Houston Astros left-hander Framber Valdez became the third pitcher this season to throw a no-hitter, shutting down the Cleveland Guardians in a 2-0 win on Tuesday.
Valdez gave up just one baserunner on a walk in the fifth inning, but still faced the minimum thanks to a double play. He struck out seven and threw 65 of his 93 pitches for strikes.
It was the 16th no-hitter in Astros’ history and the first in the regular season by one pitcher since Justin Verlander against the Toronto Blue Jays on Sept. 1, 2019.
Valdez’ historic outing – the first no-hitter by an Astros lefty- came hours after Houston re-acquired Verlander from the New York Mets.
Valdez joined Domingo German of the New York Yankees, who threw a perfect game at Oakland on June 28, and three pitchers from the Detroit Tigers, who combined for a no-hitter against Toronto on July 8.
Kyle Tucker provided all the offence with a two-run single in the third inning to help the Astros remain one-half game behind the AL West-leading Texas Rangers.
Cleveland has lost four of five while scoring just 10 runs.
Swanson powers Cubs to rout of Reds
Dansby Swanson homered twice and drove in five runs and the Chicago Cubs went deep seven times in a 20-9 drubbing of the Cincinnati Reds.
Mike Tauchman homered and had four RBIs and Jeimer Candelario had four hits in his first game with Chicago since he was re-acquired in a trade with the Washington Nationals on Monday. He made his major league debut with the Cubs in 2016.
Nico Hoener, Miguel Amaya, Cody Bellinger and Patrick Wisdom all homered for Chicago, which tied a modern franchise record with seven home runs, last accomplished on May 17, 1977, against San Diego.
Reds starter Ben Lively was tagged for 13 runs and 13 hits over four innings.
Rays’ Eflin first in AL to 12 wins
Zach Eflin pitched three-hit ball over six scoreless innings to become the American League’s first 12-game winner as the Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Yankees, 5-2.
Eflin struck out five and did not walk a batter to join Philadelphia’s Taijuan Walker as the only 12-game winners in the majors.
Randy Arozarena hit a two-run homer and Yandy Diaz also went deep as the Rays won their third straight to stay 1 ½ games behind East-leading Baltimore.
The last-place Yankees have lost 14 of 21 and were nearly shut out until Gleyber Torres and DJ LeMahieu had RBI singles in the ninth.
Justin Verlander helped the Houston Astros capture a pair of World Series titles, and the club is hoping he can lead them to another championship.
Verlander was traded to the Astros from the New York Mets in a blockbuster deal hours before MLB’s deadline on Tuesday.
The Mets received two minor league outfielders - 22-year-old Drew Gilbert, Houston’s No. 1-ranked prospect, and 20-year-old Ryan Clifford, who was the Astros’ No. 4 prospect.
Verlander signed a two-year, $86.7million contract with the Mets last December, shortly after earning his second World Series title with Houston and third Cy Young Award.
The 40-year-old has been pitching well lately, going 4-1 with a 1.69 ERA in six July starts, but the Mets have been a major disappointment and are tearing down the most expensive roster in major league history.
Fellow three-time Cy Young Award-winner Max Scherzer, who signed a three-year, $130million deal after the 2021 season, was traded to the Texas Rangers on Sunday.
Hours after that deal was officially announced, Verlander became the 49th pitcher in MLB history to 250 victories.
Of those wins, 61 came while pitching for the Astros – tied with Jim Deshaies for the 15th most in club history.
Verlander was first acquired by Houston during the 2017 season from the Detroit Tigers and helped the Astros to the franchise’s first World Series title later that fall.
During his time with Houston, Verlander made 102 starts and posted a 2.26 ERA – the lowest in franchise history among the 46 players with a minimum of 500 innings pitched for the club.
The Astros have won five of the last six AL West crowns and have reached the AL championship series in each of the last four seasons, but enter August one-half game behind the first-place Texas Rangers.
Blue Jays acquire DeJong after Bichette injures knee
The Toronto Blue Jays moved quickly in finding a replacement for Bo Bichette in the event the All-Star shortstop would’ve been sidelined for a while, trading for the St. Louis Cardinals’ Paul DeJong.
Bichette, the AL leader in batting average (.321) and hits (144), exited Monday’s 4-2 loss to the Baltimore Orioles with a right knee injury.
The extent of Bichette’s injury was uncertain early Tuesday, but after trading for DeJong, it was reported that an MRI on the knee revealed no significant structural damage, and he’s considered day to day.
DeJong was considered the top shortstop on the trade market.
An All-Star in 2019, the 29-year-old is batting .233 with 13 home runs, 11 doubles and 32 RBIs in 81 games.
He is also one of the better fielders at his position, registering a .990 fielding percentage – second only to the Minnesota Twins’ Carlos Correa for the best among all qualifying shortstops.
To complete the trade, the Cardinals are getting 24-year-old pitching prospect Matt Svanson from the Blue Jays.
Phillies get All-Star Lorenzen from Tigers
The Philadelphia Phillies have bolstered their rotation, acquiring right-hander Michael Lorenzen from the Detroit Tigers for 20-year-old infielder Hao-Yu Lee.
Lorenzen, who will become a free agent after this season, was named to his first All-Star team this year, going 5-7 with a 3.58 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in 18 starts. He has struck out 83 and walked 27 over 105 2/3 innings.
The 31-year-old began his career as a starter for the Cincinnati Reds in 2015 before spending the next six seasons working out of their bullpen.
He signed with the Los Angeles Angels prior to last season and moved back into the starting rotation, going 8-6 with a 4.24 ERA in 18 outings.
He now joins a Phillies team that reached last year’s World Series and is in possession of the NL’s second wild card.
Marlins bolster lineup with sluggers Burger, Bell
The Miami Marlins added two key bats to their lineup at the deadline, acquiring infielder Jake Burger from the Chicago White Sox and first baseman Josh Bell from the Cleveland Guardians.
The Marlins (57-51) find themselves in rare playoff contention but are hoping to improve their 27th-ranked offence that scores 4.09 runs per game.
Burger, 27, is tied for eighth in MLB with 25 home runs this season but is batting just .214 in 88 games. Of Burger’s 63 hits this season, 41 have gone for extra bases.
Bell, who will turn 31 later this month, was a 2019 All-Star but will be playing on his fifth team since 2020.
In the deals, the Marlins sent pitching prospect Jake Eder to Chicago, while Cleveland added infield prospect Khalil Watson. The Guardians also acquired Jean Segura in the deal but are expected to release the veteran infielder.
AL East-leading Orioles add RHP Flaherty
Enjoying their best season in a decade, the Baltimore Orioles fortified their rotation by acquiring right-hander Jack Flaherty from the St. Louis Cardinals for three prospects.
Leading the AL East with a 65-41 record and with a stacked farm system, the Orioles had the chance to be among the most aggressive teams at the deadline but held on to all eight of their prospects ranked by MLB Pipeline in baseball’s top 100.
Flaherty struggled earlier this season but was 3-1 with a 3.03 ERA in five July starts.
Flaherty put together his best season in 2019, when he was 11-8 with a 2.75 ERA and threw nearly 200 innings.
Injuries have derailed Flaherty’s previous three seasons, but he has made 20 starts this year with a 4.43 ERA and 7-6 record.
Padres are buyers; adding Hill, Choi in trade with Pirates
The San Diego Padres are five games out of a playoff spot but are making moves to get back to the postseason.
The Padres acquired veteran left-hander Rich Hill and first baseman Ji Man Choi from the Pittsburgh Pirates.
This will be the 13th major league team for the 43-year-old Hill, who is 7-10 with a 4.76 ERA in 22 starts in his 19th MLB season.
Choi, 32, is batting .268 with four home runs and nine RBIs in 14 games since coming off the injured list after missing more than two months due to a left Achilles strain.
San Diego, which reached last season’s NL championship series but must pass five teams in the NL wild-card race, sent Pittsburgh three prospects - headlined by lefty Jackson Wolf.
What was expected to be a match-race between God of Love and Yellowstone, proved their undoing, as both went too fast, too early and it paved the way for the late-running Perfect Brew to snare the 19th running of the Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Commission (BGLC) Trophy race at Caymanas Park on Tuesday.
Piloted by reigning champion jockey Dane Dawkins, the Richard Azan-conditioned Perfect Brew closed from well off the pace in the small six-horse field to grab his more fancied rivals close to the wire and in a length and quarter win in the three-year-olds and upward Open Allowance contest over five-and-a-half furlongs (1,100m).
Dawkins, who was enjoying decent form on the day with two winners leading up to the feature event, rode the four-year-old Bern Identity-Moonlight Brew progeny with a great deal of confidence from the off.
Perfect Brew left post position five well and was expectedly urged by Dawkins in an effort to get into stride early, as God of Love (Anthony Allen) and Yellowstone (Tevin Foster) opened up a two or more lengths gap on the field, with Lure of Lucy (Phillip Parchment), being their closest pursuer at that point.
Despite being vigorously ridden by Dawkins, Perfect Brew continued to labour and was in fact, nowhere in sight when God of Love and Yellowstone left the half-mile (800m) and headed towards the homestretch.
By the time the fleet-footed frontrunners straightened, God of Love easily repelled Yellowstone's challenge and looked all over the winner inside the final furlong, but little did they know that Perfect Brew under Dawkins’s left-hand stick, had begun to roll and was rapidly closing the gap with each stride.
Before long, Dawkins and the Azan trainee had them measured and he inevitably swept by on the outside to complete victory in a flat 1:08.0. The splits were 23.0 and 46.2 seconds.
God of Love, stayed on for second, with Yellowstone third and Lure of Lucy, fourth.
While it was Perfect Brew’s second win from seven starts this season, it was Dawkins’s third on the day and 47th of the season, as he moved within 16 of leader Reyan Lewis, who was absent from the programme.
Dawkins earlier won aboard Rejected Raja in the third race for trainer Robert Pearson and also produced a late burst aboard Michael Marlowe’s Blue Persuasion in the fifth race.
Racing continues on Saturday with the running of the Jamaica Oaks Classic race, while the Blueriband Jamaica Derby event will be contested on Monday’s Independence Day card.
Coeur D’or swooped late to claim a head verdict in the featured Colm Quinn BMW Mile Handicap on day two of the Galway Festival.
Trained by Dermot Weld and ridden by Chris Hayes, Coeur D’or was a winner on his penultimate run at Leopardstown, but he was allowed to go off a 14-1 shot in the handicap highlight.
The 18-runner contest proved typically competitive and it looked as though Dunum was going to take the win two furlongs out, only for No More Porter to battle his way to the front inside the distance.
However, Hayes had launched Coeur D’or down the outside and he grabbed the lead in the shadow of the post to take the prize in a photo, with Dunum a further three-quarters of a length back in third.
Weld said: “He is a very consistent horse, this was the plan and he delivered. He had been running very consistently all year and is a brave horse.
“I was worried about the ground as he is very effective on a slightly quicker surface. A mile is his trip but he was a very immature horse in his early days and took a long time to come to hand but patience paid dividends.
“He has two great owners in Stephen O’Connor and Mark Phelan and I’m delighted for them.”
Sharjah returned to the scene of one of his finest hours to make a seamless transition to fences in the Latin Quarter Beginners Chase.
Winner of the Galway Hurdle in 2018, he has gone on to become a multiple Grade One scorer, triumphing in the Matheson Hurdle at Leopardstown’s Christmas meeting on four occasions.
He has also been second in two Champion Hurdles so had a clear class edge over his rivals, but he was making his debut over fences at the age of 10.
Always handy under Paul Townend, reunited with him for the first time since the 2021 Champion Hurdle, Sharjah jumped soundly throughout and came clear under no pressure to win by 11 lengths as the 1-4 favourite.
Mullins said: “He was very smooth and jumped like he did at home. Every time I schooled him, he always looked very capable and confident over fences and showed that today. If he wasn’t good, we wouldn’t have gone chasing with him, but he was so natural at home and did today what he has done at home.
“In today’s race he was meeting a lot less competition compared to what he had been meeting over hurdles for the past four or five years – none of those horses had ever run in a Grade One hurdle – and he enjoyed it.
“I imagine he’ll stay to winners’ races now and he would get nice ground for the Drinmore.”
Promoter Eddie Hearn revealed Conor Benn is itching to “rip someone’s head off” ahead of a possible return to the ring next month after his suspension for two doping violations was lifted.
Benn’s career was thrown into turmoil last October after he twice tested positive for the banned drug clomifene in the lead-up to a bout against Chris Eubank Jr that was subsequently shelved in fight week.
While he has repeatedly stressed his innocence, Benn faced a potential two-year ban after being formally charged by UK Anti-Doping in April, but the Briton claimed last week he has now been cleared.
UKAD confirmed the provisional suspension had been lifted but included the clause that there was a 21-day window in which it could appeal the decision made by the independent National Anti-Doping Panel.
Hearn admitted the situation has taken a toll on Benn, who according to the Matchroom Boxing chief is ready to take his frustrations out on his next opponent having not fought since April last year.
Hearn said: “I would like him to box in September. He wants to go straight into a big fight but he’s been out the ring for 16 months. (Benn fighting in) September and December will be great but we’ll see.
“He’s ready to rip someone’s head off. When you talk about how low he’s been, there’s some people who are like ‘he deserves it, who cares?’ But what he’s been through would break most men.”
Hearn wants Benn to fight again under the auspices of the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC), having relinquished his licence and criticised the governing body’s handling of the matter.
Such a manoeuvre would be halted if the BBBofC decides to appeal the outcome of UKAD’s ruling on Benn, which the body that licenses fighters in Britain said on Monday it was “considering”.
Hearn said: “He has an international licence to box but I would like him to box in the UK. If they (BBBofC) appealed, that would slow down the process. A lot of people will be trying to convince them to (appeal).
“I don’t expect them to, but if they do, we’re here and ready – we’ve done it every day for a year. What’s another month or so? Hopefully we can all move forward.
“Everything that has been asked for Conor Benn, he’s done. I just hope that’s respected. At what point do you say ‘it’s been a year and a half since he’s boxed, how are we going to move forward?’.”
Benn’s positive tests were carried out by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association for the WBC, which cleared the boxer of any wrongdoing in February, pointing to an “elevated consumption of eggs” for the findings.
Hearn said: “You don’t just get cleared, especially not twice as well. One is through the people that controlled the test which is the WBC and VADA – cleared of any wrongdoing which were their words.
“A lot of people were unhappy that he didn’t go through the UKAD and the British Boxing Board of Control route. He did that and UKAD has cleared his suspension and cleared him to box.”
Hearn was speaking to promote Leigh Wood defending his WBA featherweight title against British rival Josh Warrington at Sheffield’s Utilita Arena Sheffield on October 7.
Warrington lost his IBF title in a majority points loss to Luis Alberto Lopez last December in his second defeat in his last four contests – but Hearn is convinced the Leeds fighter remains a danger.
Hearn added: “He looks fresh, he’s motivated and he’s as fit as a fiddle. I’m not saying he’s a favourite in the fight but I don’t think there’s anything in it. It’s a real 50-50 fight.”
If you ask Head coach Lorne Donaldson about Jamaica’s women’s football legacy, he will tell you that it started from their campaign to the 2019 Fifa Women’s World Cup in France, when they initially demonstrated utter resilience to accomplish the historic feat.
Then, the Reggae Girlz programme, through the unwavering commitment of women’s football ambassador Cedella Marley, as well as the Bob Marley and Reggae Girlz Foundations, experienced what could only be described as a rebirth from the ashes, after it was discarded and literally forgotten about by the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF).
Since then, the players and coaching staff –much like Marley –adopted the mentality to always focus on the task at hand, despite the financial shortfalls and other proverbial brick walls faced along the way.
So though much has been said about their recent exploits, Donaldson declared that what the world is once again witnessing is the remarkable grit of the Reggae Girlz outfit, as the players are no longer intimidated by obstacles, particularly those that come in the form of competition.
“When we got to that World Cup in 2019, I was the assistant and Hue Menzies, big praises to him, we worked together that squad, but we weren’t planning on going to the World Cup. Cedella Marley was brave in calling us up and having us help out because the football in Jamaica had diminished and we put it together and miraculously we got to the World Cup,” Donaldson shared.
“Now we think we can take it further. So, the legacy started from there, but we still have a long way to go to achieve what countries like Brazil and others have achieved, so for now we are just trying to grow,” he added.
Donaldson’s views follow the Girlz momentous run at the ongoing showpiece being co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, as they are on the cusp of bringing a dream to fruition and, by extension, rewriting their names in the annals of Jamaica’s sporting history.
To do that, the 43rd-ranked Reggae Girlz require only a point off number eight-ranked Brazil in their decisive Group F encounter at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium on Wednesday.
Kickoff is 5:00am Jamaica time.
The Girlz, who secured an historic point of top-ranked France in a goalless stalemate, followed that up with their first ever World Cup win by virtue of a 1-0 scoreline over Panama, to currently sit second on four points.
Leaders France are also on four points, but with a slightly better goal difference, which matters little, as they are overwhelmingly favoured to snare all three points off Panama.
Pia Sundhage's Brazil side is third on three points and must beat Donaldson’s side, if they are to progress from the group stage for a seventh-consecutive Women's World Cup.
Though on paper the Brazilians are heavily favoured to achieve their objective, the Reggae Girlz have proven that they are not to be underestimated and they possess the willpower to once again shock the world of women’s football.
And Donaldson agrees that the Jamaicans faith are in their own hands.
"Brazil is a powerhouse and I think we relish the challenge, all along we knew we were coming in as underdogs, even throughout the qualifiers we were underdogs. So, it's nothing new to us, we have to just be ready to come out and try to match them as best as we can,” Donaldson said.
“I said it before that we have grown from the qualification phase in Mexico because we really haven't had a lot of games after that and like I said, the players are resilient, they have worked hard and I know they would want to stay (in Australia) a bit longer, so we are going to come out and give it our best,” he noted.
While Brazil suffered defeat to France, Donaldson is under no illusions that they will approach tomorrow’s game with the same tactics, especially with Reggae Girlz talismanic captain Khadija “Bunny” Shaw set to return from a red card suspension.
Shaw, along with Cheyna Matthews is expected to rejoin Jody Brown up in attack, while Donaldson and his assistants could stick with Drew Spence, Vyan Sampson and Atlanta Primus, in midfield.
At the back, Rebecca Spencer should again be shadowed by Swaby sisters, Allyson and Chantelle, flanked by Deneisha Blackwood on the left, while Tiernny Wiltshire could reclaim her staring spot at right back.
“I'm sure Brazil will make the adjustments from what happened in that France game, obviously we will try to limit some stuff and just use what we think we are capable of doing,” Donaldson shared.
“There are nerves but we just have to go in and enjoy it, we don’t have anything to lose, we just have to go out enjoy ourselves and play. A player like “Bunny” Shaw is going to pose problem for anybody, we are happy to have her back and obviously we can use her in areas that we didn't against Panama and try to be effective, but everybody has to do their job,” he ended.
Ollie Chessum is in contention to win a place in England’s World Cup squad after making a successful early comeback from the ankle surgery that had jeopardised his tournament hopes.
England feared they had lost their breakout star of the Six Nations after he was ruled out for between five and six months with the injury sustained during preparations to face Ireland in March.
But on Tuesday he took part in a live scrummaging session during training as he closes in on making a complete recovery that should see him named in Steve Borthwick’s 33-strong squad on Monday.
England had made it clear Chessum would not be risked in Saturday’s opening warm-up match against Wales in Cardiff if not fully fit, but would be willing select him for the World Cup on the strength of his performances this year.
“Ollie’s close to a return. He’s done incredibly well and has been so diligent with his rehab. He looks really good,” attack coach Richard Wigglesworth said.
“He’s definitely a great character and I’ve enjoyed working with him over the last few years, but he’s also a top-quality player who we are keen to get fit.
“The medics said that if he’s free of complications then there’s a very good chance of him being ready for the World Cup. He’s had no complications and flew into his rehab.
“I don’t think we’re going to rush someone back from that injury and say ‘you have to play (against Wales)’ – it’s up to us to make a decision on the best 33 on the back of all the evidence we’ve had.
“Ollie has obviously given pretty strong evidence that he’s a top international player when he was fit.”
Chessum won the first of his nine caps under Eddie Jones but it was during the Six Nations that he announced his arrival as a high-calibre Test player through a series of imposing displays in an otherwise-underperforming team.
The 22-year-old can play lock or blindside flanker and made a big impression on Wigglesworth, who played alongside him and coached him at Leicester until leaving to join Borthwick’s coaching team at the end of the season.
“When Ollie’s fit and firing he brings an energy with him that’s infectious and he’s someone who’s just going to get better and better,” Wigglesworth said.
“He’s got a great attitude, great athletic ability and he’s got the mind to be in an England shirt for a long, long time if he keeps progressing the way he wants to.”
Billy Vunipola has also provided a fitness boost as he shows no adverse effects from his recent knee surgery, nudging him closer to regaining his place as England’s number eight.
“Billy looks highly motivated and he’s had a big impact in training, coming back in straight away,” Wigglesworth said.
“He’s shown his class and his form. His training is slightly modified but not much.”
Borthwick will oversee the final selection meeting in Cardiff on Saturday night before telling each player individually on Sunday whether they made the cut for the World Cup.
The date of the announcement means that the Principality Stadium clash will be the final opportunity for players to play their way into the 33.
“We pick a team to try and win a Test match, without a doubt, but it would probably be disingenuous to say we aren’t trying to get a squad ready for the tournament as well,” Wigglesworth said.
“We have to have a squad that is ready to play in France to the best of its ability. Will the same team play four weeks in a row? No, absolutely not. There will be changes throughout the four weeks.”
Jim Crowley has been banned for 20 days and fined £10,000 for his winning ride aboard Hukum in Saturday’s King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.
Both Crowley and Rob Hornby, who finished second aboard Westover, were referred to the British Horseracing Authority’s Whip Review Committee following a duel to the line in the midsummer highlight, with Hukum prevailing by a head.
Flat riders are allowed to use their whip six times in a race, with a four-day ban for going one over the limit and seven days for going two over. Crowley used his whip nine times, which incurs a 10-day ban and is doubled for a class one race.
Had Crowley used his whip four times over the limit then Hukum would have been disqualified.
The rider will be banned August 15-21 and August 23 – September 4, meaning he misses the Ebor meeting at York, where he was due to ride runaway Prince of Wales’s Stakes winner Mostahdaf in the Juddmonte International. He also received the substantial fine due to the class and value of the race.
On Monday the whip rules were tweaked once more by the BHA following a six-month review period and while the changes would not have affected Crowley’s punishment due to the severity of his offence, Hornby has benefitted from the revisions.
He used his whip once above the permitted level, but given he has had more than 200 rides in Britain since his last whip offence, his initial ban was cut to two days. However, that is then doubled due to the calibre of race, meaning he will be out of action for four days (August 15-18 inclusive).
Had the rules not been changed 24 hours previously, Hornby would have had an eight-day suspension imposed.
Republic of Ireland defender Megan Campbell was “gutted” not to be able to join her nation at the Women’s World Cup but believes the team’s participation at the tournament is a “catalyst” to inspire the next generation of football fans.
The centre-back for Liverpool and the Republic was not chosen as part of Vera Pauw’s squad for the tournament in Australia and New Zealand after being unable to recover in time from an unspecified injury.
The Republic crashed out of the tournament with just one point from three group-stage games after Monday’s goalless draw with Nigeria, but despite this Campbell said the support shown for the team has been “incredible”.
“I joined in with many thousands of other fans from Ireland as the whole country was backing the team and watching the games, and the amount of Irish support Down Under has been incredible,” the 30-year-old told the PA news agency.
“What an opportunity for the girls to be able to put Ireland on the biggest stage possible and it’s only the start for this team.
“It’s a catalyst, hopefully, for building for the future generations.”
She also commended the quality of football at this year’s World Cup, describing it as a “great spectacle” following England’s win over China in the final round of the group stage.
Campbell said England had “come out all guns blazing” after beating China 6-1 on Tuesday.
“I think it’s been a great spectacle for women’s football and shows how close the games have been… in general the scorelines have been quite narrow so this shows that the level is improving all over the world,” she said.
Campbell felt the Lionesses experienced “a lot of pressure” going into this year’s World Cup, following their European Championship win, but said they had successfully achieved their objective of winning every group-stage match.
“I think they probably have a lot of pressure coming into the tournament off the back of winning the Euros and that was to be expected, obviously, because they have done so well,” she said.
“But it’s about winning games in the group stages, and that’s what they’ve done and they’ve managed to achieve that by getting nine points out of nine.”
In a bid to make women’s football more visible, particularly in schools, Campbell and Czech Republic and Chelsea midfielder Katerina Svitkova joined more than 100 schoolgirls at Alexander Stadium in Birmingham on Tuesday to inspire the next generation of children to play football.
“It’s been a lovely atmosphere here. Probably close enough to an atmosphere Down Under, I’d say, as the kids are quite loud,” Campbell said.
The Republic and Liverpool player said there were some “hidden talents” at the Football Fun Day event brought together by Visa and HSBC.
“There have been some girls who probably haven’t played football before for a team who will now sign up for teams because they love being here and feel inspired by the day,” she said.
“I think the job’s complete, and we’ve probably done a really good one if girls now want to play football.”
She hopes increased visibility of women’s football will create new role models for young children to be inspired by.
“With the women’s football team doing so well, it’s great to have this off the back of it to inspire the next generations,” she said.
“That’s what this is about, trying to inspire the next generations to play football but also just for girls in general and in life to have models to look up to regardless of if it’s football or not.”
She also hopes that more visibility of the Women’s Super League will help to inspire more children to watch the game.
“I think the league will only grow this year and participation will increase, which is the most important thing overall.
“It’s about the here and now, but it’s also about the future generations and what we can provide for them.”
Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton, Indiana Pacers guard Buddy Hield and Charlotte Hornets forward Kai Jones have committed to play for their native Bahamas in upcoming Olympic qualifying action.
All four are on the roster for Bahamas for its Olympic qualifier in Santiago de Estero, Argentina, from Aug. 14-20.
Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Panama, Uruguay and the U.S. Virgin Islands are also participating in hopes of qualifying for a spot in the 2024 Paris Games.
Bahamas must win this tournament to qualify for another Olympic qualifier next summer.
Bahamas has never competed in the Olympics in men’s basketball.
This Bahamian team is projected to be the strongest the country has ever had. Bahamas is coached by Golden State Warriors assistant coach Chris DeMarco.
The full roster is as follows:
Deandre Ayton, Dominick Bridgewater, Jaraun Burrows, Garvin Clarke, Kadeem Coleby, Rashad Davis, Buddy Hield, Sammy Hunter, Kai Jones, Danrad Knowles, Lourawls Nairn, Willis Mackey Jr, Franco Miller, Travis Munnings, Kentwan Smith, David Nesbitt, AJ Storr, Mychel Thompson
Tom Marquand executed a perfect front-running ride aboard Quickthorn to win the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup.
Trained by Hughie Morrison, Marquand had adopted very similar tactics last season in the Lonsdale Cup at York when beating the reopposing Coltrane by 14 lengths.
Quickthorn had failed to quite match that level of performance since, but did return to winning ways last time out back at York in a Listed race and the form was subsequently franked when the second, Israr, won a Group Two next time out.
Marquand stole a few lengths early and then once again on the brow of the hill, when the field might expect to start making ground, but the jockey ensured there was no let up in the pace.
At one stage he was around 20 lengths clear but Oisin Murphy on Coltrane, who was leading the pack, seemed content in where he was with half a mile to go.
The riders of Eldar Eldarov, Giavellotto, Emily Dickinson and Gold Cup winner Courage Mon Ami all suddenly realised Quickthorn was not stopping, but the victor had a decisive lead.
Quickthorn won by six lengths from Emily Dickinson, who prevailed in a photo for second with Coltrane, with Eldar Eldarov a further short head back in fourth.
England eased into the last 16 at the Women’s World Cup with a rout of China while the United States survived a scare against Portugal to keep their hopes of a third straight title alive.
The Netherlands swept through with a resounding victory over Vietnam while Denmark also made it into the knockouts.
Here, the PA news agency takes a look at all of Tuesday’s action.
James orchestrates England’s win
Lauren James’ performance as England swatted China aside 6-1 in Adelaide to advance to the last 16 as winners of Group D might have been one of the most complete seen by an England player at a major tournament.
The Chelsea forward scored two wonderful goals and was unlucky to be denied another by a contentious VAR decision in the first half, and put in a fine all-round display as England finally found their World Cup stride.
The Lionesses’ shortcomings in squeaking past Haiti and Denmark now look like nothing more than early-tournament jitters, after they presented their credentials with purpose against China.
Sarina Wiegman’s side will now face Nigeria in Brisbane on Monday.
Holders through but rattled
The holders’ World Cup lives will have flashed before their eyes when Ana Capeta raced through on goal in added time in their final group game against Portugal at Eden Park.
But the striker’s effort crashed back off the base of a post and away to safety, meaning the United States were also safely into the last 16, scraping through with a goalless draw that gave them the point they required.
Yet they were given an almighty scare in Auckland by Francisco Neto’s team, who themselves came within a lick of paint of eliminating the four-time winners and recording one of the World Cup’s all-time great surprises.
Dutch delight
The holders’ struggles were thrown into relief by the ease with which the Netherlands navigated Group E, and the 2017 European champions have looked an increasingly serious side since arriving in New Zealand.
Esmee Brugts made the game’s outstanding contributions, curling in two almost identical efforts from range as the Dutch meted out a 7-0 thrashing of Vietnam to top the group, while Jill Roord also scored twice.
Haiti going home proud
Haiti are going home without a point or a goal to their name, but this has nevertheless been a World Cup showing for the debutants to be proud of.
Their dogged performance against England in the opening game and how close they came to taking a point from China have offered a robust argument to anyone who suggested these finals should not have been expanded to 32 teams.
Opponents Denmark, who eased through to the last 16 with a 2-0 win in Perth, will face co-hosts Australia next.
Post of the dayUp next
Group G: Argentina v Sweden (8am)
Group G: South Africa v Italy (8am)
Group F: Jamaica v Brazil (11am)
Group F: Panama v France (11am)
All times BST
Derek McInnes believes his Kilmarnock squad is “significantly stronger” after Liam Donnelly agreed a new contract with the club.
The 27-year-old midfielder, who joined Killie from Motherwell on a one-year deal last summer, re-signed on a two-year contract and will remain with Killie until 2025.
The Northern Ireland international joins new signings Robbie Deas, Matty Kennedy, Kyle Magennis, Kieran O’Hara, Marley Watkins, Tom Davies, Will Dennis, Stuart Findlay, Corrie Ndaba and Lewis Mayo in a revamped squad.
Kilmarnock finished 10th in the cinch Premiership last season in their return to the top flight and ahead of the league opener against Rangers at Rugby Park on Saturday, boss McInnes said: “There are no guarantees when you sign players but for me, we have made some good signings.
“I feel we have a bit more experience with some of the signings.
“We let a lot of players go to free up the space to give us scope to rebuild the squad.
“A lot of loan players went back but we brought Lewis Mayo back as a permanent signing which is good and we have tried to reduce the amount of loans we have in comparison to last season.
“That would be an indication that we have done the work, trying to give players contracts to become Kilmarnock players so we feel we have a good level of player in the building. The proof will be at the end of the season.
“That demand was met last season with the squad we had, and now the demand shifts, we are looking for a bit more from everybody and hopefully we can meet the demand that is on us this season.
“We still have a bit to do, we still have forward areas to be dealt with, we are still trying to get at least one in between now and the window closing.
“But if we can get a few of our senior players back who have been out, like Joe Wright, Kyle Vassell and Rory McKenzie, then the squad looks significantly stronger but as I say time will tell with that.”
McInnes is “really pleased” that Donnelly will extend his time at the Ayrshire club.
The Killie boss said: “He said if he was staying in Scotland he would be signing for us.
“We agreed a deal a while ago but he had a lot to consider with his family.
“Even this week there was a club in Scotland offering him more money to sign and he stood by his word so, really good to get him, although he is away behind everyone else (fitness wise) but we sign players for the season.”
Killie start the season with Rangers at home, Hearts away then Celtic at home in the ViaPlay Cup and McInnes revealed he had an Old Firm “itch to scratch” this season.
The former Ibrox midfielder said: “I think it is a great opening fixture for us.
“We beat every team in the cinch Premiership last season except Rangers and Celtic.
“We know what we are capable of but we also have to demonstrate our capabilities of getting results against the best two teams.
“We have to have the confidence, assurance and personality on Saturday to try to do exactly that.
“It is an itch we need to scratch. We need to try to overcome that, the fact that we never took points off Rangers and Celtic last season.
“We expect a tough game on Saturday. It is important Rangers get that as well.”
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