|
Trainer Robin Bastiman says
his star horse Borderlescott
is in peak condition to
secure a third straight
victory at the Nunthorpe
Stakes.
The
eight-year-old was injured
at Glorious Goodwood, but
Bastiman expects a strong
showing in Friday's race.
"It
would be fantastic for him
to win the race again and
I've got him as well as I
can," said Bastiman.
Aidan O'Brien's
Starspangledbanner is the
bookmakers' favourite for
the Group One race.
Starspangledbanner won the
Golden Jubilee Stakes at
Royal Ascot and the July Cup
at Newmarket.
"He's a very quick horse,"
enthused O'Brien.
"We
were delighted with him at
Newmarket. Obviously he was
drawn out a little bit that
day. He's a very
straightforward horse. He
shows a lot of speed at home
and he's brave at the end of
his races.
"He'd be happy to get a lead
or he'd be happy to make the
running.
"From the first time he
worked, he always looked a
very good horse. He looked
that in Australia but the
thing that surprised us was
that he was able to get a
mile with that kind of
speed.
 |
He never
runs a bad
race and
hopefully
he'll be
somewhere
thereabouts
- I'm sure
he will be
Trainer
Robin
Bastiman on
Borderlescott
|
"He's a great horse and
we're looking forward to
seeing him run again."
Borderlescott's record in
the race makes him a worthy
contender, having proved the
best of the field at
Newmarket in 2008 and also
won last year's race at
Knavesmire.
"We
all know he comes right at
this time of year. He was
beaten by Equiano earlier in
the year but he wasn't at
his peak then and he is
now," added Bastiman.
"He
never runs a bad race and
hopefully he'll be somewhere
thereabouts - I'm sure he
will be."
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606: DEBATE
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Another former winner in the
field is Kingsgate Native,
who won back in 2007 as a
juvenile before an
unsuccessful spell in stud.
Now
back in action in Sir
Michael Stoute's colours,
Kingsgate Native's victory
in Haydock in May suggested
he still has plenty to
offer.
"He
seems in good shape. He
likes York and has won a
Nunthorpe already," stated
Stoute |
|
Source: BBC Sport |
|
Mancini expects James Milner
and Balotelli to sign soon
|
Balotelli and Milner
are poised to join Man City's roll call of
stars
|
Manchester City are
set to complete the signings of James Milner and Mario
Balotelli in the next few days, manager Roberto Mancini said
on Friday.
Milner's protracted move from Aston
Villa should go through within "two or three days," Mancini
revealed.
And a deal for Inter Milan striker
Balotelli could happen later on Friday.
England midfielder Milner's switch
is thought to have been held up by City midfielder Stephen
Ireland's demand for a £2m payment to leave Eastlands.
City have offered Aston Villa £18m
for Milner, 24, with Ireland moving in the opposite
direction as part of the deal.
But Ireland was understood to be
insisting on receiving £2m from City, a sum the club were
unwilling to pay.
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|
606: DEBATE
|
Milner has been linked with a move
to big-spending City for most of the summer, with former
Villa boss Martin O'Neill - before his departure on Monday -
admitting he was resigned to losing the player.
Mancini said: "We need another two
or three days for this situation. We need everyone to be
happy."
Balotelli, 20, has been a long-term
transfer target for Mancini and it is believed he will cost
City around £24m.
The deal would take City's summer
spending over the £100m mark after the arrivals of Jerome
Boateng, David Silva, Yaya Toure and Aleksandar Kolarov.
Balotelli, who has Ghanian parents,
has scored 28 goals in 86 appearances for Inter since his
debut in December 2007.
But he fell out with former manager
Jose Mourinho last season and angered fans by allowing
himself to be photographed in AC Milan shirt.
Meanwhile, Mancini also revealed
that striker Craig Bellamy has been left out of his 25-man
squad for the new Premier League season, with
Fulham manager Mark Hughes leading the race for his
signature.
Villa target Ireland, 23, is a
product of City's academy and made his debut for the club in
2005.
But the influx of new players since
City's wealthy owner took over the club in 2009 has seen
Ireland drop down the pecking order.
The former Republic of Ireland
international, who is contracted at Eastlands until the end
of the 2013-14 season, made 30 appearances for the club in
2009-10.
Former Leeds and Newcastle
midfielder Milner joined Villa for £12m in 2008 and has
developed into a regular England international since joining
the club. |
Source: BBC Sport |
|
Tiger
Woods stays top of sport earnings list
|
Woods' amazing
near hole-in-one at the 2010 Open (UK only) click
here.
Golfer Tiger Woods
remains the world's top earner in sport for the seventh
successive year with £59.6m ($90.5m) despite a 10% reduction
in his income.
According to figures from Sports
Illustrated's SI.com, the American claims top spot ahead of
fellow golfer Phil Mickelson on £40.6m ($61.7m).
Tennis star Roger Federer heads the
international list on £40.7m ($61.8m).
Lionel Messi is the top footballer
with £29.5m ($44m) in second with David Beckham £26.6m
($40.5m) in third.
Portugal and Real Madrid winger
Cristiano Ronaldo lies in fourth place with earnings of
£26.3m ($40m), while five-weight world boxing champion Manny
Pacquiao is next on the list with £25m ($38m).
In
Sports Illustrated's annual analysis
of the highest-earning athletes,
Woods keeps his place at the top of the pile, but his
estimated total earnings of more than £59.3m ($90m) are down
40% from nearly £84.3m ($128m) two years ago.
The world number one golfer has
failed to win any of the three majors he has played,
including most recently the Open at St Andrews, since he
returned from his self-imposed break from the sport
following revelations about extra-marital affairs.
His income for the 2010 list is
comprised of £13.5m ($20.5m) in earnings and £46.1m ($70m)
in endorsements.
The top 10 of highest-paid American
athletes includes four players from the National Basketball
Association, led by LeBron James in fourth with earnings of
£30.1m ($45.8m).
On the list of international
sporting stars, Spanish Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal on
£18.1m ($27.5m) is in ninth position, with Britain's Formula
1 stars Lewis Hamilton on £17.5m ($26.7m) and Jenson Button
with £15.2m ($23.1m) in 10th and 15th place respectively.
Argentina and Manchester City
striker Carlos Tevez is the only representative from the
English Premier League in
the international top 20 list
with earnings of £20.5m.
LA Galaxy midfielder Beckham had
held top spot on the list of highest-paid international
stars for two years but now sees Switzerland's tennis star
Federer jumping from last year's ninth spot to the top in
2010.
Source: BBC Sport |
|
Andres Iniesta
struck a dramatic winner
late in extra time to give
Spain World Cup glory for
the first time but condemned
the Netherlands to their
third defeat in a final.
Iniesta
drilled his right-foot
strike across goal - but the
Dutch were incensed after
referee Howard Webb had
failed to award their side a
corner moments earlier when
a free-kick took a sizeable
deflection off Cesc Fabregas.
However, Euro 2008 champions
Spain, who conceded only two
goals during the tournament,
deserved their victory after
gradually taking a grip on a
tense and bad-tempered
contest that produced 14
yellow cards with Johnny
Heitinga sent off on 109
minutes after picking up a
second yellow card.
The
Dutch, who lost in the 1974
and 1978 finals, were
bidding to become the first
side since Brazil in 1970 to
go through World Cup
qualifying and the finals
unbeaten.
They
had a glorious chance to
take the lead in the second
half but Arjen Robben,
comfortably his team's most
potent attacking weapon,
could find no way past Spain
captain Iker Casillas, who
slumped to the floor and
cried tears of joy after the
final whistle.
Sergio
Ramos was equally culpable
of a glaring miss for Spain
when he headed over and
substitute Fabregas, as with
Robben before him, also
failed to convert a
one-on-one chance.
But it
was from a through ball by
the influential Fabregas
that midfielder Iniesta
struck making Spain the
first team to win a World
Cup after losing their
opening game of the
tournament.
Spain
also became the team to win
the World Cup having scored
the fewest number of goals -
finding the net eight times
in their seven matches. The
previous mark was held by
three teams, including
England in 1966.
The
dramatic finale at Soccer
City was in stark contrast
to a hugely underwhelming
opening 45 minutes, which
was a brutal disappointment
after the spectacular
opening ceremony and moving
appearance by former
president Nelson Mandela
that had preceded it.
Spain
dominated possession in the
opening minutes and looked
to have the measure of an
uncertain Dutch backline.
Ramos almost put them ahead
after just four minutes but
his thunderous header was
brilliantly saved by Maarten
Stekelenburg.
The
Netherlands could not get a
grip on the game but were
helped by a spate of yellow
cards from referee Webb that
disturbed the rhythm of the
match.
Webb
booked five players in the
opening 28 minutes, although
several crude challenges
left him with little option.
Dutch
enforcer Mark van Bommel was
booked after going through
the back of Iniesta, while
Nigel de Jong was lucky to
escape red after planting
his foot in the chest of
Xabi Alonso.
Robben
did force a decent save from
Casillas with a low
left-foot strike after
cutting inside during
stoppage time.
But the
match had degenerated to the
extent that Alonso opted to
shoot with a free-kick on
the wrong side of 40 yards
instead of a seeking out a
team-mate.
Spain
defender Joan Capdevila
wasted a good chance shortly
after the restart, failing
to make contact with a
Carles Puyol flick-on.
The
bookings continued after the
break and the contest
occasionally threatened to
boil over as the tension
appeared to affect the
players.
But
there were also a few
moments of real quality,
none more so than a
sumptuous through ball from
the largely anonymous Wesley
Sneijder that played Robben
clean through on goal.
Robben
delayed his shot but,
equally, Casillas stood his
ground as long as possible
and brilliantly saved with
his legs.
It was
a head-in-hands moment for
Robben, but one quickly
followed for Spain when a
completely unmarked Ramos
headed a corner over the
crossbar.
Robben's pace troubled the
Spanish defence throughout
and another burst from the
Bayern Munich man unsettled
Puyol, who appeared to
impinge his opponent. Robben,
just outside the penalty
area, chose to stay on his
feet and Casillas again
denied him.
Spain
had moved into the
ascendancy as the match wore
on, with Xavi increasingly
influential.
Fabregas replaced Alonso in
the 87th minute and quickly
made an impression by
collecting a superb Iniesta
pass, but the Arsenal man
could find no way beyond
Stekelenberg, who saved
brilliantly with his legs.
The
complement was returned
shortly afterwards but
Iniesta opted not to strike
from 18 yards and was
eventually dispossessed by
the excellent Gregory van
der Wiel.
Heitinger became the fifth
man to be sent off in a
World Cup final when he
pulled back Iniesta on the
edge of the area, giving
Webb little choice but to
hand him a second caution,
and that seemed to spur
Spain on for a final effort.
Joris
Mathijsen headed over for
the Netherlands in what was
their only good chance of
the extra-time period before
Iniesta struck his late and
decisive
Source:
BBC Sport
|
Klose
nears record as Spain prepare
for biggest test
World Cup 2010: Durban
Miroslav Klose spent most of
last season warming the
bench at
Bayern Munich - but here
in South Africa he has been
of crucial importance to
Germany for the third World
Cup in succession.
His
brace against Argentina on
Saturday took him to four
goals in the current
tournament and
14 overall, level with
compatriot Gerd Muller and
one behind Brazil's Ronaldo.
The
32-year-old is now just a
good day at the office away
from becoming the
tournament's all-time
leading goalscorer.
In
an attempt to put this into
perspective, the Polish-born
Klose recently recalled a
conversation he had with
Ronaldo after the 2002
tournament.
The
Brazilian had just whacked
in eight goals, including a
brace in the 2-0 final win
over Germany - and Klose
remembers thinking that he
would never scale such heady
heights.
"Two
goals to go past his record
- it is just crazy," said
Klose after
the 4-0 victory over Diego
Maradona's team set up
Wednesday's semi-final tie
against Spain in Durban.
I
suspect many people would
agree with him.
He
scored five goals at
both the 2002 and 2006
World Cups, with
the latter tally enough
to secure the coveted
Fifa Golden Shoe Award.
But
the cynics might suggest
that
three of his goals in
2002 came in an 8-0
turkey-shoot against
Saudi Arabia.
All of his goals in 2002
were headers, while in
2006 he scored twice
against both
Costa Rica and
Ecuador - a record
which suggests a
one-dimensional forward
who scores the bulk of
his goals against weaker
opposition.
His domestic career -
all of which has been
spent in Germany - has
been a mixed bag. Last
season, for example, he
managed just three
Bundesliga goals for
Bayern.
Certainly, in terms of
reputation and profile,
Klose would be some way
down the list of
strikers to have played
at the World Cup since
he made his tournament
debut in 2002.
Consider the competition
at the start of the
tournament in South
Africa.
Cristiano Ronaldo,
Didier Drogba, Lionel
Messi, Wayne Rooney and
Kaka arrived as arguably
the big five
(although Spain's David
Villa might have
something to say about
that) but went home
having mustered two
goals between them.
Klose, by contrast,
might have seen red in
the defeat against
Serbia but is in
excellent goalscoring
form despite seeing
Ivica Olic and Mario
Gomez picked ahead of
him virtually all season
at Bayern.
Take, for example,
Klose's first goal in
the 4-1 thrashing of
England. He showed
the strength and
persistence to shake off
John Terry and Matthew
Upson and the instincts
of a true goal poacher
to expertly steer a long
clearance from Manuel
Neuer beyond David
James.
It showed that there is
so much more to his game
than his fabulous
heading ability.
"Since 2002, he has
always been a top
performer in the major
tournaments, always
great for the national
team, scoring decisive
goals," German coach
Joachim Loew told me
during Tuesday's media
session (just for the
record, he arrived four
minutes early).
"When it counts,
Miroslav is there. It is
not a surprise to me
that he is scoring
goals."
He is the type of player
who responds to
encouragement from those
around him, particularly
the coach. Perhaps that
is why Klose thrives
under Loew but struggled
last season under Bayern
boss Louis van Gaal, who
has a more removed
management style.
"Miroslav is fantastic
in various ways," added
Loew. "He integrates
well with our style of
play and is excellent at
assessing his own
performance.
"He knew when he joined
the squad that he had
not played as much as
the other players and he
knew that he had to
train harder."
In
a recent interview with
German newspaper Bild,
Klose explained that he
had put himself through
a strenuous personal
fitness routine towards
the end of last season.
As a consequence, he
lost weight and felt in
better shape than he had
for a long time.
The 2002 World Cup
runner-up, who won his
100th cap against
Argentina, also recently
stated that personal
scoring records are
inconsequential: leaving
South Africa with the
trophy is what matters.
To have a chance to do
that his side must
defeat Spain on
Wednesday in what will
be a rematch of
the Euro 2008 final.
The Spaniards deservedly
won 1-0 in Vienna, with
Fernando Torres scoring
in the first half.
Much has changed since,
not least the loss of
form by Torres after an
injury-troubled season
at Liverpool, as well as
the emergence of a new
generation of German
talent.
Mesut Ozil, Thomas
Mueller (who is
suspended on Wednesday)
and Sami Khedira have
all enjoyed excellent
tournaments. Khedira, a
replacement for the
injured Michael Ballack,
is the oldest of the
trio at 23.
The vibrancy, vim and
vivacity that they have
brought to the
tournament has been well
documented and should
ensure that Wednesday's
encounter is very
different to their
meeting two years ago.
Source: BBC Sport
|
England's World Cup
ended in a mixture of
humiliation and controversy
as they were thrashed by
Germany in Bloemfontein.
Germany's deserved win and
convincing victory margin
will be overshadowed forever
in the minds of Fabio
Capello and his squad by a
moment they believe robbed
them of the hope of reaching
the last eight.
Matthew
Upson had thrown England a
lifeline just before
half-time after a vastly
superior Germany had taken a
stranglehold on the game
with goals from Miroslav
Klose and Lukas Podolski.
But
moments after Upson's
header, in a grim echo of
Geoff Hurst's goal that
helped England to victory
over West Germany in the
1966 World Cup final, Frank
Lampard's superb lofted
finish landed feet over the
line behind German keeper
Manuel Neuer, an incident
obvious to almost everyone
inside the Free State
Stadium.
Capello
was leading the England
celebrations in his
technical area, only to be
stunned as Uruguayan referee
Jorge Larrionda and his
officials waved play on.
England's players and
coaching team, including
David Beckham, led vehement
protests as the teams went
off at half-time, but all to
no avail and Germany made
the most of their reprieve.
The
Germans will feel a measure
of justice has been restored
44 years on, but this was of
no consolation to the
modern-day England as insult
was added to injury by
Joachim Loew's gifted young
side.
Lampard
struck the bar as England
dominated the early stages
of the second half, but
stunning counter-attacks saw
Thomas Mueller score twice
in the space of three
minutes midway through the
second half to send Germany
into the last eight.
England, with some
justification, will bemoan
their luck but nothing must
disguise the manner in which
they were outclassed by
Germany in stages of this
game and also what has been
an ultimately bitterly
disappointing World Cup
campaign in South Africa.
The
brief hope of revival
offered by victory against
Slovenia that saw England
advance to the knockout
phase was snuffed out
emphatically here by their
old World Cup adversaries as
they suffered their heaviest
defeat at a major
championship.
England
paid the price for sloppy
defending that gifted
Germany goals - with central
defenders John Terry and
Upson having their
immobility exposed in
embarrassing fashion.
Wayne
Rooney will return home
having had minimal impact on
the World Cup, and Capello
himself must examine how
England can move forward
after being handed this
painful lesson by Germany.
Capello
chose to keep faith with
Upson - but the defender was
the central figure in a
moment of defending that was
almost indescribably bad as
Germany took the lead after
20 minutes.
Germany
keeper Neuer's long
clearance was routine, but
both Upson and Terry were
caught out of position, with
the West Ham defender
compounding his misjudgement
by being brushed aside for
Klose to stab home.
England
keeper David James, who had
earlier saved well from
Mesut Ozil, prevented
England from falling further
behind with a crucial block
from Klose as he raced
clear, but it was only a
temporary reprieve as
Germany extended their lead
12 minutes later.
Again
England were all at sea
defensively, with Podolski
left with time and space to
score from an angle after
Klose and Mueller carved
them wide open.
England
needed a swift response to
at least have some hope of
mounting a revival, and it
came from Upson as he made
amends for his earlier
error. He beat the flailing
Neuer to Steven Gerrard's
cross to head into an
unguarded net.
Then
came the moment of huge
controversy that will haunt
England and Capello for
years to come. Even from
high in the stands at the
Free State Stadium, it was
clear Lampard's audacious
chip had travelled well over
the line behind Neuer, but
as Capello celebrated,
England were stunned to find
play waved on.
Lampard's ill-luck continued
as England made a purposeful
start the second half. He
fired in a free-kick from 25
yards, but it rebounded off
the bar with the static
Neuer beaten.
The
danger was always that
Germany would strike on the
counter attack, and they did
to deadly effect as Mueller
reopened their two-goal
advantage after 67 minutes.
From
and England free-kick Gareth
Barry lost possession on the
edge of Germany's area,
allowing them to sweep to
the other end for Mueller to
fire past James from Bastian
Schweinsteiger's pass.
And it
was all over three minutes
later, with Barry at fault
again. He failed to deal
with a clearance near the
touchline, letting in Ozil
to provide Mueller with a
simple finish.
England
had nothing left to offer
and their World Cup campaign
ended with a whimper -
although they will complain
bitterly about the moment
they will feel had a
decisive effect on the
outcome of the game.
Source
: BBC Sport
|
Wimbledon 2010 First
Round
|
By Andy
Murray
World number
four and
British
number one
|
There's no escaping nerves
in the first round at
Wimbledon but I played well
for 90% of my opening match
against a tough opponent.
I feel better if I'm nervous
anyway, it's a really good
thing because it shows that
you've got something to play
for and that you really
care.
It was a tricky start as
Hajek began very well and
there were a couple of games
early on where I was a
little bit tentative, but
that's kind of normal and
once I got ahead I started
to play a lot better.
I hadn't seen him play
before and when you're
facing someone new you don't
quite know which side to
play to - and if you're
going to slice or change the
pace you need to know which
side you're going to do that
to.
As the match went on I got
more used to his game style
and played better, I started
to strike the ball cleaner.
 |
Nieminen's
very good -
he nearly
beat Roddick
a few weeks
ago at the
French and
he's got a
lot of
experience,
moves well,
and there
are not too
many holes
in his game
|
I've been hitting the ball
really, really well in
practice and I served well
at the beginning of the
match, which is something
I'm going to need to do if I
want to go deep in the
tournament.
And being on Court One for
my first match was a good
experience as it was the
first time I'd played there
during Wimbledon since I
beat Radek Stepanek in my
first year in 2005.
I have played on there in
the Davis Cup against
Croatia and Austria and it's
actually a really nice court
to play on.
After the match I did a
couple of hours of press and
was hoping to get back to
see at least the second half
of the Argentina game.
Being at home does make a
huge difference in switching
off, that's for sure. Once I
get back I can just watch
the football or some DVDs
and be around my family.
As for Wednesday, I'm
practising at 1pm so hoping
I'll get back in time for
the England game, but I'll
definitely be watching the
evening matches.
My focus will switch to the
second round and Jarkko
Nieminen, and I'll chat to
my coach Miles about that on
Thursday.
Miles went out to watch the
end of the match between
Nieminen and Koubek and saw
the fourth set. He's done a
little bit of scouting and
on Wednesday I'll try and
practice with a lefty to try
and get used to the serve,
as the spin that they put on
the ball is a little bit
different.
Nieminen's very good - he
nearly beat Roddick a few
weeks ago at the French and
he's got a lot of
experience, moves well, and
there are not too many holes
in his game. I'll need to
play well to beat him.
It was nice to play on Court
One but if I'm chosen to
play on Centre Court in
front of The Queen on
Thursday it will definitely
be something special.
That's probably not going to
happen too often in my
career, if ever again, so I
want to be prepared as best
as possible and hopefully
I'll put on a good
performance. I'll be
practising my bowing in
front of the mirror on
Wednesday night!
Source : BBC Sport |
|
|
Motty's day
seven preview
Thursday
sees Argentina back in action
for their second World Cup Group
B game as Diego Maradona's side
take on South Korea. Both sides
have three points, but can South
Korea contain Argentina's
formidable attacking line-up?
Greece,
who have yet to score a World
Cup goal in four games in two
tournaments, take on Nigeria in
Group B's other game, while
Raymond Domenech's struggling
France side meet Mexico in Group
A.
Here's
my day seven preview - click on
the video below to see my picks.
John Motson Preview Video
Source :
BBC Sport
|
|
