Johnson: Current squad my best yet January 27, 2010 ENGLAND manager Martin Johnson has dismissed fears that the woeful performance of English clubs in the Heineken Cup could have a knock-on effect for his squad at the Six Nations Championship. Northampton are the sole Premiership side to have reached the knockout stages of Europe’s top competition, with six others falling by the wayside. But [...]
Get set for a transfer scramble January 27, 2010 WE’VE not seen much in the way of transfer activity in this January window, but expect all that to change over the next few days as managers hit the mid-season panic button. Today and tomorrow are potentially massive days in determining the campaign and you can be assured at least one of the genuine title [...]
SPORT | IN BRIEF January 27, 2010 Ospreys face ‘extra man’ hearing RUGBY UNION: Leicester will discover tomorrow if their bid to be reinstated into the Heineken Cup is successful. The Tigers lodged a complaint to European Rugby Cup officials after Ospreys full-back Lee Byrne come on as a 16th man in their 17-12 victory last Saturday. The Ospreys have been called to [...]
Federer marches on but Djokovic crashes January 27, 2010 WORLD No1 Roger Federer overcame a shaky start to see off nemesis Nikolay Davydenko and reach a 23rd consecutive Grand Slam semi-final. The Swiss star recovered from a set and 3-1 down with a storming run of 13 consecutive games before coming through 2-6, 6-3, 6-0, 7-5 against the Russian, who had beaten him in [...]
Serena hits back from the brink January 27, 2010 WORLD No1 Serena Williams admitted she was contemplating her long flight home before staging a remarkable comeback to reach the semi-finals in Melbourne. The defending champion was in serious trouble at a set and 4-0 down to Russia’s Victoria Azarenka, only to storm back to win 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2. “I was actually thinking: ‘If [...]
Murray brushes Nadal aside to edge closer to first Slam January 26, 2010 ANDY MURRAY insists he is ready to clinch a maiden Grand Slam title after sending Rafael Nadal crashing out of the Australian Open in a late-night thriller in Melbourne. The fifth seed looked in imperious form as he stormed into a 6-3, 7-6 (7-2), 3-0 lead before defending champion Nadal was forced to retire from [...]
Spurs tighten grip on fourth and return to winning ways January 26, 2010 TOTTENHAM (2) vs FULHAM (0) TOTTENHAM manager Harry Redknapp savoured his first Premier League victory of 2010 after goals from Peter Crouch and David Bentley boosted their Champions League aspirations. Spurs came into the match without a win in three but England forward Crouch eased their nerves with a 27th-minute strike. Out-of-favour midfielder Bentley justified [...]
Benitez coy on Juventus after Reds slip up again January 26, 2010 WOLVES (0) vs LIVERPOOL (0) UNDER-FIRE Rafael Benitez remained tight-lipped over a possible move to Juventus after his Liverpool side suffered yet another setback in their bid for a Champions League place. Benitez has been heavily linked with the Italian giants amid suggestions they are about to sack coach Ciro Ferrara. The Spaniard saw his [...]
Crystal Palace in crisis after administrators are called in January 26, 2010 CRYSTAL Palace face a 10-point penalty and an imminent exodus of their best players after falling into administration yesterday. The Championship club are around £30m in debt, have failed to pay their players on time twice already this season and are due in court today to face a winding-up order from HM Revenue and Customs. [...]
McLeish: We can stun Blues January 26, 2010 ALEX MCLEISH believes his Birmingham City high-fliers can derail Chelsea’s title charge at Stamford Bridge tonight. McLeish’s side are currently lying a creditable eighth in the Premier League following a club record run of 15 matches unbeaten. Carlo Ancelotti’s Chelsea can go back to the top of the table with three points tonight, but McLeish [...]