RUGBY UNION
Carter may miss opener
All Blacks flyhalf Dan Carter has cracked a bone in his right hand and is doubtful for the opening Test in the three-match series against France next weekend, the New Zealand Rugby Union said yesterday. Last year’s World Player of the Year sustained the injury playing for the Canterbury Crusaders in their Super Rugby victory over the New South Wales Waratahs at the weekend and a decision on his availability will be made later in the week. Aaron Cruden is most likely to replace Carter should he be ruled out of the Test at Eden Park after some fine performances for the Waikato Chiefs this year and Wellington Hurricane Beauden Barrett, a solid place-kicker, is also in the squad. “It’s only a crack, it’s not completely broken, not displaced,” All Blacks coach Steve Hansen told local media. “We’ll see how the swelling goes and make a decision on that late in the week... We’re very fortunate we’ve got people like Crudes and Barrett available.”
RUGBY UNION
O’Driscoll subs Warburton
Brian O’Driscoll will captain the British and Irish Lions for their opening match in Australia against the Western Force tomorrow as Sam Warburton continues to rest his sore knee. The former Irish skipper leads a side featuring seven of his international teammates — flyhalf Jonny Sexton, hooker Rory Best, winger Tommy Bowe, prop Cian Healy, flanker Sean O’Brien, scrumhalf Connor Murray and No. 8 Jamie Heaslip. England’s Manu Tuilagi will join O’Driscoll in the centers, one of eight new Lions to play at Subiaco Oval in the team named yesterday. “The tour feels like it has truly begun now we have landed on Australian soil,” O’Driscoll, who captained the 2005 Lions, told reporters in Perth. Irish fullback Rob Kearney was the only player not considered because of injury, Gatland said, with Warburton rested and likely to play on Saturday against the Queensland Reds.
SOCCER
Alonso out with injury
Real Madrid midfielder Xabi Alonso has been left out of Spain manager Vicente del Bosque’s final 23-man squad for the Confederations Cup due to a groin injury. Despite Alonso’s absence, midfielders Benat Extebarria and Javi Garcia have also been left out from the original 26-man list Del Bosque delivered earlier this week. Alonso has struggled with injuries in the second half of the season and has not been given the all-clear by Madrid’s doctors to take part in the competition, which starts on June 15. Arsenal’s Nacho Monreal has been included as backup to Jordi Alba at leftback, despite a back problem that has prevented him playing since last month. Meanwhile, Roberto Soldado’s fine goal-scoring form toward the end of the campaign for Valencia has ensured he is included alongside Fernando Torres and David Villa as Del Bosque’s main striking options.
SOCCER
AS Livorno back on top
AS Livorno were promoted to Serie A on Sunday after a 1-0 home victory over local rivals Empoli in the second leg of Italy’s Serie B playoff final saw them win 2-1 on aggregate. A bullet Paulinho header from a Pasquale Schiattarella cross 32 minutes into the first half was enough to seal promotion for the Tuscan side, who return to Serie A after three years away. They will join US Sassuolo, who were promoted as champions, and second-placed Hellas Verona in Serie A. Former Italian champions Verona will play in the top flight for the first time in 11 years, while Sassuolo will be making their first-ever appearance in the top flight.
SSC Napoli’s Italian Serie A title hopes suffered a late setback on Sunday when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home against Genoa, setting up a thrilling season finale with closest rivals Inter just one point behind. The hosts remain top with 78 points, holding a slim lead over Inter, who won 2-0 at Torino earlier on Sunday, with two rounds remaining. To make matters worse for Napoli, midfielder Stanislav Lobotka, struggling with an ankle injury, was forced off just minutes after the match began. Scott McTominay delivered a perfect pass into the box where Romelu Lukaku got
Harry Kane opened the scoring ahead of lifting his first career silverware as Bayern Munich beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-0, with veteran Thomas Mueller playing his last home game for the club. Bayern officially won the title on May 4 when defending champions Bayer Leverkusen were held to a 2-2 draw at Freiburg, but were presented with the Bundesliga shield in front of their home fans at full-time. Dripping wet after being showered with beer by teammates, Kane said the title win was “an incredible feeling,” and hoped it would be “the first of many.” “It’s been lot of hard work, a lot of
INTER AWAIT: Superb saves by PSG ’keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma inspired the victory, as Arsenal were punished for misses, including one by Bukayo Saka Arsenal on Wednesday fell short on the big stage again as their painful UEFA Champions League semi-final exit against Paris Saint-Germain left Mikel Arteta to rue his club’s failure to provide him with enough attacking options. Arteta’s side were unable to reach the Champions League final for the first time in 19 years as PSG clinched a tense 2-1 win at Parc des Princes. Trailing 1-0 from last week’s first leg in London, the Gunners made a blistering start to the second leg, but could not convert their chances as Gianluigi Donnarumma’s superb saves inspired PSG’s 3-1 aggregate victory. Arsenal were punished for
Taiwanese e-sports veteran Lin “ET” Chia-hung yesterday successfully defended his King of Fighters XV title at this year’s Evolution Championship Series: Japan (EVO Japan), securing his second consecutive championship. Lin claimed victory with a 3-1 win over Japanese pro gamer “mok” in the grand final, repeating his earlier 3-1 win against the same opponent in the winners’ final. The 40-year-old earned a ￥1 million (US$6,897) cash prize at the two-day tournament, which drew 294 competitors. Mok, Lin’s toughest rival in the bracket, took home ￥400,000 as runner-up. Lin remains undefeated in match sets against mok in King of Fighters XV, holding a 10-0 record,
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