in Port Elizabeth that predicting how a pitch will play can be fraught with danger, particularly during the days leading into the Test.

The Port Elizabeth pitch had a lot of patchy, tufty grass on it until midway through the day before the match, when it was shaved off.

Centurion Park proved to be a dangerous pitch that was up and down and helped raw pace.

The bottom line is that the conditions are the same for both sides.

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Adapting to a variety of surfaces on away tours is one of the most important aspects of being a successful international player and team.

We adapted well at Centurion Park but failed to do the same in Port Elizabeth.

How we handle the Newlands pitch will have a major bearing on whether or not we win the series.

One of the most pleasing things for me is that we have a fully fit squad to choose from after a few hiccups earlier in the tour, meaning we have a variety of options for whatever conditions are presented.

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There has been some discussion about my lean trot.

As captain and the team's most senior batsman it is up to me to lead the way. I haven't done that recently, but there is no better time than this Test to lead from the front given what is at stake.

I've been working hard and doing extra training sessions to be sure I'm as ready as I can be for this Test.

I am excited for the team that we have put ourselves in a position to win this series.

In my opinion, this is our biggest game of the summer.

If this does not excite you as a player you are in the wrong place.

The third Test can't start soon enough.

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Marquez to miss Phillip Island test

MotoGP champion Marc Marquez will miss Phillip Island. Source: Lai Seng Sin / AP

HONDA'S Marc Marquez said he would miss next week's Phillip Island test due to his broken leg.

Marquez, who is also absent from Malaysia's Sepang circuit this week, said his surgeon had advised him against taking "unnecessary risk" so that he is fit for the season's opening race on March 23.

The 21-year-old Spaniard, who last year became the youngest rider ever to win the world title and the first rookie in 35 years, suffered the broken leg during dirt bike training last week in Spain.

"I'm obviously disappointed that I'm not in Sepang at the moment and to miss Phillip Island is also unfortunate," Marquez said in a statement.

"So I will take time to rest and get myself as fit as possible to return to Qatar for the first race."

Since 2009 no premier-class rider has won the MotoGP title back-to-back.

It came as teammate Dani Pedrosa set the pace on day two of MotoGP testing in Malaysia.

Marc Marquez (L) and Dani Pedrosa (R).

It was a solid run for Pedrosa, who is seeking to capture an elusive first MotoGP world title, after hitting the top of the time sheet in 2 minutes 00.039 seconds and ahead of Yamaha pair Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo.

"My performance today was better than yesterday. The bike was stable on the corner. We will work on the rear tyre tomorrow," Pedrosa said.

But the Spaniard's best lap time was 0.5 seconds slower than the marker set down by Marquez in the previous Sepang test as riders again complained the track was greasy forcing the 22 riders to throttle back.

Yamaha's Aleix Espargaro who dominated early testing came in second at 2:00.320 while Honda's Alvaro Bautista who posted the fastest time on day one of a test session in this notoriously tricky circuit was in third position — 0.461 seconds behind Pedrosa.

Nine-time Italian world champion Rossi came in fourth, 0.566 seconds slower than rival Pedrosa.

Ducati's Andrea Dovizioso who came in fifth with a time of 2:00.787 was again the fastest in the Italian team.

Lorenzo — a two-time MotoGP champion — came ninth with 2:01.049.

The current session ends on Friday. Another three-day session follows at Phillip Island from Monday, followed by another at Qatar's Losail circuit.

The new season kicks off at Losail on March 23. Malaysia will host the championship on October 26.

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Live ACL blog: Guangzhou v Victory

FOLLOW our live and interactive blog as Melbourne Victory travels to China to face Guangzhou Evergrande in the Asian Champions League.

The Chinese powerhouse is led by World Cup winning coach Marcelo Lippi and is the reigning ACL champion.

Catch all the action tonight on Fox Sports 2 HD from 11.00pm or follow it in our live blog below.

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Sarota moves step closer to dream

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FORMER Brisbane midfielder Adam Sarota is a step closer to the ultimate reward for his recovery from a career-threatening knee injury – a place in Australia's World Cup squad.

The 25-year-old Cairns product, 25, was one of six Queenslanders named by Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou in a 23-man national squad for next Thursday's friendly against Ecuador in London.

Joining the Sunshine State contingent of Sarota, his FC Utrecht teammate Tommy Oar, Matt McKay, Mitch Langerak, Dario Vidosic and Ben Halloran is Brisbane Roar's Melbourne-raised right fullback Ivan Franjic.

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As expected, long-time skipper Lucas Neill, who only this week joined English second-tier club Watford after a long spell of inactivity, was left out, as was experienced trio Mark Bresciano, Josh Kennedy and Brett Holman.

Postecoglou stressed they all remained in contention for Australia's preliminary 30-man World Cup squad which will be named in May.

Postecoglou also left no doubt that the squad named for next week's clashEcuador was the first step in building the next golden generation for Australian football.

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"There is a need to balance experimentation and experience to achieve this,'' Postecoglou said.

"The Ecuador game gives this group of players an opportunity to stake a claim for the World Cup. They have been rewarded for playing consistent and strong football and shows that age and limited international experience are not barriers to opportunity.''

Former Gold Coast United and Roar attacker Halloran (Fortuna Dusseldorf), defenders Chris Herd (Aston Villa), Curtis Good (Dundee United) and midfielder Massimo Luongo (Swindon Town) are uncapped members of the squad.

Sarota is also inexperienced at national level with three caps, most recently in September 2012 under Holger Osieck.

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He damaged his cruciate ligament during a Dutch first-division game for Utrecht against Willem II days before he was to link with the Socceroos squad for a friendly against Romania. He had a knee reconstruction which kept him sidelined until three months ago.

Since then, Sarota has done enough to be in Postecoglou's World Cup selection plans.

"I watched Adam and Tommy (Oar) play against Ajax when I was there (in Holland) and you can tell he's slowly getting back into things,'' Postecoglou said.

"He's very highly rated at Utrecht. It's great to see him playing regular football."

Roar pair Franjic and McKay will travel to London after playing tomorrow nightagainst Perth Glory at Suncorp Stadiumin Brisbane.

"I have to keep form in the A-League,'' said Franjic, who is set to earn his seventh cap next week. "This is when you definitely want to be part of the Socceroos squad.''

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Cold, hard facts of Antarctic bid

Solo yachtswoman Lisa Blair aims to set a sailing record around Antarctica. Source: Barbara Yendell / News Corp Australia

IN space no one can hear you scream. In the vast vacuum between the southern tip of Tasmania and the ice floes of the Antarctic no one will be able to see Lisa Blair's jaw drop, either, as nature's agonising beauty makes her gasp in pain.

Lisa grew up on the Sunshine Coast and hadn't seen snow until two years ago. That's when a great white curtain came down onto the mountainous waves of the Southern Ocean as her yacht roared over them like a big-wave surfer on the ultimate high..

It was so cold she couldn't feel her fingers; couldn't feel her toes except for an excruciating burn as though she was standing on a hotplate instead of a heaving deck.

On December 14, Lisa hopes to celebrate her 30th birthday by sailing out of Albany, Western Australia to set a record-breaking course around Antarctica for 90 days. She wants to become the first woman to circumnavigate the frozen continent, solo, unaided and unassisted.

Only two men have performed the feat and she plans to shave 12 days off the 2008 record of Fedor Konyukhov, a Russian artist and Orthodox priest who looks like mad monk Rasputin and attacks long-distance pilgrimages to the South Pole, North Pole and the summit of Mount Everest with religious zeal.

He once rowed across the Atlantic Ocean and as Lisa prepares to chase his Antarctic record Fedor is in a row boat dodging sharks, whales and tankers on his 200-day odyssey across the Pacific from Chile to Brisbane.

Lisa reckons she can top his time for the 16,400 nautical mile Antarctic voyage by averaging 7.5 knots non-stop for three months. She says she might occasionally hit 28 knots with the teeth of the wind snapping at her stern and on a good day will churn through 300km of the world's coldest, roughest water.

She will face perils, pitfalls and savage snowstorms as gale force winds whip through her cold, wet clothes. Condensation will build up in her cabin like rain and she will be in constant danger of a terrible, lonely death amid 30m waves. Aaaaaannd loving it.

"The fact it is so hard, so challenging is what grabs me,'' she says. "There will be extreme conditions but I'm prepared for whatever Antarctica throws at me.''

Lisa's parents had their honeymoon in Nepal and her childhood holidays were spent hiking across Fraser Island and cycling across wide stretches of Australia.

In 2005, during her summer holidays from visual arts and education studies at Lismore's Southern Cross University, she took a job as a yacht hostess in the Whitsundays.

"That's where I fell in love with sailing," she says.

She and three friends then took 12 weeks to sail from Samoa to Hawaii in a 40-footer and when 16-yeat-old Jessica Watson completed her circumnavigation of the globe in 2010, Lisa tossed in her job in a jewellery shop at Maroochydore's Sunshine Plaza for life on the high seas.

With just $20 in her pocket she pledged $80,000 to be part of the crew on a 68-foot boat called Gold Coast Australia contesting the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.

She raised the money for her entry fee partly by cycling from Sydney to the Sunshine Coast and organising raffles at pubs along the way.

Finally she sailed out of Southampton on July 31, 2011 and for the next year she and her crew under skipper Richard Hewson led the 10-boat fleet around the globe, including a stretch across the freezing Southern Ocean. For the past eight months she has been skipper of a yacht in the Whitsundays but she has moved back to the Sunshine Coast to prepare for her great race with the help of Bruce Arm, a former boat builder who helped Jessica Watson's campaign.

Lisa is entered in the solo trans-Tasman yacht race which leaves New Plymouth, New Zealand on April 20 bound for Mooloolaba and she hopes to raise money to charter a yacht for the event while she waits to find the perfect 50-foot Antarctic vessel.

"We're looking at spending $200,000-$300,000 for the Antarctic boat and then another $100,000 strengthening it," she says, "but raising the money is as tough as the race."

Lisa remembers how the Australian navy was sent to pluck the stricken English sailor Tony Bullimore out of the Southern Ocean in 1997. She says they won't be needed this time.

"I'm going a lot further south than him," she says, "and I'll be prepared as best I can for any emergency.

"If something does go wrong there's probably no point in sending anyone out to rescue me, anyway.

"I'll be so far south I'll probably freeze to death before help arrives."

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It’s finally Sal’s time to shine

Sally Fitzgibbons is believed to be dating St George Illawarra rugby league player Trent Merrin. Source: Supplied

SURFING star Sally Fitzgibbons will carry a busted hand and a mended heart into this weekend's season-opening Roxy Pro on the Gold Coast.

The world No. 3 broke two fingers on her left hand in a run-in with a jet ski during a surfing session last month and has been racing the clock in a bid to be fit for the Roxy, which kicks off an expanded 10-leg world tour.

The perennial world title bridesmaid is putting the heartbreak of near misses behind her with the support of a new boyfriend, believed to be St George Illawarra rugby league player Trent Merrin.

Fitzgibbons had her hand in a cast for a few weeks before having a splint shaped to mould around her hand.

She will shed the splint for the Pro, instead competing with her hand heavily strapped.

Speaking on the Gold Coast on Wednesday, she said her preparation had been far from ideal in a year when she finally hopes to stamp her mark on the women's tour.

"It's been a really fiddly one, so it's been pretty frustrating," she said.

"I've been surfing with a splint for the last couple of weeks, but it's been pretty tricky."

It is another setback for the perpetually bubbly Fitzgibbons, who was widely tipped for the world title last year only to finish third, putting a dampener on her documentary Sally: Behind the Smile, which has just been released.

"A crew followed me around last year and it would have been great to have had them there to capture me winning the world title, but it wasn't to be," she said.

The Illawarra 23-year-old, who has three times finished second in the world title race before last year's third, said she was drawing inspiration from the late-blooming Joel Parkinson in her title quest.

Parkinson endured four runner-up finishes before finally nailing his first world title two years ago at 31.

"You look at guys like Parko (Parkinson), who are just like gladiators the way they keep coming back,'' she said.

"You're pretty heartbroken when you get runner-up but you can draw inspiration from those guys.''

A broken heart is not something affecting Fitzgibbons, who remained coy about her new beau's identity, although she said he was "not really into surfing''.

"That's kind of refreshing because it puts everything into perspective," she said.

"We grew up in the same area. It's often hard to keep something going when you are away so much, but so far it's pretty good.''

Sally: Behind the Smile, 5.30pm Sunday on GO

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White relishes return to big time

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A STARRING return to the international arena has not been enough to convince Cameron White he is a walk-up start for the Twenty20 World Cup squad.

Playing in national colours with the first time since October 2012, White produced a man-of-the-match performance against England in Hobart last night to lift Australia to a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series.

The Melbourne Stars skipper clubbed 75 off just 43 balls, cracking four sixes and six boundaries as he shared a 106-run opening stand with Aaron Finch (52) inside 11 overs which set up the home side's daunting 4-213 and eventual 13-run win.

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With World Cup certainties David Warner and Shane Watson rested ahead of the South Africa tour, White relished the chance to open the batting for his country for the first time to stake a claim for inclusion in the final squad.

However despite his brutal display and being regarded as one of the cleanest hitters in the game, White knows he must keep producing if he is take keep his second shot rolling.

"Those guys (Warner and Watson) have got to come back in, I'm not exactly sure I will be in the team once they are back,'' White said when asked if he expected to slide down the order for the return of the dynamic duo.

"Naturally they will come in for the next series overseas.

"All I can do is concentrate on these next couple of games and hopefully put my best foot forward and score a few more runs.

"With the Twenty20 World Cup around the corner, that is a bit of an aim.''

White had been a mainstay in coloured clothing for Australia up until a few years ago, but strong form domestically in the Ryobi Cup, Sheffield Shield and Big Bash forced the selectors hands.

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Cousins to face court: report

Ben Cousins will reportedly face court next month. Source: Richard Ashford-Hatherly / News Limited

FALLEN former West Coast Eagles star Ben Cousins is facing a fresh chapter in his addiction battle after being charged with drug possession.

Seven News reported tonight that Cousins, who has battled drug addiction, was stopped by police in his car near his Bicton home last October.

The Brownlow medallist and premiership player's car was searched and police allegedly found a bag containing traces of what they suspected was a prohibited drug.

The bag was sent for testing and three months later Cousins, 35, was charged with drug possession despite it only involving a tiny amount of an alleged illicit substance, it was reported.

Cousins will reportedly face court in Fremantle next month.

Cousins was fined $800 in June 2012 after he pleaded guilty to possessing methylamphetamine, a small amount of cannabis and a smoking utensil following his arrest at Esperance Airport earlier that year.

His drug battle ended his 12-year career with West Coast after a string of incidents.

The father of two young children was suspended for 12 months by the AFL for bringing the game into disrepute before making a comeback with Richmond. He retired in 2010.

Cousins' drug addiction has seen him experience relapses, admitted to hospital, undergo stints in rehabilitation centres and offer public apologies.

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