■ Baseball
Marines crush Blue Wave
South Korean slugger Lee Seung-yeop connected for his first homer in Japan Friday as the Lotte Marines cruised to a 12-2 victory over the Orix BlueWave in a preseason exhibition game. Lee, who broke the Asian single-season home run record with 56 homers last season for the Samsung Lions, hit a solo homer in the second inning at Yahoo BB Stadium as the Marines took a 5-0 lead. Kazuya Fukuura, Koichi Hori and Masaumi Shimizu also homered for the Marines. Lotte starter Tomohiro Kuroki, looking to make a comeback after several injury-plagued seasons, picked up the win after giving up two runs on three hits over three innings. At Nagoya Dome, Masahiko Morino belted a two-run homer in the seventh inning to power the Chunichi Dragons to a 4-0 victory over the Seibu Lions.
■ Soccer
Maradona blasts agent
Argentine soccer great Diego Maradona has accused his longtime agent of mismanaging his finances, saying in a television interview he was "betrayed" by his former associate. "Some of my money is missing," Maradona told news talkshow El Diario de la Tarde on Wednesday, accusing former manager Guillermo Coppola of mishandling his funds. "He was the only one in charge of my things," Maradona said. "Coppola betrayed me. There is no other way around it." Coppola did not immediately respond to the accusations. The comments by the former Argentine captain marked another turbulent twist in the nearly 20-year relationship between Maradona and his former manager, who for years were practically inseparable. Maradona said he has yet to account for hundreds of thousands of dollars in royalties and other fees, some of it proceeds from a 2001 farewell match played in Buenos Aires.
■ Soccer
Man Utd eyes bigger stadium
Manchester United already has the biggest stadium in England. Now it wants to increase Old Trafford's seating capacity from 67,500 to 75,000 -- twice that of most clubs in the Premier League. United told the London Stock Exchange yesterday it had launched a feasibility study into the cost of filling in the two corners of the ground at the North Stand side, opposite the managers' dugouts. "Any decision to proceed will be taken by the board in due course and announced thereafter," the statement said. United has sold out every league match since Old Trafford's capacity was increased from 55,000 to 67,500 four years ago. News reports said the extra seats could generate more than ?400,000 (US$724,000) a year.
■ Rugby Union
Player steals taxi cab
The ACT Rugby Union yesterday barred Henari Veratau from the Brumbies' tour to South Africa after he was charged by police with stealing a cab in Canberra, the union said. Veratau, a 20-year-old winger or center, was being held in the Canberra watch house yesterday until he appeared before magistrates court today. It is alleged a 38-year-old taxi driver was dragged from his seat after an argument over a fare early yesterday and had his cab stolen. ACT Rugby Union CEO Rob Clarke said his organization was cooperating with police and the union would conduct a separate internal investigation. "We've been in touch with the police and we'll do what we can to assist them with their investigation," he said. "We've also opened a separate internal investigation into the matter." Clarke said the allegations and charges were extremely disappointing.
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