Australian sports quiz of the year 2017

Richmond celebrations after the Tigers’ AFL grand final win in 2017. Photograph: Matt King/AFL Media/Getty Images

1. Richmond ended the 10th longest premiership drought in VFL/AFL history this year (37 years, last premiership 1980). Which team has the longest active drought, and when did they last win a premiership?

   1. St Kilda, 1966

   2. Melbourne, 1966

   3. St Kilda, 1964

   4. Melbourne, 1964

2. Ellyse Perry rewrote the record books during the Ashes series against England with the first double Test century on Australian soil and the best ever knock by an Australian woman. What was her unbeaten score at North Sydney Oval?

   1. 201

   2. 213

   3. 236

   4. 228

3. How did Tim Cahill celebrate his goal against Syria in October that took the Socceroos through to the next round of World Cup qualifying?

   1. Traditional pummelling of the corner flag

   2. Promoting an online travel agency

   3. Lap of honour high-fiving ball boys

   4. Stacks on

4. The AFLW took the nation by storm in its inaugural season this year. Who was the league's top goal kicker with 14?

   1. Moana Hope (Collingwood)

   2. ‎Darcy Vescio‎ (Carlton)

   3. Alyssa Mifsud (Melbourne)

   4. Sarah Perkins (Adelaide)

5. 

   Sydney FC were the year's outstanding domestic football team, being crowned A-League premiers and then winning the grand final with a penalty shootout win over Melbourne Victory. Who slotted home the winning spot kick?

   1. Bôbo

   2. David Carney

   3. Rhyan Grant

   4. Miloš Ninković

6. Who said this? "I was trending more than Donald Trump last night."

   1. Jeff Horn

   2. Caitlin Bassett

   3. Jack Riewoldt

   4. Ashleigh Barty

7. Australian cyclist Shane Perkins switched allegiances in 2017 to keep alive his chances of appearing at the Olympic Games in 2020. Which country is he now hoping to represent in Tokyo?

   1. Russia

   2. Kazakhstan

   3. Great Britain

   4. New Zealand

8. Sam Kerr became the fourth Australian to win the Asian player of the year award this year, joining two of her current Matildas team-mates. Which ones?

   1. Caitlin Foord and Lisa De Vanna

   2. Steph Catley and Emily van Egmond

   3. Claire Polkinghorne and Steph Catley

   4. Caitlin Foord and Katrina Gorry

9. Tyler Wright claimed back-to-back world surfing titles this year. How many individual events did she win on her way to her second world crown?

   1. One

   2. Two

   3. Three

   4. Four

10. 

    The NRL celebrated Indigenous culture in round 10 this year. Who do these boots, boasting Indigenous artwork, belong to?

    1. John Sutton

    2. Alex Johnston

    3. Kyle Turner

    4. Angus Crichton

11. Who said this? "It's been the biggest privilege of my life and probably not the ending I had envisaged when we started, but at the same time, knowing it's the right time for me and the right decision."

    1. New South Wales State of Origin coach Laurie Daley

    2. Western Sydney Wanderers coach Tony Popovic

    3. Cronulla Sharks chairman Damian Keogh

    4. Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou

12. Bernard Tomic endured a year to forget, struggling with motivation and form as he plummeted down the rankings from a high of 16th in 2016. How low exactly did the Queenslander go?

    1. 109

    2. 123

    3. 141

    4. 176

13. Which country supplied the first three finishers at this year's Melbourne Cup?

    1. UAE

    2. UK

    3. Ireland

    4. Australia

14. 

    It was a largely forgettable year for rugby union in Australia. The Wallabies endured a difficult season but the nation's Super Rugby teams performed arguably worse. How many victories over the course of the season did the five teams muster between them?

    1. 17

    2. 21

    3. 26

    4. 30

15. Which two teams appeared in both the men's and women's Big Bash League finals in January this year?

    1. Sydney Sixers and Perth Scorchers

    2. Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars

    3. Sydney Thunder and Adelaide Strikers

    4. Brisbane Heat and Melbourne Renegades

16. Who said this? "This is like dumping the fastest improving athlete or the silver medallist from the Olympic swimming squad and leaving the worst performer in there."

    1. Andrew Forrest on the ARU's decision to axe the Western Force from Super Rugby

    2. Lisa De Vanna on Sam Kerr's omission from the final world player of the year shortlist

    3. Michael Clarke on the decision to leave Matthew Wade out of the Ashes squad

    4. Mark Bosnich on Aaron Mooy's benching for the Socceroos' crucial World Cup qualifier against Syria

17. Queensland's State of Origin dominance continued this year after New South Wales blew a great chance to win just a second series in the past 12. Who was this year's top points scorer?

    1. Valentine Holmes

    2. James Maloney

    3. Cameron Smith

    4. Mitchell Pearce

Solutions

1:D - Four-time premiership-winning coach Alastair Clarkson wasn't even a glimmer in his parents' eyes the last time the Demons tasted success, 2:B - Perry's incredible knock stole headlines, but could not help Australia win the four-day Test match. Still, the hosts went on to retain the Ashes, 3:B - The striker eschewed his usual celebration (answer A) and instead mimed a letter that corresponded with the name of the agency, for which he is a brand ambassador, 4:B - The Blues' marquee enjoyed a standout season and was voted on to the All-Australian team, 5:D - The Serbian playmaker, who was the driving force behind the Sky Blues' year, also won the Johnny Warren medal in 2017, 6:C - Richmond's spearhead joined rock group the Killers on stage after the Tigers' grand final victory – and made headlines around the world, 7:A - The Olympic bronze medallist and dual world champion said he was ‘very grateful’ to Vladimir Putin after the Russian president signed an executive order to rubber-stamp the switch, 8:D - Foord won it in 2016 and Gorry in 2014. Kate Gill is the only other Australian woman to have won the award, in 2010., 9:A - In a remarkably tight field, the Australian won just one event – the Oi Rio Women's Pro, 10:D - The South Sydney player wore the boots against the Wests Tigers. Bonus fact: Crichton had his troublesome middle finger amputated this month to avoid any more injury layoffs this upcoming season., 11:D - We're still waiting for a full explanation of why he quit his post after guiding the Socceroos to next year's World Cup finals in Russia, 12:C - Tomic won just 10 of his 39 matches during a disastrous year, 13:C - Winner Rekindling, runner-up Johannes Vermeer and Max Dynamite are all trained in Ireland, 14:B - This figure would have been much worse had they not been able to play other Australian teams, 15:A - The Scorchers won both finals, 16:A - The billionaire led a campaign to keep the Force in the competition – to no avail, 17:B - The Blues' five-eighth might have ended on the losing side but his 18 points edged out Holmes, who was top try-scorer with four

Scores

1. 17 and above.

2. 16 and above.

3. 15 and above.

4. 14 and above.

5. 13 and above.

6. 12 and above.

7. 11 and above.

8. 10 and above.

9. 9 and above.

10. 8 and above.

11. 7 and above.

12. 6 and above.

13. 5 and above.

    Rubbish!

14. 4 and above.

    Rubbish!

15. 3 and above.

    Rubbish!

16. 2 and above.

    Rubbish!

17. 0 and above.

    Rubbish!

18. 1 and above.

    Rubbish!