■CRICKET
Pattinson gets shock call-up
Former roof tiler Darren Pattinson was set to make his England debut after being named in the side to play South Africa in the second Test against England at Headingley yesterday. Pattinson, who has appeared in just 11 first-class matches, wasn’t in the original squad for this match and nor was he even the first reserve. But, having been called up as cover for James Anderson on Thursday, the 29-year-old swing bowler was included in the team. Anderson was passed fit but left-arm quick Ryan Sidebottom, who suffered a back strain during the drawn first Test at Lord’s, was omitted. All-rounder Andrew Flintoff was recalled for his first Test in 18 months at the expense of the out-of-form Paul Collingwood in the other change to the England team.
■SOCCER
Silva leaves Arsenal
Brazil midfielder Gilberto Silva has left Arsenal to join Panathinaikos. The former Gunners captain, who was a key member of the team that went unbeaten through the 2003-2004 Premier League season, cost the Greek team a transfer fee reported to be about £1 million (US$2 million). Panathinaikos announced it signed a three-year deal with Silva on Thursday. The Brazilian thanked about 1,000 fans who gathered to greet him on Wednesday at Athens International Airport. The 31-year-old Silva ends a six-year spell with the north London club, with his departure continuing manager Arsene Wenger’s policy of ditching older players.
■RUGBY UNION
Super 14 chiefs mull revamp
The heads of Rugby Super 14 said yesterday they wanted to expand the finals of the championship from a top-four to a top-six play-off series from next year. The board of SANZAR, representing the three nations included — South Africa, New Zealand and Australia — said it would put forward the proposal to those countries for consideration. They also discussed ideas for an overhaul of the competition’s structure when Super Rugby is revamped — possibly from as early as 2010 — to expand the tournament from its current 14 teams. Argentina, Pacific island nations and Japan have been linked to an expanded Super Rugby and Tri-Nations format. Australian Rugby Union boss John O’Neill said the US was also in the mix for a Super Rugby franchise. “The first step next year is the expanded play-off finals series and perhaps as early as 2010 you could see an expanded Super Rugby competition,” he said. O’Neill said separate playing conferences within the Super Rugby competition would also be possible as the competition expanded, while the format of the six team play-offs is still being discussed.
■SOCCER
Gunmen free Yobo’s brother
Gunmen released the kidnapped younger brother of Nigeria soccer player Joseph Yobo on Thursday. Rivers State police spokeswoman Rita Inoma-Abbey said Norum Yobo, who was seized on July 6 in the oil hub town of Port Harcourt, was reunited with his family late on Wednesday. Inoma-Abbey had no details about the circumstances of the release or whether a ransom had been paid. Norum was expected at police headquarters in Port Harcourt yesterday to assist with investigations, she said. Joseph Yobo played for Everton last season and is a regular on Nigeria’s national team. Everton said on its Web site that Joseph Yobo was in Nigeria with his brother but was expected to return to England on Monday to begin preseason training.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
The famously raucous Hong Kong Sevens are to start today in a big test for a shiny new stadium at the heart of a major US$3.85 billion sports park in the territory. Officials are keeping their fingers crossed that the premier event in Hong Kong’s sporting and social calendar goes off without a hitch at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium. They hope to entice major European soccer teams to visit in the next few months, with reports in December last year saying that Liverpool were in talks about a pre-season tour. Coldplay are to perform there next month, all part of Hong Kong’s
After fleeing Sudan when civil war erupted, Al-Hilal captain Mohamed Abdelrahman and his teammates have defied the odds to reach the CAF Champions League quarter-finals. They are today to face title-holders Al-Ahly of Egypt in Cairo, with the return match in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, on Tuesday next week. Al-Hilal and biggest domestic rivals Al-Merrikh relocated to Mauritania after a power struggle broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary force. The civil war has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 12 million people, according to the UN. The Democratic Republic of the Congo-born Al-Hilal
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
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