Category Sports News

After being chosen for two Lions games against India A, England seamer Chris Woakes will make his return from an ankle injury.

The 36-year-old has been selected in a 15-man squad for the second-string games starting on May 30 and 6 June despite not playing since January.

The squad will be led by Somerset wicketkeeper James Rew, who was just called up for the one-off Test against Zimbabwe, while Jordan Cox, who he replaced, was also chosen after recovering from an abdominal injury.

Dan Mousley, a 20-year-old all-rounder, and Seamer Josh Hull, a 20-year veteran, also feature in the group, along with one-day international international Sam Mousley, who made his limited-overs debut against the West Indies in the autumn.

Fast bowler Jofra Archer, who injured his thumb while playing in the Indian Premier League, has not been chosen.

The men’s cricket performance director for the ECB, Ed Barney, described this series as a huge opportunity for an exciting and highly skilled group of players.

As we continue to succession plan for England’s needs, it will give both individuals and as a group the opportunity to excel on the international stage.

India’s five-test tour of England begins on June 20 with two four-day matches against India A in Canterbury and Northampton.

As many as 80 000 fans descend upon a city of 345,000.

As Tottenham and Manchester United prepare for Wednesday’s Europa League final, how will Bilbao, a city in northern Spain, be tested?

In the past, Uefa, the governing body of European football, has expressed regret for the fracas at the 2022 Champions League match between Real Madrid and Liverpool in Paris and for transportation issues at the 2023 match between Manchester City and Inter Milan in Istanbul.

By population, Bilbao is the tenth-largest city in Spain and the largest city in the Basque country, which also includes San Sebastian, a tourist hotspot, and the tenth-largest city in the country.

Bilbao, which has 345, 000 residents, is smaller than Palma, which is on the island of Mallorca, and Las Palmas, which are both in Gran Canaria.

Athletic Club, a La Liga team that United defeated in the semi-finals, is located at the San Mames stadium, which was constructed in 2013.

It has a capacity of just over 53, 000, but the final final capacity has been reduced to 49, 600.

You might not think it’s as simple to get to Bilbao.

Only three English cities, London, Manchester, and Bristol, offer direct flights to this region.

282 flights are scheduled for Bilbao on Wednesday, according to reports in Spain, which is a record for a single day, despite a 94% week-on-week increase in departures from the UK to Bilbao.

When United and Spurs reached the final, airlines scrambling to add more flights to meet demand, which saw prices spike for those flights, some as high as £1,400.

Even so, many fans were being forced to fly elsewhere or take direct flights to nearby Spanish or French cities before making connections.

Others chose to travel by air instead of taking a ferry, car, or train across the Channel before arriving on Spain’s north coast.

One United fan traveled 2, 500 miles from Manchester, including visiting Dublin, Paris, and Rome, on a direct 33-hour ferry from Portsmouth to Bilbao.

One airport is located 12 kilometers from the city center in Bilbao.

On average, there are 13, 000 hotel beds in Bilbao.

A mathematician can determine whether the city has a problem accommodating its English visitors.

Some upscale hotels have been charging more than £1,800 per night for their double rooms.

Matthew Blackford, a United fan, slept in a park with his friends to avoid “silly hotel prices,” while many fans have booked rooms or hostels, stayed with locals, or traveled by car.

He told BBC Sport, “We only arrived in Bilbao last night at 10:30 with a few friends.”

“We immediately left for a few drinks. Where are we going to sleep tonight, we only learned later.

We discovered some benches,” she said. For three or four hours, I was able to put my head down.

The sixth all-English European final will take place on Wednesday.

Any nation’s ability to host two teams of this size would be tested by resources, especially when the teams involved have fan bases that are large enough to travel in such numbers.

48 miles away, San Sebastian and Bilbao have reported minor altercations between supporters.

No arrests have been made, and there are reportedly no general kinships between the supporters in Bilbao.

More than 1,500 officers have been assigned to the game, with all special units working, and there will be three security rings around the stadium.

The remaining tickets were given to Uefa sponsors or purchased by neutrals, including officials, other sponsors, and guests, for each team, totaling approximately 15 000.

In distinct neighborhoods of the city, both teams have been designated fan zones.

In Etxebarria Parkea, there is beer for five euros and a capacity of 20 000.

Denis Irwin and Andy Cole, club legends, will perform, as will Mani from the Stone Roses and Liam Fray of the Courteeners.

Due to a right thumb injury, Seamer Jofra Archer will miss England’s one-day international series against West Indies.

Due to an injury sustained while playing for Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League, Archer will miss the series, which begins on May 29.

England stated that he would “reevaluate over the next fortnight to determine when he may return to action.”

The 30-year-old had been substituted for England Lions against India A in the following three-game T20 series.

Archer will miss at least the first of those four-day games, which would have been his first red-ball game in four years, because those games are scheduled for May 30 and June 6.

Since his last Test match appearance for England was in February 2021, he has suffered back and elbow injuries.

Wood has only taken two wickets in one ODI. In five T20s, the 29-year-old has taken eight wickets.

Harry Brook’s first white-ball captial role in England’s one-day series against West Indies is significant.

Regarding England’s qualification for the 2027 World Cup, it might have long-term effects.

Chief cricket correspondent, Stephan Shemilt

Any news of Jofra Archer getting hurt is worrying because of everything he has been through. Sincerely, this damage to his thumb is “only” permanent after years of suffering from back and elbow issues.

Archer has, however, followed a carefully thought-out route toward a potential return to Test cricket. Anything that causes a disruption has consequences.

Archer probably would have played two of the Lions’ three one-day games against West Indies before making his red-ball comeback against India A.

Archer’s thumb may heal before the Lions game, but that is not how simple it is to throw him in. A fast bowler must gradually rebuild their workload to make sure they are match-ready after any time out on the sidelines. The procedure will be the same for Archer.

In the unlikely event that Archer would have been able to play in the series’ second match against India, that would have been the best scenario. That could now be reversed, perhaps with some Sussex preparation for the Championship.

May

29: First ODI, Edgbaston (d/n) (13: 00 BST)

June

1: Second ODI, Cardiff (11: 00 BST)

3: Third ODI, The Kia Oval (d/n) (13: 00 BST)

6: First T20 international, Seat Unique Riverside, Chester-le-Street (d/n) (18: 30 BST)

Second T20 international, Bristol, 14:30 BST, 8:20

Duncan Ferguson is describing the darkness of his early life as the sun beats through a window in a studio by the River Clyde.

Barlinnie Prison, where he spent 44 days and nights, is six miles away and 30 years in the distance, but right now, as he discusses the opening chapters of his autobiography, he’s back there.

Ferguson’s life story – the recently published Big Dunc – couldn’t begin anywhere else. 1994 Ibrox Rangers vs. Raith Rovers John McStay, a ‘ headbutt ‘ while on probation for some fracas at a taxi rank and then a jail sentence in its wake. He calls it “Hell,” as he prefers.

Tom English: You were 23 when you went inside. Reading what you witnessed, I cannot believe that they sent you to a place like that.

Duncan Ferguson: I’d locked it away until I started to do the book. It all returns in a flash. I couldn’t do that time now. I don’t believe I can handle it.

Back then, it was frightening. How did you manage to get through it, in some cases, when you look back and wonder? How did you actually get through that? since you are independent. There’s nobody backing you up, there’s nobody helping you.

You assert that there was some level of excitement involved.

DF: I was upset. I was concerned. I was frightened. I was, of course. But I was also a wee bit excited to see what the nick was like. because I was a moron when I was younger.

You’ve seen the movies, haven’t you? You’ve seen movies about prisons, and you wondered what life was like there. So there was a wee bit of that, maybe not excitement, but certainly I was intrigued to what was actually going to happen in there.

TE: How long was that?

DF: Not long. since I realized it was hell.

TE: You describe your first night inside – the lights go out and the voices in the dark.

DF: I’m at the end of that bed. Everything echoed. They are yelling at you. You’re going to get cut in the morning’. That is what transpired. They pinpoint where you are.

They seemed to be concentrating on me. You’re worried sick. You must confront that in the morning. I never slept a wink all night. I was terrified. I’m going to walk out on this landing in the morning and you think someone’s going to stick a knife in you.

TE: You ended up in the kitchen, right?

DF: The hospital wing. You have specialized positions. The first few days, I’d slop out on the wing.

Inmates who were getting cut, slashed, or otherwise harming themselves were placed in a block in the middle of the prison. The paedophiles and that. Some of them are kept there.

It wasn’t too bad, because you’re away from the main population during the day.

And there, you were instructed to go to a young boy’s counsel.

DF: I can’t remember his name, but he tried to take his own life. He had entered the hospital’s wing. The guards had found out that he’d played for the Rangers as a kid. I was told to go see him and speak with him.

TE: You were only a kid yourself.

DF: Do you not believe that you are a man? I thought I was a man. Everything I have is boxed-off. I was just a baby.

The boy was acting rudely toward me and we had to meet up. He told me a wee bit of his story. Although he played football well, things never quite ended up being right. He got released. He ended up using drugs.

As Ferguson recounts his spats in his early life, all the fighting and the endless grief, you ask him what he would say to his teenage self if he could sit him down now and talk to him.

Don’t drink, DF. That would be the first thing I’d say to myself. I’ve had a lot of trouble in my life because of booze. We were young. We had exited the estates. Everybody drunk. I might have left if I hadn’t been intoxicated at the time of these events.

TE: Your upbringing. You call yourself a stupid, foolish laddie. But then you also say, I see myself as shy. Nobody is really familiar with me. You look at the pages and stories you tell in your book, it doesn’t look like the life of a shy young man.

DF: I don’t have any friends to this day. Good friends. I had no interest. At school, I was on my own with my ball. I went to school with my ball. I never mixed. My dog and I went out. I had my ferrets. I didn’t mix anything. I never mixed with my team-mates. Few of my friends were there, but I did. I was a bit shy. I’m just starting to get out of my shell.

TE: You’re shy, but you were fond of a night out. It returns to drinking once more. These fights at taxi ranks. This violent person uses crutches.

DF: I can’t remember him on a crutch. He swung a tiny bit at me. I was daft. I had a bad o. You’re chasing girls. I was 16 or 17 years old. Stirling’s a small place. I became a target. I was Duncan Ferguson, the football player. Take a look at his walking. Look at the way he’s drinking that beer. Watch his dancing as you watch. He thinks he’s gallus. I was being approached by people.

TE: I’ll read you a quote from the book, after some sort of incident. You were seen by the police. “I was laid out on the sofa, rotten, stinking drunk, buck naked, aside for a pink hat that someone had given me earlier. I wore a silk glove, an earring, and lipstick. Now that’s a picture.

DF: I can’t recall the police arriving. I was on the couch, gone. That is correct. It was one of those crazy nights. For Dundee United, I won young player of the year. We went into Anstruther. Not pleasant to look at. I’m sure it wasn’t a pretty sight for the police when they came to have a look at me.

TE: Your parents must have been concerned about you at this time. Is there guilt there?

Absolutely, DF. My mum and dad, I put them through it. In the morning, that phone rings. Somebody knocks on the door. My parents and I endure hell.

TE: You’re a dad now and you can put yourself in their shoes.

When Ferguson left Tannadice and joined Rangers for £4m, the move was the measure of his dreams.

He played for the Rangers. He revered the manager, Walter Smith. He adored Ally McCoist, a famous striker.

The whole thing became a nightmare. Lack of game-time, scrutiny, trouble, minders, and claustrophobia in a wild living. And then he went for McStay.

Smith told him that he had to leave Glasgow for his own good after placing him down. Sentencing was coming – Barlinnie not far away – but in the meantime he needed a new start. He obtained a three-month loan from Everton, which led to a love affair.

TE: When Walter said you had to go, how did you feel?

When he said it, DF: I cried out in my eyes. I’d let him down. I’m sure he was telling me I was returning after the loan, but I’m not sure if he was right at the time. But I cried. I had gotten it wrong. I was drinking heavier. I had lost all control.

TE: The book is so honest. It’s a fantastic read. You weren’t at Everton long and you got done for drink driving.

DF: Yes, that’s correct. On my own. the center of the city. Saturday night. What do you do? I went for a drink, stupidly. I’m out on a Saturday night and have a game against Liverpool on Monday. Nuts.

TE: Joe Royle’s first game as manager of Everton?

DF: Yeah and I’m in the police station, 3am Sunday. Monday at Liverpool. The star striker’s in the nick.

TE: That story has a satisfying conclusion.

DF: Yeah, they let me out.

TE: You did, yes, but you did well.

DF: Of course. I’m not that, is it? That’s me. No instruction. In the jail. Leave, and the rest will be history. I battered them. particularly the second half. Guilt. That was the focus of my efforts. Guilt.

And you win the FA Cup, TE? You scored 73 goals in 273 games for Everton across two spells spanning a decade. Down there, they adore you. How long did it take for you to realise Everton – this is the place for me?

DF: Approximately a week. Once I was in that city, I wasn’t coming back. I didn’t mind. Nobody was targeting me. They were aware of me, but it wasn’t a Rangers-Celtic thing, was it? There’s no sectarianism. I experienced freedom. And I was fitter. And I was receiving minutes.

TE: Why does this club mean so much to you?

DF: I was taken over by the fans. There was never any trouble off the pitch, only the drink driving offence. At the club, they needed someone like me. The team wasn’t very good. They had a strong Scottish number nine tradition. I fitted that mould.

TE: They could sense the sincerity.

DF: I was aggressive. That was liked by the fans. They wanted somebody to get stuck in for them. Then, everything flipped for me. You’re playing against Liverpool, Man Utd, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham. You are competing with some formidable adversaries. It brought the best out of me. I still adore the city. I still live down there. It’s a fantastic setting.

TE: Striker, captain and then manager. That must have been cosmic, in your opinion?

DF: What a feeling. It was a truly amazing experience for both my life and my career. One that I’ll never forget. I had first led the team, I had many goals scored for the club, and then I had to run them. So I’ve done it all there, really.

TE: You praised Carlo Ancelotti at Everton and worked for him.

DF: I was on my mate’s boat in Croatia, right? And his own boat is in the area. He’s on the phone. “I’m coming to see you,” “OK, no problem, Carlo”.

It’s not hard to understand the reasons why Ferguson brought a madly premature end to his Scotland career. Everything dates back to the tragic McStay incident.

The Scottish FA handed down a 12-match ban before his court case ever came around. He thought the executioner, jury, and judge were present.

When he came out of Barlinnie, they went after him again, trying to force through that suspension even though he had done time in prison and was now at Everton.

He referred to the McStay incident as a vindictive pursuit while reminding you that he was in jail and that “I didn’t even get a yellow card.”

TE: You quit Scotland in December 1994. You claim that you lost all love for Scotland. I felt bitter. I chucked it because I thought the Scottish press had unfairly treated me.

DF: I should have played. A great deal of regret exists. I should have played. I drafted numerous squads. Craig Brown, God bless him, protected me. He simply stated that I was hurt. I told him I didn’t want to go and play for Scotland anymore. He declared, “You’re crazy, man!” My heart wasn’t in it. I visited several times. I didn’t like it.

TE: You requested Austria 96 and Estonia 97, but that was it. Stubborn?

My God, DF. I wish I could go back, but you can’t, can you? You are a young man. You’re daft. You simply don’t pay attention.

I was on my honeymoon in the Bahamas during the 1998 World Cup. Brazil, we played, didn’t we? I should have been kicking off the ball. False . I was in my prime then as well.

They asked me to return every year for 14 years. Bertie Vogts came to Everton. I stroked his teeth. Didn’t even take him into a wee room, sit him down and listen to his spiel.

Of course, there was more. More on his early years, more on his Dundee United boss Jim McLean – who fined him so heavily once that Ferguson’s pay packet was minus £10 – more on Barlinnie, Rangers, Everton, Newcastle, his financial bankruptcy, his stints in management and his desire to have another go.

He looks good at age 53. Is he happy? “No, I’m not entirely happy,” it’s true. I don’t think any of us are totally happy. I’m in a good mood. You know, I’ve been in a lot worse place. You know what I mean when I look down the backs of sofas for a few dollars?

” So I’m not there. I’m also well. I’m off the booze. I’m assuming that I’ll be the next man. My dream is to be a manager at the top. That is what I desire. And when that happens, I’ll be a real happy man. “

Following her debut of 26.2%, Eilish McColgan plans to start training for her first marathon in September with the Great North Run.

The 34-year-old completed the London Marathon last month by finishing eighth, becoming the first British woman to cross the line.

McColgan, a four-time Olympian in the middle distance, says it was “a bit of a relief” to put her first marathon to the end, surpassing mother Liz’s previous national best by more than two minutes over Steph Twell’s Scottish record.

When asked about her recovery, she responded, “It has taken me a good three weeks.” The first week was a real struggle, with stairs and up and down stairs not the simplest.

McColgan wants to go under 2:20, which she believes is required to compete at the global level after crossing the finish line in 2 hours, 24 minutes, and 25 seconds.

She said, “I wasn’t sure how I would recover, so I didn’t schedule anything after that.” “London was the main priority,” she said. Knowing that, okay, it wasn’t great, my first one, I felt tough, I felt like I struggled, but I did so and kept coming.

“The Great North Run, a half marathon there in September, might be the one I want to do next.”

McColgan is unsure whether her next marathon will feature a faster pace from male competitors or “do I go more tactically like New York” as she prepares to do so.

She described the London Marathon as “quite nerve-wracking” because it was her “baptism of fire” competing in a well-known event with female champions from the distance.

She liked the “that buzz you get” from having fans yell her name all the way around the course, and she feels qualified to go that distance as she prepares for the upcoming Olympics.

For me, McColgan continued, “This is undoubtedly a new chapter.” “I always believed that I would run the marathon one day, but I’m arriving there later than I had anticipated.”