Dott beats King but backs Higgins April 20, 2011 SNOOKER: Graeme Dott eased past mark King 10-7 to reach round two at The Crucible. But Scotsman Dott sees compatriot John Higgins as favourite for this year’s title. “It’s fair to say John Higgins would be favourite, because of the way he’s been playing,” Dott said. Dott held off King, who set the highest break [...]
TITLE’S ON HOLD April 19, 2011 Ferguson fumes over late penalty snub as United miss the chance to take a decisive lead over Arsenal NEWCASTLE UTD 0 vs MANCHESTER UTD 0 MANCHESTER UNITED manager Sir Alex Ferguson risked further censure by the Football Association after branding the decision not to award striker Javier Hernandez a late penalty in last night’s St [...]
Bale won’t quit Spurs, says Hughton April 19, 2011 TOTTENHAM great and former Newcastle manager Chris Hughton believes star man Gareth Bale will reject overtures from Europe’s elite even if Spurs fail to qualify for the Champions League. Hughton admits tonight’s showdown with bitter rivals Arsenal will go a long way to deciding whether Harry Redknapp’s men, who lie fifth, can usurp Manchester City [...]
Usain Bolt? I’d rather watch Thorpe v Phelps, says Foster April 19, 2011 SPRINT king Usain Bolt’s defence of his 100m crown may be the biggest draw of the London Olympics for some – but British swimming great Mark Foster insists the main event will take place in the pool. Foster believes the battle between Ian Thorpe, the returning five-time Olympic gold medallist and Michael Phelps, the American [...]
Ancelotti: Torres will score soon April 19, 2011 CHELSEA manager Carlo Ancelotti insists striker Fernando Torres will break his goalscoring duck before the end of the season, but refused to guarantee the Spaniard would return to the starting line-up for tonight’s match against Birmingham. Torres, who was signed for a British record £50m in January, has gone 12 games without a goal for [...]
Fabregas casts doubt over Wenger future April 19, 2011 ARSENAL captain Cesc Fabregas has gone public with his frustration at the club’s failure to win a trophy since 2005 and admitted that time may be running out for manager Arsene Wenger. Fabregas believes the team lack a winning mentality and that the trophy drought is unlikely to end until the Gunners hierarchy abandon their [...]
Redknapp hopes for fixture swap April 19, 2011 SPURS boss Harry Redknapp has urged the Premier League to change the date of Stoke’s clash with Manchester City to protect his side’s hopes of finishing fourth. If City beat Stoke in the FA Cup final, Tony Pulis’ men can only make it into next year’s Europa League if Roberto Mancini’s side pip Spurs to the [...]
BOA relents to end Olympic cash row April 19, 2011 LONDON 2012 chief executive Paul Deighton has welcomed the resolution of the cash row with the British Olympic Association (BOA). A bitter disagreement between the two key organisations involved in next year’s Games over how profits would be divided had threatened to engulf the event. But the BOA have relented and accepted a 20 per [...]
Wimbledon raise prize money April 19, 2011 TENNIS: The winners of this year’s Wimbledon tournaments will earn £1.1m in prize money, organisers have revealed. The figure is part of a total prize fund of £14.6m for the 2011 championships, an increase of 6.4 per cent on last year.
Murray swerves Barcelona April 19, 2011 TENNIS: British No1 Andy Murray has withdrawn from this week’s Barcelona Open with injury. Murray injured his right elbow before facing Rafael Nadal in the semi-final of the Monte-Carlo Masters on Saturday. “I’m going to take four to five days’ rest and begin practising next week,” Murray said.