Author: Kate Man

Jose Mourinho has had his four-match suspension halved by the Turkish Football Federation following a successful appeal by his club Fenerbahce.The 62-year-old Portuguese manager has also seen his fine reduced from 1.6m Turkish lira (£35,000) to 558,000 (£12,200).Mourinho’s club said on Thursday that it would appeal against the penalties after he was punished for two separate disciplinary matters following Monday’s 0-0 draw against local rivals Galatasaray.The TFF said it would penalise him for “his derogatory and offensive statements towards the Turkish referee” and because he “accused Turkish football of chaos and disorder with insulting and offensive statements towards both the…

Beating Australia would be a “game-changer” for women’s rugby league in England, centre Amy Hardcastle says.The Jillaroos are the dominant force in the international game, winning the past three World Cups and losing just once since 2016.That strength is also evident at club level, where the level of investment in the NRL Women’s Premiership (NRLW) allows for a mixture of full-time and semi-professional players – while their counterparts in England’s Women’s Super League play either for expenses or for free.It means Australia are strong favourites going into Saturday’s Test against England in Las Vegas.No English or British women’s side has…

Asensio is not the only player who is flourishing since moving to Aston Villa, with Rashford appearing to be putting behind him a difficult season at Manchester United with a strong start to life in the Midlands.Rashford had been struggling for form at Old Trafford and found himself out of the picture under Ruben Amorim.But the move to Villa and playing alongside Asensio appears to bringing him back to his best.Since his debut on 9 February, Rashford has created more chances in all competitions than any other Premier League player (13).Against Cardiff, Rashford created six chances for Aston Villa, equalling…

Jos Buttler has resigned as England’s white-ball captain following his side’s Champions Trophy exit.The 34-year-old will lead England for the final time in their last group match against South Africa on Saturday.England have lost 15 of their last 21 one-day internationals, including defeats against Australia and Afghanistan that ended their Champions Trophy campaign.”It’s the right time for me and the team,” said Buttler.

It’s the final day of the 2023-24 season in English football’s second tier and Millwall are looking to end their campaign on a high at Swansea City.A typical end-of-season affair between two mid-table teams is drifting towards a goalless conclusion when the Welsh side win a penalty after Jake Cooper’s foul on Brazilian winger Ronald.Up steps the usually reliable Matt Grimes but Matija Sarkic, Millwall’s 6ft 4in Montenegro goalkeeper, flings himself to his right to make a fine save to cap a solid debut season with the Lions after joining from Wolves for £1.2m.Minutes later Casper de Norre pounces at…

World number one Luke Humphries sealed his first Premier League win over Luke Littler with a 6-4 victory in the final on night four in Exeter to take control at the top of the table.Humphries, 30, came from 3-1 down to beat the 18-year-old, who had been in outstanding form in his earlier two matches despite suffering from a cold.It was a second night win for league leader Humphries, who won the opener in Belfast before losing the Glasgow final to the teenager.Littler was runner-up to Humphries in the 2024 world final but beat him to win last year’s Premier…

Jannik Sinner’s nomination for the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award has been withdrawn after he was given a three-month doping ban.The world number one accepted an immediate three-month ban from tennis earlier this month after reaching a settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency over his two positive drugs tests last year.The 23-year-old Italian, who won the Australian Open in January, is suspended from 9 February until 4 May.”Following discussions by the Laureus Academy, it has been decided that Jannik Sinner’s nomination for this year’s Laureus World Sportsman of the Year Award is to be withdrawn,” Laureus World Sports…

TKO Group Holdings, which owns the UFC and WWE, says it is “close to an agreement” to form a new boxing league funded by Saudi Arabia.It has been reported Saudi Arabian investors are keen to form a league after investing significantly to regularly host heavyweight fights including Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk in the kingdom.The UFC and WWE hold events in Saudi, as do boxing promoters Matchroom and Queensberry, and TKO president and chief operating officer Mark Shapiro told investors on Wednesday about the possible boxing deal.”We are close to an agreement with the Saudis on a creation…

Sheldon and Thompson knew Nikki Carter, a Hull Vixens player who had management experience from working at a care home. They asked if she would step in as tour manager.”I was asked: ‘Do you think you could help them out?'” Carter says.”I was like: ‘What do you mean?’ They said: ‘Go to Australia with them.’ I was like: ‘Hmm, I’d love to. Best go and ask my boss, really.'”But it suddenly started to unravel. Lots of things that should have been organised 12 weeks out from going to Australia weren’t actually organised.”The touring party had no flights, no accommodation, no…

This has been a tough week at United, with news that more ordinary staff members will be losing their jobs.United’s victory therefore will come as little comfort to those directly affected, no matter how entertaining this game proved to be.A mid-season home win against opposition who look destined for a swift return to the Championship is not going to live long in the memory. However, the manner of the success, fighting back from the concession of a shambolic early opening goal and rallying again after a red card and another avoidable goal, was greeted with enthusiasm from the stands at…