Wilko’s centenary waltz February 4, 2010 JONNY WILKINSON says he is honoured to become a part of history tomorrow when England celebrate 100 years of rugby at Twickenham with a crunch Six Nations opener with Wales. Wilkinson, 30, has been the jewel in England’s crown since making his international debut in 1998 and has gone on to score a world record [...]
We have no-one to fear, claims Wales coach Gatland February 4, 2010 WALES head coach Warren Gatland says his side fear no-one in their quest to reclaim the Six Nations Championship. Gatland’s men meet England at Twickenham tomorrow looking to recreate their start of two years ago when victory in south-west London launched their Grand Slam campaign. The Welsh suffered heartbreak last season when Stephen Jones’ missed [...]
Mancini fury at ‘incredible decision’ to deny Kenya star Mariga a work permit February 4, 2010 MANCHESTER City manager Roberto Mancini has slammed the Home Office for scuppering his deadline-day move to sign Kenyan midfielder McDonald Mariga. City agreed a fee with Parma and terms with the player but could not complete the signing because Mariga was refused a work permit on the basis of Kenya’s low world ranking. Mariga, 22, [...]
Bruce predicts curtains for the transfer window February 4, 2010 SUNDERLAND boss Steve Bruce believes the transfer window will be scrapped when a player eventually challenges the system in court as a restraint of trade. Bruce succeeded in pushing through a loan deal for Manchester City striker Benjani Mwaruwari despite missing the Monday deadline, but said the episode might otherwise have provided a test case. [...]
Britain crash to Austrians February 4, 2010 TENNIS: Great Britain’s Fed Cup team saw their promotion hopes dented as Austria opened up an unassailable 2-0 lead in their Group D tie in Portugal. Anne Keothavong’s first match back after six months out with a knee injury ended in a 6-2, 6-2 defeat by Patricia Mayr, while Elena Baltacha lost 6-3, 6-3 to [...]
Mayweather to take on Mosley February 4, 2010 BOXING: Undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr will take on WBA welterweight champion Shane Mosley in a Las Vegas showdown on 1 May. Both fighters will undertake Olympic-style drug testing before the fight – similar to the conditions which scuppered Mayweather’s bout with Manny Pacquiao earlier this year. Mayweather said: “This is for the fans as I [...]
Hiedfeld named reserve driver February 4, 2010 FORMULA ONE: Nick Heidfeld has been named as reserve/test driver for the all-German Mercedes team. Hiedfeld, 32, steps down from racing after 10 years with the Prost, Sauber, Jordan, Williams and BMW Sauber teams. He lines up as back-up to Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg and said: “While I would of course have preferred a [...]
McIlroy shares Dubai lead February 4, 2010 GOLF: Defending champion Rory McIlroy is in a six-way tie for the lead after the opening day of the Dubai Desert Classic. The Northern Irishman shot a four-under-par 68 to share the lead with Welshman Stephen Dodd, Edoardo Molinari, Jeev Milkha Singh, Alexander Noren and Charl Schwartzel. England’s Paul Casey is a shot off the [...]
Lucky Leo can star at Donny February 4, 2010 LAST weekend’s meeting at Doncaster was frozen off, so let’s hope the weather doesn’t disrupt tomorrow’s action. KALAHARI KING, runner-up in last season’s Arkle Chase, carries top weight in the feature contest, the Blue Square Handicap Chase. Ferdy Murphy’s stable star heads the field of 15 in the £70,000 contest and will take some stopping [...]
Postive England setup should trouble Welsh February 4, 2010 ENGLAND Vs WALES UNDERACHIEVING England coach Martin Johnson has thrown down the gauntlet. By picking a positive starting XV – which notably includes Mathew Tait at outside centre – they are sending a message not just to Wales, their opponents at Twickenham tomorrow, but also to the other members of the Six Nations. Sale Shark [...]