Surprise England World T20 pick Dawson is a competitive cricketer and up for a fight February 10, 2016 There was a sense of dismay when uncapped all-rounder Liam Dawson was included in England’s squad for the ICC World T20, which starts next month, especially given head coach Trevor Bayliss admitted that he’s never even seen him play. But Dawson, who was a team-mate of mine at Hampshire a few years back, is a [...]
Six Nations 2016: England Grand Slam bid will come unstuck if they take Italy win for granted, warns defence coach Paul Gustard February 10, 2016 Defence coach Paul Gustard has warned England that their Grand Slam ambitions could unravel if they look beyond their second Six Nations fixture, against Italy in Rome on Sunday. A hard-fought victory over Scotland on Saturday has left Eddie Jones’s men one of just two sides, along with France, in contention to sweep the board [...]
Need some Valentine’s Day ideas? We’ve got you covered with our expert guide to the perfect date February 10, 2016 It’s almost Valentine’s Day, the yearly celebration of big kisses on the mouth, so you know what that means: candle-lit dinners, small boxes of chocolate cubes, asking your beloved to turn all the lights on and off in quick succession to create a strobe effect as you dance every kind of forbidden sex-dance there is. But [...]
Why the Premier League should use its new logo and rebrand as an opportunity to re-connect with fans February 10, 2016 The Premier League launched its logo yesterday to the usual cacophony of comment. Most loved it, some hated it, opinions were shared, comparisons were made and parodies were quickly Photoshopped. There is nothing quite like a logo re-design to bring out both the art school student and marketing expert in everyone. But this isn’t just about [...]
Liverpool ticket price protest: Premier League clubs should not lower the cost of attendance February 10, 2016 The ticket price row at Liverpool is only the latest squabble about the cost of attending football matches. The new £5bn-plus TV deal guaranteeing Premier League teams huge increases in revenue offers an occasion for clubs to lower admission prices. Retired footballers, journalists, media commentators and MPs all seem to be convinced that that they [...]
England Six Nations pay revealed: Players to share £600,000 bonus payment for winning grand slam February 10, 2016 The Rugby Football Union (RFU) could face a pay-out of over £2m to England players if they win a grand slam for the first time in over a decade. According to figures revealed by The Times, England's elite player squad contracts guarantee a player a match fee of £7,322 and a weekly training fee of £1,061. Read [...]
West Ham United 2, Liverpool 1 (AET): FA Cup victory ranks as one of club’s best, says Bilic February 9, 2016 West Ham boss Slaven Bilic insists that his side’s extra-time victory over Liverpool in last night’s FA Cup fourth round replay deserves to be ranked amongst the finest moments in the club’s history. A last-gasp header from Italian centre-half Angelo Ogbonna catapulted the Hammers into round five after Michail Antonio and Philippe Coutinho had traded goalscoring blows [...]
Morgan demands improvements from his bowlers as England humbled by South Africa February 9, 2016 England skipper Eoin Morgan has demanded improvement from his bowling unit after the tourists suffered a seven-wicket demolition in the third one-day international against South Africa. Openers Quinton de Kock and Hashim Amla shared 239 for the first wicket and both notched centuries as South Africa reached their victory target of 319 – the highest [...]
Jones ready to shuffle pack for England’s Six Nations Italian job February 9, 2016 England head coach Eddie Jones has hinted that he may be tempted to shuffle his pack for Sunday’s Six Nations showdown with perennial strugglers Italy in Rome. Jones last night released Gloucester openside Matt Kvesic and Wasps centre Elliot Daly from his training squad but retained 25 players, including Saracens flanker Maro Itoje and fellow [...]
Leicester’s superb technique is the overlooked facet of their unlikely assault on the Premier League February 9, 2016 Leicester's charge to the top of the Premier League has got all neutrals rooting for the Foxes and also reminded me of my old Everton side in 1984-85, the season our group of players first won the title. Just as lifting the FA Cup in the previous campaign gave us impetus to carry on, so too [...]