Yorkshire handler Craig Lidster admits he has been humbled by the chance to train Macarone for the Rob Burrow Racing Club as he sets his sights on a fitting Pontefract date later this month.
Burrow’s battle with motor neurone disease has touched the hearts of the nation and has also left a lasting impression on the Easingwold-based handler, who has relished the opportunity to train for the racing club that raises money for charity in the former England and Leeds Rhinos star’s name.
Lidster has recorded 30 winners so far in his fledgling training career, but none meant as much to him as Macarone’s maiden triumph at Beverley last month, which came on his first start in the Rob Burrow Racing Club colours.
And although injuring his back on the gallops a day before Macarone broke his duck, Lidster was trackside to witness the son of Havana Grey open his account in the hands of Paul Hanagan, who not long afterwards announced his retirement from the saddle.
He said: “We were thrilled to bits to get that win at Beverley and it was special as it was one of Paul’s last rides.
“It’s an honour to train for Rob. People asked me before Macarone won what was the pinnacle of my training career and I would say watching Julie Camacho and Steve Brown win Group Ones with Shaquille because they are very good friends of mine.
“But to go and top that with Macarone winning for the Rob Burrow Racing Club was a massive pleasure and humbling.
“I had broken my back the day before (in an accident on the gallops) and people were saying ‘what are you doing here?’. But when you turn around and see people in a worse situation than you, there was no way I was going to miss that in a million years.”
Having now got off the mark, Macarone will now attempt to climb the ratings at Thirsk in a bid to secure his place in a Pontefract nursery later this month.
It would be an appropriate climax to the youngster’s juvenile campaign with the race taking place in Burrow’s home town and at the closest racecourse to Leeds where he made his name in the Rhinos’ jersey.
“He is going to go to Thirsk on Monday,” continued Lidster.
“The main target is Pontefract on September 28 which is Rob’s home track so we would like to get Macarone to Rob’s home turf. The race is a 0-78 so we would like to come up the weights a bit to make sure we get in there.
“He’s a nice horse and a nice prospect going forward and with Rob Burrow taking him on, both myself and Steve (Burdett, the horse’s previous owner) were really keen to help Rob in any way we can.
“It’s a massive cause for such a lovely fella and we just couldn’t turn down helping.”
Warren Gatland believes that a 24-nation Rugby World Cup would help to grow the game.
An expansion from the current 20 countries for Australia 2027 or the United States four years later has been mooted in some quarters.
The current tournament in France has already been highlighted by outstanding performances from lower-ranked teams.
Uruguay pushed France for large parts of a gripping Pool A encounter before losing 27-12, while Portugal gave Gatland’s Wales plenty to ponder and Chile had their moments in games against Japan and Samoa.
“I thought Uruguay were outstanding – it is brilliant for the game,” Wales head coach Gatland said, following a 28-8 victory over Portugal.
“Portugal were fantastic and showed a lot of enterprise, and you could argue that Uruguay were pretty unlucky in a few situations (against France).
“I think it is important that we continue to develop from a rugby perspective to help develop these tier two nations.
“There might be a situation where we can increase the number of teams in the World Cup to 24, and that would continue to help grow the game.
“That is an important aspect. You don’t want top tier nations dominating, you want upsets – as long as I am not a part of it!
“I think it’s a real positive going forward to see teams competing and pushing other teams close.”
Portugal returned to the World Cup stage following a 16-year absence when they tackled Wales at Stade de Nice.
They qualified for the tournament by winning a repechage competition in Dubai, and full-back Nuno Sousa Guedes has no doubt that regular exposure against leading nations is what Portugal require.
Guedes and company made life tough for Wales, trailing by just four points approaching half-time, while they did not concede a bonus-point try until the game’s closing seconds.
“If we could keep playing games like this, it is the main thing,” Guedes said.
“For the kids back home who are starting out, it would be a very good step.
“In Portugal, it is always soccer. We want to show the world that it is not only soccer.
“We have the numbers in terms of rugby and some good kids coming up. I think we have the capacity.”
Ireland captain Johnny Sexton will continue to let his performances do the talking after warming up for world champions South Africa with another record-breaking display.
The 38-year-old surpassed former fly-half rival Ronan O’Gara as his country’s all-time leading scorer by moving on to 1,090 career points during Saturday’s emphatic 59-16 win over Tonga.
Sexton last week returned with a bang from almost six months on the sidelines to leapfrog O’Gara as Ireland’s top points scorer at the Rugby World Cup, in addition to becoming the oldest international to wear the green jersey.
His greatest challenge following his long-awaited comeback from injury and suspension undoubtedly lies ahead, with the tantalising Paris showdown against the Springboks likely to decide who tops Pool B.
“The proof of whether I’m in good form will be next Saturday,” said Sexton, who will retire after the tournament. “You’ve got to go and do it in the games.
“There’s no point in saying you’re feeling good or whatever. I just take it day by day, make sure I recover well, turn up to training on Monday and Tuesday and try and put the plan in place to take on the reigning world champions.
“They’ve hit a great vein of form and it’s going to be a huge challenge for us but one that we are really excited about and we feel we’re ready for it.”
Sexton claimed the fourth of Ireland’s eight tries on a history-making evening in Nantes.
He also kicked four conversions and a penalty to add to the 24-point haul he managed in the curtain-raiser against Romania before being withdrawn at half-time.
Bundee Aki’s second-half double, in between scores from James Lowe and Rob Herring, helped seal Ireland’s 15th successive win after Tadhg Beirne, Caelan Doris and Mack Hansen laid the foundations.
While Scotland will still hope to have a say, Ireland and South Africa lead the way in the group, with the eventual table-toppers likely to avoid hosts France and play New Zealand in the quarter-finals.
“Obviously we want to win the group,” said Sexton. “We want to win every game. That’s pretty clear.
“If you get through the group, it doesn’t matter if you finish first or second, you won’t have an easy game.
“But we’ll be going for the win next week and hopefully the game after (against Scotland) as well.”
Andy Farrell’s decision to name a strong starting XV at Stade de la Beaujoire was vindicated by a second successive bonus-point triumph from which his team emerged relatively unscathed.
The head coach, who was upbeat about replacement prop Finlay Bealham’s head injury assessment, hopes his players can move up gear in the capital in six days’ time.
“I would hope we will be better because we’ll certainly need to be when it gets to playing against a fantastic side in South Africa,” he said.
“But two games under the belt is good for us. Hopefully that rolls on to to another level on the third week.
“This is what World Cups are all about, weeks that are coming against the reigning world champions.
“It doesn’t get any better and one thing’s for sure, you know that the Irish (fans) are going to turn up and enjoy it as well. It’s a fantastic week to look forward to.”
Jonathan Humphreys has predicted “a hell of a game” when Rugby World Cup rivals Wales and Australia go head-to-head in Lyon.
Top spot in Pool C could be on the line next Sunday and Wales know that objective will move closer into view if they topple the Wallabies.
Australia have beaten them in five of their seven previous World Cup meetings, but bonus-point victories over Fiji and Portugal mean that Wales are in decent shape.
“It is going to be a hell of a game – there is going to be a lot riding on that,” Wales assistant coach and forwards specialist Humphreys said.
“We have got an eight-day turnaround, so hopefully we will have a full squad to choose from. A few boys have rested up after a tough Fiji game.
“It will be interesting to see how they come out. He (Australia head coach Eddie Jones) has always got something different in his game.
“The players he has available to him right now are a hell of a squad, and we are looking forward to what will be an incredibly tough match.”
Wales, showing 12 changes from the side that defeated Fiji, struggled to impose themselves at times against a Portugal team relishing their first World Cup appearance since 2007.
But ultimately, a 28-8 success – and a bonus point collected in the dying seconds when Taulupe Faletau scored Wales’ fourth try – meant it was a case of job done.
Humphreys added: “We are delighted to get 10 points from the first two games. If you had offered that to us before we came out here we would have taken your hand off.
“There were a lot of boys who hadn’t played for a while – we made a lot of changes. It was great that we got a bonus point, and they’ve also got a fair bit of game-time.
“The first game (against Fiji) was obviously massive for us. As a squad we really came together after that game, saying ‘it’s a good start’.
“The support the team that played against Portugal had from the rest (of the squad) tells us the spirit is there.
“We are in a pretty good place, but we know we need to improve and get better if we are to do the job against Australia.”
Fitness-wise, Wales will need to run the rule over flanker Tommy Reffell and prop Henry Thomas when they arrive back at their training base in Versailles.
Thomas, who has a hamstring issue, is the only player in Wales’ 33-strong World Cup squad not to have been involved against Fiji or Portugal.
Reffell, meanwhile, was due to face Portugal but a tight calf muscle meant he withdrew during final pre-match preparations and Jac Morgan replaced him.
“Tommy is an incredibly tough bloke, but it was the right decision,” Humphreys said.
“He was in agreement with that. If he pulled his calf, he is probably gone for the tournament. It was done as a precaution to make sure that he is not too long out.
“Jac is incredible. He wasn’t due to be involved, and the non-(matchday) 23 (including Morgan) did weights and extra-conditioning in the morning. He is an incredible player.”
Humphreys also highlighted Faletau’s major contribution in only his second start since a calf injury meant he took no part during Wales’ three World Cup warm-up Tests.
“He is a massive player for us,” Humphreys added. “To see him chasing back, make that (try-saving) tackle and get to his feet to go for the ball, he is a huge player and he will get better and better.
“That’s the thing about world-class players, on big moments like that they step up and do something. We are looking forward to seeing what more he can do.”
Lance Stroll has been ruled out of Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix following his staggering 110mph qualifying crash.
The Canadian driver lost control of his Aston Martin through the final left-hander at the Marina Bay Circuit before he slammed into the barrier.
The force of the high-speed impact sent Stroll’s head rocking from side-to-side. He catapulted back across the track and pirouetted to a standstill in the middle of the circuit.
The Aston Martin driver emerged from his wrecked vehicle unaided before being given the all-clear by the on-track medical team.
But Aston Martin said the significant damage sustained to Stroll’s machine, in addition to the 24-year-old still being “sore” from the high-speed shunt, means he will be sidelined from the race.
A statement from the British team read: “Following Lance’s crash in qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix, Lance and the Aston Martin team have jointly agreed that he will not participate in this evening’s race.
“The team face a huge job repairing the car today and Lance is still sore following such a high impact. Lance’s focus now shifts to fully recovering ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix (on September 24).”
Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack added: “The whole team are relieved that Lance was able to step out of the car after yesterday’s accident – however, he is still feeling the after-effects of such a high-impact crash.
“Our priority now is that he makes a full and speedy recovery. Together, we have decided that he will sit out this evening’s race and instead focus fully on returning to the cockpit for next weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix.”
Stroll was 20th and last at the time of his crash. Fernando Alonso qualified seventh in the other Aston Martin.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are kings of the NL West once again.
Max Muncy, Chris Taylor and Kike Hernandez all delivered 11th-inning RBIs and the Dodgers outlasted the Seattle Mariners for a 6-2 win Saturday, clinching their 10th division title in the last 11 seasons.
Neither team scored in the game’s first nine innings, but Los Angeles took a 1-0 lead in the top of the 10th on a Kolten Wong sacrifice fly, but Seattle pulled even again on Mike Ford’s RBI single in the bottom half.
Muncy’s single with one out in the 11th plated Mookie Betts and put the Dodgers (90-57) ahead for good. Taylor and Hernandez followed with two-run singles in the inning for extra insurance.
Jason Heyward had three doubles and finished the game 4 of 5 for the Dodgers.
Seven Dodgers pitches combined to hold the M’s to just seven hits, and neither of Seattle’s runs were earned.
The loss dropped the Mariners (81-67) to 1 ½ games back of the Houston Astros in the AL West.
O’s regain AL East lead with win over Rays
Grayson Rodriguez was nearly unhittable for eight innings, Gunnar Henderson hit a three-run home run and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Tampa Bay Rays 8-0 to take a one-game lead in the AL East.
Rodriguez’s start was the longest and perhaps best of his rookie season. It was certainly the most important as the Orioles (92-56) ended a four-game losing streak.
Fellow Baltimore rookie Henderson went 3 of 5 with two runs scored and delivered the game’s only homer in the second inning off Tyler Glasnow.
Aaron Hicks reached base three times and scored twice, and Ramon Urias had two hits and an RBI as the Orioles seek their first division title since 2014.
D-backs win key matchup with Cubs in 13-inning marathon
Gabriel Moreno plated Evan Longoria with a 13th-inning single and the Arizona Diamondbacks rallied for a 7-6 walk-off win over the Chicago Cubs to tighten the NL wild card race.
After Lourdes Gurriel Jr.’s single tied the game in the sixth, Arizona fell behind in the 10th, 11th and 13th innings but battled back each time.
The win lifted the Diamondbacks (78-72) into a tie with the Cincinnati Reds for the final wild card spot in the NL and moved them to within a half-game of the Cubs for the second NL wild card slot.
The Cubs (78-71) dropped their fourth straight game and fell to 2-7 in their last nine.
Saturday’s game was the longest in the majors this season, lasting 4 hours, 24 minutes.
Johnny Sexton joked his young son will chase down his record after he became Ireland’s all-time leading points scorer in a crushing Rugby World Cup win over Tonga.
Captain Sexton stylishly surpassed former fly-half rival Ronan O’Gara with the fourth of his side’s eight tries in a thumping 59-16 Pool B success in Nantes.
The 38-year-old also kicked a penalty and four conversions en route to moving on to a career total of 1,090 Test points in the green jersey – seven clear of O’Gara’s tally of 1,083 and in 13 fewer appearances.
He gleefully celebrated his landmark score under the posts before suggesting nine-year-old Luca will one day look to eclipse the achievement.
“It’s something when you retire and finish, you can look back and be proud,” said Sexton.
“I think my little boy will be over the moon, he was talking about it during the week and it probably means more to him. He’ll chase it down now! And so will the other 10s.
“It’s there to be broken now and I’m sure some young guys will be eyeing it up.
“Look, I’m very proud to do it, but tonight was more about getting the win and moving on to what’s such a massive game now this week.”
Ireland edged a step closer to the quarter-finals with a second successive bonus-point win on the back of last weekend’s 82-8 demolition of Romania.
Tries from Tadhg Beirne, Caelan Doris and Mack Hansen paved the way to victory, with Bundee Aki’s double and second-half scores from James Lowe and Rob Herring capping Sexton’s landmark moment.
Sexton was withdrawn at half-time with next weekend’s pivotal Paris showdown against champions South Africa in mind.
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The world’s top-ranked nation emerged relatively unscathed from a bruising encounter at Stade de la Beaujoire, albeit replacement prop Finlay Bealham was forced off for a head injury assessment.
Head coach Andy Farrell made a dressing room speech to congratulate Sexton and says his skipper is far more than a “points-scoring machine”.
“It’s so fitting that he broke the record with a try like that,” said Farrell
“But what I would say, and I’ve said to Johnny in front of the lads in there, he can talk for himself, but the record is fantastic.
“He’d say that’s his job but it takes some doing.
“To us, as a leader, as a player, he’s a lot more than a points-scoring machine for Ireland, how he prepares his team and gets them up for every single game is more important to him and certainly to us.”
Speaking of the withdrawn Bealham, Farrell said: “Finlay’s in great spirits so he’ll go through the protocols tomorrow.
“But looking at him and speaking to the medics, they’re pretty happy with where he’s at, obviously with all the protocols, probably.”
Vaea Fifita crossed just before half-time to give Tonga brief hope in the aftermath of Peter O’Mahony’s yellow card, while William Havili kicked 11 points.
Tonga head coach Toutai Kefu conceded his team were ultimately outclassed.
“I don’t think they’re a 60-point team better than us,” he said.
“We were our worst enemy, we made some poor execution mistakes and some poor decisions, which probably inflated the score more than we would have liked.
“But you lose by 10, you lose by 50, you still lose.
“They pressured us in the air, on the ground. They’re a really complete team, a high-quality team, it’s why they’re number one in the world, so tonight too good for us.”
Wales assistant coach Rob Howley was sent home from the World Cup in Japan on this day in 2019 after a breach of betting rules.
The then 48-year-old former Wales captain had been a part of Warren Gatland’s coaching team since 2008 and left Wales’ World Cup squad base in the southern Japanese city of Kitakyushu while an investigation into his betting activities took place.
The Welsh Rugby Union said at the time that Howley had “returned to Wales to assist with an investigation in relation to a potential breach of World Rugby regulation 6, specifically betting on rugby union”.
Howley was sent home six days before Wales’ opening World Cup game against Georgia, a fixture they went on to win 43-14.
In a statement, the WRU said: “The WRU can confirm that Rob Howley has returned to Wales to assist with an investigation in relation to a potential breach of World Rugby regulation 6, specifically betting on rugby union.
“The decision was taken to act immediately in light of recent information passed to the WRU.
“No further details can be provided at this stage as this would prejudice the investigation. If required, an independent panel will be appointed to hear the case.
“Rob has co-operated fully with our initial discussions, and we would ask that the media appreciate this is a difficult and personal matter for Rob and that his privacy is respected before an outcome is reached.
“Warren Gatland has consulted with senior players, and Stephen Jones will be arriving in Japan imminently to link up with the squad as attack coach.”
Following the investigation, Howley was banned from all involvement in rugby for 18 months, nine of which were suspended, with the ban being backdated from the date he returned home from the tournament.
It emerged that Howley was charged with making 364 bets on rugby union over a four-year period, with 24 on games connected to Wales including two upon Wales players scoring tries.
Howley placed a bet on a Wales player to be the first try-scorer in the 25-7 Six Nations victory over Ireland in March 2019, but Howley stated that it was part of a treble bet, adding that it was a part of his normal recreational betting activity.
However, he later admitted that he knew he could not bet on matches involving Wales and that it was a breach of World Rugby anti-corruption and betting regulations.
Following examination of Howley’s electronic devices, including his laptop and phone, “no material was discovered which incriminated Mr Howley to an extent greater than that which he had already admitted”.
Wales reached the semi-finals of the 2019 World Cup before losing 19-16 to eventual champions South Africa.
Johnny Sexton joked his young son will chase down his record after he became Ireland’s all-time leading points scorer in a crushing Rugby World Cup win over Tonga.
Captain Sexton stylishly surpassed former fly-half rival Ronan O’Gara with the fourth of his side’s eight tries in a thumping 59-16 Pool B success in Nantes.
The 38-year-old also kicked a penalty and four conversions en route to moving on to a career total of 1,090 Test points in the green jersey – seven clear of O’Gara’s tally of 1,083 and in 13 fewer appearances.
He gleefully celebrated his landmark score under the posts before suggesting nine-year-old Luca will one day look to eclipse the achievement.
“It’s something when you retire and finish, you can look back and be proud,” said Sexton.
“I think my little boy will be over the moon, he was talking about it during the week and it probably means more to him. He’ll chase it down now! And so will the other 10s.
“It’s there to be broken now and I’m sure some young guys will be eyeing it up.
“Look, I’m very proud to do it, but tonight was more about getting the win and moving onto what’s such a massive game now this week.”
Johnny Sexton smashed Ireland’s individual points record as his side edged closer to the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals with a crushing 59-16 bonus-point victory over Tonga in Nantes.
The influential fly-half surpassed Ronan O’Gara’s all-time tally of 1,083 in style with the fourth of his side’s eight tries on a balmy evening at Stade de la Beaujoire.
Captain Sexton also kicked a penalty and four conversions en route to moving on to a career total of 1,090 before being withdrawn from a bruising Pool B encounter at half-time ahead of next week’s crucial clash with South Africa.
Tries from Tadhg Beirne, Caelan Doris and Mack Hansen paved the way to victory, with Bundee Aki’s double and second-half scores from James Lowe and Rob Herring capping Sexton’s landmark moment.
Vaea Fifita crossed just before half-time to give Tonga hope in the aftermath of Peter O’Mahony’s yellow card, while William Havili contributed three penalties and a conversion.
But the world’s top-ranked nation comfortably maintained their 100 per cent start to the tournament and emerged relatively unscathed moving towards pivotal Paris appointments with the Springboks and Scotland.
Despite the looming threat of the reigning world champions, head coach Andy Farrell named an extremely strong starting XV showing just four personnel changes from last weekend’s thumping 12-try triumph over Romania.
His side, unfamiliar in white shirts, were once again heavily backed on the terraces and met Tonga’s Sipi Tau by taking a collective step forwards.
Sexton slotted an early penalty to increase the volume, but Havili landed a long-range reply to level before Ireland were frustrated to have an Andrew Porter try disallowed for a knock-on by Hansen.
The disappointment proved to be fleeting as Farrell’s men remained on the front foot, culminating in Beirne collecting Doris’ pass and touching down under the posts for his third score of the tournament.
Havili landed another audacious penalty from close to halfway to cut Tonga’s deficit, but their hopes of a first win over the Six Nations champions were swiftly reduced by costly indiscipline.
Lowe was clattered in his own 22 by opposing wing Solomone Kata, gifting Ireland a penalty at the other end of the field from which Doris powered over.
Hansen – one of four men recalled by Farrell – then superbly danced through the opposition defence wide on the right to stretch the scoreboard, leading to Sexton equalling O’Gara’s previous national record.
Sexton overtook his former fly-half rival in memorable fashion to secure the bonus point.
The evergreen 38-year-old rolled back the years by effortlessly slipping through Tonga’s defence to touch down and then celebrated jubilantly with fans seated behind the posts, before regaining his composure to add a simple conversion.
Ireland were threatening to blitz the stunned underdogs.
Yet Tonga roared back and, during a series of penalties close to the Irish line, O’Mahony was sin-binned before former All Black Fifita shrugged off an early injury issue to power over.
Ireland changed their entire front row at the break, while wrapping Sexton in cotton wool.
Yet replacement tighthead prop Finlay Bealham departed for a head injury assessment after Havili kicked his third penalty of the evening, requiring the swift return of Tahdg Furlong, before substitute hooker Herring had a try chalked off on review.
Lowe eventually claimed Ireland’s fifth and official man-on-the-match Aki then propelled himself to the top of the tournament’s embryonic try-scoring charts with a quick-fire brace, both converted by Sexton’s replacement Ross Byrne.
Ireland were relatively untroubled in the second period and Herring sealed another statement win – a 15th in succession overall – ahead of two critical fixtures in the French capital.
George Ford has been working with Jonny Wilkinson to turn the drop-goal into a weapon at the World Cup.
Ford landed three as England opened the tournament with a 27-10 rout of Argentina in Marseille last Saturday and is ready to continue using them if the opportunity arises.
To assist with the tactic, the Sale fly-half has been perfecting his technique with Wilkinson, who famously landed the drop-goal that enabled England to lift the World Cup in 2003.
“Jonny’s big thing is don’t worry about the posts,” said Ford, who continues in the number 10 jersey for Sunday’s showdown with Japan in Nice.
“Obviously you need to know where they are, but the only thing you can control is what you do in terms of how you place the ball and what you do with your body.
“Jonny said you can have the ugliest drop in the world but if you get your body right and the ball is in the slot, and you get the momentum of your body towards the target, you can do it.
“How many drop goals do you see that flap over? A lot of kickers say if you speak to kids growing up they are constantly looking at the posts as if they are going move to make the ball go over.
“The drop-goal has probably been underused. You watch Jonny’s era in 2003 and 2007 and the influence drop-goals had on the game then was enormous.
“Maybe the game has tipped the balance the other side of the spectrum where everyone thinks you need to score tries every two minutes, but you need a variety of ways of scoring.
“We had spoken quite a bit about them in pre-season and how big they can be, especially at World Cups. They can be really effective and hopefully we can show that again.”
In training, Ford competes with fellow playmakers Owen Farrell and Marcus Smith to see how many drop-goals they can kick – under the watchful eye of rugby league great Kevin Sinfield, who is now England’s defence coach.
“It is interesting speaking to Kev because in rugby league you might not see as many drop-goals because it is only worth one point,” Ford said.
“But he said as soon as play-off games came around, how much they practised went through the roof because they knew they would need a couple in a semi or a final, so we are doing this thing at the minute where we kick until we miss.
“Obviously if you don’t kick many before you miss you might go again, but there is a fair bit of competition and pressure between myself, Owen and Marcus when we are doing it.
“We are bringing lads over to come and put pressure on us, because we are not daft, you are not in armchair. You need to make it as realistic as possible.”
Wales boss Warren Gatland declared it a case of “job done” by beating Portugal 28-8 at Stade de Nice and taking another step toward the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals.
It was not pretty at times, and Wales only claimed the bonus-point try they coveted when number eight Taulupe Faletau scored in the dying seconds, but Gatland’s team now have 10 points from 10 in Pool C.
“If someone said you would have 10 points from the first two games, we would have been pretty happy with that,” Wales head coach Gatland said.
“Look, there were aspects of today where we probably tried to play a little too much rugby early on and didn’t play a bit more territory and be a bit more direct.
“But some of those players haven’t had a lot of rugby. I just said to them in the changing room, ‘job done’. We’ve got the five points.
“They had thrown everything at us in those first 20 minutes. They probably didn’t have the same opportunities in the second half in terms of putting us under that sort of pressure.
“When we ran hard and won those collision, that is when we looked dangerous. Probably at times we were a little bit lateral.
“It’s good we have given everyone in the squad an opportunity and some rugby. We have a little bit more time in terms of preparation before Australia and we can start looking forward to that game.”
Gatland confirmed flanker Tommy Reffell was suffering from a tight calf muscle that saw him pulled out of the starting line-up just minutes before kick-off, with Jac Morgan called up.
“Tommy said his calf was a bit tight,” Gatland added.
“I think he was still quite keen to take the field, but if he pulled that calf, that would have been his World Cup over.
“To put Jac in as a straight replacement with very limited preparation, I thought he was good.”
Gatland’s much-changed side struggled throughout for control and fluency in the contest, the highlight of which was Portugal’s attacking flair.
Wing Louis Rees-Zammit, captain Dewi Lake, Morgan and Faletau scored tries, while Leigh Halfpenny kicked three conversions and Sam Costelow landed one, yet a vast improvement will be required against Australia in Lyon next weekend.
Portugal gave as good as they got for large parts of the game and they undoubtedly deserved more than flanker Nicolas Martins’ try and a Samuel Marques penalty.
Their exciting back division stretched Wales’ defence in all directions, although wing Vincent Pinto blotted the copybook when he was red-carded late in the game following a bunker review after his boot caught Josh Adams in the face.
Asked if he was surprised by Portugal’s physicality, Lake said: “No, I don’t think we were surprised as we had done our homework on the team that we were facing.
“We understood what they were going to bring to the table from a physicality standpoint. Gats spoke in the week about them being a mini-Fiji in terms of an off-load game.
“They’ve got players who want to snipe and want to run. In terms of physicality, we won that battle over 80 minutes.”
Portugal lost 102-11 when they last played Wales in 1994, although captain Tomas Appleton struggled to mask his disappointment at the latest outcome.
“We really wanted to win this game. We really worked hard for that,” Appleton said.
“We lost many areas of the game, we didn’t have a solid scrum, we made mistakes in the backs and when we are playing at this level we get penalised and we suffer with those mistakes.
“We couldn’t quite show the rugby that we have, the good level of fast rugby we can play, and at the end of the day we are frustrated.
“We are not here to just be a presence, we are here to compete and win. When you are playing at this level you have to be cool-headed, and I think a lot of times we made bad decisions.”
Great Britain will have to beat France in Sunday’s Davis Cup clash if they are to qualify for the quarter-finals of the competition.
Australia’s 3-0 success against Switzerland on Sunday sent them through to the final eight week in Malaga in November, and the winner of the final group clash at Manchester’s AO Arena will join them.
Britain have performed excellently so far, beating Australia and Switzerland 2-1, but the nature of the other results means only another win will be enough.
Captain Leon Smith has used all four of his singles players across the two ties so far and now faces a tricky decision about who to field on Sunday.
Jack Draper and Dan Evans both claimed strong wins against Australia while Andy Murray ground out an epic win against young Swiss Leandro Riedi before Cameron Norrie was beaten by Stan Wawrinka.
“Everyone’s played now,” said Smith. “We’ve got a full deck of cards to play with on Sunday. Ultimately we’ll go with what we think’s the best option for Sunday but everyone’s available, everybody’s ready to go.
“You’re not always going to get the decisions right, and there’s not a right answer most of the time. You can look at match-ups as much as you want but there’s other equations in there.
“Genuinely this time round it feels like everyone’s in it together in the right way, everyone’s been totally accepting of any decisions that I’ve made. There’s not been any ill feeling towards it at all.
“There’s always going to be disappointment because these guys are great players, they all want to play.”
Draper and Evans, who will also play in the doubles rubber with Neal Skupski, are perhaps the front runners, although Murray famously has a great record against both French players and left-handers and has won all three of his previous meetings with number two Adrian Mannarino.
A crowd of more than 13,000, a record for a single day of Davis Cup action in the UK, is expected.
Ludvig Aberg’s meteoric rise shows no signs of slowing down after the Ryder Cup rookie cruised into a two-shot lead in the BMW PGA Championship.
Playing just his 10th event since turning professional, Aberg carded a third round of 66 at Wentworth to reach 16 under par in pursuit of back-to-back victories on the DP World Tour.
England’s Tommy Fleetwood delighted the large crowds with a 67 to share second place on 14 under with Scotland’s Connor Syme, who covered the back nine in 31 in a superb 65.
Masters champion Jon Rahm, who was two over par for the tournament after 21 holes, is four shots off the pace following a 66 which included vital birdies on the 17th and 18th.
Aberg, whose victory in the European Masters earlier this month earned him a Ryder Cup wild card from Europe captain Luke Donald hours later, admitted winning the BMW PGA Championship was “very, very high” on his bucket list.
“It is one of the biggest events on the DP World Tour, it’s been like that for a long time,” the 23-year-old said.
“I’ve got memories of Alex (Noren) winning here when he hit an unbelievable shot into 18. It’s really cool to see myself up there, I have to pinch myself in the arm every now and then but it’s quite cool.
“I think expectations just changed after Switzerland in terms of knowing I can do it. Even though I’ve won in college quite a bit it is different, whether you like it or not, to win on the pro stage and it was pretty cool to do that.
“I could tell myself that I could do it and was good enough and hopefully I’ll be able to do that tomorrow too.”
Fleetwood is also targeting a significant victory in front of a home crowd which roared him on every step of the way, the 32-year-old kickstarting his recovery from a slow start with an eagle on the fourth courtesy of a lesson from Rory McIlroy.
“I had a lesson out of the rough from Rory on Monday when the Ryder Cup team were in Rome,” Fleetwood said.
“I always struggle to get steep on it and I am always chopping out of the rough so he just helped me with a couple of things on how better to do it really.
“It worked a couple of times today. The one with an eight iron on number four was good, it came out perfect and it is a new shot in my locker.”
Fleetwood has endured several near-misses this season, including losing a play-off in the Canadian Open when Nick Taylor holed from 70 feet for a winning eagle, but would love to taste victory in front of a “biased” home crowd.
“This event means a lot to pretty much all of us on the Tour and I have not had much joy here to be honest,” Fleetwood added.
“But the crowds this week have been amazing, very biased in my direction which is great, and this event is one that everyone would love to tick off in their career.”
Syme will play alongside Fleetwood and Aberg in the final group on Sunday and will have plenty of family support after revealing his father Stuart, who is also his coach, had missed a wedding to remain at Wentworth this weekend.
“He made the decision when I was making a few birdies yesterday (Friday) afternoon,” Syme said.
“It’s my mum’s best friend’s daughter’s wedding. They spoke and my mum was happy to go on her own. My mum said that if my dad could help me even a little bit by staying down, that would be fine with her.
“I actually didn’t make that decision, by the way, so I don’t feel any pressure at all! I was expecting him to be heading home when I came off the course on Friday, but there he was.”
Shohei Ohtani won't play again in the 2023 MLB season.
This also means he may have played in his final game for the Los Angeles Angels.
The Angels placed the two-way superstar on the injured list Saturday with an oblique strain and said he'll miss the rest of the season.
Ohtani missed his 11th straight game Friday, and while he was at Angel Stadium before his team's game against the Detroit Tigers, his locker had been mostly emptied after the Angels' 11-2 loss.
Almost all of his personal items were removed and a bag that was fully packed sat on the floor in front of his stall.
The cleaned-out locker could signal that Ohtani's time with the Angels is over as the three-time All-Star will be the most coveted free agent in MLB this offseason.
Ohtani hasn't publicly made any comment about his future, but there is speculation he will sign with a new team after never reaching the playoffs during his first six MLB seasons with the Angels.
Ohtani had been shut down from pitching for the rest of this season because of a tear in his right elbow ligament, and his agent Nez Balelo had said he'll need surgery at some point.
He last served as a designated hitter September 3 after straining his obliques in batting practice, but the Angels had remained hopeful he could still return before the end of the season to hit.
Despite being slowed by injuries, Ohtani is still among the favourites to capture his second American League MVP award in three years.
As a pitcher, he went 10-5 with a 3.14 ERA with 167 strikeouts over 132 innings in 23 starts. At the plate, Ohtani still leads the AL with 44 homers while his 1.066 OPS ranks second in the majors behind the Texas Rangers' Corey Seager (1.069) - Ohtani's main competition for the AL MVP.
Wales took another step towards the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals, but they were given a fierce examination by minnows Portugal before winning 28-8 at Stade de Nice.
Warren Gatland’s much-changed team struggled throughout for control and fluency in the Pool C contest, the highlight of which was Portugal’s attacking flair.
Wales started with only three survivors from the side that defeated Fiji last weekend, and their latest performance was a world away from what they delivered in Bordeaux six days ago.
Wing Louis Rees-Zammit, captain Dewi Lake, flanker Jac Morgan and number eight Taulupe Faletau scored tries, while Leigh Halfpenny kicked three conversions and Sam Costelow landed one, yet a vast improvement will be required against Australia in Lyon next weekend.
Portugal gave as good as they got for large parts of the game, and they undoubtedly deserved more than flanker Nicolas Martin’s try and a Samuel Marques penalty, with Wales not collecting a bonus point until the dying seconds.
Their exciting back division stretched Wales’ defence in all directions, although wing Vincent Pinto blotted the copybook when he was red-carded late in the game following a bunker review after his boot caught Josh Adams in the face.
Wales suffered an injury blow shortly before kick-off when flanker Tommy Reffell withdrew from the starting line-up and was replaced by Morgan.
Portugal, playing their first World Cup game for 16 years, were captained by centre Tomas Appleton and under the coaching direction of former France international wing Patrice Lagisquet.
Marques missed a golden chance to put his team in front when he sent a short-range penalty wide, and Wales went ahead through a ninth-minute try that saw an impressive finish from Rees-Zammit, who then performed a Cristiano Ronaldo-style celebration.
Halfpenny converted, but Portugal showed plenty of adventure in attack and Faletau pulled off a try-saving tackle that preserved Wales’ 7-0 lead after 17 minutes.
It was an impressive effort by the underdogs as their eagerness to move possession wide and at pace tested Wales’ defence.
Wales made errors when they got within sight of Portugal’s line, and an element of frustration was underlined when Johnny Williams received a yellow card following a technical infringement.
It was an outstanding first-half display by Portugal, who were beaten 102-11 on their only previous meeting with Wales in a World Cup qualifier 29 years ago.
Wales just could not get going, compounding their situation through poor work in the contact area, and Marques kicked a penalty three minutes before the break.
Williams then had a try disallowed after he failed to ground the ball, only for Lake to power over from close range, with Halfpenny’s conversion making it 14-3 at the interval.
Wales began the second period by losing two attacking lineouts in quick succession inside Portugal’s 22 and Gatland soon turned to his replacements’ bench, sending on Ryan Elias, Corey Domachowski, Tomas Francis and Adam Beard.
Back-row forward Taine Basham soon followed them into the action and Wales claimed a third try after 56 minutes when Morgan crossed from close range and Halfpenny added the extras.
Portugal deservedly claimed a try midway through the second half when clever lineout work produced a try for Martins. Marques’ touchline conversion attempt hit a post and it was a warning sign to Wales that their opponents had no intention of going quietly.
The closing stages were all about whether or not Wales could secure a bonus point, and they thought they had it when scrum-half Gareth Davies crossed, only to see it disallowed for midfield obstruction.
That summed up Wales’ day, but, after Pinto was dismissed, Faletau scored in the game’s final play and Costelow converted.
It was perhaps not quite the result racing wanted in the Betfred St Leger, but the sight of the King and Queen cheering Desert Hero into a valiant third place added to a real sense of occasion at Doncaster.
Although disappointed not to send out a first royal Classic winner in 46 years, after the late Queen’s Dunfermline won the Leger in 1977, trainer William Haggas was well aware of the significance of the King and Queen attending the final Classic of the season – on an afternoon which was also the scene of Frankie Dettori’s final ride in such a race.
There had been suggestions the King might not share his mother’s love and enthusiasm for racing. But that has proven to be well wide of the mark, and the joy clearly evident in Desert Hero’s win at Royal Ascot in June has reignited the nation’s interest in the royal colours.
Having opened a farming and rural skills centre in Dumfries in the morning, the King raced to South Yorkshire in time to watch his Sea The Stars colt, and while the Tom Marquand-ridden Desert Hero found the combination of soft ground and an extended mile and three-quarters possibly stretching him – as well as the brilliance of the winner, Continuous – Haggas felt the day was a big one for Doncaster, and racing as a whole.
“It’s been a brilliant day and brilliant the King and the Queen have come, the crowd have embraced them, they seemed to have enjoyed it and they’ve been very enthusiastic,” said Haggas.
“I haven’t really had time to think about today this week as we’ve been so busy at home, but this horse is doing really well, he gets a bit sweaty but that is him. Physically he is thriving, he’s a very nice horse and a good effort for a first foal from the mare (Desert Breeze, bred by the late Queen).
“It’s been fantastic, the King has been embraced by the crowd, they both have, they’ve been very excited all week and OK he didn’t win but he ran with great credit and I’m sure they are very proud of him. It’s an all-round good day.”
As for the future, a trip to the Melbourne Cup has not yet been ruled out.
“I thought he ran a great race, he was just a little bit on it early and he really wants a mile and a half and a faster gallop. He’s going to be a very, very nice horse,” Haggas went on.
“I don’t know about the Melbourne Cup, that’s not my decision and it still needs to be discussed, hopefully we’ll make a decision quickly, well we have to because he’ll need to go into quarantine.
“He’s had a race there and he’s given his all, so I’m very proud of him. I’m thrilled his owners were here to see him.
“Tom didn’t blame the trip, I don’t think, he blamed the pace early which was a bit gentle for him but sensible in the conditions. He’ll be better with a faster pace and then he can take his time.
“He ran a good race and he beat Chesspiece a fair way this time, it’s probably a career-best so I can’t complain.
“As for next year a lot will depend on whether he goes for the Melbourne Cup, but he looks to me like a Hardwicke/King George horse.
“The Melbourne Cup is still on the table, but we said we wouldn’t discuss it until after this race because we’ve just been discussing this.”
The eloquent Marquand has not put a foot wrong all week, agreeing to dozens of media requests along the way, and he suggested with a stronger pace he may have finished a good deal closer than the three and a quarter lengths he was beaten.
Marquand said: “He was never quite in his comfort zone, they were always just going half a stride slower than I wanted.
“He’s run great and ran to the line, but it does leave the question whether this trip is him or not, he finds it easier to cruise at a mile and a half.
“It was super having the King and Queen here today to enjoy it. It’s been an enormous day for racing, it’s fantastic. Unfortunately he didn’t win, but he’s run super and lost nothing in defeat.”
Lance Stroll has been given the all-clear to race in Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix, despite his staggering 110mph qualifying crash.
The Canadian driver lost control of his Aston Martin through the final left-hander at the Marina Bay Circuit before he slammed into the barrier.
The force of the high-speed impact sent Stroll’s head rocking from side-to-side. He catapulted back across the track, with British driver Lando Norris forced to take evasive action, dodging a flying wheel and Stroll’s out-of-control machine.
“Is the driver all right?” asked a concerned Norris on the radio. “That must have been quite a big one.”
Stroll pirouetted to a standstill in the middle of the track before his race engineer Ben Michell came on the radio.
“Lance, car is safe,” said Michell. “Are you OK?” Stroll, 24, replied: “Yeah, I am OK.”
The Aston Martin driver emerged from his wrecked vehicle unaided before being taken off in a medical car.
But there is some doubt if Stroll, the son of the team’s fashion billionaire father Lawrence Stroll, will be able to take part in the race given the significant damage sustained by his machine.
A statement from Aston Martin read: “Lance was taken to the medical centre for a precautionary assessment. He was cleared by the on-site medical team and returned to the team at track.
“Aston Martin pay tribute to the ongoing work of the FIA and the safety measures of current Formula One cars.”
Stroll’s accident brought a premature end to Q1. A 34-minute delay followed as the mangled tyre barrier was repaired.
Stroll was 20th and last at the time of his crash. Fernando Alonso qualified seventh in the other Aston Martin.
“I’m frustrated as we have a big job – in the garage and on the race track – ahead of us,” said Stroll.
“I was struggling for grip throughout the qualifying session. When I saw my lap wasn’t improving, I pushed really hard in the last corner to try and make up that extra time and that’s when it went wrong. Let’s see what we can salvage tomorrow in the race.”
Max Verstappen said he can forget about extending his record winning streak after qualifying only 11th for Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix.
On a wild night under the 1600 bulbs that light up the Marina Bay Circuit, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll also walked away from a staggering 110mph shunt, while Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz pipped the Mercedes of George Russell to land his second pole position in as many races. Charles Leclerc will start third ahead of Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton.
But it was the demise of Red Bull – the unbeaten tour de force of this most one-sided of seasons – that left those here in shock and awe. Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez also failed to reach Q3. He will line up in 13th for Sunday’s 62-lap race.
Verstappen warned earlier this week that the Red Bull machinery which has carried him to a record 10 consecutive victories would not be suited to this unique 3.07-mile high-downforce circuit.
Yet, nobody could have foreseen him being sent for an early bath along with Perez in the other car. Verstappen was straight on the radio to express his dismay.
“I don’t know if you saw that, but that was just f***** shocking,” he said. “Absolutely shocking experience.”
Verstappen’s Red Bull team, without a defeat in the 14 rounds so far, now face an improbable task of making history by becoming Formula One’s first ‘Invincibles’.
“You can forget about that (a victory),” said Verstappen. “I don’t want it to sound too dramatic but it has been a tough weekend, and it is a long, long time since it has been like this in qualifying.”
Verstappen last started this far back in Saudi Arabia when a driveshaft failure consigned him to 15th at the second round in March. He finished runner-up to Perez.
But the streets of Singapore, unlike those in Jeddah, are strenuous to overtake on. Indeed, eight of the last 13 races here have been won from pole.
“You cannot pass here,” added Verstappen. “You need to be one and a half, to two or three seconds faster than the car in front which we are not. It will be a very tough and long afternoon.
“On other tracks you can start last and win, but not in Singapore. I want to win, but when it is not possible you have to accept that.
“I knew there would be a day that I wouldn’t win. I had a really good run up until now.
“And I would always take a season where we are winning as much as we have, and have one really bad weekend, over the other way round when you are not fighting for the championship. I am confident the car will be fast again in Suzuka next weekend.”
Red Bull’s sudden malaise cleared the way for Sainz to capture another pole, a fortnight after he secured top spot in qualifying in Monza.
However, Russell ran the Spaniard close, finishing just 0.072 seconds back, and the Englishman believes he has a strong chance of landing Mercedes’ first win of the campaign and the second of his career.
The Silver Arrows have also followed a unqiue strategy this weekend that leaves Russell with an extra set of medium tyres which could provide him with the tactical edge over Sainz.
“George has a really good shot at winning and I really hope he does,” said team-mate Hamilton, who qualified half-a-second back on disappointing evening for the seven-time world champion.
“I hope he gets a good start and gets ahead of the Ferraris. That would be amazing for him and for the team.
“For me, I will see what I can do. If I get further up then great. I changed the car last night and I don’t know what is going on with it. It is the hardest car I have ever driven to get right.”
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