John McConnell’s Mahler Mission could head to the Punchestown Gold Cup if he fares well following his Randox Grand National mishap.

The eight-year-old was fairly well backed for the world’s most famous steeplechase, starting at 18-1 under Ben Harvey having finished second in both the Colin Parker at Carlisle and the Coral Gold Cup earlier in the term.

Last season he looked a sure winner of the three-mile-six-furlong National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival before falling close to home, a luckless run that nevertheless demonstrated his stamina.

That stamina was set to be put to the test at Aintree but luck abandoned Mahler Mission again as he got a little too close to The Chair and unseated his rider on landing.

The horse then ran loose for the rest of the contest and actually crossed the line riderless in second place, though thankfully he was unharmed after his exertions.

Assuming all is well following the trip to Liverpool, he will remain in action into the spring, with Punchestown high up on his agenda and a foray to France also a possibility.

“He’s got a few scratches and knocks but he’s fine, he’s all good,” said McConnell.

“He was just warming into it, we were getting to be happy with where he was but you just can’t leave your back legs in The Chair and he paid the price.

“It’s a frustrating thing to happen but he came back in one piece and that’s the most important thing.”

The National could feature in McConnell’s plans for Mahler Mission next term and more immediately there is Punchestown on the horizon.

“It was a bit stressful (when he was loose) but when he got to the front he was fine, he was bounding away and seemed to enjoy it so we might go back,” McConnell said.

“He’s in the Punchestown Gold Cup at the end of the month and that’s a possibility, there’s also a couple of races in France.

“Everything’s up in the air and if he didn’t run again this season it wouldn’t be a big deal and we’d just make a plan for next season, but at the minute Punchestown is on the agenda if everything’s OK.”

Arsenal head to Germany on Wednesday night looking to progress to the Champions League semi-finals by beating Bayern Munich.

With the quarter-final tie finely poised at 2-2 following the first leg at the Emirates Stadium last week, Mikel Arteta will be hopeful his side can pull off a victory in Bavaria.

However, Arsenal’s recent past is tarnished by some poor performances on the road in European knockout games, some of which were unexpected and some whose ramifications are still felt on the club to this day.

Here, the PA news agency looks at the highs and lows Arsenal have been through since the closing years of Arsene Wenger’s reign.

HIGHSSlavia Prague 0 Arsenal 4: Europa League quarter-final, 2020-21

After conceding an added-time equaliser in the home leg, Arteta’s Arsenal cruised into the final four with a fine showing at the Sinobo Stadium. Goals from Nicolas Pepe, Alexandre Lacazette and Bukayo Saka had the Gunners cruising at the break before Lacazette wrapped up the emphatic win in the second half.

Olympiacos 1 Arsenal 3: Europa League round of 16, 2020-21

Two late goals were enough to give Arsenal a strong lead to take back to north London for the return leg. Martin Odegaard had given the visitors the lead but Youssef El-Arabi levelled before the hour – only for Gabriel Magalhaes and Mohamed Elneny to score in the closing stages.

Valencia 2 Arsenal 4: Europa League semi-final, 2018-19

Unai Emery had been appointed as Wenger’s successor and the most successful manager in Europa League history was at it again in his first season in charge. A 3-1 victory in the home leg at the Emirates was built on brilliantly in Spain as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang stole the show with a hat-trick, with Lacazette also among the goals.

Napoli 0 Arsenal 1: Europa League quarter-final, 2018-19

Another strong home outing in the first leg had put Arsenal in the driving seat as they went to Italy with a 2-0 aggregate lead. An accomplished display, rounded off by a first-half Lacazette goal, completed a job well done for Emery and his players.

LOWSPorto 1 Arsenal 0: Champions League round of 16, 2023-24

After a seven-year wait to return to the knockout stages of Europe’s premier club competition, Arteta’s side stalled. Porto’s approach frustrated and restricted Arsenal in equal measures and Galeno’s stunning stoppage-time strike compounded a night to forget in Portugal.

Villarreal 2 Arsenal 1: Europa League semi-final, 2020-21

Emery may have lost his one and only Europa League final as Arsenal boss but he once again proved this was his competition as he led Villarreal to victory over his former side on course to lifting the trophy again. Manu Trigueros and Raul Albiol had the hosts two goals ahead inside half an hour before Dani Ceballos was sent off for Arsenal. Pepe pulled one back from the penalty spot but a 0-0 draw at the Emirates saw Emery triumph.

Atletico Madrid 1 Arsenal 0: Europa League semi-final, 2017-18

Wenger’s final chance to win European silverware as Arsenal manager evaporated with defeat in the Spanish capital. Having been held to a 1-1 draw at home despite Atleti playing with 10 men for 80 minutes, Diego Costa’s match-winner in Madrid saw Arsenal eliminated and Wenger’s hopes fade.

Bayern Munich 5 Arsenal 1: Champions League round of 16, 2016-17

Three goals in 10 second half minutes proved the undoing of Wenger’s side in Munich, after Alexis Sanchez had cancelled out Arjen Robben’s early effort. Robert Lewandowski and a Thiago Alcantara double took the game beyond the visitors, before Thomas Muller struck late on. Bayern added insult to injury by repeating the scoreline in the second leg at the Emirates.

Barcelona 3 Arsenal 1: Champions League round of 16, 2015-16

Having barely scraped out of their group, Arsenal were handed a lesson by Barcelona, losing the home leg of their tie 2-0. They travelled to the Nou Camp in hope rather than expectation but were again found wanting, Elneny’s fine consolation of little consequence as Neymar, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi struck for the hosts.

Tributes have been paid to former British and Commonwealth champion Willie Limond following his death at the age of 45.

Limond was found in an unresponsive state in a car in Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, on April 6, amid preparations for a fight, and died in hospital on Monday.

Former world champion Anthony Crolla, a one-time opponent of Limond, described the popular Scot as “one of the best men I ever met”.

A statement from Limond’s boxing club read: “Everyone at St Andrew’s Sporting Club are shocked and deeply saddened at the loss of our friend, Willie Limond.

“Willie was not only a legend of the sport, but an infectious character who will be greatly missed by us all. Our thoughts and prayers are with Jake, Drew, Macy and the rest of the Limond family at this time.”

Limond last fought in September last year when he was stopped by Ricky Burns in the former world champion’s farewell bout.

He was due to take on Joe Laws at Glasgow’s Emirates Arena on May 3 in a show organised by the St Andrew’s club with his son, unbeaten 20-year-old professional Jake Limond, on the undercard. Laws wrote on social media that he was “absolutely devastated” by the news.

The Glaswegian father-of-three’s other son, Drew Limond, is an amateur boxer who has fought for Scotland.

Limond won 42 of his 48 fights after making his professional debut in 1999.

He lost his first British title fight at super-featherweight level to fellow Scot Alex Arthur in 2003 before going on to win an EBU European Union belt and then the Commonwealth title at lightweight against Joshua Allotey.

He defended the belt against Amir Khan in 2007, putting his unbeaten opponent on the canvas in the sixth round, and being denied what he felt was a knockout by a significant delay before the eight-second count. Limond was forced to retire in the fight by a broken jaw before the start of the ninth round.

He won a WBU title and in 2010 fought four-weight world champion Erik Morales in a title fight in Mexico, going down three times in the sixth round.

Limond lost to Crolla on points in his next British title fight at super-lightweight level before three successful Commonwealth title fights, the latter securing him the British title with victory over Curtis Woodhouse in 2014.

Defeat to Tyrone Nurse in his only defence two years later spelled the end of Limond’s title fights.

Limond’s former opponents were among the first to pay tribute.

Crolla posted a ‘heartbroken’ emoji on X along with a recent photo of himself and Limond and wrote: “Not just in boxing but in life as well. One of the best men I ever met.”

Woodhouse wrote on the social media platform: “Absolutely devastated to hear the news of the passing of Willie Limond, a great fighter and a great man.

“We stayed in touch after our fight and always had a laugh together. Absolutely gutted. Rest In Peace champ.”

Former world champion Scott Harrison wrote: “Sad news to hear that my old pal and Scottish Boxing Legend Willie Limond has passed away thoughts and prayers are with his Family God Bless RIP Willie.”

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 8.05am on Saturday, 6 April, 2024, police were called to a report of a 45-year-old man found unresponsive within a car in Heatherbell Road, Coatbridge.

“The man was taken to Monklands Hospital where he died on Monday, 15 April, 2024.

“There are no suspicious circumstances and a report will be submitted to the Procurator Fiscal.”

The Los Angeles Lakers will have Anthony Davis to call on when they face the New Orleans Pelicans in their upcoming play-in game.

After finishing eighth in the Western Conference, the Lakers will go up against the No.7 seed Pelicans on Tuesday.

While the loser will drop into a game against either the Sacramento Kings or the Golden State Warriors, the winner will go up against the Denver Nuggets in the first round.

The Lakers defeated the Pelicans 124-108 in their final regular-season game on Sunday, with an instant rematch now on the cards.

And Davis, who had to be treated for back spasms after the game, insisted he will be fit to feature.

"No doubt that I'm going to play," said Davis, who finished with 30 points and 11 rebounds.

LeBron James is heading into the playoffs in fine form.

He registered his fifth triple-double of the season, finishing with 28 points, a season-high 17 assists and 11 rebounds.

"I just read the game and I was just finding my teammates and I just tried to put the ball on time and on target for either jump shots or guys at the rim," James said.

"I just tried to be very efficient with my play."

James marked Zion Williamson on Sunday, with the 23-year-old limited to 12 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.

However, James was full of praise for his opponent, adding: "He's a beast.

"I mean, it's almost impossible to stop him so I just tried to keep a body on him and just tried to keep it tough on him. He's a great player, man."

Looking towards Tuesday's matchup, James said: "Tuesday's game is going to be extremely hard, extremely difficult, extremely physical.

"I've always known that, when you play a playoff series, and I look at this like a two-game playoff series, if you win that first game, a team has multiple days to kind of sit on that feeling, or sit with that taste in their mouth of defeat.

"So they're going to be extremely ready for us and we have to come in with the same sense of urgency that we had the previous game."

Everton have formally lodged an appeal against the two-point penalty imposed on the club earlier this month for breaching Premier League financial rules.

The Toffees indicated their intention to appeal last Monday, the same day the sanction was announced. The PA news agency understands that appeal has now been lodged.

The club admitted breaching the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability rules (PSR) for permitted losses by £16.6million for the assessment period ending with the 2022-23 season.

The independent commission which imposed the sanction disclosed in the written reasons for its decision that the Premier League had initially sought a five-point penalty.

This was reduced to two by the commission, after mitigation was taken into account, notably the fact that the club were being punished twice in the same overlapping period. In February Everton had a 10-point penalty for an earlier PSR breach reduced to six on appeal.

Everton will now be aiming to achieve a further reduction to the two-point penalty via the latest appeal.

Everton and Nottingham Forest have both now appealed against the sanctions imposed on them, and the hope for all concerned will be that both outcomes are known heading into the final round of Premier League matches on May 19.

The commission which issued the two-point penalty will also hold a separate hearing to settle a dispute between the club and the league around costs which Everton contend are associated to the construction of their new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock.

This dispute is not covered by the new ‘standard directions’ for dealing with PSR cases before the end of the season in which clubs are charged, so any sanction imposed would almost certainly apply next season.

Scottie Scheffler has hailed the influence of English putting guru Phil Kenyon after claiming his second Masters title in the last three years.

Scheffler compiled one of the best ball-striking seasons ever seen in 2023, his adjusted scoring average of 68.63 being the seventh-lowest in PGA Tour history and the best by anyone not named Tiger Woods.

In total Scheffler was ranked first in nine different categories, including greens in regulation and strokes gained off the tee, but was ranked 162nd out of 193 players in putting.

That prompted the world number one to turn to Kenyon for help and the move has paid massive dividends, with Scheffler winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Players Championship in successive weeks and finishing second in his next start before travelling to Augusta.

“After East Lake last year, ride home on the plane, sitting there talking to Blake [Smith, his agent] and we kind of look at each other, and I think we both were thinking the same thing,” the 27-year-old American explained following his nerveless four-shot Masters win over Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg.

“And we both looked at each other, and I was like, ‘You know, I want to see a putting coach’. Blake goes, ‘I think that’s a good idea. Let’s talk to Randy [Smith, his coach].

“I had watched Phil before and watched him coach players. When you’re out here as long as I’ve been, I just see stuff, and I loved the way Phil coached his players.

“You look at a guy like Fitzy [Matt Fitzpatrick] who lines up his putts and uses a putter that has a lot of swing to it, and you look at a guy like Keegan Bradley, doesn’t use a line on the ball, uses a big giant putter cross-handed, and he putts good.

“As I watched Phil, I could tell that he was open-minded, and that’s the type of people I like to work with. And we kind of hit the ground running in the fall.

“I can’t speak highly enough of the decision that Randy also made to be open-minded, not take an ego to it, sit there, watch us work, watch Phil do his thing.

“Phil is also a guy that doesn’t have a big ego. He just wants what’s best for his players. I’m really, really fortunate to have those two guys as part of my team.

“Randy had taught me for almost 20 years every single aspect of the game. And so for me to have to bring in somebody else could have been a shot to his ego and he may not have wanted me to do it.

“But Randy sat there and he said, ‘You know what, I think it’s the right time’. We called Phil and about a week later he came in, had a visit. We worked for a couple days, and, yeah, now we’re here.”

Another key member of Scheffler’s team is caddie Ted Scott, who formerly worked for two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson.

“Ted, it’s going to be hard to catch up with you on all these Masters titles if you keep working for me,” Scheffler joked during the green jacket presentation ceremony.

The pair had met in a bible study class on the PGA Tour and Scheffler and Watson played together in the Zurich Classic team event before Watson and Scott parted ways.

“When he called me I had no idea he was that good,” Scott said.

“We were his partner in New Orleans. I was like, yeah, he’s a good player, and he’s a great guy. I’d love to hang out with him. After two weeks, I was like, this guy is really good. Now it’s like, wow, is he really good. I’m surprised too.

“I’m just pinching myself honestly. I don’t really know what I’m seeing. The guy is special. He’s a different kind of special. I think we’re all seeing it, and we’re all questioning where did this come from?

“I think discipline is a word that comes to mind. I’ve heard stories that when he was seven years old he would show up at the golf course wearing pants [trousers], talking about he’s going to be on the PGA Tour.

“And he just does all the little things well, and he does them consistently. He doesn’t skip. He doesn’t miss a day. He has that mentality of like ‘I’m going somewhere with all this, I’m actually doing it for a reason’.

“Then when he gets in a moment, he’s got all the tools.”

Paul Nicholls insists he will not give up his trainers’ title without a fight ahead of what promises to be a pivotal Scottish Grand National meeting at Ayr this weekend.

After claiming his second victory in the Randox Grand National at Aintree on Saturday with I Am Maximus, Willie Mullins is now odds-on with bookmakers to become the first Irish-based trainer to claim the British championship since Vincent O’Brien did so in successive years in the 1950s.

The Closutton maestro currently leads the way by just under £53,000 from Dan Skelton, with Nicholls a further £75,000 behind in third.

But with plenty of prize-money up for grabs before the season comes to an end at Sandown on April 27, Nicholls has not lost hope of being crowned champion for a 15th time, which would see him equal the record set by his former long-time rival Martin Pipe.

“We’re looking forward to it, as you can imagine we’ll be doing our best and will never give up,” the Ditcheat handler told Betfair.

“We’ve been there before, eight years ago going into the last two weeks of the season I think we were £180,000 behind Willie and we were 8-1 against to win.

“We had a great time, Sandown was a brilliant day for us and we won the Scottish National with Vicente, so we need some luck like that again and need to win some big races.”

Nicholls has three remaining contenders for Saturday’s £200,000 Coral Scottish Grand National following the confirmation stage, with top-weight Stay Away Fay joined by Broken Halo and Flash Collonges.

Whatever happens north of the border, though, the trainer feels it will still be all to play for ahead of Sandown’s jumps season finale on Saturday week.

He added: “If you’re still in touch going into Sandown there’s some great prize-money there and from my point of view I’d love to see it dry up. It’s looking a much better weather forecast from Tuesday and we’d love to see it dry up everywhere, Ayr included.

“We won’t give up, Dan’s got plenty to run as well and is thinking the same as me. I said to Dan on Saturday ‘we’re going to have to come up with a plan here’ and he said ‘the only plan we can have is hope there’s a ferry strike next week’, which is about right!

“We’ll keep trying, I think Dan is more mortified than I am as he thought he had a great chance and of course Saturday completely put the dampeners on it, but he won’t give up and I won’t give up.”

TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson has dipped his toe into racehorse ownership with The Hawkstonian, a horse named after his own brand of beer.

Best known for presenting Top Gear, The Grand Tour and blockbuster hit Clarkson’s Farm, the 64-year-old will head up Hawkstone Racing, a partnership created between Clarkson’s Hawkstone brewery and syndicate specialists Old Gold Racing.

The Hawkstonian, a grey son of Jukebox Jury, is with Gloucestershire-based trainer Ben Pauling and is pencilled in to make his racecourse debut either later this month or in October.

Clarkson said: ““I said to the Hawkstone team that we should get into racing but clearly they got motor racing and horse racing confused! That said, Ben Pauling is a stone’s throw from Diddly Squat Farm and the Hawkstone Brewery, so I know where my hay is going.

“Furthermore, the Pauling family originally farmed our land and taught Kaleb (Cooper of Clarkson’s Farm fame) all he knows about farming.”

The Hawkstonian will initially be on private sale to Hawkstonians, who are members of Hawkstone’s club, on April 22 and then to an Old Gold Racing waiting list on April 23. The public sale is live from April 25 with 3,250 shares available priced at £60 per share for a 14-month term.

Ed Seyfried, chief executive of Old Gold Racing, said: “We are honoured to be powering the inaugural Hawkstone Racing syndicate. Jeremy has helped transform views of agriculture with his hit television show and we are looking forward to welcoming him on the racing scene this coming season.

“Most petrolheads start by tinkering with lawnmowers; well, this lawnmower can reach speeds of 35mph over three miles whilst jumping hedges; beat that Flymo!”

Pauling added: “I look forward to educating Jeremy and his Hawkstone members about all things horseracing and I hope The Hawkstonian is as fast as the plug-in hybrid Ferrari SF90 XX Stradale!”

Adam West is targeting a Nunthorpe repeat with sprint star Live In The Dream.

The chestnut gave connections a day to remember last season when taking the York Group One at 28-1 at the height of the summer.

That win was the pinnacle of a successful season in general, with the gelding progressing from handicaps to then place second in the Palace House and third in the Temple Stakes.

After a break, he returned to go down by only a length in a Listed event at Deauville, following which he moved onto his famous Nunthorpe victory and booked himself a ticket to Santa Anita for the Breeders’ Cup.

In preparation, he ran in the Woodford Stakes at Keeneland and came home fourth, the same spot he would then gain in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint when beaten a length and a quarter.

This season, he is likely to be aimed at the Knavesmire feature again, with a view to gaining a place at the Breeders’ Cup, though his campaign will focus on quality over quantity now he is proven at the top level.

“It took him a bit of time to unwind from the Breeders’ Cup, he was physically quite tired from the journey on the way back,” West said.

“It took a lot longer for him to be able to switch off but now he’s been able to do that, he has really benefited from it.

“We split the season last year to get more racing out of him, but now we’re hoping for loftier targets and less racing – obviously we can’t go to Lingfield and Pontefract anymore!

“He spelled at Hen Knight’s and he’s come back really well, in my opinion he is the best physically and mentally that I’ve ever seen him.

“There’s a good bit of condition on him that still needs to come off, and we’re hoping to start him out in the Temple Stakes in May.

“The main aim will be the Nunthorpe and he’s probably going to be campaigned with that in mind, hopefully with the added bonus of going to America.”

Former British and Commonwealth champion Willie Limond has died at the age of 45, the St Andrew’s Sporting Club has announced.

Limond fell ill last week amid preparations for a fight.

A statement from the Scot’s boxing club read: “Everyone at St Andrew’s Sporting Club are shocked and deeply saddened at the loss of our friend, Willie Limond.

“Willie was not only a legend of the sport, but an infectious character who will be greatly missed by us all.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Jake, Drew, Macy and the rest of the Limond family at this time.”

Former opponent Curtis Woodhouse was among those to pay tribute to Limond.

Limond beat Woodhouse to retain his Commonwealth light-welterweight title at Glasgow’s Braehead Arena in 2014.

Woodhouse posted on X, formerly Twitter: “Absolutely devastated to hear the news of the passing of Willie Limond, a great fighter and a great man.

“We stayed in touch after our fight and always had a laugh together. Absolutely gutted. Rest In Peace champ.”

Chet Holmgren and the Oklahoma City Thunder have their "eyes on the prize" as they target an NBA Championship tilt.

The Thunder clinched the No.1 seed in the Western Conference with a 135-86 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday.

Oklahoma City will face either the New Orleans Pelicans, Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings or Golden State Warriors in the first round.

But for Holmgren, the celebrations for finishing top of the West will be short-lived.

"I wouldn't say celebratory so much as just kind of recognising the fruition of all the hard work that we've been putting in," Holmgren said.

"We're not in the position we're in by accident. There was a lot of dedication and hard work that went into it.

"But we're not celebrating, because what we're trying to do, we're not there yet. So, we're still eyes on the prize, locked in."

The Thunder finished the regular season with a 57-25 record, as they edged out the Denver Nuggets and the Minnesota Timberwolves in a three-horse race for the No.1 seed.

"It's super surreal. It's fun," said Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

"Obviously, you play to win. It's [more fun] like that, but I think it goes back to us chipping away at it every day and not worrying about the past or the future.

"Just chipping away, seeing where that gets us, and us taking that mentality has allowed us to get here.

"So, yeah, it feels good, something to be proud about. We have a lot more work to do."

Reigning NBA champions the Nuggets might have finished second in the West, but they did tie a franchise record with their 57 wins.

"To tie the franchise record for wins in a season is outstanding, especially on the heels of winning a championship," coach Michael Malone said.

"That's been the mantra all year long. Not being satisfied."