Category Sports News

Betfred Super League

Wakefield (12) 20

Tries: Jowitt, Pratt, Hall Goals: Jowitt (4)

Leigh (18) 24

Leigh Leopards edged out Wakefield Trinity in a thriller on an emotional day at the DIY Kitchens Stadium.

The game was dedicated to Trinity coach Daryl Powell’s toddler grandson Clarke, who has been receiving treatment for leukaemia and led the teams out when he was carried on to the pitch by his mother.

Both sides could have won it, but Joe Ofahengaue’s late try was the crucial swing moment after other scores from David Armstrong and Darnell McIntosh.

Wakefield only led for a short period in the second half despite tries from Max Jowitt, Oliver Pratt and Corey Hall.

Leigh scored inside three minutes without Wakefield touching the ball. Their pressure was relentless as they gradually pushed forward until Armstrong forced his way over the line. Ben McNamara was unable to convert.

But Wakefield hit back within five minutes through Jowitt’s ninth try of the season in all competitions.

With two players spare to his right, his dummy pass unlocked the door from close range following a quick scrum. He picked himself to secure the extras with his kick.

McNamara restored parity with a penalty, before his quick pass to Armstrong unlocked the Trinity defence after McIntosh’s initial counter-attack. Once again, McNamara succeeded with his kick to increase Leigh’s lead to six points.

Jowitt’s last-ditch tackle on the line denied McIntosh a certain try in the corner as the visitors looked to ramp home their advantage before half-time. After McNamara added another penalty, McIntosh finally crossed after a wonderful pass from Lachlan Lam for another try, but the kick was missed.

Three minutes from the break, Pratt touched down after superb Wakefield switch play from right to left. Jowitt kicked over to put the hosts back within six.

The second half was cagey, but Jowitt closed the gap further for Wakefield with a penalty before Hall’s try.

Hall capitalised on a defensive misjudgement from Tesi Niu to touch down after meeting Jake Trueman’s searching kick. Jowitt put Wakefield in front for the first time with his conversion.

Wakefield Trinity assistant head coach Michael Shenton:

“The boys are massively deflated in there. The last two games that we’ve played, it’s come down to our starts.

“We’ve given ourselves too much to do conceding three tries in the first half, which is very disappointing.

“There’s probably some attitude things there and we need to handle some of the stuff when it goes against us a little bit better.”

On Daryl Powell’s grandson’s illness: “The awareness it’s created is awesome. It’s a massive thing for Daryl and his family to go through. The club doing something like this is quite unique.”

Leigh Leopards head coach Adrian Lam:

“I thought we were courageous and resilient. Even though we were our own worst enemy, we found a way to win off the back of that.

“We’re a six out of 10 at the minute and some fans might think that’s harsh, but that’s the reality. There’s so much more improvement left. We brought Wakefield into the game with some of our actions.

Wakefield: Jowitt, Russell, Hall, Pratt, Johnstone, Trueman, Lino, McMeeken, Hood, Vagana, Croft, Griffin, Pitts

Interchanges: Cozza, Rourke, Smith, Faatili, Nikotemo

Leigh: Armstrong, McIntosh, Niu, Hanley, Brand, McNamara, Lam, Ofahengaue, Ipape, Mulhern, Halton, Trout, Liu

Interchanges: Hughes, Tuitavake, Davis, Hodgson, Charnley

2025 Hulencourt Women’s Open final round

-13 D Harry (Wal); -10 N Nadaud (Fra); -9 A Garvey (NZ)

Selected others: -7 L Walsh (Ire); -6 C Gainer (Eng); -4 S Byrne (Ire); -1 L Hall (Wal); +1 M MacLaren (Eng), B Smith (Eng)

Welsh rookie Darcey Harry won her first Ladies European Tour event with a three-shot victory at the Hulencourt Women’s Open in Belgium.

The 22-year-old shot a final round of 68 to take the title ahead of France’s Nastasia Nadaud and New Zealand’s Amelia Garvey.

Harry hit a remarkable five birdies and an eagle on the par-five 13th hole to storm her way to victory.

Having only turned pro last year, she earned her place on the tour after coming through qualifying in December.

“I don’t even know what to say right now,” she said after securing victory.

“I’m so excited. I didn’t think I’d ever picture myself winning on the tour, so it’s so nice to know I’ve finally done it.

“I think the last putt was probably the most nervous I’ve ever been in my life.”

This victory gets her into the AIG Women’s Open, where she will be playing on her home course Royal Porthcawl – something she admitted was on her mind.

“I was thinking that walking down the 18th and I was pretty nervous about not getting into that, so I think that’s another huge win for me this week.”

India’s Avani Prashanth had started the final day in the lead but fell away with a round of 75.

The England men’s and women’s hockey teams both lost Pro League games in London on Sunday to complete a disappointing weekend for the hosts.

The men were beaten 3-2 by Germany, with the women defeated 1-0 by second-placed Argentina.

Two penalty goals from Zach Wallace twice brought the men level in the third quarter against Germany, only for Raphael Hartkopf to score the winner with five minutes remaining.

England’s result means they drop to sixth in the standings, with Germany moving above them and up to fourth.

The teams also met on Saturday when they fought out a 2-2 draw, Germany winning a subsequent penalty shootout to earn a bonus point.

Next up for the men is a double-header against the Netherlands, with the first match on Tuesday at 13:15 BST at Lee Valley.

Agustina Gorzelany’s goal at the start of the second quarter was enough to see England’s women beaten by Argentina, having lost 3-1 to the same opponents on Saturday.

Alexander Zverev joked he is “tired” of playing Taylor Fritz after losing to him in the Stuttgart Open final – marking his fifth straight defeat by the American.

Fritz beat Germany’s world number three Zverev 6-3 7-6 (7-0) in just one hour 27 minutes to win the title at the grass-court tournament in Germany.

Second seed Fritz won all four of their meetings in 2024, including in the fourth round at Wimbledon and the US Open quarter-finals.

“I’m tired of you, I don’t want to see you over the next two or three years – stay away from me,” Zverev joked after the defeat.

It is a first title of the year for Fritz, who will rise to fourth in the world rankings in time for Wimbledon, which begins on 30 June.

“I’m really happy, especially as it was not too great of a clay season,” said Fritz.

Fritz did not drop serve once on his way to clinching the ATP 250 title.

He took the opening set on Sunday inside 30 minutes when Zverev double-faulted twice and missed a volley at the net.

Zverev then saved the only break point of the second set before Fritz pulled away in a dominant tie-break to win a ninth career title and fourth on grass.

World number three Zverev, 28, is yet to claim a grass-court trophy having now lost three finals on the surface.

Elsewhere, world number one Jannik Sinner said he had “a few sleepless nights” after losing to Carlos Alcaraz in the French Open final.

The Italian held three championship points in the third set but lost to world number two Alcaraz in a five set, five-hour epic at Roland Garros.

Sinner will begin his grass-court campaign at the Halle Open on Monday.

“I think every day it gets better,” Sinner said.

“Tennis is important in my life but family and friends are more important.

“I was very relaxed with my family. We grilled a bit, played table tennis with my friends.

“Nonetheless, I think often about the match.”

Sinner will be joined by fellow top-20 players Zverev, Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev in Halle.

Meanwhile two-time defending Wimbledon champion Alcaraz will begin his grass-court season at Queen’s, where he won the title in 2023, along with Britain’s Jack Draper.

Nine of the world’s top 10 women’s players will compete in the Berlin Open, including French Open champion Coco Gauff, world number one Aryna Sabalenka and world number three Jessica Pegula.

Hamilton Accies Women have been ordered by owners of the town’s men’s club to change their name and branding, just weeks after sealing promotion to the Scottish Women’s Premier League.

In a letter to the club from Hamilton Academical’s board of directors, the women’s side have been told to stop using the intellectual property of the men’s club, who have been relegated to Scottish League 1.

The move comes after the women’s club confirmed their intention to remain at New Douglas Park, in contrast to the men who are attempting to move to Broadwood Stadium, 15 miles away in Cumbernauld, following a dispute with the stadium owner.

In a club statement on social media, Accies Women said: “Following our title-winning campaign in SWPL2 and promotion to the top flight, securing a stadium that meets elite-level standards was a key priority.

Hamilton Academical FC have announced their intention to form a new women’s side and academy set-up – ending their affiliation with the current women’s team.

In a social media post, Accies Women wrote: “We are surprised and disappointed to see an attempt being made to ban Hamilton Accies Women from using the club badge – something that has been part of our identity for over a decade.

“Since 2013, we’ve had a long-standing and formally recognised agreement with the previous owners of Hamilton Academical FC, allowing us to use the club name and badge in perpetuity. This agreement reflects our deep-rooted commitment to representing the town of Hamilton with pride, integrity and ambition.

Leeds United have signed Germany forward Lukas Nmecha on a two-year deal.

Nmecha joins on a free transfer from Bundesliga side Wolfsburg, who he had been with for the past four years.

The 26-year-old started his career with Manchester City and made his Premier League debut under Pep Guardiola in 2018.

He enjoyed loan spells at Preston North End, Wolfsburg, Middlesbrough and Anderlecht before making a permanent move to the Bundesliga in 2021.

In that same year he made his debut for the German national side, winning the most recent of his seven caps in 2022.