Squiz Today – Friday, 18 August

THE SQUIZ
The dust has settled on the Matildas’ World Cup semi-final against England, and it’s fair to say that despite the loss, the consensus is the team did us proud… The Tillies are now looking to capitalise on their record-breaking/history-making efforts by pushing for changes that last beyond this year’s tournament. Captain Sam Kerr called for more investment in the sport, saying, “We need funding in our development, we need funding in our grassroots… we need funding everywhere”. She added: “Hopefully, this tournament changes that because that’s the legacy you leave – not what you do on the pitch.”

WELL, THE WORLD CUP HAS HAD A LOT OF ATTENTION…
It’s been massive… As far as Women’s World Cups go, it’s been the best-attended ever, breaking ticketing records after 1.5 million were sold the first week – and that number rose to more than 1.7 million by last week. It’s also the best-attended in terms of team numbers – 32 countries took part, up from 24 in 2019. There’s been a lot said about the Matildas’ achievements uniting Aussies in a way that hasn’t been seen since the 2000 Sydney Olympics (and even getting NBA stars onboard). And it’s undoubtedly captured TV viewers’ attention… The Australia v England broadcast on Wednesday night reached a total audience of 11.5 million viewers, making it the most-watched TV program since the ratings system started in 2001. Still, some critics say more should have been done to market the global event – you can’t please everyone…

SO WHAT NOW?
Midfielder Katrina Gorry yesterday encouraged Aussies to keep up the momentum for women’s football after the tournament, saying, “The shift in Australian football has just been incredible”. And it’ll be easy to keep the vibe going this weekend with the Matildas playing Sweden tomorrow at 6pm Eastern time in a battle for bronze (or “rose gold”, as one fan put it). Coach Tony Gustavsson says the team will “dig deep”, making it one to watch. And at 8pm on Sunday, it’s time for the final with England going up against Spain. We’re going for Spain – holding grudges isn’t our best trait, but what can you do…

Hillsong church founder not guilty

Brian Houston has been found not guilty of concealing his father Frank’s abuse of a small child. Police alleged Brian’s late preacher dad confessed he was a perpetrator of abuse in 1999, and prosecutors came after him for not reporting it. But yesterday, Magistrate Gareth Christofi found Houston Jr had a “reasonable excuse” for his inaction because “he knew or reasonably believed” the victim did not want police to be informed. That victim is Brett Sengstock – he’s waived his right to anonymity and gave evidence that Houston Sr’s abuse began when he was 7yo and carried on for years. Frank died in 2004 and never faced charges. Brian has denounced his father’s acts and admitted he didn’t know the full extent of his offending. Outside court yesterday, Brian said he would “always be very sad” about what his father did – and added, “If I wasn’t Brian Houston from Hillsong, this charge would never have happened.”

Aussies out of work

Australia’s unemployment rate has risen from 3.5% to 3.7%, meaning 36,000 people joined the unemployment queue in July. That was more than expected and contributed to a dip in the Aussie dollar/stock market. One positive thing if you’re a mortgage holder who kept their job/isn’t heavily invested in shares – economists reckon it squashes the chance that the Reserve Bank would hike interest rates next month because it’s more evidence the economy is cooling. Also, many borrowers are coming off low fixed interest rates in the coming weeks – and some analysts are worried the Aussie economy is in for tougher times. China is part of that equation because it’s still our biggest trading partner – and after recent troubling economic data, it’s been accused of hiding bad figures and gagging economists from talking. It’s something to keep an eye on…

Wildfires take a toll in Canada and the US

The fire season in the Northern Hemisphere is getting worse… One of the largest towns in Canada’s far north is being evacuated with warnings an out-of-control wildfire could hit by the weekend. The 20,000 residents of Yellowknife have been told to get out today – and hundreds of people in smaller towns have already been airlifted out of the area by the military. Fingers crossed they are safe… This has been Canada’s worst-ever fire season, with nearly 5,500 blazes and an area roughly the size of Greece burnt out. It comes as state officials in Hawaii warn that about 1,300 people are still unaccounted for a week after the Maui fires. US President Joe Biden and his wife Jill will travel there on Monday – his team says he hasn’t gone sooner because he didn’t want to get in the way of recovery efforts.

Vale Michael Parkinson

Iconic British broadcaster Sir Michael Parkinson has died at 88yo after what his family says was a short illness. The son of a miner from Yorkshire with a talent for cricket, he was steered towards a white-collar career and found he had a knack for writing. After working for newspapers, he made his way into TV, ultimately helming a wildly successful self-titled chat show for about 30 years. It was a genre he famously said was “an unnatural act between consenting adults in public”… ‘Parky’ became a household name with his disarming chats with the world’s most famous politicians, actors and sports stars. He once said his favourite was with boxer Muhammad Ali. The BBC’s boss Tim Davie said he was “truly one of a kind, an incredible broadcaster and journalist who will be hugely missed”. And raconteur Stephen Fry said being interviewed by him was “impossibly thrilling” and “he was always 100% himself. On camera and off.”

Play that country music, cowboy…

You may have heard of country music star Morgan Wallen’s Last Night– it’s getting heaps of attention on commercial radio at the moment – so much so that it’s actually broken a big record in the US… After marking its 16th week at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts, the song has now had the longest #1 run for a song that’s not a collaboration by artists, overtaking Harry Styles’ smash hit As It Was. Another country earworm – Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus’s Old Town Road – stands in Wallen’s way as the tune with the most weeks in the top spot at 19 weeks. Last Night is the latest country music song to cross the bridge from country to pop – and there are others having similar success. Spotify says Wallen and fellow country star Luke Combs have joined Taylor Swift, Drake and The Weeknd in the top 5 most-streamed artists in Oz. Which isn’t that surprising considering Combs’ recent sold-out Aussie tour – including a poorly-timed Sydney date…

Dry skin in winter… We’re having good success with this hydrating gel that you put under your moisturiser. It’s not super expensive – pick it up at the supermarket/chemist. Anything’s worth a try, right?

Yes, you can buy really good ice cream at the supermarket – and if you’re lucky enough to live near somewhere that does great ice cream, well, your willpower has our best wishes. Still, we were intrigued to try this mason jar experiment. And it was pretty good – just get your arms ready for the big shake…

But that’s not the recipe we wanted to put in front of you today. Eggplants aren’t as horrendously expensive as they were not so long ago, so we made this moussaka to have in front of the Matildas’ Wednesday night game – and it was a warm hug on a cold, cold night. We do ours in one big dish.

9.30am (AEST) – A nationally broadcast commemorative service marks the 50th anniversary of the end of Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War – Canberra

12.30pm (AEST) – Afghanistan Ambassador to Australia Wahidullah Waissi addresses the National Press Club – Canberra

Company Results – Abacus Property Group; Allkem; Magellan Financial Group

National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence

The FIFA Women’s Football Convention (until 19 August) – Sydney

Never Give Up Day

Pinot Noir Day

Hawaiian Shirt Day in the US

Birthdays for Roman Polanski (1933), Robert Redford (1936), Edward Norton (1969), Andy Samberg (1978), and Liz Cambage (1991)

Anniversary of the death of Genghis Khan (1227)