ENGLAND
Davids inspires Barnet win
Dutch legend Edgar Davids inspired Barnet to a 4-0 victory over Northampton Town on his debut for the English League Two club on Friday. Davids is more used to plying his trade on the sport’s grandest stages after an illustrious career with European giants like Juventus, Ajax, Barcelona and Inter Milan. Howeverm the 39-year-old midfielder has come out of retirement in the unlikely surroundings of Barnet, a tiny club based in the suburbs of north London who attract crowds of just over 1,000. Davids, a former Champions League winner who won 74 caps for Holland, had been working with Sunday league amateur footballers in England before accepting the offer to work alongside Mark Robson as joint Barnet Bees manager. His arrival at the club initially failed to spark a revival of fortunes for the Bees, as they lost 4-1 to Plymouth last weekend to remain rooted to the bottom of English soccer’s fourth tier. However, Davids was able to work his magic on the pitch at Underhill on Friday. Driven on by Davids, who played 90 minutes and earned a booking, Barnet secured their first league win of the season with four second half goals.
FRANCE
Lille salvage 1-1 draw
A last-gasp effort from Montenegrin defender Marko Basa handed LOSC Lille Metropole a 1-1 draw against Girondins de Bordeaux on Friday, the result maintaining the latter’s stalemate syndrome in drawing for the sixth time in nine matches this term. Polish international midfielder Ludovic Obraniak’s 18th-minute opener looked set to vault Bordeaux into provisional second place in the French table at the expense of last year’s struggling champions Lille. However, three minutes into stoppage time, home forward Henri Saivet committed a needless foul and from the resulting free-kick Basa headed home to rescue a point which keeps Lille in midtable and leaves Bordeaux four points off leaders Marseille in joint fourth spot. Bordeaux had set about their task with relish and had their reward when Brazilian defender Mariano Ferreira sped down the right and found Obraniak, who could hardly miss from six yards out. The southwesterners now have 15 points from their nine games, the same as Lyon but one behind title favorites Paris Saint Germain.
GERMANY
Fuerth tie with Hoffenheim
SpVgg Greuther Fuerth snatched a 3-3 draw against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim with the last touch of the ball in the Bundesliga’s 15,000th match on Friday.Lasse Sobiech scored three minutes into injury time with a header from a corner, after Joselu’s second goal in the 89th minute looked to have given the home side all three points. “My lads showed great spirit to come back three times,” said Fuerth coach Mike Bueskens, who ran onto the pitch in celebration. Robert Firmino opened the scoring in the eighth minute for Hoffenheim, only for Zoltan Stieber to equalize in the 39th after Tim Wiese saved Edgar Prib’s initial effort. Kevin Volland held off three Fuerth players to set up Joselu’s first goal in the 67th, before Prib equalized with a fine strike from distance in the 84th. “It was a great game for the fans. Unfortnately we didn’t manage to close the deal,” said Hoffenheim coach Markus Babbel, who felt the draw was “like a defeat.” Wiese was making his return from injury, and has now conceded 18 goals in five competitive games since moving from Werder Bremen. Hoffenheim has yet to win with him in the side.
The former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani on Thursday was sentenced to nearly five years in prison for bank and tax fraud after he stole nearly US$17 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers player’s bank account. Ippei Mizuhara, who was supposed to bridge the gap between the Japanese athlete and his English-speaking teammates and fans, was sentenced in federal court in Santa Ana to four years and nine months after pleading guilty last year. He was ordered to pay US$18 million in restitution, with nearly US$17 million going to Ohtani and the remainder to the US Internal Revenue Service. He was
Aaliyah Edwards on Monday pulled off the stunner of the opening round of the Unrivaled one-on-one tournament, beating top-seeded Breanna Stewart 12-0. The tournament to be played over three days featured 23 of the WNBA’s 36 players. A few had other commitments and a couple others were out with injuries. Stewart got the ball first against Edwards and missed a contested layup. Edwards then hit a three-pointer from the corner and a jumper from the elbow to go up 5-0. The player who scores keeps the basketball. Edwards hit two layups and a three-pointer to seal the win. Stewart, a two-time WNBA Most Valuable Player,
SPEEDSKATER: Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s run at the Asian Winter Games without a medal since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990 Speedskater Chen Ying-chu yesterday made history as the first athlete representing Taiwan to secure a medal at the Asian Winter Games. Competing at the HIC Speedskating Oval in Harbin, China, Chen clocked 10.510 seconds in the women’s 100m event, finishing third behind South Koreans Lee Na-hyum and Kim Min-sun, who posted times of 10.501 and 10.505 seconds respectively. Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s drought at the Asian Winter Games since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990. This year’s Games mark Chen’s debut at the event. Previously excelling in roller speedskating, she won six medals at world championships before transitioning
The 40-year-old LeBron James on Thursday became the oldest player to score 40 points in an NBA game, putting up a season-high 42 in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 120-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors. James passed the record held by Michael Jordan, his idol and the only other NBA player to score 40 after his 40th birthday. “I’m old, that’s my take,” James said when asked about his latest achievement. “I need a glass of wine and some sleep, that’s what I think.” Jordan did it for the Washington Wizards just three days after turning 40 in February 2003. James is 38
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