Sport

By Philip Benton 2014 has been a breakout year for men’s tennis with maiden grand slam winners Stanislas “Stan” Wawrinka and Marin Cilic completing the line-up of 2014 champions along with the ‘big two’ Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. In fact the U.S. Open final, contested by Marin Cilic and Kei Nishikori, was the first grand slam final since the Australian Open final in 2005 which didn’t feature any of the ‘big four’ – Djokovic, Nadal, Federer and Murray. The...

Sport News 24/7 By Andy Ollerhead  As a supporter of Liverpool FC the last few weeks have often brought to mind the old quote attributed to a certain Albert Einstein- the one that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting a different result. Last season a tricky, inventive Brendan Rodgers tactically bamboozled opposing managers with formations that morphed and evolved multiple times during games. This season, shorn of the strikeforce that gave...

Sport News 24/7 Sports Editor David de Winter and Richard de Winter discuss the Home Nations' chances in the upcoming Autumn Internationals, as well as Andy Murray's recent upturn in form, and Jonathan Trott's recall to the England Lions.

Sport News 24/7 By Danny Norman @TLE_Sport @dannynormanCOYS New boys Western Sydney Wanderers face Champions League destiny The idea of forming a brand new football team in the modern era is accompanied by a cynical feeling that a big motivating factor is money, and the desire of wealthy individuals and corporations to muscle in on global economic juggernaut that ‘the beautiful game’ has become.  Whether it’s MK Dons or New York City (or is it New York City Manchester City,...

Sport News 24/7 By Richard de Winter  @TLE_Sport @rgdewinter The football fan is a fickle beast.  Their opinions on players fluctuate from one extreme to another, often during the same game.  It is perfectly acceptable to call for a player’s substitution and immediate expulsion from the first-team picture and praise him to the heavens within the same rant.  But then again, behaviour at football grounds doesn’t follow the accepted social norms.  Logical arguments are unnecessary, talking to a stranger is...

Sport News 24/7 Jim Mackney @JimMackney @TLE_Sport Before kick-off you could have forgiven Saints fans for being a little nervous about this evening’s League Cup 4th round tie against Stoke.  After all, for all of the pretty football Saints play could they do it on a cold and windy Wednesday night in Stoke?  Judging by their first half performance the answer is unequivocally yes. The game opened with a lively start by both teams with possession being won and lost...

Sport News 24/7 By David de Winter – Sports Editor @davidjdewinter @TLE_Sport When Mauricio Pochettino was poached from Southampton to become the new manager of Tottenham Hotspur, there were coos of appreciation from all sides.  After guiding a very talented and aesthetically pleasing Saints side to 8th in the Premier League last season, the general consensus was that the Argentinian would finally get Spurs playing in their traditional swashbuckling style à la the great Bill Nicholson, Terry Venables and, to...

Sport News 24/7 By Jim Mackney @JimMackney @TLE_Sport It was the 18th of October 2014.  There was a bubbling sense of excitement, the smell of hotdogs and flat Carlsberg filled the air along with the sound of a few thousand shuffling feet; the customary swell of noise as the players emerged from the tunnel... This could have been any football stadium in any part of the country at 2:58pm but at St Mary's you could have cut the tension with...

By Jots du Jardin @jotsdujardin @TLE_Sport Stuart Lancaster's squad selection is an admission that he'd be happy to only reach the quarter finals in next year's World Cup. It's the type of squad he believes he'll need to beat Australia and Wales in 2015, not South Africa, New Zealand and the Wallabies this Autumn. In his press conference after announcing his squad, Lancaster was uncompromising in his message: “To be the best it’s not about the flash stuff,” he said....