Jermain Defoe's double strike helped England cruise to a 3-0 friendly victory against Trinidad and Tobago on Sunday.
Fabio Capello must wish every match could be as easy as this stroll in the Caribbean sunshine at Port of Spain’s Hasely Crawford Stadium.
England flexed their muscles through Gareth Barry’s first international goal and a neat finish from Defoe within the opening 16 minutes.
PHOTO: AP
But, while Defoe staked his first team claim with another goal in the second half, Capello can have learnt little else, because Trinidad were the most obliging of hosts. They allowed England the time and space to dominate without ever needing to raise the tempo much beyond walking pace.
Yet the prospect of flying thousands of kilometers for a meaningless game at the end of a grueling season could have produced a less than committed display from Capello’s team. So it is to the Italian’s credit that England gave the match their full attention for a comfortable victory.
The absence of seven Manchester United and Chelsea players rested by Capello gave England’s understudies a rare chance to shine.
Dean Ashton finally made his debut, two years after a broken ankle denied the West Ham United forward his first international appearance.
There was also a first start in 15 months for Tottenham Hotspur defender Jonathan Woodgate, while David Beckham took the armband for the 59th time.
In stifling heat approaching 32ºC, Trinidad’s hopes of a famous victory suffered an early blow. Kenwyne Jones chased a long ball over Rio Ferdinand and David James rushed out to tackle the Sunderland striker. James won the ball, but Jones crumpled into a heap and had to be stretchered off.
It took England 83 minutes to score against Trinidad when they last met in the 2006 World Cup. This time they broke the deadlock after just 12 minutes.
Stewart Downing chipped a pass to Wayne Bridge, whose cross was met by Barry with a close range volley that gave Clayton Ince no chance.
England doubled their advantage four minutes later. Downing’s pass sent Defoe clear down the left edge of the penalty area and, with no defender tracking back, he steered a low shot past Ince into the far corner.
Capello sent on Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart and Everton defender Phil Jagielka for their debuts at halftime.
It did not disrupt England’s dominance. They added a third goal in the 49th minute as David Bentley, on for Beckham, swung in a cross that was headed weakly out to Defoe, who tapped-in.
Taiwan’s men’s table tennis team won bronze on Saturday at this year’s International Table Tennis Federation World Team Table Tennis Championships in London, matching the country’s best-ever finish at the regular tournament. Consisting of Lin Yun-ju, Taiwan’s top-ranked player at world No. 7, Feng Yi-hsin, Kuo Guan-hong, Hong Jing-kai and Hsu Hsien-chia, the team won bronze after losing 0-3 to Japan in the semifinals. In the opening match, 24-year-old Lin played the first game against world No. 3 Tomokazu Harimoto 11-5, but ultimately lost the next three closely contested games 9-11, 10-12 and 10-12. Feng then faced world No. 8 Sora Matsushima in
Taiwanese fire dancer Yang Li-wei advanced to the final of Britain’s Got Talent this weekend after receiving a Golden Buzzer during her live semi-final performance. Yang, a member of Taiwan’s Coming True Fire Group, awed judges and audiences with a high-intensity fire performance featuring flaming umbrellas, fire swallowing and spinning metal structures balanced with her legs. Judge Simon Cowell praised Yang as a star, while guest judge KSI reacted with amazement before pressing the Golden Buzzer, sending her to the finals. The dance group wrote on social media that the Golden Buzzer was “the highest honor” on the talent show, adding: “Twenty-three years
As Super Rugby fast approaches its playoff season it finds itself racing toward a reckoning with many issues that threaten the southern hemisphere tournament. A group of stakeholders met in the New Zealand city of Christchurch late last month to address problems that are making the future of the 31-year-old competition increasingly tenuous. The discussion was made more urgent by the decision by the owners of Moana Pasifika to fold the Auckland-based club for financial reasons. That followed the closure of the Melbourne Rebels at the end of the 2024 season, likewise because of financial difficulties. Problems addressed included player retention as more
Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke, 29, has died, the NBA team said in a statement on Tuesday, while the family of Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to play in a major US pro sports league, announced the former Grizzlies and Brooklyn Nets player had died after a battle with brain cancer. “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of Brandon Clarke,” the Grizzlies said in a statement posted on social media. “Brandon was an outstanding teammate and an even better person whose impact on the organization and the greater Memphis community will not be forgotten.” The statement did not provide
RSS