Sporting briefs...

In Scotland: Celtic's Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink was sent off after scoring a last-minute goal to give the champions a 2-1 victory at Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the Scottish Premier League yesterday. The Dutch striker knocked home the winner from close range in stoppage time and then received his second booking of the match after leaving the field to celebrate with Celtic fans. Celtic are top of the table with 65 points, 19 clear of rivals Rangers, who were held to a 0-0 draw at home to Hearts on Saturday.

Hackmann dies: German football league head Werner Hackmann has died at the age of 59, the country's Football Association (DFB) said yesterday. Hackmann, the former Hamburg politician and president of Hamburg SV, died at home on Saturday in the north German city after a long fight against cancer. He had attended the UEFA Congress in Duesseldorf on Friday. "We're all shocked by the this news," DFB president Theo Zwanziger said in a statement. "It's a great loss to German football."

Davids: Midfielder Edgar Davids is to join Ajax Amsterdam as a free agent, the Dutch press agency ANP reported yesterday. Tottenham Hotspur have given the former Dutch international a free transfer back to the club where he started his professional career in 1991, the agency said. Davids and Ajax reportedly agreed an 18-month deal on Friday and if the 33-year-old passes a medical examination he is set to make his debut next weekend against arch-rivals Feyenoord. Davids helped Ajax win three league titles from 1994-96 plus the UEFA Cup in 1992 and the Champions League in 1995.

Euro 2012: Ukraine soccer federation (UFF) president Hrihory Surkis has accused Polish Sports Minister Tomasz Lipiec of undermining the two countries' chances of staging the Euro 2012 finals. Last week Lipiec suspended the Polish FA after a match-fixing investigation, angering the world and European governing bodies. "Mr Lipiec, with his actions, simply stabbed us in the back," Surkis told Reuters while attending a six-team invitational tournament in Israel. The $8 million tournament, involving top teams from Russia, Ukraine and Israel, is sponsored by Chelsea's billionaire owner Roman Abramovich.

Rooney Praise: Manager Alex Ferguson was full of praise for two-goal Wayne Rooney after the striker pushed Manchester United to a 2-1 home win over Portsmouth in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday. Substitute Rooney tapped in the opening goal after 77 minutes before adding the second with a sublime chip over keeper David James six minutes later. "It was the vision to do it, and the audacity," Ferguson said. "The boy's got the kind of courage to do that."

In France: Auxerre vs Nancy 2-0; Lens vs St Etienne 3-3.