Foster’s error grants Avram cup delight January 11, 2011 WEST HAM UNITED 2 VS BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 UNDER-FIRE West Ham boss Avram Grant blamed the incessant speculation surrounding his future for damaging the team after his 10 men rose above their Premier League travails to take a significant step towards the Carling Cup final. A goalkeeping howler from Ben Foster gifted Carlton Cole the [...]
Clubs dodge Twitter foul-ups January 11, 2011 LONDON’S leading clubs are warning their players about the perils of using Twitter as the Football Association begins to clamp down on social media. Premier League stars are increasingly bypassing press officers and their own representatives to engage with fans on Twitter, with Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas a regular on the micro-blogging site. However, the [...]
Colly: We’ll show no mercy in quest for Twenty20 record January 11, 2011 ENGLAND Twenty20 captain Paul Collingwood will be hoping to maintain this winter’s record-breaking theme Down Under when his side renew hostilities with Australia today. Collingwood, who led his side to victory in the World Twenty20 tournament in the Caribbean last year, knows a victory against Australia in Adelaide would set a world record for consecutive [...]
Wenger’s hand forced by new Vermaelen blow January 11, 2011 ARSENAL manager Arsene Wenger admits he will have to strengthen his defensive options in the transfer window after Thomas Vermaelen suffered a fresh blow in his attempts to recover from an Achilles injury. The Belgium international has not featured for Arsenal since the end of August, despite Wenger’s initial prognosis claiming the 25-year-old would be sidelined [...]
England star Lawes set to miss Six Nations campaign January 11, 2011 ENGLAND lock Courtney Lawes has been ruled out of the entire Six Nations campaign as a result of the knee ligament injury he suffered playing for Northampton against Leicester last Saturday. The 21-year-old’s performances across the autumn campaign cemented his place in the plans of England manager Martin Johnson, who will make a choice between [...]
Pakistan spot-fix trio verdict delay January 11, 2011 PAKISTAN trio Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif will have to wait until 5 February for the verdict in the spot-fixing case against them after a ruling was deferred. The International Cricket Council’s three-man tribunal in Doha spent six days hearing allegations that the Pakistan players deliberately bowled no-balls in the fourth Test against [...]
Murray opts for Cilic warm-up January 11, 2011 TENNIS: Andy Murray will warm up for next week’s Australian Open with an exhibition match at the Kooyong Classic in Melbourne tomorrow. He will play Croatian Marin Cilic in a repeat of last year’s Australian Open semi-final. Murray’s decision to miss ATP Tour events means he has slipped to fifth in the world rankings. “I was [...]
Home Nations return a one-off January 11, 2011 FOOTBALL: The FA have held talks to revive Home Nations tournament but as a one-off in 2013. After announcing their new sponsorship deal with Vauxhall, the FA admitted they were in talks to play the other home nations in 2013 as part of their 150th anniversary celebrations. General secretary Alex Horne said: “We’d be talking about a [...]
Dzeko takes aim at United January 11, 2011 FOOTBALL: Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko has wasted no time in stoking the fire between his new side and their local rivals Manchester United. The Bosnia international joined the Eastlands side from Wolfsburg last week for a fee of £27m. At his unveiling yesterday, he said: “I have heard a lot about the fans and that most [...]
Freedman named Palace boss January 11, 2011 FOOTBALL: Dougie Freedman has been appointed Crystal Palace manager – signing a two-and-a-half-year deal with the club. The 36-year-old has been in caretaker charge for the last two matches since the sacking of George Burley. Palace are currently 22nd in The Championship, one point from safety.