From considering his future on non-league Lincoln Moorlands Railway’s bench to Lionel Messi celebrating his goal, Inter Miami midfielder Robert Taylor’s story is something else.
The eyes of the footballing world were focused on DRV PNK Stadium on Friday evening as the Argentinian magician began his new chapter Stateside.
Messi’s Miami debut has been years in the making and proved worth the wait as he came off the bench to score a stunning free-kick winner against Cruz Azul in stoppage time.
The 2-1 League Cup victory was a dream debut for the 36-year-old and a surreal moment for new team-mates like Taylor, who also played alongside Sergio Busquets for the first time.
“It’s amazing, it’s great, of course I’m excited,” Taylor said.
“He’s just come in and brought a lot of energy to the team. His play means he makes the right decisions all of the time in training and in the games which is why it’s so good.
“It’s a great feeling. The way to win it as well. To witness that free-kick and the quality he brings to the team, it’s unbelievable.”
The night was particularly special for Taylor, who said it was “pretty sick” to know Messi celebrated his thumping opener off a post.
It is just the latest chapter in a scarcely believable rise for the Finland international, who played for top clubs in his homeland, Sweden and Norway after struggling to make an impact in England.
The 28-year-old spent periods with Nottingham Forest, Barnet and Lincoln, from where he was farmed out on frustrating, fruitless loans to Boston Town and Lincoln Moorlands Railway.
“If someone told me a few years ago when I sitting on the bench for Lincoln Moorlands that I’m going to play with Busquets and Messi I would have just laughed in their face,” Taylor said with a grin.
“I was sitting on the bench, I wasn’t able to get any minutes in non-league and the coach told me I’m not strong enough or basically good enough. I was just sitting on the bench watching.
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“It tested me when I was younger. I was calling my parents back home in Finland and saying maybe I want to look for something, other options.”
Taylor’s father Paul is an English former footballer who played for KuPS in Finland, where he still lives and he stayed up to watch the madness unfold out in Fort Lauderdale.
It is a night that will live long in the memory but not one that Miami will be basking in the afterglow of for long given they are looking to bounce back from a poor Major League Soccer season.
“Of course it’s an unbelievable feeling for everyone in the team but eventually we’ll have to get used to it and not get too emotional around it, we just have to focus on the game,” Taylor added.
“I think everyone needs to enjoy the win but now we need to focus on the fact we’ve got Atlanta next.”
Trinidad and Tobago, like every other team at the Vitality Netball World Cup, have big ambitions.
Though achieving those are easier said than done, particularly where winning the title is concerned, Head coach Joel “Twiggy” Young-Strong, has every confidence that her team will perform with much gusto and prove competitive throughout the tournament in Cape Town, South Africa.
The twin island republic, currently ranked at 10 in the world, is grouped in Pool D alongside Uganda, Singapore, and defending champions New Zealand.
"We have taken a clinical approach for each match, carefully tracking their performances in the lead up to the World Cup, while ensuring the team is building momentum towards the opening clash against New Zealand," Young-Strong told SportsMax.tv.
"Our realistic goals are to improve our rankings and to minimize goal difference, as well as to increase our goals against each of these teams per quarter. We would also like to capture the audience with our rhythmic style and flare, hence the reason why we are called the Calypso Girls," she added.
While they may be small in stature, when compared to the top ranked teams, it should be noted that Trinidad and Tobago is one of only three teams to have lifted the Netball World Cup trophy in the tournament’s 60-year history.
The other two are of course powerhouses Australia and New Zealand.
Trinidad and Tobago boast this unique distinction, having shared the title with Australia and New Zealand in 1979. Back then the tournament was played over two round-robin group stages with no play-offs, and after the three nations all finished with eight wins and one loss, they were declared joint winners.
They also placed second and third at the 1983 and 1987 editions and though they have lost competitive shape to some extent, that legacy still lives on in the Caribbean team.
In fact, Young-Strong, a former international umpire, pointed out that her team has drawn inspiration from those teams of the past, especially with one member of the championship winning team Peggy Castanada, still involved on the coaching side.
"It is an Honor to be counted amongst the great. It is always a feeling of nostalgia and what we will use to inspires our Calypso Girls to work towards and continue the journey for greatness. I believe that it (winning the title again) is not out of our reach, but we have to start from the ground up and build different and strong foundations," the coach noted.
Despite losing Samantha Wallace to injury, Young-Strong revealed that things are gradually falling into place in terms of readiness, with the likes of Afeisha Noel, Shaquanda Green-Noel and Daystar Swift, among others, expected to carry the fight.
"The preparation has been a challenge. Moreso with the absence of Samantha Wallace due to her injury. Nevertheless, the team continues to build capacity with a blend of experienced and young talent. They have settled down quite nicely coping and adjusting as we go along and the preparation is ongoing, so we are expecting them to give of their best when game time comes," she ended.
The Calypso Girls plays the opening match of the tournament against New Zealand on July 28 with a clash against Singapore the following day before they come up against Uganda on July 30.
Sunday’s meeting at the Curragh must survive a 7.30am precautionary inspection due to the threat of heavy rain.
Saturday’s meeting began in decent conditions but by the time of the Juddmonte Irish Oaks, subsequently won in dramatic style by Savethelastdance, heavy rain had begun to fall.
It continued until the conclusion of the card and as a result the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board officials thought it was best to call an inspection to be on the safe side.
Brendan Sheridan, IHRB clerk of the course said: “We have had persistent heavy rain since the Irish Oaks earlier today and having spoken with Met Éireann, they are a bit unsure about how much further rain will fall at the Curragh overnight and into tomorrow.
“They said we could get anything from 8mm up to 15mm or more, it is just a bit uncertain at the moment. However, the track is currently raceable but we will hold a precautionary inspection at 7.30am tomorrow morning.”
LSU freshman, Brianna Lyston, has been named as the Louisiana State Writers Association (LSWA) Women’s Freshman of the Year for 2023.
The 2022 World U20 200m gold medallist enjoyed an indifferent freshman campaign for the Tigers.
Her best results came as a member of LSU’s 4x100m relay team. She was a member of their victorious quartet at the SEC Outdoor Championships where they ran 42.92 in May. The Tigers were also on the podium in the 4x100m at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in June. They ran a season’s best 42.52 for third.
Individually, the 19-year-old advanced to the semi-finals of the 200m at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in June.
A month earlier, she ran a season’s best of 23.05 in the heats at the SEC Outdoor Championships. She also achieved wind-assisted times of 22.92 and 22.75 at the NCAA East Regional.
Novakai could be set for immediate return to Group One level after stamping her class on the Ric And Mary Hambro Aphrodite Fillies’ Stakes at Newmarket.
Second to Commissioning in last season’s Fillies’ Mile, Karl Burke’s inmate kicked off her three-year-old campaign with a runner-up finish to subsequent Oaks heroine Soul Sister in the Musidora at York.
Novakai disappointed in her Classic bid in the French Oaks, but was the 5-2 favourite to get back on track in Listed company on the July Course.
Ridden by Sam James, the Lope De Vega filly could be called the winner a long way from home as she moved powerfully to the front.
Cloudbreaker came from the rear to throw down her challenge, but Novakai was away and gone entering the final furlong and had just under five lengths in hand at the line.
“She has won that well and I’m very happy with her. She loved that step up in trip and I think we can go back up to Group class again now,” said Burke.
“Early on in the year Sheikh Obaid was keen for her to try a mile and a quarter and target the Prix de Diane.
“I’m not sure it was the distance why she ran so poorly but she wasn’t on song and it could have been down to the travelling. She is a little bit quirky, but her temperament is lovely.
“After that Sheikh Obaid gave me free rein with her so I decided to step her up in trip. She is out of a stout staying mare and she was always going to improve going up in trip and she has proved that today.”
The winner holds entries in the Nassau Stakes at Goodwood and the Yorkshire Oaks, but Burke will not rush into a decision.
He went on: “She is in the Yorkshire Oaks and whether that is too big of a jump I’m not sure but we will get her home and have a chat with Sheikh Obaid.
“I’m hoping I can persuade Sheikh Obaid to leave her in training next year as she will only improve and there are some nice staying races for fillies like her.”
Emily Dickinson kicked in the turbo to get back on the winning trail in the Comer Group International Curragh Cup.
The daughter of Dubawi was the spring favourite for the Gold Cup following an impressive start to her campaign in the Vintage Crop Stakes at Navan – and while a disappointing run in the Saval Beg dented her claims, she bounced back to finish a creditable fourth in last month’s Royal Ascot showpiece.
Dropping in distance and class for this one-mile-six-furlong Group Two, Emily Dickinson was the 6-4 market leader to complete a quick-fire big-race double for Aidan O’Brien and Ryan Moore after Savethelastdance powered home from an unpromising position to secure the Irish Oaks.
Emily Dickinson looked like she too could have a real fight on her hands when her chief market rival Rosscarbery breezed into contention, but Moore kept pushing on the favourite and in the end she was well on top, passing the post with three lengths in hand.
The winner will now be readied for a tilt at the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup on August 1.
“The original plan was that she would go straight to Goodwood for the two-mile Group One, but when the ground changed we said we’d let her take her chance here,” said O’Brien.
“Everyone was happy with her at home and that’s why she came here. I was a bit worried that she was a couple of pieces of work away but Ryan gave her a beautiful ride and got her very confident.
“She loves the ground and loves being ridden like that. With that ease in the ground she’s a different filly. She goes on the other ground, she’s very genuine and tries very hard, but on that ground she grows another leg.
“The plan was to go to Goodwood, over two miles, and if the ground came up with an ease in it she’ll be right there.”
Relief Rally sent the large Newbury crowd home happy when justifying favouritism in the featured Weatherbys Super Sprint Stakes.
Tom Marquand’s mount was drawn near the stands’ rail and had to race alone for much of the last furlong and a half as the filly attempted to reel in those who had a clear advantage up the middle and towards the far rail.
To her credit, the evens favourite scythed through the good to soft ground and having collared long-time leader Dapperling (33-1) inside the final furlong, drew readily clear for a three-length success.
It was just compensation for Marquand and trainer William Haggas, who saw the daughter of Kodiac touched off by American raider Crimson Advocate in the Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Haggas said: “She was in front before the line and after the line, but not on the line at Ascot. She ran a good race there. She is a pretty good filly.
“I don’t know where the second on the stands’ side finished, but she won easy and when he asked her, she picked up well.”
Marquand admitted he had plenty of ground to make up in the second part of the valuable five-furlong contest, which was worth just shy of £123,000 to the winner.
Yet he felt confident the Simon Munir and Isaac Souede-owned juvenile would reel in the leaders.
“To be honest, I was getting towed as far as I could while being happy, but whilst never worried that the other side had a bit of an advantage on us.
“I was lucky enough to be on her at Ascot, so I know the turn of foot she has.
“I was confident that this ground was even more to her liking. It was as straightforward as you would have hoped it would be, but it doesn’t always prove straightforward.
“The other side did have a march on, but she is a very good filly and thankfully she has had a decent day in the sun now and I’m sure she will have a few more.”
He added: “She is every bit as exciting as you’d want her to look for the future and I think my heart is still broken (after Ascot), but it is gluing back together a little bit after that.
“She has done it well. She has got bags of speed, she is super-straightforward, I think she is improving, and I think she improved for having a day like she had at Ascot – she had to race that day and it was obviously a frustrating day, but she will have come on for that and I think she showed that today by the way she just raced on by herself on her side.”
Haggas could swerve York’s Nunthorpe, as he potentially eyes the Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp.
When asked of a possible Nunthorpe bid, he said: “I don’t think so – I think the Abbaye, but who knows?
“I think the French race is such a draw race. If you get a low draw, it is such an advantage, whereas the Nunthorpe you can win from anywhere.
“In France, you cannot win wide. If our luck is in at the that time of the year, we will get a low draw. We will see.”
Bottom weight Born Famous came from last to first to deny Peter Bowen another success in the Unibet Summer Plate at Market Rasen.
Sent off the 3-1 favourite under Harry Cobden, the rapidly improving six-year-old looked to have no chance at halfway, detached from the main group of runners.
Bowen had two runners in the race, searching for a ninth win and a third in a row with Francky Du Berlais.
It was his other runner Courtland who looked to have been produced to perfection by Gavin Sheehan, though, as he jumped to the lead at the second last.
But as Hang In There weakened, Born Famous was just hitting top gear and the mare extended her unbeaten record to five since joining Iain Jardine.
Jardine said: “That was class and what a cool ride from Harry too. I knew he was going to take his time but I didn’t think he would take as much time as that!
“They obviously went quite quick and the rain has got into the ground and they’ve stopped, so it was a well-judged and a well thought out ride. She’s a grand filly on an upward curve and I’m just really chuffed for her owners. It’s a fantastic result.
“I’m not sure what’s clicked with her, she’s just gained that bit of confidence and is enjoying her races. We’ve been training her away quietly and we’re not too hard on her, so it’s probably a combination of that.
“She can jump. She’s very versatile regarding ground and she can’t half jump. It was some ride from Harry though – Conor O’Farrell, our jockey, had a word with him earlier and he just said it doesn’t really matter how she’s ridden, it’s all about getting her into a rhythm.
“She was in a good rhythm and finished well, so it’s an excellent result. We’ll sit tight with her now, we might have a look at something down the line but she doesn’t owe us anything.”
Savethelastdance claimed victory from the jaws of defeat in the Juddmonte Irish Oaks at the Curragh.
A 22-length winner of the Cheshire Oaks in May, Aidan O’Brien’s filly subsequently filled the runner-up spot behind Soul Sister in the Oaks at Epsom and was a warm order to go one better on home soil.
But supporters of the 10-11 favourite would have been seriously worried early in the home straight, with Moore already hard at work while British raider Bluestocking breezed into contention.
The latter looked sure to secure top honours after eventually mastering the pacesetting 80-1 outsider Library, but Savethelastdance kept responding to Moore’s urgings and flashed home to prevail by half a length and provide her trainer with an eighth victory in the Irish Classic.
Art Power claimed a fourth win from as many visits to the Curragh with a dominant display in the Barberstown Castle Sapphire Stakes.
Tim Easterby’s rapid grey won the Group Three Renaissance Stakes in both 2021 and 2022 and made it a hat-trick at the home of Irish Flat racing in the Group Two Greenlands Stakes in May.
Four from four in Ireland overall having also won the Lacken Stakes at Naas three years ago, Tim Easterby’s six-year-old was the 6-5 favourite for his latest assignment, turning out just seven days after finishing fourth in the July Cup at Newmarket.
Any concerns about the quick turnaround were soon quashed as Art Power travelled with zest on the front end throughout before powering four and a quarter lengths clear once asked to extend by David Allan.
Go Athletico narrowly beat Moss Tucker to the runner-up spot.
“He’s been awesome and he loves coming to Ireland for some reason, nobody knows why but he seems to come to life here,” Allan said of the winner.
“Bringing him back to five we thought might be an issue, but I’ve always been confident five is going to be okay for him, especially if the ground is soft.
“It went right up his street today and it all worked out perfect. I was confident enough but a little unsure about coming back to five furlongs.
“The way he was powering up that hill I thought ‘they can’t go that fast to catch me’, especially in that ground – he was powering away.”
On the possibility of coming back to the Curragh later in the year, the jockey added: “I’d imagine he’ll have to won’t he, any race we can find we’ll run him in!
“You don’t have to do anything fancy on him, you can just bounce out and let him run his race.
“He’s ran well in some Group Ones in England but he’s just not got to it yet. I think if he gets proper soft ground it might just happen one day.”
Jockey Connor Beasley insists “the world is his oyster” after dual Stewards’ Cup hero Commanche Falls gained his first Group-race success when coming with a powerful late run to take the bet365 Hackwood Stakes at Newbury.
An ultra-consistent handicapper for Michael Dods, he has progressed through the ranks and earned an 11th victory on his 32nd start, the 4-1 favourite following up his Listed race success at the Curragh on his previous run.
Beasley had to be patient aboard the six-year-old, with the requisite gap not coming until deep inside the final furlong.
Once he saw it, the Lethal Force gelding skipped into it and swept past Diligent Harry (18-1) and Cold Case (7-1) to get the better of them by a respective head and a neck.
On the rain-softened ground, Beasley admitted he was a little concerned and said: “Obviously from the three to the two (furlong pole), I just felt I was getting a little bit stuck in it, really.
“Normally he is a horse that does race behind the bridle, but you can normally keep your momentum going, but today I just felt like I wasn’t getting any sort of momentum.
“There wasn’t much room from where I was and I just had to switch him and make him think again.”
He went on: “Once I did that, he really put his neck down and he did it nicely in the end.
“I’m not sure where he goes from here. He finished third in a Group Two behind some good mares and fillies, but the world is his oyster if you ask me.
“He is obviously improving and he is getting better and stronger as he gets older.”
Though he had to be switched between horses to get his nose in front when it mattered in the six-furlong Group Three contest, Beasley said he always felt “confident” he would get there and paid tribute to owners Dough Graham, Ian Davison and Alan Drysdale.
He added: “He is a big horse and so he had plenty of momentum when I asked him.
“He is a massive horse for me in my career and the team and these owners have been very supportive of my career, so I can’t thank them enough.
“Michael is doing well with these sprinters. He seems to be getting better with age and he is progressing all the time.”
A trip to York could be next on the agenda for Kairyu after she kept her unbeaten record intact in the Jebel Ali Racecourse And Stables Anglesey Stakes at the Curragh.
A clear-cut winner on her racecourse debut at Naas last month, Michael O’Callaghan’s filly was a 4-1 shot for this six-and-a-half-furlong Group Three under Colin Keane.
Pearls And Rubies, the 10-11 favourite after being beaten a head by Snellen in the Chesham at Royal Ascot last month, was under pressure some way from home – and while she responded to Ryan Moore’s urgings to get into second place, Kairyu had a length and a quarter in hand at the line.
O’Callaghan said: “She looks very smart. Colin said she doesn’t want that ground, it was plenty soft, and she was just good and tough.
“He said she has a savage turn of foot where she can go and put a race to bed. He said the gaps sort of appeared a little bit before he wanted them.
“She’s a lovely filly. I was thinking about going to the Duchess of Cambridge at Newmarket last week but I just wasn’t 100 per cent happy with her work so we just waited another week.
“Colin thinks she’ll be better on better ground and she’ll probably go for something like the Lowther (at York) now.
“She’s still a little bit high behind and she’s going to grow plenty so she could potentially be a very nice filly.”
William Haggas felt Al Aasy lacked a little fitness after a lacklustre seasonal bow at Newmarket – yet he need not have worried as the six-year-old bounced back to take the bet365-sponsored Steventon Stakes at Newbury.
A market drifter, the 100-30 chance clearly had one of his going days, locking on to the bridle early in the 10-furlong contest for Jim Crowley and travelling kindly throughout.
Phantom Flight made the early running and had all bar Al Aasy at it with two furlongs to race, although he was soon easily passed by the Shadwell-owned winner, who went on to score by a length and a half.
He will now head to Haydock for the 10-furlong Group Three Betfred Rose of Lancaster Stakes, according to Haggas, who said: “He was good today and they badgered me to run over a mile and a quarter and I wouldn’t do it, but I finally succumbed and that clearly, now aged six, appears to be his trip.
“It is probably that they go a little bit faster and they help him to relax and he did it well, did it comfortably – but he should have done on the ratings.
“He will go for the Rose of Lancaster at Haydock on August 12.
“It has been a battle with him, both mentally and physically. Everything. Mentally he is not straightforward. He has had a couple of injuries, but he’s coming. He doesn’t look right in his skin still, but he’s coming.”
Sketch will take a step up in class after making an impressive winning debut under Tom Marquand in division one of the bet365 EBF Novice Stakes.
The Showcasing colt cost 100,000 guineas as a yearling and impressed when winning by five lengths for co-trainers Martyn and Freddie Meade, having made virtually all the running.
Marquand said: “To be fair, they said he had been going nicely beforehand and they have proven in the past they can get their two-year-olds ready.
“What surprised me was how quickly he got going and put the race to bed. For his first time, he was extremely professional and did everything right, and killed the race pretty quickly.
Freddie Meade said connections could look at Goodwood next for the 15-2 winner.
“We will push him up in class,” he said. “The Richmond is the obvious choice, but whether that comes a bit quick I don’t know. We will look at stakes races and see what suits. We were tempting fate to put him in a couple of races in France which closed this week before he’d run, but it is possible we’ll look there as well.”
The impeccably-bred Henry Longfellow earned Classic quotes following a striking debut in the Juddmonte Irish EBF Maiden at the Curragh.
A son of Dubawi out of seven-time Group One-winning mare Minding, the latter trained like Henry Longfellow by Aidan O’Brien, he went off the 5-4 favourite in the hands of Ryan Moore and travelled powerfully throughout.
Mythology, a creditable fifth in the Group Two Railway Stakes, did his best to get on terms, but Henry Longfollow was well on top as he passed the post with a length and three-quarters in hand.
Betfair make the winner a 25-1 shot for both the 2000 Guineas and the Derby next season.
“I’m delighted with him. He’s a Dubawi out of Minding and he looks like a lovely horse,” said O’Brien.
“She handled that ground and he does bend his knee a bit but he quickens. You’d have to be very happy with him.
“Ryan said it was very easy and he said he didn’t touch him with the stick, he was very happy with him.
“He had been working well, he just came on the scene lately. For the last three weeks, week after week he was working well. He’s an exciting type of horse.”
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