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cc293bdb0c07f0f7b90394a003845ac2 | Kahane’s ghost: how a long-dead extremist rabbi continues to haunt Israel’s politics – podcast
A violent fanatic and pioneer in bigotry, Meir Kahane died a political outcast 35 years ago. Today, his ideas influence the very highest levels of government
By Joshua Leifer. Read by Kerry Shale | {
"authors": [
"Joshua Leifer",
"Nicola Alexandrou",
"Danielle Stephens"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/4d8bcf184f99e65449c4763c1509705b402ce98f/0_1038_3307_1982/master/3307.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=aa7abbc003ec579592d80aa05617e199",
"publish_date": "2025-04-18 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Kahane’s ghost: how a long-dead extremist rabbi continues to haunt Israel’s politics – podcast",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/news/audio/2025/apr/18/kahanes-ghost-how-a-long-dead-extremist-rabbi-continues-to-haunt-israels-politics-podcast"
} |
2ca5994d8f110b65d492b8dd5e7ba012 | Is the gym gen Z’s pub? – podcast
Gym membership in the UK is more popular than ever – and generation Z are a key demographic boosting the numbers. Gen Z are also drinking less than previous generations. So why are gen Z choosing working out over hanging out at the pub?
“I see on social media, people saying, if you do this, and you do this, and you do this, then you’ll feel better, and then you’ll look better,” Isabel Brooks, a freelance reporter and “zillennial”, tells Helen Pidd.
“It’s framed as this mental health advice, but it feels like it all boils down to being a kind of the best version of yourself, and that feels inherently capitalist, inherently individualistic.”
But don’t they want to see friends at a pub or a club?
“It’s expensive,” Isabel says. “I mean, my gym subscription is £28, and I can drop that in a flash on a birthday pub event at a London pub, especially where the pints are like almost £7.”
Helen also visits charity worker Niyi Akinseye at a gym in central London, where he works out for four hours a day. He’s made friends at the gym, but wishes that their generation were more connected.
“I often reflect that I see people in the gym more than I see my mum or any family member, but you don’t say hello to them. You just walk past them awkwardly. And I think that’s what I’ve really encouraged myself to break down, to do, to actually get to know the people you see every day.
“History is one of my passions outside of fitness. One of my favourite periods of time is, for example, the French Revolution. And a lot of those ideas were formed by young people going in pubs and discussing ideas. And I think there’s definitely something missed by people of our generation not meeting more and actually discussing the real issues that are going on in society right now.”
Support the Guardian today: theguardian.com/todayinfocuspod | {
"authors": [
"Helen Pidd",
"Isabel Brooks",
"Tom Glasser",
"Natalie Ktena",
"Priya Bharadia",
"Joel Cox",
"Elizabeth Cassin"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/8e8d042c4c800ecbace971821576fde77d6fcd4d/0_400_6000_3600/master/6000.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=3538673cea3d6d10d36e6d39c19ab56d",
"publish_date": "2025-04-18 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Is the gym gen Z’s pub? – podcast",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/news/audio/2025/apr/18/is-the-gym-gen-zs-pub-podcast"
} |
4646fb26195dffe339baa1c377e28bfb | Awesome Arsenal silence Madrid and set up PSG semi – Football Weekly Extra
Rate, review, share on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Audioboom, Mixcloud, Acast and Stitcher, and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and email.
On the podcast today: a brilliant performance from Arsenal at the Bernabéu, winning 2-1 in Madrid and 5-1 across the tie, they were close to perfection with Declan Rice probably the standout performer in a team of standout performers.
Elsewhere, Inter join the Gunners in the semi-finals. They draw 2-2 in a wet and windy Milan and overcome Bayern Munich 4-3 on aggregate.
Plus, Newcastle thrash Crystal Palace, there’s a look ahead to this weekend’s Premier League games and your questions are answered.
Support the Guardian here.
You can also find Football Weekly on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. | {
"authors": [
"Max Rushden",
"Barry Glendenning",
"Nicky Bandini",
"Philippe Auclair",
"Joel Grove",
"Phil Maynard"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/eaa3f58924cf0cf53e6a5d8b5465c736697c6c12/0_94_3500_2100/master/3500.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=10ce98877ee8528b0952df8000665e33",
"publish_date": "2025-04-17 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Awesome Arsenal silence Madrid and set up PSG semi – Football Weekly Extra",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/football/audio/2025/apr/17/awesome-arsenal-silence-madrid-and-set-up-psg-semi-football-weekly-extra-podcast"
} |
8bb07d94410ad385563fef680303c142 | How the truth about supermarket salmon is being hidden – video
Salmon is often marketed as the sustainable, healthy and eco-friendly protein choice. But what you may not realise is that most of the salmon you buy is farmed, especially if you live in the UK, because Scottish salmon producers are no longer required to tell you.
Josh Toussaint-Strauss finds out why it is important for consumers to know where their salmon comes from, and examines the gap between the marketing of farmed salmon and the reality for our health, the environmental and animal welfare | {
"authors": [
"Josh Toussaint-Strauss",
"Alex Healey",
"Steve Glew",
"Ryan Baxter"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/9bdb802e6da5d3fd249b5060f367b3a817965f0c/0_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=a0911f033736ee9f3eea2450a5b76ca0",
"publish_date": "2025-04-17 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "How the truth about supermarket salmon is being hidden – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/video/2025/apr/17/how-the-truth-about-supermarket-salmon-is-being-hidden-video"
} |
4bfded7b85bc0335ca90dd31f576c898 | Khartoum before and after: footage shows destruction wreaked by war in Sudan – video
At the end of March, the Sudanese army took full control of Khartoum from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, which it had been fighting since April 2023. After seizing several key sites across Sudan's capital, the army forced the RSF to retreat, marking a critical turn in the country’s civil war. Footage from the capital shows a city devastated by two years of fighting, which has left many of Khartoum’s most important landmarks badly damaged. The Guardian has collected before and after footage to illustrate the scale of the destruction | {
"authors": [
"Harrison Taylor",
"Faisal Ali",
"Monika Čvorak"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2ea4a4f9da3b35f430cdebf4908caa48db722b21/63_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=427dc0c52a61e0ce7b79dd1c4937f918",
"publish_date": "2025-04-15 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Khartoum before and after: footage shows destruction wreaked by war in Sudan – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/apr/15/khartoum-before-after-footage-destruction-wreaked-war-sudan-video"
} |
96715bce79a3e20f84b68dd09b26abbd | Endangered koalas and the ecologist documenting their extinction – video
Maria Matthes, a lifelong koala conservationist, says loss of habitat and the climate crisis have threatened the endangered species in eastern New South Wales. Almost 2m hectares of forests suitable for koalas have been destroyed since 2011. They are one of more than 2,000 Australian species listed as under threat in what scientists are calling an extinction crisis | {
"authors": [
"Graham Readfearn",
"Aston Brown",
"Lisa Favazzo",
"Shelley Hepworth",
"Sanjana Jose",
"Camilla Hannan"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/6175d8c66e05490a0198125e3d82928ed95fbebe/74_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=fa9983c0556a9e2058e9f6d336fc5e92",
"publish_date": "2025-04-12 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Endangered koalas and the ecologist documenting their extinction – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/video/2025/apr/12/endangered-koalas-and-the-ecologist-documenting-their-extinction-video"
} |
e187ee541cd298fca7c56cdea926781d | How green tech is fuelling a war in Africa – video
As demand for smartphones, laptops and electric vehicles has soared, so has demand for the minerals - such as cobalt and coltan - for the batteries that power them. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has vast reserves of these minerals, and their extraction is fuelling the country's civil war. Josh Toussaint-Strauss finds out more about how global demand for tech is causing human suffering in central Africa, and how we, and western powers and companies, are complicit | {
"authors": [],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/9312a78e22329e2202b1308ff18d893e89a85d0b/122_0_1798_1080/master/1798.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=4a0db0b749cec2bf0d166885b3627a5c",
"publish_date": "2025-04-10 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "How green tech is fuelling a war in Africa – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/apr/10/how-green-tech-is-fuelling-a-war-in-africa-video"
} |
4ef846665a38cb9fbae5f85514b2db3e | Syria’s March massacres: how sectarian violence targeted Alawites – video
Four days of shocking violence in north-west Syria left more than 1,500 people dead – including at least 745 civilians – in some of Syria’s deadliest days of fighting since the beginning of the civil war in 2011. Widespread revenge attacks against civilians have mostly targeted Alawites, a minority Islamic sect from which the ousted Syrian president Bashar al-Assad hailed. The Guardian has put together a visual breakdown of the events which shook Syria's coast | {
"authors": [
"Harrison Taylor",
"William Christou",
"Mathilde Poncet",
"Monika Čvorak"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/20cd52b2246d3f7cff85ee0cfb0a59bf36c7407f/60_0_1800_1080/master/1800.png?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=b356cc59ea9f350450f066d98b53e607",
"publish_date": "2025-04-04 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Syria’s March massacres: how sectarian violence targeted Alawites – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/apr/04/syrias-march-massacres-how-sectarian-violence-targeted-alawites-video"
} |
8430b340a12bfa51ebf8a7ac5d6d5654 | How philanthropists are destroying African farms – video
What happens when western billionaires try to ‘fix’ hunger in developing countries? Neelam Tailor investigates how philanthropic efforts by the Gates Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation and the organisation they set up to revolutionise African farming, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (Agra), may have made matters worse for the small-scale farmers who produce 70% of the continent's food.
From seed laws that criminalise traditional practices to corporate partnerships with agribusiness giants such as Monsanto and Syngenta, we explore how a well-funded green revolution has led to rising debt, loss of biodiversity and deepening food insecurity across the continent | {
"authors": [
"Neelam Tailor",
"Alex Healey",
"Ali Assaf",
"Steve Glew",
"Ryan Baxter"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/53dcb675906eda41162567f6936b36feb8b9d7a4/50_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=14778dedf9132b9f16f9507cc0cf2f12",
"publish_date": "2025-04-03 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "How philanthropists are destroying African farms – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/apr/03/how-philanthropists-are-destroying-african-farms-video"
} |
b8f9abfbfad5063b9e83d800a4ca31da | How countries cheat their carbon targets – video
Net zero is a target that countries should be striving for to stop the climate crisis. But beyond the buzzword, it is a complex scientific concept – and if we get it wrong, the planet will keep heating.
Biodiversity and environment reporter Patrick Greenfield explains how a loophole in the 2015 Paris climate agreement allows countries to cheat their net zero targets through creative accounting, and how scientists want us to fix it | {
"authors": [
"Patrick Greenfield",
"Elena Morresi",
"Ali Assaf",
"Ryan Baxter"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f5b47dfbd45294ee04addaec98a8689c40b872cc/120_0_3600_2160/master/3600.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=ee2a71f9a57979c8b88504f91817cf0d",
"publish_date": "2025-03-27 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "How countries cheat their carbon targets – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/video/2025/mar/27/how-countries-their-net-zero-carbon-targets-video"
} |
083d71dacc877c330394a06747d017c3 | How bottled water companies are draining our drinking water – video
As droughts become more prevalent, corporate control over our drinking water is threatening the health of water sources and the access people have to them. Josh Toussaint-Strauss explores how foreign multinational companies are extracting billions of litres of water from natural aquifers to sell back to the same communities from which it came – for huge profits | {
"authors": [
"Josh Toussaint-Strauss",
"Alex Healey",
"Steve Glew",
"Ali Assaf",
"Ryan Baxter"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/bde3729379480b48ab9a264c760b47b564ad2ddf/60_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=37c5420432ec44b4f30c129672c7a07e",
"publish_date": "2025-03-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "How bottled water companies are draining our drinking water – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/video/2025/mar/20/how-bottled-water-companies-are-draining-our-drinking-water-video"
} |
23365b44af1e6730a0ddb01f7c033032 | Can the UK fix its broken prison system? – video
The prison population in England and Wales has doubled in the last 30 years, with overcrowding now endemic across the system. But the government's strategy of easing this pressure by granting early release to thousands of offenders has had a knock-on effect. With many lacking stability on the outside, reoffending rates are high, exacerbating the existing problem. The Guardian visited Wales to see this playing out on the streets of Bridgend; and the Netherlands, to find out why the Dutch have closed more than 20 prisons in the past 10 years, seemingly in complete contrast to the struggles in Britain - and despite increasing levels of more serious crime seen across the country
With thanks to Prison Escape Utrecht and Tap Social Movement | {
"authors": [
"Richard Sprenger",
"Christopher Cherry",
"Noah Payne-Frank",
"Temujin Doran"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f40917bce43093139c4de60aa372b9f7e9c952b0/60_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=e8376b874ffffc22a7d958a7fdc3566d",
"publish_date": "2025-03-18 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Can the UK fix its broken prison system? – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/society/video/2025/mar/18/can-the-uk-fix-its-broken-prison-system-video"
} |
6ad72a6eed46fe2ae75495eb07a40cc1 | How social media is helping catch war criminals – video
In Sudan, fighters from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group, appear to have filmed and posted online videos of themselves glorifying the burning of homes and the torture of prisoners. These videos could be used by international courts to pursue war crime prosecutions.
Kaamil Ahmed explains how the international legal system is adapting to social media, finding a way to use the digital material shared online to corroborate accounts of war crimes being committed in countries ranging from Ukraine to Sudan | {
"authors": [
"Kaamil Ahmed",
"Elena Morresi",
"Steve Glew",
"Ali Assaf"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c9c63f8a449ab4bf1106fb2bf178907835e1cab7/61_0_1798_1080/master/1798.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=4e9d12e9d78d35b4167588f80b067f12",
"publish_date": "2025-03-13 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "How social media is helping catch war criminals – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/mar/13/how-social-media-can-help-catch-war-criminals-video"
} |
6839207f09707366f281a2b724501bdc | Refusing to fight: Israelis against the war in Gaza – video
For many Israelis, military service is a rite of passage that lasts two to three years. Being such a formative part of the social contract in Israel, it is unusual for eligible young people to refuse their draft orders. Every year some ask for exemptions, but only a handful openly declare themselves as conscientious objectors, commonly known as refuseniks. However, since 7 October and the war in Gaza, refusenik organisations say the number of people refusing the draft has risen, even though during wartime punishments are harsher. The Guardian’s Middle East correspondent, Bethan McKernan, spent time with Itamar Greenberg, an 18-year-old who has been in and out of military prison for almost a year as a result of his refusal to serve | {
"authors": [
"Bethan Mckernan",
"Kyri Evangelou",
"Temujin Doran"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/57d924c9669c40f99fc25202f4913edf01059403/60_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=1d6e0ad5c010692a1aa66f9edeab06e8",
"publish_date": "2025-03-12 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Refusing to fight: Israelis against the war in Gaza – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/mar/12/refusing-to-fight-israelis-against-the-war-in-gaza-video"
} |
1c663caa6d4f269b5c1113fae0923a3b | How plastics are invading our brain cells – video
Plastics are everywhere, but their smallest fragments – nanoplastics – are making their way into the deepest parts of our bodies, including our brains and breast milk.
Scientists have now captured the first visual evidence of these particles inside human cells, raising urgent questions about their impact on our health. From the food we eat to the air we breathe, how are nanoplastics infiltrating our systems?
Neelam Tailor looks into the invisible invasion happening inside us all | {
"authors": [
"Neelam Tailor",
"Alex Healey",
"Ali Assaf",
"Steve Glew",
"Ryan Baxter"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/13dd7e5c4ca32a53cd22dfd90ac1845ef5e5d643/91_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=b88731c83ad668d833dd36cc4aced305",
"publish_date": "2025-03-06 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "How plastics are invading our brain cells – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/mar/06/how-nanoplastics-are-invading-our-bodies-video-report"
} |
9ac7d2f39f02170255f62cca1697a220 | From Gaza to Texas: the race to save Mazyouna’s face - video
Mazyouna, a 13-year-old girl from Gaza, lost the right side of her jaw in an Israeli attack on her home in Gaza that killed her brother and sister. She was denied access by Israel to life-altering surgery abroad for more than six months. Only after the publication of a Guardian article condemning her treatment were Mazyouna, her mother and her surviving sibling granted permission to leave - her father was not permitted to join them. Their evacuation and specialist surgery at the El Paso children's hospital in Texas was facilitated by FAJR Scientific, an organisation that evacuates children in need of medical treatment from war zones.
Last month, the World Health Organization urged a rapid scaling-up of medical evacuations from Gaza where thousands remain in critical condition | {
"authors": [
"Thaslima Begum",
"Annie Kelly",
"Katie Lamborn",
"Ekaterina Ochagavia",
"Lindsay Poulton",
"Tom Silverstone"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/43bbe5be4427846c6878df036f5b019ecb6fe18b/120_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=d411858d83ac0626a02f0fa9a21c846a",
"publish_date": "2025-03-04 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "From Gaza to Texas: the race to save Mazyouna’s face - video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/mar/04/from-gaza-to-texas-the-race-to-save-mazyounas-face-video"
} |
7d7cf6b6bc679904fd8dacfcaf691310 | How a 12-year-old boy was killed in the West Bank – video analysis
On 21 February, 12-year-old Ayman al-Hammouni was killed, shot by Israeli fire, video footage seen by the Guardian suggests. Two cameras recorded the circumstances of Ayman's death. The Guardian has used this footage to tell the story of the child’s last moments | {
"authors": [
"Harrison Taylor",
"Julian Borger",
"Sufian Taha",
"Monika Čvorak"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/3869ce2708c6f652b3935134890eb30d5e10246c/0_86_1657_994/master/1657.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=31913db90c197e9862b910328cea398c",
"publish_date": "2025-03-01 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "How a 12-year-old boy was killed in the West Bank – video analysis",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/mar/01/how-a-12-year-old-boy-was-killed-in-the-west-bank-video-analysis"
} |
f46aacbd44a73d27ea8f8d3ed000ef87 | How China uses ‘salami-slicing’ tactics to exert pressure on Taiwan – video
China has dramatically increased military activities around Taiwan, with more than 3,000 incursions into Taiwan's airspace in 2024 alone. Amy Hawkins examines how Beijing is deploying 'salami-slicing' tactics, a strategy of gradual pressure that stays below the threshold of war while steadily wearing down Taiwan's defences. From daily air incursions to strategic military exercises, we explore the four phases of China's approach and what it means for Taiwan's future | {
"authors": [
"Amy Hawkins",
"Jem Talbot",
"Elena Morresi",
"Ryan Baxter",
"Ali Assaf"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/711df1267553fec00085fb0f5fab8b9711265da1/60_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=064a8007b008c318eb2f38fc197ccf80",
"publish_date": "2025-02-28 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "How China uses ‘salami-slicing’ tactics to exert pressure on Taiwan – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2025/feb/28/how-china-uses-salami-slicing-tactics-to-exert-pressure-on-taiwan-video"
} |
133ac2f509be4257a255d612f68d41e6 | ‘Fix poverty, fix health’: A day in the life of a ‘failing’ NHS
A GP surgery in one of the most deprived areas in the north-east of England is struggling to provide care for its patients as the health system crumbles around them. In the depths of the winter flu season, the Guardian video producers Maeve Shearlaw and Adam Sich went to Bridges medical practice to shadow the lead GP, Paul Evans, as he worked all hours keep his surgery afloat. Juggling technical challenges, long waiting lists and the profound impact austerity has had on the health of the population, Evans says: 'We are seeing the system fail' | {
"authors": [
"Maeve Shearlaw",
"Adam Sich",
"Ken Macfarlane",
"Temujin Doran"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/3b4ee51c0f4975bd52003303abf137d5831bd26d/60_0_1800_1080/master/1800.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=c5ad999044e4aeb50ceaff6592695eae",
"publish_date": "2025-02-18 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "‘Fix poverty, fix health’: A day in the life of a ‘failing’ NHS",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/video/2025/feb/18/fix-poverty-fix-health-a-day-in-the-life-of-a-failing-nhs"
} |
741f6040c375100fa45e6a00b15ef7d6 | Sign up for the Fashion Statement newsletter: our free fashion email
Sign up for the Fashion Statement newsletter: our free fashion email
Style, with substance: what’s really trending this week, a roundup of the best fashion journalism and your wardrobe dilemmas solved, direct to your inbox every Thursday
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"authors": [],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f674446dfd0fef9340436a1bea2e93ec0cdf1905/0_0_760_456/master/760.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=e662dcac9f3c22cc9a4d154abcf1b8da",
"publish_date": "2022-09-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Sign up for the Fashion Statement newsletter: our free fashion email",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/global/2022/sep/20/sign-up-for-the-fashion-statement-newsletter-our-free-fashion-email"
} |
9a9543976e9ed86c99c447d95fe892dd | Sign up for the Guardian Documentaries newsletter: our free short film email
Sign up for the Guardian Documentaries newsletter: our free short film email
Be the first to see our latest thought-provoking films, bringing you bold and original storytelling from around the world
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"authors": [],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/4a61421d53a7128125385ef765aa4f02553f18e5/0_0_5000_3000/master/5000.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=d8f027d893d755735c11d39087c13a4e",
"publish_date": "2016-09-02 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Sign up for the Guardian Documentaries newsletter: our free short film email",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/info/2016/sep/02/sign-up-for-the-guardian-documentaries-update"
} |
86c4120dbbdc9ec9ffeb6a2abfe1cfc4 | Guardian Traveller newsletter: Sign up for our free holidays email
UK Focused
Guardian Traveller newsletter: Sign up for our free holidays email
From biking adventures to city breaks, get inspiration for your next break – whether in the UK or further afield – with twice-weekly emails from the Guardian’s travel editors. You’ll also receive handpicked offers from Guardian Holidays.
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"authors": [],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/6b8bc65b6cc6ad15c1b60a5f21718aa0449979f4/0_0_760_456/master/760.png?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=3c35d3bdbac5c68c09c64225d9a78b73",
"publish_date": "2022-10-12 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Guardian Traveller newsletter: Sign up for our free holidays email",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/global/2022/oct/12/sign-up-for-the-guardian-traveller-newsletter-our-free-holidays-email"
} |
813c84cd560a8cfbef94479fe90dec20 | Sign up for the Feast newsletter: our free Guardian food email
Sign up for the Feast newsletter: our free Guardian food email
Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. | {
"authors": [],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/0edfd4ddd15717271a97f651cd955949b153b31b/0_0_5000_3000/master/5000.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=64000b9810bb97c1b28866f1bccc4a88",
"publish_date": "2019-07-09 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Sign up for the Feast newsletter: our free Guardian food email",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/food/2019/jul/09/sign-up-for-the-feast-newsletter-our-free-guardian-food-email"
} |
54e3fa8e3cfe0c79b036b3431354e147 | Witches and pooches: NYC Easter parade – in pictures
‘In your Easter bonnet, with all the frills upon it, you’ll be the grandest lady in the Easter parade’
Photograph: Eduardo Muñoz/Reuters | {
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"Sarah Yenesel Epa",
"Kena Betancur Getty Images",
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"publish_date": "2025-04-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
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"title": "Witches and pooches: NYC Easter parade – in pictures",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2025/apr/20/witches-and-pooches-nyc-easter-parade-in-pictures"
} |
392a6f53e94462bfb138825f13923b4c | A unicorn, a robot runner and Easter celebrations: photos of the weekend
Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan The Nasa astronaut Don Pettit is carried to a medical tent shortly after he and the cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner landed in their Soyuz MS-26 space capsule
Photograph: Bill Ingalls/NASA/EPA | {
"authors": [
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"Alishia Abodunde Getty Images",
"Patrick Pleul Ap",
"Eva Kořínková Reuters",
"Josue Perez Zuma Press Wire Rex Shutterstock",
"Erik S Lesser Epa",
"Saeed Qaq Nurphoto Rex Shutterstock",
"Jamal Awad Reuters",
"Anadolu Getty Images"
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"publish_date": "2025-04-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
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"title": "A unicorn, a robot runner and Easter celebrations: photos of the weekend",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/news/gallery/2025/apr/20/a-unicorn-a-robot-runner-and-easter-celebrations-photos-of-the-weekend"
} |
6c6f081c720340a5897ce973cbf691ac | Bog standard? Tokyo’s spectacular public toilets – in pictures
Public toilets are rarely thought of fondly – that is unless you’re talking about those in Tokyo’s Shibuya district. Commissioned in 2019, creatives including renowned architects Shigeru Ban and the late Fumihiko Maki designed 17 beautiful, functional, meticulously clean public toilets, some of which featured in Wim Wenders’s 2023 film Perfect Days. Hong Kong-based photographer Ulana Switucha came across the toilets, each unique, while working on a project about Japanese architecture in 2023, and went back to photograph them the following year. “These structures are works of art,” she says. “They shine as beacons in their urban setting and demonstrate that public design can go beyond functionality to represent cultural and artistic value.” | {
"authors": [
"Tara Joshi"
],
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"publish_date": "2025-04-19 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Bog standard? Tokyo’s spectacular public toilets – in pictures",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2025/apr/19/bog-standard-tokyos-spectacular-public-toilets-in-pictures"
} |
22f3ed3dcf1a4c281f7bddeccccdcfb8 | ‘This trick is incredibly risky for him’: Ankit Ghosh’s best phone picture
In a narrow lane in Kolkata, West Bengal, Ankit Ghosh paused for a moment to take this photo. Ghosh was among crowds attending Vijaya Dashami, the last day of the Durga Puja, a festival he describes as “cultural potpourri”. He says, “It’s celebrated all across India, but there is no other place to experience it better than West Bengal. As this was the grand finale, the atmosphere was one of joy, pride and celebration.”
The man in the photo is Ghosh’s neighbour. “He’s a fine performer of this trick, which you don’t see very often; it is generally saved up for special festivals and celebrations,” Ghosh says. “The liquid in the air is kerosene [paraffin], which is spat upwards through a lit matchstick to create these cloudy flames.
“It’s actually incredibly risky for him: he has ailments related to his liver and kidneys, so he’s now strictly forbidden from putting the kerosene in his mouth. But, for the love of his art, he decided to do it one last time.”
Ghosh’s picture has been shortlisted in the youth competition of the Sony World Photography awards 2025. “I hope this image will stir feelings of pride and relatability,” he adds. “It’s just a snapshot of how culturally diverse India and its festivals are. Even one lifetime isn’t enough to experience everything.” | {
"authors": [
"Grace Holliday"
],
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"publish_date": "2025-04-19 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "‘This trick is incredibly risky for him’: Ankit Ghosh’s best phone picture",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/apr/19/this-trick-is-incredibly-risky-for-him-ankit-ghoshs-best-phone-picture"
} |
19ec635b4268810340a49befdb060e25 | The week around the world in 20 pictures
Sumy, Ukraine
A Ukrainian rescuer takes a break at the site of a missile attack in Sumy. At least 34 people were killed and more than 100 injured in a Russian ballistic missile strike in Sumy as people were going to church for Palm Sunday, in the worst attack on civilians this year | {
"authors": [
"Jim Powell",
"Photograph",
"Evgeniy Maloletka Ap",
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"Bashar Taleb Afp Getty Images",
"Omar Al-Qattaa Afp Getty Images",
"Ohad Zwigenberg Ap",
"Emilio Morenatti Ap",
"Luis Tato Afp Getty Images",
"Luis Robayo Afp Getty Images"
],
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"publish_date": "2025-04-18 00:00:00",
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"title": "The week around the world in 20 pictures",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2025/apr/18/the-week-around-the-world-in-20-pictures"
} |
07bea69d65ef678743aa063cb5f5f565 | Stylish new homes in England for downsizers close to town – in pictures
Battersea, London
This two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment is on the seventh floor of a building to the west of Battersea Park. The vast open-plan kitchen-dining-living area is all designed to face the floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall windows, with views that stretch up and down the Thames. There is a utility room tucked away next to the kitchen and the main bedroom has a dressing room. The building has a concierge service, and it is a short walk to the shops and restaurants of Battersea power station and across the bridge to Chelsea and Kings Road. £1,850,000, Foxtons , 0207 801 1111 | {
"authors": [
"Anna White",
"Photograph"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/a697a75866d669d96f9bc326e8261b5d7b3848f8/0_259_4000_2402/master/4000.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=3fc545bc0973ab56dbeca02a940c1e66",
"publish_date": "2025-04-18 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian (UK Top Stories)",
"summary": "",
"title": "Stylish new homes in England for downsizers close to town – in pictures",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/money/gallery/2025/apr/18/stylish-new-homes-in-england-for-downsizers-close-to-town-in-pictures"
} |
cd561fbe2ce720e57a3c9652d02afb85 | Alexander-Arnold critics ‘ridiculous’ says Slot after Liverpool edge closer
Arne Slot said it is “ridiculous” to dispute Trent Alexander-Arnold’s commitment to Liverpool after he scored the only goal at Leicester to push his club closer to a 20th league title. The 26-year-old, who is expected to join Real Madrid on a free this summer, fired in his first left-foot goal for his boyhood club on his return from an ankle injury to secure victory and condemn Leicester to relegation.
Alexander-Arnold, who scored within five minutes of replacing Conor Bradley, is poised to join Real on a long-term contract when his Liverpool contract expires. He celebrated at Leicester by removing his shirt and Kostas Tsimikas placed it on the corner flag nearest to the away fans. Following the match the full-back soaked up their adulation after Virgil van Dijk ushered him towards them. Alexander-Arnold, who joined Liverpool aged six, has won every domestic trophy with the club, plus the Champions League.
skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Football Daily Free daily newsletter Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion
“It is a big moment and big players like to have big moments in their career,” Slot said. “Virgil had one last week [scoring the winning goal against West Ham], a special moment, Mo [Salah] has had them many times this season and players like Trent, they step up when needed. He did that against Newcastle and in his second-half performance against Paris Saint‑Germain when I was just waiting for him to score a goal and then he had to go off with an injury.”
Asked whether Liverpool have given up hope of keeping Alexander-Arnold, Slot said: “The headline should be today the goal he scored and not about his contract but what I can say is it would be ridiculous if someone argues his commitment for this club because the work rate he has put in today to be back and score such an important goal, and all the work he has done for this club in all the years he is here, no one should, in my opinion, argue with his commitment for this club. Let the headlines be his great goal and not his contract situation.”
Ruud van Nistelrooy, who was appointed in November as Leicester manager on a contract until 2027, said he is planning to be in charge next season but his future is thought to be in doubt. Leicester have sounded out potential successors in recent weeks.
“We have to use this time to get better,” Van Nistelrooy said. “The club will continue and it is my job to put the club in the best place possible.” | {
"authors": [
"Ben Fisher"
],
"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/e93a7ca2c454aa44faa86785e526edcc6202cb29/0_26_1545_927/master/1545.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=64c2042297386051812a071cae61bb32",
"publish_date": "2025-04-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Alexander-Arnold critics ‘ridiculous’ says Slot after Liverpool edge closer",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/apr/20/trent-alexander-arnold-arne-slot-liverpool-ruud-van-nistelrooy-leicester"
} |
a6e0a2af73fc77ac426e7630fb332575 | Pina inspires Barcelona to emphatic WCL first-leg win against Chelsea
Sonia Bompastor accepted that her Chelsea team had been simply “not good enough” after they were taught a lesson by a technically superior Barcelona side who now hold a commanding position in their Women’s Champions League semi-final.
Chelsea were beaten for only the second time in all competitions since Bompastor took over last summer but in sunny Catalonia they were outclassed by the strongest team they have faced in her tenure so far.
“Barcelona is maybe the best team in Europe,” Bompastor said. “I think when the result was 2-1 we were not in a bad situation, but the last 10 minutes were not good enough. As a team we made too many mistakes tonight to have a better result. The version we showed tonight was not good enough.
“When you play Barcelona, you just need to be brave on the ball, being able to hold the ball under pressure, and being able also in the physical aspects to win your duels, and just sometimes in your football brain to be smarter, to anticipate things. I think we played with too many reactions, instead of being proactive in the game.”
Chelsea are trying to reach the European final for only the second time and could still win a quadruple of major trophies this term in Bompastor’s first season in charge, but they will now need an unlikely looking comeback and the performance of their lives if they are to have any chance of overturning this deficit in London.
The scoreline could have been worse for Chelsea but for Hannah Hampton’s early penalty save, at a time when the tie was level at 0-0, when the former Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas was denied from the spot. That kept the home side at bay but not for long, with Putellas classily slipping a through ball into the path of Ewa Pajor for the Poland striker to open the scoring.
Chelsea improved defensively after the break but were undone by a masterful team goal as Barcelona made it 2-0 with a move that involved 18 passes before Clàudia Pina turned in from inside the six-yard box. Pina herself had played the 13th pass of Barcelona’s flowing move from deep inside her own half before sprinting upfield to turn home the cross.
View image in fullscreen Chelsea’s Keira Walsh and Sjoeke Nüsken show their disappointment after Barcelona’s fourth goal. Photograph: Albert Gea/Reuters
Sandy Baltimore’s crisp strike into the far corner with 16 minutes remaining offered Bompastor’s team a glimmer of hope to bring the scoreline back to 2-1, but a far-post header from an unmarked Irene Paredes restored Barcelona’s two-goal advantage soon after. Pina then struck again from close range in the 90th minute to severely hamper Chelsea’s hopes for the second leg, and make the hosts’ advantage on the scoreboard more accurately reflect their dominance.
Quick Guide WSL roundup: Holmgaards combine to hit City's Champions League hopes Show Manchester City's fading hopes of qualifying for the Women's Champions League were further dented as they dropped points at home in a 1-1 draw with Everton.
Nick Cushing's injury-hit side had taken the lead in scrappy fashion when Kerstin Casparij reacted fastest to a bouncing ball in the box to tuck in from close range, but that early goal was cancelled out when Karen Holmgaard (right of picture) headed in a cross by her twin sister Sara (left of picture) to equalise. The result left fourth-placed Manchester City seven points away from a European place with only three games remaining.
Second-bottom Aston Villa took a giant step towards survival as Kirsty Hanson's 91st-minute winner gave them a 3-2 victory away at Tottenham. It was Villa's second consecutive WSL victory and lifted them seven points clear of Crystal Palace, who have four matches left to try and save themselves. Tom Garry Photograph: Nigel French/PA Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback.
Caroline Graham Hansen, who had been a doubt for this first leg after missing Barcelona’s training session on Saturday because of illness, was named among the starting side and the Norway winger began the game impressively, giving the Chelsea left-back Baltimore plenty to think about in the early stages. A shot by Graham Hansen was deflected wide, after the hosts’ holding midfielder Patricia Guijarro had seen a low effort deflected into the arms of Hampton, while Chelsea struggled to hold on to the ball long enough to mount many meaningful attacks in the opening exchanges.
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Barcelona’s early pressure eventually led to a penalty when Nathalie Björn handled Paredes’s header and the Hungarian referee Katalin Kulcsár correctly awarded the spot-kick after consulting the screen following a VAR check. Putellas opted to send her strike straight down the middle and the England goalkeeper Hampton, who had dived slightly to Putellas’s right, made the save comfortably with her feet.
That proved to be one of the only moments of celebration for the travelling Chelsea fans and ultimately this was a game which highlighted Barcelona’s superior skill as they appear to be on course to knock Chelsea out at the semi-final stage of this competition for the third successive season.
Bompastor refused to concede the tie, though, trying to hold on to some hope for a return-leg comeback: “It will be difficult but, in football, you need to believe. We want to go into the second leg trying to win the game and, in football, anything can happen.” The defender Lucy Bronze told TNT Sports: “I think we can do it.”
Barcelona are aiming to reach their fifth consecutive final and lift the European title for the fourth time in those five seasons, having started their current run of dominance in this competition with a 4-0 win against Chelsea – who have never won this title – in the 2021 final in Gothenburg, Sweden.
This first-leg meeting was similarly one-sided to that showdown four years ago. But Paredes was urging caution when telling the Catalan television channel TV3: “It’s not done. We are happy with how we played, but we have to go there [Stamford Bridge] and play well as well.” | {
"authors": [
"Tom Garry"
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"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
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"title": "Pina inspires Barcelona to emphatic WCL first-leg win against Chelsea",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/apr/20/barcelona-chelsea-womens-champions-league-match-report"
} |
b851bdf9ef9eadb3499b9dcb5c395dbb | Oscar Piastri storms to Saudi Arabian F1 GP win and now leads title race
Maintaining a focus and equilibrium under pressure has always been one of the hallmarks of Formula One’s greatest proponents and Oscar Piastri is demonstrating it with striking assurance for one so young.
His victory at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, beating the world champion Max Verstappen, was an object lesson in the 24-year-old’s calm and confidence and his potential to take the title in only his third season.
Seven days ago at the Bahrain GP, Piastri had controlled the race from pole to flag with insouciant ease and while in Jeddah he had more to do, starting from second on the grid after Verstappen had taken an unexpected and brilliant pole, the Australian and his McLaren team kept their composure and once he had the lead, gained through the pit stops after Verstappen was given a five-second penalty, Piastri was once more untouchable.
For all that Verstappen and Red Bull had managed to find the right window for their car this weekend, a far cry from Bahrain, the McLaren remains very much the class of the field in race pace and was notably easier on its tyres than its competitors.
Piastri and his team duly executed with perfection in what was something of a procession to secure the victory and one largely decided in the opening moments when Verstappen held his lead from the off but had to go off wide at turn two as Piastri went up the inside.
The McLaren driver believed he had been ahead and that Verstappen should give the place back; the world champion said he had not been given enough room and the incident was investigated by the stewards. Verstappen was adjudged to have been at fault and given a five-second penalty but he maintained his place at the front in clean air.
The Dutchman pushed hard but could not open a wide enough lead to cover the penalty and Piastri held his nerve and his cool to ease ahead through the pit stops, after which his pace and superior tyre wear paid off and he exercised iron control to take the flag by 2.8sec.
Charles Leclerc took Ferrari’s first podium in third, Lando Norris was fourth for McLaren in a strong comeback drive from 10th on the grid, and George Russell was fifth for Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton could not match his Ferrari teammate, taking seventh.
For Piastri then, his third win this year was another strong statement of intent after dominant wins in Bahrain and China. Based on his performance on the high-speed challenge of the Jeddah Corniche Circuit which demands commitment for a quick lap, his confidence and equanimity in how the McLaren handles under him was once more clear and sits in stark contrast with his teammate Norris, who was considered the championship favourite.
Piastri wielded it in Jeddah with the same controlled aplomb as he has all season and it is paying off. He now leads the world championship for the first time in his short career, 10 points ahead of Norris with Verstappen in third, 12 points back.
Verstappen and Red Bull, however, will still consider this a strong result. In Bahrain Verstappen could manage only sixth place, his car a recalcitrant beast, lacking in almost every area and left floundering against the dominant McLaren and indeed Mercedes and Ferrari. He was wrestling with it through waves of frustration and ire, made clear to his team in no uncertain terms.
Yet the Red Bull was quick and handling well in Jeddah, another indication of how on any given weekend it can veer from fearsome to frightful, according to whether it finds an increasingly narrow operating window but this was nonetheless a strong performance from driver and team.
He and Red Bull were aggrieved at the penalty but might consider the better option would have been to have Verstappen hand the place back immediately rather than risk censure, although regardless he did not look to have the pace to deny Piastri across the race.
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Norris had crashed out in qualifying after an unforced error and drove well to comeback. This was better than he expected, having warned that he believed fifth or sixth might be the best he could manage.
On a counterstrategy of opening on the hard tyres Norris once again demonstrated he is far more comfortable with the McLaren in race pace rather in the very edge over a single lap in qualifying.
He chastised himself for his crash on Saturday and is more than well aware that given his issues with the car he can ill afford to make unforced errors. Norris is very self-critical as a driver and lacking confidence in the car will not be helping him so this decent run in Jeddah will help, but the British driver very much needs some clean and preferably victorious races to reassert himself.
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Piastri, however, in Jeddah as he has repeatedly this season, made the task look seamless even while navigating the unforgiving circuit which punishes errors with finality. He barely put a foot wrong as once more he eased to victory.
There is little to no histrionics in his driving, no unnecessary drama but rather a smooth ease on that even keel holding him very much on course in the title fight.
Kimi Antonelli was sixth for Mercedes, Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon eighth and ninth for Williams and Isack Hadjar in 10th for Racing Bulls. | {
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"Giles Richards"
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"title": "Oscar Piastri storms to Saudi Arabian F1 GP win and now leads title race",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/20/oscar-piastri-saudi-arabian-f1-gp-win-leads-title-race-mclaren"
} |
d0037e00fc45bf0ce03fa04d132a6eba | Mark Williams outlasts Wu Yize to make World Snooker Championship last 16
Mark Williams was forced to dredge up every inch of his Crucible experience to sink rising Chinese star Wu Yize 10-8 and book his place in the last 16 of the World Snooker Championship for the 22nd time in his career.
Williams, who turned 50 last month, delivered two near-faultless final frames to hold off his opponent, who had missed a golden chance to seize a 9-7 advantage when he missed a frame-ball red with the rest.
The Welshman’s win was all the more remarkable given his struggles with failing eyesight. Williams said his eyes had “completely gone” after defeat by Ding Junhui in the Players’ Championship in March, and he is understood to be considering surgery.
The 21-year-old Wu, one of the audacious stars of China’s latest generation of cueists, had gripped on to Williams’ coattails after resuming 5-4 behind on Sunday, and when the younger man nudged in front in the 15th frame the momentum appeared to have shifted in his favour. Instead a lapse in concentration in the 16th frame cost him dear, Williams using all his guile to pull level before brilliantly crafted breaks of 58 and 75 got him over the line.
“Some of the balls he can pot is incredible and he’s got the ability to win this tournament, no question,” Williams said of Wu afterwards. “But I got stronger towards the end and if I can’t outscore or outpot him, I suppose I can outwit him.”
Chris Wakelin withstood a stirring comeback from Neil Robertson to beat the Australian former champion 10-8 and seal his place in the second round for the first time. The 33-year-old from Rugby, who had not won a match at the famous venue in three previous attempts, resumed with a 7-2 lead but was rooted in his seat as Robertson reeled off five frames on the bounce to haul the match back level.
However, Wakelin recovered his form at the right time, twice poking his nose back in front before riding his luck to clinch a dramatic 18th frame and finally confirm his place in the last 16.
Also in a drama-filled evening session, 11th seed Barry Hawkins surrendered a slender overnight advantage to Iranian qualifier Hossein Vafaei, whose pressure-filled break of 73 in the decider sealed a 10-9 win and a second round meeting with Williams.
View image in fullscreen Xiao Guodong completed a 10-4 victory over qualifier Matthew Selt on Sunday. Photograph: Richard Sellers/PA
Mark Allen dug deep to chisel out a 5-4 overnight advantage against China’s world No 46 Fan Zhengyi. Qualifier Fan – who was beaten 10-5 by the Antrim man in the same round two years ago – made a blazing start, winning the first three frames including breaks of 89 and 103, before the eighth seed belatedly stirred.
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A century of his own followed by two more breaks over 50 pulled Allen level, and after the pair split the two frames, Allen stepped up to nudge through a scrappy ninth and give him a slender advantage for when they return to play to a conclusion on Monday afternoon.
Earlier, the Chinese surge had showed no sign of abating as Xiao Guodong and Zhao Xintong produced impressive displays on the second morning of the tournament. Xiao followed compatriot Lei Peifan – who stunned defending champion Kyren Wilson on Saturday night – into the last 16 after completing a 10-4 victory over qualifier Matthew Selt.
Zhao, having battled through four qualifying rounds as he continues his comeback from a ban related to a betting scandal, built a 7-2 lead after the first session of his clash with last year’s runner-up, Jak Jones. | {
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"title": "Mark Williams outlasts Wu Yize to make World Snooker Championship last 16",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/20/mark-williams-outlasts-wu-yize-world-snooker-championship"
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c68074c0952e52f6f4338cc88727f340 | Leandro Trossard double secures victory for Arsenal at 10-man Ipswich
Mikel Arteta will have spent more arduous Easter Sundays hunting hidden chocolate eggs.
Aside from brief concern for Bukayo Saka’s raked achilles – an incident for which Leif Davis received his very early marching orders – this was as undemanding an afternoon as the Arsenal manager could have envisaged on the path to the more important matter of a Champions League semi‑final with Paris Saint‑Germain.
Arteta will put his players through tougher training sessions ahead of that showdown than the exertions required of them at Portman Road.
The upshot of this 4-0 win was that Liverpool are not Premier League champions; not yet anyway. They will be – of that there is only mathematical but virtually no practical doubt. For now, though, the title remains unclaimed for a little while longer.
Similarly, Ipswich are not yet relegated, but – as acknowledged by Kieran McKenna even before this defeat – their football will be played in the Championship next season. An implausible five wins to see out the season would likely still send them down on goal difference. If this match marked the reading of their last rites in the top flight, they appeared to hear them in a stupor.
By the time Davis was shown a straight red card for a tackle that possessed an abundant capacity to injure but no hope of winning the ball, his side were two goals down and staring at a task that appeared near impossible. His dismissal, with almost an hour remaining, confirmed as much.
Saka continued after receiving treatment, but an ice pack was strapped to his ankle upon his substitution in the second half. Arteta played down any lasting damage: “He was a bit sore, but it’s nothing serious, so it’s good. He cuts him from the back. I don’t think it’s intentional at all, but it’s dangerous because he cannot really react to anything, because you cannot see him coming.”
The match ceased to exist as anything even resembling a contest following Davis’s departure, although Arsenal’s dominance had been abundantly clear from kick-off, jogging and sometimes walking their way into a healthy lead.
Both early goals followed a similar script, emerging from a right side where Ben White, Martin Ødegaard and Saka started together for the first time since November.
Saka, in particular, caused all manner of problems. His first cutback went via Ødegaard’s toe to Leandro Trossard who, loitering near the penalty spot, prodded past Alex Palmer while falling backwards. When Saka repeated the trick soon after, Mikel Merino’s backheel sent the ball towards Gabriel Martinelli who was able to tap into an empty net at the far post.
View image in fullscreen Arsenal’s Gabriel Martinelli scores their second goal after a clever backheel by Mikel Merino. Photograph: David Klein/Reuters
That Saka was credited with neither assist did nothing to deny his role as creator of both. The England forward instantly became the home fans’ primary target following Davis’s sending off, although they would have been hard pressed to challenge the decision with the benefit of replays. They did, at least, gain a modicum of perverse pleasure from his inability to add his name to the scoresheet despite multiple efforts.
“I probably thought at the start it was the highest standard we’d faced this year,” McKenna said of Arsenal’s first-half performance. “The red card makes it an impossible task in terms of getting back into the game.”
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With one eye on the upcoming PSG semi‑final – Thomas Partey is suspended for the first game – Arteta had decided to use this as a practice for his likely setup, deploying Declan Rice in a deeper No 6 role and pulling Merino back into his more familiar midfield position. Aside from a couple of early skirmishes, where he stood up resolutely to the tricky figure of Julio Enciso, Rice may as well have not been there for all that he was troubled.
The absence of any jeopardy allowed Arteta to rotate his troops after the break, with Saka, Merino, Rice and Martinelli all able to put their feet up early.
From the ninth minute to the 56th, Ipswich did not even muster a shot, McKenna forced to revert to a 5-3-1 formation in the second half in a bid to prevent the floodgates from opening. It had some success, although Arsenal – exhibiting their set-piece prowess – added two more from short corners.
First, Trossard strolled unaccompanied to the edge of the six-yard box before swivelling on the ball and drilling low past Palmer. Then, Ethan Nwaneri cut inside and his shot took multiple deflections on its way into the net. It was nothing that their dominance did not deserve, and Arteta’s side is now unbeaten in 11 matches across all competitions.
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“We are really happy; really happy with the performance,” Arteta said. “I think the first 35 minutes is one of the best we played this season.”
Ipswich fans have now endured seven successive home defeats, the club’s longest losing run at Portman Road. The Championship should provide some solace. | {
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cdeaab9e75d1354f8389257921739499 | Chelsea break Fulham hearts as Pedro Neto completes stunning turnaround
It began with a subtle flick from Moisés Caicedo, the midfielder’s touch just deceptive enough to unbalance Fulham. Into added time at Craven Cottage and Chelsea, who had finally thrown off the shackles after equalising through Tyrique George, seemed to have remembered they can play football. Inhibited no more, their quality took over as they moved down the right, Enzo Fernández and Cole Palmer swapping passes before the ball came to Pedro Neto to round things off with a finish that left no room for any debate.
These are the moments that turn seasons, perhaps even save jobs. For long spells this was the same old story from Chelsea. Creating little, they trailed 1-0 early on and no doubt would have faced a torrent of abuse from the away end had Fulham clung on to their slender advantage.
Yet credit goes to Enzo Maresca for making the tweaks that altered the flow of this west London derby, pushing Fulham back and providing Chelsea with the foundations to stage a comeback that could prove vital in their push for Champions League qualification.
Maresca, who is not exactly popular with supporters at the moment, earned his moment of catharsis. He took decisive action at half‑time, Jadon Sancho and Malo Gusto impressive after coming on, and was rewarded for trusting his instincts when he modified his attack by replacing his only target man, Nicolas Jackson, with a 19-year-old winger with 12 minutes left.
At that stage Maresca’s prediction that Chelsea would have no chance of finishing in the top five unless Jackson and Palmer rediscover their poise in front of goal looked spot on. Yet whatever George lacks in size and experience is more than made up for by his willing and speed around the box. The academy product soon grabbed his first goal at this level, finishing with authority, and Maresca’s desire for others to accept responsibility when Palmer and Jackson misfire was answered by Neto’s rocket.
The head coach, who was booked for his celebrations after the second goal, smiled and expressed relief at unlikely inspiration not coming from Marc Cucurella for once. “A must‑win game,” said Maresca, who added that Christopher Nkunku was left out of the squad for technical reasons. “It is a nice feeling to win at the end. It was a good for the players. They deserved to celebrate with the fans.”
Chelsea had plenty to prove after underwhelming home performances against Ipswich and Legia Warsaw. Earning their first away win in the league since December required them to pass a test of character and physicality in the end. Fulham, on the other hand, seemed to lose their nerve as they closed in on their first double over Chelsea. Marco Silva admitted that his side dropped too deep during the second half, leaving them unable to hold on to a win that would have strengthened their European qualification push.
The early signs were unpromising for the visitors. Fulham were quick and purposeful, whereas Chelsea were skittish and slow out of the traps. Various duels unfolded and many were dominated by someone in white, whether it was Raúl Jiménez unsettling Maresca’s centre-backs or Sander Berge and Sasa Lukic going toe to toe with Fernández and Caicedo. Ryan Sessegnon constantly ran at Cucurella on the right.
View image in fullscreen Tyrique George fires in Chelsea’s equaliser. Photograph: Paul Childs/Action Images/Reuters
Chelsea responded with some vague attacking patterns, many of them designed around attempting to isolate Neto against Kenny Tete on the left. Incision was lacking. Only Neto looked dangerous, fizzing in one cross that just evaded Jackson.
Fulham led after 20 minutes, pouncing when Reece James took too long to release the ball after striding out of defence. Sessegnon hustled Chelsea’s captain and found Alex Iwobi, who had time to set himself and drill a low shot past Robert Sánchez.
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Chelsea looked brittle. Fulham could have extended their lead, Berge fluffing a free header from a corner. It was the last real threat from the hosts. Chelsea were sturdier and more intense after the break. Sancho was lively in place of the insipid Noni Madueke; Gusto, who later went off with a hamstring injury, offered more drive than James at right-back. Caicedo grabbed hold of the midfield battle.
Jackson set up Neto, who had shifted to the right, but the winger shot at Bernd Leno. Palmer, whose influence grew, missed from a tight angle. He has not scored for 16 games.
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No matter. Jackson went off and George made his mark in the 83rd minute, firing past Leno from 20 yards after Fulham failed to deal with Neto’s knockdown from a long diagonal ball. Chelsea believed. The celebrations were wild when Neto took Fernández’s pass, spun and blasted home.
Chelsea had done what Fulham did to them at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day. It could make the difference in their quest for Champions League football. | {
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} |
5fb48b924f3ed380edd79da897ecfadd | Skjelmose stuns Pogacar and Evenepoel with sprint to Amstel Gold Race win
Mattias Skjelmose claimed a shock victory at the men’s Amstel Gold Race as he won a sprint finish against the favourite, Tadej Pogacar, and the Olympic champion, Remco Evenepoel.
It was supposed to be a fight between Pogacar – the world champion – and Evenepoel but Denmark’s Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) had not read the script as he beat Pogacar by the width of a tyre. Evenepoel, who recently returned from serious injuries sustained in a crash, was third.
The race took place over 255km from Maastricht in the Netherlands and concluded in gripping circumstances in Valkenburg. “I was riding for the podium,” Skjelmose said. “Already the podium would be a really good result for me. Of course, you sprint for the best result but I thought I was going to cramp, or see them go into the horizon.“
Pogacar (Emirates-XRG) appeared to have the race won when he built up a 25sec lead with about 40km remaining after going solo at the front and extended it to 30sec.
Skjelmose, 24, was the first to try to catch the three-time Tour de France and multiple Classics winner and was then joined by Belgium’s Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick-step). Working together the duo ate into Pogacar’s lead over the final climbs.
There was seemingly nothing to separate the riders in the surge to the line but Skjelmose nosed in front at the last to claim the biggest win of his career.
Wout van Aert (Visma) was fourth, leading a chasing pack 34 seconds back ahead of fifth-placed Michael Matthews (Jayco Alula), Louis Barré in sixth (Intermarché-Wanty), then Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ), Tiesj Benoot (Visma), Tom Pidcock (Q36.5) and Ben Healy (EF Education-Easypost) rounded out the top 10. Brandon McNulty (Emirates-XRG) was at the back of that group but finished 11th.
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View image in fullscreen Mischa Bredewold celebrates victory alongside Ellen van Dijk (left) and Puck Pieterse (right). Photograph: Hollandse Hoogte/Shutterstock
In the earlier women’s race, which took place over a 157.3km route, an all-Netherlands top three was topped by Mischa Bredewold of SD Worx-Protime, the first big Classics victory of her career. She finished 7sec ahead of Lidl-Trek’s Ellen van Dijk. Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) took the final podium place, finishing in the same time as Juliette Labous (FDJ-Suez), while Silvia Persico (UAE Team ADQ) was fifth.
Bredewold’s teammate and compatriot Anna van der Breggen, who won the race in 2016, crashed heavily just after the 100km mark and was forced to withdraw. | {
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"Guardian Sport"
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"image_url": "https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/318d7f0d5b20b801ed44b061d8fc88db6e030aee/0_256_3840_2304/master/3840.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=320861bffb04015723327dd8a63de2a6",
"publish_date": "2025-04-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Skjelmose stuns Pogacar and Evenepoel with sprint to Amstel Gold Race win",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/20/mattias-skjelmose-stuns-tadej-pogacar-remco-evenepoel-sprint-amstel-gold-race-win-cycling"
} |
6f45f2c2eb443d1a5a4700241c61c9a4 | Steward steers Leicester to victory at Bristol to boost title push
In theory it was a day for Bristol to consolidate second place and reaffirm their Premiership title credentials. The sun shone, the pitch was hard and fast and the free-scoring Bears welcomed back the inspirational wing, Gabriel Ibitoye, after a four-month injury absence.
In reality what materialised was a largely dominant Leicester victory that took them past their opponents into second, on points difference, with four games remaining. Michael Cheika’s one-year assignment as Tigers coach will soon be over but the possibility of him departing a champion cannot be discounted.
Looming over the buildup was the memory of the game last December when Pat Lam’s side won 54-24 at Welford Road. The Tigers were hurt by that humiliation, no doubt, but might also have reminded themselves that the Bears were thrashed 38-0 by Sale at home a week later.
“For me personally, and for us as a team, we wanted to play this game for the fans,” Cheika said. “We were poor the day they came, and we really wanted to turn that around. I hope they’ll be happy with that performance.”
True to form, Bristol seamlessly switched from the sublime to ridiculous here. Adam Radwan’s try had put Leicester in front when Kalaveti Ravouvou made a burst into the visitors’ 22. The Bears centre looked isolated after being dragged down, but the covering defenders could not have imagined the vision and accuracy of a frankly ludicrous one‑handed offload fizzed to Ibitoye, lurking near the touchline. The wing applied a simple finish. “Fiji flair,” Lam said of Ravouvou’s outrageous skill. “With those Fijian boys, just expect the pass. For him to pull it out like that and for Gabs to read it was class.”
Quick Guide Women's Six Nations: Ireland roar back in style to leave Wales winless Show Ireland earned their second Women’s Six Nations win with a 40-14 bonus-point victory over Wales at Rodney Parade. Wales took the lead following a mistake from Ireland wing Amee-Leigh Costigan and the loose ball was quickly scooped up by Carys Cox to ground before Keira Bevan added the extras. The visitors responded when Linda Djougang broke through the Welsh defence to score before another brilliant spell of pressure on the home try line saw Aoife Wafer able to reach over and ground, with Dannah O’Brien converting both tries. Although Ireland were reduced to 14 when O’Brien was sent to the sin-bin, Dorothy Wall added their third try just before the break and Enya Breen’s resulting kick was successful. A dominant afternoon for the visitors continued when a driving maul allowed Wall to cross and secure the bonus point before Djougang weaved through to score underneath the posts, with O’Brien converting. Wales pulled one back through replacement Hannah Bluck, who touched down moments after coming on and Bevan converted, but Wafer extended the visitors’ advantage after breaking from a scrum to score, with Breen’s kick squeezing through the posts to ensure a winless Wales stay bottom. PA Media Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback.
Soon came the ridiculous. Ibitoye’s ambitious pass drifted into the grateful hands of Ollie Hassell-Collins, near halfway, gifting the wing a clear run to the line. Jack van Poortvliet scored a third try for Leicester and when Handré Pollard added a penalty to two conversions it created a 22-5 half‑time lead for the Tigers. The only downside for them was losing Joe Heyes to the sin-bin for a high shot on Fitz Harding.
This being Bristol it felt unlikely that Leicester would serenely close out the win. Ravouvou was duly sent scorching under the posts six minutes after the break and when AJ MacGinty converted the Bears trailed by 10. England’s Ollie Chessum was putting in a huge shift at lock, personifying the old‑fashioned mongrel that Cheika insists on, but Bristol’s attacking potency remained a concern.
View image in fullscreen Cameron Henderson crosses the line for Leicester’s final try of their victory. Photograph: Steven Paston/PA
The basics still had to be done and when the Bears fluffed a lineout on 63 minutes the full-back Freddie Steward applied a classy finish from turnover ball, ghosting easily away from Benjamín Elizalde and securing a Leicester try bonus point. Game over? Not quite. Harry Randall’s sniping effort again made it a 10-point game and Bristol’s offloading excellence continued to ask questions of the tiring Tigers.
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After Solomone Kata received Leicester’s second yellow card, Randall touched down again with six minutes left, after being hauled down near the posts by Leicester’s replacement scrum-half Ben Youngs. But Randall had knocked on. A converted try then would have reduced Bristol’s arrears to three with a couple of minutes remaining. It wasn’t to be: Cameron Henderson smashed over for a fifth Leicester try, converted by Jamie Shillcock with the final kick.
Considering Bristol’s tricky run‑in – Northampton and Sale away, Bath and Harlequins at home – if they don’t improve on this performance their season could go south quickly.
“We were just messy,” said Lam, who pointed to Bristol’s injury issues, particularly in the second row. “We’ve got to dust ourselves off, with a six-day turnaround, and go and get some points at Northampton next Saturday. Everyone’s pretty gutted … but if we can get five [points] next week it makes a big difference.”
Chessum said: “We owed it firstly to people back home, after what happened,” referring to that painful thrashing last December. “But we owed it to ourselves, too.” Does he like the idea of a trip to Australia with the British & Irish Lions this summer? “No comment.” Another tight spot successfully negotiated. | {
"authors": [
"Luke Mclaughlin"
],
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"publish_date": "2025-04-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Steward steers Leicester to victory at Bristol to boost title push",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/20/bristol-leicester-premiership-rugby-union-match-report"
} |
9b9c3d8ee0e19eb45caf20ba80e65b72 | USA hail ‘shock and awe’ win over Canada to seal women’s world ice hockey title
An overtime goal from Tessa Janecke earned the United States a 4-3 win over reigning champions Canada to win gold at the women’s ice hockey world championships on Sunday as the latest chapter in their historic rivalry was decided in dramatic fashion.
“Shock and awe,” USA goalie Gwyneth Philips said after the game. “I’m ecstatic.”
With less than three minutes remaining in the first period of overtime, Janecke got to the puck ahead of keeper Ann-Renee Desbiens to score from close range before skating away and throwing her stick in the air in celebration.
The rivals have faced off for gold at 23 of 24 world championships, including last year’s gold-medal game, which Canada won 6-5 in overtime, along with meeting in six of seven Olympic finals.
It was the 11th title for the US, who are closing in on Canada’s haul of 13, and they gained sweet revenge for their loss last year when they hosted the tournament, and at the Arena Ceske Budejovice they laid down a marker ahead of next year’s Olympics.
After a scoreless first period, the second saw four goals in the space of two minutes and 16 seconds, with the US taking a 2-0 lead with goals in quick succession from Caroline Harvey and Abbey Murphy before Canada drew level.
Harvey celebrated the opening goal by miming holding a phone to her ear, after she appeared to lose her mobile phone on the ice during her side’s quarter-final win over Germany.
Danielle Serdachny shot through traffic to pull one back and Jennifer Gardiner scored her sixth goal of her first world championships, but Canada failed to take advantage of two power plays shortly afterwards.
The US, however, made the most of a power play early in the third period, and playing with a 5-on-3 advantage they went in front again through Taylor Heise.
Canada recovered from the sucker punch, killed off another penalty and Sarah Fillier pounced on a loose puck to equalise with less than six minutes remaining and ultimately send the match to sudden-death overtime.
The US lost first choice goaltender Aerin Frankel to injury in the third period, but Philips made some vital saves in overtime before Janecke found the winner from Heise’s pass in what was the longest game in women’s worlds history.
Earlier, Finland won their 15th bronze medal in the competition with a 4-3 overtime win over Czech Republic after the hosts had led 2-0 at the end of the first period.
The tournament was a roaring success in the Czech Republic, with a total attendance of 122,331 topping the previous highest of 119,231 set in Winnipeg, Canada, in 2007. | {
"authors": [],
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"publish_date": "2025-04-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
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"title": "USA hail ‘shock and awe’ win over Canada to seal women’s world ice hockey title",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/20/usa-canada-womens-ice-hockey-final"
} |
eab304c7f235f898f2244f214119c26a | Nat Sciver-Brunt lined up to be next England captain by new coach Edwards
Nat Sciver-Brunt is being lined up as the next England captain by the new coach, Charlotte Edwards. The Surrey all-rounder has been identified as the outstanding candidate to replace Heather Knight, who stepped down last month after England’s Ashes whitewash in Australia.
Sciver-Brunt is on maternity leave after the birth of her son this month to her wife and the former England seamer Katherine Brunt, and formal discussions will take place when she returns to training. The 32-year-old‘s only concern is the potential effect on her role in all three formats, but Edwards is thought to be willing to manage her workload.
Sciver-Brunt would inherit a team in transition and at the start of a pivotal period that includes a 50-over World Cup in India in October, a home T20 World Cup next year and the return Ashes series in 2027. Edwards has concluded that, although not renowned as a tactician, Sciver-Brunt’s experience and inspirational qualities make her best qualified for the role in the short-term at least, ahead of younger candidates such as Charlie Dean and Grace Scrivens.
The ECB is keen to confirm the appointment of a new captain before the T20 World Cup launch event at Lord’s on 1 May, with England’s international season starting three weeks later. England have a busy summer with three T20s and three one-day internationals against West Indies, before India visit for three T20s and three one-day games.
England will be expected to win all four series in home conditions, with the main task of the new leadership team being to ensure the side are well prepared to mount a serious challenge at this autumn’s 50-over World Cup. Before last winter’s 16-0 Ashes debacle England also disappointed at last year’s T20 World Cup in Dubai, where they failed to get out of the group stage.
Sciver-Brunt has captained England on numerous occasions when she was Knight’s vice-captain and was in charge during their decisive T20 World Cup group stage defeat by West Indies when the captain sustained a calf injury that left her unable to field. She was also in charge when England lost to New Zealand in the bronze medal match at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, but those disappointments have not been held against her.
Edwards worked closely with Sciver-Brunt in her previous job at Mumbai Indians, who won the Women’s Premier League title for the second time in three years in March. The pair also played together for three years for England before Edwards retired in 2016, the year before Knight led the side to win the World Cup at Lord’s.
Edwards views Sciver-Brunt as best-placed to lead an improvement in standards as she is one of few players worth a place in the side in all three formats. England’s fitness levels were criticised by their former spinner Alex Hartley during the Ashes and will be a focus of the new regime.
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“I will make the players more accountable for their fitness, that’s something I’m going to do,” Edwards said after her appointment this month. “But I wouldn’t have taken on this role if I didn’t think that in six months’ time we could win a World Cup in India. I think we’ve got the playing group to do that. We’ve got a lot of hard work to do and a lot of honesty, but I’m really confident that we can turn things around very quickly.
“I’m under no illusions, coming into this role, it’s about winning. I think coaches are sometimes too scared to say we want to win. That’s our job. My job is to win games of cricket and it’s how we go and do that now.” | {
"authors": [
"Matt Hughes"
],
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"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Nat Sciver-Brunt lined up to be next England captain by new coach Edwards",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/20/nat-sciver-brunt-lined-up-to-be-next-england-captain-by-new-coach-edwards"
} |
862020f7ab700901d1b6ceeeb7912db9 | County cricket: Pope and Lawrence hit centuries for Surrey against Sussex – as it happened
5h ago 19.59 BST Roundup: Surrey's Pope and Lawrence hit centuries Tanya Aldred The Surrey teammates Ollie Pope and Dan Lawrence gave the Hove faithful an Easter treat with hundreds of a deliciously attacking hue. Pope’s 102 was his first Championship hundred for two years, and his first away from The Oval for eight. Lawrence survived one fluffed catch and flayed six sixes in his 92-ball century. An awful last half‑hour of the day left Lancashire in deep trouble against Leicestershire. Set eight overs to survive, the steady Old Trafford pitch turned toxic track in the hands of Ian Holland and Logan van Beek. Keaton Jennings was bowled off his second delivery. Anderson Phillip was once more walking out as nightwatchman – for the third innings in four. Nine balls later he was walking back. Michael Jones soon found his off stump dancing behind him. In the end, 16 for three felt like a lucky escape. Earlier, Tom Hartley had wheeled through 44 overs as Leicestershire ticked along to 491 for eight declared, a lead of 228. Peter Handscomb’s 142 not out punished the tired bowlers, after Rehan Ahmed skipped to his second first‑class hundred. Ben Compton’s 178 ushered Kent towards safety at Canterbury. Gloucestershire then built a lead of 191 in their second innings before the light dipped. At Lord’s, Glamorgan chances of survival shrank thanks to two wickets in two balls from Middlesex’s Toby Roland‑Jones. Migael Pretorius (five for 64) and Tom Lammonby (three for 26) restricted Hampshire’s first‑innings lead, and Sean Dickson’s undefeated 55 kept Somerset alive. Worcestershire were set 295 to win at Chelmsford, but Essex picked away, with three wickets for Jamie Porter. The tail must find 110 today on a hybrid pitch. Nottinghamshire need four wickets to beat Warwickshire at Edgbaston. Northamptonshire declared on 500 for eight at Derby, with a century from Saif Zaib and 150 from Luke Procter. Yorkshire rattled through Durham, taking the last nine first‑innings wickets for 126 – after Alex Lees had made 172 and Emilio Gary 152. Share Updated at 20.00 BST
5h ago 19.51 BST After that hypnotic last eight overs at OT, time to go home. We’ll be back tomorrow to see how Lancs, Worcestershire, Warwickshire and more get on. A happy Easter Sunday, wherever you are. Share
5h ago 19.49 BST Close of play scores DIVISION ONE Chester le Street: Durham 427 v Yorkshire 307 and 132-4 Chelmsford: Essex 179 and 317 v Worcestershire 202 and 185-6 Worcs need 110 to win Southampton: Hampshire 336 v Somerset 184 and 103-1 Hove: Sussex 435 v Surrey 390-3 Edgbaston: Warwickshire 93 and 163-6 v Nottinghamshire 367 DIVISION TWO The County Ground: Derbyshire 307 and 202-3 v Northamptonshire 500-8dec Canterbury: Kent 393 v Gloucestershire 472 and 112-2 Old Trafford: Lancashire 263 and 16-3 v Leicestershire 491-8 Lord’s: Middlesex 470-9 v Glamorgan 199 and 186-5 Share
6h ago 18.08 BST Leicestershire declare! 491-8, a lead of 228 With six lofted over wide mid-on by Scriven. They will have eight overs at Lancashire tonight. Share
7h ago 17.29 BST Van Beek slams six, up and away,, and time for me to write up for the paper. Do keep the conversation going BTL. Share
7h ago 17.26 BST Stumps at Canterbury They’ve called it a day for bad light. Share
7h ago 17.25 BST D’Oliveira (33) and Waite (17) have a job to do at Chelmsford – Worcestershire need 141 to win. Handscomb slams Mahmood for six – declaration time?. For those interested, Lancashire didn’t win a Championship game at Old Trafford between September 2022 (when they beat just-crowned champions Surrey) and the last game of last season, when they defeated Somerset. Share
7h ago 17.12 BST Raine and Potts have made inroads into Yorkshire’s second innings – Lyth (32) and Malan (3) rebuild. I’m not sure how many CC games Malan is going to be around for – he signed a two-year white ball contract with Yorkshire in December and will play red ball as and when. I think McGrath’s sweet nothings have been persuasive. Meanwhile, Saqib Mahmood has got rid of Cox, for 31. Leicestershire’s lead now 137. Share
8h ago 17.00 BST A handsome hundred for Handscomb! Very nicely done. With enough energy to run a rapid two in the same over. Takes Leicestershire in whispering distance of a fourth batting point. Share
8h ago 16.50 BST Rain and bad light have halted events at Canterbury and Hove. Share
8h ago 16.48 BST At Old Trafford, the shadows are shrinking but the sun is still warm A handful of Leicester players are doing a loop of the boundary with a football. Handscomb moves into the nineties, the lead is 109. Hartley wheels into his 34th over. And a wave to my 11 year old nephew Seamas who was bought his first proper cricket bat yesterday by his grandad. My brother tells me that Seamas now has to knock it in for six hours?! Cricket does like to test its disciples. Share
8h ago 16.29 BST Lots of glum-faced people walking down Talbot Road and driving out of the Old Trafford car park. Probably caused by Peter Handscomb’s 84 not out. Share
9h ago 16.04 BST Tea-time-ish scores DIVISION ONE Chester le Street: Durham 427 v Yorkshire 307 and 32-1 Chelmsford: Essex 179 and 317 v Worcestershire 202 and 1119-4 Southampton: Hampshire 336 v Somerset 184 and 91-1 Hove: Sussex 435 v Surrey 378-3 Edgbaston: Warwickshire 93 and 53-2 v Nottinghamshire 367 DIVISION TWO The County Ground: Derbyshire 307 and 78-1 v Northamptonshire 500-8dec Canterbury: Kent 393 v Gloucestershire 472 and 112-2 Old Trafford: Lancashire 263 v Leicestershire 354-5 Lord’s: Middlesex 470-9dec v Glamorgan 199 and 105-2 Share
9h ago 15.55 BST A hundred for Dan Lawrence! A right royal romp: 93 balls, 8 fours, six sixes. Share
9h ago 15.45 BST Ollie Robinson is staring his third spell, this with a new ball. Dan Lawrence has 95. Both once flavour of the month, both currently superfluous to England requirements. Share
9h ago 15.40 BST Another wicket at OT! A second for Turner, who removes Kimber, with tea tottering on the horizon. Leicestershire 331-5. Share
9h ago 15.36 BST How are Glamorgan doing? They are clinging on: 103-2, both openers back in the hutch, so Northeast and Carlson must dig out the ABC building blocks again. Share
9h ago 15.32 BST Leicestershire have lost Lewis Hill for 64, but Handscomb (66) is moving effortlessly towards bigger things. The lead 66. Share
9h ago 15.25 BST Drop in on the Sussex stream, where someone seems to have painted a sepia wash over the entire ground. Unlike our dreamy blue Manchester skies. Anyway, Lawrence (77) and Foakes (21) are ploughing ahead without putting themselves out too much. Surrey 108 behind Share
9h ago 15.17 BST Worcestershire are faltering: 76-3, needing another 228. Kashif Ali and Adam Hose are reapplying the cement. Lyth and Bean have negotiated the first six overs at Chester le Street – Yorkshire 13-0. Somerset have just lost Archie Vaughan, for 24 to James Fuller.. They really need to bat for most of the rest of the match to avoid another defeat. And a second single-figure score for Al Davies down at Edgbaston. Warwicks 14-1, and a mountain to climb. Share
9h ago 15.07 BST Bravo Ben Charlesworth, who is racing along at Canterbury, 57 not out. (I met his mum Michelle at Gloucestershire’s Greener Games conference last October – she’s amazing. ) I wonder what Gloucestershire will consider a suitable target to set – with the constant worry at the back of their minds that Zak Crawley might come good. Share
10h ago 14.49 BST Northants declare with a lead of 193 Saif Zaib, who looked so good in his hundred last week against Lancashire, flames another, off 90 balls, against Derbyshire. He’s out, for 105, Northants pass 500, and promptly declare. Share Updated at 14.50 BST
10h ago 14.44 BST Durham all out 427 An impressive recovery there by Yorkshire, who looked down and out when Lees and Gay were having fun. The Durham lead: 120. Share
10h ago 14.23 BST Leicestershire move smoothly past Lancashire, with seven wickets in hand. The forecast for tomorrow “cloud, outbreaks of rain” suggests chasing batting points is probably Leicestershire’s best bet. Share
10h ago 14.17 BST Tim Maitland muses on Cam and Cam. “The more mechanically minded would instantly have gone with “Twin Cams”.
”If they’re both really tall, they’d be “Dual Overhead Cams”. Share
10h ago 14.15 BST Nottinghamshire’s Australian landscape gardener has been showing his worth with bat as well as ball. O’Neill just out for 50, from 53 balls. HH still plodding away, 125 not out, the Notts lead 249. Share
10h ago 14.13 BST There must be something in the water today – there goes Ollie Pope, next ball, hooking, but gloving, at Seales, next ball. Surrey 237-3. Share
10h ago 14.11 BST A century for Ollie Pope A first hundred of the year for the ginger prince. Surrey crunching methodically through the gears alongside the seagulls. Alongside him, Dan Lawrence has hit one six and one four in his 13. Share
11h ago 13.51 BST They’ve resumed at Canterbury, and at Lord’s. Having the benefit of the two Camerons – the Can-Can(?) – has proved pretty profitable for Gloucestershire so far against Kent Glamorgan have safely negotiated the first four an a half overs of their second innings, but a deficit of 252 runs looms large. Share
11h ago 13.21 BST Out in the middle at OT, Mr JM Anderson is having a bowl. Share
11h ago 13.17 BST Lunchtime scores DIVISION ONE Chester le Street: Durham 386-6 v Yorkshire 307 Chelmsford: Essex 179 and 317 v Worcestershire 202 and 1-1 Worcs need 294 to win Southampton: Hampshire 336 v Somerset 184 Hove: Sussex 435 v Surrey 216-2 Edgbaston: Warwickshire 93 v Nottinghamshire 307-6 DIVISION TWO The County Ground: Derbyshire 307 v Northamptonshire 375-5 Canterbury: Kent 393 v Gloucestershire 472 Old Trafford: Lancashire 263 v Leicestershire 242-3 Lord’s: Middlesex 470-9 v Glamorgan 199 and 12-0 Share
12h ago 13.05 BST Worcestershire, set 295 to win, just had time to lose Gareth Roderick to the second ball of the innings, before everyone trooped off for lunch. Share Updated at 13.15 BST
12h ago 13.01 BST Hartley gets a rest at last: after a spell of 15 overs one for 54, over last night and this morning. Luke Wells, head gleaming in the sun, rolls his arm over from the Jimmy Anderson end. Ten minutes till lunch here, lunch being taken around the grounds. Share
12h ago 12.58 BST And 150s for Luke Procter and Emilio Gay Procter departs immediately, caught at gully. He’s steered Northants to a 47-run lead. Emilo Gay too, bowled George Hill for 152, as Durham suffer a mini-wobble, losing three for 24. A memorable first century for Durham. Share
12h ago 12.47 BST A century for Haseeb Hameed Congratulations to CCLive!’s favourite son for a 16th f-c century and a tenth for Notts. I don’t know how it happened but he is now 28. View image in fullscreen Captain’s knock: 111 not out Photograph: Steve Poole/ProSports/REX/Shutterstock Share Updated at 12.53 BST
12h ago 12.37 BST In Division One: At Edgbaston, HH is nearing three figures, though Warwickshire have chipped away at the other end, Lyndon James a second wicket for Barnard for 42. Notts 256-6, a lead of 163. Half centuries for run-gobbler Dom Sibley ,and Ollie Pope at Hove, Surrey 158-1. Hampshire have lost three wicket this morning, all of them to the surprising arm of Tom Lammonby. Hants 280-7: Gubbins out for 82, Dawson for 72. Essex are nine down at Chelmsford, the lead over Worcestershire: 280. Two morning wickets for Tom Taylor, Shane Snater still htere on 34. The late middle order doing a good job here for Essex. And finally, to Chester le Street, where Durham have zipped past Yorkshire, just four wickets down. Lees was finally out for 172 and Emilio Gay is undefeated on 149. Share
12h ago 12.17 BST Another! A wicket for John Turner at OT, Holland caught mis-pulling by Mahmood. Lancs have now got rid of both the overnight batters in quick succession. Share
12h ago 12.13 BST A hundred and out for Rehan Ahmed! Rehan Ahmed reaches his second first-class century, with a single from a drive, crisp and pleasureable as a slice of buttered toast. A gorgeous century to watch, 14 fours,measured defence. Huge applause by the Leicestershire balcony as he removes his helmet and raises his bat. Then he’s out, propping forward to Hartley and giving a catch to silly mid off. Ahmed’s only other f-c century came in September 2022, 122 against Derbyshire, batting at No. 5. On the basis of watching him here at OT, there should be many more. View image in fullscreen First f-c hundred for two and a half years: Rehan Ahmed Photograph: John Mallett/ProSports/REX/Shutterstock Share
13h ago 12.05 BST With an hour gone, a trip around the other Division Two grounds: A century for Luke Procter, 128 not out, and a nippy 43 from Rob Keogh has put Northants in a dominant position in at Derby, just 11 runs behind, seven wickets in hand. Ben Compton is continuing to hold Kent together, now 166 not out. Kent 354-8, 118 behind Gloucestershire. And at Lord’s, the Middlesex lead is a hefty 217. Share
13h ago 11.49 BST Division Two table (as of April 14) 1 Leicestershire 39 2 Kent 38 3 Derbyshire 36 4 Lancashire 23 5 Northants 18 6 Gloucestershire 18 7 Glamorgan 15 8 Middlesex 14 Share
13h ago 11.36 BST Three overs for Mahmood this morning at OT, Anderson Philip has replaced him: liquid run-up to the wicket, hands shoved in pockets for the trudge back. Rehan Ahmed has looked in fine fettle, playing with characteristic artistic ease but also patience. He and Holland have put on 46 runs in the first ten overs. Share Updated at 11.42 BST
13h ago 11.27 BST A first missive: and a very happy Easter to you Tim Maitland: “Salutations Tanya!
“I’m struggling to concentrate on the cricket at the moment. It doesn’t help that my beloved Western Bulldogs (Long story short: some disreputable caddies on the LPGA decided I needed an AFL team and I didn’t have the sense to ignore them) are playing St. Kilda right now.
“But it’s not just that.
“I’m finding it hard to get a sense of who is in form, especially with the bat. Maybe it’s because we were distracted by Tom Banton’s 371, which he’s followed with scores of 6, 0 and 5. How long a lead does a triple centurion get before his chain is yanked?
“If Surrey’s Dom Sibley adds significantly to his 40 overnight, does he hold the crown after a 66 at Essex and then 100 not out and 1055 against Hampshire? Incidentally he made 3 in his one game for Khulna Tigers in Chittagong, which is officially called Chattogram, which would be a great name for a social media platform wouldn’t it?
“Or is it Tom Haines? His 174 against Surrey in this round of matches is, weather permitting, potentially match winning and his second innings 141 set up the victory against Somerset last week.
“As for bowlers... have you got anything? [Ed – My immediate thought is Fergus O’Neill?]
“The Bulldogs, incidentally, have living legend Marcus Bontempelli aka The Bont back for the first time this season, but as I speak our 6 ft 10 in young superstar-to-be ruckman Sam Darcy has just hobbled off with an injured knee, which would be a disaster for the Doggies.” Share
13h ago 11.20 BST Division One Table (as of April 14) A most unexpected hue: 1 Warwicks (35) 2 Sussex (35) 3 Notts (35) 4 Hampshire (30) 5 Essex (28) 6 Yorkshire (27) 7 Surrey (23) 8 Somerset (19) 9 Worcestershire (12) 10 Durham (11) Share
13h ago 11.10 BST Weather watch A delay only a Hove. Elsewhere the Met Office is full of spring-time optimism: Rain across western Scotland and Northern Ireland easing, and rain in southeast England fragmenting into scattered showers. Dry elsewhere with variable cloud and sunny spells, most prolonged for parts of Wales and northwest England. Mostly light winds. Share
14h ago 11.02 BST All is now well at OT, the players are out, the sun too. Share
14h ago 10.57 BST Heavy roller problems An Easter delay at Old Trafford, where the heavy roller has broken down and is stuck in the middle. Share
14h ago 10.27 BST Tall Paul on his surprise promotion up the order for Essex: “A few years ago when I wasn’t playing first team I opened a lot for the twos, Then I did a few games with Cooky during Covid time, so it’s not completely unfamiliar for me. It has been a really nice challenge because it something new, something to prepare for. I think I’ve dealt with it well so far, though it is still early in the season. It’s about turning up every day and giving it your best shot.” Share
15h ago 10.06 BST Saturday's round up A fit looking Saqib Mahmood, with a tentative mullet, bowled in his first Championship game for Lancashire since May 2024. In he steamed from the Statham End at Old Trafford, up against Leicestershire’s tyro opening partnership of Sol Budinger and Rehan Ahmed. Budinger was dropped between first and second slip on a duck, and Leicestershire then made hay, fizzing past 100 in 19.4 overs. Ahmed, a pocket rocket with wrists of steel and a high‑fashion post‑shot pose, punched thrillingly through the covers, flashed extra‑cover drives, whipped with elan. Tom Hartley caused trouble in his six overs from the James Anderson End towards the close and, after Budinger fell to Mahmood, Ahmed played out the last 20 minutes with an extravagant, and tight, defence. Earlier Tom Scriven had collected a career-best five for 46, as Lancashire lost their last four wickets for 21 runs. Marcus Harris, once of Grace Road, made his fourth half-century in his fifth innings since arriving in Manchester. A hundred for Ben Compton, scored at quite the lick, kept Kent in the game at Canterbury, after Gloucestershire strode past 450, a 27-ball 51 by Marchant de Lange ensuring a fifth batting point. James Bracey was left unbeaten on 151, Nathan Gilchrist putting in his Easter egg career best figures of seven for 100. Zak Crawley collar up, was then caught for one. A possible rival for his England opening spot, Tom Haines, brightened the twinkle in Rob Key’s eye with a second hundred in consecutive matches, 174 in seven‑and-a-half hours against a Surrey seam attack of Dan Worrell, Jordan Clark, Gus Atkinson and Matt Fisher, who dedicated their day to slowing down the Sussex scoring rate. Ben Foakes conceded just one bye on a pitch with, at times, unreliable bounce. Surrey reached 90-1 at stumps. Seam bowling to stick in the scrap book from Fergus O’Neill (five for 19) and Brett Hutton (five for 38) left Warwickshire in deep trouble at 93 all out. Nottinghamshire, going out to bat just as the sun came out, then stretched to 204 for five, led by a cast-iron 75 not out from captain Haseeb Hameed After three ducks in four innings, Emilio Gay came good at Chester le Street with 105, he and Alex Lees (148) pounding Yorkshire into the north-east dust with an unbeaten second-wicket partnership of 242. It was Gay’s first century for Durham. A second century of the season for Max Holden, tempo dictated by lunch, helped Middlesex into a promising position at Lord’s. There were three wickets for Timm van der Gugten, and Glamorgan’s fielders stayed perky on a trying day. Paul Walter, settling nicely into the opening slot left vacant by Dean Elgar, hauled Essex out of a hole with 104, and, together with a career best 49 not out from Noah Thain, gave Essex a lead of 210. Sri Lanka’s Kasun Rajitha picked up four Worcestershire wickets on debut. At Southampton, fifties from Nick Gubbins and Liam Dawson gave Hampshire a 10-run lead, after Somerset had been bowled out for 184. Migael Pretorius was the one thorn in Hampshire’s side, making 47 from a 48 run last-wicket partnership for Somerset. It was a good day for Northamptonshire in Derby, Ricky Vasconcelos (82) and Luke Procter (97 not out) reducing the deficit to less than a hundred. Share
15h ago 10.05 BST Scores on the doors DIVISION ONE Chester le Street: Durham 264-1 v Yorkshire 307 Chelmsford: Essex 179 and 233-6 v Worcestershire 202 Southampton: Hampshire 194-3 v Somerset 184 Hove: Sussex 435 v Surrey 90-1 Edgbaston: Warwickshire 93 v Nottinghamshire 204-5 DIVISION TWO The County Ground: Derbyshire 307 v Northamptonshire 236-3 Canterbury: Kent 318-7 v Gloucestershire 472 Old Trafford: Lancashire 263 v Leicestershire 120-1 Lord’s: Middlesex 353-4 v Glamorgan 199 Share | {
"authors": [
"Tanya Aldred"
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"publish_date": "2025-04-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
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"title": "County cricket: Pope and Lawrence hit centuries for Surrey against Sussex – as it happened",
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fc06f4dd3361b5a0041e1ad08c584354 | Barry Hoban, British cycling legend and Tour de France icon, dies aged 85
The pioneering British road sprinter and Classics rider Barry Hoban has died at the age of 85. Hoban was for many years the UK record holder for stage wins in the Tour de France with a tally of eight during his 17-year professional racing career, a total bettered only by the greatest sprinter of them all, Mark Cavendish, in 2009.
Hoban’s first stage victory in the Tour, in 1967, was not one he cared to remember – or that he felt was really a win – as it came the day after the sudden death of his friend and rival Tom Simpson on Mont Ventoux; he was “permitted” to escape and cross the line first by the grieving peloton.
It emerged during research for Put Me Back on My Bike, my account of Simpson’s death, that Hoban was probably not the senior riders’ preferred choice on that emotionally charged day, creating an undercurrent of controversy that persisted for a quarter of a century.
Nonetheless, his close connection with Major Tom could never be in doubt; the pair had frequently crossed swords as amateurs and Hoban was eventually to marry Simpson’s widow Helen, with whom he moved to the Welsh hills near Newtown, Powys after many years spent in the Flemish city of Gent.
Twelve months after Simpson’s death, however, there was no argument about a solo “medium mountain” stage victory in the Alps at Sallanches which Hoban took in magnificently clear-headed style – winning a cow named Estelle – and he added back-to-back stage wins at Bordeaux and Brive in 1969; Cavendish and Geraint Thomas remain the only other Britons to have taken two Tour stages in two days.
Hoban added further stage wins at Argèles-sur-Mer and Versailles in 1973, Montpellier in 1974 and Bordeaux in 1975, by which time he was on the way to completing nine Tours; he would finish two more, a record bettered only by Thomas last July.
View image in fullscreen Barry Hoban in action during the 1968 Tour de France. Photograph: Agence France Presse/AFP/Getty Images
As well as his undoubted sprint skills – which brought him a brace of stage wins in the Vuelta a España in successive days in his first professional season, 1964 – Hoban’s clear head, ability to read a race and his encyclopaedic memory for race routes enabled him to race strongly in one-day Classics.
He won the Grand Prix of Frankfurt in 1966, and Gent-Wevelgem in 1974 ahead of Eddy Merckx and Roger De Vlaeminck, the only British victory in the race’s history; his third place in Paris-Roubaix in 1972 was a British best, matched only by Roger Hammond in 2004, while his third in Liège-Bastogne-Liège in 1969 has yet to be bettered by a Briton.
“The Grey Fox”, as he was known later in his career, began racing in Yorkshire for the Calder Clarion cycling club, before heading to northern France to race as an independent in 1962. He earned a contract with Raymond Poulidor’s Mercier‑Hutchinson team in 1964 after winning 35 races in the lower tier of the sport, and stayed with the squad in its various incarnations until 1979 apart from a brief spell at Sonolor-Lejeune. In 1980, he retired to Newtown to head up the Coventry-Eagle cycle company; later he worked for the cycle importer Yellow.
“He had incredible knowledge of a race,” said a Mercier insider, Guy Caput. “He was far more than a sprinter. His judgment on everything that went on in a race could be relied on absolutely. He was a professional from sunrise to sunset.”
Hoban leaves his widow Helen, their daughter Daniella and his stepdaughters Jane and Joanne. | {
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"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
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"title": "Barry Hoban, British cycling legend and Tour de France icon, dies aged 85",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/20/barry-hoban-british-cycling-legend-and-tour-de-france-icon-dies-aged-85"
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119843cc3fd299cf1f67150bbc074b5d | Barcelona show gulf in quality again as stunned Chelsea hope for miracle
As the final whistle blew at the Estadi Johan Cruyff, the frustration on the faces of the Chelsea players shone through. Lucy Bronze chucked her headband on to the floor in anger; Erin Cuthbert shared frustrated words with the referee; the rest meanwhile just stood on the pitch looking stunned with the cacophony of noise from jubilant Barcelona fans rubbing salt in the freshest of wounds.
This was not how the script was meant to go. Defeat at the hands of Barcelona – with such a gulf in quality on the field – was meant to be a thing of years gone by; a distant memory buried in the history books of that painful final of 2021. For Chelsea have been building a squad with the clear intention of lifting the coveted Champions League trophy themselves. Big money has been spent on coveted assets – the acquisition of Mayra Ramírez and Naomi Girma both breaking transfer records; Bronze and Keira Walsh brought in from the Spanish champions themselves – and the arrival of Sonia Bompastor to replace Emma Hayes at the helm, an individual who has won this competition twice as a player and once as a manager.
Chelsea’s form at home has perhaps lured people into a false sense of security. Unbeaten domestically, Bompastor’s team closing in the Women’s Super League title, having overcome every obstacle that has stood in their way.
Maybe it should be of little surprise that there are perhaps a few growing pains hiding underneath the surface; ones that were expected in the autumn after the transition from the decade-long Hayes regime.
On this sunny Sunday evening in Barcelona, however, the gulf in quality on the pitch was clear to see. The hosts oozed elegance and control, their experience shining through. Even if they were not completely at their fluid best, they picked off Chelsea, sliced through their press and provided the kind of clinical finishing that was missing at the other end of the pitch.
It was an also an illustration of how a team can add pieces to the puzzle that truly make the quality higher. With the addition of Ewa Pajor to their ranks last summer, Barcelona have finally found themselves a true number nine, a forward to lead the line and allow the players around her to flourish.
The Poland international’s numbers are almost ridiculous – her opener on this occasion was her 34th strike in 35 appearances for the Blaugrana. The 28-year-old is a seasoned striker with speed, a tireless work rate and instinctive finish that not many others in world football possess. Her arrival has allowed Salma Paralluelo to stay out on the flank where she can thrive, while she has rekindled her partnership with Norway winger Caroline Graham Hansen from their Wolfsburg days.
A saved Alexia Putellas penalty did little to disrupt Barcelona’s rhythm in the first half as they suffocated a disjointed Chelsea. The visitors seemed, perhaps a little naively, to be caught in two minds about whether to sit back and remain compact or to try and take the game to their opponents. The result was the spaces that opened up in the midfield and down the flanks that Pere Romeu’s side picked apart with aplomb.
Pajor’s opener was a direct example of this indecision and inability to adapt to Barcelona’s energy. A long ball forward was initially dealt with but when Paralluelo beat Bronze in the second phase, the hosts spotted their opportunity. A perfect through-ball from Putellas split the defenders allowing Pajor to burst through and show the kind of clinical finishing that she has produced all season.
skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Moving the Goalposts Free weekly newsletter No topic is too small or too big for us to cover as we deliver a twice-weekly roundup of the wonderful world of women’s football Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion
The hosts’ second came with 20 minutes to play after Chelsea had come out much improved after the break. This, in contrast, was an illustration of the versatility of their attacking play; a quintessential Barcelona goal. It was a beautifully constructed team move that swept from back to front and left to right before Clàudia Pina, on the field for just three minutes, turned the ball into the back of the net. She added her second in injury time as she took her tally to nine in the Champions League this season. The Spaniard is the top scorer in the competition currently and it was just another sign of how much strength in depth they possess.
It was Chelsea’s first encounter with this new-look Barcelona side and this 90 minutes will prove to be a huge learning process for them. Bompastor’s side are known for their strong mentality and they will still believe that they can perform a miracle at Stamford Bridge next week. Nevertheless, this occasion was a strong reminder that there is still much work to be done if they are to get closer to the only tournament left for them to conquer; the one that has proved to be the most elusive one yet. | {
"authors": [
"Sophie Downey"
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"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Barcelona show gulf in quality again as stunned Chelsea hope for miracle",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/apr/20/barcelona-show-gulf-in-quality-again-as-stunned-chelsea-hope-for-miracle"
} |
a8fa15a45c6669eed709beae4c7645ea | Acquiescence trumps apocalypse as Leicester’s demise is confirmed
The sky, bible black, was rent by lightning. Great belches of thunder reverberated around the East Midlands. Rain thudded from the sky as the angels, overcome, could not contain themselves and, in sympathy with despairing fans in the stands, sobbed in torrents. The gods were distraught, the heavens trembled. Demons and witches wrestled in the moonlit sky. In Loughborough and Kettering, doves set themselves against eagles while, all across the Market Harborough area, horses turned and ate themselves.
Or at least that’s how relegation is supposed to be. As it turned out, Leicester’s return to the Championship was sealed on a pleasant spring afternoon in a game of almost no incident beyond the Trent Alexander-Arnold goal that took Liverpool to within three points of the title. The mood was of glum acquiescence. They have been nowhere near good enough to stay up this season and relegation has seemed distinctly probable since they lost 3-0 against Wolves three days before Christmas.
The hunting horn and flame machines are of questionable benefit at the best of times but to herald a probable relegation they felt almost distasteful. The more fitting buildup perhaps came from the plane that flew over the stadium before kick- off, dragging behind it a banner on which was printed: “King Power clueless, sack the board”. Imagine how bad it might have been if they hadn’t pushed profitability and sustainability rules to the limit and avoided sanction only by slithering between the jurisdictions of the Premier League and Championship.
There were boos at the final whistle, and a banner unveiled complaining about two relegations in three years, but it all seemed a little perfunctory. Plenty of the Leicester crowd hung back to applaud Liverpool; it might be a while before they get to see Premier League champions in the flesh again. This has been coming for too long for fans not to have mentally adjusted to the reality.
Leicester weren’t in the bottom three when Steve Cooper was sacked but, given the negativity around the club at the time, it would be misleading to suggest it would have been much different had he stayed. Whether a better replacement could have been found than Ruud van Nistelrooy is another question. As a striker for Manchester United, he scored a league goal every 128 minutes. Under his management, Leicester have scored a league goal every 164 minutes and they have the second-worst defensive record in the division.
Chants of “Going down” from the Liverpool fans, perhaps bored in the near silence and aware that the tension had been taken out of the game by Arsenal’s 4-0 win at Ipswich earlier in the afternoon, felt gratuitous. Of course they’re going down; they’re terrible. It’s like mocking a tortoise for not winning a 100m gold.
Perhaps Leicester aren’t as bad as Southampton, but they are an integral member of the worst bottom three in Premier League history. When the promoted three are being relegated en masse in consecutive seasons, when they’re barely able been to put up a fight, it should, on the principle of that no club is an island, concern all of football. If the pyramid’s a ziggurat, it isn’t really fit for purpose.
View image in fullscreen Conor Coady responds to his goal being disallowed. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters
It wouldn’t be fair to say that nothing happened – given the woodwork was struck five times – but, as in Liverpool’s deceptively dramatic win against West Ham last week, there was a strange sense of futility about the whole occasion. Nothing quite had the snap of intensity of the midweek European games; it was all a little mannered and three-quarter‑paced. There was a profound awareness that none of it mattered, that greater forces had shaped the narrative beyond the scope of individuals to affect.
Midway through the second half, Conor Coady did hook the ball over the line, prompting a strangled gurgle from the crowd. Nobody seemed quite certain how to react. There was definitely something you were supposed to do when you scored, but what was it? A celebratory roar, maybe? But what would that sound like? It just seemed so incongruous. Not the sort of thing you do at the King Power Stadium. Nobody quite had the confidence to give one a go. But no matter. The referee, Stuart Attwell, had seen that Patson Daka had shoved Alisson and the goal was – rightly – disallowed. The King Power Stadium lapsed back into its comfortable grumble.
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Leicester have now failed to scored in nine successive home league games. In that time, their fans could have watched stagings of King Lear, Hamlet and all three parts of Henry VI. One more game and the home league drought will be as long as Wagner’s entire Ring cycle, although lacking the lightness of touch and frivolity of the German master.
When Bobby De Cordova‑Reid struck that last home goal, a 91st-minute equaliser against Brighton, 133 days ago, Bashar al‑Assad was just being toppled as leader of Syria. Gary O’Neil was still manager of Wolves and Russell Martin was still at Southampton. Joe Biden was still the US president and Saudi Arabia hadn’t been confirmed formally as host of the 2034 World Cup.
The world was a very different place then, but Leicester were doomed just as surely. | {
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"Jonathan Wilson"
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"title": "Acquiescence trumps apocalypse as Leicester’s demise is confirmed",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/apr/20/leicester-city-relegation-premier-league-liverpool"
} |
82f4550242511eae13624ba115a7ff91 | Gloucester fans ruffle feathers in boisterous start for experiment
The Premiership’s away zone trial was barely 12 minutes old when a member of the security staff felt the need to intervene. Perhaps he had taken exception to the dozens of schoolkids in the Gloucester section lambasting Saracens’ No 10, Fergus Burke, with: “You’re just a shit Owen Farrell.”
Maybe he did not appreciate the lyrical complexities of the evidently pre-rehearsed: “What do we think of Saracens? Shit!” Either way, the decision to trial away zones in two Premiership fixtures this month has polarised opinion and it is a safe bet which side of the fence the security staff member now sits.
As it was, no one was ejected from the stadium and things settled down a touch after the half-time break –barring the odd “You don’t know what you’re doing” in the direction of the referee – with the in-form hooker Theo Dan scoring two tries as Saracens came from 14-12 down to claim a 36-14 victory and move into fourth in the table. And if a bunch of schoolkids letting off a bit of steam was not exactly what the Premiership had in mind, at least the Gloucester away zone created a bit of a stir.
In the buildup, the trial provoked a backlash from the traditionalists regardless of their club allegiance. Those who hold “rugby values” so dear have pushed back against the idea. For those at the extreme end of the opposition, the very utterance of “away zone” seems rooted in a fear that a hardcore band of Cherry & Whites might descend, complete with flares and balaclavas, ready to raze the StoneX Stadium to the ground. For them, the football-terrace chanting here will not have been well received. “Absolutely awful,” was the verdict of one spectator sitting nearby.
In total, somewhere around 150 Gloucester supporters sat together. Each was provided with flags, little bigger than an A2 sheet of paper, and much of the contingent – billing itself as the Shed on Tour – came from two community clubs, Old Cryptians and Brockworth. Fancy dress efforts included Super Mario, and a Buzz Lightyear and Woody double act, and, far from waving flares, most were not even old enough to buy fireworks.
View image in fullscreen Flags featuring Gloucester Rugby’s emblem are placed on seats at the StoneX Stadium. Photograph: David Rogers/Getty Images
There was a determination to enjoy their moment in the sun, the familiar “Glaaaaaaw-sterrrrr” refrain getting a good few outings, an early handling error by the hosts was greeted by chants of “Eeyore!” and, emboldened by Chris Harris’s early try for the visitors, “Same old Sarries, always cheating!” was given plenty of air time. Still, more foul-mouthed Famous Five than Football Factory.
“I enjoyed it actually, there were a few chants I hadn’t heard before,” said Gloucester’s head coach, George Skivington, while his opposite number, Mark McCall, was equally positive. “I think it’s a good thing. I watched the Munster fans [in the Champions Cup] and that brought something magic to the atmosphere. That’s what the game needs.”
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Canvassing opinion among visiting Gloucester supporters, plenty of whom opted to mix with Saracens supporters instead, and responses were varied. “First I’ve heard of it,” was an ominous start on the way to the ground but most fell into two camps. Curiosity and conservatism. Those who were intrigued by the prospect, eager to give it a whirl and those who do not like the idea of change. “We don’t want to go down the football route”, appears to be the main argument against, “there’s no need for it”, said another.
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Certainly the ability to mix with opposing supporters, the “banter” that comes with it, is a significant part of the experience for a lot of fans and anything that puts that in jeopardy is not welcome. Maybe the most interesting point raised was that away areas would be more effective on European trips, when visiting atmospheres tend to be more hostile, when “making your voice heard” is that much more difficult.
Premiership officials have been at pains to point out that visiting fans are still welcome to mix with home fans. That the away zones are not obligatory. Heralding the trial as a “progressive step”, they point to how this is a move endorsed by the players “who say that they thrive off the noise and energy that a vocal cluster of away support can bring”.
If it can make Premiership fixtures a better spectacle for those watching on TV, all the better because there is a new contract to negotiate and leading officials have been clear that the best way to drive much-needed revenue into the league is a bumper broadcast deal. On this evidence, let’s just say it is early days. Next week Harlequins take their Ultras of Suburbia to Welford Road and a good few hundred are expected. They have what was in effect teenagers getting their kicks to beat, but that is famously easier said than done. | {
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"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Gloucester fans ruffle feathers in boisterous start for experiment",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/20/gloucester-fans-ruffle-feathers-in-boisterous-start-for-experiment"
} |
59005de9c4304a60bb3199a9e3a48ec2 | Kyren Wilson crashes out at Crucible as Lei Peifan leads Chinese charge
Kyren Wilson became the latest victim of snooker’s Crucible curse after a shock defeat on the opening day of the World Snooker Championship at the hands of Chinese sensation Lei Peifan – underlining the belief many have that this could finally be the year China crowns its first champion of the world.
Not since snooker’s most prestigious event moved to Sheffield in 1977 has a first-time winner of the event gone on to successfully defend the title. Wilson is now the 20th man on that list after his defence came to a shuddering halt within hours of this year’s tournament beginning, after the world No 39 produced a magnificent comeback victory.
Wilson led Lei 6-3 after the opening session on Saturday but crucially, it was Lei who won the final frame in the morning to ensure the deficit was just three frames, rather than five. The 21-year-old then won six successive frames to start the evening session, all with breaks of 50 or more, to move to the verge of victory.
Wilson returned serve with a clearance of 106 and edged two more nerve-shredding frames to send it to a decider. At that stage, all the momentum seemed to be with the champion. But Lei held his nerve to deliver a break of 66 and close out one of the biggest shocks in the Crucible’s recent history.
As well as that, he ensured the curse would continue for at least another year as well as, more importantly, raising hopes even further that Chinese snooker may be on the verge of what it has craved for some time.
The hopes of a nation have largely rested on the shoulders of Ding Junhui for quite some time, and when 10 Chinese players were suspended as part of a match-fixing investigation in 2023, it left the sport under a dark cloud. However, a record 10 players – almost a third of the draw – from China have qualified for this year’s tournament.
Such is the spread throughout that draw too, that it seems incredibly likely that at least two will meet in the quarter-finals. Xiao Guodong led Matthew Selt 7-2 after their opening session. And while Lei stole the show and the headlines on the opening day here, all eyes on Sunday will be on one of the brightest hopes Chinese snooker has ever seen.
View image in fullscreen Lei Peifan produced a huge upset on the first day of the world championship when he defeated Kyren Wilson 10-9. Photograph: Richard Sellers/PA
Zhao Xintong was one of the 10 players banned in 2023, serving a 20-month suspension for his part in the scandal. But he has been tipped for stardom from a young age, and has returned to the amateur tour since the expiration of his ban in some style, making a maximum break and coming through qualifying to reach the Crucible.
He is only the third non-professional to reach the main draw. He begins against last year’s finalist, Jak Jones, and will now meet Lei in the last 16 if he navigates that task. Many within the sport believe Zhao is best placed to become China’s first world champion, including the great Stephen Hendry.
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What the achievement of a Chinese world champion could bring to snooker comes with great intrigue. The Crucible was a marvellous sight on Saturday; the history seeps from the walls and the surrounding areas are a hive of activity. Few sports are as synonymous with one city quite like Sheffield is with snooker.
But there is no doubting the Crucible has its limitations, and talk of moving the world championship is never far from the agenda. With the tournament’s current deal up in 2027, should a Chinese player finally win the game’s biggest prize over the coming fortnight, who knows where it could lead, with the tournament watched by as many as 200 million people in China.
Whether Lei is the man to do that, or one of the other players from China in action at this tournament, remains to be seen. But this victory was a statement moment so early into proceedings in Sheffield: not just for the continuation of the curse, but the belief that after so long, maybe this is Chinese snooker’s time. | {
"authors": [
"Aaron Bower"
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"publish_date": "2025-04-19 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Kyren Wilson crashes out at Crucible as Lei Peifan leads Chinese charge",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/19/xiao-guodong-leads-chinese-charge-as-snookers-balance-of-power-tilts"
} |
9d56ed586a4e9f4496cd395c5c6470ed | Max Verstappen claims Saudi GP F1 pole after Lando Norris hits the wall
His confidence in the car already wavering, the world championship leader, Lando Norris, now has to cope with another serious blow to his title ambitions after crashing out in qualifying for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, while his Red Bull rival Max Verstappen claimed pole position, only one-hundredth of a second clear of Norris’s teammate Oscar Piastri.
Norris is notoriously self-critical and his costly error at the Jeddah circuit might well cause him to once more deliver a brutal self-examination. His own summation in the moments after the crash summed it up as he bluntly described himself as a “fucking idiot” over team radio.
The pressure is intense this season, Norris in a nip-and-tuck fight with Piastri and Verstappen where every mistake could be crucial, as he leads Piastri by three points with Verstappen eight points back in third. Starting from 10th on Sunday his title lead is hanging by the slenderest of threads and his self-belief perhaps once more undermined.
“I’m not going to be proud, I’m not going to be happy. I’ve let myself down and let the team down,” he said. Understandably dejected he then held his hands up and played down his chances of a comeback on Sunday.
“I’m just disappointed with today. I will go see my engineers and apologise,” he said. “See what we can do tomorrow, we need a bit of luck, it’s almost impossible to overtake around here so I’m not expecting anything magical, if I can make the top five or six I would be happy.”
McLaren and indeed Norris had looked strong all weekend but on the first of the final runs in Q3 at the Jeddah circuit he took too much kerb through turns four, five and six and it launched him into the wall, taking a nasty hit on the front from which he emerged unhurt but was clearly enormously disappointed in himself.
In stark contrast, qualifying was marked by a buoyant and resurgent Verstappen in a Red Bull that was proving far more to the world champion’s liking than the recalcitrant beast he had wrestled with last week. He set the pole with a blistering final lap in Q3 for 1min 27.294sec, threading the needle in a tense session with an attacking assurance that was a reminder of just how quick he can be when he has confidence in his ride.
His team were also exemplary pulling a bold strategic move in having Verstappen complete two laps after the red flag caused by Norris’s crash; fuelled for two he took the first as a very strong sighter and nailed the final circuit.
Verstappen was hugely pleased with the result, the pole going no little way at least to ease the tension at Red Bull. The Dutchman had been deeply dissatisfied after managing only sixth at the last round in Bahrain with a car that lacked balance and pace.
He was blunt that he did not believe he could compete for the title as things stood and the team held discussions after that race to consider how best to address the issues.
View image in fullscreen Max Verstappen capitalised on Lando Norris’s error. Photograph: Thaier Al-Sudani/Reuters
The somewhat mercurial car can, however, be adapted over a race weekend successfully, as they proved at Suzuka and once more they did very well to coax it into a peak operating window in Jeddah.
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Verstappen certainly found it more to his liking and as is the case when he has the car doing what he wants he wielded it with no little skill. To return pole given how strong the McLarens were will be considered a huge result by the world champion and at Milton Keynes.
In the wake of Bahrain questions were again raised about Verstappen’s future at the team, with Red Bull’s motorsport advisor, Helmut Marko, stating there was “great concern” he could leave. It prompted Verstappen to dismiss the issue this weekend and this performance will quieten the furore in the short term at least.
For Norris this was another real setback. The team have been looking at how to adjust the car to accommodate him better but it was an ongoing process not expected to yield an immediate turnaround. He had looked very comfortable in Jeddah however and was in position to challenge for pole until he lost it and was punished on a track where any error is costly.
Mercedes’ George Russell did superbly to claim a strong third place, Charles Leclerc was fourth for Ferrari and Kimi Antonelli in fifth for Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton once more struggled with his Ferrari, managing only seventh place, almost a second off the pole time.
Carlos Sainz was sixth for Williams, Yuki Tsunoda in eighth for Red Bull and Pierre Gasly in ninth for Alpine,Alex Albon was in 11th for Williams, Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar in 12th and 14th for Racing Bulls, Fernando Alonso in 13th for Aston Martin and Ollie Bearman in 15th for Haas.
Lance Stroll was in 16th for Aston Martin, Jack Doohan 17th for Alpine, Nico Hülkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto in 18th and 20th for Sauber and Esteban Ocon 19th for Haas. | {
"authors": [
"Giles Richards"
],
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"publish_date": "2025-04-19 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Max Verstappen claims Saudi GP F1 pole after Lando Norris hits the wall",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/19/max-verstappen-claims-saudi-gp-pole-after-lando-norris-crashes"
} |
6f23dc6ee125a096c651f93d4d543dad | China pits humanoid robots against humans in half-marathon for first time
Twenty-one humanoid robots joined thousands of runners at the Yizhuang half-marathon in Beijing on Saturday, the first time these machines have raced alongside humans over a 21km course.
The robots from Chinese manufacturers such as DroidVP and Noetix Robotics came in all shapes and sizes, some shorter than 1.2m, others as tall as 1.8m. One company boasted that its robot looked almost human, with feminine features and the ability to wink and smile. Some firms tested their robots for weeks before the race. Beijing officials have described the event as more akin to motor racing, given the need for engineering and navigation teams.
“The robots are running very well, very stable … I feel I’m witnessing the evolution of robots and AI,” said spectator He Sishu, who works in artificial intelligence.
View image in fullscreen Engineers run with a humanoid robot. Photograph: Tingshu Wang/Reuters
The robots were accompanied by human trainers, some of whom had to physically support the machines during the race. A few of the robots wore running shoes, with one wearing boxing gloves and another had a red headband with the words “Bound to Win” in Chinese.
The winning robot was Tiangong Ultra, from the Beijing Innovation Centre of Human Robotics, with a time of 2hr 40min. The men’s winner of the race had a time of 1hr 2min. The centre is 43% owned by two state-owned enterprises, while tech giant Xiaomi’s robotics arm and leading Chinese humanoid robot firm UBTech have equal share in the rest.
View image in fullscreen Tiangong Ultra at the awards ceremony. Photograph: Jessica Lee/EPA
Tang Jian, chief technology officer for the robotics centre, said Tiangong Ultra’s performance was aided by long legs and an algorithm allowing it to imitate how humans run a marathon. “I don’t want to boast but no other robotics firms in the West have matched Tiangong’s sporting achievements,” Tang said, adding that the robot’s batteries were switched three times during the race.
Some robots struggled from the beginning. One fell at the starting line and lay flat for a few minutes before getting up and taking off. Another crashed into a railing after running a few metres, causing its human operator to fall over.
View image in fullscreen A support technician falls as a humanoid robot crashes while running. Photograph: Kevin Frayer/Getty Images
Although humanoid robots have made appearances at marathons in China over the past year, this is the first time they have raced alongside humans. China is hoping that investment in frontier industries like robotics can help create new engines of economic growth. Some analysts, though, question whether having robots enter marathons is a reliable indicator of their industrial potential. | {
"authors": [],
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"publish_date": "2025-04-19 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
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"title": "China pits humanoid robots against humans in half-marathon for first time",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/19/china-pits-humanoid-robots-against-humans-in-half-marathon-for-first-time"
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2e82e520c5a383727f5e372a90dbb101 | Barcelona’s Bonmatí braced for ‘good rivalry’ of Chelsea showdown in WCL
Aitana Bonmatí says Barcelona have a “good rivalry, no bad things” with Chelsea as the Spanish holders prepare to meet the English club in their Women’s Champions League semi-final for the third consecutive season.
The 2023 and 2024 Ballon d’Or winner, whose team are chasing a fourth European title in five seasons, had high praise for Chelsea, despite the Women’s Super League club having never knocked Barcelona out of the competition.
“It’s a big rivalry between us, because over the last four or five years we [have been] playing a lot of games, but it’s a good rivalry, no bad things,” said Bonmatí, before Sunday’s first leg at Estadi Johan Cruyff. “In these games [against Chelsea] I always say that we can enjoy the football because we have in front of us a good opponent that makes us be better and better and better. This is the moment of the season we all enjoy – big games. It’s these games that make us great and that show us the level where we want to get to.”
The technically gifted midfielder, who scored at Stamford Bridge a year ago when Barcelona overturned a first-leg deficit to reach their fourth final in a row, pointed to Chelsea’s recruitment directly from Barcelona of the England duo Lucy Bronze and Keira Walsh as having improved the English team. “They have Keira and Lucy, so they’re a better team these days. We miss them, because they helped us a lot.”
Lauren James is set to miss the game for Chelsea because of a hamstring injury sustained during the April international break while helping the Lionesses beat Belgium 5-0 at Ashton Gate. For Barcelona, Caroline Graham Hansen is a doubt after missing Saturday’s training session with illness.
Graham Hansen scored in each leg of the 2023 semi-final meetings between the sides as well as in the 2021 final when Barcelona emphatically saw off Chelsea with a 4-0 win in Gothenburg. Barcelona’s coach, Pere Romeu, said: “She had a rough night. We decided it was best for her to stay home and rest, but the match is in the evening, and we hope she’ll be fine.”
Romeu, who is in his first season in charge after replacing Jonatan Giráldez last June, also praised Sonia Bompastor’s side, adding: “That we’ve never been knocked out by Chelsea is in the past and doesn’t affect tomorrow’s game. It will be a long tie. It will be a closely contested tie. We have analysed the opponent a lot and have trained in a specific way to exploit our strengths and attack their weaknesses.”
Barcelona have won four games in a row in all competitions since their first defeat in a women’s Clásico against Real Madrid in March, and Romeu’s side were in ominously strong form when they dismantled Wolfsburg in the quarter-finals with a relentless 10-2 aggregate win. They hold a seven-point lead over Real at the top of the Spanish top flight, having lost only two league fixtures this season while scoring 107 goals in their 26 league matches so far.
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Chelsea, however, remain unbeaten in domestic action this season and have still lost only one fixture in Bompastor’s first campaign as manager, with that sole defeat coming in the first leg of their ultimately victorious quarter-final against Manchester City.
Chelsea are still in contention for a quadruple of major honours this term, having already wrapped up the League Cup. They are through to May’s Women’s FA Cup final at Wembley against Manchester United and are three points clear at the top of the WSL, with a game in hand on second-placed Arsenal. A potential Champions League final would take place on 24 May, six days after the Blues take on United at Wembley. | {
"authors": [
"Tom Garry"
],
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"publish_date": "2025-04-19 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Barcelona’s Bonmatí braced for ‘good rivalry’ of Chelsea showdown in WCL",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/apr/19/barcelona-chelsea-bonmati-womens-champions-league"
} |
6015381b90d89b4aa82f36e113190196 | Leaders Bath survive Exeter onslaught to go clear at Premiership summit
The perils of going too early. We should know by now that no game in this competition is ever dead until it is dead, so common is the comeback these days. But when Bath, league leaders, had the bonus point by the half-hour mark – and a 26-10 lead to go with it – we did assume they were home and hosed.
All the more so, given Exeter’s low levels of confidence, not to mention their low position in the table, with only Newcastle below them. But the Chiefs would not let matters lie. Inspired by Paul Brown-Bampoe on the wing, they denied their high-flying visitors any points at all in the second half. Brown-Bampoe’s double in the third quarter pulled them back to within two points by the hour mark. Bath managed to hold out in a nervy final quarter.
“It’s never done till it’s done,” said Johann van Graan, Bath’s head of rugby. “Loads to work on for us, but I’ll take a five-point win away from home.”
Whether the go-too-early formula will apply to their quest for a first Premiership title of the professional era remains to be seen. This win moves them 15 points clear at the top. They are not quite guaranteed a playoff spot, but with Newcastle visiting the Rec next Saturday, that surely is only a matter of time. Of more immediate concern is an injury to Max Ojomoh, whose departure in the second half meant Louis Schreuder, a Springbok scrum-half, played on the wing.
But Bath are bursting with options, showing them off here by fielding a completely different pack from that which did for Gloucester last Sunday in the Challenge Cup. Maybe that annoyed Exeter, but it may also have irritated some of those in attendance.
Quick Guide Harlequins 29-43 Sale Show Tom Curry staked a claim for this summer’s Lions tour with a powerful carrying and try-scoring display in Sale’s impressive 43-29 bonus-point win against Harlequins at Twickenham Stoop. The 26-year-old flanker grabbed a brace as Alex Sanderson’s visitors climbed into the Premiership’s top four and dealt Quins’ own title aspirations what could prove a terminal blow. This time last year Curry was recovering from hip surgery which was required to keep his future club and international ambitions alive. Now, having returned with typical determination, strength and aggression in the autumn and enjoyed a fine Six Nations, the England man hopes to persuade Andy Farrell he deserves a place on the Lions' plane to Australia. "These are boys you have to protect for themselves," said Sanderson. "He and the likes of Cowan-Dickie are pushing for Lions honours and they richly deserve it if you're just going on that game. "They are naming the squad soon for Australia but you'd like to think Tom will have a chance. "We have a great pack. Asher Opoku-Fordjour was outstanding too. He's so powerful. That will set him apart from other tightheads. But you still have to do the bread and butter in mauling and scrummaging." Curry, part of the courageous touring party to New Zealand in 2021, was a cornerstone upon which Sharks built a title-boosting victory in west London. The Sharks scrum-half Raffi Quirke came off the bench for his first appearance since January. Quins had another England man, Cadan Murley, back in their side. Sadly for him and his teammates, they were outfought and outplayed by a hungry Sharks side which carved out a 26-15 half-time lead and had the try bonus point firmly wrapped up. PA Media Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback.
Andy Farrell was watching, perhaps less as Lions coach, more on a little jaunt up the A38 from the family holiday home in South Devon. All the same, he will have been most interested in the performance of Finn Russell. At times, Bath’s fly-half played as imperiously as ever, his sleight of hand releasing runners right, left and centre into the tenderest parts of Exeter’s defence. At others, he was loose and struggled as much as any in Bath ranks to regain control as the game threatened to slip away.
View image in fullscreen Paul Brown-Bampoe races over to score one of his tries for Exeter. Photograph: Harry Trump/Getty Images
After an opening quarter of only limited coherence, when Exeter took the lead twice, either side of a penalty try for Bath, the visitors found their pitch in a devastating five-minute spell when they scored three tries to register the bonus point. Russell’s hands featured in the buildup to the first two of those, their second and third overall.
Neil Annett finished a lineout and drive for the first, after Tom de Glanville went close. Three minutes later, from a scrum on halfway, Russell featured again, twice, in the sweeping move that ended with Josh Bayliss’s try. Two minutes later again, Bayliss was galloping off from Cameron Redpath’s inside ball, and Ben Spencer’s brilliant pass on the run released Will Muir to the line.
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Quick Guide Saracens battle back to beat Gloucester Show The England hooker Theo Dan scored two tries as a dominant second-half display from Saracens saw them beat Gloucester 36-14 and move up to fourth in the Premiership. Sarries had to come back from a 14-12 half-time deficit at the StoneX Stadium and barely gave their fellow play-off chasers a sniff after the break as they leapfrogged them in the table. The six-time champions are now three points clear of the Cherry and Whites, although Leicester have a chance to move into the top four themselves should they defeat Bristol on Sunday. PA Media Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback.
Home and hosed? Not quite. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso is one of a few Exeter players injured, but Brown-Bampoe could yet interest Steve Borthwick as he casts around for candidates for England’s summer tour to Argentina. The winger finished a deadly counterattack, featuring a Josh Hodge break, 10 minutes into the second half. On the hour he finished after a break of his own, following up to accept Henry Slade’s offload out of a tackle.
That set up those nervy final stages. Bath held out. Job done, they will say. But they know only too well that early leads count for little in this competition. | {
"authors": [
"Michael Aylwin"
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"title": "Leaders Bath survive Exeter onslaught to go clear at Premiership summit",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/19/exeter-bath-premiership-rugby-union-match-report"
} |
27bf5ef1108352f20a44a698f1263f6c | Abuse I received for TikTok video after Women’s Six Nations defeat was crazy
The abuse and hate messages I received for doing a TikTok dance live on the BBC after Wales’s defeat by England was crazy. On Instagram I received a few DMs saying: “You’re an embarrassment, what do you think you’re doing?”
That doesn’t affect me because we get criticism all the time for different things: losing a game, dropping a high ball. I am not hugely active on X and it was not until those of my friends who aren’t big fans of rugby were checking in on me to see if I was OK that I realised the extent of the abuse on social media.
It was bizarre – how did it get that far? I just did a TikTok video. After the game I might be smiling. I am happy and engaging with fans, but that does not mean I am happy inside. When people say: “She shouldn’t have acted like that”, how should I have reacted? Should I be sad, crying and go straight in and be angry?
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I understand we lost and the men wouldn’t do it, but it’s a different brand and ballgame to what the men do. I don’t regret doing it at all. The support myself and Sarah Bern have had off the back of it has shown it is a different game.
Receiving abuse isn’t new to me, the other Wales girls or players across the sport. I even got shouted at while playing for my club, Bristol Bears, in the Premiership Women’s Rugby semi-final against Gloucester-Hartpury last month. A supporter in the stand said: “Go back to grassroots sport.”
That’s not acceptable. If you believe that then why have you come to watch?
I don’t experience it every game, but all of us do receive negative comments and for different reasons. We get comments like “She can’t tackle” or “Oh God, she looks big” or“What has she done with her hair?”
At the Rugby World Cup three years ago I was getting comments like: “Jaz can’t tackle.” I significantly reduced the time I spend on X at that point because didn’t need to see it. The negatives were outweighing the positives.
I spoke to my wife, Alisha, about coming off social media completely, but I get sponsors from it. If it wasn’t helping my work I would come off it. I don’t think it has any positive relevance to my life.
The TikTok abuse has been a footnote to my Six Nations and I have been fully focused on the tournament, which Wales have been navigating with our new head coach, Sean Lynn. While we haven’t recorded a win, performances have been improving and that is in part thanks to the culture and environment Lynny has created. It’s an open and safe place to be and everyone is enjoying it.
View image in fullscreen Jaz Joyce-Butchers (third from left) and Alisha Joyce-Butchers (to her left) line up for Wales. Photograph: Chris Wright/Alamy
I have no bad words to say about Lynny – he is brilliant and well-respected among the group. He has done a lot for Gloucester-Hartpury, his rugby CV is really good. I was asked the other day to sum him up in one word and I said “engaging”. When he is speaking people are listening. He is hilarious, but he also has a stern side that has come out sometimes in training, but only in understandable moments.
skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to The Breakdown Free weekly newsletter The latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewed Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion
We have seen a lot of change. Everyone is enjoying it a lot more. No one is anxious going into training or anxious because you’re going to get pulled up over doing something silly.
So off the pitch has been amazing. On the pitch it has been a bit tricky as Lynny’s first full day came just before our first Six Nations game and there was not much he could put in place. He hasn’t changed anything drastically, but he has started to drip bits and bobs in throughout the weeks and we are definitely getting better on pitch in defence and attack. The more Sean can be in and around training, the more he can change and adapt and tailor drills to suit each player, the better Wales are going to get.
Ireland are next up on Sunday and we need to make sure we put them under stress and take them to dark places in their performance. They played well against England last time out and one key aspect for us will be nullifying the fly‑half, Dannah O’Brien.
She is amazing. When I watch her play I’m puzzled by how she has so much time on the ball. She also kicks huge distances and as a full-back I keep thinking: “How do I even defend that?” She definitely makes me nervous, especially in the backfield. She absolutely runs their game, is the soul of Ireland’s attack and can put some shots in as well. We’ve also got great kickers and so hopefully we can isolate her.
Lynny’s message has been to be excited for the game against Ireland and our final game against Italy and he believes we can produce good performances. Wales are definitely capable of coming away with a win in this tournament. | {
"authors": [
"Jaz Joyce-Butchers"
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"publish_date": "2025-04-20 00:00:00",
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"title": "Abuse I received for TikTok video after Women’s Six Nations defeat was crazy",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/20/abuse-i-received-tiktok-video-after-womens-six-nations-defeat-was-crazy"
} |
6ddd724f2636ee0d6dc7f9d300cd564e | Confident, ambitious, serious – the Nuno effect is taking Forest into dreamland
Communication is key for Nuno Espírito Santo, whether it is speaking to his squad, playing music or guiding horses over jumps. Simple and clear messages make working for and with the Nottingham Forest head coach uncomplicated, because everybody knows what is demanded of them on and off the pitch.
The only place Nuno’s methods have not worked at is Tottenham, where he returns on Monday with Forest, who are in a race to qualify for the Champions League and are preparing for an FA Cup semi-final. The Portuguese was never the right fit in north London, lasting four months before being dismissed, but he will not be out for revenge: the league table has done that for him.
Nuno’s work at Rio Ave, Valencia, Porto and Wolves earned him a shot at a big Premier League club and despite failing at Spurs he and his close-knit staff have recovered from the disappointment to take one of the Premier League’s unfancied clubs close to European qualification.
Along the way, he has learned to balance the aspects of his character that make him an inspirational leader: he is meticulous, cool under pressure but capable of outbursts of emotion, backed by self-belief. It all comes back to a love of winning and a hatred of losing. From the start he embraced being the underdog, taking Rio Ave – from Vila do Conde, half an hour north of Porto – into Europe for the first time.
“He was confident and very ambitious,” the former Rio Ave striker Ahmed Hassan says. “Everybody felt his vibe, his energy. He has a very good way to motivate players and this was one of his best attributes. He has a clear philosophy and is very hard-working and expects the same from players. I really loved his speeches before games. He tries to touch you and make you feel very motivated. Then you want to play so badly because after his speech you feel goose bumps.”
View image in fullscreen Nuno Espírito Santo celebrates with his players after their FA Cup quarter-final victory over Brighton. Next Sunday they face Manchester City at Wembley. Photograph: Peter Cziborra/Action Images/Reuters
It can seem as if there is a constant intensity to Nuno. To relax he plays the handpan, a calming musical instrument often used during meditation, and has been known to show off his talents to colleagues, inspiring one to buy the instrument. He owns two horses and is a keen equestrian, using time off to ride them over jumps.
There has always been an admiration for British football. Despite not playing in the country, Nuno took his coaching badges in Scotland and always envisaged managing in England. That came to pass with Wolves in 2017, a wheel greased by his long-term adviser, Jorge Mendes.
Since the early days, he has been defensively minded and played on the counterattack, reliant on the quality of Diogo Jota, Hélder Costa and Rúben Neves to settle matches at Wolves. Not much has changed, but now it is Anthony Elanga, Morgan Gibbs-White and Callum Hudson-Odoi doing the damage for Forest. When Wolves won the Championship in 2018, 14 matches were settled by a one-goal margin. Rampant victories have rarely been Nuno’s style.
View image in fullscreen Nuno Espírito Santo had an ill-fated spell as manager of Tottenham. He returns to his former club with Forest challenging for a Champions League berth. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
Nuno wants his players to work for one another. Talent is integral, but character is almost as important. “The whole atmosphere around the club was absolutely incredible,” says the former Wolves defender Ryan Bennett. “Every single day, the rule was you see the manager, you shake his hand, you see the staff, you shake their hand. The little things they did made the general atmosphere.”
Everyone would eat together at the Sir Jack Hayward training ground. Staff would sit at one long table and the players another. It was the job of the club captain, Conor Coady, to ask permission for players to get their food and no one would leave before the last person had finished their meal. The conversations held in the canteen built camaraderie and long‑lasting friendships.
When a player arrives, especially from abroad, Nuno makes extra effort to ensure things are settled off the pitch so they can perform on it, something Hassan benefited from. Being multilingual helps him speak to his global contingent. Fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and English, he even conversed at Wolves with the defender Maximilian Kilman in Russian, a language Nuno learned during a season as a Dynamo Moscow player.
View image in fullscreen Wolves celebrate a goal scored by Ryan Bennett on their way to promotion from the Championship under Nuno in 2018. Photograph: Alan Walter/Action Images/Reuters
It may not always be verbalised, but Nuno wants to win a trophy wherever he may be. “His demeanour was very serious all the time,” says Bennett. “He always looked like he was thinking and always, always very serious.”
If a team do not have ambitions to challenge for silverware, Nuno would not entertain the prospect of coaching them. Even when he joined Forest in a relegation battle, he was thinking of triumph. Two FA Cup wins at Wembley, the first against Manchester City next Sunday, would achieve this.
Nuno’s trusted fitness coach, António Dias, worked hard over pre-season, focusing on the players running for long periods to ensure everyone could cope with Nuno’s demands, and is adept at managing loads.
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“We never had many injuries because they were very meticulous with pre-activation and injury prevention,” says Bennett. “That was another massive part of the culture. We were doing things I’d never seen before; we were wearing light therapy glasses in the morning to try to keep our body clocks on at the same time when in Europe.”
Some players regard Nuno as distant, but those are the ones he feels he does not need to hover over. They can look after themselves and know how to maintain the rules, whereas the younger ones may require cajoling into line. Professionalism is demanded by the whole staff, as Hassan recalls from a misstep with Dias.
View image in fullscreen A large tifo banner of the Forest manager. Photograph: Matt West/Shutterstock
“He’s a fantastic fitness coach and he told me he needs to do some extra work with me one afternoon by myself. I arrived late because I went to the barber and left late and I remember so much that he was really pissed off with me.
“It never happened again. It was the first and last time because he’s very sharp with everything when it comes to professionalism. He likes the players to be very professional and he always tells us that this is for us for our sake.”
There is often an underlying closeness between Nuno and his players. He can randomly produce a bear hug to instigate a laugh and chat or, as Ola Aina can testify, offer a piggyback to those without the energy to walk off the pitch after a gruelling match.
He really tries to touch you and make you feel very motivated Ahmed Hassan
Nuno works on an understanding of mutual respect, with everyone working towards a common goal, whether it is avoiding relegation or winning the league and he will not rest even when the job is ostensibly done. Wolves were promoted in 2018 with four games remaining after Fulham failed to beat Brentford thanks to a stoppage‑time Neal Maupay equaliser.
“We were watching the game, a goal went in very, very late,” says Bennett. “There was a massive cheer and obviously the English boys were a bit different and we wanted to celebrate. Five minutes after that, it was: ‘Right, we’ve got a game tomorrow, let’s go to bed, we need to prepare.’
“We came down, a totally normal morning, a normal game and we’re thinking: ‘We’re not even enjoying this.’ We won the game. Again, it was just coming to the training on Monday. It was still the same process: ‘We’ve got games to win. We want to get as many points as we can.’ It was just constant and consistent. That’s what kept us and made us what we were.”
It is all very serious to Nuno, but it will be worth it should Forest – fourth in the table before the weekend’s fixtures – secure Champions League football because he will know he did it his way and that has never changed. Then he may allow a few beers and an audience with the handpan. | {
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} |
7f6a3a893cf30af279c2e00a5efbcdb2 | Never mind the late drama, Amorim and Postecoglou still face the Ten Hag trap
Erik ten Hag has gone, but his shadow looms over English football still. The mistake was understandable enough: high on the euphoria of beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final, Manchester United renewed his contract. Three months into the new season, more than £180m spent on summer transfers, Ten Hag was dismissed with United 14th in the table on 11 points from nine games.
The sporting director, Dan Ashworth, and various members of Ten Hag’s backroom staff also left, at a total cost of £14.5m. Or, to put it another way, keeping Ten Hag cost United £200m and in effect undermined this season. Nobody wants to be caught in the Ten Hag trap.
No two cases are ever exactly alike. There is a tendency always to overcorrect on a simplistic understanding of what went before, which is why so many clubs flip-flop between idealistic dreamers and dour pragmatists – the fat pope, thin pope model of history.
Even by United’s recent standards, the decision to stick with Ten Hag was bungled: openly talking to other candidates inevitably erodes confidence in the incumbent. But, equally, every club owner or director is aware of the Ten Hag trap and the need to avoid it. For a few years yet it’s going to be harder for a manager to save their job by winning a trophy and that is of direct relevance to both Ange Postecoglou and Ruben Amorim.
The threat to Amorim is, as yet, theoretical, although as the example of Sir Ben Ainslie with Ineos’s sailing team demonstrates, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has a capacity to be ruthless. He will dismiss a high-profile figure just as readily as he will scrap a packed lunch, stewards’ bonus or pensioner concession. The case against Amorim, anyway, is largely that his football is not a fit for the squad and it would be cheaper and easier to replace the ideologue in the dugout than an entire dressing room of players.
The ecstatic end to Thursday’s Europa League quarter-final against Lyon bolsters his position. As Rory McIlroy’s victory at the Masters last Sunday showed, sport is at its best when it blends the anxious and hapless with the brilliant to produce an impossibly dramatic denouement. Those final minutes at Old Trafford, Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Maguire cast into emergency service as central forwards and both producing exceptional finishes, will be remembered for decades in the way a routine 2-0 win simply wouldn’t have been. Fans will forgive a lot of frustration for an experience like that – even if it is dependent on fallibility.
View image in fullscreen Euphoric scenes at Old Trafford after Harry Maguire’s winning goal against Lyon. Photograph: Matt West/Shutterstock
In that sense, Thursday’s win could be for Amorim what Liverpool’s 4-3 victory over Borussia Dortmund was in the Europa League quarter-final in 2016, a game that did not lead to immediate success but did act as confirmation of the Jürgen Klopp project. The only caveat is that, for United, much the same could be said about the 4-3 win over Liverpool in the FA Cup quarter-final last season, and it turned out Amad Diallo’s extra-time winner was simply a lure on the way into the Ten Hag trap.
The case of Postecoglou is more perilous. It is entirely plausible that Tottenham win the Europa League and the Australian still leaves the club, while United stick with Amorim having won nothing. But Thursday was a good night for Postecoglou, Tottenham’s most impressive away performance since the 4-0 win at Manchester City in November. It’s perhaps not ideal that their idea of defending is apparently reliant on having a player with the freakish pace of Micky van de Ven but, on the other hand, they do, at the moment, have a player with the freakish pace of Micky van de Ven.
The difficulty of winning at Deutsche Bank Park should not be underestimated – Spurs were only the fourth away side to do so this season of 21 who have tried – but equally Tottenham’s annual expenditure on wages is around three times that of Eintracht Frankfurt. That is no guarantee of success, but it does fit the theory that Postecoglou’s ultra-aggressive football works when, as in Scotland with Celtic, his side has an advantage of resource. That superiority will be even more pronounced in the semi-final against Bodø/Glimt.
That shouldn’t devalue any success Tottenham may have, but it does perhaps place it into context. It is possible to mount a defence of Postecoglou on the grounds that injuries, particularly to the back four, ripped the heart out of the season, damaging confidence, and that, by the time a measure of stability was regained, the league campaign was already meaningless. But it’s also true that once the opening 10-game spurt was over, there has been little evidence of him having an aptitude for the Premier League.
skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Football Daily Free daily newsletter Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion
Spurs are a club defined by their yearning for success, yet the only manager to win them a trophy in the past 26 years, Juande Ramos, was sacked eight months after that 2008 League Cup win with the club bottom of the Premier League – an extreme example of the Ten Hag trap. As José Mourinho is never reluctant to remind people, Spurs sacked him six days before the League Cup final in 2021.
View image in fullscreen Dominic Solanke scores from the spot for Spurs to earn victory at Eintracht Frankfurt. Photograph: Michael Zemanek/Shutterstock
The lack of silverware haunts Spurs and yet the club have a complicated relationship with it. It may even be that the best thing for a manager wanting a lengthy career at Tottenham is a very specific form of failure, one that prioritises Champions League qualification and its budgetary benefits over the more tangible achievement of trophies.
Perhaps that is simply, once again, to point out the twin impulses that guide football and the friction that exists between them: routine wins and control may offer consistency and please the executives, but the visceral stirrings that animate fans come from nights such as Thursday at Old Trafford, the sort of nonsense and drama that scorns careful financial projections, or, indeed, any sort of planning at all.
Executives will always favour reliability. Nobody ever built a successful business on unlikely players doing unlikely things at unlikely times; fans may delight in the flailing limbs of three goals after the 114th minute, but they mean less to the bottom line than consistency. And that is all the more pertinent given how aware everybody is of the need to avoid the Ten Hag trap. | {
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4e8bd0863eb26330696f141a5c6d2729 | ‘It’s a new world’: the analysts using AI to psychologically profile elite players
“The players didn’t show enough fight.” Listen to any pundit’s post-match reaction and you will hear variations of that soundbite. But can you analyse an athlete’s state of mind, based on their on-pitch body language?
In an era when football is increasingly leaning on data to demonstrate physical attributes, statistics offering an accurate indication of a player’s psychological qualities, such as emotional control and leadership, are harder to come by. But Premier League clubs including Brighton are using a technique intended to help in that regard with selection and recruitment.
Thomas Tuchel made headlines by telling England’s players to communicate more after he evaluated their interactions during the final of Euro 2024, but counting the number of times players gesture or talk to each other on the pitch tells only part of the mental battle being played out.
Yaw Amankwah, a former top-flight defender in Norway and Denmark, is at the centre of the push for better psychological evaluation of players. “When you take your eyes off the ball, it’s a treasure trove of information,” says Amankwah, who also works as a pundit. “Once you disregard tactics and just look at the psychological part of the game and players through this lens, it’s impossible to unsee it. It’s the subtle, nonverbal messages that show if players are very confident, aggressive or in their own bubble.”
View image in fullscreen ‘Once you disregard tactics and just look at the psychological part of the game, it’s impossible to unsee it,’ says Yaw Amankwah. Photograph: Sipa/Alamy
Amankwah uses the example of a player who blasts a 20-yard shot into the stands and, 45 seconds later, receives a consoling pat on the back from a passing teammate. It is a fleeting moment that might be missed – or overlooked – by fans, media and even coaching teams, but, to a former professional, it illustrates a quiet sense of leadership. “I know the cues and small behaviours that you have to learn in order to function effectively on a football pitch,” Amankwah says.
Over the past six years, he has worked with the psychology professor Geir Jordet, analysing thousands of hours of match footage from across the world, including videos of every player in the Premier League and Women’s Super League. The result is a dataset containing more than 100,000 unique observations, which has enabled the duo – via their company, Inside Out Analytics – to create a proxy ranking of players across different types of behaviour.
The information can demonstrate, say, whether a defender’s emotional control, compared with opponents’ and teammates’ in the same position, is in the top 5% of those players in the league. As Jordet puts it: “It’s a new world that opens up. The map gives clubs a benchmark and that’s critical because you can look at certain behaviours, and you can count how many times they occur in certain situations, but most are still going to be blind to what that means.
“It’s hard to figure out their exact meaning, but we’re no longer blind, because we can say that for this type of behaviour, in this situation, if you compare all the players in this player’s position in the Premier League, this player is in the 90th percentile or in the 10th percentile.”
Bayern Munich are one of several leading clubs to have trialled the platform, employing the technology during Julian Nagelsmann’s time as head coach. “Every department [in a club] puts numbers on the table, but psychology doesn’t,” says the former Bayern psychologist Max Pelka, who now works with Brighton. “There are aspects of psychology that can be measured – there are a lot of cognitive diagnostics out there – but they’re not that close to [what is happening] on the pitch.”
View image in fullscreen Max Pelka (left) and Julian Nagelsmann worked together at RB Leipzig before moving to Bayern Munich. Photograph: DPA/Alamy
Pelka – who followed Nagelsmann from RB Leipzig to Bayern – worked with Jordet and Amankwah to analyse about 25 Bayern games during the second half of the 2022-23 season.
After each match, Pelka would boil down detailed observations of each player’s posture, head movements and hand gestures – to name a few elements of body language monitored by Amankwah’s analysis team – to a one-page summary of the side’s psychological performance, which he would present to the coaching department. The data was among several sets of information which Nagelsmann and his assistants would consider before picking a side.
skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Football Daily Free daily newsletter Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion
“It was another variable that added to thoughts about selection,” Pelka says. “They could consider whether they really wanted a leader in their back four or whether they wanted a different [personality] option.”
Players could also access analysis of what Jordet refers to as their “game personality”. Pelka says: “There was a defender who was very interested in the findings … how to use his body language to lead and show others the way [to play]. It doesn’t happen overnight, but if you have a starting point of how things look on the pitch, it’s much easier to work on it.”
Pelka is using some of the techniques he employed in Munich to analyse Brighton’s players’ on-pitch behaviour. Although he hasn’t monitored Fabian Hürzeler’s squad as frequently, the key planks of the process are the same, with Brighton’s head coach reviewing summaries of his side’s key psychological “actions”.
Jordet and Amnankwah are increasingly using artificial intelligence rather than the manual coding that consumed much of the pair’s time. “Soon, we’ll have very little limit on how many teams we can analyse at any point in time … and then we can actually start to inform clubs about prospective new signings, highlighting someone that they were not aware of before or confirm or challenge an emerging decision,” Jordet says. “We could say: ‘Yes, this seems to be a good signing,’ or: ‘From our perspective, given these metrics, there’s a big red flag here and that’s something you may want to look into.’” | {
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7b0f860388a0d8c2ce6cfba6f5231cd9 | NBA playoffs 2025 predictions: the winner, key players and dark horses
Is the regular season in crisis?
Absolutely not. Could it stand to be a little shorter? Sure. Do the referees need to be more judicious with when they intervene? I’d argue they do. But the real problem the NBA faces is, in my opinion, a PR one. Its loudest voices should spend less time pearl-clutching and more time celebrating. Claire de Lune
Star players sit, games blur together and offense is unchecked. I don’t know if I’d call it a crisis, but put it this way: Disney, NBC and Amazon Prime Video did not pay $76bn for this product. They’re betting that it will be fixed. The answer might be structural: tweak the rules to restore physicality. If defense matters again, maybe the games will too. Bryan Armen Graham
Well, if you count rights-holding networks badmouthing the product, the league blacking out local games and underselling on-court storylines as a crisis – then yes. If you count the in-season tournament, load management player protocols and the endless GOAT debates as a crisis – then also yes. I’m not suggesting fewer games (82 always felt right); I’m suggesting everyone take them more seriously. Talking to you, Adam Silver. Andrew Lawrence
Can I be in a crisis when my organization commands $76bn in broadcast rights fees? That sad, a few tweaks might help. Spice up the in-season tournament by working point spreads into real-life results - eg the Celtics need to cover v the Hornets to move on – and awarding a conditional first-round draft pick known as “The Emirate” to the winner. Bring international play into the All-Star Weekend format and if you must, trim three or four games off the schedule. Oh, and please, please, lower ticket prices. Thank you! David Lengel
There are multiple issues with the NBA such as an overindulgence of three-pointers, the forgettable All-Star game and perpetual foul-hunting. However, the notion of a crisis is a bit overblown. The Western Conference remained highly competitive until the final day of the season, the playoffs feature a mix of All-NBA veterans and rising young stars, and the NBA’s primetime viewership is up double digits from last season. There is space for improvement, but the league is far from being in crisis. AR Shaw
Team that will be most missed from the playoffs
It’s a shame that Kevin Durant, one of the most skilled scorers this game has ever seen, isn’t going to make so much as a play-in-tournament appearance this year. To say the Phoenix Suns have been a disappointment is a woeful understatement, but it’s less the team I’ll be missing and more the inimitable presence of the Slim Reaper. CDL
The Suns. Say what you will about their flaws, but they had three of the NBA’s best shot-makers in Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal and still couldn’t make it work. A brutal cap sheet and murky future means this might have been their last real shot. BAG
Can I be selfish and say the Chicago Bulls? For the first time since their ethereal first-half campaign to the 2021-22 season, the Bulls have been genuinely fun to watch – and the life of the party has been Josh Giddey, the triple-double threat who harks to the days when a healthy Lonzo Ball was leading the break. He showed enough to earn a long-term extension and another running mate to help get Chicago into the play-in stage. AL
The team or the players? I’m already missing KD and his band of grumpy, really upset Suns, and of course, we’re all praying to the god of your choice that Victor Wembanyama will be back next season. Overall, the Philadelphia 76ers mess is always a good follow, and I think we’ll all miss the day-to-day drama Joel Embiid and friends bring to the first round of the playoffs. DL
The San Antonio Spurs. The debut of “Playoff Wemby” appeared to be a possibility after the Spurs acquired De’Aaron Fox before the trade deadline. But season-ending injuries to Wembanyama and Fox spoiled San Antonio’s playoff hopes. The combination of Wembanyama, Fox, the savvy veteran Chris Paul and rookie sensation Stephon Castle would have created havoc in the postseason. With better health, we can expect the Spurs to do damage in next year’s playoffs. ARS
View image in fullscreen Jalen Brunson and the New York Knicks are bidding to end the team’s 52-year NBA title drought. Photograph: Elsa/Getty Images
High seed at risk of going out early
Vegas doesn’t have a lot of faith in second seeded-Houston in the playoffs, and neither do I. It’s commendable (hat tip to head coach Ime Udoka) that a super-young Rockets team were able to go from missing the play-in tournament last year to ending this year as the No 2 seed, but an unproven, youth-heavy, offensively challenged roster will likely get exposed in their first postseason outing. CDL
The Cleveland Cavaliers have depth, structure and a sparkling record, but playoff basketball is a different beast. Darius Garland has shrunk from the moment before, Evan Mobley remains a work in progress on offense and Donovan Mitchell can’t carry the load alone. If the tempo dips and the shots stop falling, this slick machine could unravel fast – especially against a battle-tested opponent. BAG
The New York Knicks, who blew a 28-point lead while losing to the top-seeded Cavaliers last Saturday to fall to 0-10 against top-three NBA teams. Point guard Jalen Brunson is one of a number of their key players dealing with injuries – none of which can be blamed on Tom Thibodeau’s withering instruction anymore, apparently. All of this sets them up poorly for their matchup against the resurgent Pistons and Cade Cunningham, a Knick-killer in the making. (He averaged better than 30 points, eight assists and five boards against them.) AL
Isn’t that the Knicks? Their fanbase certainly thinks so. A year ago New York were the out-hustle, out-muscle team that wanted it more than you. Today, they’re a fancy score-at-will side minus the edgy intangibles their fans lauded. Coincidentally, their opponents from Detroit have become the NBA’s newest junkyard dogs, ready to rip through the softened flesh of their now-bougie competition. Knicks fans can only hope the Pistons aren’t quite ready to pull it off. DL
The Rockets. Coach Ime Udoka did the unexpected by leading the Rockets to the No 2 seed in the rigorous Western Conference. But achieving the second-best record in the West appears to be a pyrrhic victory as Houston are underdogs against the Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler-led Golden State Warriors. The scrappy Rockets will make each game uncomfortable for the more playoff-experienced Warriors, but expect an early exit for Houston’s youth movement. ARS
Long shot to win
Two of the greatest playoff performers of their generation are now on the same team. I refuse to count out Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and the Warriors. They have a high-level defense, a lot of perimeter athleticism, and two guys who, on any given night, have a chance of being the best player on the floor. That sounds like a dark-horse contender to me. CDL
The Warriors. They started the season a hot mess. But since acquiring Jimmy Butler, they have been rolling. Steph is still Steph, Draymond Green is locking up again and their defense has quietly surged. With championship DNA and a renewed edge, they’re peaking at the perfect time. BAG
It’s weird to call a team that has Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, Norman Powell and Ty Lue on the sideline a dark horse. But so it goes when that team is the Los Angeles Clippers. While the Lakers and the Warriors helped the fairytale championship narrative with their blockbuster mid-season trades, the Clippers have been solid, steady and Leonard is looking like the Leonard of old .This could be their year. AL
The Clippers are a scorching hot No 5 seed who went 18-3 with eight straight wins to finish the regular season. That included a dramatic overtime victory at Golden State in their 82nd game to avoid the dreaded play-in. That’s mojo and that’s LA when Kawhi Leonard shows up, laces up and plays basketball. Now, if James Harden actually carries his regular-season skillset into the playoffs, these Clips could actually crack the colorful western cohort and sail into the finals. DL
The Clippers. Finishing the season with an 18-3 record, the Clippers are the most feared team heading into the playoffs. While LeBron James and Luka Dončić are the more celebrated NBA stars in Tinseltown, the Clippers have embraced the underdog role and are a dark horse to change the narrative with a Hollywood ending in the NBA finals. ARS
View image in fullscreen Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has led the Oklahoma City Thunder to one of the most dominant regular-season campaigns in NBA history. Photograph: Joshua Gateley/Getty Images
Most important player this postseason
It’s rare that the player upon which the pendulum swings is the same in two consecutive years, but once again, it’s Luka Dončić. I see the Lakers as having just as good of a chance as anyone to win the title this year. But as evidenced by the Lakers’ recent duel with the Warriors, when he isn’t firing on all cylinders, that chance diminishes exponentially. Los Angeles need Dončić to be a top-tier superstar for four rounds to hoist the trophy. CDL
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been an MVP candidate all year. Now comes the real test. OKC are deep, disciplined and dangerous, but their ceiling depends on SGA’s ability to create in crunch time. If he owns the moment, the Thunder could fast-track their rise from rebuild to finals. BAG
After the Jimmy Butler trade, the Warriors went from Cancun-bound after the regular season to title contenders once again. More than just the best running mate Curry has had since Kevin Durant, Butler can carry the offensive load when Curry’s off the floor and take over games defensively. How the Warriors ever got away with him still boggles the brain. AL
After dominating the regular season with a 68-14 record, Oklahoma City enter a postseason where anything short of a championships would be a disappointment. All of it rests on the wide Canadian shoulders of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. As the head of the snake and the odds-on MVP favorite, SGA is solely responsible for delivering the hardware to OKC. And it’s a fair amount of pressure, especially after the Thunder were ousted last season by Luka’s Mavericks in the West semis. DL
LeBron James will be the most important player in the postseason until he retires. James is not only competing against current NBA players, he receives the most praise and ridicule when compared to his Hall of Fame predecessors. Win or lose, James will be the most discussed player in the off-season. If he captures another title at 40, it adds to the lore and never-ending debate over who is the greatest basketball player of all time. ARS
Eastern Conference finals
Celtics over Cavaliers CDL
Celtics over Pacers BAG
Celtics over Cavaliers AL
Celtics over Pacers DL
Celtics over Cavaliers ARS
Western Conference finals
Lakers over Thunder CDL
Thunder over Warriors BAG
Warriors over Clippers AL
Clippers over Lakers DL
Lakers over Clippers ARS
Your NBA champion will be ...
Los Angeles Lakers. I’ll be accused of homerism for this pick, which I am prepared for. But I know a team on a special run when I see one, and the Lakers are that team. For Luka Dončić to get a ring in the same season he was unceremoniously shipped off by Dallas, for LeBron James to have a chance at a fifth championship before he retires, is something I can’t see either of these generational talents letting slip through their fingers. Lakers v Celtics will be a battle for the ages, and it’s truly a coin toss between the two in my estimation. But if the Lakers can get through the entire gauntlet that awaits them in the West, I simply don’t see them letting the chance at saying “job finished” pass them by. CDL
Oklahoma City Thunder. They’ve recorded the highest net rating in NBA history – better than the ‘96 Bulls or KD Warriors – but still feel oddly overlooked. SGA is playing at an MVP level, Jalen Williams is a rising star and Chet Holmgren shores up the middle. Their elite perimeter defense, depth and cohesion make them dangerous in any series. They may be young, but they’re relentless, unselfish and unafraid. This isn’t a fluke; it’s a coronation in waiting. BAG
Golden State Warriors. They’ve got the best shooter who ever lived, one of the game’s all-time defenders and the best end-to-end player. Add Steve Kerr and the Warriors’ dynamite bench to the equation, and it’s tough to see the team losing out on a chance to win their fifth championship in 10 years. And if they happen to beat the Lakers along the way, the GOAT debate is going into overdrive – and history might ultimately peg LeBron as the loser. AL
Boston Celtics. The wild second-half run of the Kawhi Clippers will finally come to an end when the clock strikes midnight against the Eastern Conference titans. Even the version of Harden who shows up for the playoffs isn’t enough to beat the Celtics, who overcome Jaylen Brown’s bum knee to oust the Clippers in seven. That’s because a healthy Kristaps Porzingis fills all voids and all baskets, propelling the dominant Jayson Tatum to swiftly avenge his Olympic benching while winning a second consecutive championship. DL
Los Angeles Lakers. The Mavericks handed the Lakers a generational gift with the Luka Dončić trade, and LA will reap the benefits in June. The trade elevated the Lakers’ playoff chances from a second-round exit to legit title contenders, but the Lakers will face the toughest path to the finals with a first-round matchup against Anthony Edwards and the possibility of facing Steph Curry, Kawhi Leonard or leading MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in later rounds. Dončić and LeBron have both carried teams to the NBA Ffnals, and together, they have the offensive capabilities to overwhelm the most elite players and their teams. Expect the Lakers and Celtics to continue their historic rivalry with another showdown in the NBA finals with the Lakers as the last team standing. ARS | {
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"Ar Shaw"
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"title": "NBA playoffs 2025 predictions: the winner, key players and dark horses",
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} |
aa73c262a6bd793d2d2b3dd088d4d62a | Robots race against humans for first time in Beijing half-marathon – video
Twenty-one humanoid robots joined thousands of runners at the Yizhuang half-marathon in Beijing on Saturday, the first time these machines have raced alongside humans over a 21km (13-mile) course | {
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6f80aa958e219a2d1f4c7d699aae9b61 | Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce shows no mercy with another sprint win at son's sports day – video
Three-times Olympic gold medallist Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce showed no mercy during her son Zyon's sports day, storming to victory in the parents' 100 metres race and leaving fellow mums in her wake again. Jamaica's 38-year-old eight-times Olympic medallist lined up for the mum's race on Wednesday and breezed past the competition to take first place, a moment she proudly shared on Instagram. In 2023, she pulled off a similar victory at the same event, proving she does not lose her competitive edge even when the stakes are just her son's playground bragging rights. "They haven't banned me yet so I'm at the line," Fraser-Pryce, who won back-to-back 100m Olympic titles in 2008 and 2012, wrote along with a clip of her win. | {
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"title": "Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce shows no mercy with another sprint win at son's sports day – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/video/2025/apr/18/shelly-ann-fraser-pryce-shows-no-mercy-with-another-sprint-win-at-sons-sports-day-video"
} |
56d6c277fa8c9a007bae3e16dcb0aaa2 | 'Hard load to carry': Rory McIlroy thrilled to finally realise Masters dream – video
Rory McIlroy reflected on having freed himself of a 'hard load to carry' after winning the Masters in dramatic fashion at Augusta. McIlroy’s defeat of Justin Rose on the first playoff hole means he is the sixth player to win a career grand slam. 'You've had Jack [Nicklaus], Gary [Player], Tom [Watson], Tiger [Woods] - you name it - come through here and all say I'll win the Masters one day,' McIlroy said. 'That's a hard load to carry, it really is.' | {
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"title": "'Hard load to carry': Rory McIlroy thrilled to finally realise Masters dream – video",
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c0c0192adf7f0a99c2a3e60460464f00 | Rory McIlroy's four-year-old daughter Poppy sinks putt at Augusta – video
Rory McIlroy's four-year-old daughter Poppy has stolen the show at the Masters Par Three Tournament in Augusta, Georgia, sinking an incredible putt alongside her father. The remarkable shot sparked heartwarming celebrations from McIlroy and his family, as well as playing partner Shane Lowry. The traditional Masters curtain-raiser gives golfers the chance to play on the famous course with their families. | {
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"title": "Rory McIlroy's four-year-old daughter Poppy sinks putt at Augusta – video",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/video/2025/apr/10/rory-mcilroy-daughter-sinks-putt-augusta-masters-golf"
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e6eaf2ef205f9c148a59542ce4fa7a4e | Pablo Sarabia stuns Manchester United to extend Wolves’ winning run
The fine tidings for Manchester United are that they are safe from relegation, the grim ones are that this came despite a 15th defeat of a dismal Premier League campaign.
Wolves’ winner was simple: on 77 minutes Pablo Sarabia, on as a substitute only 120 seconds before, placed a 20-yard free-kick sweetly to André Onana’s left, Christian Eriksen having been culpable for the foul.
Cue those who motored up from the Black Country taunting the opposition lustily, as they also hailed their club’s fifth top‑flight win in a row for a first time since 1970.
Ruben Amorim, with a hangdog look, said: “If you look at the game, we were the better team but in the end it doesn’t matter because if we don’t score goals, nothing matters.
“What counts is the result. We created a lot of chances, we controlled the game, and one set piece changes the game and that’s it – really frustrating to end the game like this.”
Amorim’s team have scored only 38 times – one for each of their points. Referencing not scoring shines a light on his critically misfiring No 9, Rasmus Højlund, who has only one goal in 29 hours and 28 minutes – against Leicester before the last international break.
Asked if it might be time to give the Dane a break from the fray, Amorim said: “If you look at games, we have several players that missed big chances, not just Rasmus. But for Rasmus, the game is to score goals because he is a striker. But it is a team thing. I have already said that.
“Our team should score more goals, it is not just Rasmus missing chances, it is all the team. The only way I know is to work on him, show him the videos. He needed to score a goal, he will not score if he’s out. So I try to manage that during games. But he needs to score one, maybe that’s all a striker needs.”
United are targeting Ipswich’s Liam Delap as a potential centre-forward recruit in the summer. Amorim was asked if a reliable scorer is required. “Of course we have an idea of what this team needs,” he said. “But all the team needs to score more goals. We need to improve as a team because if you don’t score goals in this league it’s impossible to win.”
Amorim is correct to point the finger at his whole attack. Towards the end, Mason Mount twice spurned close-range openings to grab at least a share of the points: first he scooped over wildly; then after Eriksen’s outside-of-the-right-foot delivery, he spooned a volley wide.
View image in fullscreen Bruno Fernandes looks dejected after Manchester United concede. Photograph: Scott Heppell/Reuters
This late phase of the contest was, at last, a little watchable. While no one could expect a repeat of the operatic extra-time win against Lyon on Thursday, nor would you dream this battle of 14th versus 17th to be so soporific.
When Højlund collected the ball by the touchline near Amorim’s technical area, left Emmanuel Agbadou trailing and galloped into yards of grass, the game had a first moment of skill and verve – 50 minutes in. The No 9, starved of service all term as his manager says, looked up, saw teammates arriving on the far side, ignored them, dawdled, and Wolves escaped.
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Moments later, there was a dash of pantomime as Nélson Semedo, the visiting captain, bent a back-pass towards an empty goal, giving his keeper, Dan Bentley, a scramble to mop the ball up – to jeers.
On 58 minutes Amorim made a triple change – a function of wishing to shake up proceedings, and give Kobbie Mainoo, Patrick Dorgu and Manuel Ugarte a rest after their endeavours on Thursday. On came Mount, Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot and United continued to be the brighter side, keeping and flicking the ball about inside Wolves’ territory.
A slick move had Eriksen passing the ball to Alejandro Garnacho who sprinted down the left-sided channel and crossed: Højlund was inches away from stabbing home but the ball slid past. This was about it – before and after Sarabia’s winner.
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At the end of the 90, Robert Jones added six minutes of time and the quip was the referee might add six hours and what was on show would still be tame. When he did finally blow his whistle, this could be written up as a prime illustration of how not to follow a heart-stopping comeback to keep your season alive – as United’s 5-4 victory against Lyon here did in the Europa League.
For Tyler Fredricson, on his United debut at right centre-back, this was a welcome beginning to the first team soured by defeat. The 20‑year‑old Mancunian may need to be accustomed to the feeling – and quickly.
Vítor Pereira was left pleased. “We are building something good for the future,” the Wolves manager said. | {
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"title": "Pablo Sarabia stuns Manchester United to extend Wolves’ winning run",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/apr/20/manchester-united-wolves-premier-league-match-report"
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f26bc5159e6c4270f29032e58db06a33 | Kevin De Bruyne ‘a bit surprised’ not to be offered new Manchester City deal
Kevin De Bruyne has admitted to being “a little bit” shocked at not being offered a new contract at Manchester City, with the 33‑year‑old saying the club took the decision unilaterally. De Bruyne is also unsure if he will be part of City’s Club World Cup campaign that begins in June in the US.
The Belgian is City’s most decorated footballer with 19 honours and is considered one of the club’s greatest players. Yet De Bruyne, who joined in August 2015 from Wolfsburg, will be forced to depart in the close season after the club did not make a fresh offer.
He was asked if this shocked him. “A little bit, yeah, a little bit,” he said. “I have not had any offer the whole year, they just took a decision. Obviously, I was a bit surprised but I just have to accept it. Honestly, I still think I can perform at this level like I’m showing but I understand clubs have to make decisions.”
The champions are down in fourth place and De Bruyne believes he may have been offered new terms if the title defence had been more robust. “Maybe if the team didn’t struggle and I came back like I did this year [after injury] and bedded in like normal then maybe they would take another decision.
“I still have a lot to give. Obviously I know I’m not 25 any more but I still feel like I can do my job.”
De Bruyne announced on 4 April that he will leave City. “It’s a bit weird because it’s only been a short time,” he said. “After the decision was taken and when I came out [with this], it was more of a relief when I reported it to the outside world compared to when I knew and nobody else knew.
“You don’t know what to do with the emotion with everybody and how to handle it at the club. Now it’s out, it’s fine. People see the way that I am. I’ve tried to do my best for the club, win games for the team.
“I don’t feel awkward [about it] – in the end it is what it is. have to accept people making decisions. I told them also: ‘I feel like I still have a lot to give.’”
De Bruyne suggested he could play on in the Premier League. “I’m open for anything,” the Belgian said.
“I have to look at the whole picture. I’m looking at sportive, family, everything together, what makes the most sense for me and my family. I don’t know what that is, because it depends on when you speak to people and what they say about projects or something. Like I said, I still feel like I can play at a good level, but then after I’ll have to make a decision once I really know a little bit more.”
When asked if he will be part of City’s Club World Cup squad, he said: “I don’t know.” | {
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413314d8e033a4da7fbb72bfc0331108 | How a rip-off of Ukraine’s Zorya Luhansk are climbing Russia’s pyramid
On 12 April a new club played its first game in Russia’s football pyramid. A healthy enough crowd gathered at Novokolor Arena in Kamensk-Shakhtinsky, 20 miles from the border with Ukraine’s occupied territories, encouraged by a slick buildup on social media. They watched “Zarya Luhansk” begin their slog through the Third League, the fifth tier of a complicated Russian system whose composition shifts annually, with a 5-0 home win over Volgar Astrakhan’s second team. Some had travelled by chartered bus from the city their club purports to represent.
The name may sound familiar. The real Zorya Luhansk are eighth in the Ukrainian Premier League and savour a proud 102-year history. They play European football almost every season and hosted Manchester United in 2016. Nowadays, they play home matches in Kyiv owing to the illegal occupation of their home city. Any idea they would pull out and compete in Russia is beyond laughable.
But “Zarya” – the only difference between the prefixes, which mean “dawn”, is that of preferred Russian and Ukrainian spelling – began their campaign to little pushback from football’s authorities. The imitation club was founded in December 2023 and has played 82 matches, many in a “Commonwealth League” set up for teams from the regions Russia has annexed. They finished third in last year’s 10-team competition. Among their rivals in that event is a sham “Shakhtar Donetsk”.
The appearance of a replica “Zarya” in Russia’s setup feels like a red line crossed. To be clear, nobody is suggesting football should not be played in any form by those in occupied regions. “Zarya” can point out that, for now at least, they will stage their matches in Russia rather than in the country it has invaded. There may technically be no breach here even if Zorya, who prefer not to legitimise the new club’s activities with comment, felt grounds for any complaint.
Yet “Zarya”, who lost 1-0 at Spartak Anapa on Thursday, are not banking on a long spell in the nominally amateur Third League. A glance at their operation suggests significant financial backing. The club president, Araik Asatryan, a former Zorya academy player, told local media this month they planned to “close the issue in this calendar year” when asked how quickly he would like “Zarya” to reach Russia’s two-tier Second League, from where a clear path up the divisions is visible. He made clear they must follow the “historical traditions” of the prewar Zorya.
View image in fullscreen Players of FC Zorya Luhansk stand with children who originate from Ukranian territory occupied by Russia in Kyiv this month. Photograph: Yurii Yuriev/Global Images Ukraine/Getty Images
They have signed a number of players, most of them with professional experience. The door has also been left open to play home games in Luhansk, although Asatryan said “curfew and a certain regime situation” preclude that. Training sessions have been held in Avanhard Stadium, Zorya’s home until the war in Donbas forced their relocation in 2014; this week they warmed up in Perevalsk, which lies between Luhansk and Donetsk.
It is not difficult to see this project for what it is. “Zarya” were formed at the instruction of the illegitimate Luhansk People’s Republic, which controls the city and its surrounding area. Football is being deployed as a tool to normalise a violent denial of the past and the cold truth for anyone expecting a response from the authorities is that they are simply the latest, if arguably the most egregious, example in a concerning but virtually ignored trend.
Should “Zarya” earn promotion to Football National League 2B, the fourth division, they would probably meet the Crimean teams Rubin Yalta and Sevastopol. They were incorporated into the Russian pyramid two years ago and began their third season in the competition last month. In 2023, the Ukrainian Football Association complained vociferously that the clubs had breached Uefa rules prohibiting sides from Crimea competing in tournaments organised by the Russian Football Union (RFU). It asked that governing bodies take action against the RFU, suggesting it should be ejected by Uefa and Fifa.
The loophole apparently deployed by the RFU was that Football National League 2B does not operate under its auspices and, besides, is an amateur competition. The latter assertion has never rung true. Of 15 fourth-tier clubs contacted, the four who responded directly confirmed their players are employed on professional contracts. One, seemingly on the back of that approach, added “professional club” to their official profile on the Russian social networking site VK.
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The Football National League’s statutes for this season say that, on behalf of the RFU, it organises “all-Russian football competitions among professional football clubs of the second league”. It describes itself as ultimately deferential to the RFU. The RFU offered no answer when asked whether Rubin or Sevastopol, neither of whom have yet been allowed into the Russian Cup, would be granted promotion to the third tier if it were earned this season.
Nor did Uefa respond fully when asked, with reference to the Crimean pair and “Zarya”, about its stance in relation to clubs from the occupied territories. In July 2023 it told the Guardian it was “assessing the situation” regarding Crimea. Asked for an update this month, Uefa said it had consistently communicated its position on the matter. There has been no public or private update on its assessment; maybe that process is about to enter its third year. Fifa did not reply to questions on the situation.
Perhaps the issue appears trivial to those in football’s corridors of power. Maybe three clubs from sovereign Ukrainian territory, one a clear rip-off of an existing institution, being blended into the aggressors’ football pyramid is deemed an irrelevant footnote when the headline is that Russia and its sides remain banned from international events. There appears little appetite to stop others following suit and presumably plenty of interest from Russia’s football authorities in accepting them.
Two weeks ago, on a slow and bobbly artificial surface in the Crimean city Yevpatoria, “Zarya” defeated “Shakhtar” 3-0 in this season’s third set of Commonwealth League match days. Their second goal, an impressive chip from Artem Demagin, brought roars from the crowd and wild jubilation on the touchline among players and staff.
“They’re celebrating as if they won the Champions League,” said the commentator on the freely available online feed. That is the remotest of prospects for now, but how far will the creep of clubs representing Ukraine’s occupied territories into Russia’s league system be allowed to continue? | {
"authors": [
"Nick Ames"
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"publish_date": "2025-04-20 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
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"title": "How a rip-off of Ukraine’s Zorya Luhansk are climbing Russia’s pyramid",
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} |
4e5517d681bbf67d702b8cd2acaef484 | Onana piledriver wraps up Aston Villa’s thrilling demolition of Newcastle
Nobody seems to have told Aston Villa the season is winding down. At a boisterous, increasingly gleeful Villa Park Unai Emery’s side moved up to sixth in the Premier League with a relentless dismantling of Newcastle, who simply fell away in the second half, conceding three goals in the final 20 minutes of a chastening 4-1 defeat.
Newcastle remain in third and fought hard in the opening hour, after which life just seemed to catch up with them, Villa’s squad depth apparent as Emery shuffled his attacking substitutes with notable precision.
The stadium was chilly and grey at kick-off, the air hazed with the after-burn of some surprisingly aggressive pre-match smoke geysers. This was one of the most jeopardy-ridden occasions of the Premier League’s end game, a top five face-off, third versus seventh, both clubs hungry for what has now become a key stream of ready cash in the age of profitability and sustainability rules plus pumped‑up Uefa revenues.
Newcastle came here with an unchanged team and on a wrecking ball run of form, six straight wins, Harvey Barnes and Jacob Murphy leaving scorch marks on the flanks. In Eddie Howe’s absence Jason Tindall has offered a kind of hype-man leadership model. Bez has taken the mic, and at the best possible moment, with a team running on adrenaline.
The real rock of Howe’s Newcastle is still its murder-ball midfield, which is designed to leave you bruised and breathless, to make every moment in that shared pocket of space an ordeal. Unai Emery stiffened his team here in response. Tyrone Mings for Pau Torres was a direct beefing up. Ollie Watkins was back in the XI, Marcus Rashford on the bench.
Villa had played a suicidally high line against Newcastle in the 5-1 defeat last season. Emery loves to tinker with the margins from game to game. The sense here was the home team would start a little deeper.
Or not. It took 33 seconds for Villa to take the lead with a thrust down the left. Youri Tielemans picked up Sandro Tonali’s floated clearance and played an instant pass in to Watkins. He chopped inside and saw his shot deflected into the corner. It was Watkins’ first goal here since February.
Four minutes later he hit the bar from almost the same spot after weaving unhindered through the right of the defence. But steadily Newcastle settled, Tonali grooving about in possession. There were some juddering early collisions. Dan Burn seemed to spend most of the opening 15 minutes splayed across the turf, hurling himself into assorted lunges and body-checks.
View image in fullscreen Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins (centre) celebrates scoring the opening goal against Newcastle. Photograph: David Davies/PA
And with 17 minutes gone Newcastle were level. It came from a free-kick into the Villa box, headed clear and picked up by Barnes on the right, who crossed deep for Fabian Schär to hover and power a header into the net.
Quick! Back down the other end! Almost immediately Ian Maatsen found space on the Newcastle right and crossed for Marco Asensio to miss his kick in front of goal, a precision missed-kick, side-foot, eyes over the ball, just the faintest of sliced contacts. With 26 minutes gone Watkins hit the woodwork again, the same side, this time with a free header from a free-kick. He really should have scored.
And so it went on, a series of surges from end to end. Tonali drew a fine full length save from Emi Martínez. Nick Pope palmed away a drive from Morgan Rogers, then scrambled the resultant corner out off his knees. Half-time came at a breathless pace, the score somehow still only 1-1.
It was more of the same after the break. John McGinn, such a fine comfortable chair of a midfielder, saw more of the ball in his playmaking role.
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Villa forced a series of corners, one of which was kicked If not off the line by Tonali, then away from it on the left hand post. Tielemans was also having a fine game, counterpressing well in the clinches around the Newcastle box, something Emery has brought out of his game.
With an hour gone Pope made a good save from McGinn, rushing to edge of his box and blocking with an outstretched arm.
Villa deservedly took the lead again on 63 minutes with a fine goal, a quick break from midfield fed to Watkins who released Maatsen into space outside him. He didn’t break his stride, running on and clipping a lovely finish past Pope into the far corner. The Holte End erupted, Emery whirled and punched the air on his touchline, Zorro-like all in black.
With 20 minutes to go Jacob Ramsey and Amadou Onana came on, a weary looking McGinn coming off. And Villa scored almost instantly, again from the left, this time a cross from Ramsey, turned into his own goal by Burn in a tangle of feet. At which point the other sub abruptly made it four, Onana smashing a shot high into the net after Pope had saved from Rogers. It was a brilliant finish, and a supreme pair of substitutions from Emery.
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Villa kept pressing. Ramsey hit a post, the game just running away from Newcastle now. This will be a match to pack away behind the happier memories of the spring. For Villa there is a tangible sense of momentum heading into the final reckoning. | {
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"Barney Ronay"
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a400fedaf3e858aaea6d37fb9e83889a | Melchie Dumornay’s instant reply puts Lyon in control against Arsenal
It was an afternoon of missed opportunities for Arsenal as they fell to defeat in the first leg of their Women’s Champions League semi-final. Melchie Dumornay’s late winner silenced the 40,000-strong crowd after Mariona Caldentey’s penalty had cancelled out Kadidiatou Diani’s opener for the visitors.
Arsenal’s manager, Renee Slegers, maintained belief in her side’s ability to turn the tie around after they recovered from an impressive first-half performance from the visitors.
“It’s a high-level opposition so the tempo is higher and you know you’ll get punished if you make mistakes,” the Arsenal manager said. “We had to settle into the game and create a belief while we were playing.
“We grew into it from that perspective. We probably should have scored at least one more in that phase when you are at the Emirates against such a strong team. We worked hard to get that goal and it was just disappointing they scored very quickly.”
Joe Montemurro returned to his former stomping ground in north London with a side high in confidence. The eight-times champions are the only side unbeaten in the competition, scoring 25 times and conceding two on the way to the final four.
View image in fullscreen Joe Montemurro shakes hands with Arsenal’s players at full time. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Observer
The fact that there was no space in the starting lineup for the all-time Champions League goalscorer, Ada Hegerberg, illustrates the potency of this Lyon attack. The dynamic trio of Tabitha Chawinga, Dumornay and Diani started, having amassed 11 goals between them in this competition.
Arsenal have been creatively brilliant at times recently and they returned here after putting five past Leicester in midweek. They were given a big boost with the return to fitness of Alessia Russo who replaced Stina Blackstenius up front.
The hosts’ nerves were evident as they struggled for rhythm. Loose passes, poor touches and an early yellow card for Caitlin Foord set the tone for much of the first half while Lyon showed their maturity, patiently lying in wait for their chance.
Danielle van de Donk had the first significant opportunity, firing into the side-netting. The visitors did not have to wait too long for their breakthrough, however. Beating Arsenal’s high press, Diani raced on to Ellie Carpenter’s through-ball before finishing with aplomb. The offside flag gave the hosts only a short reprieve with VAR showing Emily Fox had played her onside by inches.
View image in fullscreen Kadidiatou Diani celebrates with Damaris Egurrola after opening the scoring. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Observer
Lyon had found their groove with their front three and Diani in particular, caused problems. Arsenal did have a huge opportunity when Frida Maanum sent a free header wide before both sides hit the woodwork.
A rejuvenated Arsenal took the game to Lyon after the break and they continued to grow in confidence. A glove from Christiane Endler denied a certain goal from Foord before Russo’s follow-up was blocked on the line.
Quick Guide WSL: Manchester United hopes dented by West Ham Show Manchester United's hopes of claiming the Women's Super League title suffered a setback as they were held in a goalless draw at West Ham. United bossed possession and kept West Ham under pressure but failed to make it pay against the determined hosts, who threatened themselves late on and were worthy of their point. The result leaves United five points behind leaders Chelsea, who have a game in hand and face United on 30 April. Liverpool moved above Brighton into fifth place with a 2-1 win on the south coast. Olivia Smith turned in an excellent cross from Ceri Holland to open the scoring just two minutes in and Holland set up the second just before half-time, capitalising on a defensive mix-up to tee up Leanne Kiernan. Nineteen-year-old Michelle Agyemang pulled one back for Brighton at the start of the second half to set Liverpool nerves jangling, but they hung on for victory. PA Media Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback.
Missed opportunities became the theme of the afternoon for the Gunners as Mead headed over from an unmarked position and Maanum did the same minutes later.
The hosts’ equaliser came through the help of VAR. As a corner flew in, Endler connected with Leah Williamson’s head rather than the ball. It was missed by everyone bar the video assistant who called Alina Pesu to the monitor to confirm the penalty decision. The noise reverberated around the Emirates as Caldentey stepped up to coolly convert.
View image in fullscreen Mariona Caldentey scores from the spot. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Observer
Their joy lasted a mere four minutes, however, as Lyon struck back. A turn of speed from Dumornay allowed the young Haitian to slice through Arsenal’s backline and restore her team’s lead.
Slegers knows her side have work to do to for the second leg, but she drew on her side’s previous success in Lyon as motivation to turn things around next Sunday. “Arsenal have done it before against Lyon away,” she said. “It’s going to be a pitch, 11 v 11, good grass and we have all the opportunities to win that game.” | {
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} |
5fa05fe97dc90a60497620f968f05cb6 | European football: Barcelona roar back to beat Celta, Las Palmas shock Atlético
Barcelona fought back from 3-1 down to beat Celta Vigo 4-3 in a rollercoaster encounter, with a stoppage-time penalty by Raphinha extending their lead over Real Madrid at the top of La Liga to seven points.
Barcelona took the lead in the 12th minute through Ferran Torres but conceded an equaliser three minutes later when Wojciech Szczesny misread a cross and allowed Borja Iglesias to score. The Spanish forward then stunned the home fans when he scored two more goals in the second half, twice racing through to beat the keeper on his way to a hat-trick.
However, Barça’s Dani Olmo and Raphinha soon netted four minutes apart to draw level at 3-3. Celta held on for almost half an hour but conceded a late penalty for a foul on Olmo which was awarded after a check by the video assistant referee, with Raphinha stepping up to fire the ball into the top corner in the 98th minute.
“This is football. We wanted to win this game but we weren’t always at our best. But the team came through in the end and the crowd pushed us on right to the finish,” Barça substitute and goalscorer Olmo told Dazn. “It’s three points towards our objective but we have to keep going.”
Madrid will seek to return Barcelona’s advantage to four points when they host Athletic Bilbao on Sunday night.
“It’s a bittersweet feeling because we did a lot of things right. They’ve got such a high level, especially in the final third. They’re capable of these things,” Celta’s Pablo Durán said. “We should be very proud of ourselves, coming here and showing a lot of character, playing our football. For a lot of the game we were better than them, but we go away with a bad feeling because of the result.”
Barcelona will be sweating over Robert Lewandowski’s fitness after the Polish striker went down clutching his leg and was taken off late in the game. A hamstring injury may rule the 36-year-old – who has 40 goals this season – out of their Copa del Rey final next weekend against Real Madrid while Barcelona also face Inter in the Champions League semi-finals this month.
“Lewandowski will have an MRI tomorrow. We have to wait for the results, we’ll know more about his injury,” Flick said.
Javi Muñoz scored a stoppage-time winner to earn relegation-threatened Las Palmas a shock 1-0 victory over Atlético Madrid later on Saturday, dealing a major blow to the visitors’ slim La Liga title hopes.
Diego Simeone’s side remain third in the standings with 63 points, three behind second-placed Real Madrid, who host Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
Both sides had chances to break the deadlock before half-time, with Las Palmas coming close through a close-range header from Álex Suárez and a Dário Essugo effort that went just wide. At the other end, Dinko Horkas produced sharp saves to deny Julián Alvarez and Alexander Sørloth.
In a slower-paced second half, Atlético dominated possession but were unable to create clear scoring chances against a disciplined defence from the hosts. Seconds before the match ended in a goalless draw, Muñoz capitalised on sloppy defending by Atlético, who failed to clear the ball, allowing the midfielder to shoot from close range and finally beat goalkeeper Jan Oblak. The goal was initially ruled out for offside, but a VAR review overturned the decision three minutes into stoppage time, sparking wild celebrations at the Estadio Gran Canaria.
“It was a tough match, a defeat we have to put behind us and move on. But today is tough,” Atlético defender Robin Le Normand told Movistar. “It’s clear that every point is important. Beyond fighting for the title, we wanted to play a very good match ... They didn’t create much, but they’re playing for salvation, fighting for every ball. We didn’t get it right.”
The surprising victory allowed Las Palmas to climb to 17th place and temporarily escape the drop zone with 32 points, two ahead of Alavés, who play at Sevilla on Sunday.
“I was certain that I wasn’t offside. When I saw that the ball was dead, I went to take advantage of the play,” Muñoz said. “There’s a lot of fighting left but we’re going to fight until the end. Let’s enjoy the victory and hope it helps us to keep believing that the team can do it.”
In Germany Bayern Munich had little trouble beating lowly Heidenheim 4-0 to put themselves within touching distance of the Bundesliga title. The table now shows Bayern at the top with 72 points, nine clear of Bayer Leverkusen who face St Pauli on Sunday, with four rounds left to play.
With Bayern racing into a three-goal lead after just 36 minutes – courtesy of Harry Kane’, Konrad Laimer and Kingsley Coman – there was little doubt about the outcome. Joshua Kimmich then rifled a shot home for 4-0 in the 56th minute as Bayern surged ahead at full throttle in their pursuit of another league crown.
Heidenheim, fuelled by pride and eager to salvage something from an otherwise dismal performance, came close to pulling back a goal just after the hour mark. But Bayern keeper Jonas Urbig was sharp and alert, diving low to deny Sirlord Conteh with a smart save. For the hosts, the situation looks bleak: they are third from bottom in the relegation playoff places with 22 points, seven behind St Pauli, who occupy the last safe spot.
View image in fullscreen Harry Kane celebrates after the match. Photograph: Heiko Becker/Reuters
In Serie A a second-half header by Scott McTominay secured Napoli a 1-0 win at relegation-threatened Monza as Antonio Conte’s side provisionally moved level with leaders Inter.
McTominay nodded home to put Napoli in front in the 72nd minute, scoring from a lovely lofted cross from the corner of the area by Giacomo Raspadori.
Second-placed Napoli are level with Inter on 71 points from 33 games, before the defending champions travel to Bologna on Sunday. Monza sit bottom with 15 points, 11 points from safety.
Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain continued their quest to become the only team in the French top flight to remain unbeaten throughout a season with a routine 2-1 home win over Le Havre. Luis Enrique, with the title win wrapped up two weeks ago, made nine changes from the side that advanced to the Champions League semi-finals in midweek despite losing the second leg against Aston Villa.
The hosts took the lead in the eighth minute when Bradley Barcola rolled a pass into the box to Désiré Doué whose control took him past his marker before he hit a shot that took a deflection on its way to the net.
Le Havre were completely outplayed in the first half and were relieved to go into the break just one goal down but PSG doubled their lead five minutes after the interval. After some intricate close passing around the opposition area, Senny Mayulu dinked the ball over onrushing keeper Mathieu Gorgelin leaving Gonçalo Ramos with the simplest of tap-ins from close range. The visitors pulled one goal back on the hour mark through Issa Soumaré’s header from a corner kick move but were unable to muster another chance on target as treble-chasing PSG earned their 10th consecutive league win. | {
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1a69b8c9eb863ff59179e4fb52790107 | Mbeumo at the double helps Brentford see off 10-man Brighton
If Brentford and Brighton appear part of the Premier League furniture, being established in the top tier is a contract written in disappearing ink. Their respective owners, Matthew Benham and Tony Bloom, estranged former associates, have cracked the alchemy of the game, winning much admiration though taking further steps forward is yet more difficult and proving much harder.
In the battle between 10th and 11th, winners Brentford were the more progressive, dangerous and calm side, though weathered a late storm from an opponent reduced to 10 men. Christian Nørgaard’s injury-time header from Mathias Jensen’s free-kick completed victory.
A chaotic game closed out with more than 20 minutes of added time after a late collision between Yunus Konak and Jan Paul van Hecke. Brighton’s Dutch defender was treated with oxygen and taken to hospital as a precaution. He was later discharged after being given the all clear.
Beating Brighton for the second time in their Premier League rivalry was most welcome for Brentford. “We had to win,” said their manager, Thomas Frank. Their outsiders’ challenge for Europe was revived via the partnership of Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa, the Cameroon forward scoring twice, the Congolese once. All three goals had the partnership, with 34 between them, acting in glorious tandem.
“An incredible achievement for them,” said Frank. “All the praise for the two of them for how hard they work, then for my staff and then also something for the way we play.”
In Brighton’s case, having spent £200m last summer, a Conference League position would have been at the lower end of hopes but looks unlikely. Having last won away at Southampton in February, defeat in west London extended Brighton’s winless run to five. Too many Brighton players have lost form, too few of last summer’s arrivals have shone. Fabian Hürzeler, in his first top-flight season, could learn plenty from the wiles of Frank. “I am responsible for that,” he said. “I have to find the right solutions. We know that some things are not working. We make too many individual mistakes.”
Brighton cannot say they were not warned. As is customary, Brentford quickly threw themselves at the task in hand. Keane Lewis-Potter has won admirers as an attacking left-back, and from his right-foot pass, Mbeumo surged beyond Brighton’s sleepy defence to score the opener.
View image in fullscreen Christian Nørgaard heads Brentford’s fourth goal in stoppage time. Photograph: Peter Cziborra/Action Images/Reuters
Brighton might have quickly levelled had Yankuba Minteh got his angles correct before Danny Welbeck, surely Brighton’s player of the season, made up for an earlier miss by heading the equaliser on the stroke of half-time.
Brighton again failed to cope with their forewarning of Brentford starting halves with intention. Within three minutes, Mikkel Damsgaard’s pass found Wissa, who instinctively laid the ball into the path of Mbeumo, the shot deflecting off Lewis Dunk’s chest. “I am very happy that he’s shining and the main man,” said Frank. “It’s a duo, with Wissa scoring more goals in open play but Bryan is an incredible footballer.”
Frank’s determination is his team do not sit on leads. Another sweeping move cut Brighton to ribbons, Damgsaard fading his pass to Mbeumo, who laid up Wissa, the shot deflected in off the again unfortunate Dunk.
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Just past the hour, the loss of discipline that cost Brighton a full chance of revival. Moments before his tangle with Nathan Collins, João Pedro had been denied when scuffing a half-chance. He took out his frustrations with a flailing, petulant swipe. Hürzeler, with his own disciplinary issues, kept his own counsel, seating himself once Tim Robinson, the referee, had waved red.
When Welbeck was subbed for Yasin Ayari, Brighton fans loudly questioned their manager and why their team now had no striker. “I wanted to have more midfielders to control the game and more connections with the fast wingers,” said Hürzeler.
Bloom, seated in the away end due to his differences with Benham, was left in no uncertain terms of doubts in a young manager who said: “I focus on the game.”
Kaoru Mitoma’s finish from Jack Hinshelwood’s pass briefly revived spirits. As did eight added minutes, extended by that horrible collision. By then, Brighton’s hopes had already been extinguished by Nørgaard, his goal embodying Brentford’s belief there can always be another. | {
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"title": "Mbeumo at the double helps Brentford see off 10-man Brighton",
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} |
8ffdc6b955eb43b61cc02e9d57ab1e6a | Bournemouth falter in race for Europe as 10-man Crystal Palace scrape draw
It is unlikely anyone will remember this game fondly in years to come. Bournemouth missed the chance to make up ground in the race for European football next season as 10-man Crystal Palace stood firm after a week of two heavy defeats in which they conceded five goals twice.
A red card for Chris Richards at the end of the first half left his side with an uphill task to make it five successive home wins after the referee, Sam Barrott, had bizarrely decided against meting out the same punishment to Bournemouth’s Alex Scott.
While some of Palace’s players looked as if their minds were on next Saturday’s trip to Wembley, Andoni Iraola was frustrated his team could not take advantage as they failed to win for an 11th successive time in London since their triumph here in December 2023.
“Considering how the game has gone we cannot be happy with a point. It was a game that we should have won,” said the Bournemouth manager, whose side have nonetheless surpassed the club’s record points tally in the Premier League with five matches still to play, including meetings with Manchester United, Arsenal and Aston Villa in their next three. “I hope that we can be in this fight until the last game.”
Oliver Glasner revealed that a meeting with his players after their return from the 5-0 thrashing against Newcastle had “changed completely” the mood in his squad. The news that the outstanding right wing-back Daniel Muñoz has extended his contract until 2028 was another reason to feel optimistic as they prepare for an FA Cup semi-final against Aston Villa. It was a 4-1 victory over Unai Emery’s side here in February that kickstarted their winning home run, although they will hope for better treatment from the officials if they are to stand a chance of reaching the final.
“What we need is consistency. It’s either two red cards or no red cards,” said Glasner. “This was the feeling everyone had at half-time. It’s really difficult to deal with this situation so I’m pleased with how they responded. We could have collapsed, but we didn’t and now the confidence is coming back.”
Iraola is set to hold talks with the Bournemouth, owner Bill Foley, next week over extending his contract that ends next year with reported interest from Tottenham. The Spaniard is not the only Bournemouth employee who is coveted elsewhere. Antoine Semenyo, who was rejected by Palace as a teenager and has been linked with a move to Manchester United, was the game’s best performer and he had the first sight of goal after a quiet start from both sides. But the Ghana forward mis-hit a shot and a deflection took Dean Huijsen by surprise at the back post as the ball struck him on the hip.
Bookings for central midfielders Tyler Adams and Scott were all the home supporters had to get excited about as Palace struggled to find their rhythm in attack. By contrast, Bournemouth looked a threat every time they poured forward as Semenyo – who could cost up to £70m this summer if reports are to be believed – and Justin Kluivert found space in between the lines. Scott looked extremely relieved to escape another yellow card after hauling down Ismaïla Sarr just outside the area, but a strangely subdued Eberechi Eze struck the wall with the resulting free kick.
Disaster struck for Palace on the stroke of half-time when Richards, who had been cautioned for a foul on Dango Ouattara, was dismissed for pulling back Kluivert. The referee left the pitch to a chorus of boos at half-time and there were more when the fortunate Scott was replaced by Lewis Cook for the second half.
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Glasner sacrificed Eze to bring on Jefferson Lerma against his former club and an already bad-tempered game threatened to spill over as another three players were cautioned within five minutes of the restart. Evanilson’s header from an Adam Smith cross that looped just wide of Dean Henderson’s goal was the closest Bournemouth came to scoring.
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It was Palace who almost snatched the points at the end when Muñoz failed to connect with a cross from the right and Bournemouth were able to scramble the ball away just in time. Their winless run in the capital goes on, but there is still hope for Bournemouth. | {
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"title": "Bournemouth falter in race for Europe as 10-man Crystal Palace scrape draw",
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1b566d320052270f049a02302328de60 | Ugochukwu stuns West Ham to move Southampton level with Derby’s total
Lesley Ugochukwu’s added-time equaliser ensured Southampton equalled Derby’s record-low Premier League points total with a draw at West Ham.
The already-relegated Saints were still on course to be crowned the worst team in Premier League history after Jarrod Bowen fired the hosts into the lead. But they were not even the worst team at the London Stadium for long periods of a dreadful game, and they snatched a deserved point deep into added time when the Chelsea loanee Ugochukwu drove home through a crowded penalty area.
The Southampton fans behind the goal celebrated as if they had won the league, probably drowning out groans from Derby after they saw their record-low points tally of 11 from the 2007-08 season matched.
Meanwhile, to say West Ham have not got going under their new manager, Graham Potter, is an understatement. The Hammers have picked up an average of one point a game since Potter took over, a worse record than that of his maligned predecessor, Julen Lopetegui.
Potter criticised his players afterwards for their inability to control games and admitted he faces some big decisions this summer. “I can’t say we deserved much more, which is a reflection on how disappointed we are,” said the manager. “Credit to Southampton, but we didn’t do enough to win and in the end, we have to look at the reasons why.
“If you have to be the protagonists of the game, which I think West Ham are at home to Southampton. We have to be able to control things and be able to attack and be able to be in control of the situation.
“We weren’t able to do that and in the end, that always feeds the opponent, no matter where they are in the league, whatever their points tally is.
“We have to look at the season as a whole and zoom out and think about what decisions we can make going forward, because where we are now and how we’re playing, we need to improve.”
West Ham did almost grab the lead inside three minutes through Niclas Füllkrug, starting his first game since January after another spell out injured. The Germany striker got a toe to Lucas Paquetá’s ball into the box ahead of Jan Bednarek but his effort was well saved at his near post by Aaron Ramsdale.
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Yet despite still not being mathematically safe from relegation – albeit with realistically little chance of making the drop – the hosts plodded through the first half with a bewildering lack of urgency. Southampton, with two wins to their name all season, were by far the more threatening side, with Kamaldeen Sulemana teeing up Kyle Walker-Peters, who drove across goal and narrowly wide.
The league’s lowest scorers came even closer after half an hour when Jack Stephens’s shot was blocked by Paquetá, with Sulemana thudding the rebound against the bar.
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View image in fullscreen Jarrod Bowen scores but West Ham would be frustrated again. Photograph: John Sibley/Action Images/Reuters
Boos rang out as the teams trudged off at half-time, and there were still thousands of empty seats when Bowen lifted the tedium a minute into the second half. The goal came from a Southampton corner, with Emerson Palmieri and then Mohammed Kudus strolling forward before finding Füllkrug, whose incisive pass played in Bowen to score his 10th goal of the season.
It was the 78th goal conceded by the Saints this term. That almost became 79 when Füllkrug headed in a James Ward-Prowse corner at the far post, but the striker’s forearm into the throat of Ramsdale ensured it was rightly chalked off.
Southampton’s chances of a point looked to have disappeared along with the ball after the substitute Tyler Dibling blazed over. But in the fourth minute of added time Dibling found Walker-Peters, whose cross deflected off Max Kilman and was lashed in by Ugochukwu.
Their interim manager, Simon Rusk, was delighted with a point. “I think we can be really pleased. I thought that it was the least we deserved,” he said.
“I thought the players showed mental stamina in the second half and didn’t in any way, shape or form feel sorry for ourselves. And we fully deserved our equaliser at the end.
“I’m really pleased to see that they’ve had a moment with the fans at the end. That was a nice moment to observe. Late goals at the end like that, after what’s been a really difficult season, is a lovely moment.” | {
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"title": "Ugochukwu stuns West Ham to move Southampton level with Derby’s total",
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6cdd591716491b1fad13a9b1150818e5 | 200-1 winner Heavenly Heather kicks off Easter racing with major shock
The Easter racing programme saw a major shock at Newcastle on Good Friday as Heavenly Heather, a 200-1 chance ridden by the 3lb claimer Amie Waugh, became the longest-priced winner of the year so far with a half-length success in the seven-furlong Fillies’ and Mares’ Championships Handicap.
Waugh’s mount had failed to win any of her previous five starts and was 19lb “wrong” at the weights, meaning that Heavenly Heather raced from an effective handicap mark of 79 rather than her official rating of 60.
Her rider took full advantage of her draw on the stands’ side, however, and got a fine response from Heavenly Heather when she asked her to quicken against the rail a furlong from home.
The winner was the 12th horse to win at 200-1 in Britain since the turn of the century, and the first at those odds since November 2024. The UK’s record price for a winner is 250-1, set by Equinoctial at Kelso in November 1990.
Elsewhere on the Newcastle card, Andrew Balding continued his strong start to the 2025 Flat season with a double in the first four races, but there was a setback for his stable too with the news that Sheikh Fahad al-Thani’s Qatar Racing operation has removed its six horses from the yard.
Balding saddled Kameko to win the 2,000 Guineas in 2020 in Qatar Racing’s claret and gold colours, while Elm Park, Side Glance and New Century, a Grade One winner at Woodbine in Canada last September, also managed victories at the highest level for the owner in recent seasons.
The sudden departure of Qatar Racing from the Balding yard is a surprise, not least as the trainer has had such a fine start to 2025, building an early lead in the race for the trainers’ championship with 42 winners and around £700,000 in the bank before racing on Friday.
In strictly numerical terms, though, the loss of half a dozen horses will scarcely be noticed at Kingsclere, where Balding now trains one of the largest strings in the country, with nearly 300 horses listed in the latest edition of Horses In Training.
View image in fullscreen Heavenly Heather races clear in the seven-furlong Fillies’ and Mares’ Championships Handicap. Photograph: Richard Sellers/PA
Balding sends four runners on the long trip from Hampshire to Musselburgh’s valuable meeting on Saturday, and Wild Waves (3.35), who progressed from maiden company to a run in the St Leger during his three-year-old season, is a worthy favourite to land the £50k first prize in the Queen’s Cup, the feature event on the card.
Musselburgh 1.50: The three-year-old Wiltshire Lad was the penultimate winner of Sir Michael Stoute’s outstanding career when successful on the all-weather at Southwell last October. Gelded since, he starts his first season for the Balding stable off a 5lb higher mark and will surely pay his way as the season develops.
Haydock 2.05: Got Grey made a flying start for Dan Skelton back in the autumn but seemed to lose his way on softer ground as the season wore on. His mark has eased by 6lb in three outings as a result, however, and the return to a quicker surface here could well see a well-timed revival.
Musselburgh 2.25: Jennie Candlish’s Alzahir has returned to the turf in the form of his life following a wind operation earlier in the year and will take all the beating in his bid for a third straight success.
Quick Guide Greg Wood's racing tips for Saturday Show Haydock: 1.30 Soleil D’Arizona 2.05 Got Grey 2.40 Burrows Hall 3.15 The Flier Begley 3.50 Safe Destination 4.25 Mahler Moon 5.00 Captain Ivan. Carlisle: 1.42 Lady Babs 2.17 Empty Nest 2.52 Bel Amigo 3.27 Jet Legs 4.02 Cruden 4.37 Homme D’Un Soir 5.12 George Darling. Musselburgh: 1.50 Wiltshire Lad 2.25 Alzahir 3.00 American Affair (nap) 3.35 Wild Waves (nb) 4.10 Ivatt 4.45 Epidavros 5.17 Moonstone Boy. Huntingdon: 1.54 Rip Wheeler 2.29 Overabottleofred 3.04 Give It To Me Oj 3.39 Tara Iti 4.14 Muskoka 4.49 Bobalot 5.24 Amber Waves. Newton Abbot: 1.59 Walk On High 2.34 Military Tycoon 3.09 Time To Bite 3.44 Opticality 4.19 Scarface 4.54 Puddlesinthepark 5.29 Moonset. Wolverhampton: 5.20 Billy Mcgarry 5.55 Skibo 6.30 Novak 7.00 Romantic Spirit 7.30 Slowdownbarney 8.00 Radiant Angel 8.30 Royal Accord. Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback.
Haydock 2.40: The front-running Burrows Hall is unbeaten in three starts since Danny McMenamin took over in his saddle and he could be very tough to pass again here.
Musselburgh 3.00: The high-numbered stalls have a significant advantage over this five-furlong course so Jim Goldie’s American Affair, the narrow winner of the Portland Handicap at Doncaster last September, has the ideal berth in box nine for his seasonal debut. He also has winning form when fresh, including a victory at this meeting last year.
Quick Guide Greg Wood's Sunday tips Show Plumpton: 1.50 Jasmine D’Airy 2.20 Alien Storm 2.55 Officer Of State 3.30 Havaila 4.05 Aurigny Mill (nap) 4.40 Siam Park 5.15 Busy Being Busy. Bath: 2.01 Fiddlers Green 2.31 Soi Dao 3.06 Toolatetonegotiate 3.41 Electric Storm 4.16 So Smart 4.51 Castro Aurum 5.26 Red Admiral. Southwell: 2.07 Red Savitar 2.42 Rampant 3.17 Lhebayeb 3.52 Nebras 4.27 Adelaide Bay 5.02 King Sharja 5.37 Jesse Luc. Market Rasen: 2.35 Giovanni Change 3.10 Ninna Collina 3.45 Joining Force 4.20 Zucayan 4.55 Pittsburg 5.30 Ned Hill. Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback.
Haydock 3.15: Gary Hanmer has already coaxed a rich new vein of form from The Flier Begley since his switch to the stable at the start of the campaign, and the 10-year-old’s victory in the Market Rasen qualifier for this veterans’ event is the strongest recent form on offer. | {
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ec5243280e109650b6f0a4a8b701ba1d | In defence of the draw: why Ben Stokes and England should take note
“A tie is like kissing your sister,” Edward J Erdelatz said to the New York Times in 1954. Erdelatz was the United States Navy’s head football coach and his side had just drawn 0-0 against Duke University. “No one asked the mild spoken navy coach to explain,” the report adds. Well, quite. But sister or not, everyone knew what he meant.
Erdelatz’s unique take on the merits or otherwise of not winning are ingrained in American sports where a Lombardian win-at-all-costs mentality prevails. Try explaining Test cricket to an American sports fan, they say, with a wry chuckle – the fact that two teams can battle it out for five full days and in the end, there is not necessarily a winner. Good luck, they smirk. Adelaide 1961? You may as well be describing the plot of Christopher Nolan’s Memento to a toddler. Old Trafford 2005? More chance of a cider-addled bee getting to grips with quantum theory. They do not get it, be gone with your quaint English ways, five days and no winner. That’s crazy, man.
Yet draws are intrinsic to Test cricket, they are written in its DNA – a double helix in the shape of a deadlock. Draws speak to its beguiling and maddening qualities, a testament to the game’s downright peculiarity. That a side can battle back from a point of seemingly no return to pull off the heist of shared spoils, drop anchor, defy logic, battle against their opponents’ desire, their own self-belief, against conditions under their feet and above their heads, against time itself. This makes the game what it is, why it is called what it is called. Even when you are on top, it is still really hard to finish a side off and win a Test match.
In Test cricket’s nigh-on 150-year history of more than 2,500 matches, a third have ended in draws. Now, there are good draws and bad draws, or more precisely, boring draws and exciting draws. Unfortunately, the former are much more prevalent.
“In the first 2,573 Test matches, from 1877 to 2025, just 84 were won by a margin of fewer than 30 runs, or three wickets or fewer: 3%, or barely a Test every two years.” Tim Wigmore’s new book Test Cricket: a History charts a narrative history of the longest format with contributions from the game’s biggest characters. It is a riveting and lovingly researched tome thrumming with detail, anecdote and incisive facts such as the one above. As Wigmore says, an exciting draw in a Test match is all well and good, but it turns out those thrilling stalemates that live long in the memory are rarer than a platinum filling on a poultry farm.
View image in fullscreen England and New Zealand players shake hands on the draw on day five of the first Test at Lord’s in June 2021. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
Anyone who has watched an interminable draw play out will know that they come with their own particular kind of soul-sapping non-energy. Ever played in a match where a side signpost they are settling for a draw from the early stages? The worst. Long hours grazing in the field often come with a side portion of existential rumination at the best of times but spending half your weekend watching a middle-aged marketing manager block as if they have a Glock to the temple with the sun barely past the yard arm is enough to make anyone ponder the futility of life, never mind put them off the game for good.
Ben Stokes clearly feels the same. He hates draws. His Test side have succumbed to one in his 32-match tenure and that was the washed-out Ashes Test at Old Trafford in 2023. The England Test captain’s win-or-bust mantra is born out of a belief that there is nothing to fear in failure and therefore no need to even entertain playing for a draw.
There is a twisted logic to this approach, it is one that has allowed Stokes’s side to pull off some incredible victories from seemingly impossible positions. It has also meant they have capitulated to some of the heaviest and most embarrassing defeats in England’s history. Last year’s thumping losses to India in Rajkot and New Zealand in Hamilton, here’s wincing at you.
“We’re in the entertainment business, no more draws,” Joe Root chirped to Nathan Lyon before the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston in 2023. Lyon parroted the line back to his teammates in the Australia dressing room moments later to a mixture of mocking headshakes and shrugs. England’s desire to entertain tipped too far in that Test, Stokes’s day one declaration with England on 393 for eight with Root playing in princely fashion came back to bite them on day five when half an hour more of runs Root could have led to England winning the first Test or at the very least not lose it. In a five-match series these things tend to count.
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A prime piece of whataboutery, perhaps, but herein lies the rub ahead of two huge series for Stokes’s Test side. Are England’s fans more entertained by a loss, albeit played in a rousing fashion, or would they prefer to see their side grind and guts out a draw once the opportunity to win has subsided?
England have adapted since those wild-eyed early days of Bazball, but there is room for further nuance still. England win a lot under Stokes, but they lose plenty too. Nineteen plays 12 at last count. If they find themselves with their backs against the wall against India or Australia, are they willing to knuckle down and spend two days saving a match rather than going down in a ball of flames? Which is the braver option? The most entertaining watch? Which, crucially, would the fans prefer? I think we know the answer to all of those questions.
A draw or two in the next two series could well go a long way to determining the overarching success or failure of the Bazball project. Time, then, for Stokes to rethink when it comes to the draw and embrace the grey in an increasingly black and white world. Pucker up Ben, it might not even be as bad as you think.
This is an extract from the Guardian’s weekly cricket email, The Spin. To subscribe, just visit this page and follow the instructions. | {
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12119c8f395e62103ed87525c62efd91 | Sports quiz of the week: Rory McIlroy, Marc Márquez and Champions League
The referee forgot to bring a coin for the toss so the captains did scissors, paper, stone to decide who would kick off | {
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7058f3ae1dac6a609abfc186be0e06ee | Chess: Carlsen scores in Paris, leads Freestyle Grand Slam after two events
Magnus Carlsen, the world No 1, scored a low-key triumph on Monday when he won the Paris leg of the $3.75m Freestyle Grand Slam by defeating his old rival and world No 2, USA’s Hikaru Nakamura, by 1.5-0.5 in the final. It was patient attrition over the two games, worthy of a place in the Carlsen-David Howell book Grind like a Grandmaster.
The decisive first game had some technical errors, which the Norwegian described almost apologetically in his post-game interview. The rematch was more routine as the 34-year-old simplified to his goal of a drawn rook endgame and a move-40 handshake.
Carlsen now has the overall lead in the five-leg Grand Slam which continues later in the year at Las Vegas, Delhi and Cape Town.
Earlier, he displayed his creativity when he gave up his queen for three minor pieces in his quarter-final, and his versatility and his continuing hunger for more chess when, his day’s work done in Paris, he took part in chess.com’s weekly Titled Tuesday and made a clean sweep of all 11 games, a rare feat which he has achieved twice previously, winning with an unbeaten 11/11.
The openings in Freestyle are a treacherous swamp, where careless play can lead to a lost position within a dozen moves. Relevant experience helps, though. Freestyle has 960 different starting positions, but there have been cases where one of the 960 appeared in a previous tournament, and a GM has remembered it.
Some time in the first 20 or so moves, a Freestyle position often becomes recognisably similar to normal chess and the players can use their previous knowledge effectively. In Carlsen’s Freestyle games, he spots this metamorphosis and transformation faster than his rivals, and that is one secret of his continued success.
A negative at Paris was the failure of the four Indian players who have dominated classical chess in recent years. Only Arjun Erigaisi, who remained true to his attacking style and emerged in fifth place, did well, while Gukesh Dommaraju, the 18-year-old classical world champion, did worst, finishing 11th out of 12.
View image in fullscreen 3968: Vishy Anand v Veselin Topalov, Dortmund 2001. Black, in time pressure, chose 1...Qh4? when White forced a drawn ending by 2 Qh2! Can you do better for Black?
What happens to the 2025 Freestyle Grand Slam in the coming months remains to be seen. Its third leg, scheduled for New York in late July, has been moved to Las Vegas and reduced from eight days to five, allowing two games a day in the interests of publicity. This means a faster time limit, from slow classical chess, as championed by Carlsen, to one-hour rapid games.
The change may also reflect the worsened economic climate. The Grand Slam series, which was projected to break even with the help of new trading partners by 2026, is financially backed by a $12m investment from the New York based venture capitalist firm Left Lane Capital, which is privately quoted but is still susceptible to market downturns and recessions. The pressures for Freestyle to achieve faster profitability, and wider support among the chess public and media, are increasing.
Ju Wenjun, the holder, won four games in succession against her demoralised challenger, Tan Zhongyi, to score a 6.5-2.5 victory in the $500,000 Women’s World Championship match in Chongqing. Game seven was Tan’s nadir as she allowed her a8 black bishop to be entombed by her own c6 pawn and a c5 white knight. Ju needed just a draw in Wednesday’s ninth game (of 12) to take the crown for the fifth time in her career.
Ju has now equalled the title totals of Nona Gaprindashvili and Maia Chiburdanidze, both of Georgia, who each won five crowns between 1962 and 1988. The all-time record holder remains Vera Menchik, a Czech who lived most of her life in London. Menchik won eight titles between 1927 and 1939 before being killed by a German V1 bomb at her Clapham home in 1944.
Shreyas Royal, England’s youngest ever grandmaster, scored his best performance so far in 2025 when he totalled 6.5/9 at the Reykjavik Open after sharing the lead two rounds from the finish. It brought a pairing with Iran’s world No 31, Parham Maghsoodloo, which Royal lost in 17 moves due to 9…Bxc3+? (9..d6!) allowing the top seed’s 12 Ba3! with decisive threats to d6.
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Nigel Short, the 1993 world title challenger, is making a rare competitive appearance this week in the Bangkok Open, where his third round win started with the Grand Prix Attack and led to a devastating assault on his opponent’s king.
England swept the board at the European Senior over-50 and over-65 Championships at Swidnica, Poland, last weekend, winning three team golds, one team bronze, and 14 individual medals. Both England 50+, led by Michael Adams, and England 65+, headed by John Nunn, won every match and neither lost a single game.
Such a feat would normally rank much higher in this column, but entries for the event were low both in quality and quantity. The European Seniors were staged only two months after the World Seniors in Prague, a popular venue, while many seniors have been deterred by Fide’s overzealous Fair Play anti-cheating officials, which sparked a public rebuke by Malcolm Pein in Chess magazine.
BBC Two’s Chess Masters: The Endgame reaches episode seven (of eight) on Easter Monday at 8pm. Audience numbers, supplied by Broadcast, remain rock solid at 600,000, 5% of the viewing audience, and indicative of a significant loyal fan base.
Next Monday’s episode will include an appearance by Bodhana Sivanandan, the Harrow 10-year-old who has become globally famous. Sivanandan is likely to take on all six remaining contestants simultaneously, a feat which will be familiar to her. Here is how, at age eight, she defeated Harrow Chess Club 5-1.
What do retired grandmasters do? One answer, as explained here by GM Jonathan Levitt, is to write song lyrics about Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky.
3968: 1…Rf4! wins with the threat 2…g3 and 3…Qh2 mate. If 2 Qc3 Qh4 3 Qc8+ Kh7 and White has no defence to 4…g3. | {
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"title": "Chess: Carlsen scores in Paris, leads Freestyle Grand Slam after two events",
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69759b3b1c8d2a5c88d66557d74d4aca | Rugby World Cups aren’t adding up for major unions and there is no easy fix
The starting gun has been fired on the race to host the 2035 and 2039 Rugby World Cup tournaments. Expressions of interest have been made: Spain’s proposal has piqued interest, Italy’s too, while the Middle East stalks along as the elephant in the room. The idea of going back to Japan within 20 years of a first World Cup in Asia is a popular proposition.
News came over the weekend, however, that South Africa has all but ruled out a bid for either edition of the tournament. South Africa threw its hat into the ring in 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023 but was overlooked on each occasion and the SA Rugby president, Mark Alexander, was brutally honest when asked about the prospect of doing so again.
“It just brings so many other challenges to the country,” he said. “People think it is just a sports event but so many other things have to be activated. I will tell [SA Rugby] not to do this. We are a third-world country. Our economy is not strong and we have to act responsibly. I know sport does a lot for social cohesion but I think it would be unfair on [the] government to put up guarantees.”
It is a desperate shame that the winners of the past two World Cups do not consider it financially viable to bid and the 2023 bidding process looks all the more ham-fisted now.
To recap, World Rugby introduced a process whereby a technical review of the candidates would lead to recommendation by the governing body’s board. South Africa emerged as the recommended bidder but World Rugby’s council ignored the recommendation and in an anonymous vote, opted for France, whose bid was based on a promise to prevent “the death of rugby” with its financial clout.
Reflecting on the decision during South Africa’s autumn tour, the centre Damian de Allende said: “It’s heartbreaking, it was in our hands and it got taken away from us. I know we won the World Cup last year but it would have been a lot more special to have hosted it and won it. I get a bit sad speaking about it because I don’t know when we will host another World Cup.”
View image in fullscreen The three-time winners New Zealand last hosted the tournament in 2011 and are unlikely to so in the future because of infrastructure concerns. Photograph: Tim Clayton/Corbis/Getty Images
Is there any other sport in which three highest-ranked nations may feasibly never host a future World Cup? South Africa and New Zealand have won the last five World Cups between them and contested the most recent final. But at this stage it is also hard to see the tournament returning to New Zealand. The union’s chief executive, Mark Robinson, admitted as much in 2022, saying it would be “really challenging”. He rowed back on those comments a year later but with the 2027 World Cup expanding to 24 teams, New Zealand doesn’t have the infrastructure to mount a realistic bid.
In Ireland’s case, they were the third horse in the race for the 2023 tournament but came up short, crucially failing to gain the backing of Scotland – a neighbourly snub that still rankles. As revealed by the Guardian, a united home nations bid for the 2031 World Cup was proposed but soon shelved because, it is said, agreement on where to stage the final could not be reached.
Instead, in six years, the World Cup breaks new ground in the US. Australia – with its wealth of impressive stadiums – hosts the next edition but it is 2031 occupying minds at World Rugby at present. Executives wanted the British & Irish Lions to play in Las Vegas on the way to Australia this summer and may be heartened by the suggestion they could stop off in Sin City in 2029, on the way to New Zealand. England’s fixture in Washington, in July, and another clash between the All Blacks and Ireland in Chicago later this year is further evidence of spreading the gospel.
Because World Rugby is under pressure to deliver. The 2023 World Cup proved costly for France – an expected net loss of €13m (£11.1m), according to a damning report over mismanagement released earlier this month by the French court of audit – but for World Rugby it generated record-breaking revenues of €500m (£429m).
Still, when the Irish union released its accounts last November, reporting an €18.4m (£15.8m) deficit, the chief executive, Kevin Potts, was strident in his view that the cost of competing in a World Cup, exacerbated by losing autumn internationals revenue, is a problem. “It [the World Cup] is a value transfer from the unions to the tournament,” he said.
“We get some funding over the following years out of World Rugby but it doesn’t match what it costs us. It’s also being used to develop the game globally. It’s not working and World Rugby are aware that we and other unions are challenged by this and we need to look, is there a better way? We certainly can’t continue to have World Cups every four years that are having such a major impact in that year on our finances.”
That view was echoed by the Rugby Football Union chief executive, Bill Sweeney, after record losses were announced at a similar time. “We’re right in the middle of this conversation,” Sweeney told the Business of Sport podcast. “We feel that in many ways you could say that the losses we make in that fourth year are subsidising the investment by World Rugby into the growth of the emerging nations because the revenue shift for us is about £45m in that fourth year, we make a big loss in that fourth year.
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View image in fullscreen Japan could feature as a host in the 2030s following a successful tournament in 2019. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
“It’s the same for the other unions as well, so the Six Nations and Sanzaar are saying this doesn’t make any sense. The blue riband event where we’re generating an awful lot of value, we’re getting a very small percentage of the overall profit being generated from that event. I can see it from World Rugby’s point of view because they’re saying, ‘our remit is to grow the game globally’, so we’ve got to invest in emerging markets but at the moment it is creating some real financial hardship and difficulties for the tier one unions.”
It is quite the conversation but as Sweeney suggests, how can World Rugby justify cutting funding of the have-nots to give more to the haves? The only viable solution appears to be to ensure World Cups generate more revenue, hence the American gold rush before a likely return to Europe in 2035. The smart money is on Japan in 2039 after 2019 was, at the time, the most lucrative tournament in history.
It also brings us back to the elephant in the room. Suffice it to say, World Rugby will pay close attention to the Nations Championship finals in 2028, which are slated for Qatar. But the Middle East could not stage a World Cup in the traditional September-October slot due to heat and domestic leagues would have something to say about moving it to winter. Equally, the Six Nations has been intransigent to moving dates in the past and World Rugby would struggle to countenance a tournament in which the hosts do not take part. At present the Gulf nations are nowhere near competitive enough.
All that said, against the backdrop outlined by Potts and Sweeney, the response to the Middle East question by World Rugby’s chief executive, Alan Gilpin, makes all the more sense. “Any region that wants to invest in the game, we’re going to take those conversations seriously.” | {
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"Gerard Meagher"
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2d8e6aee6ae275468e01729c194717d8 | Real Madrid’s masterclass of anything but a recovery against Arsenal
REMONT-NADA
While most English tourists are cultured enough to know the Spanish for a couple of pints of Stella, a full English breakfast or directions to the nearest A&E ward, in recent days the word remontada has also become seared in the collective consciousness of football fans. A colloquialism bullishly bandied about by Real Madrid’s players and fans in the week after Arsenal did a number on them in north London, it was a snappy one-word rejoinder detailing how fate and the Bigger Cup champions’ implacable refusal to be beaten would see them defy apparently insurmountable odds and overturn a 3-0 deficit to reach the semi-finals of a tournament they’ve won more often than anybody else. Sadly, it seems somebody at the Bernabéu didn’t get the memo.
Instead of a remontada, Madrid’s players served up a masterclass of remonstrations with the referee, reactionary recidivism, repeatedly crossing the ball to little or no effect, a refusal to play as a team and ultimately realising that the comeback or turnaround they considered their due wasn’t actually going to happen. Having spent the first half playing with all the poise and assurance of a bunch of hyperactive and entitled six-year-olds who had overdosed on Tango and Squashies, Madrid didn’t actually get a foothold in the tie until it was gifted to them by an uncharacteristic Arsenal error and any hope looked well beyond them. “They came to defend, to play their role,” sniffed Lucas Vázquez, Madrid’s captain, of Arsenal in a post-match interview that had more than a whiff of sour grapes about it. “In the first half, they did almost nothing. In the second, with the team pressing, they found the victory.”
View image in fullscreen One possible response. Photograph: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC/Getty Images
It could be argued that Madrid also played their role, specifically that of a petulant, strop-throwing toddler throwing their rattle out of the playpen because things aren’t going their way. Having kept out an early Bukayo Saka penalty for the kind of off-the-ball offence that usually goes unpunished, it seemed like it might actually be their evening, but Carlo Ancelotti’s side were too focused on persistent fouling, amateur dramatics and bickering with match officials or their opponents to actually concentrate on trying to win. Even Dani Carvajal, who wasn’t playing, got in on the act, appearing to remonstrate with Saka for disrespecting the hosts by trying to panenka a spot-kick past Thibaut Courtois, apparently oblivious to the fact that the Englishman’s comically dismal effort had been saved.
A team that famously always seem to find a way to prevail in Bigger Cup until they don’t, Madrid’s hopes of securing silverware this season are now pinned on them pipping a Barcelona side that has already thrashed them twice to either – or both – of the league title or Copa del Rey crown. Meanwhile, Arsenal advance to semi-finals that could scarcely look more open if they were the mouth of a patient who has just been ordered by the doctor to say “Ahhhhhh”. For a team given a 6% chance of winning Bigger Cup by Opta’s Super Computer before the tournament started, it’s quite the turnaround.
LIVE ON BIG WEBSITE
It’s crunch time in Bigger Vase’s quarter-finals, so be sure to join Scott Murray from 8pm BST for hot minute-by-minute coverage of Manchester United 2-1 Lyon (agg: 4-3), while Michael Butler will be on deck for Eintracht Frankfurt 2-1 Tottenham (agg: 3-2).
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Every team in the world wastes time when they’re leading. It was a bit stupid of me to push him there” – a remorseful Josip Stanisic on losing his rag and shoving a ballboy off his stool, after the ball was tossed away in stoppage time during Bayern’s 4-3 Bigger Cup aggregate defeat by Inter.
View image in fullscreen Photograph: Marco Bertorello/AFP/Getty Images
I am going to be decrying the state of modern media if not one single mainstream news outlet today simply goes with the headline ‘Remont-nada’” – Noble Francis [how about tea-timely football emails with Tin on the mind? – Football Daily Ed].
No mention of Linkin Park (yesterday’s Football Daily, full email edition) should be made without reference to Emily Armstrong and her association with the Church of Scientology. She even showed up in court supporting rapist Danny Masterson, another member. South Park could do it, why not you?” – Joe Cotter.
Send letters to [email protected]. Today’s prizeless letter o’ the day winner is … Rollover. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we have them, can be viewed here. And we’ll have prizes again next week. | {
"authors": [
"Barry Glendenning"
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"title": "Real Madrid’s masterclass of anything but a recovery against Arsenal",
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c1f8f1c18c59888e1ffe23581d5f839b | Kia Joorabchian has spent big in the off-season but will it pay off?
For more than a quarter of a millennium – 254 years, to precise – Tuesday’s Craven meeting has been the moment when British Flat racing emerges from its long winter hibernation at the start of a new season. The first Classics are less than a month away and the Derby and Royal Ascot not too far behind. It is a time for optimism, anticipation and, for Newmarket in particular, a renewed sense of purpose, as the Suffolk town, where Charles II founded the first racing stable in the mid-17th century, prepares for the seven-month campaign on turf.
It is much the same blend of hope and expectation that grips football fansbefore a new season. The pre-season is complete, the new signings – and perhaps a new manager, too – are bedding themselves in and it is time to find out how they all measure up to the competition. For one of racing’s more recent arrivals in the top flight, there is the added pressure of needing to justify a huge off-season splurge in the market in an attempt to compete with the traditional heavyweights.
There have been many statements of intent from Kia Joorabchian’s Amo Racing since the high-profile football agent was first bitten by the racing bug in 2017, but nothing to match his outlay on bloodstock and property in the autumn and winter of 2024. Joorabchian took the Book 1 sale at Tattersalls in Newmarket, Europe’s premier yearling sale, by storm last October, when he outspent even the Godolphin operation, which is backed by the sovereign wealth of its founder, Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai, on the opening day.
Amo’s 25 purchases at the three-day auction – some of which were bought with associates including Evangelos Marinakis, the owner of Nottingham Forest, and the Qatar-backed Al Shaqab operation – included a Frankel filly for 4.4m guineas (£4.6m); a Wootton Bassett colt who set a record of 4.3m gns for a yearling colt sold at auction in Europe; and a sister to Alpinista, the 2022 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner, for 2.5m gns.
Proven older horses were also recruited to run in Amo’s increasingly familiar purple colours, including You Got To Me, last year’s Irish Oaks winner, for 4.8m gns. She will be aimed towards the Coronation Cup at Epsom in June before eventually joining Amo’s rapidly expanding band of broodmares.
Perhaps Joorabchian’s most eye-catching investment was in Freemason Lodge Stables in Newmarket where the now-retired Sir Michael Stoute trained for much of his outstanding career.
View image in fullscreen You Got To Me won the Irish Oaks last year and was bought by Kia Joorabchian for 4.8m gns. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA
Newmarket has had many high-spending new owners blow into town over the decades and plenty have blown out again after a few years of trying, and failing, to establish themselves among the elite.
In the early years of Joorabchian’s time in racing, there were many who felt that regular sackings of trainers and jockeys, sometimes apparently as the result of a single below-par performance, betrayed an impatience for success that did not bode well, for his blood pressure or his longer-term involvement.
The purchase of Freemason Lodge, though, feels like the clearest sign yet that Joorabchian is now in it for the long haul. The chosen successor to Stoute, Henry Cecil and Sir Cecil Boyd-Rochfort at one of Newmarket’s most historic stables, is Raphael Freire, who is just shy of his 30th birthday and likely to oversee an ever-expanding string of Amo-owned horses at the Bury Road yard.
Quick Guide Greg Wood's Tuesday racing tips Show Newmarket 1.50 Dark Thirty (nb) 2.25 Sallaal 3.00 Persica 3.35 Verse Of Love 4.10 Meelaf 4.45 Zgharta 5.20 Lady Chartwell (nap) Southwell 2.05 Fever Dream 2.40 Ensel Du Perche 3.15 Kientzheim 3.50 Cluain Aodha 4.25 Art Of Diplomacy 5.00 Dublin To Milan Kempton 4.55 Luminoso 5.30 Dianarina 6.00 Angelica K 6.30 The Spotlight Kid 7.00 Invincible Melody 7.30 Foro Romano 8.00 Al Ameen 8.30 Ocean Heights Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback.
Freire is by no means the only trainer on Amo’s roster. Ralph Beckett – who was sacked by Joorabchian as long ago as 2021 but subsequently reemployed – remains the trainer of You Got To Me and will also train the top lot from the Book 1 sale. George Scott, Charlie Johnston and Karl Burke are among several other leading yards with Amo-owned horses.
But having taken charge the pressure will be on Freire, a former jockey from Brazil whose father and grandfather were trainers. His first significant runner from Freemason Lodge will be Benevento, who holds an entry in the 2,000 Guineas, in Wednesday’s Craven Stakes.
Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle is once again likely to be the stable to beat in the Flat’s Group One showpiece events, alongside other traditional powerhouses including Godolphin, Juddmonte and Shadwell. Like Marinakis’s football team, Amo is aiming to disrupt the established order at the top and it will be fascinating to chart the progress of their big-money signings as the season unfolds. | {
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b5cf4c52b4d7e4f44bd334a8c3b3f7aa | Women’s football in France changing but Lyon-PSG duopoly hard to break
A big change occurred in France last summer when the top two divisions of the women’s game were professionalised under the banner of the new Ligue Féminine de Football Professionnel (LFFP), led by the former Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas.
With the aim of making a league dominated for almost two decades by Aulas’s former club and Paris Saint-Germain more interesting, the changes included a rebranding of the top two divisions, an overall budget increase for the league stretching into eight figures, plus mandatory criteria such as every top division side having a minimum 11 full-time players, with second division sides having at least 11 contracted part-time players. Clubs can now have a fourth non-EU player, while those involved in the new structure have taken lessons from other leagues such as rest days for teams in the Champions League and canvassing supporters for the best kick-off times.
The aim has been to improve standards and create a more competitive league, but with two games to go it is once again Lyon and PSG running away with things. Plus ça change, as they say.
But beneath the surface, the changes are being welcomed, even by those who, in the long run, may be left behind as bigger names fight for promotion to the top division. Among them are fourth-placed Dijon, almost certain to clinch their first spot in the end of season playoffs, and Fleury, sat just behind in fifth, who last season knocked Lyon out of the domestic cup on the way to a historic final.
With their men’s teams sat in the third and fourth tiers respectively, both are massively punching above their weight – sitting above sides such as Montpellier, Nantes and Saint-Étienne – but have welcomed the increased professionalisation.
View image in fullscreen Ewelina Kamczyk (centre left) in action for Fleury against Strasbourg. Photograph: Icon Sport/Getty Images
“There has already been really good communication with the LFFP, because we had no communication with the FFF [French Football Federation],” says Sylvain Carric, who runs the women’s football side of Dijon. “We have support on marketing structures, as well as contracts negotiated with Catapult and MyCoach, for example, for performance and medical matters to offer more support to the players.”
Carric believes the biggest challenge is to make the game financially independent, but with Dijon already fully professional the change has been more difficult for Fleury, especially after they lost their head coach, Fabrice Abriel, to PSG last summer along with some key players.
“A higher level of standard is required from the club now in terms of infrastructure,” says Fleury’s president, Pascal Bovis. “The quality of pitches and floodlights, the structure, medical care, staff, the qualifications of coaches and our communications and media departments. But the change is under way and very important in the long term because the professional league will generate revenue that will transfer directly to the club.”
While Lyon and PSG continue to dominate, Bovis points to recent results as proof other sides can continue to compete and believes “it’s good to have a driving force pulling us up”, with regards to France’s top two sides. “The budgets of Lyon and PSG are very large, but also Paris FC now, with Louis Vuitton as the new owner, can compete at least.
“Fleury, for example, has only lost 2-1 in Paris [to PSG] for the past three seasons and has drawn three times at home, including a legendary 4-4 draw three years ago. It is proof of a smaller sporting gap despite large budget differences.”
While six points separate them, Dijon’s professional structure has allowed them to jump from eighth to fourth this season, even though Fleury are playing catch-up when it comes to the new criteria imposed on clubs. “We have 19 professional players, six technical staff and three medical staff,” says Carric, but it is different for Bovis and Fleury.
“We don’t benefit from the professional infrastructure the other women’s teams have, being backed by a professional men’s club,” says Bovis. “This is our weakness, but we’re working to overcome all of this. On the other hand, our structure is as important as other teams, or perhaps even better, our staff includes a former coach of the France Under-23 team, as does the medical team.”
View image in fullscreen Dijon’s professional structure has allowed them to jump from eighth to fourth this season. Photograph: Icon Sport/Getty Images
Does that create a greater fear of bigger clubs on the rise, with Nantes promoted last season and already established in seventh in the top division, with others such as Marseille and Lens possibly on the way? “No, on the contrary,” says Bovis. “This will make the championship even more attractive. It’s up to us to stay smart in our recruitment, to maintain the club’s unique spirit and to continue to perform despite our unique status. But isn’t that also the charm of football? And that’s why we love it … ”
Get in touch
If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email [email protected]. | {
"authors": [
"Rich Laverty"
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"title": "Women’s football in France changing but Lyon-PSG duopoly hard to break",
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c1f1e1faff8477ab9c91c7ab7d387c7a | Grace of Masters nearly man Justin Rose enhanced McIlroy’s historic win
There was one very happy man at Augusta on Monday morning, and there were 52 all in a stew, turning over thoughts of what went right and what went wrong, that short putt on the 6th, that wayward chip on 12, that sliced drive on 15, or whatever it was that cost them their shot at winning the 2025 Masters.
While Rory McIlroy can enjoy what was, everyone else in the field is wondering what might have been. Justin Rose will feel it most. Rose, the antagonist in Rory’s story, scored 65, 71, 75, 66 – the last of them, he said, “a bogey away from being the greatest round I’ve ever played”.
The second shots in the playoff summed it up. Rose’s was pretty near perfect in the circumstances and landed 15 feet from the pin. McIlroy’s landed just beyond it, caught the slope, rolled back down and around, past Rose’s ball and finished up 5ft from the cup. Sometimes good just isn’t good enough. “Yeah, it hurts,” Rose said. “What are you going to do about it, though?”
He was the first to hug McIlroy close in the moments after he had made the winning putt. “Listen,” he told him, “I was glad I was here on this green to witness you win the career grand slam.”
Rose has now written himself into the story of the tournament, it will be impossible to tell the history of the Masters without mentioning him. He has finished runner-up three times, losing two playoffs. Both times, he was second-best to two of the most popular Masters champions, Sergio García, who won his first major after 21 years of trying here, in 2017, and now McIlroy, who completed the career grand slam.
Any other year, the European fans would have been thrilled when Rose holed that 20ft putt on 18 to tie the lead, but not this one. Rose understood. “We saw part of history today,” he said. “It’s a momentous day in golf.”
Rose made a little of it. He is the first to have led the field through the first two days of competition on three occasions and is in the extraordinary position of having been top of the Masters leaderboard after 18, 36, 54, and 72 holes, twice, without winning it.
View image in fullscreen Justin Rose has twice lost in a playoff at the Masters. Photograph: David J Phillip/AP
He is 44 now, and playing as well as ever, but at that age things change quickly. Who knows how many more chances he will get? “It doesn’t get any easier for sure,” he said.
When he was young he assumed the game would get easier with age, but, if anything, he is working harder at it now than ever. “But the reason I’m willing to put in that work is for these moments, like the standing ovation on 18 when I finished. I took a moment just soaking that in. That was a nice moment because it was still what might be, what could be. One day, I won’t be competing this way at this tournament. So for now, the hard work is worth it.”
McIlroy said: “He’s a great champion. He has displayed so much grace throughout his career. I remember watching the playoff in ’17 when he went up against Sergio and that didn’t quite go his way, either. But he’s had a phenomenal record around here and I feel for him because he’s been so close, and he’s a good friend, and …”
McIlroy knows the disappointment better than most and stopped to swallow a lump in his throat. “Yeah, hopefully he has a few more opportunities.”
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Their friendship was forged through all the years of playing together in the Ryder Cup. It was conspicuous that as well as Rose, a couple of other Europeans, Tommy Fleetwood and Shane Lowry, were among the first to congratulate McIlroy. Even in the thick of all this, the tournament at Bethpage in September was in the back of McIlroy’s mind.
“Selfishly, I was happy it was another European in the playoff,” he said. “We’re on a good run at the minute, Ryder Cup year and all that.”
It had not been quite clear whether Rose was going to make the team this year, but there is no doubt about it now.
He will be ready.
“What do you choose to dwell on? There’s no point in being too despondent about it. You have to look at all the good stuff that got me into this situation. You can’t skip through a career without a little bit of heartache. It’s not going to happen.
“If you’re willing to lift the big championships, you’ve to put yourself on the line. You have to risk feeling this way to get the reverse.”
If you can’t be a great winner, you can still be a good loser. | {
"authors": [
"Andy Bull"
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"publish_date": "2025-04-14 00:00:00",
"source": "The Guardian - Sport",
"summary": "",
"title": "Grace of Masters nearly man Justin Rose enhanced McIlroy’s historic win",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/14/the-masters-justin-rose-rory-mcilroy-golf"
} |
5e5b90ce58449c4c16b76d5d68f393eb | Handmade balls and no two courts the same: Tudor-era ‘real tennis’ is making a racket in Sydney
“It’s a bit like three-dimensional chess, and it’s much more intellectual than an average sport because it’s so complicated,” Maggie Henderson-Tew says through a wide grin after walking off the court.
Amid an explosion of interest in newfangled racket sports such as pickleball and padel, which have found popularity due to their dynamic, speedy and easy to learn styles of play, one Sydney sports club is instead leaning into the past – specifically, the Tudor period.
This week, Sydney became home to Australia’s fourth court for “real tennis” – also known as royal tennis – the precursor sport to what would evolve to be modern-day tennis (or “lawn tennis”) and squash.
View image in fullscreen The club says initial interest from the community has been strong, with a steady stream of private bookings from first-timers as well as those who had played in the past. Photograph: James Gourley/Publishd
Unlike the low barriers to entry that have seen pickleball and padel gain broad appeal, real tennis’s attraction is in its quirks of tradition, cumbersome equipment and labyrinthine scoring system.
“People get absolutely fanatically into it, but it’s incredibly frustrating when you start out until you hit your first good shot, then it feels phenomenal,” says Henderson-Tew.
“If you can hit one in every 20 balls your first time playing that’s a very good sign. You have to get down low like handball because the ball doesn’t really bounce,” she says.
‘It takes two years of playing to be hopeless’
While initially known as jeu de paume – French for “palm game” – real tennis has progressed to be played with rackets, albeit ones with an offset head to mimic the angle of an outstretched hand.
“A racket is essentially an arm on a stick, with a tiny sweet spot,” Henderson-Tew says. These days, Grays are one of few companies that produce rackets for the sport, in a side operation it’s understood to not make a profit from.
Despite the game continuing to be played through to the present day in the UK, US, Australia and France – Sydney’s new court is just the world’s 50th – competition rackets are made of wood, and can feel closer to a cricket bat than a state-of-the-art lawn tennis racket.
View image in fullscreen ‘Essentially an arm on a stick’ … real tennis rackets. Photograph: James Gourley/The Guardian
Asymmetry in real tennis extends far beyond its rackets.
Courts, which are rectangular and built with roofs, include sloped sections on three of the four walls – the sport itself was spun out of how handball would be played in courtyards and streets in medieval times, and some say the slopes are inspired by what would have been awnings covering shops.
Every point must begin by serving the ball on to a specific slope – or “penthouse” as it is known – while the loud thud of a ball landing on one of the slopes before bouncing down closely resembles the soundscape of a bowling alley.
There are also various netted “openings” around the court, spread asymmetrically around the walls, whose functions are similar to activating a mini-game on a lifesize pinball machine.
View image in fullscreen The dimensions and designs of real tennis courts vary slightly from club to club – no two are the same. Photograph: James Gourley/Publishd
Hitting the ball in some of the openings is one way to win a point outright. However, if a serving player slightly mis-hits the ball into a different adjacent opening, they can lose serve mid-game and trigger a change of ends. Such an occurrence leads to what is called a “chase”, which must be resolved through play from a range of dozens of different fixed positions on the court.
The scoring system might be the most striking resemblance to the sport played at the Australian Open or Wimbledon, in that games are run to a love-15-30-40 score.
But that’s where the similarities end. Points are won by hitting winning openings or if an opponent sends a ball into the drooping net. A double bounce does not mean a lost point. Tournament matches can be played to as many as the best of 13 sets over three days.
Both singles and doubles competitions are played, but “triples” games have been discontinued, now considered too dangerous. The world’s best professionals compete at the top level into their 50s.
View image in fullscreen ‘It takes two years of playing to be hopeless,’ jokes Chris Ronaldson, a former real tennis world champion. Photograph: James Gourley/Publishd
The convoluted rules and difficulty of play are poked fun at by many at Sydney’s new club.
“It takes two years of playing to be hopeless,” jokes Chris Ronaldson, a former world champion of the sport.
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He and his wife, Henderson-Tew, moved from Radley College, a school in Oxfordshire in the UK where they helmed a real tennis court, to Sydney six months ago to help prepare the club.
Ronaldson was tasked with one of the sport’s more bizarre tasks. Balls for real tennis are not mass produced. Instead, each clubhouse must make them individually by hand by wrapping cork in cotton webbing before sewing them up in yellow cloth.
Since arriving in Sydney, Ronaldson, now 75, has made about 300 balls, mostly from his garage while waiting for the court to be completed. Each one takes him about 40 minutes.
New court for an old sport
For decades, the Sydney Real Tennis Club has been a nomadic group, travelling to courts in Melbourne, Hobart and Ballarat. In the late 1990s, a court was built at Sydney’s Macquarie University, but this proved unpopular among students and disagreements between the club and university management saw it turned into a childcare centre after seven years.
View image in fullscreen Real tennis is ‘incredibly frustrating when you start out until you hit your first good shot,’ according to player Maggie Henderson-Tew. Photograph: James Gourley/Publishd
The club spent years searching for a new base and lobbying for support, ultimately settling on the Cheltenham Recreation Club, on Sydney’s leafy north shore, as the premises to build its new court.
The success of the campaign was largely due to a New South Wales government grant. At the club’s official opening ceremony on Monday, former local MP and premier Dominic Perrottet was acknowledged for his role in securing the $1.4m grant for construction – an impressive amount of public money for a sports club with roughly 30 registered players.
View image in fullscreen Crowds gather at the opening of Cheltenham Recreation Club’s real tennis court, one of only four in Australia. Photograph: James Gourley/Publishd
Now, after 20 years in the wilderness, as of this week Sydney has once again hosted competitive real tennis, with players from Britain and the United States joining contestants from interstate who travelled to Cheltenham for the inaugural Bilby competition.
Chris Cooper, the club’s secretary, says initial interest from the community has been strong, with a steady stream of private bookings from first-timers as well as others “coming out of the woodworks” who had played in the past.
“Percentage wise it’s one of the fastest growing sports in the country,” he jokes.
Attracting the levels of traction that pickleball has come to enjoy may prove ambitious, though, given the sport’s complexity and obscurity.
Ronaldson is enthusiastic about his sport’s latest venue, but encourages new players not to be dissuaded by the initial difficulty of learning how to hit what are much heavier balls, less bouncy with even heavier rackets.
View image in fullscreen Real tennis balls are made individually by hand, by wrapping cork in cotton webbing before sewing them up in yellow cloth. Photograph: James Gourley/Publishd
In addition to players having to adapt to subtleties in an away club’s homemade balls, the dimensions and designs of actual courts also vary slightly – no two courts are the same.
“We’ve designed our court with a few little idiosyncrasies that give us a home advantage,” Cooper says. That includes a protrusion of one of the court’s walls that slopes at a steeper angle.
With the club now up and running, Ronaldson and Henderson-Tew will return to the UK. Taking over as the club’s resident professional is Alex Marino-Hume.
The 29-year-old – a former choral singer who performed at King Charles’s coronation – joins from the real tennis club at Lord’s in London, and has relocated here with his wife, Charlotte, for four years. Managing the club will be his full-time profession.
View image in fullscreen Unlike newer and easier racket sports, real tennis’s attraction is in its quirks, traditions and elaborate rules. Photograph: James Gourley/Publishd
At this week’s tournament, most players have so far skewed older and male. Despite its royal associations, Marino-Hume is aiming to make the club inclusive, and is hoping to see many women and children take it up.
“It’s not elite, it started in the streets,” Marino-Hume says.
Charlotte is starting out with modest goals – like finding a competent hitting partner.
“When you can find someone to play who is able to actually return a shot it’s quite satisfying.” | {
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"Elias Visontay"
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"title": "Handmade balls and no two courts the same: Tudor-era ‘real tennis’ is making a racket in Sydney",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/apr/16/real-tennis-racket-sport-cheltenham-sydney-club"
} |
86e1de67e84e738fbe900049c814eb8e | Salah staying doesn’t change one key point: Liverpool still need to rebuild
Well, that’s good then. Things fall apart. But sometime they also don’t. And the centre does actually hold.
Perhaps the most interesting part of Mohamed Salah’s contract extension at Liverpool is the fact this is a rare crossover story, a signing that steps outside its own tribal margins. There will of course be localised delight. Liverpool fans can look forward to their own lost weekend in the sun, a sense that the good times will now continue to roll, that the time bar has shifted. Return to your seats. This is a lock-in.
More widely, Salah staying is a shot of adrenaline for the Premier League, which is sold on fat, wet personality driven storylines, a star factory that does sometimes have to scrape the walls for actual stars. The commercial logic is obvious. Salah is the league’s best player. Salah is the most famous African footballer. Salah is the biggest sporting star in the Muslim world.
Salah is also a one-man blue-chip brand, instantly recognisable, the beaming, scurrying cartoon squirrel of elite football, his cut-through benevolent and broad. Never mind Liverpool’s global fanbase. Richard Masters will have been doing the running man in his underpants on Friday morning. This is like Disney re-signing Mickey Mouse.
Given the widely trailed nature of the deal it will be necessary now to have takes about the takes, to identify wider points of jeopardy. With this in mind it perhaps won’t be long before some contrarian suggests that if Liverpool’s owners really are the hedge fund sharks of the popular imagination, all vampire teeth, faces thin and glossed as the corporate credit card, they will put Salah up for sale.
Seriously. Sell him to Paris Saint-Germain for £90m this summer. This would be the economically rational decision. Instant gain for the cost of a little ink and some printed sheets. Corporate policy retained. Duty to shareholders observed. Nothing personal kids. It’s always, always business.
This would also be entirely wrong, of course, and for reasons that go beyond armed insurrection in L4. The fact is Liverpool’s executive had no choice. Losing Salah for nothing would have been sackable corporate incompetence. Here is your data outlier, a player with 32 goals and 22 assists this season. Here is your chief branding item, the most followed Premier League player on social media by an absolute mile, a one-man bonus streaming rights deal.
Plus there is a kind of institutional debt here. Salah’s presence over the past eight seasons has defined not just an era of success, the lifting of an emotional cloud, but the owners’ wondrous returns on their financial investment. There is an argument it would make commercial and cultural sense for FSG to pay Salah just to sit in the stands for the next two years, put him on gardening leave, pay him to wave on posters.
So yes, there is no downside on the face of it. Except, this is football, and there must always be variables, lurking doom, potential collapse, all of which are key to the game’s strangely inelastic appeal. The fact is, this is not entirely a free ride. It comes with challenges, not least for Arne Slot.
View image in fullscreen Mohamed Salah has provided relentless value for money for Liverpool. Photograph: Nikki Dyer/LFC/Liverpool FC/Getty Images
Signing Salah doesn’t change one key point. With or without him, next season still has to be the start of a rebuild. There was a tendency during the first half of the season, as Slot’s team played with a kind of light around them, to dismiss Jürgen Klopp as a kind of woad-smeared energy guy, to see Slot sifting successfully through the parts, finally bringing order to this first draft of history.
By now it seems clear the current title-bound season is also a hybrid triumph. Slot has overseen the first fix with remarkable skill. But he will now have to effect a more profound building job. For the first time there will be a slight sense of pressure around Salah too.
The football has very clearly not left him, is still clinging to his collar, giddy on the ride. Salah isn’t even very old. It might seem as though he has been around for ever, 10 years since he was skittering down the Chelsea right, peak malevolent José Mourinho up there taking bites on his touchline, but Salah is 32, not 35.
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Luka Modric won the Ballon d’Or at 33. Robert Lewandowski, who like Salah treats his body like a nutritional experiment, who also looks like a renaissance anatomical drawing with his shirt off, is leading a brilliant young Barcelona team at 36 years old. It is only seven weeks since Salah led the controlled dismantling of Manchester City at the Etihad, a peak moment during that period where he seemed to be running through thinner air than everyone else.
Since then Liverpool have looked a little tired and post-adrenal. Salah’s form – we can talk about this now – has been poor. In seven games since the Etihad he has had three shots on target. He has scored one league goal from open play at Anfield since Boxing Day. He has basically been a shadow since the home leg against PSG.
Slot knows Salah-dependence in attack has been the story of the season up to a point, which is fine as long as it works
The Roy Keane theory of Big-Men-For-Big-Stuff would see this as shrinking in the face of destiny. But it would also be wrong to suggest Liverpool have dipped because Salah has dipped, rather than the other way round or, as ever, a bit of both. Teams are more complex than this. Slot has always seemed more interested in Salah’s defensive work, which has been good this season, and speaks more clearly to his ability to fit an evolving shape.
But Slot also knows Salah-dependence in attack has been the story of the season up to a point, which is fine as long as it works. This has to change, and with a little less in the way of revolution now.
Slot also knows he owes Salah. The manager has been rightly praised for his tinkering, his command of small details. But it is clearly a bonus on this front when you also happen to have a ruthless goal maniac up front justifying every choice by kicking the ball into the net. The more I walk around the place with my finger on the trigger of this AK-47 the more people keep calling me a genius and laughing at all my jokes.
From here Slot still needs not only a post-Salah plan but a current one too. Salah’s departure would have been a disaster. But it would at least have offered something closer to scorched earth, a refresh from ground zero. No doubt some will point out PSG got shot of Kylian Mbappé two years too late. Salah barely registers on the Mbappé Scale of mega-divas, but he does have an ego, does say stuff in the mixed zone when it suits him, does look cross when he gets subbed off. This will require managing. Salah is also the one player in the league who has basically just given for the last eight seasons, offering up only relentless value for money. He deserves this two-year run into whatever version of the future Slot can build around him. All logic suggests that job just got a little easier. But it will come with challenges too. Caveat re-emptor. The rebuild still starts here. | {
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"Barney Ronay"
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"title": "Salah staying doesn’t change one key point: Liverpool still need to rebuild",
"url": "https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/apr/11/salah-staying-doesnt-change-one-key-point-liverpool-still-need-to-rebuild"
} |
94a2cd054fc31acab0d8d79621ea5e42 | Built different: Is the 6XL, 464lb Desmond Watson too large for the NFL?
Desmond Watson is pro football’s next very big thing: a 6ft 6in, 464lb defensive tackle who is poised to become the heaviest player ever selected at the NFL draft, which takes place later this month. “He’s a unicorn,” his coach at Florida, Billy Napier, said last month. “You’ll go the rest of your career, and you’ll never be around a guy that’s that stature.
A native of Plant City, Florida, the state’s strawberry capital, Watson was the Gators’ big man on campus, a larger-than-life folk hero to match the school’s 7ft 9in basketball prospect. When Watson arrived at college, he already weighed 440lb – or about as much as a standup piano. Watson’s legend grew once he cracked the team’s starting lineup the following year. During a 2022 game against South Carolina, Watson left 89,000 fans gasping after he split a double team and ripped the ball away from his opponent in a hit reminiscent of Jadeveon Clowney’s helmet-popping hit against Michigan in the 2013 Outback Bowl. (It’s a wonder Spencer Rattler, the Gamecocks’ 6ft 1in, 218lb quarterback, managed to tackle Watson to the ground afterwards.) At last year’s Gasperilla Bowl, Watson’s college swan song, the Gators handed the ball off to him to get a first down late in the game. “I can do it all,” he said afterward.
At Florida’s pro day, Watson showed NFL scouts the full range of that versatility and the extent to which it bends the rules of physics. Besides out-benchpressing every other draft prospect, Watson logged a 25in vertical and a 5.93-second time in the 40-yard dash – poor scores for most NFL hopefuls but impressive for someone of his size. The performance won Watson fans across the country and had analysts buzzing about his pro prospects like never before. The former Cincinnati Bengals receiver Chad ‘Ochocinco’ Johnson told Watson he’d “look good in stripes” – but any team that’s appraising the Gators bulldozer will also have to think about his literal locker room fit. At Florida, he wore a size-6XL jersey along with custom-made pads and cleats. The only small thing on Watson was his number, 21 – digits that are usually reserved for skill position players. (He picked it to honor his younger brother, Dyson, who wore the number before suffering a life-altering stroke.)
But the thing that really has Watson’s admirers excited is his potential to be just the immovable object to stand up to the NFL’s unstoppable force – the tush push. After a season that saw the Philadelphia Eagles call the “brotherly shove” time and again as they won the Super Bowl, the league is considering banning the play – a quarterback sneak with a teammate or two providing a boost. Tush push detractors believe the play gives too much of an advantage to teams with jumbo-sized offensive linemen. But until the play is officially banned it may be that teams need to stock up on bigger defensive linemen as a counter.
That’s what makes Watson so intriguing: he could be one of those prospects who affects the players who come after him. In the 1980s, 330lb rookie William ‘Refrigerator’ Perry was the one dazzling crowds with his strength and speed on both defense and offense during the Chicago Bears’ Super Bowl XX run. In the 1990s, Nate Newton (nicknamed the Kitchen because he was 5lb heavier than Perry) went from USFL castoff to the linchpin offensive lineman of Dallas Cowboys’ championship dynasty. In the noughties, Cleveland Browns offensive tackle Orlando Brown was such a sight to behold at 6ft 7in and 360lb that people called him Zeus.
But linemen Brown’s size are fixtures in the game now – with do-it-all big men like the Detroit Lions’ Penei Sewell setting the standard. Watson has a chance to break the NFL mold again with his even bigger frame. Just the sight of him clashing with average-sized (for football) players had onlookers gushing about how he makes Perry, the Bears legend, look like “a mini fridge”. The idea that he could usher in a new era of 400lb pound linemen is intriguing. “People see that number and think My 600-pound Life,” Watson’s high school coach, Evan Davis, told the Gainesville Sun in 2021.
But is playing a punishing game at Watson’s weight even sustainable? Football already exacts a brutal physical toll on players. Bigger bodies mean bigger collisions, more strain on joints and an increased risk for injury. To Watson’s immense credit, he never missed a game in his college career – but he has also struggled to maintain his weight, and the Florida pro day marked his heaviest weigh-in yet. Fans who watched Watson’s workout were quick to point out Watson huffing and puffing through portions of some agility drills – worrying signs, perhaps, of a lack of stamina. Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe reckons Watson could be a reliable playmaker at 420lb – but Watson was reluctant to put any limits on himself. “I played against Tennessee, which was the fastest offense in the nation, all four years [of college],” he told Sharpe. “So [weight] isn’t really a worry of mine. But I know the lighter I get, the more I can dominate because that’s the goal.” He added that he is working with a nutritionist to address his diet.
skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Soccer with Jonathan Wilson Free weekly newsletter Jonathan Wilson brings expert analysis on the biggest stories from European soccer Enter your email address Sign up Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion
View image in fullscreen Desmond Watson’s attributes have intrigued fans across the US. Photograph: James Gilbert/Getty Images
Believe it or not, Watson actually was the smallest at birth among his six siblings – a little over 8lb. But it was only a matter of time before he filled out. That’s perhaps no surprise: his father is 6ft 4in and 300lb. His mother, a former basketball standout, is 250lb – weight she chalks up to having six kids and a lack of activity during Covid lockdowns. That said, not everyone in his family is big. “I come from a family of receivers and running backs, track athletes,” Watson said. “I think it was just destined for me to play in the interior. My older brother is 5ft 9in, 165lb.” Watson is referring to Darrian McNeal, a former University of Oregon slot receiver.
At the moment, he projects as a late-round selection or a priority free-agent signee – but it wouldn’t come as a surprise to see Eagles GM Howie Roseman, who built the sport’s tallest and heaviest offensive line, snap up Watson to preserve the team’s tush-push monopoly. One could also envision Watson being selected with the very last pick in the draft and becoming the NFL’s largest ever Mr Irrelevant. But historic size doesn’t guarantee a long NFL career. Aaron Gibson, who was 410lb when the Lions made him the heaviest player ever drafted, in 1999, played five seasons and missed time every year but one because of nagging injuries.
Watson should get an opportunity to prove himself. Whether it’s a right-sized opportunity will be up to him. “I don’t care who it is,” Watson said of the teams that might draft him. “If anybody’s trying to put me in a jersey, I’m ready for it.” In a 6XL or slimmer fare, the reward could wind up dwarfing the risk. | {
"authors": [
"Andrew Lawrence"
],
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"title": "Built different: Is the 6XL, 464lb Desmond Watson too large for the NFL?",
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f65769f80d26897f1875a8875dd05bce | Aston Villa march into Champions League quarters – by royal approval
With Asensio and another loanee, Marcus Rashford, proving such shrewd signings, anything is possible, just ask the future king.
The Prince of Wales was in jovial mood as he left the game. When asked about the match, he replied, laughing: “See you in Paris.”
Emery issued a bit more caution, saying: “Of course to play in a quarter-final is fantastic and we are very motivated for it. It will be a huge challenge against PSG. Now we are going to rest and recover our energy, but I know of the huge potential they have.
“They beat one of the best teams in Europe in Liverpool and performed very well over the two games.
“We will analyse them and try to find any weaknesses, and we have to be proud to be at this level. Marco has taken the responsibility and connecting with other players is very important for us.”
Villa’s first season in Europe’s elite competition for more than 40 years has proved an exhilarating experience so far.
It has also been a continuation of the transformational work of Emery, the serial winner.
Victories over Bayern Munich, Celtic, Bologna and RB Leipzig, plus a draw with Juventus, underlined a swift adaptation to the Champions League which cannot be overestimated.
Six years ago the club were slugging it out in the Championship. Now they are signing proven internationals such as Asensio and Rashford on loan deals.
Villa are fighting on two other fronts. They have an FA Cup quarter-final at Preston North End too prepare for and are still in contention for a top-four finish in the Premier League.
Yet it is the Champions League that has captured the imagination of these supporters this season.
John McGinn, the midfielder, said: “We’re giving these fans experiences they’ll remember for ever.
“We want to write our names in history and make these nights more frequent. We want to get back and enjoy these nights next season. What an exciting end to the season we’ve got.”
Villa did appear gripped by anxiety at the start, but the momentum of the evening completely shifted in the 16th minute, against the run of play.
Emiliano Martínez’s long pass caught out the Brugge defence and released Rashford, who was pulled down by Sabbe outside the penalty area as he advanced on goal.
After a short delay, as referee Daniel Siebert consulted the other officials, the red card came out and was inevitable. Sabbe’s dismissal was the equivalent of putting a pin in the Brugge balloon.
Despite that huge setback, Brugge did remain the better side in the first half without managing to convert their possession into goalscoring opportunities.
Villa had offered little in attack, with Ollie Watkins completing only two passes, but Emery’s two changes at half-time proved pivotal.
Substitutes Asensio and Leon Bailey both combined to give Villa the lead five minutes into the second half.
Bailey’s inventive chipped pass found Asensio in space and his finish past former Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet was clinical. | {
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87c3c2efb7e766e633e819841a024c44 | Trump accuses Ireland of luring companies away from US
Donald Trump has criticised Ireland for using its tax policies to lure away US companies, as he threatened to escalate his trade war with the EU.
Speaking in the Oval Office next to the Irish premier, Micheál Martin, he took aim at Ireland’s use of its tax system to attract pharmaceutical and other companies.
He said: “We do have a massive deficit with Ireland because Ireland was very smart. They took our pharmaceutical companies away from presidents that didn’t know what they were doing and its too bad that happened.”
Mr Trump said that had he been president when Ireland began to use its tax system to attract US companies, he would have retaliated.
He said: “When the pharmaceutical companies started to go to Ireland, I would have said that’s okay if you want to go to Ireland I think that’s great, but if you want to sell anything into the United States, I’m going to put a 200pc tariff on you so you’re never going to be able to sell anything into the United States.
“You know what they would have done? They would have stayed here.
“I have great respect for Ireland and what they did. And they should have done just what they did, but the United States shouldn’t have let that happen.”
Dublin introduced a 12.5pc corporation tax rate in 1997, which led to some large US companies recording large revenues in the country. | {
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a81f1d00a0129df54a3ad1d9dd037ca7 | Raheem Sterling takes two steps forward, one step back in Champions League for Arsenal
Sterling looked sharp and motivated, as if he had definitively decided that this was the time to remind Arteta of what he can offer. At the end, he was named man of the match. “It was nice to be out there and contribute to the team,” he said. “I wanted to play my game, be dynamic.”
And yet. Such is Sterling’s lack of fortune this season, even this unquestionably positive night ended on a negative note. Flying into a tackle in stoppage time, he picked up a yellow card that means he will be suspended for the first leg of Arsenal’s quarter-final against Real Madrid. Two assists, two steps forward, and then one step back.
An unnecessary challenge so late in the game, with Arsenal drawing 2-2 on the night and therefore leading 9-3 on aggregate? Undoubtedly. And yet Arteta took encouragement from Sterling’s willingness to fight for his team.
“The way he tracked back in the corner in the last action when he got booked – that’s the kind of play that we want to see,” the Arsenal manager said of Sterling.
Sterling’s two assists took him to 46 goal involvements in the Champions League. Of English players, only David Beckham, Harry Kane and Wayne Rooney have more. Sterling’s current sharpness can be questioned, but his experience in this competition cannot. Perhaps there is still a decisive contribution to come from him in this European campaign.
“I know what I’m capable of,” Sterling said. “You have to wait for your moment. I am confident I still have a big part to play. I haven’t had as many minutes as I would like, but it’s up to me to keep knocking at the door. Whether it’s 10 minutes 20, 45 or a start, I have just got to be ready.” | {
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f2cbbc339ac24441501ee9f57320a499 | The Queen consoles girlfriend of late jockey as emotions run high at Cheltenham
By Marcus Armytage
Nicky Henderson may have won nine Champion Hurdles but if he is synonymous with one race at the Festival it is, by virtue of the greatness of Remittance Man and his dual winners Sprinter Sacre and Altior, the BetMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase, a race he has only won six times so far.
In Jonbon he has another superstar but to join Henderson’s great two milers he has to win today’s race. He is unquestionably the best horse in it but as yesterday’s Champion Hurdle proved that can sometimes count for nothing and, tactically it is one of the most fascinating races of this year’s Festival because of the presence of the Joseph O’Brien trained Solness.
When Solness won a Grade One at Leopardstown at Christmas the expert view was that JJ Slevin and the seven-year-old should be arrested for burglary. However when the horse repeated the feat to beat Marine Nationale two lengths at the Dublin Racing Festival, it looked like the new tactic was bringing the best out of Solness.
There are many ways of winning from the front. On the Flat Frankie Dettori is the master of controlling the pace, slowing it down and then kicking before anyone else. If he has a trademark ride it is it. More traditionally over jumps it is to make the most of a horse’s long stride to pile the pressure on those chasing and maintain a lead by out jumping the opposition who then find themselves constantly on the back foot. It often puts their jumping under pressure.
Solness has found a novel way to make the running which is to post some very strong fractions mid race for a mile, say from half a mile to a mile and a half, get a breather in while the others play catch up, go again and hope you have enough left to repel any late challenges.
In many ways Cheltenham lends itself to that tactic and Slevin can kick on and open up down the hill away from the stands and try and win it there. The dilemma for Nico de Boinville, the best big race jockey riding in Britain at the moment, on Jonbon is whether to go with Solness or sit and let him go 10 or 15 lengths clear. Or a bit of both. Either way de Boinville will have a plan.
There is an argument which has gained some traction in this sport of opinions that Jonbon is not overly in love with Cheltenham but I cannot have that. He has started there five times winning the Shloer twice, finishing second to Constitution Hill in the Supreme and El Fabiolo in the Arkle and arguably his best run was to get within a head of winning the Clarence House after all but capsizing the fourth last.
If he was once a tricky customer at home he has now matured into the finished article and I expect him to become Henderson’s fourth great two miler rather than join the likes of Douvan and Well Chief as top two milers who never won a Champion Chase. Last year Captain Guinness did a ‘Golden Ace’ picking up the piece of a race which had fallen apart but he cannot, surely, be that lucky twice.
If Energumene, now 11 wins, he would become the first horse since Badsworth Boy 1983-5 to win it three times and, of course, if Marine Nationale, the horse that propelled the late Michael O’Sullivan into the big time, that would also be a poignant winner.
The New Lion can win the opening Turners Novice Hurdle for the Skeltons who must have thought the Arkle theirs yesterday before Jango Baie appeared from out of the clouds while Ballyburn should double his Festival tally by winning the Brown Advisory Novice Chase. Escaria Ten can massively outrun his odds of 50-1 in the Glenfarclas Cross-Country, a once gimmicky race which has now won its place in racegoers’ hearts, without winning it.
Through Gordon Elliott saddles six of the 16 runner field - his best shot looks like last year’s Grand National fourth Galvin - Gavin Cromwell has good chances with both Stumptown and the well weighted Vannilier. Riding out for Elliott this week I have sat on Coko Beach and, yesterday, The Goffer who felt better than he did when fifth in the Ultima last year and will enjoy the ground. | {
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ef4673b1d8f8742cb2dcab38c3945bf7 | The looming antibiotic emergency and why the time for global action is now
‘I learned of my mother’s death on Facebook’: Traumatised orphans pay the price for Putin’s war | {
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696e844823c5712bb81abec87b12b89c | Team behind immunity breakthrough plan to unleash ‘natural antibacterials’ on AMR superbugs
New drugs are badly needed to kill bacteria that, after decades of overuse, have become resistant to the strongest medicines available, such as those being detected on the battlefields of Ukraine.
The World Health Organization’s priority pathogens list – a repository of the most dangerous diseases and infections – now includes 15 families of drug-resistant bacteria, and the researchers believe their discovery could lead to medicines that can treat even the most concerning strains.
“We’ll have to have some funding and support to do it,” Prof Merbl said. “But we believe it’s doable, it’s tractable.”
In their experiments, the researchers tested the peptides on mice with pneumonia and sepsis, as well as on bacteria grown in the lab and found that their “natural antibacterials” were comparable to some established antibiotics.
They then went a step further and used an algorithm to analyse all the proteins made by the human body, searching for previously unknown peptides that could be released – creating what the researchers believe is “an untapped reservoir of natural antimicrobial agents”.
‘A very important scientific discovery’
The discovery in Israel, alongside advancements in the use of AI, have raised the possibility that the biggest single obstacle to solving the crisis of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has been overcome – simply put, we are running out of effective antibiotics and there are too few on the horizon.
But will it really be enough to turn the tide against a major threat to global health security which already kills more people every year than HIV/Aids and malaria combined?
Prof Merbl said turning their findings into effective treatments will take time.
“We still don’t understand the rules,” she said. “We know that, even for different types of bacteria, it (the proteasome) may operate differently.
“The basic mechanism is similar – you have this barrel that produces different peptides, but which peptide will affect what pathogen? We still don’t understand and therefore we need to screen for that.”
Professor Daniel Davis, the head of life sciences at Imperial College London, said it was too early to say whether the discovery in Israel would turn out to be a panacea for AMR.
“This is a very important scientific discovery with the potential to become medically important,” he told The Telegraph.
But “as with any scientific discovery, other labs should pursue it, confirm it, and perform related experiments to verify the findings that it’s producing a lot of molecules that can directly attack bacteria,” he said.
What’s also unclear is the extent to which the discovery will help resolve another major hurdle in efforts to tackle AMR – the reason why antibiotics development has stalled since the 1990s is because they are not an attractive business proposition for the drug makers.
Developing new antibiotics is expensive, fraught with risk and, because they have to be used sparingly to be effective, doesn’t offer returns that are nearly as attractive as investments in other areas – like malaria, for example. There are also fewer subsidies and other incentives aimed at encouraging investment.
The result of this is that, ten years after the WHO declared AMR a global emergency and called for greater investment to develop new drugs, efforts to discover new antibiotics have waned – the last time a new class of antibiotics was discovered was in 1987.
There is hope that the discovery of this new feature of the immune system will open up a whole field of potential development, kick-starting a second Golden Age of Antibiotics like the one that followed the discovery of Penicillin.
But the Israeli researchers say their discovery could have ramifications that go well beyond the battle against AMR. | {
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0fc1b1f4780aaea823e3276a348b6fa4 | The 16 best water bottles including insulated, gym and travel options
UK consumers go through an estimated 14 billion plastic drinks bottles per year, according to Defra, but single-use plastic is falling out of favour thanks to efforts from David Attenborough and Greta Thunberg. More people are turning to reusable water bottles and in return, bottles are getting smarter. The best water bottles these days are insulated, leak-proof, filtered and BPA free.
BPA stands for Bisphenol A, an industrial chemical compound used in the manufacturing of strong plastics. Some research suggests BPA can leak into food and drink and cause health problems. “When looking for a bottle, look for non-toxic materials. Stainless steel is one of the most eco-friendly materials for a water bottle. Not only is it safe, but it is very durable and infinitely recyclable,” says Natalie Byrne, content marketing manager at Go Outdoors.
For this guide I’ve tried and tested a number of the best water bottles on the market - including gym water bottles, water bottles with straws, and even the Air Up water bottle which uses scented pods to trick your brain into thinking you’re drinking squash (when in fact, it’s just water). Whether you’re looking for a durable water bottle for hiking or simply one that’s dishwasher-safe, you should find something to suit you below.
Our expert Natalie Byrne from Go Outdoors has also helped to answer frequently asked questions, like how to choose an environmentally friendly water bottle, how to clean one, and how long you can keep water in one. If you’re in a hurry, here’s a quick look at my top five:
Which is the best water bottle? At a glance
What should you look for when shopping for a water bottle?
“It is important to think about what you will be using the bottle for, as well as the materials used and if they are environmentally friendly,” says Byrne. She notes that the main reason people choose to buy a reusable water bottle is to cut down on single-use plastic and help the environment, so it makes sense to choose a bottle that is environmentally friendly, like the plant-based S’wheat bottle.
You might want to prioritise different features based on what you’ll be using your water bottle for the most. If it’s for the gym, choose a durable bottle with ergonomic curves like the Owala FreeSip Water Bottle. If it’s for on-the-go, ensure it’s leakproof like the Chilly’s Series 2. If you want to use it for hot drinks as well, opt for a stainless steel insulated bottle like the Yeti Rambler.
Why you can trust Telegraph Recommended
Our thorough, real-world tests will always help you find the best product at the best price. No manufacturer ever sees copy before publication and we do not accept payment in exchange for favourable reviews. Visit our Who We Are page to learn more.
How I tested the best water bottles | {
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695f212031349ba0d2ad11b399fe6e2a | Galopin Des Champs denied third straight Cheltenham Gold Cup in stunning upset
If this week has taught us anything it is that there is truth in the old adage; there is no such thing as a racing certainty. But, surely, nothing can stop the meeting’s last short-priced favourite, Galopin Des Champs, bucking the trend and joining the winter game’s all time greats by winning a third Boodles Gold Cup today.
This sport is called jump racing for good reason and Constitution Hill, Majborough, Jonbon and Ballyburn have all found obstacles in their way this week. State Man was not an odds-on shot but he was 1-25 in running going to the last with a second Champion Hurdle in the bag when disaster struck and it seems a long time since Kopek Des Bordes and Lossiemouth obliged for odds-on punters on Tuesday.
Golden Miller sets the standard for Gold Cup wins and, in all likelihood, we will never see a horse win five in our lifetimes. Only three horses have won three. Beginning in 1948 Cottage Rake, a horse who failed the vet three times for his wind, won his three for the young Irish trainer Vincent O’Brien who went on to become better known for his success at Epsom on the Flat.
Then came the imperious Arkle, named after a mountain on his owner’s Scottish estate, fondly known as ‘Himself,’ more popular than any human in Ireland despite grainy black and white television footage of his exploits. He was, unequivocally, the best jumper to ever look through a bridle in the post-War era. Arkle versus Golden Miller is another story.
It would then be another four decades before Best Mate would repeat the three-feat for Henrietta Knight and Terry Biddlecome but he was never quite in danger of earning the plaudits of Arkle.
Until this season, perhaps because of our obsession for the unbeaten or the fact that he does not have a hugely romantic back story, Galopin Des Champs has not quite caught the public’s imagination.
But the Irish finally went wild for him when he won a third Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown in February and if he wins today’s Gold Cup he will get the adulation he deserves from a British audience who will finally come to appreciate him.
The Willie Mullins trained nine-year-old is not unbeatable. He is two wins from six starts at Punchestown but that is, invariably, because one of those races in the autumn is too short for him and the other because it comes after the Gold Cup when most other blue riband winners would traditionally be out in the field.
But he is, pretty much, invincible at Cheltenham and Leopardstown, both galloping, left-handed tracks with stiff finishes. At Cheltenham he has won the Martin Pipe, he was streets clear when capsizing at the last in the Turners while he has won the last two Gold Cups by seven lengths and three and half. | {
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b002235f020e26703edd3000cf28f590 | Cheltenham Festival results: Race winners from today’s action
The Cheltenham Festival is the meeting for which every person involved in jump racing dreams of a winner.
Be it Grade 1 races or handicaps, the racing is the most competitive and high-octane of any throughout the jumps season – with the Cheltenham Gold Cup being the sport’s most prestigious race.
Here, Telegraph Sport lists the winners of each race from day one of the biggest meeting in jump racing. Click here for Telegraph Sport’s dedicated Cheltenham Festival tipping service.
Cheltenham Festival 2025 Winners
Friday
1.20: JCB Triumph Hurdle (Grade 1)
Poniros (Willie Mullins) 100/1
Lulamba (Nicky Henderson) 11/4
East India Dock (James Owen) 5/4F
Lady Vega Allen (Willie Mullins) 14/1
2.00: BetMGM County Hurdle (Grade 3)
Kargese (Willie Mullins) 3/1F
Ndaawi (Gordon Elliott) 25/1
Absurde (Willie Mullins) 5/1
Ethical Diamond (Willie Mullins) 16/1
2.40: Paddy Power Mares’ Chase (Grade 2)
Dinoblue (Willie Mullins) 6/4F
Brides Hill (Gavin Cromwell) 9/2
Shecouldbeanything (Gordon Elliott) 12/1
3.20: Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
Jasmin De Vaux (Willie Mullins) 6/1
The Big Westerner (Henry de Bromhead) 9/2F
Derryhassen Paddy (Lucinda V Russell) 10/1
Yellow Car (David Killahena & Graeme McPherson) 33/1
4.00: Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup (Grade 1)
Inothewayurthinkin (Gavin Cromwell) 15/2
Galopin Des Champs (Willie Mullins) 8/13F
Gentlemansgame (Michael Morris) 40/1
4.40: St James’s Place Hunter Chase (Listed)
Wonderwall (Sam Curling) 28/1
Its On The Line (Emmet Mullins) 4/1
Willitgoahead (Gordon Elliott) 13/2
Music Drive (Kelly Morgan) 33/1
5.20: Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle
Wodhooh (Gordon Elliott) 9/2
Act of Authority (Olly Murphy) 28/1
Raglan Road (Henry De Bromhead) 25/1
Taponthego (Henry De Bromhead) 8/1
Park Of Kings (Paul Nolan) 25/1
Thursday
1.20: Mares Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
Air of Entitlement (Henry De Bromhead) 16/1
Sixandahalf (Gavin Cromwell) 85-40F
Diva Luna (Ben Pauling) 12/1
Karoline Banbou (Willie Mullins) 10/1
2.00: Jack Richards Novices’ Handicap Chase (Grade 2)
Caldwell Potter (Paul Nicholls) 7/1
Anyway (Ken Budds) 150/1
O’Moore Park (Willie Mullins) 66/1
2.40: Pertemps Final (Grade 3)
Doddiethegreat 25/1
Jeriko Du Reponet 11/2
Catch Him Derry 14/1
Feet Of A Dancer 15/2
One Big Bang 14/1
3.20: Ryanair Chase (Grade 1)
Fact To File (Willie Mullins) 6/4F
Heart Wood (Henry De Bromhead) 18/1
Envoi Allen (Henry De Bromhead) 12/1
4.00: Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
Bob Olinger (Henry De Bromhead) 8/1
Teahupoo (Gordon Elliott) 7/4F
The Wallpark (Gordon Elliott) 7/1
4.40: TrustATrader Plate Handicap Chase (Grade 3)
Jagwar (Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero) 3/1F
Thecompanyseargent (Gavin Cromwell) 4/1
Masaccio (Alan King) 11/1
Mars Harper (Gordon Elliott) 100/1
5.20: Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup Handicap Chase
Daily Present (Paul Nolan) 12/1
Johnnywho (Jonjo & A J O’Neill) 9/2F
Sa Majeste (Willie Mullins) 8/1
Weveallbeencaught (Nigel Twiston-Davies) 28/1
Wednesday
1.20: Turners Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
The New Lion (Dan Skelton) 3/1
The Yellow Clay (Gordon Elliott) 5/2
Final Demand (Willie Mullins) 6/4F
2.00: Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase (Grade 1)
Lecky Watson (Willy Mullins) 20/1
Stellar Story (Gordon Elliott) 22/1
Better Days Ahead (Gordon Elliott) 13/2
2.40: Coral Cup (Grade 3)
Jimmy Du Seuil (Willy Mullins) 20/1
Impose Toi (Nicky Henderson) 13/2
Ballyadam (Henry De Bromhead) 16/1
Beat The Bat (Harry Fry) 11/2
3.20: Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase (Listed)
Stumptown (Gavin Cromwell) 5/2F
Latenightpass (Tom Ellis) 11/1
Vanillier (Gavin Cromwell) 15/2
The Goffer (Gordon Elliott) 6/1
4.00: Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase (Grade 1)
Marine Nationale (Barry Connell) 5/1
Jonbon (Nicky Henderson) 5/6F
Captain Guinness (Henry De Bromhead) 25/1
4.40: Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Handicap Chase (Grade 3)
Jazzy Matty 15/2 Unexpected Party 11/2F Midnight It Is 25/1 My Mate Mozzie 13/2
5.20: Weatherbys Champion Bumper (Grade 1)
Bambino Fever (Willie Mullins) 4/1 Heads Up (John McConnell) 33/1 Shuttle Diplomacy (Thomas Cooper) 66/1
Tuesday
1.20: Michael O’Sullivan Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1 )
Kopek Des Bordes (Willie Mullins) 4/6F
William Munny (Barry Connell) 8/1
Romeo Coolio (Gordon Elliott) 9/2
2.00: My Pension Expert Arkle Novices’ Chase (Grade 1)
Jango Baie (Nicky Henderson) 5/1
Only By Night (Gavin Cromwell) 25/1
Majborough (W P Mullins) 12/1
2.40: Ultima Handicap Chase (Grade 3)
Myretown (Lucinda Russell) 13/2F
The Changing Man (Joe Tizzard) 7/1
Malina Girl (Gavin Cromwell) 14/1
3.20: Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
Lossiemouth (W P Mullins) 4/6F
Take No Chances (Dan Skelton) 100/1
Jetara (Mrs John Harrington) 100/1
4.00: Unibet Champion Hurdle (Grade 1)
Golden Ace (Jeremy Scott) 33/1
Burdett Road (James Owen) 66/1
Winter Fog (W P Mullins) 150/1
4.40: Boodles Fred Winter Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3)
Puturhandstogether (Joseph Patrick O’Brien) 17/2
Robbies Rock (Gavin Cromwell) 50/1
Liam Swagger (James Owen) 12/1
5.20: National Hunt Chase
Haiti Couleurs (Rebecca Curtis) 7/2JF
Rock My Way (Joe Tizzard) 16/1
Will Do (Gordon Elliott) 12/1
Past Winners
Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1 )
2024: Slade Steel (Henry de Bromhead) 7/2
2023: Marine Nationale (Barry Connell) 9/2
2022: Constitution Hill (Nicky Henderson) 9/4J
2021: Appreciate It (Willie Mullins) 6/1
2020: Shishkin (Nicky Henderson) 6/1
My Pension Expert Arkle Novices’ Chase (Grade 1)
2024: Gaelic Warrior (Willie Mullins) 2/1F
2023: El Fabiolo (Willie Mullins) 11/10F
2022: Edwardstone (Alan King) 5/2F
2021: Shishkin (Nicky Henderson) 4/9F
2020: Put The Kettle On (Hendry de Bromhead) 16/1
Ultima Handicap Chase (Grade 3)
2024: Chianti Classico (Kim Bailey) 6/1
2023: Corach Rambler (Lucinda Russell) 6/1J
2022: Corach Rambler (Lucinda Russell) 10/1
2021: Vintage Clouds (Sue Smith) 28/1
2020: The Conditional (David Bridgewater) 15/2
Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
2024: Lossiemouth (Willie Mullins) 8/13F
2023: Honeysuckle (Henry de Bromhead) 9/4J
2022: Marie’s Rock (Nicky Henderson) 18/1
2021: Black Tears (Mrs Denis Foster) 11/1
2020: Honeysuckle (Henry de Bromhead) 9/4
Unibet Champion Hurdle (Grade 1) | {
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1874dd5580bd5cffd40bad299870407d | Steve Borthwick’s radical plan: throw three No 10s into the Cardiff cauldron
Steve Borthwick has told England not to be cowed by the Cardiff cauldron after the head coach revealed that he is prepared to unleash three fly-halves in the hunt for the Six Nations title against Wales at the Principality Stadium.
As first revealed by Telegraph Sport, Sale wing Tom Roebuck will make his first England start while Tommy Freeman moves to the outside centre for the first time in his Test career. Ben Curry replaces Tom Willis in the back row while Marcus Smith also receives a recall at full-back a week after being dropped from the match-day squad. At hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie also swaps places with Jamie George, who won his 100th cap, against Italy.
On the bench, Northampton flanker Henry Pollock could make his debut while Sale fly-half George Ford features for the first time in this Six Nations. Borthwick previously fielded three fly-halves in the second half of a 2023 World Cup pool match against Chile and admits he may reprise the experiment against Wales with specialist No 10 Ford, which would entail Fin Smith moving to inside centre.
“I think that there is definitely that possibility,” Borthwick said. “I said this to the team this morning, George Ford has been absolutely incredible within this squad. A man of such quality, such experience that selection has not been the way he wanted it to, and he has been phenomenal every single day, as an influence around this squad. To have him on the bench, coming on and finishing the game, is a great position for us to be in.
“You can also see things like the way Fin Smith, what he has shown, in many aspects of the game, but everyone can see what a standout defender he is. I see a position at some point in time, where I think he’d be able to be a 10-12 for us as well. I think there’s a possibility for that.”
Borthwick’s selection is high risk, high reward. Fin Smith has never started a match at inside centre for Northampton so flanker Ben Earl is the primary cover for the midfield. With three back-rowers on the bench, he also has no specialist second-row cover, with Chandler Cunningham-South and Tom Willis on standby.
‘I want bravery and speed on the ball’
England need to win with a bonus point at the Principality Stadium to put pressure on leaders France, who host Scotland in the final match. Wales, however, have a history of upsetting England’s title ambitions, most notably in 2013 in Cardiff and 1999 at Wembley. | {
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9485d83f4acd6889942790645a968a45 | England fans have waited three seasons for a performance like this demolition of Wales
Stunning, simply stunning. This was without doubt the best performance by England under Steve Borthwick, a statement victory that after three seasons felt like a lift-off moment. It was also the moment when the connection between the team and their supporters, which at times has felt like an on-off relationship, was gloriously renewed and strengthened.
To score 10 tries in Cardiff was not just a record-breaking achievement but provided England supporters with categorical evidence of the progress that Borthwick has been promising even when the going has been tough.
Given the context, it surpasses the victory over Ireland at Twickenham last year, and the gear-grinding wins over France and Scotland during this campaign.
With England requiring a four-try bonus point to keep their Six Nations title hopes alive, and facing a Wales side threatening something of a resurgence under interim head coach Matt Sherratt in an atmosphere that was reminiscent of the glory days under Warren Gatland, Borthwick’s side were utterly ruthless. France may have claimed the title in the end, but that should not take away from England’s performance.
The 54-point margin of victory was the largest by any team against Wales in a Five or Six Nations game, overtaking France’s 51-0 win at Wembley in 1998. It was also the second-most points conceded by Wales ever – their worst points conceded was the 13-96 defeat by South Africa in 1998. Wales have now lost 17 consecutive Tests.
No wonder that the sizeable England contingent in the crowd were in full voice through the contest, with numerous renditions of Swing Low, Sweet Chariot and the remarkable occasion of the English players being applauded on the pitch at the start of the second half.
By then, the contest was already beyond doubt, with England’s five tries having secured the bonus point. But unlike their high-scoring victory over Italy, England’s intensity and purpose did not fade in the final quarter; they powered on, with even England Under-20s starlet Henry Pollock crossing for two tries on his debut. Of course he did. Pollock forced his way into the England squad with his performances and he looked completely unfazed by the monumental step up to Test rugby, providing a fearsome snapshot of England’s future. | {
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6e905281b39059e1dd8d787bb6e456d3 | The 11 best gym leggings: squat-proof styles for running, yoga and workouts
Which are the best women’s gym leggings? I’ve tested dozens and dozens over the years, from the good to the bad and the alarmingly see-through.
You may have noticed that people generally talk about good gym leggings in terms of what they don’t do – ie, fall down or bunch around your ankles – rather than what they do. The best pairs operate like a second skin, keeping you dry and comfortable, warm if you’re running outside and cool if you’re strength training in the gym. They should offer a zero-distractions fit that allows you to focus on the exercise at hand.
Scroll down for our full reviews of this year’s best, followed by a guide to what to look for. But if you’re in a rush, here’s a quick look at the top five:
Which are the best gym leggings? At a glance
What to look for when buying gym leggings
Look for versatility, sweat-wicking fabric and comfort, says Alex Boardman, physiotherapist for Aston Villa FC and county tennis player. (The same goes for sports bras.) Investing in a good pair which will do you for the gym, running, and various sports is worth its weight in gold.
It’s also worth checking how ethically a pair of leggings were made. For example, Sweaty Betty and Tala are well known for using sustainable fabrics. An ethical brand minimises water use in production and packaging, ensures workers are paid living wage and does not test on animals.
Kate Rowe-Ham, a personal trainer who specialises in menopause and mid-life fitness, says: “I have a vast range of leggings but I really love Sweaty Betty. The reason they’ve nailed it is they have pockets, which feel solid when you run in them, and they last and wash well.”
How I tested the best gym leggings | {
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533405eaa019059c4b989e6431f1bcfb | An expert guide to the perfect spring weekend in Seville
Known for its steamy-hot summers, mild winters and sultry operatic gypsy heroine Carmen, Seville is a bijou city whose fabulous food, extraordinary Mudejar, Gothic and Renaissance architecture, and exotic flamenco rhythms never fail to charm and seduce. History oozes through its pores, with ancient Moorish walls, Roman ruins and Baroque churches at every turn.
Follow the locals to hole-in-the-wall bars, sip cañas (small glasses) of beer, and then get lost wandering the tiny streets of Barrio Santa Cruz, dotted with orange-tree-filled plazas, before resting in a quiet, shady corner on a tiled bench. For a more authentic experience, head to boho Macarena or tile-and-gypsy quarter Triana. Then, after dusk, head up the rooftops to admire the largest Gothic cathedral in the world and its Moorish-Christian tower from a terrace bar.
For further Seville inspiration, see our in-depth guides to the city’s best hotels, restaurants, bars, things to see and do, and things to see and do for free. If planning a longer trip, discover our ultimate itinerary in Andalucia here. | {
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5f2cb37aa34768b70bafd12983c84bd9 | Marlborough racing tips and best bets for today’s races
Following today’s racing tips? In need of some guidance? Or just fancy a flutter?
Each day Marlborough brings you the best bets from every race at every racecourse around the country.
From the bright lights of the Cheltenham Festival and Glorious Goodwood to a low-key evening meeting at Chelmsford City, we have all your racing tips and best bets covered.
Meanwhile, you can get the latest betting offers and free bets from the top bookmakers here.
Looking for a daily racing nap? Marlborough will indicate his top tip for the day in traditional style, with his other notable selection highlighted with “NB”. Whistler, The Sunday Telegraph’s tipster will also name his daily nap.
So come back every morning for Marlborough’s daily selection. Note, tomorrow’s tips will appear towards the bottom of the page. Good luck.
Sunday, April 20
Plumpton
1.50 Jasmine d’Airy
2.20 Miss Fedora
2.55 Ugo Bingo
3.30 Havaila
4.05 She’s A Saint
4.40 Shakeyatailfeather
5.15 Busy Being Busy
Bath
2.10 Ladypacksapunch
2.31 Soi Dao
3.06 Think of A Name
3.41 Balmoral Lady Nap
4.16 Cloud King
4.51 Sixteen One
5.26 Captain Cess
Market Rasen
2.35 The Dream Goes On
3.10 Plus Point
3.45 Monty Bodkin
4.20 Zucayan
4.55 Pittsburg
5.30 Ned Hill
Southwell
2.07 Red Savitar
2.42 Eva Rosie
3.17 The Ormer Gatherer
3.52 Nebras NB
4.27 Adelaide Bay
5.02 King Sharja
5.37 Yoshimi
Whistler Nap: She’s A Saint 4.05 Plumpton
She’s A Saint 4.05 Plumpton Marlborough Nap: Balmoral Lady 3.41 Bath
Monday, April 21
Plumpton
2.00 Gwennie May Star
2.35 Asta La Pasta
3.10 Norn Iron
3.45 Confinentic
4.19 Lady Jago NB
4.55 Dickens
5.35 Emerald Poet
Kempton
2.20 Sword of Wessex
2.55 Teumessias Fox
3.30 Sky Safari
4.05 North View Nap
4.40 Coup De Force
5.15 Hoodie Hoo
5.50 Lazzar
6.20 Cinnodin
Redcar
1.25 Earthwatch
1.55 Lady of The Garr
2.30 Brian The Snail
3.05 Media Mogul
3.40 Circe
4.15 Rhythm Master
4.50 Flamborough Head
5.30 Fregola
Wolverhampton
1.35 Love Olivia
2.10 Moon Over The Sea
2.45 Electric Bass
3.20 Rogue Dancer
3.55 Midnightattheoasis
4.30 Ravenglass
5.05 Heerathetrack
5.45 Danehill Star
Chepstow
1.49 Deep Purple
2.24 Zaochen Enki
2.59 Ideallko
3.34 Western General
4.07 New Found Fame
4.44 Ri Na Cuirte
5.19 Romany King
5.55 Manalishi
Fakenham
2.13 Stormin Crossgales
2.48 Wind River
3.23 Sawpit Sienna
3.58 Diamond Koda
4.33 Ronnies Reflection
5.08 Claim du Brizais
Whistler Nap: Manalishi 5.55 Chepstow
Manalishi 5.55 Chepstow Marlborough Nap: North View 4.05 Kempton
We’ve ranked UK’s top bookies – come and see who comes out on top once you have got your tips for the day. | {
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42c434fd9cd2e4e6634a41d009265b08 | How Scotland could help England to win the Six Nations
England will face a mad dash back to the Principality Stadium for a possible trophy presentation during the finale of Six Nations’ Super Saturday.
Entering today’s final round of matches, Ireland, England and France all had a shot of winning the title with Scotland also mathematically in contention. Les Bleus are in the driving seat, knowing a win of any kind in the final match against Scotland at the Stade de France will be enough to secure the championship. Six Nations chief executive Tom Harrison will be in Paris to present the real trophy to Les Bleus should Fabien Galthié’s team see off Scotland.
However, if France slip up there are other permutations that have been accounted for by the Six Nations organisers. With England now mathematically guaranteed to finish above Ireland, if France lose or draw – even with a bonus point – then a presentation with a replica trophy on the pitch at the Principality Stadium will be held shortly after 10pm in front of the television cameras.
England plan to watch the first half of France’s match back at their team hotel in Cardiff Bay. If the game is in the balance at half-time, they will need to hotfoot it back to the Principality Stadium which will be closed to fans.
Here is what each team needs to win. | {
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fe8754eafb0de988ca79caaaabd2dcb2 | Liverpool dumped out of Europe after losing penalty shoot-out to Paris St-Germain
Liverpool manager Arne Slot says his side must produce their best performance of the season to keep their treble hopes alive as Paris Saint-Germain have vowed to conquer Anfield.
The Premier League leaders hold a one-nil lead despite being outplayed in the Parc des Princes a week ago. PSG coach Luis Enrique claims the winner at Anfield will proceed to the final in Munich on May 31, and there is no shortage of confidence from the French champions that they will overturn their deficit.
Slot did not agree it was a formality that victory would put the final in sight, but acknowledged his side is facing its most formidable opponent since he took over last summer.
“Yes, I do think so because they are the most complete team we have faced so far,” said Slot.
“What I mean by complete is we have faced Arsenal and [Man] City. Not that there are big margins but the intensity they played at, combined with the quality because we are talking here about probably the richest clubs, maybe there is one club a bit further ahead.
“They have so much quality and a great manager because he has the team playing in a way that is not easy to play against He brings the best out of every player and incredible work-rate and we have to be at our best. But, for example, we didn’t have ball possession at City away– the other richest club in the world together with Paris Saint-Germain – but at home, we had a completely different performance against City than away.”
Slot is in the midst of his biggest week since replacing Jürgen Klopp, having extended the Premier League lead to 15 points and with the League Cup final beckoning on Sunday.
But the Dutchman says he is not romanticising about the possibilities of lifting silverware.
“No, in a week like this I do not dream at all,” said Slot, who will welcome Cody Gakpo back from injury.
“If you have a game like we did last week, you feel like: ‘Can I even go to sleep at all? Or do I have to watch even more?.’ So no, I do not dream at all at the moment about this week. We are just focused on what we have to do tomorrow. It started very well in terms of beating Southampton. Now we are just looking forward. Everyone looks forward to a game of football like this, at Anfield, two great teams playing against each other.”
Enrique believes his players have what it takes to end Liverpool’s Champions League hopes.
“The game is bound to be more balanced but I am very optimistic with the ability my team has,” said Enrique. | {
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8fbc8178068a1caffb4fde8842050419 | What’s on TV tonight: Pilgrimage: The Road Through the Alps, The Cancellation of Kenny Everett, and more
Easter Sunday
Pilgrimage: The Road Through the Alps
BBC Two, 9pm
The Camino de Santiago is an ancient Catholic pilgrimage that took the faithful through the awe-inspiring Austrian and Swiss Alps. In this new series of the spiritual travelogue, seven celebrity pilgrims retrace the route. The Wanted’s Jay McGuiness is agnostic and hopes the three-part journey will provide clarity. Actor Helen Lederer finds herself caught between her Jewish father and a Protestant mother. While Catholic Harry Clark, winner of the second series of The Traitors, considers life after playing the role of a Judas.
Faith is a theme in much of the BBC’s Easter Sunday schedule. At 10am, BBC One airs an Easter Day Service live from St Mary Redcliffe in Bristol. Urbi et Orbi follows at 11am. It is yet unknown whether Pope Francis will take any part in the Easter message live from St Peter’s Square in Rome. For Songs of Praise at 1.15pm, Aled Jones celebrates Easter at St George’s Roman Catholic Cathedral in London. Today also sees the conclusion of Gareth Malone’s Messiah (BBC One, 11.15am), the uplifting reality series where Malone coaches eight amateurs to sing Handel’s choral classic. SK
Our Changing Planet
BBC One, 7pm
The docu-series returns with an investigation into the imperilled health of the world’s rivers. In California, Liz Bonnin follows the progress of the largest dam removal project in US history, which is aiming to resuscitate the river Klamath, which runs into southern Oregon. SK
Grace
ITV1, 8pm
The brutal murder of a young psychiatrist, strangled after a series of threatening text messages, pulls detective Grace (John Simm) into a web of affairs, betrayal and corruption. Could the killer be her ex-husband? An ex-patient? Or someone with show-altering consequences? SK
This City Is Ours
BBC One, 9pm
Tensions between ambitious gangster Michael (James Nelson-Joyce) and rival Jamie (Jack McMullen) threaten to boil over as murdered drug lord Ronnie (Sean Bean) is laid to rest. SK
The Piano
Channel 4, 9pm
Claudia Winkleman, Mika and Jon Batiste are in Brighton, in the hope of finding the next pianist superstar. Model-railway enthusiast Phil plays a boogie-woogie piece inspired by the rhythm of trains, while Jack disgusts the judges with a song about his girlfriend turning into a worm. SK
The Cancellation of Kenny Everett
Channel 5, 9pm
The series on “cancelled” celebrities continues with a profile of 1970s comedian Kenny Everett. Of special interest is his sacking from the BBC in 1970 for making a joke about a government minister’s wife. SK
Easter Monday | {
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5139b9a184fa166dadf137bd2f9130ac | Trump invites Zelensky back to White House
Donald Trump will invite Volodymyr Zelensky back to the White House after Ukraine agreed to a proposed ceasefire with Russia.
Mr Trump said he expects to speak to Russian leader Vladimir Putin later this week and he hopes Moscow will agree to the terms.
Following Tuesday’s talks between Ukraine and the US. the two nations said in a joint statement that the White House would “immediately lift the pause on intelligence sharing and resume security assistance to Ukraine”.
The statement added that Kyiv had also “expressed readiness to accept the US proposal to enact an immediate, interim 30-day ceasefire, which can be extended by mutual agreement of the parties, and which is subject to acceptance and concurrent implementation by the Russian Federation.”
“The United States will communicate to Russia that Russian reciprocity is the key to achieving peace.”
Speaking to reporters following the talks, Mr Trump said: “Ceasefire… Ukraine has agreed to it, and hopefully Russia will agree to it.”
Mr Trump added that he hopes the ceasefire will take effect “over the next few days” and he will speak to Mr Putin this week as it “takes two to tango”.
Asked whether Mr Zelensky was invited back to the White House, Mr Trump said: “Sure, absolutely”.
The Ukrainian president’s visit to Washington last month ended in a diplomatic disaster after an Oval Office meeting between the two leaders descended into a shouting match.
Appearing to refer to Mr Zelensky’s last White House visit, Mr Trump said: “I think it’s a big difference between the last visit you saw in the Oval Office, and this.”
Mr Zelensky confirmed he had accepted the US proposal for a “complete” 30-day truce.
“Ukraine accepts this proposal, we consider it positive, we are ready to take such a step. The United States of America must convince Russia to do this,” he said. | {
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"summary": "",
"title": "Trump invites Zelensky back to White House",
"url": "https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/03/11/ukraine-russia-war-latest-news-ceasefire-talks-us/"
} |
dc60a7fb24ea75c8f55423723a76e22a | Trump tariff chaos rattles global stock markets
Stock markets were plunged into chaos after Donald Trump threatened to double tariffs on imports of steel and aluminium from Canada.
The US President’s escalating trade war sparked volatility across Wall Street, as America’s S&P 500 fell by as much as 1.5pc before rebounding later in the day.
Markets whipsawed after a string of surprise tariff announcements from both the US and Canada, as investors responded to Ontario’s decision to backtrack on a surcharge on power sales to America.
This came after Mr Trump vowed to impose 50pc tariffs on Canadian metals from Wednesday, with the White House later abandoning the plans just hours before they were due to be implemented.
The erratic trade announcements led to the “fear index” of market volatility hitting highs not seen since last summer’s recession scare in the US.
Global investor panic led to the UK’s FTSE 100 falling by another 1.2pc, losing 4.2pc since the start of last week. The dollar also fell to its lowest level since Mr Trump’s election victory in November.
Mr Trump’s latest tariffs threat marked an escalation in the tit-for-tat spat with Canada, traditionally one of America’s closest allies.
The US President called Ontario’s proposed electricity surcharge an “abusive threat”.
Posting on his Truth Social website, Mr Trump said: “I have instructed my Secretary of Commerce to add an ADDITIONAL 25pc Tariff, to 50pc, on all STEEL and ALUMINUM COMING INTO THE UNITED STATES FROM CANADA, ONE OF THE HIGHEST TARIFFING NATIONS ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.”
The President added that Ottawa must reduce “outrageous” border taxes on American dairy products and said the extension of expensive US military support to its northern neighbour “cannot continue”.
“The only thing that makes sense is for Canada to become our cherished Fifty First State,” Mr Trump said, as he reiterated calls to absorb the country into the US.
“This would make all Tariffs, and everything else, totally disappear.”
Mark Carney, Canada’s incoming Prime Minister, said the country would not back down until it is shown “respect” by the US.
Mr Carney, the former Bank of England governor, said: “President Trump’s latest tariffs are an attack on Canadian workers, families, and businesses. My government will ensure our response has maximum impact in the US and minimal impact here in Canada, while supporting the workers impacted.
“My government will keep our tariffs on until the Americans show us respect and make credible, reliable commitments to free and fair trade.”
The latest bout of market turbulence has come amid mounting fears that Mr Trump’s policies risk dragging the US and the rest of the world into a global recession.
The White House played down fears of an economic downturn, arguing the President is reforming the economy.
When asked about the market chaos on Tuesday, Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary said: “When it comes to the stock market, the numbers ... are a snapshot of a moment in time.
“We are in a period of economic transition ... from the mess created under Joe Biden”.
Ms Leavitt also explained how America’s relationship with Canada is shifting: “They are a neighbour. They are a partner. They have always been an ally. Perhaps they are becoming a competitor now.”
Separately, Mr Trump also made a show of support for Elon Musk’s Tesla by purchasing a vehicle from the billionaire’s electric car company.
Mr Trump wrote on social media: “Elon Musk is ‘putting it on the line’ in order to help our Nation, and he is doing a FANTASTIC JOB!
“But the Radical Left Lunatics, as they often do, are trying to illegally and collusively boycott Tesla, one of the World’s great automakers, and Elon’s ‘baby,’ in order to attack and do harm to Elon, and everything he stands for.”
Tesla shares are down 42pc since the start of the year.
Meanwhile, JP Morgan upgraded its forecasts for British economic growth amid predictions that the UK will dodge the worst of Mr Trump’s trade war.
Allan Monks, an economist at the bank, said: “Recent rhetoric from the US administration has hinted at a potential exemption for the UK with the two countries apparently working on a trade agreement.
“That remains to be seen, and in any case, there is still likely to be an indirect adverse impact via the EU. But it does suggest a smaller tariff drag in the UK.”
Read the latest updates below. | {
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} |
a38b003866dc2cca190db4b923bf912f | Golden Ace wins most dramatic Champion Hurdle in history... and was not even backed by owner
Golden Ace, a 25-1-shot trained by a former farmer on Exmoor, won the most dramatic Unibet Champion Hurdle in the championship’s 98-year history.
Two former winners ended up on the deck with Constitution Hill, the 1-2 favourite, falling at the fifth and State Man, last year’s winner, going down with a second title all but in the bag.
With a strong West Country contingent in the crowd and no doubt a few bookmakers cheering as they were saved a £10 million payout on Constitution Hill, the Lorcan Williams-ridden mare was hailed on her lap of honour around the paddock like a true champion while Jeremy Scott’s name was chanted to the rafters. And to think the winning horse cost just 12,000 guineas.
They talk of the glorious uncertainty of racing and the 2025 Champion Hurdle encapsulated it in a nutshell. What other sport could provide such drama in just under four minutes?
First Constitution Hill, the 1-2 favourite, travelling comfortably well in third but too far out to be called the winner, took one liberty too many standing way too far off the fifth flight of hurdles, clipping the top and coming down.
That left Brighterdaysahead to take it up but last year’s winner State Man, at 8-1 the forgotten horse in the race, ranged alongside her on the home turn and began to power away to be hailed, it seemed, a two-time champion in the era of Constitution Hill.
But like his nemesis, he was similarly long at the last. Paul Townend saw a long one, went for it and the horse came up for him but clipped the top, an inch too low, took a heavy fall and baulked Brighterdaysahead, while Golden Ace deftly sidestepped the rising State Man and galloped up the hill for a shock nine-length win over 66-1 shot Burdett Road.
As long as Scott, 63, trains and Williams, 25, rides, they will never have another day like this when fortune shone on them and Lady Luck chose to ride pillion with Williams rather than either Nico de Boinville or Townend.
Two days before the race Scott had even queried the owner Ian Gosden’s decision to go for the Champion rather than the mares’ race, but they decided to try to pick up a few quid for finishing fourth in the Champion.
Ironically, until he sent out three winners last Friday, Scott’s winter had been like the weather on Exmoor, indifferent. But his horses were coming into form and Golden Ace clearly likes this time of year, and the place where she has now won three times from four starts.
“My team at home will be as flabbergasted as I am, they’ll definitely be reaching for the drinks cabinet,” said Scott, who credited wife Camilla with being the genius in the team. “Absolutely amazing.
“Lorcan is part of the team and we work really well together. He’s not had an easy season, as we haven’t, really. I couldn’t even dream it – for God’s sake thump me, because I must be fast asleep!
“Those two coming down spoilt the race entirely, but we looked booked for second or third before State Man came down, so it’s marred by that, really, but I’m just delighted that the gods have favoured us.
“My owner and I were not at loggerheads, because ultimately he pays the bills, but he was very keen to have a runner here today, we thought we could nick a little bit of prize money, and we didn’t feel we could possibly beat Lossiemouth [in the Mares’ Hurdle], so it’s extraordinary how things work out.”
Williams was equally surprised. “I cannot believe it,” he said. “She wasn’t travelling as well as I wanted in the latter part of the race; all I was thinking was that we could do with a bit further, then I thought, ‘We’re staying on well for second’, and things started to happen. We were there to pick up the pieces. I hope this day never ends – I’m just shell-shocked.”
Gosden admitted he had not even backed Golden Ace because he felt she could not finish in the top two. “Who dares wins, Rodney,” he quipped.
It was not the worst day of Willie Mullins’s career by a long chalk. He still won the Supreme Hurdle with Kopek Des Bordes and the Mares’ Hurdle with Lossiemouth.
“He was just long at it and popped the top of it, but these things happen,” he said. “The hurdles are there to be jumped. I’m just delighted he is OK.”
Nicky Henderson, who got off the mark for this year’s meeting when Jango Baie flew up the hill to win the My Pension Expert Arkle, proving that you do not need a big field to provide a terrific finish, reflected that if you are going to play this game, you have to take what comes.
“The horse is fine and Nico is fine,” he reflected. “State Man and Paul Townend are fine. State Man had the race won, we didn’t get that far. We’d probably both like to go to Punchestown now.”
A crowd of 55,500 was, as predicted, down a little, but the balance between busy enough and yet comfortable felt right while Britain finished day one 4-3 up on Ireland in the Prestbury Cup.
But actually it was a great day for all four nations with Scotland’s Lucinda Russell winning “her” race, the Ultima, and Wales’s Rebecca Curtis winning the National Hunt Chase with Haiti Couleurs. Dramatic, however, barely begins to cover Golden Ace’s day in the sun.
Analysis: How Champion Hurdle descended into chaos | {
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"Marcus Armytage",
"Tom Morgan",
"Live Updates.",
"Racing Correspondent.",
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"title": "Golden Ace wins most dramatic Champion Hurdle in history... and was not even backed by owner",
"url": "https://www.telegraph.co.uk/racing/2025/03/11/cheltenham-festival-day-1-live-tips-constitution-hill/"
} |
b49ba0672b91f722f87a5faf92bafa12 | The best all-inclusive hotels in Greece
With sparkling seas, pristine beaches, stylish accommodation and seriously fun activities, Greece’s holiday resorts are just right for a worry-free, all-inclusive trip – with or without the kids in tow. Food is a major plus here, in the home of the Mediterranean diet, and many packages include à la carte dining options along with wines from first-rate producers.
Away from the table you’ll find sleek infinity pools, impressive sports facilities and calm-inducing spas to retreat to, amid an array of other enticing amenities. From serene adults-only properties perfect for sun-seeking couples to vast resorts where families are warmly welcomed, here’s our pick of the very best all-inclusive hotels in Greece. | {
"authors": [
"Heidi Fuller-Love",
"Travel Writer"
],
"image_url": "https://www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/Travel/hotels/2025/march/ikos-odisia-lead-image.jpg?impolicy=OG-Standard",
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"summary": "",
"title": "The best all-inclusive hotels in Greece",
"url": "https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/greece/articles/best-all-inclusive-hotels-resorts-greece/"
} |
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