Just not cricket: Why England risk injury to play football in the warm-up October 24, 2018 Jonny Bairstow’s ankle injury, which has made him a doubt for England’s opening Test match against Sri Lanka on 6 November, has sparked a familiar discussion in the cricket world. England’s players and staff are always dreading injuries, especially to someone of Bairstow’s importance. But the origin of his problem will have caused further consternation [...]
Trevor Steven: Arsenal have rediscovered their team spirit and it is fuelling their revival under Unai Emery October 23, 2018 On the eve of the season, when we were all making our predictions, I felt that the Arsenal squad that Unai Emery was inheriting was very good – but one that was in need of a push. Having lost his first two matches – understandably, since little was expected against Manchester City and Chelsea – [...]
PSV Eindhoven v Tottenham: Mauricio Pochettino’s side need to grind out a win to keep the project on track October 23, 2018 It wasn’t supposed to be like this for Tottenham. Their third consecutive season in the Champions League was meant to see the club push on and compete with Europe’s elite inside their shiny new stadium. But after two games they are already at a make-or-break stage. Successive defeats by Inter Milan and Barcelona – each [...]
Hong Kong Horse Racing Tips: Purton out to electrify Happy Valley punters with Raichu October 23, 2018 IT’S A rare occurrence in Hong Kong racing when a jockey is retained by a stable. Trainer John Moore has done it twice in recent times while the mooted return of Joao Moreira as stable jockey for John Size in December will be another rare association. With no jockeys’ agents allowed in Hong Kong, unless [...]
Hong Kong Horse Racing Tips: Mauritian magician Teetan can Blitz to glory for connections October 23, 2018 REGULAR Hong Kong punters face a headache when racing resumes at Happy Valley this afternoon. It’s tough enough trying to find winners around this sharp and turning circuit, but when racing takes place on the notorious ‘C+3’ track, which is just wide enough to get a dozen starting stalls across the course, luck is going [...]
Wembley Stadium sale: Why Shahid Khan’s £600m offer for the national stadium met such resistance October 23, 2018 England’s unexpectedly successful World Cup summer created an atmosphere of togetherness that captured hearts and minds. Despite failing to deliver the trophy the nation craved, it brought a greater prize back to our shores. Amid the beer sloshing, waistcoat wearing and anthem singing, football had come home. It was soon back to business for the [...]
Arsenal 3-1 Leicester: Five things we learned as Ozil and Aubameyang lead Gunners to 10th straight win October 22, 2018 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang came off the bench to score twice in five minutes against Leicester and earn Arsenal a 10th straight win for the first time in 11 years. After an even first half, Unai Emery’s substitutions helped the free-flowing Gunners hit their stride and make up for their still error-prone back line. Read more: Five things [...]
Sam Torrance: Brooks Koepka is a deserving world No1 and has what it takes to stay at the top October 22, 2018 Brooks Koepka is the new world No1 after another extraordinary win at the weekend, this time at the CJ Cup in South Korea, lifted him above fellow American Dustin Johnson – and he totally deserves it. Koepka and Johnson are long-time friends and training buddies but the former has eclipsed the latter this year. DJ [...]
Five things we learned from the Premier League this weekend: Hodgson too cautious, Lamela back in business, United need to be unshackled and more October 21, 2018 Crystal Palace have many problems but leaving scoring goals, over-relying on Wilfried Zaha and not converting penalties aside, Roy Hodgson’s reluctance to make changes hurt them in the 2-0 defeat by Everton. Luka Milivojevic’s lazy central spot-kick left Palace flailing, but had Hodgson followed Marco Silva’s lead and switched systems who knows what might have [...]
Six Day London: Cycling’s most exciting series embarks on biggest season yet and targets 25 events a year by 2023 October 21, 2018 When a Victorian gentleman named David Stanton proposed a £100 bet that he could cycle 1,000 miles around Islington’s Agricultural Hall over six consecutive nights, it’s fair to assume he didn’t intend to spawn a global phenomenon. That, however, is the target for the organisers of the Six Day Series, the modern incarnation of a [...]