This afternoon’s card at Naas will go ahead as planned after the track was declared fit to race.
The Lawlor’s of Naas Novice Hurdle is the highlight of a seven-race fixture, but fog had put the meeting into some doubt.
However, clerk of the course Brendan Sheridan reports conditions to have improved since inspections at 7.30am and 9.30am, with the meeting given the official go-ahead.
He said: “I can see the last fence now pretty clear, the fog has lifted and at this point in time racing goes ahead.
“We’re good to go. Having chatted to a few of the riders that have gone for a run around the track, they are happy enough they can see. We have been up to the judge’s box and from there you can see the last fence.
“At this point in time, we’re good to go but we will continue to monitor because of fog, it can lift and come back again.”
The ground at Naas is soft, soft to heavy on the chase and hurdles track.
Fog continues to be a concern at Naas ahead of this afternoon’s Grade One card.
The Lawlor’s of Naas Novice Hurdle is due to be the highlight of a seven-race fixture, with the ground declared fit for action following an initial 7.30am inspection.
However, fog has been slow to lift at the track and while it is forecast to clear, clerk of the course Brendan Sheridan is maintaining a careful watch.
He said: “Met Eireann are saying it’s lifting, but the fact there’s no wind means it’s going to be slow lifting.
“We can see the last fence now which we couldn’t earlier, so it is lifting slowly, but it’s very unpredictable and we will just continue to monitor.”
The ground at Naas is soft, soft to heavy on the chase and hurdles track.
Sean Longstaff has challenged Newcastle to mount a charge for FA Cup glory after launching their campaign with a morale-boosting derby victory over Sunderland.
The Magpies went into Saturday’s clash with their arch-rivals having lost seven of their previous eight games in all competitions and knowing the potential for a third-round exit at the hands of lower league opposition for a third successive season was a very real possibility if they were not at their best.
In the event, Eddie Howe’s men eased past the Black Cats with the minimum of fuss, securing a 3-0 victory which rekindled memories among the 6,000 travelling fans at the Stadium of Light of last season’s Carabao Cup final trip to Wembley and increased hope of an end to a 69-year wait for a major domestic trophy.
Asked afterwards about the prospect of an extended run in the competition, midfielder Longstaff told NUFC TV: “We knew going out of the Carabao Cup was really disappointing and if we want to make it a memorable season, it’s a chance to win a trophy and we’ve got to believe that we can do that. I think we’ve got the squad to do it.
“It’s about getting through the first game, so now we’re through and no matter who we get, whether we’re at home or away, we’re going to give it all we’ve got.
“If we can get another trip to Wembley and hopefully put a positive end on it, it would be amazing, but there’s a long way to go before that, so we’re not getting ahead of ourselves.”
Howe and his players arrived on Wearside knowing their season had reached something of a watershed following last month’s Champions League and Carabao Cup exits and a poor run of form in the Premier League.
They did so without a win over Sunderland, now playing their football in the Sky Bet Championship after a four-season exile in League One, in nine attempts – a run which included six successive defeats – dating back to 2011.
But if there was any anxiety on and off the pitch before kick-off, it was soon dispelled as, aided by an error-strewn display from the hosts, they surged to victory without ever having to find top gear.
They went ahead 10 minutes before the break when defender Dan Ballard, who had moments earlier been fortunate to escape unpunished after hauling down Alexander Isak as he surged into the penalty area, turned Joelinton’s cross into his own net with the Sweden international lurking behind him ready to apply the finishing touch.
Newcastle were effectively home and dry within seconds of the restart when Miguel Almiron mugged Pierre Ekwah on the edge of his own box and squared for Isak to extend the lead, and the £63million striker completed the job with a 90th-minute penalty after a frustrated Ballard had barged Anthony Gordon to the ground.
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Sunderland had flickered briefly in the meantime with Alex Pritchard clipping the top of the crossbar and then forcing a good save from Martin Dubravka, but it was all too little, too late.
Isak, who swiftly turned his attention to Saturday’s league clash with Manchester City, said: “We just have to get back to our form and start winning games. That’s the main target.
“Hopefully this can be like a turn-around for us because we’ve had bad results before, so we can use this energy to turn things around, and it’s a good way to start against City.”
Rafael Nadal will miss the Australian Open after sustaining an injury during the Brisbane International earlier this week.
The 37-year-old Spaniard, who had surgery on the psoas tendon in his left hip in June, was making his comeback at the Brisbane tournament.
Nadal required medical treatment during his quarter-final loss to Jordan Thompson, and the 22-time grand slam champion said in a post on X: “During my last match in Brisbane I had a small problem on a muscle that as you know made me worried.
“Once I got to Melbourne I have had the chance to make an MRI and I have micro tear on a muscle, not in the same part where I had the injury and that’s good news.
“Right now I am not ready to compete at the maximum level of exigence in five sets matches. I’m flying back to Spain to see my doctor, get some treatment and rest.”
He added: “I have worked very hard during the year for this comeback and as I always mentioned my goal is to be at my best level in three months.
“Within the sad news for me for not being able to play in front of the amazing Melbourne crowds, this is not very bad news and we all remain positive with the evolution for the season.
“I really wanted to play here in Australia and I have had the chance to play a few matches that made me very happy and positive. Thanks all for the support and see you soon!”
Former Scotland captain Mike Blair announced his retirement from international rugby on this day in 2013.
Blair made the decision in order to focus on life in France, where he was playing for Brive, while also allowing Scotland to uncover fresh options at scrum-half in time for the 2015 World Cup.
Stepping down from the world stage as a 31-year-old, he had made 85 appearances for the team and led the side 14 times.
“I’m in the very fortunate position of being able to decide myself when my international career ends. For me, that time is now,” said Blair, who retired despite remaining a regular starter.
“The fact that I still feel attuned to playing at international level has made the decision harder, but it’s not been reached lightly and I’m very confident that it’s the right decision.”
The 2009 British and Irish Lions tourist spent only one season at Brive and after two years with Newcastle, he joined Glasgow before his playing career ended in 2016.
This afternoon’s meeting at Naas is subject to a second inspection at 9.30am.
The threat of frost prompted officials to call an initial 7.30am check and while the track is reported to be fit for action, fog is causing some concern at the track.
The fog is forecast to lift, but another inspection is required.
Coco Gauff defended her Auckland title as she beat Ukrainian Elina Svitolina to win the ASB Classic in three sets.
The 19-year-old American won 6-7 (4) 6-3 6-3 in just over two and a half hours to make it 10 straight wins at the event.
Gauff was put through a difficult, topsy-turvy first set, losing in a tiebreak.
But the teenager turned it around in the second and third sets as she improved her first serve success from 46 per cent to 73 per cent in the second and above 80 per cent in the third.
The win was the 2023 US Open winner’s seventh WTA title.
Elena Rybakina defeated world number two Aryna Sabalenka in their Australian Open final rematch with a dominant straight sets win to claim the Brisbane International.
The world number four from Kazakhstan charged out of the blocks, dominating the first set 6-0 and continuing the form through the second set 6-3, winning in just over 70 minutes.
Rybakina was clinical on break points, winning five of a possible seven, and limiting the Belarusian to just one break point.
Sabalenka was on a 15-game winning streak in Australia before the loss, spanning back to the start of 2023 in Adelaide and continuing through her Australian Open-winning campaign.
The win was 24-year-old Rybakina’s sixth career title.
Elena Rybakina defeated world number two Aryna Sabalenka in their Australian Open final rematch with a dominant straight sets win to claim the Brisbane International.
The world number four from Kazakhstan charged out of the blocks, dominating the first set 6-0 and continuing the form through the second set 6-3, winning in just over 70 minutes.
Rybakina was clinical on break points, winning five of a possible seven, and limiting the Belarusian to just one break point.
Sabalenka was on a 15-game winning streak in Australia before the loss, spanning back to the start of 2023 in Adelaide and continuing through her Australian Open-winning campaign.
The win was 24-year-old Rybakina’s sixth career title.
Sam Reinhart recorded a hat trick and Aleksander Barkov had four assists to lead the visiting Florida Panthers to their season-high seventh straight victory, 8-4 over the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday.
Carter Verhaeghe had two goals and an assist and Matthew Tkachuk added a goal and two assists for the Panthers, who have scored 31 goals – including 10 on the power play – during the win streak.
Reinhart has 10 goals in the seven-game run, including three multigoal games. He ranks among the NHL leaders with 28 goals this season, three fewer than he had in 82 games in 2022-23.
Cale Makar and Valeri Nichushkin each scored one goal and set up another as Colorado had a seven-game point streak snapped.
Nathan MacKinnon had an assist to extend his home point streak to 21 games to start the season.
Streaking Oilers win behind Hyman’s hat trick
Zach Hyman notched his third hat trick of the season and the Edmonton Oilers extended their winning streak to seven games on Saturday with a 3-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators.
Stuart Skinner stopped 30 shots and Evan Bouchard had three assists for Edmonton, which has overcome a 5-12-1 start by going 15-3-0 in their last 18.
Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch became the first coach in NHL history to have two seven-game winning streaks in his first 25 games in the position.
The Senators got their lone goal from Parker Kelly and dropped their third straight.
Fleury ties Roy as Wild win
Marc-Andre Fleury tied Patrick Roy on the all-time wins list with Marco Rossi’s overtime goal that gave the Minnesota Wild a 4-3 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Fleury made 25 saves to match Roy with his 551st win and now trails only Martin Brodeur (691) on the career list.
Matt Boldy scored two power-play goals and Marcus Johansson also tallied for the Wild, who snapped a four-game losing streak.
Columbus’ Cole Sillinger scored all three goals for his second career hat trick.
Jayson Tatum poured in 38 points with a season-high eight 3-pointers and Jaylen Brown added 31 points to help the Boston Celtics snap the Indiana Pacers’ six-game winning streak, 118-101 on Saturday.
Tatum, who also had 13 rebounds and six assists, combined with Brown for 27 of Boston’s 46 baskets on a night they never trailed.
Bennedict Mathurin scored 20 points and Tyrese Haliburton had 17 points, seven assists and six rebounds and five steals. Indiana was held to a season-low point total and lost the rebounding battle, 70-42.
The Pacers were within 84-81 entering the fourth quarter, but the Celtics went up 100-85 on Tatum’s 3-pointer with 7:30 remaining.
Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis played only six minutes due to an eye laceration.
Rockets survive Antetokounmpo’s 48 points
Alperen Sengun had 21 points and the Houston Rockets overcame 48 points and 17 rebounds from Giannis Antetokounmpo to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks, 112-108.
Antetokounmpo shot 16 of 25 from the field for his seventh straight double-double but teammate Damian Lillard shot 5 of 16, including 1 for 8 from long range, and missed a season-high three free throws on 10 attempts.
Jalen Green scored 16 points and Fred VanVleet added 14 with seven assists for Houston, which has won three of four following a three-game skid.
Randle leads Knicks over Wizards
Julius Randle scored 39 points and Jalen Brunson had 33 as the New York Knicks won their fourth straight game, 121-105 over the Washington Wizards.
Isaiah Hartenstein grabbed 19 rebounds as New York showed no letup following an impressive 128-92 rout of the 76ers a night earlier.
Kyle Kuzma had 27 points and Deni Avdija added 23 for Washington, which has lost four in a row and seven of eight.
American Chris Kirk heads into the final round of the PGA Tour season opener in Hawaii with a one-stroke lead.
Kirk hit eight birdies and a bogey in a third-round 66 to push his way into pole position at The Sentry in Maui.
World number one Scottie Scheffler, the halfway leader, hit a 71 to drop three shots off the lead.
Tyrell Hatton could not replicate Friday’s 62, carding a 72 and dropping into a tie for 14th a further two shots back.
Fellow Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick is four shots off the pace in a share of 10th after a 69.
American Akshay Bhatia, 21, pushed his way into second spot, one stroke behind Kirk on 20 under, while Xander Schauffele, Jordan Speith and Byeong Hun An are a further stroke back in third.
Kirk said he will have to remain aggressive to hold his lead.
“You certainly can’t protect anything out here, that’s for sure,” he said.
“When it’s a shootout like this and the scores are really low, you just stay aggressive and just go do your thing.”
The Pittsburgh Steelers held onto their slim play-off chances, courtesy of a 17-10 win over the Baltimore Ravens.
After ending the regular season with three straight wins, the Steelers will qualify for the post season on Sunday if the Buffalo Bills lose to the Miami Dolphins or the Jacksonville Jaguars go down to the Tennessee Titans.
Pittsburgh opened the scoring at a rainy Baltimore through a six-yard run from Najee Harris near the end of the first quarter.
The AFC North champion Ravens, who rested several key players including quarterback Lamar Jackson, evened the score at 7-7 just before half-time when Tyler Huntley found Isaiah Likely in the endzone on a 27-yard reception.
Following a scoreless third quarter, Pittsburgh quarterback Mason Rudolph broke the game open with a 71-yard touchdown pass to Diontae Johnson on the first play of the fourth.
Each side kicked a field goal from there as the Steelers now play the waiting game.
Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green was reinstated by the NBA from his suspension on Saturday after he missed 12 games following an incident with Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic on Dec. 12.
The league said Green “demonstrated his commitment to conforming his conduct to standards of NBA players” during his suspension, which began Dec. 14. He has met with a counselor as well as had multiple joint meetings with representatives of the league, the Warriors and the National Basketball Players Association.
Those meetings, the league added, will continue throughout the season.
While Green is eligible to return to the lineup on Sunday against the Toronto Raptors, he is expected to need approximately a week to ramp up for a return to the court.
Green was suspended for the fifth time in his career earlier this season for putting Minnesota center Rudy Gobert in a headlock during an In-Season Tournament matchup.
Green was given a five-game suspension as the NBA cited past infractions in relation to the punishment.
The 12-year veteran is averaging 9.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists in 15 games this season.
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