Rio still has a part to play for England, says Welbeck October 4, 2011 ENGLAND striker Danny Welbeck believes his Manchester United team-mate Rio Ferdinand still has a valuable contribution to make at international level, despite being left out of Fabio Capello’s squad to face Montenegro on Friday. The 32-year-old, a veteran of 81 caps, was surprisingly not part of the Italian’s plans for the clash in Podgorica, from [...]
THE BREAKDOWN | WORLD CUP BRIEFS October 4, 2011 TUILAGI mouthguard fine ENGLAND centre Manu Tuilagi has been fined £4,800 by Rugby World Cup officials for wearing a sponsored mouthguard during the win over Georgia. Tuilagi, whose brother Alesana was fined last week for the same offence, also wore the gumshield in the victory against Argentina. The Rugby Football Union said Tuilagi’s breach was [...]
SPORT | IN BRIEF October 4, 2011 Bender injury sees abandonment FOOTBALL: Accrington’s Johnstone’s Paint Trophy tie against Tranmere was abandoned last night after 39 minutes due to a serious injury to Tom Bender. The 18-year-old was treated for a suspected broken neck for 30 minutes on the field at the Crown Ground before being taken to hospital after being knocked unconscious. [...]
London 2012 cleaners told to help shop drug cheats October 3, 2011 Games support staff to be mined for intelligence in unprecedented Olympics anti-doping crackdown CLEANERS and security staff will be asked to keep tabs on athletes at London 2012 in what organisers are confident will be the biggest crackdown on drug cheats in Olympic history. Games chiefs plan to carry out a record 5,000 tests at [...]
Chelsea would struggle to fill a bigger stadium October 3, 2011 CHELSEA’S decision to buy out the fans’ co-operative that owns the freehold to its Stamford Bridge stadium, the turnstiles and the pitch, must mean only one thing: the club is serious about moving from the home it has occupied for more than 100 years. The club has toyed with the idea of moving for years. [...]
Olympic spotlight won’t daunt me, insists sprint hope Williams October 3, 2011 TEENAGE sprint sensation Jodie Williams insists she’s not in the least bit daunted at being billed as the next golden girl of British track and field. The 17-year-old, privately funded by millionaire Barrie Wells and his Sports Foundation which has also aided the career of former world champion Jessica Ennis, already has a clutch of [...]
Vaughan: Three-Test series for South Africa just isn’t enough October 3, 2011 FORMER England captain Michael Vaughan fears the future of Test cricket has been jeopardised by limiting South Africa to just three five-day matches against Andrew Strauss’s all conquering side next summer. Under the astute leadership of Strauss and head coach Andy Flower, England have risen to No1 in the Test rankings following a prolonged period [...]
Cook rubbishes ball-tampering claims October 3, 2011 ENGLAND one-day skipper Alastair Cook has denied his pacemen James Anderson and Stuart Broad have ever indulged in the dark arts of ball-tampering following accusations from Pakistan’s Umar Gul. Swing specialist Gul, a mainstay of his country’s one-day side, was quoted as saying Anderson altered the ball during Pakistan’s 2010 tour of England and that [...]
Track stays no matter what, says Robertson October 3, 2011 SPORTS Minister Hugh Robertson has confirmed the government has made a “cast-iron guarantee” that the Olympic Stadium’s running track will remain in place regardless of ongoing legal wrangling. The pledge was made to an International Athletics Federation (IAAF) delegation which yesterday completed a short visit to evaluate London’s bid to host the 2017 World Championship. [...]
THE BREAKDOWN | WORLD CUP BRIEFS October 3, 2011 GUSCOTT SLAMS ENGLAND FORMER England centre Jeremy Guscott has accused members of Martin Johnson’s squad of showing a lack of respect following accusations relating to their off-field antics. “Martin Johnson’s got a few kids that aren’t acting as though they’re playing for England, or at a World Cup,” said Guscott, who played alongside Johnson at [...]