Following a boom in craft beers comes the new trend, craft gin, with Australian spirits the international flavour of the moment.

A man who attempted to abduct a woman on the NSW Central Coast on Sunday is believed to be the same person who sexually assaulted a 12-year-old girl last month.

The father of a young girl who uses medicinal cannabis to treat her severe form of epilepsy vows to continue lobbying for law reform, after being found guilty of charges of possession and cultivation.

Regional communities are being touted as winners in this year's New South Wales budget, crowned by a Regional Growth Fund of more than $1 billion for projects to promote economic advancement outside of cities.

A fake doctor working at a Sydney hospital was detected as a fraud but allowed to continue working in the health system, an independent inquiry is told.

A NSW Central Coast man has been donning camouflage to attack girls, one as young as 12, with police describing the clothing worn in one attack as a ghillie suit.

A man is taken to hospital after crashing an allegedly stolen truck full of donuts and flavoured milk into a family home on the Central Coast.

Take a peak inside the pouch of the world's friendliest animal, with a baby quokka born far away from its native West Australian home Rottnest Island.

Sunday proves to be a day of A-League score draws as the Mariners hold Victory to a 1-1 draw after the Jets and Wanderers battle it out for the same scoreline.

The principal of three alternative schools in New South Wales says she will run them illegally if she is forced to close following a scathing report into their compliance.

Adelaide United travels to Gosford to meet Central Coast Mariners as it looks to break a three-match losing streak in the A-League. Follow all the live scores, stats and commentary.

The Video Assistant Referee has again been a focal point as the Western Sydney Wanderers recorded a 2-0 win over nine-man Central Coast Mariners.

Angry Mariners coach Paul Okon pledges to appeal against red cards handed to Wout Brama and Jake McGing from Saturday night's controversial loss, as the Video Assistant Referee yet again comes under the spotlight.

Review systems in sport are always controversial but Central Coast Mariners' coach Paul Okon's broadside against the Video Assistant Referee this weekend should not be dismissed out of hand, Richard Hinds writes.

Three men with links to the Rebels bikie gang are refused bail after being charged with the murder of a Central Coast man who was beaten so severely he spent two months in a coma before dying.

A highly contentious underground coal mine on the New South Wales Central Coast has been given the go-ahead, despite an election "guarantee" against coal mining in the region.

The tone of talks may have improved, but a pay deal is yet to be thrashed out ahead of a planned rail strike that will cause commuter chaos later this month.

Visually impaired children at a surfing event in the NSW Hunter region are encouraged to get into sports and not let their disability hold them back.

Central Coast Mariners midfielder Wout Brama faces a nervous wait for the A-League match review panel to ponder his horrible tackle which left Brisbane Roar forward Corey Gameiro in tears.

For Edward Daly, who was at a rehab centre on the NSW Central Coast to get over his ice, alcohol and gambling addictions, having his partner involved in his recovery made all the difference.

Sydney has lost nearly 20 per cent of its essential workers in the past decade because of the city's housing affordability crisis, a report finds.

Commuters can expect long delays heading north from Sydney on the M1, with two lanes closed and traffic stretching back 21 kilometres after a man died in a crash between a ute and semi-trailer at Mt White, north of Sydney.

An incident in which a gas ignition sent a wall of fire over underground miners could have been deadly, the NSW Resources Regulator says in its initial investigation report.

More than 500 workers in Sydney have their jobs terminated after the collapse of the Red Lea chicken company, leaving staff without pay and "eating two-minute noodles for dinner", one former manager says.

Seven people who have eaten frozen pomegranate purchased at Coles have been diagnosed with a unique strain of hepatitis A, prompting a recall of what the company behind the product describes as "a relatively small batch".

The sizzle of a steak on a barbecue may soon sound a little different as Australia's $16.8 billion beef industry prepares to adapt to demands from 'locavores' and technological change.

The growing demand for transparency and ethically, socially and environmentally sustainable food is one of the hot topics at Beef Australia 2018.

Brendan Russell's body modification work includes tongue splitting and scarification, but court documents allege he used a branding iron to burn a woman's genitals, who later complained to police.

Legendary Australian boxer Troy Waters, a former junior middleweight world title boxing contender, dies at the age of 53 following a long battle with leukaemia.

Penrith brings down competition leaders St George Illawarra to the tune of 28-2, while the Sydney Roosters and Rabbitohs both record convincing wins.

Football loves a sugar hit and the tabloid frenzy created by images of Usain Bolt in a Mariners shirt had the capacity to give the entire A-League Type 2 diabetes. But the FFA was right not to fund his Central Coast trial, Richard Hinds writes.

A farmer near Gunnedah is feeding his cattle orange peel, donated by a juice factory, in a bid to keep them alive as the drought wears on.

Colin Crane, a life member of the Rebels bikie club, appears in court charged with the murder of Clint Starkey at a Peats Ridge service station last year.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is investigating allegations of unconscionable conduct towards growers by one of the country's major vegetable processors.

A man is charged over the death of a woman after he allegedly implanted a plastic snowflake under her skin at a NSW Central Coast tattoo shop.

Some of Australia's most prestigious arts companies Bangarra, Australian Theatre for Young People and Australian Chamber Orchestra have cancelled tours to regional New South Wales, after the state's arts funding agency delivered the lowest funding round in its history.

Usain Bolt has taken part in his first training session with the Central Coast Mariners, in a trial period seeking an A-League contract.

The union between a struggling football club and one of the world's greatest Olympic athletes comes from way outside the box, but each party brings to the table what the other desperately desires, writes Tracey Holmes.

It was plain to see Usain Bolt's second training session with the Central Coast Mariners was gruelling and that he was giving it his all but believe it or not, coach Mike Mulvey is asking him for more speed.

A Berejiklian Government MP has revolted against his own party's policy, backing his "local fishing community" over his Government's plan to introduce 25 new marine park sites across the state.

A 19-year-old university student from the New South Wales Central Coast dies from meningococcal disease, the region's second death from the illness in as many months, prompting authorities to issue a warning.

The Prime Minister says the Government will maintain Foodbank's funding following community anger over plans to slash its budget in half.

Eve van Grafhorst was almost three when she was diagnosed with HIV in 1985. Then she was banned from childcare, and eventually her family was hounded to New Zealand where they started a new life.

A man is charged with supplying the drugs police believe 19-year-old Alex Ross-King took before she died from a suspected fatal overdose at a dance festival in western Sydney at the weekend.

While many find them majestic, the pride of the township of Ourimbah is often seen in trees, atop cars, feeding on bird seed on porches, and more recently as roadkill.

A patent application has been granted which Meat and Livestock Australia fears will have a chilling effect on genomic research in Australia's cattle industries.