Oct
6
Collingwood out of Airtel CLT20
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England all-rounder Paul Collingwood has withdrawn from the Airtel Champions League due to a torn muscle in one of his buttocks.
Collingwood, 33, was due to play for his Indian Premier League franchise Delhi Daredevils in the two-week club tournament, which starts on Thursday.
However, a scan on Monday revealed a grade two tear in one of his gluteal muscles and he has been pulled out of Delhi’s 15-man squad on medical grounds.
The injury - similar to the one which kept Stuart Broad out of the Champions Trophy semi-final defeat to Australia last Friday - is not expected to affect Collingwood’s participation at the start of the tour to South Africa next month.
“It’s anticipated with rest and rehabilitation, he will be available for the tour of South Africa,” an England and Wales Cricket Board spokesman said.
Collingwood incurred the damage during his innings of 34 against the Australians.
“We have a contract with the IPL about making our players available, however Collingwood has picked up a little niggle in his buttock,” revealed coach Andy Flower, before England departed South Africa at the weekend.
“It is a genuine injury. We don’t know how bad it is but he definitely did something when he played one of his first pull shots on Friday against Australia.
“He actually struggled through the game with that problem. It is not in any way trying to get him rest.”
Oct
5
Hughes hopes fans welcome Barry
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Mark Hughes has urged Aston Villa fans to welcome Gareth Barry rather than jeer their former captain when he returns to Villa Park.
Barry infuriated Villa fans after moving to Eastlands for £12 million in the offseason after claiming that he would only move to another club that was playing in the Champions League.
Man City are not in any European competition this season, but Barry is adamant that he is now locked in to being part of City’s vision for long-term success.
Although Hughes is sure that Barry will get the boos at Villa Park, he asked for the supporters to thank the England regular being a loyal servant of the club for a decade.
“I hope Gareth doesn’t get a bad reception,” said Hughes, according to The Daily Mirror. “The service he gave to Aston Villa was exemplary.
“Maybe, instead of trying to take issue with players, fans should thank them for what they did for the club while they were there and acknowledge that more readily.
“Unfortunately that very rarely happens these days. As a player you want good relations with the clubs you played for.
“It’s always preferable to go back to an old club and have people regard you with affection and respect.
“People should accept what Gareth did in terms of his career there. But unfortunately sometimes the small minority have the loudest voices.
“On reflection I think people will understand now why Gareth wanted to make the move here.
“A year before he said he wanted to play in the Champions League. We didn’t have that to offer but we had other things to show him this was the right place for him.
“Villa have real hopes themselves of a top-four finish and went close last year, but I think people can see we may well be in a position to challenge as well.
“From Gareth’s point of view I think he was happy with the decision he made, but it wasn’t an easy decision.
“We gave him an idea of the hopes, we’ve been able to keep the promises we made, for the most part.
“When you’re trying to bring a player to a club, all managers talk about their ambitions for the future. But we’d like to think we can fulfil those ambitions.”
Hughes also shot down suggestions that Barry joined Man City purely for the many.
“People make their own decisions on why players have come here,” said Hughes.
“Whenever a player moves there’s always a financial side involved, but that’s not why players are coming here.
“They’re coming here because they can see what we’re trying to do.”
Former City captain Richard Dunne will also be facing his old club for the first time since departing from Eastlands.
The Irish defender claims that he was driven out of the club by Hughes and was reluctant to leave. The City boss has rubbished the claim, saying that the decision to leave was entirely Dunne’s.
“If Richard wanted to stay he could have stayed by not signing for Villa,” said Hughes.
“Nobody put the pen in his hand. He gave us great service through some difficult times with the club.
“We could have been selfish and kept him here. At the moment we’re in a position where we can’t afford to lose another centre-half to injury.
“I could have protected myself by making sure he stayed, but I couldn’t guarantee him first-team football.
“Out of deference to him and for what he did for the club, I thought it was only fair that we allowed him to speak to Villa and I hope that’s remembered.”
Oct
3
Flower: Attack is the only way to go
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England coach Andy Flower has backed his side’s attacking intentions as the way forward for their one-day cricket.
Last night’s nine-wicket defeat to Australia in the semi-final at Centurion halted thoughts of a maiden success in a global tournament.
Andrew Strauss‘ team were hamstrung by the loss of so many wickets in the first half of their innings and it took 80 from Tim Bresnan and 48 from Luke Wright to rescue things from a position of 101 for six.
The top order paid dearly for their positive intent and Australia captain Ricky Ponting and Shane Watson then produced a batting masterclass with unbeaten hundreds for the holders, to chase down their 258-run target.
“It was a very exciting tournament to be part of. It was a great pity we couldn’t get through to the final,” said Flower.
“What I did like was the attacking manner in which we played.
“It was also good seeing a couple of youngsters playing good cricket, which suggested they might be successful in the future.
“It’s the only way to go. There’s always a balance between attack and defence but the positive way is the way to go in international cricket.”
England were missing stars Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen in this tournament while wicketkeeper Matt Prior and all-rounder Stuart Broad were also sidelined for the day-nighter.
Despite being understrength, however, Flower was frank in his assessment of the defeat.
Like Strauss he appears happy with the intent but not necessarily the execution of some of the players.
“We were totally outplayed,” said Flower. “To be six down after 20 overs, it would have taken a miracle to win from there.
“Bresnan and Wright did a brilliant job in resurrecting some sort of total, which gave us a chance but it wasn’t to be.
“It exposed the batting strength again. It was a brilliant fightback but it wasn’t good to see us six down so early.”
Sep
30
Wenger still harbours Euro ambitions
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Arsene Wenger has just about done and seen it all during his 13 seasons at Arsenal.
He may well have even bought the “In Arsene We Trust” T-shirt. However, one thing still does not sit right.
A lot of humble pie has been eaten since the famous headline “Arsene Who?” greeted the appointment of the then-unheralded French coach at Highbury during the autumn of 1996.
Now, of course, Wenger - who tomorrow becomes the longest serving manager in Arsenal history - is lauded as one of the best football brains on the planet.
‘The Professor’, who holds a Masters’ Degree in Economics from Strasbourg University, has secured three Premier League titles - including the famous Invincibles campaign of 2003/2004 - along with the FA Cup four times and an appearance in the Champions League final three years ago.
However, it was the failure of his young side to rise to the challenge against Manchester United in last season’s European Cup semi-final which continues to rest uneasy on Wenger’s conscience.
Completely outplayed at Old Trafford, yet somehow still in the tie being only 1-0 down, Arsenal opened up all guns blazing in the second leg, only for an untimely slip by rookie full-back Kieran Gibbs to prove so costly as United grabbed a crucial early away goal and went on to Rome.
Wenger recalled: “Losing the semi-final of the Champions League to Manchester United last year was the lowest point, because we did not play at our level.
“We have got a young team, which has an average age of 22 or 23, and one which is maturing - even if it can make mistakes like in semi-final of the Champions League.
“What is very disappointing for us, however, is in the games that mattered in the last three or four weeks we could not win.
“That is where we have to analyse.”
Wenger, whose side also lost out in the semi-finals of the FA Cup, to Chelsea at Wembley, added: “At the end of the day, we tried very hard to get the best out of the team.
“If it is not good enough, it is not good enough, we can accept that - but trust me, there was no fault of commitment on our side.
“We will naturally progress if we keep going.”
While many other men who were about to turn 60 next month may well be contemplating a well-earned retirement, Wenger has no intentions of hanging up his manager’s overcoat just yet.
“I have never had a day when I think I could live without football,” said the former Monaco coach.
“I know one day it will happen, but you should not live every day knowing you are going to die - you live knowing that you want to live.
“You will know if you are not hungry enough any more, but other people will tell you if you are not good enough any more.”
Wenger’s legacy at the Emirates Stadium is already secure, with a bronze bust of the Frenchman now in pride of place alongside fellow Arsenal legend Herbert Chapman at the impressive 60,000-seater stadium, into which he had so much influence.
Indeed a fitting venue for his unique brand of passing football, which has written its own chapter in footballing folklore.
“The highest point was to play a whole season unbeaten. No matter how much money anybody else has invested, nobody else has done that,” Wenger reflected.
It is, though, the continued progress and development of his players - moulding world-class stars rather than simply just buying them - which perhaps serves as the most fitting tribute.
Thierry Henry was turned from an out-of-sorts winger at Juventus into arguably the greatest player of his generation while at Highbury, and it was also Wenger who plucked Emmanuel Adebayor from relative obscurity at Monaco to help turn the Togo international into one of the most-sought after strikers in Europe.
Current captain Cesc Fabregas is a case in point.
The midfielder arrived at Arsenal as a 16-year-old from the Barcelona youth set up and is now their most prized asset - one which the Catalan giants would love to have back.
A strong sense of loyalty, though, continues to keep the likes of Fabregas and Robin van Persie, last season’s scorer who arrived as a raw talent from Feyenoord in May 2004, committed to Wenger’s cause.
“He has been the most important influence in my short career,” Fabregas declared.
“He took me here, made me train with the first-team when I was 16 years old - I was training alongside Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira so I was lucky to learn from the big players.
“For me it was a very big step forward.
“The manager took the risk to put me in the team.
“I have to thank him for that and now I have to pay him back for what he has done for me.”
Getting his hands on a long-overdue trophy in 2010 would certainly be a start.
Sep
30
Stuart Broad’s injury eases
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England’s medical staff have opted not to dispatch Stuart Broad for a scan after his injury niggle eased.
Broad, 23, was due to have tightness in his left buttock checked out this morning.
However, after waking up feeling less impaired by the problem, it was decided further treatment and assessment would be the best course of action.
England play in the first semi-final of the Champions Trophy at Centurion on Friday and Broad will be scanned on Thursday should the condition deteriorate in the build-up.
Sep
29
“Strauss was right to deny a runner”
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Former England skipper Nasser Hussain feels Andrew Strauss did no wrong by denying Graeme Smith a runner during their clash. 
“Andrew Strauss was right to deny Graeme Smith a runner at the climax of England’s outstanding win over South Africa.
“It is down to the umpires to decide if someone can have a runner and, as I understand it, they were not happy for the South Africa captain to have one, so why should Strauss step in?” Hussain wrote in his column for ‘The Daily Mail’.
“Smith had cramp, which is a fitness issue rather than an injury, and it is impossible to criticise Strauss for saying ‘no’,” he said.
England went on to win the match and qualify for the semifinals but the decision to deny Smith a runner caused quite a furore in South Africa.
Hussain said Strauss was mindful of the criticism he faced following his decision to recall Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews after a run-out in England’s opening match.
“…in the build-up to Sunday’s game, Strauss had been criticised publicly by his coach, Andy Flower, over his generous decision to recall Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews after a run-out.
“Strauss must have been conscious of that criticism as he weighed up the situation with Smith,” he said.
Sep
29
Gloucester announce Wallabies clash
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Gloucester have confirmed a fixture against Australia at Kingsholm on November 3.
It will launch the Wallabies’ United Kingdom leg of their upcoming tour, which also includes appointments with England and Wales.
Gloucester managing director Ken Nottage said: “I am absolutely delighted to be able to announce the visit of the Australian national team to Kingsholm.
“Everyone at Gloucester is working hard to establish Kingsholm as one of the premier rugby venues in Europe.
“We have been fortunate enough to stage Under-20 internationals, a European Challenge Cup final, the Barbarians versus Ireland and are among the proposed venues for the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
“Welcoming a team of the stature of Australia to Kingsholm further boosts our credentials in this respect, and we are all looking forward to this fixture hugely.”
Sep
29
United spurred on by Rome defeat
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Nemanja Vidic believes the feeling of losing last year’s final will drive Manchester United to Champions League glory.
United tackle German champions Wolfsburg at Old Trafford on Wednesday looking to maintain a positive start in Group B.
Victory will leave the Red Devils tantalisingly close to booking their place in the knockout phase after just two games.
Yet it is only in Madrid next May that United can truly exorcise the ghosts of Rome and the defeat to Barcelona.
“It is a very bad feeling when you go to a final and lose and that one is a particularly bad memory,” said Serbian defender Vidic.
“You do have to acknowledge it is better to get to the final and lose than not be there at all and that to stand up you need to sit. But it is hard.
“We all know how we felt. We need to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
United head into the game against Wolfsburg buoyed by a run of seven successive wins in all competitions, the latest being a comfortable triumph at Stoke on Saturday.
It suggests some kind of balance has been found following the high-profile exits of Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez, players it was felt Sir Alex Ferguson would find impossible to replace.
Vidic is certainly happy with the way United have coped but is anxious not to start shouting too quickly, knowing accurate assessments will only be made once the campaign has reached its conclusion.
“Ronaldo and Tevez are quality players, there is no question about that,” Vidic added.
“But it is hard to say whether we have got over losing them. We will probably only know that at the end of the season.
“If we don’t win trophies, people will say it is because they have gone, although that is not necessarily the case.
“At the moment we are doing well. We have had the best start in the four years I have been here.
“There is no question we have quality players but, for me, the really encouraging sign is that we are still not in the best form.
“You don’t want to be at your highest level at this stage. We have to be ready for the most important games at the end.”
However, few would dispute Wayne Rooney is at the top of his game.
When Ronaldo made his world record £80million switch to Real Madrid, more attention was focused on Rooney to fulfil the immense potential he showed with Everton as a youngster.
The England star is delivering, although Vidic feels the demand was unjust anyway.
“It is wrong that people are suddenly looking at Wayne,” he said. “He has always been an important player for us so, in that sense, nothing has changed.
“Sometimes he does things the fans don’t see because he is doing a job for the team.
“This year he is even more noticeable because he is scoring goals and has a different role in the team.
“But we don’t need to put pressure on him. We know all about his ability.”
Sep
28
England’s ultimately comfortable passage to the semi-finals of the ICC Champions Trophy was marred by a moment of controversy towards the end of the night at Centurion, when Andrew Strauss refused Graeme Smith a runner. Smith, who batted 216 minutes in all after having spent a session in the field, was clearly unhappy when AB de Villiers was asked to head back to the pavilion, and Mickey Arthur, the South African coach, was seen swearing in frustration. Smith was dismissed soon after for 141, and South Africa eventually fell 12 runs short of the 313 that would have given them a mathematical chance of survival in the competition. 
“I was cramping quite badly and I requested a runner,” said Smith later. “Andrew spoke with the umpires and turned it down. He felt that if you score a hundred, you’re going to be tired. From my perspective, it felt a touch inconsistent. Guys have got runners for cramps in the past, so there needs to be a degree of consistency there. This is the frustration that we have.”
Strauss’s take was obviously very different. “He asked me for a runner because he was cramping,” he said. “The umpires were not particularly keen to give him one. I felt that at the end of a long game, after a long innings, you’re going to be tired. Cramping to a certain extent is a preparation thing. To a certain extent, it’s a conditioning thing. I didn’t feel that he merited having a runner at that stage.”
Smith insinuated that the Strauss decision may have had something to do with the suggestions of softness that resulted in him recalling Angelo Mathews during England’s victory over Sri Lanka on Friday night. “I’m not going to sit here and slag Andrew and say that he should have done this or that,” he said. “The decision rests with the umpires as well. From my perspective, it’s just about putting it behind me now. The thing I’ve learned from this game is that the world’s round. It’s going to come back somewhere in the game, at some period of time in his captaincy. It’ll be interesting to see how he handles it again.”
Strauss was of the view that the refusal of a runner had nothing at all to do with the run out-obstruction incident. “You just go with each situation as it comes,” he said. “I think the umpires were very uncomfortable with it as well. My personal view is that you shouldn’t get a runner for cramps, full stop.”
When it was pointed out that batsmen had been allowed runners in the past while suffering from cramps, he said: “That’s something for the ICC to look at. I didn’t feel he was cramping that badly either. He was still able to run. That was my view.”
Despite the disappointment of defeat, Smith still found time to smile when he was reminded of the fact that Arjuna Ranatunga, the former Sri Lankan captain, frequently asked for and was given runners. “I don’t know if I want to be likened to Arjuna,” he said. “I think I’ve worked quite hard in the winter [laughs]. From our perspective, it was a crucial period of the game. I was on the field for 95 overs and just felt it was inconsistent, that’s all.”
Sep
28
In the space of 48 hours, England have beaten two of the pre-tournament favourites with an ease that even their most fervent fans could never have imagined. South Africa have been pushed into the abyss, and Sri Lanka cling on by just a fingernail. If New Zealand beat England on Tuesday, the fancied Lankans too can head home. And though England have already sealed their semi-final place, Daniel Vettori and his side will expect no favours from a team that made Graeme Smith’s world leaders look pretty ordinary.
“I hoped, but obviously we were pretty down in confidence after the Australia one-day series,” said Andrew Strauss when asked about clinching the qualification with a game to spare. “I think one of the things we’ve done since coming here is to go out and show people what we can do, and not die wondering. That’s come out in both the games we’ve played.
“That batting performance today was, I think, the best I can ever remember from England. Owais [Shah] took control of the situation, clearing the boundary that many times. It was a gem of an innings, well backed up by Paul Collingwood and then Eoin Morgan impressed again at the end. It was a fantastic batting performance.”
England hit 12 sixes, a record for them in a one-day international. Half of them came from Shah’s bat. “The Australia series wasn’t good for any of our batsmen, really,” Shah said. “Coming out here, we were probably in a dangerous place, with our confidence low. We lost pretty badly [6-1] to Australia, and we needed to go out there, play with freedom and express ourselves. We just backed ourselves to go out and play our shots, as you saw today with Eoin Morgan and Paul Collingwood in awesome touch. We put some really good partnerships together.”
Strauss reckoned that a change in the mental approach had made all the difference. “We can play the shots,” he said. “We do skills practice. The only thing sometimes is our mindset, whether we loosen the shackles and say: ‘Let’s go out there and take the game to them’. Fair play to Owais. He came in and whacked a six and just went with the flow after that. He really changed the momentum of the game because it looked like we were losing it. He and Colly played the spinners exceptionally well, which was crucial.”
Shah has been the subject of much criticism in recent times, for soft dismissals and shambolic running between the wickets. He insisted though that he had never viewed the trip to South Africa as an entrance into the Last Chance Saloon. “I didn’t think I was playing for my career,” he said. “If you get dropped, you get dropped. That’s life. If that’s the way the selectors want to go, that’s fine. As far as I’m concerned, I try and play every game as if it’s my last.
“Even the other day against Sri Lanka, I felt that the correct thing to do was to bat through and try to see us home. Today, we had different conditions, a flatter wicket and I decided to take the attack to the bowler. And it came off.”
Given his own problems with cramps over the years, it was predictable that Shah would be asked about it, given what had happened with Graeme Smith at the end of the game. “As far as cramp was concerned, it was about preparing well and hydrating,” he said. “I’m really happy with the way I batted today. It was probably one of my best innings for England. I faced a few balls and didn’t feel like the pitch was doing much laterally. I backed myself to play a few shots.”
England had suffered a setback in the build-up to the game, with Matt Prior being taken ill, but Strauss refused to rule his first-choice wicketkeeper out of the competition. “He was pretty sick this morning, but these things can change very quickly,” Strauss said. “Hopefully, he’ll recover pretty quickly and be fit for the New Zealand game.” Steve Davies, the Worcestershire wicketkeeper, has been called up as a replacement.
In Prior’s absence, Morgan kept wicket, with the highlight being a stupendous off-balance throw to run out the dangerous Albie Morkel. “I think the fact that none of us really noticed him [Morgan] today speaks volumes for how good a job he did,” Strauss said. “It was an exceptional performance from him behind the sticks.”
In front of the wicket though, Morgan did far more than just catch the eye, clattering a stroke-filled and innovative 34-ball 67. “I’ve always felt that he’s had the attributes to do well at this level,” said Strauss who plays alongside him at Middlesex. “He’s got a huge array of shots. He’s a very calm individual and he seems to be in control of his game.
“It always takes a bit of time for guys to get used to playing international cricket. He’s shown glimpses before and out here, these last two games, he’s been as impressive as any 23-year-old I’ve seen. We’re not going to put a lot of pressure on him. He’s still learning but it’s great to see him coming through.”
There were suggestions that Sunday’s victory was a warning shot across the bows with England scheduled to start a tour of South Africa in November. Strauss though was hesitant to look that far ahead. “It was a big match for us today, against the best one-day side in the world,” he said. “So to win it and play in the manner that we did is clearly going to help our confidence, come that one-day series in a few weeks’ time.”