Taxi driver bashed unconscious at Melbourne service station in unprovoked attack - ABC Online

Posted June 01, 2014 09:19:54

A taxi driver was bashed unconscious and his cab was trashed in an unprovoked attack at Spotswood in Melbourne's west.

The 35-year-old driver was filling up his cab with petrol at a service station on Melbourne Road around 1:10am (AEST) on Sunday when he was approached by a bald man wearing an Essendon football jumper.

The offender bashed the driver until he was unconscious before punching in the driver's window and breaking the side mirror.

Acting Sergeant Russell King says the taxi driver was taken to hospital with head injuries.

"It's a tough job at this time of night and there is no apparent motive," he said.

"[The attacker] just wandered up and started punching on with this taxi driver who's just filling up his cab, so it's far from nice."

Police want to hear from anyone who may have seen the attack.

Topics: assault, police, road-transport, spotswood-3015

Council to replace Melbourne's trees with exotic species - The Age

Elms lining St Kilda Road. Photo: Pat Scala

Melbourne's beloved tree-lined streets are under threat from the city's creeping hot, dry weather.

Inner-city soil is notably dry after an unusually hot autumn and Melbourne City Council will consider taking the unusual step of watering its trees this winter to help steel them for the year ahead, environment councillor Arron Wood said.

Streetscapes with their familiar mix of elm and plane trees are set to change, as workers plant 3000 drought-resistant trees from around the world this season.

Some of the avenues of trees in Fitzroy Gardens had suffered during the last drought and would soon need to be replaced, as would trees lining St Kilda Road, according to the council.

Melbourne Uni fees set to soar - The Age

Melbourne University Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

• Ross Gittins on the PM's biggest economic puzzle - university fee deregulation

Student fees at Melbourne University will need to rise by up to 61 per cent in some courses to manage federal budget cuts, according to Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

In an email sent to staff members on Friday May 30, Professor Davis estimated fees across the university would soar, as he outlined the university's plan to work through the budget.

“Initial analysis shows the gap [caused by reduced public funding] is momentous indeed – fees would need to rise by 45 per cent to make up lost funding in social science disciplines, by 54 per cent in Science, and by 61 per cent in Engineering,” the email said.

North Queensland Cowboys demolish injury-ravaged Melbourne Storm - Sydney Morning Herald

Cowboys 22 Storm 0

Cowboys forward Ashton Sims takes on the Melbourne defence. Photo: Getty Images

You can replace players but you can't replace champions.

Melbourne Storm tried its best to make up for the injury-enforced absence of superstar half-back Cooper Cronk and full-back Billy Slater in Townsville on Saturday night but was no match for North Queensland Cowboys who scored a 22-0 victory.

After being down 16-0 at the half, the Storm showed a few sparks early in the second but then the Cowboys took full advantage of having stars Matthew Scott, James Tamou, Brent Tate and Johnathan Thurston return fit from state of origin on Wednesday night to run away with the match.

Storm skipper Cameron Smith made a miraculous comeback from an ankle injury to play against North Queensland. Photo: Getty Images

The Storm pulled a major selection surprise with the supposedly injured captain Cameron Smith overcoming a high ankle sprain at Origin I, the same game which saw Cronk and Slater also injured, to take his place in the side.

Advertisement

Smith was said to be no chance of playing but he told Fox Sports he had completed a relentless program of physiotherapy and recovery work which left him waking up on Saturday morning with his ankle feeling strong enough to play.

Tohu Harris came in at lock although in truth Harris, Ryan Hinchcliffe and Ben Roberts seemed to switch as needed between five-eighth, hooker and lock depending on the situation.

With rookie Cameron Munster in at fullback for Slater and Smith moving to halfback for Cronk, the Storm side was much different from the one which beat South Sydney two weeks earlier.

Cowboys coach Paul Green knew the Storm would look to their forward pack to win the match. "With the players they had out I think it was always going to turn into that sort of game," Green said. "They still had a very good forward pack ... we came out on top there which was really pleasing."

Smith, who played despite the urgings of his coach Craig Bellamy, said his effort was "nothing special".

"Anyone in our position would have done the same thing," Smith said of himself and NSW representative Ryan Hoffman backing up. "It's our job to back up and play, unfortunately we're down on numbers at the moment. It wasn't hard to put the hand up and play."

Despite the heavy loss, Bellamy was pleased with the effort of his available players. "There was some real good effort out there tonight, without a doubt," he said.

The Storm faced a stern test early as the Cowboys put Munster under a high ball on the first play then driving close to the line on subsequent possessions, but in the first 10 minutes the Storm kept the home side at bay.

The Cowboys looked to be on the board 12 minutes in as Thurston put up a cross-field high ball for winger Matthew Wright.

Storm winger Young Tonumaipea leapt and caught the ball but on his way down Wright appeared to rake the ball out of his hands with Wright then grounding the ball and being given the try.

But the video review judge decided Wright had knocked the ball on so the try was overturned.

While the Storm’s tackling was sound, several holding penalties in the first 15 minutes gifted the Cowboys unnecessary extra possessions – luckily for the visitors their hosts bungled those extra chances.

In the 20^th minute the Cowboys had their first try with winger Antonio Winterstein launching himself high into the air to tip back a kick which looked to be sailing out of bounds on the left flag.

Winterstein's tip fell straight into the path of centre Kane Linnett who touched down the ball to put his side on the board, Thurston’s kick hit the post to make it 4-0.

The Cowboys' second try came five minutes before the break when Thurston spotted a gap on the left wing and put Winterstein in for an easy score with Thurston converting to make it 10-0.

Just minutes later Thurston ran in his own try when space opened on the right, his conversion making it 16-0 at half-time.

In attack Smith was trying to move between his customary first receiver position and doing the kicking duties, usually Cronk's domain, on the fifth tackle.

This was the one area of the game in which the Storm struggled with several sets ending with a player being caught in possession on the fifth tackle, the statistics showed this as Storm completed just 10 of 15 sets in the first half compared to the Cowboys' 19 of 26.

That statistic was no better at full time with the Storm having 13 less sets than the Cowboys.

The Storm started the second half with much better intent gaining several sets in the opening minutes but it still struggled to get out of its own half.

Smith, who recorded a team-high 54 tackles, was inspiring at both ends of the field but couldn't find enough game breakers in his own ranks.

The Storm's attacking struggles were compounded when Thurston twice kicked grubbers on the one possession with his second tap kick rolling over the try line, with Michael Morgan touching it down legally to make it 22-0 after 66 minutes.

The Storm's woes could be made worse as Tonumaipea was reported in the first half for a questionable tackle on Tate, with his fate to be decided early this week.

With Cronk and Slater to miss again next match, the Storm now has to find a way to beat the ominous Sydney Roosters at AAMI Park next Sunday.

With aap

Taxi driver bashed unconscious at Melbourne service station in unprovoked attack - ABC Online

Posted June 01, 2014 09:19:54

A taxi driver was bashed unconscious and his cab was trashed in an unprovoked attack at Spotswood in Melbourne's west.

The 35-year-old driver was filling up his cab with petrol at a service station on Melbourne Road around 1:10am (AEST) on Sunday when he was approached by a bald man wearing an Essendon football jumper.

The offender bashed the driver until he was unconscious before punching in the driver's window and breaking the side mirror.

Acting Sergeant Russell King says the taxi driver was taken to hospital with head injuries.

"It's a tough job at this time of night and there is no apparent motive," he said.

"[The attacker] just wandered up and started punching on with this taxi driver who's just filling up his cab, so it's far from nice."

Police want to hear from anyone who may have seen the attack.

Topics: assault, police, road-transport, spotswood-3015

Council to replace Melbourne's trees with exotic species - The Age

Elms lining St Kilda Road. Photo: Pat Scala

Melbourne's beloved tree-lined streets are under threat from the city's creeping hot, dry weather.

Inner-city soil is notably dry after an unusually hot autumn and Melbourne City Council will consider taking the unusual step of watering its trees this winter to help steel them for the year ahead, environment councillor Arron Wood said.

Streetscapes with their familiar mix of elm and plane trees are set to change, as workers plant 3000 drought-resistant trees from around the world this season.

Some of the avenues of trees in Fitzroy Gardens had suffered during the last drought and would soon need to be replaced, as would trees lining St Kilda Road, according to the council.

Melbourne Uni fees set to soar - The Age

Melbourne University Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

• Ross Gittins on the PM's biggest economic puzzle - university fee deregulation

Student fees at Melbourne University will need to rise by up to 61 per cent in some courses to manage federal budget cuts, according to Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

In an email sent to staff members on Friday May 30, Professor Davis estimated fees across the university would soar, as he outlined the university's plan to work through the budget.

“Initial analysis shows the gap [caused by reduced public funding] is momentous indeed – fees would need to rise by 45 per cent to make up lost funding in social science disciplines, by 54 per cent in Science, and by 61 per cent in Engineering,” the email said.

North Queensland Cowboys demolish injury-ravaged Melbourne Storm - Sydney Morning Herald

Cowboys 22 Storm 0

Cowboys forward Ashton Sims takes on the Melbourne defence. Photo: Getty Images

You can replace players but you can't replace champions.

Melbourne Storm tried its best to make up for the injury-enforced absence of superstar half-back Cooper Cronk and full-back Billy Slater in Townsville on Saturday night but was no match for North Queensland Cowboys who scored a 22-0 victory.

After being down 16-0 at the half, the Storm showed a few sparks early in the second but then the Cowboys took full advantage of having stars Matthew Scott, James Tamou, Brent Tate and Johnathan Thurston return fit from state of origin on Wednesday night to run away with the match.

Storm skipper Cameron Smith made a miraculous comeback from an ankle injury to play against North Queensland. Photo: Getty Images

The Storm pulled a major selection surprise with the supposedly injured captain Cameron Smith overcoming a high ankle sprain at Origin I, the same game which saw Cronk and Slater also injured, to take his place in the side.

Advertisement

Smith was said to be no chance of playing but he told Fox Sports he had completed a relentless program of physiotherapy and recovery work which left him waking up on Saturday morning with his ankle feeling strong enough to play.

Tohu Harris came in at lock although in truth Harris, Ryan Hinchcliffe and Ben Roberts seemed to switch as needed between five-eighth, hooker and lock depending on the situation.

With rookie Cameron Munster in at fullback for Slater and Smith moving to halfback for Cronk, the Storm side was much different from the one which beat South Sydney two weeks earlier.

Cowboys coach Paul Green knew the Storm would look to their forward pack to win the match. "With the players they had out I think it was always going to turn into that sort of game," Green said. "They still had a very good forward pack ... we came out on top there which was really pleasing."

Smith, who played despite the urgings of his coach Craig Bellamy, said his effort was "nothing special".

"Anyone in our position would have done the same thing," Smith said of himself and NSW representative Ryan Hoffman backing up. "It's our job to back up and play, unfortunately we're down on numbers at the moment. It wasn't hard to put the hand up and play."

Despite the heavy loss, Bellamy was pleased with the effort of his available players. "There was some real good effort out there tonight, without a doubt," he said.

The Storm faced a stern test early as the Cowboys put Munster under a high ball on the first play then driving close to the line on subsequent possessions, but in the first 10 minutes the Storm kept the home side at bay.

The Cowboys looked to be on the board 12 minutes in as Thurston put up a cross-field high ball for winger Matthew Wright.

Storm winger Young Tonumaipea leapt and caught the ball but on his way down Wright appeared to rake the ball out of his hands with Wright then grounding the ball and being given the try.

But the video review judge decided Wright had knocked the ball on so the try was overturned.

While the Storm’s tackling was sound, several holding penalties in the first 15 minutes gifted the Cowboys unnecessary extra possessions – luckily for the visitors their hosts bungled those extra chances.

In the 20^th minute the Cowboys had their first try with winger Antonio Winterstein launching himself high into the air to tip back a kick which looked to be sailing out of bounds on the left flag.

Winterstein's tip fell straight into the path of centre Kane Linnett who touched down the ball to put his side on the board, Thurston’s kick hit the post to make it 4-0.

The Cowboys' second try came five minutes before the break when Thurston spotted a gap on the left wing and put Winterstein in for an easy score with Thurston converting to make it 10-0.

Just minutes later Thurston ran in his own try when space opened on the right, his conversion making it 16-0 at half-time.

In attack Smith was trying to move between his customary first receiver position and doing the kicking duties, usually Cronk's domain, on the fifth tackle.

This was the one area of the game in which the Storm struggled with several sets ending with a player being caught in possession on the fifth tackle, the statistics showed this as Storm completed just 10 of 15 sets in the first half compared to the Cowboys' 19 of 26.

That statistic was no better at full time with the Storm having 13 less sets than the Cowboys.

The Storm started the second half with much better intent gaining several sets in the opening minutes but it still struggled to get out of its own half.

Smith, who recorded a team-high 54 tackles, was inspiring at both ends of the field but couldn't find enough game breakers in his own ranks.

The Storm's attacking struggles were compounded when Thurston twice kicked grubbers on the one possession with his second tap kick rolling over the try line, with Michael Morgan touching it down legally to make it 22-0 after 66 minutes.

The Storm's woes could be made worse as Tonumaipea was reported in the first half for a questionable tackle on Tate, with his fate to be decided early this week.

With Cronk and Slater to miss again next match, the Storm now has to find a way to beat the ominous Sydney Roosters at AAMI Park next Sunday.

With aap

Council to replace Melbourne's trees with exotic species - The Age

Elms lining St Kilda Road. Photo: Pat Scala

Melbourne's beloved tree-lined streets are under threat from the city's creeping hot, dry weather.

Inner-city soil is notably dry after an unusually hot autumn and Melbourne City Council will consider taking the unusual step of watering its trees this winter to help steel them for the year ahead, environment councillor Arron Wood said.

Streetscapes with their familiar mix of elm and plane trees are set to change, as workers plant 3000 drought-resistant trees from around the world this season.

Some of the avenues of trees in Fitzroy Gardens had suffered during the last drought and would soon need to be replaced, as would trees lining St Kilda Road, according to the council.

Melbourne Uni fees set to soar - The Age

Melbourne University Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

• Ross Gittins on the PM's biggest economic puzzle - university fee deregulation

Student fees at Melbourne University will need to rise by up to 61 per cent in some courses to manage federal budget cuts, according to Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

In an email sent to staff members on Friday May 30, Professor Davis estimated fees across the university would soar, as he outlined the university's plan to work through the budget.

“Initial analysis shows the gap [caused by reduced public funding] is momentous indeed – fees would need to rise by 45 per cent to make up lost funding in social science disciplines, by 54 per cent in Science, and by 61 per cent in Engineering,” the email said.

North Queensland Cowboys demolish injury-ravaged Melbourne Storm - Sydney Morning Herald

Cowboys 22 Storm 0

Cowboys forward Ashton Sims takes on the Melbourne defence. Photo: Getty Images

You can replace players but you can't replace champions.

Melbourne Storm tried its best to make up for the injury-enforced absence of superstar half-back Cooper Cronk and full-back Billy Slater in Townsville on Saturday night but was no match for North Queensland Cowboys who scored a 22-0 victory.

After being down 16-0 at the half, the Storm showed a few sparks early in the second but then the Cowboys took full advantage of having stars Matthew Scott, James Tamou, Brent Tate and Johnathan Thurston return fit from state of origin on Wednesday night to run away with the match.

Storm skipper Cameron Smith made a miraculous comeback from an ankle injury to play against North Queensland. Photo: Getty Images

The Storm pulled a major selection surprise with the supposedly injured captain Cameron Smith overcoming a high ankle sprain at Origin I, the same game which saw Cronk and Slater also injured, to take his place in the side.

Advertisement

Smith was said to be no chance of playing but he told Fox Sports he had completed a relentless program of physiotherapy and recovery work which left him waking up on Saturday morning with his ankle feeling strong enough to play.

Tohu Harris came in at lock although in truth Harris, Ryan Hinchcliffe and Ben Roberts seemed to switch as needed between five-eighth, hooker and lock depending on the situation.

With rookie Cameron Munster in at fullback for Slater and Smith moving to halfback for Cronk, the Storm side was much different from the one which beat South Sydney two weeks earlier.

Cowboys coach Paul Green knew the Storm would look to their forward pack to win the match. "With the players they had out I think it was always going to turn into that sort of game," Green said. "They still had a very good forward pack ... we came out on top there which was really pleasing."

Smith, who played despite the urgings of his coach Craig Bellamy, said his effort was "nothing special".

"Anyone in our position would have done the same thing," Smith said of himself and NSW representative Ryan Hoffman backing up. "It's our job to back up and play, unfortunately we're down on numbers at the moment. It wasn't hard to put the hand up and play."

Despite the heavy loss, Bellamy was pleased with the effort of his available players. "There was some real good effort out there tonight, without a doubt," he said.

The Storm faced a stern test early as the Cowboys put Munster under a high ball on the first play then driving close to the line on subsequent possessions, but in the first 10 minutes the Storm kept the home side at bay.

The Cowboys looked to be on the board 12 minutes in as Thurston put up a cross-field high ball for winger Matthew Wright.

Storm winger Young Tonumaipea leapt and caught the ball but on his way down Wright appeared to rake the ball out of his hands with Wright then grounding the ball and being given the try.

But the video review judge decided Wright had knocked the ball on so the try was overturned.

While the Storm’s tackling was sound, several holding penalties in the first 15 minutes gifted the Cowboys unnecessary extra possessions – luckily for the visitors their hosts bungled those extra chances.

In the 20^th minute the Cowboys had their first try with winger Antonio Winterstein launching himself high into the air to tip back a kick which looked to be sailing out of bounds on the left flag.

Winterstein's tip fell straight into the path of centre Kane Linnett who touched down the ball to put his side on the board, Thurston’s kick hit the post to make it 4-0.

The Cowboys' second try came five minutes before the break when Thurston spotted a gap on the left wing and put Winterstein in for an easy score with Thurston converting to make it 10-0.

Just minutes later Thurston ran in his own try when space opened on the right, his conversion making it 16-0 at half-time.

In attack Smith was trying to move between his customary first receiver position and doing the kicking duties, usually Cronk's domain, on the fifth tackle.

This was the one area of the game in which the Storm struggled with several sets ending with a player being caught in possession on the fifth tackle, the statistics showed this as Storm completed just 10 of 15 sets in the first half compared to the Cowboys' 19 of 26.

That statistic was no better at full time with the Storm having 13 less sets than the Cowboys.

The Storm started the second half with much better intent gaining several sets in the opening minutes but it still struggled to get out of its own half.

Smith, who recorded a team-high 54 tackles, was inspiring at both ends of the field but couldn't find enough game breakers in his own ranks.

The Storm's attacking struggles were compounded when Thurston twice kicked grubbers on the one possession with his second tap kick rolling over the try line, with Michael Morgan touching it down legally to make it 22-0 after 66 minutes.

The Storm's woes could be made worse as Tonumaipea was reported in the first half for a questionable tackle on Tate, with his fate to be decided early this week.

With Cronk and Slater to miss again next match, the Storm now has to find a way to beat the ominous Sydney Roosters at AAMI Park next Sunday.

With aap

Council to replace Melbourne's trees with exotic species - The Age

Elms lining St Kilda Road. Photo: Pat Scala

Melbourne's beloved tree-lined streets are under threat from the city's creeping hot, dry weather.

Inner-city soil is notably dry after an unusually hot autumn and Melbourne City Council will consider taking the unusual step of watering its trees this winter to help steel them for the year ahead, environment councillor Arron Wood said.

Streetscapes with their familiar mix of elm and plane trees are set to change, as workers plant 3000 drought-resistant trees from around the world this season.

Some of the avenues of trees in Fitzroy Gardens had suffered during the last drought and would soon need to be replaced, as would trees lining St Kilda Road, according to the council.

Melbourne Uni fees set to soar - The Age

Melbourne University Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

• Ross Gittins on the PM's biggest economic puzzle - university fee deregulation

Student fees at Melbourne University will need to rise by up to 61 per cent in some courses to manage federal budget cuts, according to Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

In an email sent to staff members on Friday May 30, Professor Davis estimated fees across the university would soar, as he outlined the university's plan to work through the budget.

“Initial analysis shows the gap [caused by reduced public funding] is momentous indeed – fees would need to rise by 45 per cent to make up lost funding in social science disciplines, by 54 per cent in Science, and by 61 per cent in Engineering,” the email said.

North Queensland Cowboys demolish injury-ravaged Melbourne Storm - Sydney Morning Herald

Cowboys 22 Storm 0

Cowboys forward Ashton Sims takes on the Melbourne defence. Photo: Getty Images

You can replace players but you can't replace champions.

Melbourne Storm tried its best to make up for the injury-enforced absence of superstar half-back Cooper Cronk and full-back Billy Slater in Townsville on Saturday night but was no match for North Queensland Cowboys who scored a 22-0 victory.

After being down 16-0 at the half, the Storm showed a few sparks early in the second but then the Cowboys took full advantage of having stars Matthew Scott, James Tamou, Brent Tate and Johnathan Thurston return fit from state of origin on Wednesday night to run away with the match.

Storm skipper Cameron Smith made a miraculous comeback from an ankle injury to play against North Queensland. Photo: Getty Images

The Storm pulled a major selection surprise with the supposedly injured captain Cameron Smith overcoming a high ankle sprain at Origin I, the same game which saw Cronk and Slater also injured, to take his place in the side.

Advertisement

Smith was said to be no chance of playing but he told Fox Sports he had completed a relentless program of physiotherapy and recovery work which left him waking up on Saturday morning with his ankle feeling strong enough to play.

Tohu Harris came in at lock although in truth Harris, Ryan Hinchcliffe and Ben Roberts seemed to switch as needed between five-eighth, hooker and lock depending on the situation.

With rookie Cameron Munster in at fullback for Slater and Smith moving to halfback for Cronk, the Storm side was much different from the one which beat South Sydney two weeks earlier.

Cowboys coach Paul Green knew the Storm would look to their forward pack to win the match. "With the players they had out I think it was always going to turn into that sort of game," Green said. "They still had a very good forward pack ... we came out on top there which was really pleasing."

Smith, who played despite the urgings of his coach Craig Bellamy, said his effort was "nothing special".

"Anyone in our position would have done the same thing," Smith said of himself and NSW representative Ryan Hoffman backing up. "It's our job to back up and play, unfortunately we're down on numbers at the moment. It wasn't hard to put the hand up and play."

Despite the heavy loss, Bellamy was pleased with the effort of his available players. "There was some real good effort out there tonight, without a doubt," he said.

The Storm faced a stern test early as the Cowboys put Munster under a high ball on the first play then driving close to the line on subsequent possessions, but in the first 10 minutes the Storm kept the home side at bay.

The Cowboys looked to be on the board 12 minutes in as Thurston put up a cross-field high ball for winger Matthew Wright.

Storm winger Young Tonumaipea leapt and caught the ball but on his way down Wright appeared to rake the ball out of his hands with Wright then grounding the ball and being given the try.

But the video review judge decided Wright had knocked the ball on so the try was overturned.

While the Storm’s tackling was sound, several holding penalties in the first 15 minutes gifted the Cowboys unnecessary extra possessions – luckily for the visitors their hosts bungled those extra chances.

In the 20^th minute the Cowboys had their first try with winger Antonio Winterstein launching himself high into the air to tip back a kick which looked to be sailing out of bounds on the left flag.

Winterstein's tip fell straight into the path of centre Kane Linnett who touched down the ball to put his side on the board, Thurston’s kick hit the post to make it 4-0.

The Cowboys' second try came five minutes before the break when Thurston spotted a gap on the left wing and put Winterstein in for an easy score with Thurston converting to make it 10-0.

Just minutes later Thurston ran in his own try when space opened on the right, his conversion making it 16-0 at half-time.

In attack Smith was trying to move between his customary first receiver position and doing the kicking duties, usually Cronk's domain, on the fifth tackle.

This was the one area of the game in which the Storm struggled with several sets ending with a player being caught in possession on the fifth tackle, the statistics showed this as Storm completed just 10 of 15 sets in the first half compared to the Cowboys' 19 of 26.

That statistic was no better at full time with the Storm having 13 less sets than the Cowboys.

The Storm started the second half with much better intent gaining several sets in the opening minutes but it still struggled to get out of its own half.

Smith, who recorded a team-high 54 tackles, was inspiring at both ends of the field but couldn't find enough game breakers in his own ranks.

The Storm's attacking struggles were compounded when Thurston twice kicked grubbers on the one possession with his second tap kick rolling over the try line, with Michael Morgan touching it down legally to make it 22-0 after 66 minutes.

The Storm's woes could be made worse as Tonumaipea was reported in the first half for a questionable tackle on Tate, with his fate to be decided early this week.

With Cronk and Slater to miss again next match, the Storm now has to find a way to beat the ominous Sydney Roosters at AAMI Park next Sunday.

With aap

Council to replace Melbourne's trees with exotic species - The Age

Elms lining St Kilda Road. Photo: Pat Scala

Melbourne's beloved tree-lined streets are under threat from the city's creeping hot, dry weather.

Inner-city soil is notably dry after an unusually hot autumn and Melbourne City Council will consider taking the unusual step of watering its trees this winter to help steel them for the year ahead, environment councillor Arron Wood said.

Streetscapes with their familiar mix of elm and plane trees are set to change, as workers plant 3000 drought-resistant trees from around the world this season.

Some of the avenues of trees in Fitzroy Gardens had suffered during the last drought and would soon need to be replaced, as would trees lining St Kilda Road, according to the council.

Melbourne Uni fees set to soar - The Age

Melbourne University Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

• Ross Gittins on the PM's biggest economic puzzle - university fee deregulation

Student fees at Melbourne University will need to rise by up to 61 per cent in some courses to manage federal budget cuts, according to Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

In an email sent to staff members on Friday May 30, Professor Davis estimated fees across the university would soar, as he outlined the university's plan to work through the budget.

“Initial analysis shows the gap [caused by reduced public funding] is momentous indeed – fees would need to rise by 45 per cent to make up lost funding in social science disciplines, by 54 per cent in Science, and by 61 per cent in Engineering,” the email said.

North Queensland Cowboys demolish injury-ravaged Melbourne Storm - Sydney Morning Herald

Cowboys 22 Storm 0

Cowboys forward Ashton Sims takes on the Melbourne defence. Photo: Getty Images

You can replace players but you can't replace champions.

Melbourne Storm tried its best to make up for the injury-enforced absence of superstar half-back Cooper Cronk and full-back Billy Slater in Townsville on Saturday night but was no match for North Queensland Cowboys who scored a 22-0 victory.

After being down 16-0 at the half, the Storm showed a few sparks early in the second but then the Cowboys took full advantage of having stars Matthew Scott, James Tamou, Brent Tate and Johnathan Thurston return fit from state of origin on Wednesday night to run away with the match.

Storm skipper Cameron Smith made a miraculous comeback from an ankle injury to play against North Queensland. Photo: Getty Images

The Storm pulled a major selection surprise with the supposedly injured captain Cameron Smith overcoming a high ankle sprain at Origin I, the same game which saw Cronk and Slater also injured, to take his place in the side.

Advertisement

Smith was said to be no chance of playing but he told Fox Sports he had completed a relentless program of physiotherapy and recovery work which left him waking up on Saturday morning with his ankle feeling strong enough to play.

Tohu Harris came in at lock although in truth Harris, Ryan Hinchcliffe and Ben Roberts seemed to switch as needed between five-eighth, hooker and lock depending on the situation.

With rookie Cameron Munster in at fullback for Slater and Smith moving to halfback for Cronk, the Storm side was much different from the one which beat South Sydney two weeks earlier.

Cowboys coach Paul Green knew the Storm would look to their forward pack to win the match. "With the players they had out I think it was always going to turn into that sort of game," Green said. "They still had a very good forward pack ... we came out on top there which was really pleasing."

Smith, who played despite the urgings of his coach Craig Bellamy, said his effort was "nothing special".

"Anyone in our position would have done the same thing," Smith said of himself and NSW representative Ryan Hoffman backing up. "It's our job to back up and play, unfortunately we're down on numbers at the moment. It wasn't hard to put the hand up and play."

Despite the heavy loss, Bellamy was pleased with the effort of his available players. "There was some real good effort out there tonight, without a doubt," he said.

The Storm faced a stern test early as the Cowboys put Munster under a high ball on the first play then driving close to the line on subsequent possessions, but in the first 10 minutes the Storm kept the home side at bay.

The Cowboys looked to be on the board 12 minutes in as Thurston put up a cross-field high ball for winger Matthew Wright.

Storm winger Young Tonumaipea leapt and caught the ball but on his way down Wright appeared to rake the ball out of his hands with Wright then grounding the ball and being given the try.

But the video review judge decided Wright had knocked the ball on so the try was overturned.

While the Storm’s tackling was sound, several holding penalties in the first 15 minutes gifted the Cowboys unnecessary extra possessions – luckily for the visitors their hosts bungled those extra chances.

In the 20^th minute the Cowboys had their first try with winger Antonio Winterstein launching himself high into the air to tip back a kick which looked to be sailing out of bounds on the left flag.

Winterstein's tip fell straight into the path of centre Kane Linnett who touched down the ball to put his side on the board, Thurston’s kick hit the post to make it 4-0.

The Cowboys' second try came five minutes before the break when Thurston spotted a gap on the left wing and put Winterstein in for an easy score with Thurston converting to make it 10-0.

Just minutes later Thurston ran in his own try when space opened on the right, his conversion making it 16-0 at half-time.

In attack Smith was trying to move between his customary first receiver position and doing the kicking duties, usually Cronk's domain, on the fifth tackle.

This was the one area of the game in which the Storm struggled with several sets ending with a player being caught in possession on the fifth tackle, the statistics showed this as Storm completed just 10 of 15 sets in the first half compared to the Cowboys' 19 of 26.

That statistic was no better at full time with the Storm having 13 less sets than the Cowboys.

The Storm started the second half with much better intent gaining several sets in the opening minutes but it still struggled to get out of its own half.

Smith, who recorded a team-high 54 tackles, was inspiring at both ends of the field but couldn't find enough game breakers in his own ranks.

The Storm's attacking struggles were compounded when Thurston twice kicked grubbers on the one possession with his second tap kick rolling over the try line, with Michael Morgan touching it down legally to make it 22-0 after 66 minutes.

The Storm's woes could be made worse as Tonumaipea was reported in the first half for a questionable tackle on Tate, with his fate to be decided early this week.

With Cronk and Slater to miss again next match, the Storm now has to find a way to beat the ominous Sydney Roosters at AAMI Park next Sunday.

With aap

Council to replace Melbourne's trees with exotic species - The Age

Elms lining St Kilda Road. Photo: Pat Scala

Melbourne's beloved tree-lined streets are under threat from the city's creeping hot, dry weather.

Inner-city soil is notably dry after an unusually hot autumn and Melbourne City Council will consider taking the unusual step of watering its trees this winter to help steel them for the year ahead, environment councillor Arron Wood said.

Streetscapes with their familiar mix of elm and plane trees are set to change, as workers plant 3000 drought-resistant trees from around the world this season.

Some of the avenues of trees in Fitzroy Gardens had suffered during the last drought and would soon need to be replaced, as would trees lining St Kilda Road, according to the council.

Melbourne Uni fees set to soar - The Age

Melbourne University Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

• Ross Gittins on the PM's biggest economic puzzle - university fee deregulation

Student fees at Melbourne University will need to rise by up to 61 per cent in some courses to manage federal budget cuts, according to Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

In an email sent to staff members on Friday May 30, Professor Davis estimated fees across the university would soar, as he outlined the university's plan to work through the budget.

“Initial analysis shows the gap [caused by reduced public funding] is momentous indeed – fees would need to rise by 45 per cent to make up lost funding in social science disciplines, by 54 per cent in Science, and by 61 per cent in Engineering,” the email said.

North Queensland Cowboys demolish injury-ravaged Melbourne Storm - Sydney Morning Herald

Cowboys 22 Storm 0

Cowboys forward Ashton Sims takes on the Melbourne defence. Photo: Getty Images

You can replace players but you can't replace champions.

Melbourne Storm tried its best to make up for the injury-enforced absence of superstar half-back Cooper Cronk and full-back Billy Slater in Townsville on Saturday night but was no match for North Queensland Cowboys who scored a 22-0 victory.

After being down 16-0 at the half, the Storm showed a few sparks early in the second but then the Cowboys took full advantage of having stars Matthew Scott, James Tamou, Brent Tate and Johnathan Thurston return fit from state of origin on Wednesday night to run away with the match.

Storm skipper Cameron Smith made a miraculous comeback from an ankle injury to play against North Queensland. Photo: Getty Images

The Storm pulled a major selection surprise with the supposedly injured captain Cameron Smith overcoming a high ankle sprain at Origin I, the same game which saw Cronk and Slater also injured, to take his place in the side.

Advertisement

Smith was said to be no chance of playing but he told Fox Sports he had completed a relentless program of physiotherapy and recovery work which left him waking up on Saturday morning with his ankle feeling strong enough to play.

Tohu Harris came in at lock although in truth Harris, Ryan Hinchcliffe and Ben Roberts seemed to switch as needed between five-eighth, hooker and lock depending on the situation.

With rookie Cameron Munster in at fullback for Slater and Smith moving to halfback for Cronk, the Storm side was much different from the one which beat South Sydney two weeks earlier.

Cowboys coach Paul Green knew the Storm would look to their forward pack to win the match. "With the players they had out I think it was always going to turn into that sort of game," Green said. "They still had a very good forward pack ... we came out on top there which was really pleasing."

Smith, who played despite the urgings of his coach Craig Bellamy, said his effort was "nothing special".

"Anyone in our position would have done the same thing," Smith said of himself and NSW representative Ryan Hoffman backing up. "It's our job to back up and play, unfortunately we're down on numbers at the moment. It wasn't hard to put the hand up and play."

Despite the heavy loss, Bellamy was pleased with the effort of his available players. "There was some real good effort out there tonight, without a doubt," he said.

The Storm faced a stern test early as the Cowboys put Munster under a high ball on the first play then driving close to the line on subsequent possessions, but in the first 10 minutes the Storm kept the home side at bay.

The Cowboys looked to be on the board 12 minutes in as Thurston put up a cross-field high ball for winger Matthew Wright.

Storm winger Young Tonumaipea leapt and caught the ball but on his way down Wright appeared to rake the ball out of his hands with Wright then grounding the ball and being given the try.

But the video review judge decided Wright had knocked the ball on so the try was overturned.

While the Storm’s tackling was sound, several holding penalties in the first 15 minutes gifted the Cowboys unnecessary extra possessions – luckily for the visitors their hosts bungled those extra chances.

In the 20^th minute the Cowboys had their first try with winger Antonio Winterstein launching himself high into the air to tip back a kick which looked to be sailing out of bounds on the left flag.

Winterstein's tip fell straight into the path of centre Kane Linnett who touched down the ball to put his side on the board, Thurston’s kick hit the post to make it 4-0.

The Cowboys' second try came five minutes before the break when Thurston spotted a gap on the left wing and put Winterstein in for an easy score with Thurston converting to make it 10-0.

Just minutes later Thurston ran in his own try when space opened on the right, his conversion making it 16-0 at half-time.

In attack Smith was trying to move between his customary first receiver position and doing the kicking duties, usually Cronk's domain, on the fifth tackle.

This was the one area of the game in which the Storm struggled with several sets ending with a player being caught in possession on the fifth tackle, the statistics showed this as Storm completed just 10 of 15 sets in the first half compared to the Cowboys' 19 of 26.

That statistic was no better at full time with the Storm having 13 less sets than the Cowboys.

The Storm started the second half with much better intent gaining several sets in the opening minutes but it still struggled to get out of its own half.

Smith, who recorded a team-high 54 tackles, was inspiring at both ends of the field but couldn't find enough game breakers in his own ranks.

The Storm's attacking struggles were compounded when Thurston twice kicked grubbers on the one possession with his second tap kick rolling over the try line, with Michael Morgan touching it down legally to make it 22-0 after 66 minutes.

The Storm's woes could be made worse as Tonumaipea was reported in the first half for a questionable tackle on Tate, with his fate to be decided early this week.

With Cronk and Slater to miss again next match, the Storm now has to find a way to beat the ominous Sydney Roosters at AAMI Park next Sunday.

With aap

Council to replace Melbourne's trees with exotic species - The Age

Elms lining St Kilda Road. Photo: Pat Scala

Melbourne's beloved tree-lined streets are under threat from the city's creeping hot, dry weather.

Inner-city soil is notably dry after an unusually hot autumn and Melbourne City Council will consider taking the unusual step of watering its trees this winter to help steel them for the year ahead, environment councillor Arron Wood said.

Streetscapes with their familiar mix of elm and plane trees are set to change, as workers plant 3000 drought-resistant trees from around the world this season.

Some of the avenues of trees in Fitzroy Gardens had suffered during the last drought and would soon need to be replaced, as would trees lining St Kilda Road, according to the council.

Melbourne Uni fees set to soar - The Age

Melbourne University Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

• Ross Gittins on the PM's biggest economic puzzle - university fee deregulation

Student fees at Melbourne University will need to rise by up to 61 per cent in some courses to manage federal budget cuts, according to Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis.

In an email sent to staff members on Friday May 30, Professor Davis estimated fees across the university would soar, as he outlined the university's plan to work through the budget.

“Initial analysis shows the gap [caused by reduced public funding] is momentous indeed – fees would need to rise by 45 per cent to make up lost funding in social science disciplines, by 54 per cent in Science, and by 61 per cent in Engineering,” the email said.

North Queensland Cowboys demolish injury-ravaged Melbourne Storm - Sydney Morning Herald

Cowboys 22 Storm 0

Cowboys forward Ashton Sims takes on the Melbourne defence. Photo: Getty Images

You can replace players but you can't replace champions.

Melbourne Storm tried its best to make up for the injury-enforced absence of superstar half-back Cooper Cronk and full-back Billy Slater in Townsville on Saturday night but was no match for North Queensland Cowboys who scored a 22-0 victory.

After being down 16-0 at the half, the Storm showed a few sparks early in the second but then the Cowboys took full advantage of having stars Matthew Scott, James Tamou, Brent Tate and Johnathan Thurston return fit from state of origin on Wednesday night to run away with the match.

Storm skipper Cameron Smith made a miraculous comeback from an ankle injury to play against North Queensland. Photo: Getty Images

The Storm pulled a major selection surprise with the supposedly injured captain Cameron Smith overcoming a high ankle sprain at Origin I, the same game which saw Cronk and Slater also injured, to take his place in the side.

Advertisement

Smith was said to be no chance of playing but he told Fox Sports he had completed a relentless program of physiotherapy and recovery work which left him waking up on Saturday morning with his ankle feeling strong enough to play.

Tohu Harris came in at lock although in truth Harris, Ryan Hinchcliffe and Ben Roberts seemed to switch as needed between five-eighth, hooker and lock depending on the situation.

With rookie Cameron Munster in at fullback for Slater and Smith moving to halfback for Cronk, the Storm side was much different from the one which beat South Sydney two weeks earlier.

Cowboys coach Paul Green knew the Storm would look to their forward pack to win the match. "With the players they had out I think it was always going to turn into that sort of game," Green said. "They still had a very good forward pack ... we came out on top there which was really pleasing."

Smith, who played despite the urgings of his coach Craig Bellamy, said his effort was "nothing special".

"Anyone in our position would have done the same thing," Smith said of himself and NSW representative Ryan Hoffman backing up. "It's our job to back up and play, unfortunately we're down on numbers at the moment. It wasn't hard to put the hand up and play."

Despite the heavy loss, Bellamy was pleased with the effort of his available players. "There was some real good effort out there tonight, without a doubt," he said.

The Storm faced a stern test early as the Cowboys put Munster under a high ball on the first play then driving close to the line on subsequent possessions, but in the first 10 minutes the Storm kept the home side at bay.

The Cowboys looked to be on the board 12 minutes in as Thurston put up a cross-field high ball for winger Matthew Wright.

Storm winger Young Tonumaipea leapt and caught the ball but on his way down Wright appeared to rake the ball out of his hands with Wright then grounding the ball and being given the try.

But the video review judge decided Wright had knocked the ball on so the try was overturned.

While the Storm’s tackling was sound, several holding penalties in the first 15 minutes gifted the Cowboys unnecessary extra possessions – luckily for the visitors their hosts bungled those extra chances.

In the 20^th minute the Cowboys had their first try with winger Antonio Winterstein launching himself high into the air to tip back a kick which looked to be sailing out of bounds on the left flag.

Winterstein's tip fell straight into the path of centre Kane Linnett who touched down the ball to put his side on the board, Thurston’s kick hit the post to make it 4-0.

The Cowboys' second try came five minutes before the break when Thurston spotted a gap on the left wing and put Winterstein in for an easy score with Thurston converting to make it 10-0.

Just minutes later Thurston ran in his own try when space opened on the right, his conversion making it 16-0 at half-time.

In attack Smith was trying to move between his customary first receiver position and doing the kicking duties, usually Cronk's domain, on the fifth tackle.

This was the one area of the game in which the Storm struggled with several sets ending with a player being caught in possession on the fifth tackle, the statistics showed this as Storm completed just 10 of 15 sets in the first half compared to the Cowboys' 19 of 26.

That statistic was no better at full time with the Storm having 13 less sets than the Cowboys.

The Storm started the second half with much better intent gaining several sets in the opening minutes but it still struggled to get out of its own half.

Smith, who recorded a team-high 54 tackles, was inspiring at both ends of the field but couldn't find enough game breakers in his own ranks.

The Storm's attacking struggles were compounded when Thurston twice kicked grubbers on the one possession with his second tap kick rolling over the try line, with Michael Morgan touching it down legally to make it 22-0 after 66 minutes.

The Storm's woes could be made worse as Tonumaipea was reported in the first half for a questionable tackle on Tate, with his fate to be decided early this week.

With Cronk and Slater to miss again next match, the Storm now has to find a way to beat the ominous Sydney Roosters at AAMI Park next Sunday.

With aap