Australia coach Michael Cheika insists Wallabies are working on weaknesses ahead of Rugby World Cup bout with New Zealand October 29, 2015 Australia coach Michael Cheika admits that his side still have areas of weakness as preparations intensify for their record-equalling fourth World Cup final appearance against New Zealand at Twickenham tomorrow. Cheika has made one change from the starting XV which featured against Argentina in Sunday’s semi-final, with loose-head prop Scott Sio replacing James Slipper after recovering [...]
Australia can refer to us anyway they like, insists New Zealand boss Steve Hansen ahead of Rugby World Cup final October 29, 2015 New Zealand coach Steve Hansen has invited rivals to refer to his side by whatever name they see fit after Australia’s rugby bosses issued an apparent ban on their players using the term ‘All Blacks’ ahead of tomorrow’s World Cup final. England’s former World Cup-winning coach Sir Clive Woodward introduced a similar ploy during the [...]
Rugby World Cup final 2015 New Zealand v Australia: How much will each player be paid for a win? October 29, 2015 Money is unlikely to be much of a motivating factor for players in a Rugby World Cup final – and that’s just as well for Australians because it’s the New Zealand players who have most to gain in financial terms from their performance at Twickenham. As well as the opportunity to write their names in [...]
Charlton owner Roland Duchatelet sells Standard Liege October 29, 2015 Charlton Athletic owner Roland Duchatelet has sold Belgian Club Standard Liege, but insists he wants to continue working in football. Read more: Charlton's Joe Gomez joins Liverpool The multi-millionaire Belgian, who added Charlton to his network of European football clubs last January, called a sudden press conference this morning to announce he had sold Standard [...]
Roland Duchatelet’s project at Charlton is failing – and the appointment of Karel Fraeye will only alienate fans further October 29, 2015 A decade ago, Charlton Athletic were English football's first point of reference for what a medium-sized club could achieve if run sensibly. They were the fourth best-performing side in 2005 in London, finishing behind only Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham. Since then there have been a litany of failures, misjudgements and relegations but now, under the [...]
Louis Van Gaal blasts Manchester United flops as Wayne Rooney misses penalty in Capital One Cup shoot-out exit to Middlesbrough October 28, 2015 Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal admitted to being disappointed with his players after they crashed out of the Capital One Cup at home to Championship side Middlesbrough on Wednesday night. England captain Wayne Rooney was one of three United stars to miss a penalty as the hosts lost 3-1 in a shoot-out that followed a [...]
Race to Dubai 2015 prize money: Turkish Airlines Open begins with £3.9m still up for grabs on European Tour for Rory McIlroy October 28, 2015 The European Tour’s Final Series – the lucrative home stretch in the Race to Dubai – tees off at the Turkish Airlines Open tomorrow with $30.5m (£19.9m) in prize money still up for grabs. Rory McIlroy is currently in pole position to receive the $1.25m (£820,000) Race to Dubai prize money bonus and money list [...]
Time for England to replace Jos Buttler and give James Taylor a chance in third Test against Pakistan October 28, 2015 It looks to me as though things are preying on wicketkeeper Jos Buttler’s mind after failing to shake off his batting woes against Pakistan. He averages just 12 since the start of the Ashes in July and is probably putting too much pressure on himself. Everybody knows how good a player Buttler is but I [...]
Jason Roy interview: Kevin Pietersen is brilliant and I want to be a match-winner every game, but I’m me – not the young KP October 28, 2015 He may be spearheading England’s one-day renaissance but power-hitting opening batsman Jason Roy concedes that his extracurricular antics were not always befitting of a player craving international acclaim. South Africa-born Roy was a prominent figure during this summer’s battles against New Zealand and Australia as England took the first tentative steps towards building a prosperous [...]
NFL international series estimated to have given London £45m boost October 28, 2015 The NFL international series' three games at Wembley this year will have generated £45m for the London according to economic estimates. In the final of three fixtures staged in London this year, over 80,000 fans are expected to fill Wembley to watch the Detroit Lions make London play the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday afternoon. And [...]