Brodie Croft is relishing the prospect of “ripping in” to his former team-mates at Headingley on Friday but says leaving Salford was not a decision he took lightly.
The 2022 Super League Man of Steel joined Leeds Rhinos in October in the most eye-catching off-season deal a mere eight months after inking a long-term contract that was supposed to keep him at Salford until 2030.
By a twist of fate, Croft’s first competitive match in Rhinos colours will come against his former club, and the Australian says the process of leaving – primarily to off-set Salford’s financial woes – was tough.
Croft said: “I was quite settled at Salford, I’d just bought a house in Worsley and I loved the playing group and the coaches there. The prospect of leaving was a bit daunting and I didn’t know what to think of it at the time.
“There were days when I was thinking I would stay, then the next day I’d wake up and think, I’ll go to Leeds. When it came to it, it felt like the pros of coming to Leeds out-weighed those of staying at Salford.
“It didn’t happen overnight, that’s for sure. I’m still good mates with all the people at Salford and I can’t wait to catch up with them after the game. But for the 80 minutes, I’m sure we’ll be trying to rip each other’s heads off.”
Croft and his former Salford team-mate Andy Ackers, who also made the move to Headingley from the AJ Bell Stadium at the end of last year, will shoulder much of the burden of expectation as the Rhinos bid to force their way back into contention for silverware.
Rohan Smith’s side endured a 2023 campaign to forget, beset by injuries and an unsettled half-back pairing that saw Blake Austin quit for Castleford before the end of the campaign, and Aidan Sezer confirm a move back to Australia.
Along with an impressive array of other arrivals including Australian full-back Lachie Miller, much will once again be expected of Croft but the 26-year-old insisted: “It (the weight of expectation) doesn’t really concern me.
“I’m at the stage of my career now where I understand my own game and what I can bring to a team, what is expected personally of myself, and what I’m going to bring for the team. Hopefully that’s good for the team.
“When I was a kid watching Super League games Leeds were the team that were winning everything, and that was another part of this decision.
“I have got to pinch myself sometimes, because to get a chance to play for Leeds is pretty special. It is a privilege to pull on a Leeds jersey and I can’t wait for the season to come around and see what we can do.”
Willie Mullins believes State Man returns to Cheltenham a stronger runner this year as he tries to make up the deficit with the all-conquering Constitution Hill in the Unibet Champion Hurdle.
The Irish raider trailed home nine lengths adrift of Nicky Henderson’s National Hunt superstar last year, the only time he has been defeated in 11 completed hurdles starts.
State Man has added a further four Grade One triumphs to his record since that second place, most recently seeing off Bob Olinger by a comfortable five and a half lengths in the Irish Champion Hurdle – a race in which stablemate and familiar rival Impaire Et Passe failed to fire.
In contrast to State Man, Constitution Hill will head to the Festival having had just one run this term, but Mullins expects Henderson to have his defending champion at concert pitch nevertheless.
“State Man will go for the Champion and I think he’s in great order,” he said.
“I didn’t talk to any of the time men after Leopardstown because I thought his performance at Christmas was huge against Impaire Et Passe who was much more competitive than he was the other day. Tactics were changed on Impaire but he was nearly a non-runner as far as I’m concerned, you could see after two hurdles.
“I don’t know if State Man was at his best in last year’s Champion, we’ll find out this year. He’s very good, he’ll be very race-fit but Nicky Henderson does have a habit of having his horses very right on the day when people think they haven’t raced enough, Nicky gets everything right for Cheltenham.
“We hope it will be a hell of a race, Nicky probably doesn’t and Constitution Hill fans probably don’t but we are stronger this year, I don’t know if better but stronger. I will leave tactics to Paul (Townend) but we’re happy to have him in the order which he is.”
Mullins has won the race four times already with Hurricane Fly (2011 and 2013), Faugheen (2015) and Annie Power (2016) and feels State Man brings different qualities to the table.
He added: “He hasn’t won a Champion Hurdle yet so he has a bit to catch up with those that have. He doesn’t have the pizzazz of Faugheen or the speed of Hurricane Fly but he has other things, he jumps well, he’s so consistent. Hopefully we can turn the tables this year.”
Constitution Hill is the 1-3 favourite with the race sponsor with State Man next best at 5-2 and then another Closutton inmate, Lossiemouth, a 12-1 shot.
She is much shorter with many other bookmakers, but her target is the two-and-a-half-mile Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle, in which she is likely to be joined by Ashroe Diamond and Gala Marceau, with Champion entry Echoes In Rain also in the mix.
Lossiemouth hacked up in the Unibet Hurdle on Trials day at Cheltenham last month, prompting plenty of talk about whether the mare should be aimed at the main event.
However, Mullins is certain it is too early to pitch the five-year-old against the likes of Constitution Hill.
He said: “Lossiemouth hasn’t done anything wrong. I know a lot of people want her to go down the Champion Hurdle route, but I’m not even sure if there wasn’t a Mares’ Hurdle we’d go down that route with a five-year-old.
“In my lifetime a five-year-old usually wins once every 30 years and usually a bad year and this doesn’t look like it’s going to be a bad year for the Champion Hurdle. I don’t think the five-year-olds are physically strong enough.
“She did everything right the other day, maybe she needs longer, she’ll have other days to go at the Champion Hurdle. We’ll let State Man soften up Constitution Hill first and leave the door open for her!”
Teenage sensation Luke Littler hit a nine-dart finish to see off Michele Turetta at the Players Championship in Wigan.
Littler, 17, became a household name during a shock run to the final of the World Championship at the turn of the year.
“The Nuke” then went on to beat Michael van Gerwen to win the Bahrain Masters in January, becoming the youngest player to hit a televised nine-darter in his quarter-final victory over Nathan Aspinall.
Littler’s strong form continued as he was beaten by home favourite Van Gerwen in the final of the Dutch Masters the following week.
He has now moved into round four of the first Players Championship event of the year after wrapping up a 6-1 win over Turetta in typical Littler style, completing a nine-dart finish along the way.
Luke Humphries, who beat Littler to claim his first World Championship crown, was the victim of a shock defeat on the first day of action at the Robin Park Tennis Centre as the second seed crashed out 6-0 to Ian White.
Aston Villa have confirmed Leon Bailey has signed a new contract with the club.
The 26-year-old Reggae Boyz attacker has been in sensational form this season and is playing the best football of his career to date. He has made 32 appearances in all competitions so far this term, recording 19 goal contributions across those games.
His 13 goal involvements in the Premier League is already more than what he managed in his first two seasons at the club combined.
Bailey joined Villa for £30 million in the summer of 2021 from Bayer Leverkusen. He was one of three players targeted by Villa to replace the void left behind by Jack Grealish, who joined Manchester City for £100 million.
Injuries marred his first campaign with Villa as he only started seven times and scored on just one occasion.
Last season, Bailey improved following the arrival of Unai Emery, and played his role in helping the club qualify for European football with a seventh-placed finish.
Three-time Olympic champion Adam Peaty finished third on his return to the World Championships 100 metres breaststroke final in Doha.
Peaty was sidelined from the 2022 event due to a foot injury, and he missed out last year after stepping away from the sport to prioritise his mental health.
After qualifying fastest for the final, 29-year-old Peaty did not threaten gold medallist Nic Fink, of the United States, who led from start to finish.
Fink clocked 58.57 seconds, with Italian Nicolo Martinenghi second in 58.84 and then Peaty, who has won the event on three occasions, taking bronze in 59.10.
India will be without another middle-order regular in the third Test against England in Rajkot this week after KL Rahul was unable to prove he had fully shaken off a quad injury.
With Virat Kohli excusing himself from the series because of personal reasons, India would have been hoping for Rahul to regain full fitness after being ruled out of the second Test in Visakhapatnam.
But while a Board of Control for Cricket in India statement revealed Rahul had “reached 90 per cent of match fitness and is progressing well”, the hosts are unwilling to take any risks over the 31-year-old.
Devdutt Padikkal, whose international career so far has comprised of two T20s, has therefore been named as a replacement for Rahul ahead of the series, which is evenly-poised at 1-1, resuming on Thursday.
Rahul has amassed eight hundreds in 50 Tests and was widely expected to slot back in at number four – where he made 86 and 22 in the series opener – after selectors axed the misfiring Shreyas Iyer.
Rahul will now continue his rehabilitation under the supervision of India’s medical staff in Bengaluru with a view to being welcomed back for the fourth Test in Ranchi, which gets under way on February 23.
Padikkal, meanwhile, joins a middle-order mix also containing another uncapped batter in Sarfaraz Khan while Rajat Patidar only came in for his Test debut in Vizag.
It is unclear whether highly-rated all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja can bolster the batting after a hamstring problem precluded his involvement in India’s series-levelling win last time out.
John ‘Shark’ Hanlon is praying for good ground ahead of next month’s Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup, as his King George hero Hewick prepares to take on defending champion Galopin Des Champs.
Hewick took a crashing fall two out in his first taste of the Gold Cup last year, with Galopin Des Champs carrying on up the hill for a memorably impressive victory.
Willie Mullins’ charge has since looked imperious when winning at Leopardstown this season, firstly in the Savills Chase at Christmas and then when bettering chief blue riband rival Fastorslow for his second Irish Gold Cup during the Dublin Racing Festival.
However, Hewick has also gone from strength to strength and following a career best to win the King George at Kempton on Boxing Day, Hanlon is now keen to try to exploit a possible chink in Galopin Des Champ’s armour on a sounder surface at Prestbury Park.
He said: “It is beginning to get exciting times and I love to see that sun coming out, which I want to see in England more at the minute than I want to see over here.
“The weather is what’s most important to him. It was soft ground last year and I want that soft ground out of there this year.
“Galopin Des Champs is a very good horse and he’s won on soft ground a couple of times this year and has looked very good on it.
“But I would love to meet him on good ground. Maybe if he is as good then he will win, but I just think on proper good ground, he might not be as good as he is on soft and heavy ground.
“The horse is in really good form and he came out of the King George very well. He will probably go and do a bit of work now in Naas on Wednesday in a schooling bumper and that’s the route we went down before the King George.”
Hewick is a best priced 16-1 for Gold Cup glory, but Hanlon is predicting an open feel to the race this time around and is confident his contender is worth his place in the line-up.
“There’s more than one horse in the race, every horse is there to be looked at,” he continued.
“You don’t ever duck away from one horse or a challenge and if you have a horse good enough, there is no problem doing that.
“Shishkin won over the weekend and he looked quite good, but the horse who was second to him was only a 150-rated horse and he didn’t run away from him.
“It’s a good race, it is always a good race. There’s more than two or three in it and there will be probably 10 horses in it and any of those 10 horses can win.”
Hanlon has always embraced his underdog status, but he is alive to the possibility of interest in the sport dimming if only a handful of yards house all the leading contenders.
He said: “The big problem in Ireland anyway, and the English people can see it when Willie went over with Fun Fun Fun yesterday, is he wins everything.
“He has the owners to buy those horses. If a good horse comes up for sale tomorrow morning, he’s gone to Willie Mullins because Willie has the customers. Fair dues to him because he started with nothing and now has the men to buy them, but I think England and Ireland are feeling the pinch a bit with it because a lot of these owners just go to Willie now.
“This is nothing against Willie or Gordon Elliott or anyone, but I think the smaller people in the game need looking after. Because if you haven’t got the smaller lads then you are going to have races every week with five runners and people will get bored.
“Every small trainer is able to train, they just haven’t got the owners able to compete with the likes of Willie. There is a bundle of trainers taking over and I don’t think it is good for racing.”
Mullins’ dominance in Irish racing was exemplified at the Dublin Racing Festival when he won each of the eight Grade Ones at the meeting, with one contest ending up a match between two Closutton runners.
Hanlon added: “The Dublin Racing Festival was great but without the two big handicaps (on each card), there wouldn’t have been 30 runners on either day. The two big handicaps were full and there was more excitement over the handicaps than there was over the Grade Ones.
“The Grade Ones and Grade Twos are lovely, but they are for three or four people and they need to look beyond that to see how they are going to get the people back going racing.
“The Dublin Racing Festival is a great meeting and on the Saturday you had a huge crowd and on Sunday an OK crowd. But if you took the English people out of it on the Sunday, there wouldn’t be too many in.
“If it wasn’t for the cost of travelling horses over to England, then I would run horses over there every week.
“You can say I’m running away from Willie, I don’t care, but there is a better chance of winning and England is a big area and you can go to the top or the bottom and you are not competing with Willie and Gordon every day.”
Joe Mazzulla was proud of the Boston Celtics' "late-game execution" in Sunday's 110-106 win over the Miami Heat.
The Celtics had to withstand a late push from the Heat as they held on to win a fourth straight game.
Boston, who beat the Heat by 33 points on the road in January, lead the NBA with a 41-12 record. Miami, meanwhile, are eighth in the Eastern Conference.
And though the Celtics ultimately had to defend late on, they have now won all three meetings with the Heat this season, with their sole loss coming in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals last season.
"Late-game execution, you've got to set the table," Mazzulla said of his team's display. "I think our guys did that.
"Just the intensity. Just the physicality. I enjoy watching physicality with poise, and I thought our guys had that throughout tonight. You obviously need to rise to the occasion."
Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 26 points, nine assists and 10 rebounds, Kristaps Porzingis finished with 25 points and nine rebounds, while Jaylen Brown added 20 points and nine rebounds.
"Today was fun, we have a lot of history with this team," Tatum said.
"Last time we came here we smacked them, so we knew it would be a closer game.
"They came to play and we enjoy being part of games like that. Everybody's being competitive."
Bam Adebayo scored 22 points for the Heat, who were without Jimmy Buttler after he was granted leave following the death of a family member.
"It's tough to see guys like that go down," said Duncan Robinson, who finished with 15 points.
"And then Jimmy dealing with what he's dealing with is unfortunate, to put it lightly."
The Heat have won four of their last six games, and Erik Spoelstra put this defeat down to many factors going against them.
"I thought our group showed a tremendous amount of grit in that second half," Spoelstra said.
"There were a lot of things that weren't necessarily going our way, including the injuries. To really fight and claw back and get this game on the ropes, it's a credit to how hard guys were playing."
Owner Andy Edwards is looking to L’Homme Presse to book his Cheltenham Gold Cup in Saturday’s Betfair Ascot Chase at the Berkshire track.
The nine-year-old made a faultless return to action following a lengthy lay off in last month’s Fleur De Lys Chase, beating Protektorat by just over two lengths on his first start since unseating Charlie Deutsch in the 2022 King George VI Chase.
L’Homme Presse sustained a season-ending injury in that mishap, with trainer Venetia Williams and Edwards, plus his co-owners Peter and Patricia Pink, giving the gelding plenty of time to recover.
He is now set to turn out 27 days later at Ascot, with Edwards not putting much stock in the theory of the ‘bounce factor’ for horses having their second run back after an absence.
He said: “Everything has been fine with L’Homme Presse since Lingfield.
“I thought it was an amazing comeback and we were thrilled with everything we saw from him. Hopefully, he can kick on again from there, starting this weekend in the Betfair Ascot Chase.
“I don’t think the ‘bounce factor’ is a scientific thing. Every horse is different and that is not something that fazes us. We are only concerned about our horse and he will run a race that suits him.”
L’Homme Presse is a general 8-1 chance for next month’s Cheltenham Gold Cup, with reigning champion Galopin Des Champs odds-on to defend his title for Willie Mullins.
While Edwards is aware of the task L’Homme Presse would face in the Cotswolds, he would not shy away from taking on that challenge.
He added: “The dream is still alive. To even be in the reckoning for a race of that calibre is a privilege in itself. We want to do our very best to win at Ascot this weekend and then, all being well, take our chance at Cheltenham.
“It is a horse race and no horse is unbeatable, especially in a top-end race like the Gold Cup because there are so many variables that can affect the outcome – jumping, positioning, luck in running et cetera.
“Having said that, Galopin Des Champs is a champion and looks something to be admired. And you can’t discount the other horses in the race, as everyone will go there thinking they have a valid chance.
“With L’Homme Presse, we still don’t really know where his ultimate ceiling is. He has only had three runs outside novice company and they have all been fantastic. He might have a ‘U’ against his name from the King George but he was still running a great race on a track and ground that did not suit his style.
“The one thing that I would say about L’Homme Presse is that he has an attitude and aptitude where he does not want to be beaten. That determination and grit in an athlete is what can make the difference on the day.
“I am sure everyone like us is feeling excited, whether it’s Shishkin’s camp or Gerri Colombe’s camp. We have all seen lots of turn-ups in big races down the years, just look what happened in the King George this season. As I always like to say, keep the faith, believe in your horse and enjoy the moment.”
L’Homme Presse is one of five entries for the Ascot Chase along with 2022 hero Fakir d’Oudairies, Pic D’Orhy, Ahoy Senor and Sail Away.
Seven have been entered in the Grade Two Sodexo Live! Novices’ Chase – better known as the Reynoldstown – including Apple Away and Kilbeg King.
Diogo Dalot believes super sub Scott McTominay’s never-say-die approach is the kind of mentality Manchester United need if they are to qualify for the Champions League.
A bumpy, injury-hit start to the season saw pressure mount on manager Erik ten Hag as his side were eliminated from Europe and stumbled on the domestic front.
But there have been signs of improvement since the turn of the year, with United’s unbeaten start to 2024 continuing with a late, hard-fought Premier League win at Villa.
Douglas Luiz deservedly cancelled out Rasmus Hojlund’s opener, only for substitute McTominay to meet Dalot’s excellent cross with a thundering header to make it 2-1, four minutes from time.
“I think every time he comes on the pitch, he has that mentality of trying to score goals and trying to help the team,” United right-back Dalot said.
“We need this type of mentality at this club and I think he is the perfect person to show this season that even coming from the bench, he always has a good impact.”
McTominay’s goal was his seventh in the league this season and fourth as a substitute – a league-high tally from the bench only matched by Brighton striker Joao Pedro.
The bullet header allowed sixth-placed United to reduce the gap to Villa in fifth to five points, with Tottenham a point better off in fourth.
“I think it is a really important win,” Dalot said of the push for Champions League qualification.
“We knew that today was like a final for us; pretty much every game will be for us now if we want to get top four.
“We prepared well and I am very happy with the way we performed and how we fought until the end to get the win.
“It was registered (how important the Villa match was) at the start of the week when we started preparing for the game.
“I think we had a full week of concentration and everybody tuned into what we could expect today.
“It is exactly how we prepared and how we tried to be, but like I said, we fought until the end and we really deserved the three points.”
United did, though, have to ride their luck at times.
Dalot praised goalkeeper Andre Onana for his performance – “he’s been fighting for it”, he said – and went onto highlight the impact of United’s forwards.
“When we start scoring goals, you can see how fresh they are and how motivated they are and we are very happy that they are scoring goals,” the Portugal international said.
“(Hojlund) brings calm and that’s what wins games and gives you more confidence.
“He has adapted to the team really well and we have adapted to him really well. Hopefully, he can score a lot more goals.”
Hojlund’s fifth goal in five Premier League appearances continued a run that started with his winner in 3-2 Boxing Day turnaround against Villa.
Unai Emery’s side came away with nothing from those matches and midfielder Jacob Ramsey bemoaned a lack of killer instinct on Sunday.
“We want to win games and we’ve not been great at home recently but we can take positives from the performance,” he said.
“Manchester United are a big team and we were dominant today. We were just lacking the last ball in the final third.”
Inter Milan defender Francesco Acerbi continues to be assessed after limping out of Saturday’s 4-2 Serie A victory at Roma.
The 36-year-old Italy international has undergone tests which have identified a “slight muscle strain” and his condition will be monitored ahead of Friday’s league clash with lowly Salernitana and the Champions League showdown with Atletico Madrid which follows next Tuesday.
A statement on the club’s official website said: “Francesco Acerbi underwent medical tests this morning (Monday) at the Istituto Clinico Humanitas in Rozzano.
“The Nerazzurri defender has a slight muscle strain in his right leg. His condition will be assessed over the coming days.”
Acerbi, who scored the opening goal at the Stadio Olimpico at the weekend, has made 28 appearances to date for Inter this season.
Emma Raducanu squandered set point in a second-set tie-break as she lost 0-6 6-7 (6) to Anhelina Kalinina in the opening round of the Qatar Open.
Raducanu had been granted a wild card for the first WTA 1000 event of the season in Doha, but slipped to a fourth defeat in seven matches since returning from injury.
The British number seven rallied bravely in the second set against Ukrainian Kalinina after a one-sided first set, which lasted little over half an hour.
Raducanu saved two match points at 6-5 down in the second set to force a tie-break and was one point away from squaring the match while leading that 6-5.
But world number 30 Kalinina held her nerve and will now face Latvia’s eighth seed Jelena Ostapenko in the second round.
Kalinina won the opening game of the match on Raducanu’s serve and broke the Brit twice more, while comfortably holding her own serve without facing any break points to take the opening set 6-0.
Raducanu came under immediate pressure at the start of the second set, losing her serve for the fourth consecutive time before responding to break back and win her first game of the match.
The following eight games all went with serve, with Raducanu saving five break points to lead 4-3.
After being broken for a fifth time in the match to trail 6-5, the Briton responded again, saving two match points against Kalinina’s serve to force a tie-break.
Raducanu served for the set at 6-5 up in the tie-break, but lost the next two points on her serve and Kalinina sealed victory on her third match point.
Japan international Takefusa Kubo has committed his future to Real Sociedad amid links with a series of potential suitors.
The 22-year-old winger, who has been touted as a potential target for Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool and Saudi outfit Al Hilal, has signed a contract extension which will keep him at the Reale Arena until the end of the 2028-29 season.
A statement on the LaLiga club’s official website read: “Real Sociedad and Takefusa Kubo have reached an agreement to extend their partnership until the end of the 28-29 season.
“The Japanese, accompanied by the president Jokin Aperribay, signed his new contract, fulfilling both parties’ desire to continue growing together. Take stays at home.”
Kubo joined Real in July 2022 after three years on the books at Real Madrid, who reportedly have a 50 per cent sell-on clause, without making a competitive appearance and loan spells with Real Mallorca twice, Villarreal and Getafe.
He has since made 71 appearances and scored 15 goals and will hope to be involved in Wednesday night’s Champions League last 16 trip to Paris St Germain.
Brighton winger Simon Adingra described Ivory Coast’s Africa Cup of Nations triumph as “one of the most beautiful moments of my life”.
Hosts Ivory Coast produced a 2-1 comeback victory over Nigeria on Sunday to become African champions for the third time, with Adingra setting up both goals and being named player of the match.
“We did it together – we’re Africa champions and it’s incredible,” said Adingra.
“I’ve just experienced one of the most beautiful moments of my life and that’s down to the effort of everyone in the team.”
The hosts fell behind in the showpiece when Nigeria captain William Troost-Ekong headed in a 38th-minute opener against the run of play.
Second-half goals from Franck Kessie and former West Ham striker Sebastien Haller – who in July 2022 was diagnosed with testicular cancer and returned to action at Borussia Dortmund just over a year ago – sealed what at one stage appeared an improbable victory.
The Elephants suffered a 4-0 group-stage defeat to Equatorial Guinea and sacked head coach Jean-Louis Gasset, squeezing into the knockout rounds after finishing third in their section.
Caretaker boss Emerse Fae said: “When I think about all we went through, the hard times when we almost out and the matches where we came back in last minutes, we have created some miracles.
“We were close to humiliation but when we had a second chance, we were determined not to waste it.”
For Nigeria’s former Watford defender Troost-Ekong, the opening goal was his third of the competition and he was named the tournament’s best player.
Super Eagles head coach Jose Peseiro said: “My team is sad but for me they did what they could.
“I am proud of the way my players performed in this tournament.”
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