Category Sports News

With a 4-1 victory over Jiang Jun from China, Mark Allen made it to the second round of the British Open.

Allen jumped out in the Cheltenham final to win his first ranking title in 19 months with a victory in the Sunday English Open final.

Jun was out of the lead after the first two frames, but the Northern Irish player rallied to claim the third frame.

Jun did hold on for the final frame of the fourth round, but former world no. 1 Allen completed the feat in the fifth to advance to the next round.

Aston Villa president of football operations Monchi is stepping down with former Real Sociedad sporting director Roberto Olabe replacing him.

Olabe, 57, spent seven years at Sociedad before leaving at the end of last season.

Monchi’s exit was confirmed by Villa on Tuesday with the club 18th in the Premier League after a winless start to the season.

The Spaniard will remain in an advisory role, the club added.

“Firstly, I would like to thank Monchi for his hard work and invaluable contribution as president of football operations during an exciting period at Aston Villa,” chairman Nassef Sawiris said.

“His commitment and vision has directly contributed to the club’s recent successes, reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League as well as qualifying for Europe for three consecutive seasons.

“We are delighted that Roberto is joining Aston Villa. He has built a reputation as someone who can spot talent that can be developed and we look forward to supporting him to achieve the ambitions we have for V Sports and Aston Villa.”

Monchi joined Villa in 2023 from Spanish side Sevilla, where he had been sporting director, having previously worked with Villa boss Unai Emery at the La Liga club.

Monchi and Emery helped take Villa to the Europa Conference League semi-finals in 2024 and secured a Champions League place as they finished fourth in the Premier League that season.

They went on to reach the Champions League quarter-finals last term, being knocked out by eventual winners Paris St-Germain.

“We have enjoyed so many special moments together and I look forward to continuing to support V Sports in an advisory role,” Monchi said.

Villa have started poorly this season, failing to win any of their opening five league games and scoring just once.

Villa boss Emery was involved in choosing Olabe as Monchi’s replacement.

Olabe is from Vitoria, part of the Basque Country in northern Spain, which is about 100 miles from Emery’s hometown of Hondarribia.

He managed Real Union between 2011 and 2012, the team which Emery holds a controlling stake in and where his brother Igor is president.

While Monchi’s departure comes at a time of poor results, it does not impact Emery’s position and his influence on Olabe’s arrival underlines that his position remains strong at Villa.

During Olabe’s time at Sociedad they won the 2020 Copa del Rey, their first major silverware in 33 years.

They also bought Alexander Isak from Willem II and sold him to Newcastle for £63m in 2022, while Martin Zubimendi came through the club’s academy before his £60m departure to Arsenal this summer.

The Gunners also signed Mikel Merino from Sociedad, while Olabe brought in Martin Odegaard on loan from Real Madrid the season before he moved to Emirates Stadium.

Monchi and Emery have tried to reshape Villa, spending big on defensive midfielder Amadou Onana, signed for £50m in 2024, and attacker Moussa Diaby, who arrived in 2023 for £43m.

But Diaby was sold to Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad after just one season while Onana has struggled with injury.

The imposing Belgium defensive midfielder made just 22 league starts last season after his club record move from Everton, and he is currently out with a hamstring injury having played just twice this term.

In the past 18 months Villa’s spending has been restricted because of profit and sustainability rules (PSR) imposed by both the Premier League and Uefa.

In July, Villa were fined £9.5m by European football’s governing body for breaching financial rules.

They needed to sell Douglas Luiz in 2024 to balance the books, with the midfielder joining Juventus for £42m. He made just three Serie A starts last season and joined Nottingham Forest on loan last month.

The sales of Omari Kellyman to Chelsea for £19m and Tim Iroegbunam to Everton for £9m last year also generated important profit, while Jacob Ramsey was sold to Newcastle for £40m last month, with all three having come through the club’s academy.

Just two of the starting XI in Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Sunderland – Rogers and striker Evann Guessand – were signed by Emery and Monchi.

This summer Villa signed goalkeeper Marco Bizot from Brest and Guessand from Nice for £30m, before the deadline day arrivals of Harvey Elliott, Jadon Sancho and Victor Lindelof.

England Under-21s midfielder Elliott joined on loan from Liverpool with a £35m obligation to buy, while Sancho moved on loan from Manchester United and his former Old Trafford team-mate Lindelof joined on a free transfer.

Every weekend, hundreds of golfers load up the boot and head to Bethpage.

Clubs and shoes are not the only essential items stuck in the trunk of the car. Sleeping bags and food supplies are also required.

Bethpage Black, based in a sprawling park 40 miles east of New York City, is the first municipal course to host the Ryder Cup in its storied 98-year history.

Having the opportunity to tread the same fairways as the 2025 stars can be a long waiting game, though, particularly in the run-up to this year’s hallmark event.

“This summer was the craziest. We had people waiting for more than 48 hours in our parking lot,” Andrew Wilson, who is responsible for leading the Bethpage course set-up, told BBC Sport.

“They would get there on Friday morning but were not able to play until Saturday. The line would sell out and they had to wait until Sunday to play.

Getting on to Bethpage is not for the faint-hearted and the patience required acts as a precursor for when the golfers step on to the first tee.

Perhaps the stoicism should be considered a filtering out process, because only the toughest club players can survive 18 holes of what is often considered pure pain in both a physical and mental sense.

The latter is triggered by the course’s formidable reputation.

Seconds before players step out on to the first tee, there is a ‘welcome’ sign which intends to strike further fear into their hearts and minds.

The message reads, ‘WARNING. The Black Course Is An Extremely Difficult Course Which We Recommend Only For Highly Skilled Golfers’.

Spanning 7,100 yards from the championship markers where the Ryder Cup players will tee off, Bethpage Black is characterised by jungle rough, cavernous bunkers and tight fairways.

Is the course really as tough as the sign makes out? Or is it hyperbole designed to attract infamy?

Wilson is adamant the reality is as daunting as the illusion.

“Oh, definitely. By the fourth hole if you’ve missed by 10 feet and you’re in a bunker 12 feet below the green, it can already feel a little tiring,” said Bethpage director of agronomy Wilson, who has been working on the greens staff for almost 37 years.

“Then you start to get frustrated and have to play the mental game in your head.

“I think the Black can test your patience – and that’s why it is so hard.”

The undulating terrain sees holes weave around the natural landscape of the parkland and makes the course feel even longer than it already is.

Dense woodland separates many of the opening nine holes, with gravel trails darting between trees to offer routes for non-golfing walkers.

Elevated tees offer expansive views of the challenges ahead, swooping down into the underbelly of the fairways, climbing back up to the putting surfaces perched under the sky like infinity greens.

The exhilarating golf-scapes reel in the day tripper, many of whom make potentially once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimages to what Bethpage chiefs describe as a ‘Mecca for public golf’.

“How many times do you want to try to make the heroic shot? It’s like gambling,” added Wilson.

“You think you’re going to win all that money back and you think you’re going to hit that shot – and then you don’t and you don’t again.

Around 250,000 golfers play Bethpage Black each year, with rounds costing $75 (£55) for New York residents and $150 (£110) for non-state US citizens and international guests.

In comparison to other Ryder Cup host courses, that is considered a snip.

Normally, around three-quarters of tee-time bookings are reserved, with the rest available for walk-ups.

In the months leading up to a major tournament – Bethpage has also notably held the 2002 and 2009 US Opens and 2019 PGA Championship – there are no reservations.

Course chiefs prefer to only offer walk-ups in order to have more control over how many people – who travel from far and wide – can play in case of adverse weather.

Bethpage Black closed to the public in mid-August as the makeover for the Ryder Cup began and will reopen on 9 October.

Remarkably, just several hours after the winning putt is sunk by an American or European player, a handful of lucky amateurs will be able to recreate the scenes.

The PGA of America invites members from their key sponsors to play the course in two shotgun starts – the first starting at 7:15am on the Monday morning after one of the jewels in golf’s crown concludes.

But there is a stipulation to players wanting to try their luck – usually only single handicappers are allowed to tackle Bethpage Black.

“A lot of people want to play from the blue tees because they want the chance to play off the championship tees at a major venue,” said Wilson.

“Some people just want to beat themselves up and test themselves.

“I’ve watched people getting off the course sweating buckets and looking like they’re exhausted. Then they say, ‘I can’t wait to play it again next summer’.

Bethpage Black is one of five courses across the park, which is accessible by train from Manhattan and Brooklyn, although golf is not the sole purpose of the 1,500-acre site.

Around 250,000 non-golfers flock to the site each year to make use of a range of sporting activities, including tennis, football and polo.

Bridle paths, hiking, biking and cross-county skiing trails cater for other recreational pursuits, while the picnic areas offer a more leisurely option in the summer.

The vast space at Bethpage’s disposal, which will welcome 50,000 fans each day of the Ryder Cup, is one of the key reasons why it was picked as an historic host.

“We have the infrastructure to own the event, we’re close to New York City, we’re close to train stations and we’re close to a few highways, so the accessibility of getting in here is a big draw,” explained Wilson.

“The Black course itself is a big property, about 175 acres, so there is a lot of room on the course to build the infrastructure.

“It’s not like there are some fairways that are up and down, it is a long route which has a lot of expansive rough which, if they want to fill it, they’ll build it and have the space to do it.”

The park is funded by the New York state government, meaning it receives a portion of the Parks and Recreation department’s budget every year and the upkeep of the course comes out of that pot.

Corporate golf events, as well as the standard green fees, boost the coffers.

“The budgeting has always been pretty good for us because the revenue is always there – people will play golf in the winter time,” added Wilson.

Rudi Johnson, a former Cincinnati Bengals running back, passed away at the age of 45.

Johnson, who was selected in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft, helped the Bengals break the franchise’s single-season record with 1,458 rushing yards in 2005 by setting a franchise record with his seven seasons.

He made his NFL debut with 5, 979 rushing yards and 51 touchdowns in 2008, and he made his NFL debut for one more season with the Detroit Lions.

Johnson was a “fine person and an excellent running back for us,” according to Bengals president Mike Brown.

He continued, “He was very popular among his team-mates and reliable as a player.” Everyone admired him and referred to him as a close friend. His passing has deeply sadden us.

Noni Madueke’s knee injury, which was sustained in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City on Sunday, will cause him to miss six to eight weeks.

However, it is not believed that the England winger, 23, had an ACL injury.

The Chelsea summer signing has been going through tests to determine the extent of the problem, having been replaced at half-time of the Premier League game against City.

Noni appears to be out for a few weeks, but we won’t know for sure until next week, according to Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta on Tuesday.

Let’s see if he felt something at the start of the match and attempted to continue but it was too sore.

When pressed to say whether Madueke would be missed for weeks or months, Arteta said, “We hope so. We need to scan him once more to determine the extent of the injury, as I previously mentioned, but it doesn’t look all that bad.

On Wednesday, Arsenal will face Port Vale in the third round of the Carabao Cup.

According to sources, doctors were anticipating a temporary improvement in the swelling before making a diagnosis of the injury, but it is now believed that Madueke will be sidelined for at least six weeks, despite the assumption that this will be the best-case scenario.

Given Madueke’s promising start to the season, the news has dealt Arteta and England head coach Thomas Tuchel a major blow.

Madueke will miss a number of important domestic and international games for the Gunners if the initial forecast is confirmed, which would preclude him from playing until at least November.

The attacker is expected to miss England’s upcoming games against Wales and Latvia, but he is also expected to miss Serbia and Albania’s mid-November World Cup qualifiers.

After the home draw with City, Arteta received criticism for his prudent play, with Martin Zubimendi, Declan Rice, and Mikel Merino forforming a midfield trio with the signing of summer signing Eberechi Eze on the bench.

According to Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher, the Spaniard shares traits with former Liverpool managers Gerard Houllier and Rafa Benitez, who he played under, and that Arsenal may sometimes have the same “handbrake on” mindset as the ex-Reds bosses.

Arteta responded, “I don’t read it, but if you tell me that this is the main narrative], I’m surprised because I know how to analyze a football game,” and I’m not surprised.

Because it was impossible for anyone to foresee such a dominance from Arsenal throughout the 96 minutes, Pep Guardiola never did it under his leadership.

What word was used to describe the word “so if the story goes somewhere else and we’re talking about dominance, how can you be dominant against such a team if you have?” a handbrake

So far, so good.

If at any point in the past year England had been offered the Ashes squad they were able to name on Tuesday, they would have played an extra 18 holes to celebrate.

Moves to assemble this group of players started in the summer of 2024. This will be England’s first James Andersonless Ashes tour in more than 20 years. No matter how great a bowler he has been, the absence of an Anderson-style bowler is a sign England’s plan has come together.

Too often England have arrived at an Australian gunfight armed only with knives.

Now, Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Matthew Potts and Ben Stokes can fight fire with fire. It is probably the most hostile group of fast bowlers England have sent down under since John Snow and Bob Willis were at the forefront of victory in 1970-71, the last time England beat a strong Australia team in Australia.

The first Test on a spicy Perth pitch, then the pink-ball Test in Brisbane will not be for the faint-hearted. England might not opt for a spinner in either and will hope to unleash Wood and Archer together in Perth at least.

England say Stokes will recover from his shoulder injury by 21 November, but there will be huge concern over the talismanic skipper’s ability to get through the whole series – he has not played a full part in any of England’s past four.

Without Stokes, chances of returning with the urn dwindle to almost nothing. Protecting the captain could be another reason to play four frontline seamers in Perth.

The case of Wood is a curious one. The fastest bowler in the world has not played a Test since last August because of elbow and knee injuries. A comeback has been gradually pushed back to the point where he has not played at all this summer. Wood states he is best when fresh and there is a body of evidence to support his theory. He will certainly be fresh in Perth.

Stokes and Wood are the only two bowlers in the squad that have played a Test in Australia – overall only five players survive from the previous tour four years ago, a churn that is to be expected when England’s record down under is so wretched.

There are arguably questions about the durability of the entire attack, as all of Archer, Atkinson, Carse and Tongue have had injury problems in the recent past. It was ever thus. Fast bowling is hard work. Archer, the trump card, has shown a recent robustness. It is a collective England could only have imagined in their wildest dreams.

Will Jacks’ inclusion as the cover for Shoaib Bashir perhaps reveals the part, or lack of it, spin will play in the series.

Jacks is a batting all-rounder who played two Tests three years ago and has taken only five first-class wickets this year. In being a tall off-spinner, he mimics the qualities of Bashir and the multi-dimensional aspects of his game give England options. He could, for example, cover for an injured Stokes and still allow for the inclusion of four seamers.

Harry Brook’s elevation to vice-captain was foreshadowed by coach Brendon McCullum more than a week ago. Though entirely logical given Brook is Stokes’ most likely successor as Test captain, it is a blow for Ollie Pope, who now has less to protect him from the challenge of Jacob Bethell.

The Pope-Bethell debate could rumble all the way to Perth, mainly because England missed the opportunity to put it to bed in the summer. They know nothing more about either man than they did in April – Pope missed his chance to nail down the spot and Bethell barely played.

Pope has a career Test average of 35 and almost matched that with 34 in the five home Tests against India. If he does the same against Australia, it would be perfectly adequate.

The rest of the batting line-up is England’s strength. They have pumped coins into the Zak Crawley fruit machine in the hope he pays out in Australia and Ben Duckett is among the premier openers in the world.

Brook has the ability to play a defining role and Jamie Smith’s challenge is to stay the course after fading against India, his first five-Test series as a wicketkeeper.

As usual, plenty will depend on Joe Root, who will have to cope with the noise of not possessing a Test hundred in Australia until he finally has one. In Root’s defence, on his first tour he was a rookie exposed to a rampaging Mitchell Johnson, and in his next two he was an over-worked captain.

He will arrive in Australia unburdened of leadership, totally at ease with his game and unquestionably the best batter in the world.

Australia legend Matthew Hayden has promised to walk around the Melbourne Cricket Ground naked if Root does not make a century. That leaves pressure on Root, because no one needs to see Haydos striding around the ‘G wearing only his cowboy hat.

Much will be made of England’s preparation, or lack of it, playing only one red-ball match against the Lions before the first Test.

The low-key approach has served Stokes and McCullum well. England have won the first Test in all of the five away tours in the Bazball era. Finishing has been the problem – they have lost the last Test in four of those five trips. The plan in Australia must be to get ahead, then hold on.

England could be helped by the questions hanging over the Australians. The early rounds of the Sheffield Shield will be used to identify a top three, while there are huge worries over Pat Cummins’ back injury. The Ashes could be decided by which captains’ body breaks first.

This could be the last Ashes series for all of Steve Smith, Usman Khawaja, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc. The mood of a potential Sydney farewell will be dictated by the destination of the urn.

As for England, who knows what might happen after the Ashes? It could be Bazball’s finest hour or failure of a finale. Depending on the result and fitness there are some, Stokes included, who may not pull on the Three Lions again.

So, there we have it. Sixteen men charged with bringing the urn home. A captain born in New Zealand, fast bowlers from Barbados, South Africa and Ashington. A public-school opening pair, a middle-order forged in Yorkshire and a spinner discovered on social media.

November

13-15 v England Lions, Perth (Lilac Hill)

21-25 1st Test, Perth (Optus Stadium) (02:30 GMT)

29-30 v Prime Minister’s XI, Canberra

December

4-8 2nd Test, Brisbane (d/n) (04:30 GMT)

17-21 3rd Test, Adelaide (00:00 GMT)

26-30 4th Test, Melbourne (23:30 GMT, 25-29 Dec)

January