SYDNEY – Fiji’s three-time major winner Vijay Singh has agreed to play at this year’s Australian PGA.
Singh has not played in Australia since the 1998 Presidents Cup but will join fellow major winners John Daly and Geoff Ogilvy at the Dec. 10-13 tournament in Queensland.
“It’s been a long time since I played in Australia and I am so excited to have been asked to play the Australian PGA Championship,” Singh said in a statement.
– Reuters
Australian world champion Danny Green has called on Anthony Mundine to stop fighting chumps and step up with the big boys of world boxing.
Green won the IBO cruiserweight title when he defeated Julio Cesar Dominguez in Mississippi earlier this month and will fight American superstar Roy Jones Jnr in November.
Mundine, meanwhile, is still busy frying his fish on the local scene and is currently eyeing off a middleweight rematch with Tasmanian Danny Geale.
Green said it was time his arch rival stepped out of his comfort zone.
“I’m not sure what his next fight is, I dare say it would be against someone that is going to be a relatively very safe option for him,” Green said during a visit to Perth Glory training on Thursday.
“It’s pretty much a pattern now.”
Green was lured out of retirement earlier this year after he was promised a lucrative rematch with Mundine, who won the first fight between the pair in 2006.
But when it came to finalising a deal Mundine quickly went cold on the proposal, although Green’s recent success on the world stage seems to have re-sparked Mundine’s interest.
“If Greeny has still got that cruiserweight after Roy Jones, he knows where I’m at,” Mundine told reporters in Sydney on Wednesday.
Green said he had little time nowadays to even think about Mundine.
“I’m fighting one of the best fighters of all time so Choco’s definitely on the backburner as far as our fight goes,” Green said.
“As far as what he achieved and what he’s going to achieve and what he wants to achieve, he’s just got to step up basically.
“He’s got to stop fighting blokes that are a given and put himself out of his comfort zone.
“Until he does that he’s not going to have the respect of the sporting community.”
Green said negotiations to secure the Jones Jnr fight were proving tricky.
“It’s never easy,” he said.
“Boxing’s got a lot of grey areas involved.
“Roy’s not the easiest bloke to deal with because he sees this as basically a big opportunity financially but it’s a risky fight as well so he’s weighing up all his options.
“He’s trying to make as much money as he can because if he potentially loses the fight, then his worth drops.
“It’s always tough but he’s done his part of the deal and I’ve done my part in the ring, now it’s just a matter of finalising negotiations and tying up the loose ends and knuckling down.”
Green said he was disappointed he couldn’t bring the fight to his hometown of Perth, with the bout likely to take place in either Sydney or Melbourne.
– AAP
By Mike Collett
MONACO (Reuters) — Arsenal striker Eduardo da Silva could be banned for two European matches if UEFA decides he was guilty of diving to win a penalty against Celtic in Wednesday’s Champions League qualifier.
The Brazilian-born Croat went down after poking the ball past Celtic goalkeeper Artur Boruc, who dived at his feet but appeared to make no contact with the striker, in the first half of their second-leg encounter at the Emirates on Wednesday.
The score was 0-0 at the time, with Eduardo converting the ensuing penalty which Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger later said should not have been awarded. The London club eventually won 5-1 over the two legs.
Scottish FA chief executive Gordon Smith said he wanted UEFA to punish Eduardo for what he said was a dive, prompting the president of European soccer’s governing body, Michel Platini, to add his view.
Platini told a news conference in Monaco, the venue for Thursday’s Champions League group stage draw: “There are disciplinary procedures at UEFA and the procedure could be taken to suspend the player.
“Scotland often start such procedures, last time it was a Lithuania player who was sanctioned.”
UEFA has previously handed out two-match bans for players found guilty of diving.
Platini was speaking after launching his experiment to have five officials in charge at Europa League matches this season with an Additional Assistant Referee (AAR) beside each goal to help the match referee decide if diving has occurred or the ball gone over the goal line.
“One day players will give up simulating because referees will see them. For years players have cheated because the referees were not of a good enough quality,” Platini said.
MORE REFEREES
“I am convinced if you have referees close by that will prevent players from simulating and players will take the right decision. I have always said better to have more referees than a multiplication of disciplinary procedures.”
A UEFA spokesman said: “We are reviewing the match to see whether a disciplinary investigation should be launched.”
Earlier Smith said Eduardo had shown “disrespect to the game by his actions in winning a penalty against Celtic”.
“We have shown the courage to use retrospective punishment when it comes to simulation and I would urge UEFA to do so in this instance. Everything that can be done to stamp it out must be done. Starting right now,” he added.
Wenger, whose side had secured a 2-0 first leg victory at Celtic Park on Aug. 18, said Spanish referee Manuel Mejuto should not have awarded the penalty.
“I do not go as far as to say Eduardo dived. He went down, for what reason I do not know. Having seen it again on television, it doesn’t look a penalty,” he told reporters.
“I do not think he (Eduardo) would have complained if the penalty was not given.”
(Additional reporting by Tom Pilcher in London; Editing by John O’Brien and Sonia Oxley)
MONACO (Reuters) – Lionel Messi of European champions Barcelona was named the European Club Player of the Year on Thursday for helping his side lift the Champions League trophy last season.
Argentine Messi was also named forward of the year with his club mate Xavi Hernandez, who also played a key role for Barca last season, named as midfielder of the year ahead of a third Barcelona club mate Andres Iniesta.
Chelsea and England skipper John Terry was named defender of the year while Edwin Van der Sar, of last season’s Champions League runners-up Manchester United, was named goalkeeper of the year.
Thee awards are for their performances in the Champions League.
UEFA president Michel Platini presented a special award to Paolo Maldini, who won five European Cups with AC Milan during a playing career that spanned more than 20 years until he retired at the end of last season.
(Editing by Justin Palmer)
It may be time to extend those sand pits because Usain Bolt is considering the long jump. If Bolt comes close to the standards he has set in the sprints, the world record of 8.95 metres could be in danger, although he said the addition to his schedule was not around the corner.
“I definitely want to try the long jump, I think I can be a good long jumper,” Bolt said, on the eve of the Weltklasse Golden League meet in Zurich. “I’ve messed around with it. I think I’d be good. I think I’d have a good distance …”
Bolt said he has never measured his leaps, and the 23-year-old sprinter who shattered world records in the 100 and 200 metres at the world championships did not put a timetable on his long jumping career.
“Maybe when the races start getting tighter, closer,” Bolt said.
While not ruling out that he might compete in the long jump at the 2012 Olympics in London, Bolt cautioned that it was still just his own idea.
“I haven’t discussed it with my coach,” said Bolt, who added that running the 400 was not in his plans. “I want to try it (the long jump) before I retire.”
That could be some time off. Bolt slashed 0.11 seconds off his world record in both the 100 and 200 this month in Berlin, winning overwhelmingly. He clocked 9.58 in the 100 and 19.19 in the 200 to improve the times he set in winning gold medals at last year’s Beijing Olympics.
Bolt said he was surprised by how quickly he ran the 200 in Berlin.
“I think the fans were pretty much looking for one (world record) because I also did it in Beijing, so I said what the heck, let’s go for it,” Bolt said. “But I was surprised at how good it was.”
Bolt said he was a little tired after Berlin but that he still may have “three good” races in him.
He would not speculate about Friday’s 100m event in Zurich, where he will face off against former world-record holder and Jamaican teammate Asafa Powell, the bronze medalist in Berlin.
(AFP)
England’s Ashes celebrations almost came to an embarrassing end when they narrowly avoided defeat against Ireland, claiming a three-run victory under the Duckworth/Lewis method in a one-day international in Belfast.
Just five days after regaining the famous urn with a 197-run victory over Australia in the final Test at the Oval, England seemed to be suffering a hangover from their champagne celebrations.
They spluttered to 203-9, with Oval hero Jonathan Trott and Ravi Bopara both dismissed without scoring, and only just managed to hold on as Ireland chased a revised total of 116 in 20 overs after a long rain delay.
Only debutant batsman Joe Denly and Luke Wright impressed after England elected to bat in overcast conditions.
Opener Denly struck 67, while Wright’s 36 injected the innings with impetus after England slipped to 135 for six.
An underwhelming start included Trott, whose brilliant hundred on Test debut set up the Oval victory, being trapped lbw by one which nipped back from Australian-raised Trent Johnston.
Bopara, whose wretched time against the Australians led to his omission for the decisive, final Test, also went without scoring to Johnston, after edging a drive to second slip.
Johnston’s opening spell of 6-2-7-2 caused the problems for England and was a perfect way for him to celebrate his 100th appearance for his adopted nation.
Matt Prior, captain Paul Collingwood and Owais Shah all perished to skied catches attempting big shots and when Denly was pinned leg before, attempting to swivel the returning Johnston to the leg-side, England were 135 for six.
Twice he cleared the ropes in a rapid 36, which dominated a stand of 42 with Adil Rashid.
Only a brilliant catch by John Mooney, flinging himself full length on the run from long-off, halted the 26-ball assault.
Persistent rain stopped the Irish beginning their pursuit for three hours but they finally started with a revised target to aim for.
Ireland’s chase was propelled along by teenager Paul Stirling’s positive intent.
Stirling, an 18-year-old on Middlesex’s books, hit four fours and a six in an attacking 30 which left them needing marginally over four runs per over for the final dozen overs.
But the hosts seemed to have blown their chance when they subsided from 64-2 to 89-7.
With nine required from the final two deliveries, Johnston lofted to long-on and England 12th man Eoin Morgan, on for Graeme Swann, prevented it clearing the rope by patting the ball back into play.
Johnston and Kyle McCallan, Ireland’s final pair, ran two but the quick thinking by Morgan prevented a famous victory for his compatriots.
Johnston hit the final ball for four but England held on for a narrow victory.
(AFP)