Any hopes Mark Proctor had of heading off a late challenge by John Collins for the Hibernian managerial post probably disappeared on Monday as his side were beaten 2-1 at Aberdeen in the Scottish Premiership.
Although Proctor had started off his reign as caretaker, following the departure of Tony Mowbray for West Brom, with a thumping 4-1 win over Dunfermline and earned the support of the players it seems inevitable that Collins, a former player there before moving onto play for Celtic and Monaco among other sides, would be named manager yesterday.
Hibs chances were not helped with striker Chris Killen earning his second sending-off of the season after a second bookable offence having earlier put Hibs into the lead with his third goal in two matches just after half-time.
However the Dons -- who moved into fourth place in the table 13 points adrift of leaders Celtic -- leveled through Lee Miller in the 55th minute and when Killen got his marching orders in the 65th minute -- one of six Hibs players to be booked -- his side had to mount a rearguard effort to keep a rampant Aberdeen at bay.
The hosts had two decent appeals for penalties turned down before Scott Severin saw a volley blocked by the goalkeeper Zbigniew Malkowski while Barry Nicholson should have scored instead of heading wide in front of an empty net.
His embarrassing miss was set aside when Severin got the winner in stoppage time and probably dealt the death knell for Proctor's hopes of a longer tenure.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two