KYRAN BRACKENS PRE MATCH VIEW February 2, 2012 EXCITING SELECTION It looks a mobile team and the good thing is it’s full of players who are on top form for their clubs, like David Strettle, Phil Dowson and Alex Corbisiero. Individually, it’s probably the form fifteen players in the Premiership, which is how you should pick a team. Having said that, it lacks [...]
Redknapp shows anger at claim he told ‘pack of lies’ February 2, 2012 TOTTENHAM manager Harry Redknapp admitted misleading a journalist over payments to his offshore account but angrily denied telling the court “a pack of lies” as his tax evasion trial neared a conclusion yesterday. Redknapp, taking the stand for a second day of cross-examination, raised his voice at John Black QC after another increasingly tense exchange [...]
FA chiefs deciding whether Terry should stand down February 2, 2012 ENGLAND chiefs were last night discussing whether John Terry’s position as captain of the national side has become untenable following Wednesday’s announcement that the Chelsea defender’s court case, where he is accused of racially abusing QPR’s Anton Ferdinand, will not take place until after this summer’s European Championships. Terry denies the charge which relates to [...]
Strauss: I’ll axe batsmen February 2, 2012 ENGLAND’S struggling batsmen will be playing for the right to be part of the touring party to Sri Lanka in March when the third Test against Pakistan gets underway today. Back-to-back defeats mean England can only salvage pride from a series characterised by batting collapses, and captain Andrew Strauss warned the likes of Kevin Pietersen, [...]
Djokovic eyes up another of Nadal’s prestigious titles February 2, 2012 THE greatest sportsmen on the planet on Monday go head-to-head to see which of them will be named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year – the most prestigious individual honour in men’s sport. Novak Djokovic took Rafael Nadal’s tennis world No1 ranking last year and beat the Spaniard in last weekend’s epic Australian Open final [...]
Hook seeks Wales redemption February 2, 2012 RUGBY UNION: Wales star James Hook says his World Cup troubles are behind him as he prepares for the Six Nations opener in Ireland. The 26-year-old concedes he had a poor tournament although Wales earned plaudits for their fourth place. “The World Cup semi-final was the lowest I have been,” he said. “But I have [...]
Ford’s focus solely on Scotland February 2, 2012 RUGBY UNION: Scotland captain Ross Ford will pay little heed to England’s line-up for the Six Nations opener on Saturday. Only six players remain from the side that started the Red Rose’s World Cup quarter final defeat against France in October, but Ford said: “Whatever England bring, we’ll just have to deal with it and [...]
Tremlett to miss Sri Lanka tour February 2, 2012 CRICKET: England seamer Chris Tremlett has been ruled out of his side’s tour of Sri Lanka in March. The 30-year-old was forced to fly home early from the current tour of Pakistan after breaking down following the humiliating 10-wicket defeat in the first Test in Dubai earlier this month. He revealed on Twitter yesterday: “After [...]
Oscars could Well be the only one to live with Hurricane Fly February 2, 2012 NO Champion Hurdle winner has set the pulse racing as much as Istabraq in the past 20 years, but some would argue that Hurricane Fly has the potential to be even greater. The 10-time Grade One winning hurdler has had some niggling problems during his career, but when on his game, he is breathtaking. Last [...]
BLUE SQUARE WINTER CARNIVAL February 2, 2012 IT’S been a profitable few weeks on the all-weather for us. Diamond Vine’s victory in round four of the Blue Square Sprint Series was a third winner in the last three weeks. Luke Morris nominated his mount as his ride of the weekend and Blue Square’s other exclusive blogger, ATR’s all-weather specialist Simon Mapletoft, also [...]