3 d. ago ‘Make it happen when it matters’ – Andy Farrell urges Lions to embrace pressure

Powerful Lions side named to face Australia in first TestTom Curry starts in back row, no Welsh player in 23Andy Farrell has urged his British & Irish Lions players to embrace the pressure of their billing as heavy favourites to beat Australia in the series opener on Saturday.The Lions will go into Saturday’s match as odds-on favourites after Farrell named a powerful side featuring Tom Curry at openside flanker and Sione Tuipulotu at inside-centre to face a Wallabies team missing Will Skelton, Rob Valetini and Taniela Tupou. Continue reading...

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3 d. ago We want to embrace being favourites – Lions boss Andy Farrell on Australia test

The Wallabies are currently ranked eighth in the world.

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5 d. ago Whisky leaders urge Starmer to 'seize the moment' in Trump meeting to ditch tariffs

Donald Trump is poised for Aberdeen talks with Keir Starmer and John Swinney later this month.

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2 w. ago Jamie Smith’s sensational century gives England hope but India seize their moment

Second Test, D3: India 587 and 60-1; England 407Wicketkeeper hits unbeaten 184 but India in chargePressure? What pressure? Or to pinch a line from Keith Miller, the great Australian all-rounder and a fighter pilot during second world war: “There is no pressure in Test cricket. Real pressure is when you are flying a Mosquito with a Messerschmitt up your arse.”Notwithstanding this old truism, there was still a fair bit on the line when Jamie Smith strode out to middle at 11.12am here on the third morning. Joe Root had been uncharacteristically strangled down leg, Ben Stokes had been blown away by a brutish first ball and Mohammed Siraj, a fiery fast bowler known to get on a roll, was eyeing up a hat-trick. Oh, and England were 84 for five, 503 runs behind India’s first innings. Continue reading...

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2 w. ago In Gaza we watched Iranian missiles go by, heading for Israel. That war is over – it seems ours will never end | Hassan Abo Qamar

For two years, we’ve waited for a final ceasefire that has never come. Peace will be delayed as long as our lives are considered disposableLast Tuesday night, Donald Trump announced on social media that Iran and Israel had agreed to a ceasefire, ending what he called a “12-day war”. It was the second war this year, after India and Pakistan’s four-day conflict, to start and end under Trump’s watch. They followed another, earlier conflict between Lebanon and Israel during President Joe Biden’s term.Here in Gaza, all eyes were fixed on the Iran-Israel conflict. Even cut off from the internet, people found ways to follow the news – on the radio, or by catching weak phone signals by climbing to high rooftops or walking near the sea, or just by staying up all night watching the sky, where some of the missiles launched from Iran could be seen from Gaza. Many wondered if Trump, the man who once promised to stop “endless wars”, would seize the moment to stop not only war on Iran but also the...

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3 w. ago Why these underdogs can stun Wimbledon’s biggest stars once again

With eight different champions from the last eight tournaments, the women’s Wimbledon field is once again wide open for a number of players to seize their moment in the sun

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3 w. ago Lions embrace ‘Fazball’ in attempt to seize the moment with expansive play

Lions remain committed to positive approach with ball in hand and attack coach does not want them to tighten upIn mid-November, cricket’s Ashes series will commence in the same Optus Stadium where the British & Irish Lions will kick off their tour of Australia on Saturday. There are some keen cricket fans within the Lions squad who stayed up late to watch England’s compelling final-day win at Headingley, but out on the training pitch the collective priority is not so much Bazball as its oval-shaped cousin, Fazball.Andy Farrell, the Lions head coach, has been at pains since his squad’s arrival here to make two things clear. The first is that preparation time is of the essence and should not be wasted by endlessly second-guessing what might lie ahead. The second is that the touring side can not afford to retreat into their tactical shells after their loss to Argentina in Dublin last Friday. Continue reading...

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