Sporting briefs
Vuvuzelas: Vuvuzelas have been banned from UEFA matches. UEFA told its 53 member associations that it had adopted the ban to protect “Europe’s football culture and tradition”, adding that “the atmosphere at matches would be changed by the sound of the...
Vuvuzelas: Vuvuzelas have been banned from UEFA matches. UEFA told its 53 member associations that it had adopted the ban to protect “Europe’s football culture and tradition”, adding that “the atmosphere at matches would be changed by the sound of the vuvuzela”.
Scrapheap: There are fears in France that hundreds of professional players could be on the scrapheap by next summer, Lens chairman Gervais Martel said. He feared that as many as 400 players could end up out of contract at season’s end compared with an estimated 190 at the moment. “I think you could find some 350-400 players on the dole,” said Martel, whose own club has been attempting to trim its squad.
Bridge: Manchester City defender Wayne Bridge hopes to return from injury in his side’s clash against Blackburn on September 11. Bridge has been out of action since suffering a broken foot in pre-season but expects to return to training during the current international break.
Boyce: Northern Ireland Under-21 player Liam Boyce has joined Werder Bremen on a two-year-deal. The 19-year-old striker has moved from Cliftonville for an undisclosed fee.
Malaga: Spanish Primera Liga club Malaga have signed Danish international defender Kris Stadsgaard from Norwegian club Rosenborg. The 25-year-old was signed on a three-year contract just before Tuesday’s transfer deadline, with an option for a fourth year if he plays in a minimum of 20 league games in his third season, Malaga said on its website.
Osvaldo: Argentine forward Pablo Osvaldo completed a permanent move from Bologna to Espanyol in a late transfer-deadline day deal. The 24-year-old, formerly of Atalanta, Lecce and Fiorentina had already been on loan at the Barcelona-based club last season.
Div. II/III KO: Mellieħa vs Għaxaq 2-2; Rabat vs Mdina 3-1.
Field Hockey: Australia hockey coach Ric Charlesworth urged the world-beaters to take nothing for granted as he picked a blend of youth and experience to defend a perfect record at the Commonwealth Games. Top-ranked Australia will be strong favourites in October after clinching every title since hockey was introduced at the Games in 1998 and also winning this year’s World Cup. “We are the number one ranked team in the world, but I think that can give teams a bit more incentive when they face us,” Charlesworth warned.
Golf: US Masters champion Phil Mickelson will headline the Singapore Open this year which has boosted its prize money by one million dollars. The American world no.2 joins Australian Adam Scott, Ireland’s Padraig Harrington and Yang Yong-Eun from Korea as marquee players confirmed so far. The tournament will be played for the sixth successive time at Sentosa Golf Club from November 11 to 14 with a total purse of six million dollars, coming a week after the equally lucrative HSBC Champions in Shanghai.