Category Sports News

Chris Atherton, 16, has left Mourneview Park to join Chelsea.

At 13 years and 329 days old, the Northern Ireland Under-17 international, who was 13 years and 329 days old, became the youngest senior football player in the United Kingdom in September 2022, made headlines.

When the teenager started for the Lurgan Blues in a 6-0 victory over Dollingstown in the BetMcLean Cup, he broke the senior record by starting as a substitute for the Lurgan Blues.

Atherton overcame Jordan Allan’s previous record, which was 14 years, 191 days, in Airdrie.

He started for Glenavon regularly throughout the 2024-2019 campaign, scoring his first Irish Premiership goal against Loughgall in March as Paddy McLaughlin’s side finished 10th overall.

Glenavon made the announcement on X by posting that Chris Atherton’s blue is still the color.

In Wimbledon’s opening days, seismic shocks have been a hot topic for a reason.

A record 36 players were eliminated at the end of Thursday’s play, surpassing the 35-player total at this point in the 2020 French Open, with just one more second-round match to come to an end at the conclusion of the tournament.

The men’s and women’s singles draws have grown to include the highest-ranked players to leave, with French Open champion Coco Gauff and men’s third-seeded Alexander Zverev atop the list of high-profile exits.

Eight of the top ten players, who had never won at any major tournament before the start of the Open era in 1968, dropped out in the first round, a record number.

Only Aryna Sabalenka, the top-five women’s player, has made it to the third round for the second time in the Open era.

Four of the top ten players, including British fourth seed Jack Draper, also lost in the second round of a Slam before only the third time in the previous 25 years.

Some still reported struggling, and Briton Cameron Norrie acknowledged the weather “was a bit of a shock to the system.” Others were given ice packs, cold towels, and plenty of water to help them deal with the conditions.

Some players have expressed frustration with the heat due to the grass courts’ interaction with the balls as well.

Denis Shapovalov, a 27th seed in Canada, declared: “The grass tour has turned into a joke. The balls are the worst. The court is slower than a clay court, and this one is no longer grass.

Players have more time to play the ball on slower courts, which results in longer rallies and physically draining longer games.

Then, what about the balls? Is there a difference there?

British number one Emma Raducanu spoke about the influence they were having after her remarkable victory over Marketa Vondrousova.

With the new balls, “you get a little bit extra,” she said, “but] I think these Slazenger balls really fluff up quite quickly and become heavy and slow” after a few games or a few long rallies in. The bigger hitters get some extra time to load and give it, according to “I think that.”

Mark Petchey, the coach of Raducanu, previously claimed that her ability to compete with the big hitters of the sport is being impacted by heavier tennis balls.

The quick turnaround before and short nature of the grass court season is one thing that hasn’t changed but still poses a problem for players.

It lasts less than 50 days, beginning some days before the French Open’s start in June and ending with Wimbledon on July 13.

Gauff won the French Open on June 7 and made it to just one grass court tournament before Wimbledon, losing in the first round of the Berlin Open.

The American second seed said, “I think this Slam, out of all of them, is the most prone to upsets because of how quickly the turnaround is from clay.”

High-profile players have long raised concerns about the schedule.

Casper Ruud, a Norwegian, earlier this year, criticized the ranking system, calling it “a rat race,” while Alex de Minaur, an Australian, ranked ninth, said he “felt burned out” before claiming to have left the French Open “feeling burned out.”

Women’s fourth seed Jasmine Paolini said she needed to “reset” mentally following her second-round defeat, adding: “I feel a little tired right now. There were two intense months prior to this.

On that subject, Raducanu remarked, “It’s a mentally very difficult sport. What I’ve found to be useful is attempting to win the day by focusing on the process as much as possible while surround yourself with good people. Because the results are so fluctuating, it’s really difficult to take your joy in. It’s a “rollercoaster” of a ride.

Could the prospect of other top seeds leaving make others more anxious, while also giving lower-ranked players greater faith?

American sixth seed Madison Keys, who is still in contention after recovering from a set-up in her opener, said: “I think when you are sitting and watching everyone kind of fall, it adds a little stress to the situation. I feel like I managed to dodge a little bullet because I was fairly close in my first round.

American former player Tracy Austin also cited the shorter grass season and demanding schedule, with lower-ranked players believing they can outmatch the top seeds.

Frances Tiafoe, the 12th seed lost to Norrie in the second round, commented on the stronger competition: “You have some young guys playing well and unseeded floaters.” The current level of play has an incredible depth. You’ll lose if you don’t get ready to go. Some of the seeded guys appear to be hesitant to leave.

American Amanda Anisimova may have gotten the most out of the women’s draw, which included the eliminated Paolini and the fifth-seeded Zheng Qinwen.

The 13th seed would not face Linda Noskova, the top seed, until the semi-finals, where she could meet Sabalenka, despite Naomi Osaka, a four-time major winner, remaining in her quarter.

Following defeats for Zverev, Daniil Medvedev, Francisco Cerundolo, and Matteo Berrettini, the Russian woman can reach the quarter-finals in men’s singles without facing a fellow seed.

If Mattia Bellucci can defeat the Briton first, Norrie could advance to the quarter-finals without facing another seed. Joao Fonseca or Nicolas Jarry, who are both from Brazil, are both in contention for the spot in the fourth round.

Before being matched with the world rankings used for the women’s draw, men’s singles seedings were based on a surface-based formula based on recent grass court victories.

Real Madrid are interested in selling Rodrygo and AC Milan are both interested in Marco Asensio, while Newcastle United are close to making a move for Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga.

Newcastle are close to agreeing a deal with Nottingham Forest after making a better offer of £55 million for Sweden’s 23-year-old winger Anthony Elanga. (Mail)

If a suitable offer is made for Brazil forward Rodrygo, who has been linked with Arsenal, Real Madrid and manager Xabi Alonso can come to terms regarding the sale. (Athletic – A subscription required)

Marco Asensio has been offered 15 million euros (£12.9 million), but the 29-year-old is still waiting for other options as AC Milan and Villarreal are interested in the Spain international. (L’Equipe, in French)

German international winger Nicolas Kuhn, 25, has received an initial £16.5 million fee from Como. (Sky Sports)

Thelo Aasgaard, 23, is set to become a permanent player for Rangers at the end of the transfer window. (Daily Record)

Dutch midfielder Kees Smit, 19, is a target for Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea. (TBR Football)

After failing to land their top target, Colombia’s Luis Diaz, 28, Al-Nassr could turn their attention to Gabriel Martinelli, 24, of Arsenal. (GiveMesport)

Denzel Dumfries, 29, is the only player under the age of 21 to be eligible for a release clause in his contract, which is effective until mid-July. (Calciomercato – Italian)

Antonio Silva, a 21-year-old Portugal international, turned down a move to Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal, but Benfica is still expected to sign him. (Portuguese: A Bola)

Betfred Super League

Castleford (12) 12

Goals: Milnes (2) Tries: Lawler, Cini

Huddersfield (12) 30

Huddersfield Giants defeated Castleford Tigers to record their third straight Super League victory, led by George Flanagan, who scored 14 points and orchestrated yet another try.

The 20-year-old full-back helped Giants recover from last week’s hammering by Catalans Dragons, sparking a moment of real quality with Tui Lolohea’s opening try, converted scores from Sam Halsall and Taane Milne, and then added a penalty and crossed for a try himself.

At 12-0, Cas, who had led Wigan Warriors to victory last week, responded with tries from George Lawler and Zac Cini just before the break.

In the second half, the Giants defeated the home side and added tries from Milne, Flanagan, and Lolohea late on to move within two points of Tigers in the standings and halt the hosts’ miserable home run to just two victories in their last 13 Super League games at the Mend-a-Hose Jungle.

Danny McGuire, the head coach for Castleford, is facing an RFL investigation after complaining about the refereeing of his side’s late defeat against Wigan last week. However, the Giants’ hooker Zac Woolford was sin-binned after just 40 seconds.

The Australian appeared to have given the Tigers an early advantage by barging into Joe Westerman late and receiving a yellow card.

The only real dash in the opening half-hour came when Flanagan made a half-break and freed Jacob Gagai for a sprint down the right before sending Lolohea over. They were hit on the counter-attack by Huddersfield, which gave them the opportunity to use it.

As center Halsall, making his 50th appearance for the club, found a gap and Flanagan skillfully converted from the touchline, the Giants regrouped.

Huddersfield appeared to be taking a comfortable half-time lead, but Cas unexpectedly discovered the spirit that made them leave just before beating Wigan.

Lawler could score on Lawler’s break, and Cini’s feint and burst through two tackles, which Rowan Milnes converted both, gave the home side the lead.

The Giants, however, lost the lead in the second half as a result of the half-time break, which halted that momentum.

Milne had a chance to defeat Lolohea’s grubber, but moments later hed offload to Gagai and gained control of his team by reversing the lead.

At 18-12, Innes Senior tipped Innes Senior in the direction of the score, but when he should have scored, Flanagan landed a penalty to give the visitors some breathing room.

Danny McGuire, the coach of the Castleford Tigers, told BBC Radio Leeds:

“It was a really poor performance,” the singer said. Nothing that we discussed was done by us. We probably assumed it would be simple, but it would never be that way because of the sin-bearing early.

We didn’t want to do some of the tough things we did last week. We assumed it would just occur, which is not the case in our game.

“Huddersfield played the better team in a really bad game,” said the player. Both teams performed quick turnarounds. There is really no excuse for them because they’ve been to France.

Luke Robinson, the coach of the Huddersfield Giants, told BBC Radio Leeds:

“The first ten minutes gave me a quick summary of it. In the first minute, we literally lost a man, and at that point, we just seemed so composed and composed.

The way we were playing would have been very simple to be altered, but we didn’t. We were extremely good and kept our guns. When a man down, going one up or down indicates where we were.

Interchanges: Stimson, Hall, Griffin, Milnes, and Griffin

Huddersfield: Gagai, Milne, Halsall, Swift, Lolohea, Frawley, Powell, Woolford, Wilson, Greenwood, Rushton, Cudjoe, Gagai, Gagai, Milne, and Gagai.

Golding, King, Burgess, Rush, and others exchange.

When play in his second-round match against Rinky Hijikata at Wimbledon was suspended due to bad lighting, American Ben Shelton was furious.

Shelton, the 10th seed, was in command of the third set after winning the first two sets 6-2, 7-5, and was possibly on the verge of a full recovery.

However, the umpire on court two announced that there would be no more play that evening, much to Shelton’s shock, as the clock was approaching 21:30 and the sun was starting to fade.

The 22-year-old, who has previously reached the Grand Slam semi-finals, yelled bitterly to officials about the decision, which could result in him playing only one game on Friday, which would prevent him from getting a full day off.

First round leaderboard for the Women’s Irish Open

-5 A Swayne (USVI), -6 B Fernandez (Esp), -5 C Tamburlini (Swi), -5 A Screen (Eng), L Pettersson (Swe), M Sagstrom (Swe), and M Rhodes (Eng)

class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″>Selected others: class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″>-3 C Hull (Eng), class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″>-2 G Hall (Eng) class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″>-1 L Maguire (Ire), + 2 A Nordqvist (Swe).

After the opening round of Carton House, Spain’s Blanca Fernandez and Switzerland’s Chiara Tamburlini shared the Women’s Irish Open lead.

A group that includes English trio Lottie Woad, Mimi Rhodes, and Hannah Screen is one shot back, but home favorite Leona Maguire is five points clear.

Fernandez and Tamburlini made the most of the challenging circumstances, which included a swirling wind and a few showers.

Both golfers recorded seven birdies and one bogey during the round, with Tamburlini chipping in once on three of the final four holes.

World number one amateur Woad and Screen on five under, along with world number one amateur Alexandra Swayne, Madelene Sagstroem, and Lisa Patterson, who represents the United States Virgin Islands, were joined by Order of Merit leader Rhodes. The sextet is only one shot off the pace in a crowded leaderboard.

Indeed, only two strokes separate the top 19 players from Emma Fleming, who won the Victorian Amateur Championship last month, with 11 more a shot back.

Maguire finished day one with a 72, which put her and three other Irish players on one-under-par despite a frustrating day on the greens.

Sagstrom scored the best round of the five, while England’s Charley Hull (-3) and Georgia Hall (-2) are in good shape heading into day two, which means a number of Maguire’s Solheim Cup team-mates had a strong start.