SOCCER
US end scoring drought
Jordan Morris ended the US scoring drought, gave Bruce Arena his first national team win in more than a decade and put himself in a position to make the roster for games that count. Morris scored in the 59th minute as the US beat Jamaica 1-0 in an exhibition game on Friday night to give Arena the first win of his second stint as national team coach. “Jordan Morris has made a statement,” said Arena, who earned his first victory as the US coach since an exhibition triumph over Latvia in May 2006. Benny Feilhaber took a 20m pass from Dax McCarty and played the ball to Morris with a back-heel pass. Morris returned the ball to Feilhaber, who was making his first start in five years. Feilhaber dribbled into the penalty area and pushed the ball back to Morris. The 22-year-old forward, last season’s Major League Soccer Rookie of the Year, took a touch and beat goalkeeper Ryan Thompson inside the near post with a right-footed shot from close range. It was the second international goal for Morris, who also scored against Mexico in an April 2015 exhibition, and ended a 280-minute US scoreless streak.
SOCCER
La Liga eyes No. 1 spot
Spanish clubs have cleaned up their finances and modernized their stadiums and can now go on to surpass even the huge earnings sloshing around the Premier League, La Liga president Javier Tebas said on Friday. Tebas said La Liga had the best clubs and the best players — among them Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi — and said that the Premier League needed to watch out. “We feel we can rival and even exceed the earnings of the Premier League,” Tebas said in Madrid, home of world player of the year Ronaldo and Champions League winners Real Madrid. “We have a strategic plan in place already and frankly if four years from now we are 15 percent behind the Premier League I’d be happy with that,” he said, adding however that La Liga’s ambitions went beyond that. Tebas said that club budgets were now under control throughout the league, teams had paid off tax debts and that four top-flight clubs were improving their stadiums. According to consulting firm Deloitte, English clubs generated 4.4 billion euros (US$4.7 billion) in the 2014-2015 season, compared with 2.05 billion for La Liga.
GOLF
Bowditch arrested over DUI
USPGA Tour player Steven Bowditch on Friday was arrested on suspicion of extreme DUI, getting out of jail soon enough to play in the Waste Management Phoenix Open in the afternoon. Scottsdale police said Bowditch had a blood-alcohol level of more than 0.2 percent when he was taken into custody at about 1am. Arizona’s legal limit is 0.08 percent. Responding to an emergency call report about a truck “swerving all over the road,” officers observed the vehicle sit through two greens lights without moving, and found the 33-year-old Australian asleep behind the wheel. Bowditch missed the cut in the tournament, shooting his second straight three-over 74. He issued a statement after meeting with PGA Tour officials following the round. “I would like to apologize to my family, friends and supporters, as well as the PGA Tour and Waste Management Phoenix Open for the incident reported today,” Bowditch said. “As I intend to fully cooperate with the authorities, I will not be making further comment at this stage.” South Korean An Byeong-hun had a share of the halfway lead in Arizona on Friday alongside Brendan Steele of the US.
EVERY DAY A VICTORY: Players on the women’s team faced pressure from society just getting out onto the field as they prepare for their first Women’s Asian Cup game today Bangladesh’s national soccer team face daunting odds at their first-ever Women’s Asian Cup, but have already scored a major victory by qualifying. In the South Asian nation of 170 million, social stigma, family expectations, poverty and religious hardliners have long relegated women and girls to sports sidelines. The first women’s soccer league matches took place in 2011 and the squad, known to fans as the Red and Green, have kept pressing forward despite deeply embedded prejudices. “Many more girls would have joined us if the community had been even slightly supportive,” captain Afeida Khandaker told AFP ahead of her side’s March 3
Soccer officials yesterday offered “full support and assistance” to the Iranian team in Australia for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup after the US and Israel launched massive attacks on their homeland. Iran’s 26-strong squad arrived on the Gold Coast days before the strikes on Saturday killed supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Washington and Tel Aviv seek to topple the Islamic republic. They are due to open their tournament today against South Korea. The AFC in a statement said it “continues to closely monitor the recent developments in the Middle East during this challenging period.” “The AFC’s foremost priority remains the welfare, safety and
ROAD RASH: Marc Marquez retired after a crash, marking the first time after 88 consecutive races stretching back to 2021 that a Ducati bike failed to make the podium Marco Bezzecchi yesterday won the MotoGP season-opening grand prix in Thailand from pole position as defending world champion Marc Marquez retired late with a buckled wheel. Aprilia’s Bezzecchi led from start to finish to top the podium in Buriram, with KTM’s Pedro Acosta second and Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez third. Ducati’s Marquez is chasing a record-equaling eighth world title this season, but he exited the race in dramatic fashion while in fourth place with five laps to go. The Spaniard, who started from second on the grid, took a corner wide, with the jolt to his bike dislodging the rear tire, badly damaging his
Liverpool on Tuesday suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers as Andre’s stoppage-time strike sealed a dramatic victory for the English Premier League’s bottom club. Arne Slot’s side fell behind to Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the closing stages at Molineux. Mohamed Salah hauled Liverpool level with his first goal in 11 top-flight games dating back to November last year. However, Andre’s first goal for Wolves inflicted the latest humbling loss in a chastening season for Liverpool. It was the first time the Premier League’s bottom club had beaten the reigning champions since Crystal Palace defeated Chelsea in 2017. Liverpool
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