Saturday, 27 April 2013

FW: Win puts Ajax on verge of Dutch title hat-trick

 

 

Feed: Sport Yahoo UK
Posted on: Sunday, April 28, 2013 04:38
Author: Sport Yahoo UK
Subject: Win puts Ajax on verge of Dutch title hat-trick

 

By Theo Ruizenaar

ROTTERDAM (Reuters) - Ajax Amsterdam stayed firmly on course for a third straight Dutch championship title after winning 2-0 at NAC Breda on Saturday.

The leaders have 70 points with two matches remaining and can secure the crown next week with a victory at home to bottom club Willem II Tilburg.

Breda, five points above the relegation playoffs, played well in the first half and went close to scoring when a header from Eric Botteghin hit the bar.

Iceland striker Kolbeinn Sigthorsson then put the visitors in front two minutes into the second half when he netted despite having his back to goal.

Five minutes later Tim Gilissen headed the ball into his own goal as he tried to clear a corner at the near post.

"It wasn't easy today. They started at a furious pace and put us under pressure but the opening goal settled us down," said Ajax skipper Siem de Jong.

Jeremain Lens struck twice as second-placed PSV Eindhoven remained four points off the pace with a 5-2 win over Groningen.

Tim Matavz, Dries Mertens (penalty) and Mark van Bommel were also on target for PSV while Michael de Leeuw bagged a double for Groningen.

Second from bottom VVV Venlo raced four points clear of Willem II with a 1-1 draw at ADO Den Haag.

The bottom club go down and the next two teams go through to a relegation playoff.

(Editing by Tony Jimenez)


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FW: Number one Selby knocked out of world championship

 

 

Feed: Sport Yahoo UK
Posted on: Sunday, April 28, 2013 03:37
Author: Sport Yahoo UK
Subject: Number one Selby knocked out of world championship

 

(Reuters) - The world's top-ranked player Mark Selby was knocked out of the world snooker championship 13-10 after a stunning comeback by Barry Hawkins at the Crucible in Sheffield, England on Saturday.

Selby was attempting to add the world title to his UK and masters crowns but, having led the last-16 match 9-7 overnight, saw his opponent dominate the rest of the encounter.

"I struggled all the way through the match," Selby was quoted as saying on the official website (www.worldsnooker.com).

"Barry played a lot better than me and scored a lot better than me. It is the same old story really, most of this season I have been struggling like that. I have won two majors but I have not really played that well."

Only four players - Steve Davies, Stephen Hendry and Mark Williams - have won the three major titles in the same season.

Selby missed the chance to go 10-7 ahead when he missed a relatively simple black and struggled to regain momentum.

Australian Open champion and world number 14 Hawkins will meet either Mark King or Ding Junhui in the last eight.

"It is my best ever result," he said. "It feels like I have won the world championship but I have not even made it through the quarter-finals yet."

Ronnie O'Sullivan leads Ali Carter, who he beat in last year's final, 5-3 with eight frames scheduled for Sunday.

(Reporting by Josh Reich; Editing by Ken Ferris)


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Tuesday, 23 April 2013

PREVIEW-Soccer-Lewandowski affect extremley unlikely that will reduction Dortmund center

Feed: Sport Yahoo UK
Posted on: Tuesday, April 23, 2013 15:35
Author: Sport Yahoo UK
Subject: PREVIEW-Soccer-Lewandowski knock unlikely to dent Dortmund focus

 

An injury scare to Bundesliga top scorer Robert Lewandowski is unlikely to derail unbeaten Borussia Dortmund's focus ahead of their Champions League semi-final first leg against Real Madrid on Wednesday as they bid for their first final spot since 1997.

Poland international Lewandowski, who scored for a 12th consecutive league game in their 2-0 win against Mainz 05 on Saturday, picked up a knock on his thigh but said he hoped to be fit in time for the match in Dortmund.

"I felt some pain in the final minute (after a first-half knock) and hope it does not swell up," he said after Dortmund secured their Champions League spot for next season. "I hope there's enough time until Wednesday."

Lewandowski is Dortmund's most prolific scorer in Europe this season with six goals and two assists in 10 games.

"The game against Mainz was strange because we also kept thinking of the Madrid game. I want to score at least one goal every time I play and if I can achieve that against Madrid then even better."

For coach Juergen Klopp's young team, which won consecutive Bundesliga titles in 2011 and 2012, it is a career highlight, with the 1997 Champions League winners back in the last four for the first time in 15 years.

"This is the biggest game so far that my boys will have to play," Klopp told reporters.

The last time they reached this stage - in 1998 - it was Real who eliminated them en route to the title.

The nine-time European champions are no strangers to Dortmund this season either with the Germans beating them in Dortmund and Real escaping with a last-gasp 2-2 draw in Madrid in the group stage.

With central defender Mats Hummels and Jakub Blaszczykowski gradually hitting top form after their injury breaks, Klopp has a full squad to choose from.

"We are ready to give it everything we have against the biggest club in the world because if you reach the semi-final then you obviously want to get into that final," Klopp said.

MARCELO ABSENCE

Real's 3-1 La Liga victory at home to Real Betis on Saturday came at a cost, with fullback Marcelo and midfielder Luka Modric picking up muscle injuries.

Goalkeeper Diego Lopez and forward Karim Benzema complained of knocks but assistant coach Aitor Karanka said neither seemed serious.

With right back Alvaro Arbeloa suspended, coach Jose Mourinho will have to shuffle his defence and is likely to switch Sergio Ramos over to replace his Spain team mate and bring France centre back Raphael Varane into the middle alongside Pepe.

Still only 19, the pacy and athletic Varane, who was introduced to the club by former France and Real player Zinedine Zidane, has impressed with a series of mature performances this season, particularly against Real's arch-rivals Barcelona.

"This is a key position, and you must bring some security, that's very important," Varane told the club website (www.realmadrid.com). "You must also communicate well and have a good sense of positioning. In this position you play a lot with your head, you have to think a lot, these are important skills to possess.

"We have seen that they (Dortmund) are a very good team. They have not reached the semi-finals by chance, we saw in the group phase that they have a quality squad. We will need to be strong and play very well.

"It's true that they are a team who switch into attack very fast, they love attacking. That is our game as well, so those are always nice games to follow."

Teams (probable):

Borussia Dortmund: 1-Roman Weidenfeller; 26-Lukasz Piszczek, 4-Neven Subotic, 15-Mats Hummels, 29-Marcel Schmelzer; 8-Ilkay Guendogan, 18-Nuri Sahin; 16-Jakub Blaszczykowski, 10-Mario Goetze, 11-Marco Reus; 9-Robert Lewandowski

Real Madrid: 41-Diego Lopez; 4-Sergio Ramos, 3-Pepe, 2-Raphael Varane, 5-Fabio Coentrao; 6-Sami Khedira, 14-Xabi Alonso; 22-Angel Di Maria, 10-Mesut Ozil, 7-Cristiano Ronaldo; 9-Karim Benzema

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Sunday, 14 April 2013

Today: Scott wins Masters in playoff

AUGUSTA, Georgia (Reuters) - Former champion Angel Cabrera of Argentina stayed on track for a third major title by moving two strokes clear of the field midway through Sunday's final round at the Masters.

The 43-year-old from Cordoba, who clinched his first green jacket in a three-way playoff for the 2009 Masters, birdied the second and seventh to reach the turn in two-under 34, nine under for the tournament.

His American playing partner, Brandt Snedeker, was alone in second at seven under with Australians Jason Day and Adam Scott a further stroke back in a tie for third.

Day had completed 10 holes and Scott nine on a wet, overcast day at Augusta National where they were each hoping to end an Australian jinx at the Masters by winning a first green jacket for their country.

Another Australian, Marc Leishman, was at five under while four-times champion and pre-tournament favourite Tiger Woods was six strokes off the pace after 11 holes.

Woods' bid for a 15th major title, and his first since 2008, was effectively ended when he made bogeys at the fifth and seventh, though he rebounded with successive birdies at the ninth and 10th to get back to three under.

Day made an explosive birdie-eagle start to the final round, sinking a slick 20-footer at the par-four first before holing out from a greenside bunker to eagle the par-five second.

That briefly put the 25-year-old in the outright lead but he was joined at the top after Snedeker birdied the first and Cabrera two-putted for birdie at the second.

Snedeker, co-leader overnight, faltered with bogeys at the fourth and fifth in steady drizzle and 2007 U.S. Open champion Cabrera forged ahead when he struck a superb approach to inside a foot at the par-four seventh and tapped in the birdie putt.

GRIPPING FINISH

The opening major of the year was once again seemingly heading for a gripping finish under leaden skies at Augusta National where possible thunderstorms have been forecast for later in the day.

Huge roars echoed around the 18th green well before the leaders teed off after China's 14-year-old Guan Tianlang, the feel-good story of the tournament, two-putted for par to sign off with a 75.

The youngest competitor ever at the Masters, Asia-Pacific Amateur champion Guan had already clinched the silver cup awarded to the low amateur at the Masters after becoming the youngest player to make the cut at a major championship.

"The whole week was great for me," a remarkably composed and thoughtful Guan told reporters after finishing at 12-over-par. "I really enjoy it, and I'm having fun. I learned a lot.

"It's not easy to play here, to make the cut and be low amateur. I think I did a pretty good job this week and can't believe it's over."

Northern Irish world number two Rory McIlroy, whose Masters title bid was derailed by his third-round 79, signed off with a 69 for a two over total of 290.

"I played well. It was tough conditions the first couple of days and I was in a good position going into the weekend," said McIlroy. "I didn't quite have it all yesterday and that really cost me. You have to be right on your game for 72 holes here."

Three-times Masters champion Phil Mickelson concluded a disappointing week with a 73 to finish at nine over, two strokes worse than fellow American and defending champion Bubba Watson who closed with a 77.

The low point of Watson's round came at the par-three 12th where he ran up an ugly 10 after finding the water of Rae's Creek three times.

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Friday, 12 April 2013

England's banner lures higher in the Experts

AUGUSTA, Georgia (Reuters) - Justin Rose, Lee Westwood and David Lynn kept their country's flag flying high at the Masters on Friday as they stayed on track to earn England a first victory at Augusta National in nearly two decades.

It has been 17 years since compatriot Nick Faldo surged past Greg Norman to claim his third green jacket in the season's opening major and the English trio were well placed to follow suit after ending the second round three strokes off the lead.

World number three Rose and 13th-ranked Westwood each carded 71s while Lynn returned a 73 on a tricky day for scoring in the face of several tough pin positions as the breezes swirled amid the Georgian pines.

"I just I need to warm my putter up," Rose, 32, told reporters after finishing at three-under 141. "I haven't made a putt in two days and I am where I am, so I'm very encouraged by that.

"I'm trying to stay patient right now. And typically, when I've won tournaments, that's what's happened. My putter has heated up on the weekend and I've been able to take advantage of my good play.

"So I feel like I played very well the first two days and I'm just waiting for that blade to warm up. If I stay patient, I give myself a very good chance that that will happen."

Rose has not won a title in over a year but has been ultra-consistent this season, recording top-10 finishes in his last three PGA Tour starts, including runner-up spot behind Tiger Woods at last month's Arnold Palmer Invitational.

PLODDING PLAY

Westwood, widely viewed as the best player of his generation yet to win a major, has posted two top-threes in his last three appearances at the Masters and was delighted with his "plodding" play on Friday.

"I did what I needed to do with the conditions, in the conditions," the former world number one said after ending his round with two birdies in the last five holes.

"I played solidly. I hit it in the right places a lot of the time. I didn't hit it in the wrong places very often, just once on the fifth in the trap.

"And I was plodding my way around the golf course like you have to when it gets tricky around here. It just feels like that kind of day and that kind of week where nobody's going to run away. It's a difficult golf course to shoot really low on."

Lynn, who stunned the golfing world with a runner-up finish at last year's PGA Championship in only his second major appearance, followed his opening 68 with a 73 but was thrilled to remain in contention after playing "boring" golf.

"I was just grinding out the pars," the 39-year-old journeyman said after matching his two compatriots by ending the day on a flourish with a birdie at the par-four 18th.

"I actually had quite a few chances on the back nine, so to finally finish with a birdie ... I hit a fantastic shot into the last to about six feet.

"As we can see by the numbers on the scoreboard, nobody is running away with it, so boring is good."

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Bertrand and Ba should be back for Chelsea's Wembley trip

LONDON (Reuters) - Holders Chelsea should have striker Demba Ba and defender Ryan Bertrand available for Sunday's FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City at Wembley.

Senegal international Ba, who was ineligible for Thursday's Europa League quarter-final at Rubin Kazan, suffered an ankle problem in last weekend's 2-1 Premier League victory over Sunderland and had to go off at halftime.

England fullback Bertrand, who has been deputising in the absence of the injured Ashley Cole, missed the trip to Russia due to illness.

Interim manager Rafael Benitez told a news conference that Ba and Bertrand took part in a light training session on Friday and he expected both players to be in his squad against City.

Cole and centre back Gary Cahill are again out with long-term injury problems.

Second-placed City beat Chelsea 2-0 in the Premier League in February but Benitez said he learned some valuable lessons from that defeat at the Etihad Stadium.

"We know what we did wrong when we played against them," said the Spaniard. "We will try to do these things well on Sunday.

"City are in a good position in the table and they did well against Manchester United the other day," added Benitez, referring to their 2-1 win over the Premier League leaders on Monday.

"We know it will be difficult but it is a semi-final of a massive competition."

A much-changed Chelsea side lost 3-2 against Rubin in Moscow and squeezed through 5-4 on aggregate to set up a Europa League semi-final against Swiss club Basel.

The European champions have had five fixtures in 13 days and Benitez was full of praise for the way his players had dealt with their gruelling schedule.

"The squad are doing really well," he said. "They are working very hard and I can change players and still keep a good level so I am really pleased with that.

"It is an advantage (for City), I don't know how much but we are trying to manage our squad and team selection and we have some players with fresh legs."

 

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Thursday, 11 April 2013

The Premier League sought to put an end to contentious goalline decisions by approving the introduction of technology and adopting the British Hawk-Eye system on Thursday

Feed: Sport Yahoo UK
Posted on: Thursday, April 11, 2013 21:12
Author: Sport Yahoo UK
Subject: English Premier League chooses Hawk-Eye system

 

All 20 top-flight clubs voted to approve the technology at a meeting of Premier League chairman.

The decision comes a week after world soccer's governing body FIFA approved the appointment of German-based GoalControl for the Confederations Cup in Brazil this year and the World Cup in 2014.

"The Premier League is pleased to announce that it has awarded Hawk-Eye, the world's leading provider of vision processing instruments to sport, the contract to provide goalline technology systems across its 20 member clubs and all 380 Barclays Premier League matches," the league said in a statement.

"This will be the first time that goalline technology is used in any domestic competition."

The British based company Hawk-Eye known for its ball-tracking technology used in tennis and cricket, claims to be "millimetre accurate ensuring no broadcast replays could disprove the decision".

The system to be used in the Premier League will notify the referee if the ball has crossed the line within one second.

The Football Association wants technology to be introduced at the pre-season Community Shield fixture after lobbying for it for some time, sanctioning its testing at an England v Belgium international friendly last June.

Installation of the system, which involves seven cameras behind each goal, is expected to take up to six weeks to complete at the 20 clubs competing in the Premier League next season.

While FIFA's European cousin UEFA steadfastly refuses to adopt technology, preferring instead to use extra officials behind the goal, crucial momentum now seems to have swung behind using electronic systems.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter was convinced by the failure of officials to award a goal in England's World Cup clash with Germany in 2010 when a Frank Lampard shot clearly crossed the line.

The debate intensified during Euro 2012 when co-hosts Ukraine were denied an equaliser as the ball appeared to cross the line in a 1-0 defeat by England, despite UEFA's extra official being positioned behind the goal.

 

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