All options remain open for King Of Steel following his impressive victory at Royal Ascot.

The Roger Varian-trained colt proved his brave second to Auguste Rodin in the Derby was no flash in the pan when romping to King Edward VII Stakes glory at the Royal meeting, marking himself out as one of the season’s leading middle-distance colts.

Connections have been eyeing a trip to ParisLongchamp on July 14 for the Grand Prix de Paris, but the son of Wootton Bassett also holds an entry for the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes, with Amo Racing supremo Kia Joorabchian suggesting it could be tempting to have a rematch with his Epsom conqueror at Ascot on July 29.

However, a final call is still to be made as connections ponder which route will benefit their talented operator most as the season progresses.

“He’s still got his entry for both France and Ascot and no decisions have been made yet,” said Tom Pennington, Amo’s racing and operations manager.

“He’s come out of Ascot in good shape, everyone is really happy with him and all options are on the table, we just need to make sure we pick the right one.

“We have to take into consideration it’s a long old season and we want to look after him. He’s clearly a talented horse with the rest of the season ahead of him and hopefully he will come back again next year.”

Amo Racing also have Olivia Maralda in training with Varian at Carlburg Stables and the Surrey Stakes scorer is poised to return to racing among her own sex following her fifth-placed effort in the Jersey Stakes last month.

The Group Three Whispering Angel Oak Tree Stakes on August 2 during the Qatar Goodwood Festival has been identified as a next port of call, which could lead to taking on her elders in the Sky Bet City of York Stakes later that month.

“She ran a great race against the colts in the Jersey and we were really pleased with that. The draw probably didn’t help in hindsight,” continued Pennington.

“We gave her an entry in the City of York earlier this week and she is probably going to head to the Oak Tree next at Goodwood.

“We might take on the colts again later in the season and obviously we could do that at York. But we thought let’s try to get another win under her belt and she won at Listed Level at Epsom, so now we’ll try to get a Group-level success and go from there.”

Paddington’s well-being is what prompted trainer Aidan O’Brien to divert from the original plan and target the dual Group One-winning colt at the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown on Saturday.

The Siyouni colt has carried all before him so far this season, winning each of his four starts without being seriously troubled.

He proved his mettle at the top level when winning the Irish 2,000 Guineas and comprehensively overpowered Newmarket Guineas winner Chaldean in the St James’s Palace at Royal Ascot.

O’Brien originally hinted he might keep his powder dry for Goodwood’s Sussex Stakes, but Paddington instead steps up to 10 furlongs and takes on his elders for the first time this weekend.

“Everything has gone well since Ascot, he hasn’t done much but everybody seems very happy with him,” said the Ballydoyle handler.

“There was always a chance that he would run (at Sandown). Obviously we were trying to give him as much time as we could and he’s nice and fresh and well, that’s why we’re giving him the chance.

“The plan was to go to Goodwood, but because he came out of the race at Ascot so well we think, we felt he could take this in on the way.

“He looks to be progressing from race to race.”

O’Brien does not expect the trip to be a problem for Paddington and is similarly unconcerned about the potential of the four-horse contest developing into a tactical affair.

“John (Magnier) always thought that a mile and a quarter was well within his compass pedigree-wise and Ryan (Moore) was always happy that he would get it as well,” O’Brien added.

“He’s a very straightforward horse and Ryan can go forward on him – he’s very happy to do anything really.

“I think all the horses in it are very good horses and I don’t think it (small field) makes a big difference, it should be fine.

“It’s going to be interesting taking on the older horses, we think he’ll handle it but you don’t know how it will go until you do it.”

Paddington is joined at the head of the market by Emily Upjohn, who steps back in distance after securing her second Group One victory over a mile and a half in the Coronation Cup at Epsom.

Of more concern than the shorter trip for connections of the John and Thady Gosden-trained filly, though, will be the fact she must concede 7lb to the O’Brien runner, who is rated 3lb superior.

William Haggas is looking forward to seeing the globetrotting Dubai Honour return to home turf following a profitable winter campaign abroad.

The five-year-old won back-to-back Group Ones in Australia in the year and was far from disgraced when third in the QEII Cup in Hong Kong. But Haggas acknowledges he has more on his plate in the Esher showpiece.

“He’s in good form, but obviously it is going to be tough to beat the front two. One is one of the best three-year-olds around and the other is one of the best four-year-old fillies around,” he said.

“They are going to be very hard to beat, but he is such a marvellous horse and has done so well.

“He has probably won twice as much money as all of them put together, which is extraordinary, and I have nothing but admiration for him.”

The small but select field is completed by Simon and Ed Crisford’s West Wind Blows.

The four-year-old is no slouch as a dual Group Three winner and finished best of the rest behind Hukum in the Hardwicke Stakes, but he will nevertheless be a big outsider.

“I don’t think West Wind Blows will look out of place on Saturday. It is a championship race and there are some of the best horses in training in it, but funny things can happen in these small field races,” said Ed Crisford.

“It is going to be a challenging test, but the horse is in great order and deserves to take his chance.

“Jamie Spencer will ride him and they are a very good match. It does come soon enough after Ascot, but he has bounced out of Ascot and come out of it very well.

“Hopefully he will keep improving. If he can run a good race we will be happy.”

Ben Stokes’ power-hitting and Stuart Broad’s dominance over David Warner kept England in with a shout on the second afternoon of the third Ashes Test at Headingley.

Just five days after from taking his side close at Lord’s with a brilliant 155, the captain once again carried the innings with a muscular 80, clubbing five sixes and six fours as wickets tumbled around him.

He was last man out as England made 237 all out, just 26 behind despite a flimsy showing from the top five. Broad then nicked off Warner for the second time in the match and the 17th time overall, as the tourists reached 29 for one in their second innings.

Australia captain Pat Cummins had earlier banked six for 91, standing tall despite the boos that have followed him to Leeds following last week’s stumping controversy. England’s bowling, meanwhile, was hampered by the absence of Ollie Robinson due to back spasms.

There was a sense of expectation in the air at the start of the day, with local heroes Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow unbeaten overnight with a fragile score of 68 for three.

Both men have two Test hundreds at their home ground and conspired to drop four catches between them on Thursday. Add in Bairstow’s much-discussed grievance over his stumping at Lord’s and the scene seemed set for the pair.

Instead, they barely left a dent. Root nicked the second ball of the morning to slip, too eager to play as Cummins left him no width to work with, and Bairstow was not far behind. Tempted to drive away from his body as Mitchell Starc slanted it towards the cordon, he was unable to exact any kind of revenge.

Stokes was fighting through the pain barrier to keep the contest alive, moving awkwardly as fresh niggles apparently added to his existing left knee problem.

At 87 for five, Stokes set himself for a rescue mission just five days after nailing 155 in a losing cause at Lord’s. He admitted at the pre-match press conference that the innings had taken “quite a bit out of me” and the evidence was there for all to see.

His movements were stiff and uncomfortable, with his longstanding left-knee issues apparently compounded by further problems, and he required treatment midway through the session.

But he stuck to the task, putting on a careful 44 with Moeen Ali before Cummins finally drew the latter into a careless hook. Chris Woakes was also undone by the short ball in the last over before lunch, leaving England with a sorely underpowered 142 for seven.

A 40-minute break allowed them to reassess and they came out with all guns blazing. In just 10.2 overs they piled on 95 runs and lost their last three wickets as the game romped along at speed.

Mark Wood got the show on the road, launching Starc for six over midwicket off the first ball of the session. The second was slashed for four, the third for six more and when he top-edged Cummins over fine-leg he had 24 off just six deliveries.

That was where his fun stopped, chipping straight up in the air looking for more of the same, but the tone was set. Starc dropped Stokes on 45, unable to hold on low after making good ground, and it was Starc himself who paid the price as Stokes guided him for three successive boundaries to pass 50.

An outstanding boundary catch from Steve Smith saw Broad become Cummins’ sixth victim, but the emergence of Robinson at number 11 merely raised Stokes’ temperature.

He blitzed Australia’s second-choice spinner Todd Murphy for five sixes in 14 balls – three back down the ground, one swept behind square and another picked up from outside off into the leg-side. He holed out going for another big hit, Murphy going flatter and wider.

Broad ensured England got a quick breakthrough in response, plowing a familiar furrow against the left-handed Warner and earning an equally familiar edge to slip.

Usman Khawaja and David Warner ensured no further losses, stretching the lead to 55 by tea.

Former Breeders’ Cup Turf winner Yibir showed he still has plenty of class when cosily taking the Listed Coral Marathon in the hands of William Buick at Sandown.

The Godolphin-owned five-year-old stepped up beyond a mile and a half for the first time when finishing sixth in the Ascot Gold Cup last time out, and dropped back to two miles here he took time to find his true rhythm.

With long-time leader Sleeping Lion beginning to fade, Buick tracked Aaddeey and made his move, switching around Hollie Doyle’s before drawing clear for a three-and-a-half-length success.

With trainer Charlie Appleby absent, assistant Alex Merriam said: “If you watch him in his races, he can come off the bridle early.

“He still showed a bit of class and there is still an engine there.

“I think if you went straight to Goodwood, you would not know whether he stayed or not. I think he’s seen it out well enough there, but whether we go two (miles) or a mile and six (furlongs), we’ll get him home and see how he is.

“There are a few options for him. Charlie mentioned maybe we will go back to a mile and six. Two miles is an option. He’s got his head in front and there are no big plans.

“He could go aboard. He’s been to America, but I only spoke briefly to Charlie.

“He is a proper horse and owes no one anything. It is just nice for the horse to get his head in front again.”

After unsaddling from the winner, who was sent off the 1-3 favourite, Buick said: “One I got him back in, I got into a lovely rhythm and he was taking me the whole way.

“The pace was even the whole way, so he could have come from anywhere in the race.

“I thought he built into the race lovely and when I asked him, he picked up well.

“I would say two miles is the absolute maximum of how far he’d want to go and we could easily come back to a mile and six.

“He warms into his races and sometimes it looks great and sometimes it just doesn’t work. Today we just got the balance right and he was entitled to win in that company.”

William Saliba has become the latest big-name Arsenal star to commit his future to the club after signing a new long-term contract.

The France defender played a pivotal role as the Gunners ultimately came up short in their Premier League title tilt last season and has now agreed fresh terms at the Emirates Stadium.

Saliba, 22, was an ever-present in the league until he suffered a back injury during the Europa League defeat to Sporting in mid-March – an issue that would ultimately rule him out for the remainder of the campaign.

Without him, Mikel Arteta’s side saw their lead at the top of the table cut by Manchester City, who eventually powered past Arsenal to retain their title.

Now, though, an agreement has finally been reached that ties Saliba to the club on a four-year deal, the PA new agency understands.

“I was born in north Paris, but became a man in north London,” Saliba said in a video message for Arsenal fans on the club’s Twitter account.

“I know it must have been strange for you. I show up, a kid you have never heard of and then keep going away to different clubs (on loan) before you get to see me play.

 

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“But I know now this was the best plan for me, and last summer when I came back to the club and became a pivotal part of the team words cannot describe how I feel here. how you (fans) make me feel.

“Having the confidence of the boss and the staff, and then having your love and support made me feel 10 feet tall… so thank you Gooners, this if for you. We are together and let’s keep moving.”

Saliba, who will move to the number two shirt next season, did not make his competitive Arsenal debut until the start of last season, despite joining from St Etienne in 2019 for a reported £27million.

Instead, the centre-back was loaned back to his former club before also spending time at Nice and Marseille – being named Ligue 1 young player of the year after a fine 2021/22 season with the latter.

Saliba’s performances for Arsenal attracted interest from some of Europe’s biggest clubs, with Arteta happy to see Saliba extend his stay in north London

“To have William extend his contract with us was something we have wanted to do for a long time. William proved last season just how good and how important he is to our squad,” Arteta said on the club website.

“The ability he has at his young age of just 22 is exciting, and there is of course so much more room for development with any player at this stage of their career. We’re looking forward to continuing to work with William in the years to come.”

Arsenal sporting director Edu added: “William is part of our vision to keep our talented young players, who will hopefully be successful with us for many years to come, so that we can grow and progress together.”

The defender becomes the latest of Arteta’s key men to sign a new contract with Gabriel Martinelli, Bukayo Saka and Aaron Ramsdale having already done so earlier this year and Saliba’s centre-back partner Gabriel Magalhaes signing on last October.

Reiss Nelson, too, agreed a fresh deal on Thursday as Arteta aims to maintain the nucleus of the squad that almost ended a 19-year wait for a Premier League title.

One player who played a key role last season who will not be part of Arteta’s ranks moving forward is Granit Xhaka – the midfielder having joined Bayer Leverkusen for £21.4million on Thursday.

However, Declan Rice is set to undergo a medical with the West Ham captain to become the most expensive British player in Premier League history when his £105million move across the capital goes through.

Rice will join Kai Havertz in signing for Arsenal this summer while Ajax defender Jurrien Timber is also close to completing a switch to the Emirates.

Charlie Appleby is responsible for four of the six confirmations for the Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket on Thursday.

The Group Two contest is the feature event on day one of the July Festival and Appleby appears intent on securing back-to-back victories following the success of Yibir 12 months ago.

Adayar, the Derby and King George hero of 2021, has the option of returning to a mile and a half after finishing third in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot, while Breeders’ Cup Turf winner Rebel’s Romance could make his first appearance since disappointing in the Dubai Sheema Classic in March.

Recent Fred Archer Stakes scorer Kemari and Meydan Group Two winner Global Storm, last seen finishing second to stablemate Hurricane Lane in the Jockey Club Stakes, complete the Moulton Paddocks quartet.

John and Thady Gosden’s Israr and the Charlie Fellowes-trained Grand Alliance are the other contenders.

Royal Ascot runner-up Malc is one of 14 juveniles entered for the other Group Two on the card, the Bahrain Turf Club July Stakes.

Richard Fahey’s youngster found only Valiant Force too strong when a 66-1 shot for last month’s Norfolk Stakes and looks set for a step up from five to six furlongs next week.

His Majesty is one of three possibles for Aidan O’Brien along with Edwardian and Mountain Bear.

Arrest heads 13 horses in the mix for the Bahrain Trophy, a recognised trial for the St Leger.

The Juddmonte-owned colt disappointed when favourite to provide Frankie Dettori with a dream success in his final Derby, and was again well held at the Royal meeting. Connections will be hoping for an easier surface on the July course.

Saint George is an obvious contender for Andrew Balding after finishing second in the Queen’s Vase. Circle Of Fire (Sir Michael Stoute) was fourth in the same race for the King and Queen and could also run at Newmarket.

The Edmondson Hall Solicitors Sir Henry Cecil Stakes looks an interesting contest, with the long-absent Nostrum the potential headline act.

The Kingman colt has not been seen in competitive action since finishing third in last season’s Dewhurst, with a spring setback ruling him out of the Classics.

This Listed contest appears an ideal comeback target for the Sir Michael Stoute-trained colt, but he might not have things all his own way, with James Ferguson’s Jersey runner-up Zoology and Appleby’s unbeaten course and distance winner Imperial Emperor among his potential rivals.

Karl Burke is blessed with an abundance of juvenile talent this season and Kylian could well prove to be among the best of them, judging by his demolition of six rivals in the Listed Dragon Stakes at Sandown.

Settled in by Ryan Moore early in the five-furlong contest, the strapping son of Invincible Spirit, sent off the 9-4 second-favourite, floated over the fast ground and picked up the leaders with ease, drawing clear inside the final furlong to win by six lengths from Hackman, with Nazalan third.

Former jockey Philip Robinson, now assistant racing manager to owner Sheikh Hamed Dalmook Al Maktoum, said: “He’s nice, isn’t he? Ryan just thinks he’s a very nice horse, but thinks he’s been quite a slow learner.

“He’s now learning what it’s all about and said he had a good look around when he got in front, but he didn’t look around too much, did he?

“Karl has always thought he was a good horse and was very surprised when he got beaten (on debut) at York.

“He’s just probably a slow learner, who is just learning through his racing. Hopefully, he will go on to better things.

“Ryan thinks he can possibly get six furlongs, so that’s another avenue.

“He had been working with his other good ones before he ran at York, so he was quite surprised (when he was beaten). Some horses take a little while to develop on track.”

Kylian is now likely step up in grade at Goodwood, according to Robinson.

“He might go to the Molecomb, possibly,” he said. “We will sit sown and talk to the owner and Karl.

“As long as he comes out of the race OK. I don’t think it was too hard a race.”

He added: “Ryan was able to fill him up and he was going well within himself. I don’t think they went crazy. It takes some getting up the hill, but you don’t see many winning like that over five furlongs.”

The favourite, Born To Rock, who looked a good prospect when making a winning start by 12 lengths at Yarmouth on his debut a month ago, failed to fire.

His trainer Jane Chapple-Hyam said beforehand he had been laid low and had been on a course of antibiotics after his victory.

“This did not appear to be his running – he is better than that,” she said.

Nat Sciver-Brunt says England are expecting to face a fired-up Australia when they attempt to stay in the hunt for the Ashes at Lord’s on Saturday.

Heather Knight’s side trail 6-2 in the multi-format series but have been lifted by clinching Wednesday’s second T20 match at The Oval by three runs.

Although England remain in must-win territory if they are to have any hope of claiming the Ashes for the first time since 2014, Sciver-Brunt insists they are convinced they are on the right path.

“It makes the game more simple – there’s no choice, you just have to go for it. We’re trying to focus on ourselves,” the all-rounder said.

 

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“Both teams would say they haven’t played their best so there should be some tuned-in performances from both sides.

“But we know that Australia will definitely come back hard at us and hopefully we can combat that.

“The win on Wednesday helps with the belief in our group. If anything it will spur us on to keep playing in the way we have been playing. It validates that a bit.

“We’ve believed in ourselves quite a lot more than we have in the past over the last nine to 12 months but not quite got the results, so we’re really happy to have got over the line.”

A crowd of around 20,000 is expected at Lord’s for the last of the three T20 matches before the Ashes concludes with a trio of one-day internationals, each of which has sold out.

It comes after 20,328 gathered at The Oval to see England claw their way back into contention. The last time the series was played on these shores in 2019 it produced a total combined attendance of 30,000.

“The crowds have been really special and show where we are at the minute, but also what happens when you market it as well as you can,” Sciver-Brunt said.

“You’ve got two top teams going head to head and it’s the Ashes and this proves it is as popular as we think it is.

“Playing in front of that many people and riding that energy you get from the crowd is something really, really special. Hopefully it will be replicated at Lord’s.”

Sciver-Brunt has confirmed that she will be able to bowl after completing two overs at The Oval in her first spell since suffering from knee inflammation during the Test between the rivals.

“I’m feeling good. My knee’s recovered pretty well from the injection after the Test match so I’m really happy with how it’s going,” she said.

“I’ve played pretty much my whole career as an all-rounder and I thrive off being able to contribute to everything in the game.

“I felt like I was letting people down when I couldn’t do that and I’m in a good place for it now.”

Stuart Broad dismissed David Warner for the 17th time in 29 meetings and for the second time in the match as England fought back against Australia in the third Ashes Test at Headingley.

Having already snared Warner in the first Test last month, Broad had his old foe caught in the slips on day one in Leeds and then replicated the trick second time around, Zak Crawley again the catcher.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look back at their duels over the years to see how they have historically fared against each other.

2021-2022 Ashes

While Warner was run out by his nemesis at Adelaide, it was not until the fourth Test at Sydney where Broad had the left-hander in his pocket with a trademark outswinger pouched at second slip. Warner also fell to Broad in the next Test at Hobart after holing out to Ollie Pope at point.

2019 Ashes

Broad had Warner’s number throughout the series, dismissing him seven times across 10 innings as the tactic of bowling from round the wicket left the usually tenacious top-order batter hesitant of where his off-stump was. Warner managed just 95 runs across the five Tests at a meagre average of just 9.5 in a torrid tour. Broad was England’s leading wicket-taker in the series (23) and even ended up with a higher batting average (12.2) than Warner.

2017-18 Ashes

Less than two years earlier and it was Warner who held the upper hand in the head-to-head contest. Broad had a poor series by his lofty standards with just 11 wickets across the whole series while Warner amassed 441 runs at 63. He was dismissed by the likes of Jake Ball, Craig Overton and even Joe Root but not once by Broad.

2015 Ashes

Broad was the leading wicket-taker on either side with 21 dismissals at 20.9 but he was never able to dislodge Warner, who amassed 418 at 46.44. Even in Broad’s career-best eight for 15 at Trent Bridge which swung a see-saw series England’s way, it was Mark Wood who prised out Warner.

2013-14 Ashes

After months of being baited by the Australian media for his memorable refusal to walk in the series opener between the teams, Broad accounted for Warner en route to recording six for 81. While Warner nicked off in the second innings to Broad, it came after the Australian’s belligerent 124 gave his side the upper hand. Broad got him twice more in the series where he took 21 wickets, a rare bright spot in England’s 5-0 whitewash defeat. Warner was key to the result after racking up 523 runs at 58.11.

2013 Ashes

Warner made his Ashes debut in the third Test at Old Trafford, just weeks after being hit with a suspension for an unprovoked attack on Joe Root in a Birmingham nightclub. Warner’s rivalry with the fast bowler who would go on to become his tormentor began in the next Test at Chester-le-Street when he was castled for a duck in the first innings. It was the only time in the series Warner fell to Broad, whose 11 for 121 in the north east remains his career-best match figures.

William Haggas is eager to test the mettle of Tiber Flow over five furlongs, with the Chipchase Stakes hero making a quick return to action in the Coral Charge at Sandown.

The four-year-old, who won the Carnarvon Stakes at Newbury last year, scooped Group Three honours for the first time when obliging favourite-backers at Gosforth Park last Saturday.

And the pace he showed in that six-furlong event in the north east was enough to convince the Somerville Lodge handler to drop his charge back to the minimum distance at the Esher track.

“I want to try him over five, he showed a lot of speed to me up at Newcastle,” said Haggas.

“I’ve never run him over five and this is the stiffest five in the country. Yes he has a penalty, but if he waited for the Hackwood Stakes he would have a penalty in that too, so I’m going to run him and see how we get on.

“He’s a very genuine, nice horse.”

Royal Ascot form is represented by Mick Appleby’s Annaf who has been at the peak of his powers this season and finished third in the King’s Stand Stakes.

He is joined in the line-up by stablemate and depending champion Raasel, who is yet to hit the heights of his three victories last term but was also far from disgraced from a less than ideal draw in the King’s Stand.

“Annaf seems in really good order and obviously Raasel won the race last year so it would be nice if he could follow it up,” said Appleby.

“They are both in great order. They both ran well at Ascot, I was really pleased with that. Anaaf’s was a great run, but Raasel ran better than where he actually finished – it was the draw that did him, he ended up on the wing and he’s a horse that needs plenty of cover.”

Equilateral (fifth) and Marshman (seventh) were others who took part in the King’s Stand and are now dropping in class, with the former hoping for a smoother passage than when suffering a luckless run in this race 12 months ago.

The 36-race veteran is one of two in the contest for Charlie Hills along with impressive Windsor handicap winner Equality, while Marshman is also joined in the line-up by a stablemate as Karl Burke will also saddle recent Scurry Stakes scorer Lady Hamana.

Another handler with two bullets to fire at the Group Three contest is Clive Cox who is represented by Get Ahead and Diligent Harry.

Get Ahead arrives on the back of a fine start to the season and having landed the Cecil Frail at Haydock on her penultimate start, was ahead of Marshman when denied by a short head in the Prix du Gros-Chene at Chantilly last month.

“Get Ahead ran a blinder in France last time and has really come to hand,” said Cox.

“She’s a filly we have always believed in and her recent runs have confirmed that promise was well worth investing in.

“We are hoping the thunderstorms don’t get involved too much from her point of view. She would be happier without that. She is in excellent form if the conditions remain suitable.

Diligent Harry drops back in distance having failed to add to his All-Weather Championships Finals Day triumph in two starts on turf since.

“It’s a nice opportunity to run over a stiff five with him,” continued Cox.

“We did have him in the Chipchase last week, but I’m happy we have an opportunity to run over five here.

“He has run on an easier surface before in the Cammidge Trophy when he was just beaten in 2022. He is in excellent form and he’s a horse who is one of our typically pleasing sprinters and we hope he’s not too badly drawn.”

Hollie Doyle will link up with Ed Walker’s Ayr Listed winner Makarova, with Stuart Williams’ Existent completing the 11-strong field.

Republic of Ireland captain Katie McCabe says she is “feeling good” and that “everything is looking really positive” after she sustained an ankle issue in Thursday’s World Cup warm-up match against France.

The 3-0 loss for Vera Pauw’s side at Dublin’s Tallaght Stadium saw Arsenal’s McCabe come off due to the problem in the 29th minute.

Speaking to Sky Sports News on Friday as she and her team-mates prepared to fly from Dublin Airport to the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, McCabe said: “I’m feeling good.

“I basically was running through and I kind of rolled my ankle, but I’ve been for scans and stuff this morning and everything is looking really positive.

“So I’m in a good a place and hopefully will be back on the pitch early next week.”

Asked if she would have to miss a few days’ training, the versatile 27-year-old said: “Depends on how I go on the flight, hopefully it doesn’t blow up. I think maybe a day or two, but I am feeling good, which is nice.”

The team, playing at a major tournament for the first time in their history, open their World Cup campaign by facing Australia in Sydney on July 20.

Trinidad & Tobago’s Jereem Richards produced a stunning new personal best to claim 400m gold at the CAC Games in San Salvador on Thursday.

The two-time Commonwealth Games Champion in the 200m ran a brilliant 44.54 to win ahead of St. Lucia’s Michael Joseph (44.90) and Martinique’s Gilles Biron (45.06).

Richards, the reigning World Indoor Champion in the 400m, had a previous outdoor personal best of 44.79 done last year at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene.

Current world leader, Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic, dominated the field to take the women’s event in 49.95. Cuba’s Roxana Gomez was a distant second in 51.23 while Puerto Rico’s Gabriella Scott was third in 51.51.

Trinidad & Tobago took gold and silver in the men’s and women’s 4x100m relays, respectively.

The men produced a time of 38.30 to win gold ahead of the Dominican Republic (38.61) and Venezuela (39.13).

The women ran 43.43 to finish behind winners Cuba (43.17). The Dominican Republic ran 43.45 in third.

In the field, T&T’s 2012 Olympic Champion Keshorn Walcott, threw 83.60m to take gold in the men’s javelin ahead of Mexico’s David Carreon (78.03m) and Jamaica’s Elvis Graham (76.43m).

Jamaica’s Danielle Sloley threw 16.81m for silver in the women’s shot put behind the Dominican Republic’s Rosa Ramirez (17.89m). Cuba’s Leyselis Jimenez was third with 16.79m.

Neeskens Kebano has left Fulham following the expiry of his contract last month, the club have announced.

The Congo winger, who made 17 appearances in the Premier League last season, ends a seven-year stay at Craven Cottage where he was involved in three promotions from the Sky Bet Championship to the top flight.

Kebano told FFCtv: “For the fans, honestly, thank you for the love that you showed me during my time here. I’ll never forget you. Fulham forever.”

Republic of Ireland captain Katie McCabe says she is “feeling good” and that “everything is looking really positive” after she sustained an ankle issue in Thursday’s World Cup warm-up match against France.

The 3-0 loss for Vera Pauw’s side at Dublin’s Tallaght Stadium saw Arsenal’s McCabe come off due to the problem in the 29th minute.

Speaking to Sky Sports News on Friday as she and her team-mates prepared to fly from Dublin Airport to the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, McCabe said: “I’m feeling good.

“I basically was running through and I kind of rolled my ankle, but I’ve been for scans and stuff this morning and everything is looking really positive.

“So I’m in a good a place and hopefully will be back on the pitch early next week.”

Asked if she would have to miss a few days’ training, the versatile 27-year-old said: “Depends on how I go on the flight, hopefully it doesn’t blow up. I think maybe a day or two, but I am feeling good, which is nice.”

The team, playing at a major tournament for the first time in their history, open their World Cup campaign by facing Australia in Sydney on July 20.

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