No excuses was a phrase Craig Bellamy kept saying throughout the run-up to Wales’ exhausting, logistically challenging World Cup qualifier in Kazakhstan.
The men’s team had never traveled for a qualifying match on this 7, 000-mile round trip, and when their injured squad arrived in Astana, an artificial pitch was presented after just one training session before the game.
Bellamy relented following his team’s hard-earned 1-0 victory at Astana Arena.
“This preparation was crazy,” he said. Before it, he said, “I’m not going to tell you,” he assuredly grinned.
“Some players show up on Sunday, the transfer deadline day on Monday, and a few of our boys were present.” Then, on Tuesday, we traveled and trained one session. artificial pitch, four hours of time difference. It’s brand-new.
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Bellamy prefers to have control over his team, just as he prefers that his teammates do.
In the first half, Wales did exactly that, but in the second half, they allowed their 114th-ranked opponents to return to the game and came dangerously close to losing.
Bellamy did not try to conceal the fact that this was not a classic performance. However, coaches are willing to sacrifice their winning ways when it comes to winning in qualifying campaigns.
I’m very picky with my performances, but I don’t care,ellamy continued.
I can go back, try to enter the time zone, get ready for the following game, and try again.
FAW
Bellamy and his players faced the same challenges in the real world that they had to overcome in Astana.
Some of those setbacks offered opportunities, but none more so than the injuries that saw the debut of centre-back Dylan Lawlor, age 19, at age 19.
The Cardiff City player had a great chance, and he seized it quickly. Lawlor had a strong sense of direction, air, and positioning that was composed.
His “brilliant” performance, as Bellamy put it, provided a shining light to an otherwise uneven team performance, and his emergence strengthens the coach’s defensive options for the remainder of the campaign.
Wales will now miss their next two Group J games when they travel to Cardiff City Stadium on October 13 to face Belgium. They will play friendlies against Canada and England before playing at home against Belgium.
Wales must win all three of their remaining games in order for them to have a good chance of staying top, not just in Cardiff.
Bellamy said “there’s a lot of life in this group” and that he still believes this after their chaotic 4-3 defeat in Brussels in June.
Or at least that is what he is expressing. Before and after the Kazakhstan game, the former Liverpool and Manchester City forward made the case that we shouldn’t accept every one of his public statements as fact.
Although Belgium are still widely anticipated to finish top, there is still a certain mystery about this group.
Wales will enter the play-offs in March if that happens, continuing their quest for a place in the 2022 World Cup, which is their first final appearance in 64 years.
And Wales are almost certain to win the play-off spot thanks to their Nations League performance, even in the worst case scenario where they fall short of that mark.
The 2026 World Cup will take several different paths, so there are some.
EXCLUSIVE: EastEnders’ Jacqueline Jossa and Jake Wood open up about the Branning on-screen dynamic as Jake returns to the BBC soap as Max Branning, admitting it will be ‘electric’ when all the Brannings are reunited
Jacqueline is excited for scenes with all The Brannings(Image: PA)
Albert Square is about to be shaken to its very core – because Max Branning is back. After five years away, Jake Wood returns to EastEnders in a storyline that promises secrets, shocks, and a reunion that fans have been crying out for. And his on-screen daughter Jacqueline Jossa could not be happier.
“I kept texting him over the years to come back – so I’m glad the persistence worked!” Jacqueline laughs, as she prepares to share the screen with Jake for the first time in seven years. “It’s going to be electric when all the Brannings are reunited.”
Jake Wood first arrived in Walford in June 2006, quickly establishing Max as one of the Square’s most infamous bad boys. He spent 15 years in the role before bowing out in February 2021.
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Max is involved with Zoe Slater and the recent episodes show just how involved he is with her life(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/Jack Barns/Kieron McCarron)
With dodgy deals, affairs and betrayals under his belt, Max cemented his place in soap history – not least with that unforgettable Christmas Day reveal of his affair with daughter-in-law Stacey Slater.
Jacqueline Jossa joined the soap in 2010 as Lauren Branning, Max’s troubled daughter. After eight years of teenage angst, alcoholism and heartbreak, she departed in 2018. Since then she’s returned for brief stints, including Dot Cotton’s funeral in 2022, before confirming a permanent comeback in 2023.
Now, father and daughter are back together on screen – and fans are braced for fireworks.
The latest episode will finally unravel the mystery that has been bubbling all week: Zoe Slater’s new romance. Viewers saw Kat’s daughter Zoe shot and rushed to hospital in a dramatic twist, with her life hanging in the balance. But when Kat answered her daughter’s phone mid-surgery, the caller left jaws dropping – it was Max Branning.
The shock link is explained in the flashback episode, as we discover how Max and Zoe met in a bar. When Max learned she was a Slater, the connection was instant. Both were missing relationships with their children, and as Zoe searched for the son she gave up for adoption, Max stepped in to help her pay for a private investigator, without highlighting to her “you remind me of Stacey”. That common ground sparked a genuine romance – one that looks set to turn Walford upside down.
“They met out at the bar after Max heard she was a slater,” he says. “It was like a bat signal and they quickly established that there was a family connection.”
“The relationship between them is genuine and there are genuine feelings there but when Max comes back it has become complicated in terms of where Max is at. A lot of their relationship is down to Zoe looking for her son who she gave up for adoption and Max helps her pay for a Private investigator to help her find him.”
“It’s interesting to have Max in the mix and making everything more complicated,” Jake admits. “There are genuine feelings between them, but when Max comes back it’s complicated by where he’s at in his own life.”
Of course, Max returning to the Square means revisiting his chequered past. Stacey Slater, played by Lacey Turner, will always be tied to Max after their notorious affair. And while Stacey is set to take an extended break from the soap, Jake teases that their paths may well cross before she goes. Tonight’s episode saw them speak to each other, unaware the other was on the other end of the phone till Max heard Stacey’s voice.
Unfinished business? “Undoubtedly yes,” he says with a knowing smile. “They will always be connected regardless of what they do.”
Max makes his return to the square very soon after 5 years away(Image: BBC / Kieron McCarron)
For Jake, coming back to the show was a no-brainer. After spending time with his family – his eldest is now at university and another child is taking A-levels – the timing finally felt right. “Working with the team again is great,” he says. “Even when I was away I was still checking in to see what everyone was doing. It feels like coming home.”
He credits executive producer Ben Wadey, along with a few nudges from co-stars, for tempting him back. “Scott was calling me. Jacqueline was calling me. It felt like the right time.”
Jacqueline agrees, saying the reunion with Jake is more than just nostalgia – it’s soap gold. “Lauren might not be as welcoming as I am,” she laughs, hinting at family drama to come. “But deep down she still wants to be her dad’s little girl.”
With Zoe recovering from her shooting, Max re-establishing himself in Walford, and the Brannings gearing up for a fiery reunion, the episode sets up months of drama. Add in Stacey’s looming exit, Zoe’s search for her son, and the unresolved tension between father and daughter, and it’s clear the Square is heading for chaos.
Jake puts it best: “Max is an iconic character. And it’s been a joy to come back.”
For fans of EastEnders, Max’s return is more than a storyline – it’s a homecoming. And when Max Branning steps back onto Albert Square, one thing is certain: life in Walford will never be the same again.
Vancouver, Canada: Nearly three weeks after flight attendants launched a strike against the largest airline in Canada, Air Canada employees are voting on a contract to end the conflict, which sparked a national labor movement.
On August 16, the country’s busiest month for air travel, roughly 10,500 flight attendants launched a three-day strike. After a day of labor on picket lines, Ottawa gave them a job back, but union leaders resisted, putting them in jail and paying fines.
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The union members can now vote on the tentative agreement they reached on August 19. Voting ends on Saturday, with results anticipated soon.
According to estimates, the airline lost 300 million dollars and had to cancel flights for a half-million people.
The 40-year-old labor code’s long-unknown “industrial peace” clause, which has been used to end strikes a half-dozen times in the last year, was used for the first time by any union.
However, according to rank-and-file employees and labor analysts, the tentative agreement between their union and the airline is causing more discontent.
After the federal government declared their strike “unlawful,” several flight attendants informed Al Jazeera that the agreement had been reached under “duress.” The airline then ordered the workers to return to their jobs on August 16 for their first day on picket lines.
Oliver Cooper, an Air Canada service director in Vancouver who started out as a flight attendant with the company nine years ago, said, “This came about under quite a bit of duress.” We haven’t actually negotiated our agreement informally.
Our leaders were threatened with jail time, we were told. The union was threatened with fines. That shouldn’t have to occur.
According to Adam Donald King, assistant professor of labor studies at the University of Manitoba, some flight attendants are upset about the terms of the agreement as well as how Ottawa forcibly enforced it.
He said, “They actually have a deal that they can’t reject.”
We keep up the optimism, says the airline.
In reality, flight attendants might reject the offer.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) called the agreement a “transformational agreement” as voting began last week.
Its first year saw a 13% wage increase for younger hires, an 8 percent increase for older employees, and nearly 3 percent increases in subsequent years.
The airline expressed hope for its support from its employees.
An Air Canada spokesman wrote in an email that the agreement was reached without the union’s consent and included changes to pay, pension, and benefits.
There is a chance that the agreement won’t be accepted, despite our best efforts to ratify it.
Only the wage agreements would be subject to binding arbitration if they were rejected. There are no strikes or lockouts permitted on other issues because they are set in stone.
Our members forced the company back to the table with a better offer, with no regard for wages, CUPE spokesman Hugh Pouliot wrote in an email.
We’ll respect the members’ decisions.
Cooper is one of those who voted no, despite having seen some positives, particularly the new hires’ pay raise.
Starting wages in the agreement are lower than 34 Canadian dollars ($24.60) per hour, which Cooper claimed does not keep up with inflation.
According to Cooper, “These people need to be lifted out of poverty.” My younger coworkers say that, and I applaud them.
“People are in desperate need, and we are playing the dice.”
Unpaid work
The numerous unpaid hours that flight attendants work on are a major issue.
Many claim to work for free, with the exception of helping passengers board planes, handling excess luggage, awaiting delayed flights, and even handling medical emergencies.
Reagan Goulding, a flight attendant for 30 years, said, “The majority of the public didn’t understand how we weren’t paid before we board the aircraft, only from takeoff to landing.” We are not paid if the engines don’t start and we are parked.
That doesn’t seem fair, I thought.
About half a million people were forced to travel as a result of the strike.
The airline will only receive half of their hourly rate for time spent on the ground under the new tentative agreement, which will also include up to 60 minutes.
According to a spokesperson for Air Canada, “pay for ground duties was a component of overall compensation.” The new contract includes “innovative ground pay practices in the Canadian industry.”
The Federal Jobs Minister claims to be looking into airlines’ reliance on unpaid work right now.
Aissa Diop, a spokesperson for the airline industry, stated in an email that the Minister has launched a probe into unpaid work. No one should be paid to work.
Goulding anticipates that the majority of her agitated coworkers won’t vote for her.
She said, “We’re doing a lot of service on the ground.” There aren’t many things in the tentative agreement, according to the statement. We were prepared to withdraw [on strike], the union had our backs, and we were all in favor.
There are many unhappy people, it appeared to be just giving up.
allegations of “federal bias”
The way the strike was halted was a sticking point, according to the flight attendants interviewed by Al Jazeera.
The jobs minister asked the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) to sign its back-to-work decree, citing Section 107 of the Canadian Labour Code, which allows the minister to “secure industrial peace.”
Chairperson Maryse Tremblay, who CUPE alleged should step aside from ruling on their strike, signed the order, alleging a “reasonable apprehension of bias.”
Tremblay  served as Air Canada’s senior internal legal counsel from 2004 to 2004, and he then acted for the airline at two law firms, most recently in 2022.
However, she “refused the allegations of bias,” saying on August 22 that “prevalence alone is not sufficient”to prove a conflict.
The organization said, “CIRB’s decisions speak for themselves, not in any way.”
Goulding claimed that “she worked for the company.” The government didn’t do anything about it, and it speaks for itself.
A “warning bell” sounds
King claimed that Section 107 of the labor code, which had been in place for decades, was rarely used in favor of parliamentary back-to-work legislation.
It was used a half-dozen times for federally regulated workplaces, including those in ports, postal, railroads, and aviation, during the past year.
According to King, “Audition unions complied and filed court challenges, but their strikes were ended.” For the first time, a union has said no.
CUPE has since filed a lawsuit against Ottawa over Section 107, alleging that it violated unionists’ “Charter-protected rights” to protect these crucial bargaining rights from unauthorized access in the future.
According to King, this “remarkable moment” in Canadian history suggests a pattern following the pandemic, where workers have increased expectations and “more willingness to fight.”
Cooper says that while the flight attendants’ defiant stance was brief, it could serve as a “wake-up call” about more labor assertiveness.
He said, “What’s happened with Air Canada might just be a blip.” The labor leaders of tomorrow will be in need.
“Suddenly, a wildcat strike or a general strike might not seem so harmful; in addition, the advantages may far outweigh the overall effects.”
Regardless of whether a vote is cast, Henly Larden, the vice president of CUPE’s Vancouver local, has a chance to give her colleagues their say, despite the fact that both the employer and the government have “stifled” their voices.
Free from unnecessary pressure or influence, she wrote in a blog post, “each and every one of us will have an opportunity to evaluate the agreement’s merits and cast our vote to ratify or not.”
Cooper said standing up for what they did made him feel proud of his fellowworkers.
During a hearing focusing on the Trump administration’s efforts to restrict access to vaccines, lawmakers in the US Senate grilled Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr.
Kennedy criticized the CDC’s recommendations for lockdowns and masking policies during the COVID-19 pandemic and asserted that they “failed to do anything about the disease itself” at the hearing on Thursday.
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The people who oversaw that process, removed masks from our children, and shut our schools are the ones who will leave, according to Kennedy. He later claimed that because they didn’t do enough to prevent chronic disease, they should be fired.
Democrats accused Kennedy and the administration of playing fast and loose with public health by pushing unscientific measures that undermine public trust in vaccination in a series of heated exchanges.
Republican Senator John Barrasso told Kennedy, “We can’t allow public health to be undermined if we’re going to restore America.” “I’m a doctor. Vaccines “work.”
Kennedy’s tenure at HHS has been marred by controversy as he attempts to reshape the organization by firing officials and scientists who have opposed his promotion of policies that contradict decades of scientific consensus.
According to Al Jazeera correspondent Mike Hanna, who spoke from the US Capitol, “It’s been incredibly contentious, not just from Democrats but also from some Republican members of the Senate committee.”
Kennedy’s stance on vaccines was specifically attacked by a number of committee members, he added.
The former anti-vaccine activist and official representative of the Trump administration confronted a corrupt scientific and public health institution that was tied to corporate interests.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director Sue Monarez was fired a few days after the Senate hearing.
Kennedy opened the CDC’s investigation into its actions during the COVID pandemic, blaming the agency for failing “miserably” with “disastrous and nonsensical” measures, including school closures, social distancing, and masking guidance.
He praised the health department’s new emphasis on prevention and chronic disease, saying, “We need bold, competent, and creative new leadership at CDC, people able and willing to chart a new course.”
In a Thursday editorial in the Wall Street Journal, Monarez, the CDC director, accused the secretary of making a “deliberate effort to weaken America’s public health system and vaccine protections.”
Kennedy simply stated, “I asked her, Are you a trustworthy person?,” as he explained to Senator Elizabeth Warren. And she said, ‘ No. ‘”
Due to the high cost of insurance and the lack of affordable public options, access to healthcare is limited in the US. A gap in the country’s healthcare system was filled by declining trust in trusted sources of information on health and well-being, many of whom are online propagators of dubious remedies and unverified ideas.
Before being chosen by President Donald Trump as health secretary in his second administration, Kennedy rose to prominence in the mid-2000s as a prominent anti-vaccine activist.
In the run-up to the election, RFK Jr. became a symbol of the Trump administration’s support for such figures and ideas, even as it reduces funding for programs that support low-income people who are most likely to suffer from health issues. He has since appeared on numerous podcasts.
After pointing out that the HHS secretary had removed a body of experts tasked with making vaccine recommendations and had replaced them with people who were more in line with Kennedy’s own beliefs, Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado sparked an angry exchange with Kennedy.
Bennet claimed that a panel member had propagated the false theory that the COVID-19 vaccine might lead to AIDS transmission.
Should Colorado’s parents and schools be prepared for more measles outbreaks as a result of those [politicizing vaccine recommendations]? What about more “mumps outbreaks”? Bennet contacted.
He rebuffed his accusations, saying, “This is not a podcast.” The American people’s health is in danger, they say.
Dates: 5-7 September Race start time: 14:00 BST on Sunday
Lando Norris, who is Oscar Piastri’s teammate, is “certainly not out of the fight” for the title, according to Piastri.
After his engine failed while he was battling with the Australian at the Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday, Norris lost to Piastri by 34 points.
The championship lead would need to be reclaimed if Piastri and Norris could win five straight races, with Piastri coming in second overall.
Piastri stated, “I don’t expect much to change, but it’s a little more difficult now.” We’ll likely compete in the same manner, in my opinion. I believe that everyone will take the same amount of risk.
We’re both attempting to move as quickly as possible. That aspect of things doesn’t seem to be holding anything back. Therefore, I have no expectation of change.
Piastri, 24, claimed that this was a “comfortable gap” based on his own experience in one of the junior categories.
He claimed that the gap between this and the final round was significantly larger and had been completely erased. It’s still far too early to start making calculations and choosing positions that aren’t first.
The McLaren drivers have won 12 of the 15 races this year, according to Piastri, who spoke with Rick Edwards from 5 Live Breakfast in an interview.
Because I won five more races this year than I did throughout my entire career, Piastri said, “the gap to everyone else and the amount of wins is probably the most surprising one.”
Although it’s been a short career, having that many victories and having a car and a team that are so dominant has been the biggest surprise.
He claimed that being able to drive the McLaren was “a joy” and that having to deal with “too many other teams” was nice in some ways.
However, Norris claimed that he now wishes there could be other teams that could enter the conflict for victories.
Norris recovers from the setback of Zandvoort.
Images courtesy of Getty
Before arriving in Monza, Norris claimed it was “surprisingly simple” to put the disappointment of Zandvoort behind him.
He said, “I’ve been working on it a lot more than just the general stuff,” keeping track of my driving.
There has been a change, and there are definitely improvements. It doesn’t mean that I don’t get irritated and frustrated when I perform poorly, make mistakes, fall short of pole position, or lose to win races.
“I still get frustrated by those moments and still get down and whatever,” says one person, “but what I’m much better at now is dealing with it and letting it have an impact on everything else.”
So I’m excited for what I’m anticipating because it’s, yes, surprisingly simple for me to put it behind and look forward to this weekend.
He stated that he wanted to try to reduce the deficit without causing any misfortunes to Piastri.
I just hope I can recover that last bit so that I can win the championship without anything happening. That’s how I want to go about it, he continued.
It’s not as though this was the catalyst that caused me to start doing more because I feel like I’m doing everything I can.
“I just need to keep my chin up, my head high, and try it again next year if I lose the championship by those points.”
It’s not anyone’s fault; I can’t dwell too much on those instances. I’m just trying to move on and take it off the chin, which is what I’m trying to do right now.
As they prepare to marry and have children, famous Big Brother stars JoJo Siwa and Chris Hughes are ready to take their romance to the next level.
JoJo Siwa and Chris Hughes are planning their future together(Image: Instagram)
JoJo Siwa has revealed she has a “beautiful future” with Chris Hughes as their surprise romance continues to blossom. The Dance Moms star, 22, shocked her fans when she sparked a connection with Love Island’s Chris, 32, while in the Celebrity Big Brother house.
They initially fought off romance rumours and insisted they were just close friends. However, JoJo dumped her then-girlfriend Kath Ebbs at the show’s wrap party and spent more and more time with Chris in the outside world.
In a surprise move, the pair confirmed their romance with some very loved up social media snaps. They have managed to keep it going as they split their time across the pond, with JoJo and Chris spending time in both the US and UK.
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JoJo and Chris met on Celebrity Big Brother(Image: chrishughesofficial/Instagram)
The couple are wanting to get married and have children(Image: INSTAGRAM)
With the pair already discussing marriage and children, their romance has even gotten even stronger. JoJo admitted, “I pester him, and we pester each other.”
She continued, “The thing about Christopher and I is how we met, it accelerates your relationship like no other, right? ” Just after we started to notice that we liked each other more than just friends in this friendship dynamic, we suddenly realized that we were more in love than just friends.
When asked about having children and getting married, she replied, “I don’t know, I think we have a beautiful future ahead of us, and I think it’s very fast and it’s very quick.” We have a lot of fun, fun, and things coming up that I’m looking forward to, even though I can’t explain it.
On Heart’s No Filter, JoJo stated, “It’s everything I think anyone wants in life to feel like they’re going to be treated this way, and then they’ll start having families this way and have their own little families this way.” We’re like a big family because our families get along with one another. It is stunning.
They are “craving” kids because JoJo and Chris are so optimistic about their future. She stated to The Sun, “I crave them, I would absolutely love to have babies, it’s absolutely in my future and I don’t believe it’s that far away.”
The dancer continued, “I’m at a point in my life where my career is functioning smoothly and that I know how to do everything I’m doing without learning anything new. So I’m at a great place with that.”
There are many things to come in my life, but I undoubtedly want kids.
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