Saturday, June 12, 2010

RUGBY LEaGUE: England 60-6 France

Sam Tomkins scored four first-half tries as England ran out comfortable winners against France in coach Steve McNamara's first game in charge.

It was a second international hat-trick for Tomkins, and equalled the England try-scoring record for a single match.

The Wigan half-back and debutant Gareth Widdop, who scored England's opener, were key figures early on at Leigh.

Gareth Ellis and Michael Shenton each crossed twice, while Tom Briscoe and Chris Bridge also grabbed tries.

Australia-based Widdop, who was born in Halifax but emigrated with his family five years ago, marked his England debut with a try after only two minutes.

France dropped the ball and England broke down field and a neat inside pass from Chris Bridge found the Melbourne Storm man who touched down.

Widdop, who is understudy to Australian international Billy Slater at Melbourne, was one of three overseas-based players in the England squad and he was also involved in their next two tries.

On 14 minutes, Frenchman Nicolas Piquemal failed to cope with a high ball and from an England scrum 20 metres out, the ball was played across the line via Widdop to Hull FC's Briscoe who went over.

Kevin Sinfield, who had also converted Widdop's earlier try, made it two out of two.

Two minutes later, Widdop's neat footwork opened the gap and with Bridge and Sam Tomkins in support, the Wigan player crossed.

Maradona welcomes calming victory against Nigeria

Argentina coach Diego Maradona said his side's 1-0 opening World Cup win over Nigeria will ease their nerves.

Gabriel Heinze's header gave the South Americans a deserved but ultimately hard-fought victory over the Super Eagles in Group B on Saturday.

"To begin a World Cup in winning fashion gives you a certain sense of calmness," said Maradona.

"The only thing that concerns me is that we won a big match. Thank God we won the game."

Maradona's talented side came into the tournament off the back of a turbulent qualifying campaign and with suggestions that the coach's inexperience and perceived eccentricity would hamper their challenge.

Diego Maradona

Maverick Maradona's sideline exploits

But in an Ellis Park stadium full of blue-and-white shirts and adorned with banners of Maradona, the suited Argentine coach cut a typically animated and passionate figure on the touchline during an engrossing game his side dominated.

Heinze's 12-yard diving header from a Juan Sebastian Veron corner was the only goal of the game but the Lionel Messi-inspired South Americans should have had more.

But for the Nigerians wastefulness in front of goal, Argentina would have been made to pay for their inability to kill the game off.

"The team made good moves but we ended up suffering. That's the law of football," said Maradona.

"They let us off... If we'd taken our chances the course of the match would have been different."

The coach was also full of praise for Fifa World Player of the Year Messi, who has often being accused of failing to reproduce his club form on the international stage but was central to his side's impressive display at Ellis Park.

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"He was very close to the ball (at all times)," said the coach about the man often burdened with being former midfielder Maradona's natural heir in the Argentine side.

"Football wouldn't be beautiful without seeing Messi touch the football," added Maradona.

Maradona is bidding to become only the second man - after Germany's Franz Beckenbauer - to win the World Cup as a player and coach.

The former Barcelona and Napoli midfielder famously inspired his side to World Cup glory as a player in Mexico in 1986.

"This was an important step we took today (but) we have to improve a lot of things to get to the seventh match (the final)," added Maradona.

His side next face South Korea - who beat Greece 2-0 earlier on Saturday - on 17 June before a final group fixture against the Greeks on 22 June. BBC Online.

England 1-1 USA

Goalkeeper Robert Green suffered a World Cup nightmare as England were forced to settle for a disappointing draw in the opening game of their campaign against the United States.

Steven Gerrard gave coach Fabio Capello the perfect start to this South African mission when he slid Emile Heskey's pass beyond Tim Howard after only four minutes.

And while England rarely hit the heights, they were maintaining their advantage in relative comfort until five minutes before half-time when West Ham United's Green suffered the lapse that will haunt him.

Clint Dempsey offered an effort that was little more than pot luck from 25 yards, but Green hopelessly allowed the ball to squeeze through him and roll agonisingly over the line as he tried to recover.

England had opportunities to repair the damage, but Heskey once again illustrated his limitations in front of goal by shooting straight at Howard with only the keeper to beat.

Wayne Rooney, subdued for the most part, shot just wide, while substitute Shaun Wright-Phillips, on for the under-par Milner after only 30 minutes, saw his angled drive saved by Howard.

Capello will also have enjoyed finer nights in his illustrious career as his major decisions backfired. Green got the nod in goal but must now fear for his place against Algeria, while Milner looked far from fit following a virus after his surprise selection.

And Ledley King, whose fitness was the subject of so much debate when Capello named his squad, lasted only 45 minutes after suffering a groin injury.

It exposed a glaring lack of pace in England's central defence, which was almost punished when Jozy Altidore raced past Jamie Carragher with embarrassing ease only for Green to apply some repairs to his shattered reputation by turning his shot on to the post.

England have plenty of time to regroup and progress, but this was an unsatisfactory night for Capello and his players.

Capello, unconvinced about David James' fitness, chose Green ahead of the inexperienced Joe Hart - on the surface a sensible decision but ultimately a costly one.

England's first-half performance was undistinguished, failing to build on Gerrard's fourth minute goal.

Frank Lampard's pass was out of Rooney's reach, but Heskey played in Gerrard to score with the outside of his right foot.

The United States were allowed the luxury of plenty of possession, and England almost paid for their generosity when Landon Donovan's inviting cross was headed tamely wide by Altidore.

Milner, given his chance despite being laid low by illness in midweek, was off the pace and picked up a booking for fouling Steve Cherundolo before being replaced by Wright-Phillips on the half-hour.

England at least looked like holding their lead until the interval, before a moment of complete calamity engulfed Green. Dempsey's left-foot shot from 25 yards barely merited the label of speculative, but every aspect of Green's technique collapsed as he allowed the ball to squirm through his grasp and over the line.

To add to England's troubles, King failed to emerge after the break, being replaced by Carragher as Capello was forced into another change to his initial plans.

Heskey, having done so well to create Gerrard's goal, then demonstrated his lack of confidence in front of goal when he wasted a clear chance to restore England's lead after 52 minutes. Aaron Lennon put the striker through, but he never looked convincing and shot straight at Howard.

England, however, were not looking comfortable and Altidore illustrated the lack of pace at the back to give them a real scare in the 64th minute. He outpaced Carragher in comfort, but Green made some amends for his earlier mistake by turning his angled shot on to the post.

Rooney had been relatively quiet, but almost surprised Howard with a snapshot from long-range that flew just wide. He then set up Wright-Phillips, but his effort was too close to Howard.

England then ran out of ideas as they tired - leaving Bob Bradley's US side to celebrate a hard-earned point. BBC Online.

Enjoy Serbia vs Ghana Live

Date/Time: Nov 30, 1999
7:00pm US/Eastern
Competition: FIFA World Cup
Live/Repeat: Live
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Tshwane


Serbia vs Ghana Live Streams and TV Channels

CountryChannels
Algeria ENTV Television Algerienne
Andorra TF1 Broadband
Angola Televisao Publica de Angola
Argentina DirecTV Latin America (HD)
Australia SBS One Australia (HD, 3D)
Austria RTL Television
Brazil ESPN (HD), Globo.com, ESPN Brasil (HD), ESPN HD Brasil (HD), SporTV Brasil (HD)
Cameroon Cameroon Radio Television
Canada Telelatino, CBC (HD, 3D), Societe Radio-Canada (HD, 3D), CBC Bold (HD), CBC Sports Live Streaming
Cape Verde Televisao de Cabo Verde
Caribbean SportsMax

Algeria vs Slovenia Live online on 13 june 2010

Date/Time: Nov 30, 1999
7:00pm US/Eastern
Competition: FIFA World Cup
Live/Repeat: Live
Venue: Peter Mokaba, Polokwane

Algeria vs Slovenia Live Streams and TV Channels

Country Channels
Algeria ENTV Television Algerienne
Andorra TF1 Broadband, TF1 (HD, 3D)
Angola Televisao Publica de Angola
Argentina DirecTV Latin America (HD)
Australia SBS One Australia (HD, 3D)
Austria RTL Television
Brazil ESPN HD Brasil (HD), ESPN Brasil (HD), SporTV Brasil (HD), ESPN (HD)
Cameroon Cameroon Radio Television
Canada Societe Radio-Canada (HD, 3D), Telelatino, CBC (HD, 3D), CBC Bold (HD), CBC Sports Live Streaming
Cape Verde Televisao de Cabo Verde
Caribbean SportsMax
Central African Republic Tele Centrafrique
Chile DirecTV Latin America (HD), TVN Online
China China Central Television CCTV (HD), China Central Television Broadband
Congo Television Nationale Congolaise
Costa Rica Repretel - Canal 4, Canal 6, Canal 11
Denmark TV2 Denmark (HD)
Ecuador DirecTV Latin America (HD)
England BBC Sport Broadband
Finland YLE Broadband
France TF1 (HD, 3D), TF1 Broadband
French Guiana TF1 (HD, 3D), TF1 Broadband
French Polynesia TF1 Broadband, TF1 (HD, 3D)
Germany RTL Television, Sky Deutschland (HD)
Ghana Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, Metro TV, TV3 Ghana
Greece ERT Greece
Honduras Sky Latin America (HD), Televicentro Honduras
Hong Kong i-Cable Sports (HD)
India ESPN Star Sports
International FIFA.com
Ireland RTE Ireland (HD)
Italy Sky Italia (HD, 3D)
Ivory Coast Radiodiffusion Television Ivorienne
Japan SKY PerfecTV (HD, 3D)
Korea SBS Korea (HD, 3D)
Mexico Sky Latin America (HD), Televisa Mexico (HD)
Middle East Al Jazeera Sports Broadband, Al Jazeera Sports (HD, 3D)
Monaco TF1 Broadband, TF1 (HD, 3D)
Mozambique Televisao de Mocambique
Netherlands NOS Television Netherlands (HD)
Paraguay Canal 9 Paraguay
Peru Andina de Television (HD)
Portugal RTP Radio Televisao Portuguesa (HD, 3D)
Senegal Radiodiffusion Télévision Sénégalaise
Singapore MioTV Singtel (HD), Starhub (HD)
Slovakia Slovenska Televizia
Slovenia Radiotelevizija Slovenija (HD)
South Africa SuperSport Broadband
Spain Canal + Liga Espana (HD, 3D)
Thailand Bangkok Broadcasting TV, Thai TV3
Turkey TRT Turkey
UK RTE Two, BBC HD (HD), BBC Red Button (HD), Sky Sports HD 1 (HD), TalkSport Radio, BBC Sport (HD)
Uruguay DirecTV Latin America (HD)
USA ESPN Mobile TV, ESPN Deportes (HD), Univision (HD), ESPN3.com USA, ESPN Radio, Univision Futbol (HD), Futbol de Primera Radio, ESPN (HD)
Venezuela Meridiano Television

Friday, June 11, 2010

South African ecstasy as World Cup kicks off


Johannesburg's streets were filled with the unrelenting chorus of the vuvuzela and car horns announcing the beginning of a long night of celebrations as South Africa - known by all football fans here as "Bafana Bafana" ("the boys") - drew 1-1 with Mexico at the opening match of Africa's first World Cup.

"I am really proud of Bafana Bafana. Yes, I was hoping for a win but they played really well and have done the country proud," said Isaac Maphalle, 21, after the final whistle.

The past week has been particularly impressive here - as though the reality of what it means to hold an event of this magnitude has finally sunk in. The entire country is drunk on World Cup fever.

Words can scarcely describe the electricity in this country at the moment.

United in football

The energy has even spread to South Africa's poorest areas. Diepsloot is located near the affluent suburb of Fourways on the outskirts of the city.

"The game was fantastic. A draw is okay, we're happy Bafana Bafana didn't lose," said local resident Lefa Pienaar.

Just two years ago, there was a violent outbreak of xenophobia here, leaving many foreign nationals without homes and several dead - but today all of that seems forgotten.BBC Online.

Power outage angers football fans in Bangladesh

Dhaka, June 11 (bdnews24.com)—Angry locals at South Keraniganj blocked the Dhaka-Mawa highway for missing the inaugural match of the World Cup finals Friday evening.

Traffic came to halt at 8pm due to the barricade, locals said.

One 'Jabbar' told bdnews24.com that the area was facing blackouts since evening.

And electricity had not returned even after the match got underway, which he said made the locals take to the streets.

Sub-inspector Nurul Islam Mallick of Keraniganj Upazila traffic department said traffic movement was restored at 8:45pm as power supply resumed.

One Babul, however, denied this, saying that power connection was cut off again after two minutes and that the blockade continued.

Reports from a number of other places around the country mentioned similar incidents with locals laying siege to highways.