Rugby Union: Scarlets lock Jake Ball has become the sixth player to sign a national dual contract with the Welsh Rugby Union and his regional team. Ball joins Wales captain Sam Warburton, Dan Lydiate, Rhodri Jones, Hallam Amos and Tyler Morgan in putting pen to paper, the WRU and Welsh regions announced. Ball, 23, has won eight caps after making his Test debut during last season’s RBS Six Nations Championship. National dual contracts were forged as part of the Rugby Services Agreement between the WRU and Wales’ four professional regions. They are 60 per cent funded by the WRU and 40 per cent by regions from a total £3.3 million pot.
Horse Racing: Conditional jockey Ryan Hatch is set for a spell on the sidelines after suffering a broken collarbone in a fall at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day. Hatch was partnering the Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained Little Jon in the BetBright Novices’ Chase, better known as The Dipper, when he came to grief at the 12th fence. Unfortunately for Hatch he missed the winning ride on Splash Of Ginge later on the card. He had been due to ride Count Guido Deiro at Sandown today, but has been replaced by Jamie Bargary, who also stepped in for the mount on Splash Of Ginge. His boss Twiston-Davies said: “He’s broken his collarbone. We’re hoping he’ll be back in two weeks.”
Snooker: More tickets have already been snapped up for the 2015 Dafabet Masters than were sold in total at the event last season, World Snooker reported yesterday. Several sessions for the showpiece invitation tournament are close to sell-out. The tournament at Alexandra Palace in North London runs from January 11 to January 18, with 16 of the world’s best players contesting the title and £200,000 top prize. Ronnie O’Sullivan, Judd Trump, Neil Robertson and Mark Selby are among the favourites to lift the trophy. A spokesman for World Snooker said: “We are thrilled to have beaten last year’s ticket total, with more than one week until the start of the event. Every session looks strong.”
[attach id=395275 size="medium"][/attach]
Darts: Reigning champion Michael van Gerwen (picture) progressed to the semi-finals of the PDC World Championships after sealing an impressive victory over Robert Thornton with a 170 checkout. In a high-quality encounter which produced 27 180s in total, Van Gerwen looked to be cruising through to the last four at Alexandra Palace after a blistering start saw him race into a 3-0 lead. However, Thornton also produced some great darts and he won the next two sets to reduce Van Gerwen’s lead to 3-2, and the 2012 UK Open champion should really have made it 3-3. The Scot could not make the most of his opportunity, though, and Van Gerwen made him pay by winning the final two sets, including the 170 checkout which completed a 5-2 victory.
Basket, NBA: Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James is expected to be out of action for two weeks while he receives treatment for a strained left knee and lower back pain, the National Basketball Association (NBA) team said. James, 30, was evaluated this week at the Cleveland Clinic where he had a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) exam and radiograph tests. The team said on its website that the four-time NBA most valuable player will be treated with anti-inflammatories, rehabilitation, training room treatments and rest. This season, James is averaging a team-high 25.2 points per game for the Cavaliers who have the fifth best record in the Eastern Conference at 18-14.