List of All Articles with Tag 'port'

Boston College will try to bolster its bowl prospects when the Eagles visit Pittsburgh

James Madison must be making fellow Sun Belt Conference programs wonder "who invited these guys?'

Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson will miss the rest of this season after fracturing his right shoulder in Sunday’s win over Baltimore

These scoring options are finely tuned and ready to reap dividends in Week 11

New Zealand is still waiting for that first Cricket World Cup title

Pat Murphy spent the last eight seasons as Craig Counsell’s bench coach in Milwaukee

Babar Azam has resigned as Pakistan captain in all formats after his team failed to advance from the group stage at the Cricket World Cup

Detroit coach Dan Campbell took fourth-down aggressiveness to a new level last week

Scotland manager Steve Clarke is focused on finishing their Euro 2024 qualification campaign on a high after sealing their place in Germany amid a hat-trick of defeats. A 2-0 loss in Spain was sandwiched by friendly defeats against England and France, but five wins from their opening five games in Group A proved enough for a second successive qualification for the European Championship finals after the Spaniards won in Norway. With a five-month international hiatus to follow, Clarke is eager to ensure Scotland come away from their final competitive matches with points against Georgia and Norway before next summer’s tournament in Germany. Speaking ahead of Thursday’s clash in Tbilisi, Clarke said: “The idea with the friendly matches against England and France was to test ourselves against the best and see where we measure up. “Obviously with the results we had, we still have a bit of work to do. We will try to stay humble, respect our opponents and just try to improve all the time. “Listen, we want to get back to winning ways. It’s not very often in the reign that I have had, apart from the early stages, that we have had consecutive defeats like we have had recently. “It would be nice to think in the remaining two games we can pick up more points. “I have always said we want to get as high a points tally as possible and (we have) two more games to try and do that.” Scotland have lost their previous two games in Georgia, defeats which ultimately prevented them from qualifying for Euro 2008 and 2016. Clarke’s side have shown the ability to break such negative runs, for instance securing the first play-off success and ending a 23-year wait for a major tournament appearance. “Listen, in sport what’s past is past, there is nothing we can do to affect that,” Clarke said of the history in Tbilisi. “All we can do is affect the future, the next game we play. “We have always tried to improve results no matter who we are playing against.” Georgia lost 7-1 at home to Spain in September but they beat Cyprus 4-0 in their most recent qualifier and are assured of a Euro 2024 play-off place thanks to a Nations League campaign which included big wins in Bulgaria and North Macedonia. Clarke said: “When you go away from home against a team like Georgia, it’s going to be a difficult environment, a difficult game for us, because they are a very good side. “The one game they lost heavily was against Spain and that’s a little bit of an anomaly in recent games, because all their games have been very competitive. And we expect that on Thursday night.” Clarke is without the likes of Angus Gunn, Andy Robertson, Kieran Tierney, Aaron Hickey and Che Adams, but he hopes players such as Josh Doig and Lawrence Shankland can seize the opportunity that injury list presents. “Over the course of my tenure I have always tried to look a little bit deeper,” he said. “There will be some squads like this one where we have a number of players missing. But I always say it’s a chance for someone else. “If everyone else can do better it makes my selection more difficult going into next year. The selection will be difficult. I have to find the right 23 for next summer. “For now, some boys are in the squad with the chance to make a big impression, not just on me but the rest of my staff and the rest of the country. Let’s see how they perform in the game.” Hearts goalkeeper Zander Clark and Motherwell captain Liam Kelly are vying for competitive debuts after both played 45 minutes against France to win their first caps. Clarke, who also has Rangers reserve Robby McCrorie in his squad, was not giving anything away on his stand-in choice. Speaking from Scotland’s training camp in Antalya, Turkey, he said: “The three goalkeepers have trained very well, as they always do, and between now and kick-off I will obviously have to choose one.” Read More Francis Ngannou ranked as top-10 heavyweight by WBC after impressive debut Niall Huggins excited to make Wales bow following ‘horrendous’ period Virat Kohli hits record century as India post huge score in semi-final Jon Rahm says it is ‘mainly my fault’ that he cannot catch Rory McIlroy in Dubai Man arrested over death of ice hockey player Adam Johnson bailed by police Ex-Chelsea keeper Petr Cech joins Belfast Giants as ‘temporary emergency cover’

Wales newcomer Niall Huggins is ready to step onto the international stage after expressing fears that a mystery injury which left him with weak bones would end his career. Huggins joined up with the senior Wales squad for the first time this week ahead of decisive Euro 2024 qualifiers against Armenia and Turkey after what the Sunderland defender called a “horrendous” period. The 22-year-old made just a couple of league starts in his first two seasons at Sunderland after joining from Leeds in August 2021, with the full-back becoming increasingly concerned over his football future. “The last two years have been horrendous, awful to be honest,” said York-born Huggins, whose father was born in Bangor. “When I first joined Sunderland, I suffered an initial stress fracture in my back and that put me out for four or five months. “I had the same sort of issue but in different places when I was doing my rehab and it was something we struggled to get to the bottom of. “There was never a reason for why it was happening. All the tests we did, nothing ever seemed to stand out. “It was just that the bones were weak, which made it tough.” Asked if he felt his career was at risk at the time, Huggins said: “Yes, 100 per cent. It got to the point where every time I was doing the rehab, the first few steps back on the grass, it was always there in the back of my mind. “I would think: ‘Is this going to happen again?’ And you do start to worry. The years are going by on the contract and you are worrying about it. “When I did finally start to get fit, it helped so much mentally. But it is still hard to look back on.” Huggins said the issue was eventually resolved by “having an injection every morning for three months”, strengthening his bones and allowing him to return to training. But the physical demand of matches took a toll on his body, with muscular issues and a knee problem ruling him out until Sunderland’s Championship play-off games in May. It has not been until this season that Huggins has been able to show the potential that persuaded Marcelo Bielsa to hand him a Premier League debut for Leeds at Arsenal in February 2021. “It literally feels like I’m starting my professional career,” said Huggins, who has started 11 Sunderland games this term and scored his first senior goal – a Championship goal-of-the-month contender – against Watford in October. “This is the first year where I can really show what I can do and what level I can play at. To have the call-up to the senior team shows that even more. “It wasn’t even at the back of my mind, but it felt amazing. “To represent a country feels unbelievable. It means as much to the lads who were born outside Wales as those born in the country and who have lived there for a long time. “It just shows the culture that the set-up creates for the players. You can see how amazing the fans are and how much it means to the country to make it to the Euros. “The previous results show how much the lads want to play for the badge, including the lads born in England – and me being one of them. I’m just excited to one day hopefully put on the shirt and play for the country.” Read More Richard Arnold steps down as Manchester United chief executive Virat Kohli hits record century as India post huge score in semi-final Jon Rahm says it is ‘mainly my fault’ that he cannot catch Rory McIlroy in Dubai Man arrested over death of ice hockey player Adam Johnson bailed by police Ex-Chelsea keeper Petr Cech joins Belfast Giants as ‘temporary emergency cover’ Pat Cummins believes Australia can use past experiences to reach World Cup final

Richard Arnold is leaving his role as Manchester United chief executive, the Premier League club has announced. With the club since 2007, he worked as commercial director before becoming group managing director in 2013. The departure of executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward saw him take up the role of chief executive in February 2022, but United have confirmed he is leaving his post. United said in a statement: “Richard Arnold has decided to step down as Chief Executive of Manchester United after 16 years with the club. “Patrick Stewart will take over as interim CEO, in addition to his existing role as General Counsel, with Richard continuing to provide transitional support until the end of December. A search process will be carried out for a new permanent CEO.” Outgoing chief executive Arnold said: “It has been an incredible privilege to serve this great football club for the past 16 years. “Through highs and lows, the constant has been the dedication of our employees and fans. “I would like to thank all of them for their loyalty and commitment, and wish everyone associated with the club the very best for the future.” Read More Virat Kohli hits record century as India post huge score in semi-final Jon Rahm says it is ‘mainly my fault’ that he cannot catch Rory McIlroy in Dubai Man arrested over death of ice hockey player Adam Johnson bailed by police

Chief executive Richard Arnold is leaving Manchester United as they begin their search for a new CEO for the Jim Ratcliffe era. Patrick Stewart, the club’s general counsel, is taking over as interim CEO, with Arnold remaining involved for the rest of 2023. But, with Ratcliffe and Ineos set to buy a 25 percent stake in United for £1.3bn, Arnold will end a 16-year stay at Old Trafford after less than two years as chief executive. The petrochemicals billionaire Ratcliffe wants control of football operations when he takes a minority stake. The lifelong United fan was bidding against Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim after United’s owners, the Glazer family, revealed last November that they were open to investment. Much of Arnold’s time in charge has come amid uncertainty about United’s future and he said: “It has been an incredible privilege to serve this great football club for the past 16 years. Through highs and lows, the constant has been the dedication of our employees and fans. I would like to thank all of them for their loyalty and commitment, and wish everyone associated with the club the very best for the future.” Executive co-chairman Joel Glazer added: “I would like to thank Richard for his outstanding service to Manchester United over the past 16 years, and wish him all the best for his future endeavours. We are fortunate to be able to call on the deep knowledge and experience of Patrick Stewart to provide interim stability and continuity as we embark on a search for a new permanent CEO.” A close ally of former executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward, Arnold was criticised for his attempts to bring Mason Greenwood back into the team. Arnold, who was previously commercial director at Old Trafford, played a significant part in transforming United’s commercial and sponsorship revenue. In his time as chief executive, the club signed lucrative partnership deals with Adidas and Qualcomm. After Woodward had become more involved in sporting decisions, he delegated more of the responsibility to football director John Murtough and helped build a structure inside the club. Director of football operations David Harrison, director of football negotiations Matt Hargreaves, head of women’s football Polly Bancroft and deputy football director Andy O’Boyle all joined the club during Arnold’s reign. His tenure also included the appointment of Erik ten Hag and United’s first trophy in six years, in the 2023 Carabao Cup, plus greater investment in the women’s team. Stewart, who has been at United for 17 years, already works closely with governing bodies such as the Premier League, the FA and Uefa. He said: “Together with my leadership team colleagues, my job will be to ensure that the club’s foundations remain stable while we embrace changes that can make us stronger over the long term, on and off the pitch, and to support the search for a new permanent CEO.” Further changes are expected at Old Trafford with Sir Dave Brailsford, the cycling boss, likely to play a major role. Brailsford has worked closely with Ineos chairman Ratcliffe both with the Ineos Grenadiers cycling team and at Ligue 1 club OGC Nice. Read More Chelsea set for more Premier League scrutiny over Roman Abramovich era Chelsea face fresh scrutiny over secret payments made under Roman Abramovich Referees chief Howard Webb backs VAR decision on Anthony Gordon goal against Arsenal Chelsea set for more Premier League scrutiny over Roman Abramovich era Chelsea face fresh scrutiny over secret payments made under Roman Abramovich Referees chief Howard Webb backs VAR decision on Anthony Gordon goal against Arsenal