Squiz Today – Friday, 1 October

THE SQUIZ
The crowd attending the NRL grand final at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium on Sunday has been reduced from 52,000 to 39,000 thanks to growing fears of a COVID outbreak in southeast Queensland. ‘The Cauldron’ will be at 75% capacity, and fans will be masked as they watch the South Sydney Rabbitohs go up against the Penrith Panthers. Health/NRL officials are on high alert after 6 new local cases were reported in Queensland yesterday, leading to tightened restrictions in Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Moreton Bay, Logan and Townsville.

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
It means 13,000 ticket holders from the sold-out event will be refunded their money. And anyone worried about the outbreak will also be able to get a refund, NRL boss Andrew Abdo said yesterday. There are now 4 COVID clusters in the state after 12 new local cases were reported in the last week. Not shy of a lockdown, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk yesterday denied claims she was holding back on account of rugby league’s big day. ​​”Let me make it very clear that the health of Queenslanders comes first, and as soon as [Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young] says we need to move into a lockdown, we will.” The uncertainty has led broadcaster Nine to send one of their broadcast trucks up to Townsville in case the match has to be moved at the last minute.

ENOUGH ABOUT THAT, WHAT ABOUT THE GF?
Well, it kicks off with Kate Miller-Heidke and Mossy. And if you don’t know that Mossy is Ian Moss of Cold Chisel fame, we wonder if this is the game for you, quite frankly… The Panthers are favourites to beat the Bunnies. Western Sydney’s pride beat the Melbourne Storm last week – the same team they lost to in last year’s grand final. Souths have plenty to play for besides the trophy – it’s legendary coach Wayne Bennett’s last match with the club (and his 10th Grand Final) before he moves back to Brisbane. And veteran Benji Marshall playing in his second grand final in 16 years after he starred for the Wests Tigers with that flick pass. But if you’re after an omen, check this out: no 3rd-placed team has ever lost an NRL grand final. And this year, Souths finished 3rd… Bring on 7.30pm (AEDT) on Sunday.

Cases jump in Victoria, more lockdown for regional NSW, and the Budget gets a boost

• Another Friday, another National Cabinet meeting and on today’s agenda is another look at the national roadmap out of COVID when 70-80% vaccination targets are met. A couple of states (ahem a lot of them…) have developed their own spin on lifting restrictions since it was last discussed.

• Victoria took it up a notch, recording its highest-ever daily number of COVID infections yesterday. Officials said that more than 500 of the state’s 1,438 new cases are linked to illegal AFL grand final get-togethers. And in NSW, lockdowns have been extended and introduced across several regions following an uptick in cases.

• And Treasurer Josh Frydenberg yesterday said the $161 billion deficit forecast by the 2020-21 Federal Budget will end up being $134.2 billion. $26.8 billion came as the country started to reopen and recover earlier this year. But let’s not look at FY’22 – Frydenberg said the ongoing lockdown drama will amount to a “significant hit”.

Blown away in Bathurst

If it’s not earthquakes, it’s tornadoes… NSW’s Central West was hit by a ‘supercell’ of wild weather yesterday afternoon and for residents northeast of Bathurst, that came in the form of a tornado that caused a line of damage extending almost 30km. Two homes were demolished, 3 people were injured, hundreds of trees were uprooted, and fences were wrapped around power poles – the pictures are incredible… Weather Bureau forecaster Gabrielle Woodhouse says tornadoes are “reasonably rare” but “not completely out of the question”. They are a “very localised phenomena, so it’s quite difficult to be able to predict those well in advance of time,” she said. We should get a sense of the size of the bill later today.

London policeman sentenced for murder

Metropolitan police officer Wayne Couzens pleaded guilty to kidnapping, raping and murdering 33yo marketing executive Sarah Everard in South London in March, and overnight he was sentenced to a ‘whole-life’ term in prison without parole. It’s a case that has chilled the UK. The court heard 48yo Couzens had long planned the attack, and Everard was in the wrong place at the wrong time. She was stopped by Couzens after he finished his shift as a diplomatic protection officer at the US Embassy. She was walking home when he used his police ID to claim she was breaching the COVID rules. After putting her in handcuffs, he drove 130km to woodland in Kent where he raped and killed her before burning her body. She was found a week later. Yesterday, Everard’s father Jeremy demanded that Couzens look at him as he told the sentencing hearing he could never forgive him for taking away his daughter.

Britney’s ‘on cloud 9’

The pop star’s father Jamie Spears has been suspended from the conservatorship that has controlled her life and finances for the last 12 years. Calling it an “untenable” situation, Judge Brenda Penny scheduled 12 November as the day when the question of scrapping the conservatorship altogether will be decided. Britney told a hearing in July that her father should be jailed for abuse. She didn’t appear in court yesterday ​but said she was “on cloud 9” in an Instagram post. She was flying a plane at the time… Overnight, a lawyer for Jamie said the result was “disappointing”. “For anyone who has tried to help a family member dealing with mental health issues, they can appreciate the tremendous amount of daily worry and work this required,” she said. And if you’re after more Britney-aligned content, Netflix has debuted its documentary Britney vs Spears this week. And the New York Times’ latest offering Controlling Britney Spears will be up on Netflix mid next week.

They’ve got the power

A group of 4 premiers – NSW’s Gladys Berejiklian, Victoria’s Daniel Andrews, Queensland’s Annastacia Palaszczuk and Western Oz’s Mark McGowan – are Australia’s most powerful people, according to the Financial Review’s power list for 2021 (paywall). Edging out PM Scott Morrison (2) and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg (3), the judges said “it is the states that have run interference against Canberra and micro-managed every aspect of our lives.” True dat… The state chief health officers (4) make their debut on the list. And former Liberal staffer Britany Higgins is another new face as “the woman who sparked a cultural reckoning, shocking Canberra and the country” with her account of sexual assault inside Parliament House. CommBank boss Matt Comyn (8) is the only person outside of politics to make the list as leader of the country’s biggest bank. When it comes to covert power, that list is topped by PM’s Department head Phil Gaetjens and Aussie of the year Grace Tame is the country’s biggest cultural mover and shaker for her advocacy for survivors of sexual abuse.

Gymnastics legend Simone Biles had a rough Tokyo Olympics, to put it mildly. She’s now given her take on her crisis of confidence and what moving on looks like. Ugh you just want to give her a hug…

We bookmarked the epic US Instyle Best Beauty Buys list earlier this year to review as we hit spring/summer. And with lockdowns ending and happier times a-comin’, it could be time to jazz things up a bit. Or at least get rid of our impressive monobrow…

It’s a grand final weekend, and that means one thing: it’s time to make the best dip ever… And Basque cheesecake is having a bit of a moment, again. There are not many recipes that call for a caramelised top (let’s be honest, it’s a bit burnt…), so it’s perfect for imperfect cooks like us.

8.00pm (AEST) – To celebrate the launch of their new book Well Hell, Chat10Looks3 hosts Leigh Sales and Annabel Crabb have a chat with Squiz Kids host Bryce Corbett – available via livestream

National Cabinet meets

ABS Data Release – Lending Indicators, August

Nationwide ban on nicotine vaping for Aussies without a prescription comes into effect

Dubai hosts the World Expo, becoming the first Middle Eastern venue to do so (until 31 March 2022)

National days for China, Cyprus, Tuvalu, Nigeria, Palau and Guinea

Start of Breast Cancer Awareness Month

International Day of Older Persons

International Coffee Day

World Smile Day

World Vegetarian Day

Birthdays for actor Julie Andrews (1935), former British PM Theresa May (1956) and actor Brie Larson (1989)

Anniversary of:
• the first publication of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women (1868), National Geographic magazine (1888) and the Little Golden Books series (1942)
• Henry Ford introducing the Model T car (1908)
• The Beach Boys recording their debut single Surfin’ USA, introducing a new musical style (1961)
• the start of the Howard Government’s gun buyback scheme, following the Port Arthur Massacre (1996)
• the deadliest mass shooting in US history when a gunman kills 58 people at a concert in Las Vegas (2017)