Monday Buzz: Phil Rothfield reveals his weekend lowlights and highlights

After a remarkable month, Channel 7 has celebrated another huge night with the Women’s World Cup final drawing another massive audience.

Even without the Matildas, Channel 7 scored a blockbuster rating of more than three million viewers for Sunday night’s World Cup final at Stadium Australia.

The audience for Spain’s 1-0 victory over England was 3.072 million on the network’s free-to-air channels and streaming service 7 Plus.

It has been a remarkable month for the network that paid just $4.5 million for the rights, considering Channel 9 has paid $325 million for the next three Olympic Games.

Meanwhile, the ratings for the Matildas on Saturday night in the bronze medal playoff against Sweden at Suncorp Stadium were still higher than a State of Origin game or NRL grand final. Channel 7 had an audience 3.384 million. It peaked at 6.2 million. Bring on the Olympic trials in Perth next month.

Phil Rothfield reveals his highlights and lowlights from an action-packed weekend of sport in Australia’s best gossip column, Monday Buzz.

HIGHLIGHT

The TV ratings for the Matildas on Saturday night in the bronze medal playoff against Sweden at Suncorp Stadium were still higher than a State of Origin game or NRL grand final. Channel 7 had an audience 3.384 million. It peaked at 6.2 million. Bring on the Olympic trials in Perth next month.

LOWLIGHT

The tragic passing of South Sydney Rabbitohs’ 2014 premiership-winning forward Kyle Turner at just 31. It’s stories like this one that put wins, losses and competition points each week into perspective. The welfare of retired players is more important than anything else.

#1100 🐰 pic.twitter.com/I8etfC1Ly3

— South Sydney Rabbitohs 🐰 (@SSFCRABBITOHS) August 20, 2023

SPOTTED

For a bloke who vowed to get off alcohol, it was a surprise to see Eels star Dylan Brown on the dancefloor at the Mean Fiddler Hotel at Rouse Hill over the weekend. On Sunday night, Brown explained to the Eels he was attending a birthday party, was the designated driver, and didn’t drink alcohol.

Social media pictures of Dylan Brown.

Dylan Brown leaves court. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Jeremy Piper

SPOTTED

St George Illawarra five-eighth Junior Amone is free to travel to New Zealand to play the Warriors after police returned his passport at the completion of his court case on Friday. The magistrate will hand down his verdict in two weeks on his alleged hammer attack on a building site.

SPOTTED

Roosters forward Nathan Brown returned home to CommBank Stadium on Friday in the club’s NSW Cup side against his old club the Parramatta Eels. He was sin binned twice – in the 31st and 55th minutes. One was for striking and one for a high tackle. The NSWRL match review committee will determine if he has cases to answer on Monday.

Nathan Brown was sin binned twice on the weekend. Picture: Matt King/Getty

SPOTTED

The Warriors continue to get a dream run with the refs. They had six set restarts to Manly’s one in New Zealand on Friday night. They have lost only one penalty count since their major sponsor, Jason Paris, accused refs of cheating in May.

360 VIEW

Catch you Monday on NRL 360 on Fox League at 6.30pm with Braith Anasta, Gorden Tallis, Brent Read and Cooper Cronk to discuss all the major issues from another drama-charged round of footy.

EELS ICON ‘SHATTERED’ OVER LOST RING

It took Parramatta Eels legend Peter Wynn 42 years to get an NRL premiership ring from the 1981 grand final victory over Newtown – and he’s already lost it.

Six weeks ago the Eels awarded the rings to all players from the 1981, 82, 83 and 86 teams to acknowledge the champions who wore the jersey in their golden era.

Zed n Zed jewellers made the gold and diamond rings for every player.

Wynn was recently in the surf with one of his grandchildren on the North Coast at Lennox Head.

Locals look for Peter Wynn's premiership ring.

Parramatta legend Peter Wynn with his premiership ring.

Somehow it slipped off while they were in the water.

At low tide locals went looking for it with a metal detector. No luck.

“I was shattered,” Wynn said.

“It was the first time I’d had it off my finger.

“You’ve got no idea how much it meant to me. I was rattled.

“At least my name was on the ring … so if anyone finds it, please let me know.”

Both the jeweller Allan Zreik and Eels chief executive Jim Sarantinos have offered to replace the ring.

And you can guarantee Wynn won’t be wearing it in the surf any time soon.