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Hampshire and Worcestershire teams for CricInfo Championship match

Vic Isaacs08-May-2001Hampshire meet Worcestershire at The Rose Bowl, in the CricInfo Championship match tomorrow (Wednesday 9th May), the first ever first-class match to be played at their new purpose-made complex at West End.Hampshire include Shaun Udal in the side, after missing the recent Benson & Hedges game with a back injury. Udal will have a fitness test on the morning of the match to assess his condition, but either James Hamblin or Irfan Shah will play should he not pass the trial.Giles White returns to the first team in place of Jason Laney.The Hampshire team: Giles White, Derek Kenway, Will Kendall, Robin Smith (captain), Neil Johnson, John Stephenson, Adrian Aymes (wicket-keeper), Dimitri Mascarenhas, Shaun Udal, Alex Morris and Alan Mullally.Worcestershire select from 12 names: WPC Weston, A Singh, GA Hick, VS Solanki, DA Leatherdale, PR Pollard, SJ Rhodes, AJ Bichel, SR Lampitt, MJ Rawnsley, A Sheriyar, CG Liptrot.Umpires: John Steele and Barrie Leadbeater

Everton’s hunt for European football took a huge boost last weekend.

The Toffees bounced back from a crushing defeat to Aston Villa by defeating an in-form West Ham side 1-0.

Carlo Ancelotti admitted that securing Champions League football was essentially impossible but they are still very much in the race to secure a spot in the Europa or Europa Conference League.

It would be a deserved return to continental action for a team who have looked rejuvenated under the Italian coach.

Unfortunately, their hopes of beating Villa on Thursday night when the two sides meet again has taken a big blow.

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That’s because they will be without the services of Yerry Mina when they travel to the Midlands.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Ancelotti said: “Yerry had a problem on his adductor. It is not a big problem. He tried to train yesterday but he was a little bit uncomfortable. I hope to recover him for the game against Sheffield United.”

The manager added: “Even if he does not play on Sunday, I think he can play in the last two games of the season. He has a really small problem.”

Mina was hauled off just after the hour mark of Everton’s win over the Hammers last time out but they were able to see through the game with a clean sheet.

Having him missing on this occasion will be a huge blow, though.

After all, it could leave Ancelotti with the gutting decision to play Mason Holgate again. The young centre-back endured a torrid afternoon when the Toffees last faced Villa just over a week ago.

Holgate was robbed of possession by Ollie Watkins after turning back towards his own goal which ultimately resulted in the opening strike of the match.

Thus, if the Englishman returns to the starting XI on Thursday evening, he will have to put in a much-improved performance.

Fortunately, Watkins will be suspended on Thursday but with this incredibly tall frame, Mina will be a more difficult proposition for Villa’s attack to deal with.

AND in other news, Everton could find their new Gareth Barry with swoop for “complete” £35m brute…

Sri Lanka cricketers stole the limelight in the four Mercantile `A’division cricket matches played on Saturday.

Sa’adi Thawfeeq26-May-2001Sri Lanka cricketers stole the limelight in the four Mercantile `A’division cricket matches played on Saturday.Off-spinner Kumar Dharmasena performed a hat-trick on his way to taking six wickets for 13 runs off seven overs as he guided Hatton National Bank to a thumping 173-run win over John Keells at the Moors grounds.Dharmasena’s deadly spell saw John Keells shot out for a paltry 71 runs off 26 overs in reply to HNB’s total of 244 for 7 in 50 overs. Following a rousing start of 59 off 49 balls of which Avishka Gunawardana made 41 off 33 balls (8 fours), skipper Russel Arnold maintained the tempo hitting an unbeaten half-century off 101 balls to give HNB the winning total.Former Sri Lanka batsman Hahan Tillakaratne hit an undefeated 88 off 132 balls with a six and three fours to steer Singer to an exciting two-wicket win over East-West at the NCC grounds. Chasing a moderate East-West total of 198, Singer were greatly in debt to Tillakaratne who kept up his end to secure the win.Aravinda de Silva put behind allegations of match-fixing behind him to come up with fine all-round performance which gave Access a comfortable six-wicket win over Janashakthi at the Colts grounds.De Silva captured three wickets for 13 runs with hi wily off-breaks and then hit an undefeated 31 to enable Access pass the total, after national player Indika de Saram had set the pace with a scintillating knock of 60 off 47 balls inclusive of one six and nine fours.Seylan Bank got the better of Sampath Bank by five wickets at Bloomfield grounds following a good all-round performance from Tilan Samaraweera, who is tipped to lead Sri Lanka `A’ against Pakistan `A’ in next month’s series.Samaraweera took two wickets for 46 runs and hit an unbeaten 55 off 59 balls with three sixes and one four as Seylan Bank passed Sampath’s total of 204 for 9, in the 48th over. Seylan choosing to bat first were in dire straits at 106 for 7, and it was their eighth wicket pair of Shantha Kalavitigoda and Rangana Herath who got them past the 200-mark total by adding 92 run off 106 balls. Kalavitigoda finished unbeaten on 54 off 82 balls, and Herath made 46 off 67 balls.

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Spurs legend, Graham Roberts, has revealed that Mauricio Pochettino was told he had to win the Champions League this season with PSG.

Pochettino saw his side fail to trouble Manchester City during the second leg of their Champions League semi-final as Angel Di Maria saw red for a stamp on Fernandinho during the second half.

PSG reached the final of Europe’s elite competition last season but they were outclassed and ultimately, beaten by Bayern Munich and their league form is also concerning, with the Parisians one point behind Lille with just three games left.

Speaking on how Pochettino will already be under pressure at PSG and what Levy must now do, Roberts exclusively told FFC:

“I’ve been told that Pochettino had to win the Champions League this year and don’t forget that they could lose the league for the first time in years this season so they’re not going to be happy.

“If it was me, I would drive over to France and ask him to come back.”

Pochettino reached the Champions League final with Tottenham Hotspur in 2019 but were beaten by Liverpool, and the Argentine was sacked by Levy the following November.

Spurs’s chief scout, Steve Hitchen, is reportedly set to recommend Brighton’s Graham Potter to Levy as his number one choice for the job.

Indian coach John Wright expressed concern over the crucial number six spot in the Indian side and said he was desperately looking for an all rounder

Staff and Agencies01-Jun-2001My job is to get more out of the team: WrightIndian coach John Wright expressed concern over the crucial number six spot in the Indian side and said he was desperately looking for an all rounder. In an interview to PTI in Mutare, Wright said “We are in desperate need for someone who is an all-rounder… or someone who can be a genuine number six…. We do need a balance”. He added “I think the captain (Sourav Ganguly) is in a better position to fill in this spot. He probably has to bowl a bit more. Of course he is a very capable bowler. We need more people like him. Even Sachin (Tendulkar).They can change the course of any match on their day. If they can expand their roles, they can help us to become a better cricket team.”The former New Zealand captain said “Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan can both develop on their batting skills. They have already shown signs that they can bat to a certain extent. Even Ajit Agarkar is capable of a lot more with the bat. And that’s my objective – to get more out of them.” Apart from allrounders, Wright expects the seamers to perform saying “There is some promise, but we need performance. We need to be on the look out for fast bowlers. Javagal Srinath at the moment is looking sharp. And then there is quite a bit of battle for the other two medium pacers’ slot.”On the gruelling schedule ahead for the Indians, the coach said “The coming six months will be good for us because we will be away from home and this will help the team to form into a close-knit unit. We have to keep it tight together in victory or defeat.”Condon report does not say anything new: DalmiyaFormer International Cricket Council President, Jagmohan Dalmiya on Wednesday said Sir Paul Condon’s report on match fixing was “merely cosmetic” and had no real substance. “The report does not really throw much light on the match fixing issue. It does not say anything new. Just making references to some events does not help in solving the issue,” Dalmiya told a press conference in Kolkata.Dalmiya said that the report had not gone into the match fixing issue in depth though Condon had studied the reports of various other agencies and commissions probing the matter. He said that Condon had also questioned the credibility of the final of the ICC KnockOut tournament in Kenya between India and New Zealand but had not mentioned any specific wrong-doing. “He has made a passing mention to that match. The New Zealand Board have been quick to defend their players. I don’t know whether the BCCI has defended their players since I was out of the country”, Dalmiya said.On Condon’s view that the present structure of the ICC was inadequate to run international cricket and manage large sums of money, Dalmiya said the ICC’s executive board would meet at Lord’s on June 18 and Condon’s recommendations will be discussed in detail.”Ministry could consider introducing provision for misconduct: JaitleyThe Union Law Minister Arun Jaitley said on Wednesday that ‘misconduct’ by cricketers found guilty by the CBI of match-fixing did not come under any of the existing penal provisions adding it was for the Sports Ministry to suggest changes in the law to prosecute such offenders. “Those found guilty of match-fixing did show misconduct. But the ingredients of misconduct strictly did not fit into any of the penal provisions of criminal code of conduct wherein they could be prosecuted,” Jaitley told reporters in London.Jaitley, who is also President of Delhi and District Cricket Association, said. “As of today, with the kind of evidence they have, all accusations showed misconduct by concerned cricketers and therefore, the Indian Cricket Board was empowered to take action which they did.”On the case referred to him by the Sports Ministry to find out whether any penal action could be taken based on the CBI report, Jaitley said there was no proposal before the Law Ministry to incorporate penal provisions for such misconduct and added, “It is for the Department of Sports to consider.” He added “If such acts are repeatedly still taking place in spite of the exposures, then you have to come out with tougher provisions of law.”Kumble turns down lucrative offer to turn TV commentatorAnil Kumble, India’s main strike bowler in the last decade, has turned down a highly lucrative offer to become a television commentator in the forthcoming India-Zimbabwe Test series and the Triangular series between the two countries and the West Indies. According to information available from Star-ESPN sources, Kumble had been given the offer a few days back to join Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri as a member of the commentary team. However, he declined the offer as hehad some prior commitments. One of them was to take part in some shooting for advertisements and also appear in a regional film.Meanwhile, the leg-spinner is not expected to be fit before India’s tour to South Africa. As a result, he will miss the India-Sri Lanka series, the Asian Test Championship and a few other one day tournaments.Yadav to hold discussions with DalmiyaThe President of the Bihar Cricket Association, Laloo Prasad Yadav, is expected to visit Kolkata next week to hold discussions with his counterpart in Bengal, Jagmohan Dalmiya. Yadav, who took over the post recently, is determined to improve the state of the game in Bihar. Other than that, he is also interested in hosting international matches in various parts of Bihar and also to improve the playing conditions.Reports from Patna indicated that Yadav would hold discussions with Dalmiya and seek his co-operation in improving the facilities for the game in Bihar. He would also ask for suggestions to improve the infra-structural facilities including a face-lift for the stadium at Patna. Sources however, made it clear that at the moment Yadav’s aim was to put Bihar on the cricketing map of the world.Sekhar coaching bowlers in BangladeshA five-day long workshop for young and emerging bowlers began at the Dhanmondi Club ground in Dhaka on Thursday under the supervision of former Indian fast bowler TA Sekhar, currently the chief coach of the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai.The workshop, which brought together 28 youngsters in the morning, was reduced to 16 by the afternoon. “By the time I finish, hopefully I’ll be able to recommend eight to ten bowlers to the Board for further long-term training,” said Sekhar. He added that Bangladesh had a couple of very promising bowlers and if they could be given proper attention, then they would be an asset in the future.Later, Sekhar intends to select at least four boys for a month’s training at the MRF Pace Foundation, starting on June 17.

Sheffield United picked up an impressive win against Everton on Sunday evening, with 17-year-old Daniel Jebbison scoring the only goal of the game on his first Premier League start, to hand Paul Heckingbottom’s side all three points.

The youngster fired home from Jack Robinson’s cross in the seventh minute to give the Blades the lead and they held on to earn an excellent victory against Carlo Ancelotti’s side, who lost serious ground in the race for European qualification.

Whilst Jebbison will be the main focus of attention after his goal, Aaron Ramsdale deserves a lot of credit for his performance, which was instrumental in Sheffield United earning a rare clean sheet.

As per SofaScore, the summer signing from Bournemouth would earn an impressive 8.4/10 rating, which was comfortably the best of any player to feature at Goodison Park from either side.

The shot-stopper would make six saves, including five from inside the box, as he regularly bailed out the Sheffield United defence with a set of fine stops.

He denied Allan when he hit a shot from outside the area, before pulling off a remarkable double save from Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, which the Sheffield United Twitter account rightly described as “sensational”.

According to Understat, Everton had an XG of 1.29 for the game against the Blades, which makes it even more impressive that Ramsdale was able to keep his fourth clean sheet of the Premier League campaign.

The former Bournemouth man has seriously improved his performances in recent weeks and is starting to repay the £18.5m the Blades paid for him last summer.

Certainly, performances like these suggest that if Sheffield United are able to keep hold of him this summer, he will definitely be one of the best goalkeepers in the Championship next season.

Therefore, whilst Jebbison scored the winner, Sheffield United surely would not have won the game 1-0 if it wasn’t for Ramsdale, so he was the real hero for Heckingbottom at Goodison Park.

And, in other news… Sheffield United could be set for huge boost with “remarkable” gem

Plenty of Crystal Palace fans have been giving their reaction to a behind-the-scenes update on the club’s search for a new manager.

The Eagles announced earlier in the week that Roy Hodgson will leave Selhurst Park when his contract expires, with the 73-year-old’s final home game in charge coming on Wednesday with a 3-1 defeat to Arsenal.

Attention is now starting to turn to the club’s hunt for a new boss, and according to Football Insider, chairman Steve Parish and director of football Dougie Freedman are torn over who that man should be.

A Palace source informed Football Insider that Parish wants to bring Frank Lampard to the club, whereas Freedman is staking his claim to bring Barnsley boss Valerian Ismael to London.

Parish was ready to offer Lampard a contract, but Freedman’s pursuit of Ismael appears to have thrown a spanner in the works.

Palace fans react

@cpfc_xtra shared the news on social media on Wednesday afternoon, and, as to be expected, the off-field news had plenty of supporters talking.

This is what some had to say…

“omg”Credit: @RRcpfc”It’s getting heated up in here”Credit: @CPFCMax03″YES DOUGIE!!!!!!!!!!”Credit: @SaucyZaha”Dougie Freedman still thinks we’re a Championship club.”Credit: @Wheddsta”Heart says Ismael Head says Dyche Parish says Lampard”Credit: @Phillyconcarne”Listen to Dougie, Steve.”Credit: @Nick_CPFC

In other news: Palace in advanced talks with versatile forward, fans react, find out more here. 

Before the conditions had the last say, Auckland brought Wellington’s supposed march to a massive first innings total to a grinding halt on the morning of the second day

Chris Rosie25-Mar-2002Before the conditions had the last say, Auckland brought Wellington’s supposed march to a massive first innings total to a grinding halt on the morning of the second day.In the face of accurate bowling from Gareth Shaw, Andre Adams and Tama Canning, the visitors added just 80 runs in the session for the loss of five wickets, the innings ending 15 minutes before lunch at 409.It did not initially look that way. Mark Jefferson and Luke Woodcock continued the partnership they had established the previous evening, adding 30 in the first nine overs as they boosted their combined effort to 73 and the Wellington total to 359/5.However, Shaw, who bowled just 11 overs on the first day, powered in for 13 on the trot and received just reward. Jefferson, who had looked uncomfortable at times against the young pace bowler, got a leg-side touch to the last ball of the morning’s ninth over and a diving Reece Young behind the stumps did the rest.It was the beginning of the end for Wellington. Young continued his involvement, his gloves completing the work as first Canning and then Shaw got the edges of Leighton Morgan and Andrew Penn respectively to leave Wellington 375 for eight. At the same score, Canning cleaned out an impressive looking Woodcock two runs short of a deserved half century.A stubborn 34-run last-wicket stand between Jeetan Patel (23) and Iain O’Brien (11 not out) inched Wellington closer to the sort of score that would offer them a realistic chance of securing a sufficient net average runs per wicket rate to sneak past Auckland for the title.However, at 409 Patel swept Brooke Walker to Tim McIntosh at backward square leg to end the innings, bringing out the calculators to establish a range of permutations under which Wellington could continue the Hodini acts that have marked their season.Shaw was impressive during the session, ending with two for 35 from 14 to go with his 11 overs for 34 the previous day. Canning also lifted his game from the first day, his two for 18 from eight overs in the morning giving him an innings return of two for 54 from 19. Walker took the other wicket to fall in the session, ending with two for 86 from 33.2.Five minutes before lunch, Auckland came out to bat, Wellington came out to field, the umpires came out to check their light meters and they all turned round and left the field, just beating the rain, which settled in for the rest of the day.Wellington will start the next with the immediate target being to remove Auckland within the follow-on mark of 259. Then the calculators will go into action in earnest.

West Ham United are one of several Premier League teams eyeing a move for one of the Championship’s emerging stars, and no, it’s not Ivan Toney…

What’s the word?

According to Football League World, the Irons are registering strong interest in AFC Bournemouth winger Arnaut Danjuma ahead of the summer transfer window.

Southampton, Brighton and Hove Albion, Everton and Wolves are amongst the other top-flight teams mooted with a move for the 24-year-old attacker.

It remains to be seen how much Danjuma would command, and with the Cherries looking at back-to-back seasons in the second tier of English football, they could struggle to keep hold of his services.

Transfermarkt currently value the Dutchman at £10.8m, whilst he’s under contract at the Vitality Stadium until 2024.

Benrahma 2.0

If West Ham can win the race for the Bournemouth hotshot, then they could well be onto another winner.

We know that the East Londoners have had plenty of success when luring talent from the lower divisions, in which Jarrod Bowen, Craig Dawson and more recently, Said Benrahma have been a hit.

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In fact, the latter draws some similarities to Danjuma as he’s another player capable of producing something out of nothing – someone with that spark; a bit of magic.

The 5 foot 10 dynamo was in electrifying form this campaign, helping the south coast outfit to the playoffs by providing 17 goals and seven assists, including strikes in both legs against Brentford, But it wasn’t enough to see them into the final.

It’s no wonder that Cherries boss Jonathan Woodgate has waxed lyrical about his qualities, via the Bournemouth Echo, he said:

“He seems in a good place. He’s confident. He’s working really, really hard for the team now, which I think is important. If you add that to your game, you can only get better. He’s got a lot of ability,” before later adding: “Sometimes when games are 0-0 and it’s tough and it’s really tight in games, that’s when you rely on people like Arnie, Junior (Stanislas), Dominic Solanke to produce moments of magic. All three can do that.”

Also described as “exceptional,” Danjuma could be the Hammers’ next fine wing addition from the lower echelons of English football. He does have a little bit of experience in big time too, featuring 14 times prior to Bournemouth’s relegation, and has also picked up two caps for the Dutch senior side.

Furthermore, Danjuma’s 1.8 dribbles per game are only rivalled by Arthur Masuaku (2.4), whilst his 2.1 shots per outing are more than both Benrhama (1.2) and Bowen (1.4), so evidently, his skillset is an improvement based on their respective seasons.

This would be an astute signing from GSB and David Moyes, they must get it done this summer.

AND in other news, ÂMoyes set to receive major West Ham transfer boost…

Richard Dawson and James Foster, the two players who made their Test debuts for England against India at Chandigarh last December, are amongst the 18 winners of the NBC Denis Compton Awards for 2001

Stephen Lamb09-Apr-2002Richard Dawson and James Foster, the two players who made their Test debuts for England against India at Chandigarh last December, are amongst the 18 winners of the NBC Denis Compton Awards for 2001.The awards, which have been made every year since the scheme was first launched by Denis Compton in 1996, are given to one representative of each English county. The full list is as follows:Derbyshire – Luke Sutton,Durham – Nicky Peng,Essex – James Foster,Glamorgan – Simon Jones,Gloucestershire – Steven Pope,Hampshire – Chris Tremlett,Kent – Robert Key,Lancashire – Kyle Hogg,Leicestershire – Matt Whiley,Middlesex – Nick Compton,Northamptonshire – Monty Panesar,Nottinghamshire – Bilal Shafayat,Somerset – Matthew Wood,Surrey – Tim Murtagh,Sussex – Matt Prior,Warwickshire – Ian Bell,Worcestershire – Kadeer Ali,Yorkshire – Richard DawsonIan Bell, who briefly joined the England squad in New Zealand as cover for injuries, receives the award for the third consecutive year, while Luke Sutton, Nicky Peng and Chris Tremlett were also winners last year. For Denis Compton’s widow Christine, who presented the awards at the Brian Johnston Memorial Trust Dinner, there was particular pleasure that his grandson Nick was amongst the winners.Thanks to a £10,000 donation to the Brian Johnston Memorial Trust from Afrox Hospitals Ltd. (a BOC Group subsidiary), two of the players will benefit from three months’ specialised coaching and fitness assessment in Cape Town, beginning in January next year. The names of the players will be announced later after consultation with their counties.