The kick-off return is moving closer and closer towards extinction.

The NFL owners approved a rule on Tuesday that allows teams receiving a free kick (kick-off or safety kick) to get the ball at their own 25-yard line if the team calls for a fair catch anywhere behind their own 25.

The rule has been put in place for just the 2023 season, and will be revisited next offseason.

The intention behind the new rule stems from player safety with concussion rates on kick-offs will be reduced by 15 per cent, according to NFL executive Jeff Miller.

Kick-offs are considered the most dangerous play in the NFL, as data shows concussions occurs more than twice as often on them than on plays from scrimmages.

While the new rule should help with head injuries, it also takes away an exciting part of the game. Under the new rule, models suggest that the kick-off return rate will decrease from 38 per cent to 31 per cent.

There will almost certainly be a backlash among players and coaches, as the new rule will likely bring about more squib kicks and other unreturnable kicks.

This is the second major rule change made to kick-offs in the last decade with the backdrop of player safety in mind.

In 2016, the NFL moved touchbacks on kick-offs up to the 25-yard line from the 20, with the rationale teams will take the ball five yards closer to their own end zone rather than risk getting tackled behind the 25. And fewer returns would also likely mean fewer injuries.

The rule change, however, has taken the ball out of the hands out of kick-off returners, and decreased the likelihood of an exciting return.

There were only nine kick-off returns for touchdowns last season – the fewest in a non-strike season since the 1970 merger.

Sports stars and clubs across the world continue to provide an insight into their lives on social media.

Here, the PA news agency looks at some of the best examples from May 23.

Allan Saint-Maximin celebrated.

As did Kieran Trippier.

And the whole of Newcastle.

Flashback to when Alan Shearer had some hair.

Patrice Evra voiced his support for Vinicius Junior.

A post shared by Patrice Evra (@patrice.evra)

James Anderson had a chuckle at Joe Root’s tweet.

Virat Kohli said RCB should be proud of their efforts this season.

Michael Vaughan was back in Mumbai.

Sir Ian Botham reflected on a great week in Spain.

Sergio Garcia celebrated.

McLaren turned the clock back.

Then and now.

Rob Burrow was up for an award.

A post shared by Rob & Lindsey (@rob7lindsey)

Good morning, Usain Bolt.

Sale Sharks have tapped into Sir Alex Ferguson’s revered motivational powers ahead of the Gallagher Premiership final against Saracens.

The former Manchester United manager visited Sale’s Carrington training base on Tuesday, where he addressed the squad.

Ferguson oversaw two Champions League triumphs and 13 Premier League title successes during a remarkable and lengthy spell as United boss.

And the 81-year-old Scot became Sale’s latest keynote contributor after rugby league great Jamie Peacock spoke to the players ahead of their play-off victory over Leicester earlier this month.

Sale have reached their first Premiership final since 2006, when they won the title at Tigers’ expense and were inspired by the likes of Jason Robinson, Charlie Hodgson and Sebastien Chabal.

Saracens now await at Twickenham on Saturday, with the highest-placed teams following the regular Premiership season going head-to-head.

Asked how Ferguson’s visit materialised, Sale rugby director Alex Sanderson joked: “We’ve got a special Man United red phone like the bat phone in the corner of the office for emergencies.

“No, I got a call from Ged (Sale part-owner Ged Mason) asking about it and it fell into place. They are good friends with a shared investment with racehorses.

“We thought we would try and wring a little bit of gold out of Sir Alex – and he didn’t disappoint.

“He had the lads on the edge of their seats and he came up with some real good bits of advice – not new stuff, but when it comes from Sir Alex’s mouth, it is gospel, isn’t it?

“It is small percentages of what you can add, an increased feeling of how special this week is. It was good to have him in and good to have him in our corner.”

Sale centre Manu Tuilagi had already been inspired by Ferguson ahead of the 2019 Rugby World Cup, when he was invited by then England boss Eddie Jones to speak with the squad.

Tuilagi said: “It was amazing seeing him again. We met him in 2019 just before the World Cup. He is a legend of the world.

“He said a few words and gave us some wisdom to take into the weekend. He has been at the top of his game, he knows what he is doing.

“You learn from people like that who have been there and done it.”

And Sale number eight Jono Ross, who plays his final game before retirement on Saturday, added: “Obviously a few of us – including myself – are very much in awe of Sir Alex, but he is a fantastic man and it was really nice just to take little bits and bobs off him.

“It is pretty special when someone of that magnitude walks into the building and as you can expect, the boys were glued to his every word.

“He achieved so much within the game and the way he speaks, you turn your head and listen.

“Sir Alex spoke about a few things that worked for him. He said he definitely remembers the losses more than the wins, so don’t lose, basically!”

Sale captain Ben Curry, meanwhile, was due to undergo surgery on Tuesday after suffering a serious hamstring injury during the play-off game.

“He should be back in time for the start of the World Cup, but that’s being fit,” Sanderson said.

“He would have done all of the prep and none of the lead-in, so it would be wholly on (England head coach) Steve Borthwick’s shoulders to see fit whether or not he is worthy of being included.

“He (Curry) has been very much involved – he’s been getting good luck messages in from Man United players. He has been upbeat, despite the fact he might miss the World Cup and he will miss the (Premiership) final.”

Joao Almeida edged out Geraint Thomas to claim victory on stage 16 of the Giro d’Italia on a summit finish as the Welshman moved back into the Maglia Rosa leader’s jersey.

Following Monday’s rest day, racing resumed over a tough 203-kilometre mountain course from Sabbio Chiese to Monte Bondone.

A group of around 25 riders had made an initial breakaway from the front of the peloton as the course headed on to the category three climb of Passo Bordala.

Jumbo-Visma continued to push at the front of the peloton, with Ineos-Grenadiers’ Pavel Sivakov later dropped on the Matassone ascent where Astana duo Vadim Pronskiy and Christian Scaroni launched an attack.

With around 52km left of stage 16, the front pair were caught by the chasing group, which held a lead of just over four minutes over the peloton approaching the final climb of the day on Monte Bondone.

As the pace was picked up, the breakaway were again reeled in as Almeida and Thomas made their move along with Jumbo-Visma’s Sepp Kuss and Primoz Roglic in the general classification group.

Heading into the last 4.5km, Thomas launched his own attack as he and Almeida dropped their rivals.

It was Portuguese rider Almeida, though, who had the most left in the tank to sprint clear in the final 150 metres to claim victory for UAE Team Emirates and pick up maximum bonus seconds.

Slovenian Roglic finished third, which saw him drop 25 seconds in the GC standings, ahead of Ireland’s Eddie Dunbar (Jayco-AIUla), who moved up to fifth overall as a result.

Bruno Armirail (Groupama–FDJ) saw his hopes of retaining the Maglia Rosa fade as he dropped back heading into the final 10km.

Thomas now has an 18-second lead over Almeida, with Roglic third, now 29 seconds off the pace.

However, Ineos Grenadiers confirmed Sivakov had followed Tao Geoghegan Hart and Filippo Ganna in dropping out of the race after failing to shake off the impact of a crash during a wet 11th stage.

“It was a very tough day, a lot of climbs, I am happy with how it went. I found myself in front with Almeida, he was better in the sprint,” said Thomas.

“It would have been nice to win the stage, but I had to keep riding – didn’t want to be caught playing cat and mouse with Joao with Roglic behind.

“It is nice to be back in pink and gain some time, but it’s obviously not great to lose a team-mate (Sivakov).”

Almeida hailed his maiden Giro stage victory as a “dream come true”.

He said: “I was feeling well and the whole team was extraordinary. I try to improve day by day to become the best version of myself.”

Wednesday’s 17th stage will be a flat 195km course from Pergine Valsugana to Caorle.

Jack Draper continued his impressive comeback from injury by beating Miomir Kecmanovic to move into the quarter-finals of the Lyon Open.

The world number 53 reeled off four frames in a row to clinch the first set then grabbed the decisive break in the second to secure a 6-4 7-5 win over the Serbian.

Draper, who had eased past Alexandre Muller in the opening round, had missed the recent Masters Series events in Rome and Madrid due to an abdominal injury.

The 21-year-old, who will play Francisco Cerundolo in the last eight, told atptour.com: “I am really happy. I have played two really high-level players and I feel that my game is in a good place, especially after having a few weeks off with injury.”

Jack Davison will train Thunderbear “like a good horse” having seen him produce a career best in the Lacken Stakes at Naas.

Before finishing just over a length fourth with his sights raised on Sunday, the son of Kodi Bear had been campaigning in handicap company and was sent off an unfancied 50-1 for the Group Three contest despite scoring with real ease when last sighted on a raiding mission to Nottingham.

However, he outran his odds in the manner of a rapidly improving sprinter and his performance was not missed by the Irish handicapper, who has subsequently raised the three-year-old 9lb to a mark of 107.

Davison has previously enjoyed big sprint success with Mooneista, who is now trained by Joseph O’Brien, and is excited to see how far up the ladder Thunderbear can climb having finished so close to the well-regarded The Antarctic at Naas.

“It was a super run and he’s a progressive horse who is rated 107 now,” said the trainer.

“I’m really happy with him and he’s going to be a good horse for me now this year.

“He’s one of the best three-year-olds in the country over that distance now and I think there is more improvement there. He is a nice one to have in the stable this year and I’ll train him like a good horse. We’ll pick his battles a little bit and hopefully that will pay off.

“We’ve got plenty of options over six and seven furlongs, I just have to have a good think about where we go next.

“He has that much pace he could be effective over a stiff five and he’s ground versatile, so we have plenty of options and we’re looking forward to seeing where he ends up.”

Having seen his official rating sky rocket on the back of his Naas performance, handicaps are now off the table and with the Jersey Stakes the only realistic option available at Royal Ascot, Davison is leaning towards targeting the Irish sprinting programme for the time being.

He continued: “His mark has gone now for any of the handicaps, but I always knew he was a Group horse in the making.

“Obviously, being a gelding, he can’t run in the Commonwealth Cup. The Jersey Stakes is a possibility, but I would say it is likely we will stay domestic for the next couple of months.”

Kieran Cotter is looking forward to taking on the colts with Matilda Picotte when his 1000 Guineas third drops back to six furlongs at Haydock on Saturday.

The daughter of Sioux Nation had never raced over further than seven furlongs before striding out onto the Rowley Mile for the opening fillies’ Classic of the year, but gave a fine account when attempting to make all and kept on gamely for a spot on the podium.

Now she will drop back to the distance both her career victories have come at for the Betfred Nifty Fifty Sandy Lane Stakes where the opposition could include the likes of Aidan O’Brien’s Little Big Bear and last year’s Coventry Stakes winner Bradsell.

The outcome of her trip to Lancashire could determine whether Matilda Picotte then takes up her entry in the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot or has another crack at seven furlongs in the Prix Jean Prat at Deauville in early July.

“We’re the only filly in the race, but she has taken them (colts and geldings) on before,” said Cotter.

“I know we get 3lb, which is probably not a whole lot, but we don’t see anything there to be totally afraid of. Of course we respect them but we’re not afraid of them.

“She has proper six furlong pace so we’ll just see where the land lies with her before the decision has to be made whether she goes for the Commonwealth Cup or not as she could go for the Prix Jean Prat in France.”

Reflecting on Matilda Picotte’s 1000 Guineas endeavours, Cotter was thrilled with how his charge once again was able to outrun her odds to mix it with the very best.

He added: “The mile at Newmarket is probably the only mile we would have run her over. She had form at the track and we knew she would handle it very well.

“Not a lot of people know this, but the fillies race was almost four seconds faster than the colts and her time for the mile was faster than the winner of the 2000 Guineas the day before. Her second furlong was I think 11 seconds so she did phenomenally well to hold on for third.

“She’s competed at the highest level of company throughout her career and has acquitted herself exceptionally well every single time.”

Morgan Knowles has been told to tighten up his discipline or risk costing St Helens their shot at an unprecedented fifth consecutive Super League Grand Final win.

Knowles picked up his fifth ban in eight months on Friday for a late tackle on Tom Inman in the final minutes of Saints’ 26-6 win over Championship side Halifax in the sixth round of the Challenge Cup.

The 26-year-old, who was making his return from his latest five-match ban at The Shay, will now miss a further two matches, starting with Friday night’s Super League clash with Leeds Rhinos at Headingley.

Saints boss Paul Wellens insists he would not swap England star Knowles for any other forward in the competition but says he must learn his lessons in a season in which disciplinary issues have begun to cost Saints dear.

“I spoke to Morgan individually and obviously he’s disappointed and frustrated,” said Wellens.

“Morgan is probably the best middle forward in the competition and I wouldn’t want to swap him for anybody, but at the same time there are certain aspects of his game that he needs to improve on.

“His challenge is to keep his identity, because what has made him one of the best players in the competition is the fact that he can play tough and physical, but I’ve sat down with him and defined the areas where he’s probably over-stepped the mark.”

Wellens knows that Knowles is not the only Saints player who has let himself down in terms of discipline at times this season, in which they struggled to shake off the after-effects of their pre-season world title win in Australia, and sit in seventh place approaching the midway point of the season.

“We have got a number of players who like to play the game physically and on the edge, but if you are one of those players then discipline is the most important thing for you, and too many times this year we’ve gone way over the line,” added Wellens.

“I’ve used the incidents from last week and previously to draw a line in the sand in terms of what I expect of the players moving forward. There’s a certain moderation of behaviour required if you are going to play the game that way.

“If we’d handled a few areas differently in terms of discipline we’d probably be sitting second or third. That’s how important it is to get it right because decisions like that can affect you pretty badly.”

Saints travel to face Leeds on Friday in the first meeting between the two sides since Leeds’ thrilling 25-24 win at the Totally Wicked Stadium in March.

It was another night in which Wellens’ side were hampered by disciplinary issues, with Konrad Hurrell sent off and both Sione Mata’utia and Curtis Sironen also subsequently banned for incidents during the game.

“We learned from that night that you have got to stay disciplined,” said Wellens.

“At some point in that game we were looking really comfortable, but if you drop your standards against Leeds they will punish you. It is a genuinely big game and a really big challenge for us again this week.”

Royal Scotsman has been supplemented for the Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh on Saturday.

Trained by Paul and Oliver Cole, the Gleneagles colt had a busy time at two, winning the Richmond Stakes and finishing second in the Dewhurst to Chaldean.

He once again found Andrew Balding’s charge too good in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket when a fine third after racing keenly in the early stages.

Alex Cole, racing manager for Fitri Hay, who owns Royal Scotsman, confirmed: “We have supplemented him, so fingers crossed.

“He seems in good form so we thought we’d roll the dice again.”

One place in front of Royal Scotsman at Newmarket was Kevin Ryan’s 125-1 outsider Hi Royal and the two are on course to clash again.

The fourth, Galeron, is also on target along with eighth-placed Charyn, while Knight could represent Simon and Ed Crisford.

Aidan O’Brien has three contenders, headed by Paddington, who could be joined by Cairo and Age Of Kings.

Donnacha O’Brien’s Group One-winning two-year-old Proud And Regal is also among the 12 contenders.

In the Greenlands Stakes, Charlie Hills’ Garrus could aim to follow up his Abernant win at Newmarket, with potential rivals including Michael O’Callaghan’s Twilight Jet in a field of nine.

In the Tattersalls Irish 1,000 Guineas on Sunday, Dermot Weld holds a very strong hand in his attempt to follow up the victory of Homeless Songs last year.

He could field Tahiyra, a narrow second at Newmarket, and Tarawa, second in a Group Three on her return to action.

“We’ll make a decision about Tahiyra in the next day or two, but she’s most likely to run,” said Weld.

“It’s just like any other horse, you just want to check all the parameters out and if we’re happy with everything when the time comes, she runs. And right now, she’s most likely to run.

“The same applies with Tarawa. A decision will be made on her, if not tomorrow, then on Thursday. but she’s quite a possibility to run as well.

“We’re very happy with both fillies.”

Aidan O’Brien has four of the 11, headed by Breeders’ Cup winner Meditate. She could be joined by Dower House, Never Ending Story and the supplemented Jackie Oh.

Fozzy Stack also has a couple of options in Aspen Grove and You Send Me, while John Quinn’s Breege is a possible British raider.

Jean-Claude Rouget has supplemented Vadeni for the Tattersalls Gold Cup, in which he could face Irish Champion Stakes winner Luxembourg, who is looking to bounce back from a disappointing seasonal return.

Point Lonsdale is another Coolmore possible while Bay Bridge has been left in by Sir Michael Stoute and Anmaat is another UK-based contender.

Vadeni will line up in the Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh on Sunday after being supplemented at a cost of €45,000.

The four-year-old son of Churchill, who is owned and was bred by the Aga Khan, is trained in Pau, France, by Jean-Claude Rouget.

He won the Prix de Guiche, the Prix du Jockey Club and the Coral-Eclipse last season, having also been supplemented for the latter.

The bay was then third to Luxembourg in the Irish Champion Stakes and second by half a length to Alpinista in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, after which he began his season this time around in the Prix Ganay at ParisLongchamp and finished fourth of seven runners.

The Prince of Wales’s Stakes has been mentioned as a target for the first half of the colt’s season and as the Tattersalls Gold Cup falls neatly between the Ganay and the Royal meeting he has been added to the Group One at the Kildare track.

Georges Rimaud, the Aga Khan’s racing and breeding manager in France, said of the timing of the Curragh race: “There’s a logic to going and running in this race, that’s why we’ve chosen this one.

“Hopefully it will make good sense and he will perform well, I hear there’s no rain planned and we’re not really worried about the type of ground he is going to run on anyway. He has, in the past, liked this sort of fast-ish ground so he should be fine.

“The horse is doing well, he has improved from his last race. We are hoping for a good run from him, the ground should suit him.”

Vadeni is likely to face a familiar rival in Aidan O’Brien’s Luxembourg, with Sir Michael Stoute’s Bay Bridge, who finished in front of him in the Ganay, also entered.

“It should be a good race, it often is, but this is Vadeni and he is a Group One horse and should be campaigned at that level,” Rimaud said.

The Prince of Wales’s Stakes remains Vadeni’s target come June, though naturally the Irish trip needs to be considered a success for that plan to be pursued.

Rimaud said: “We’ll go a step at a time, that is part of the plan but each part of the plan needs to go well so we’ll see after the race.”

Vadeni’s entry at the Curragh makes matters easier regarding the next steps of last season’s Prix Daniel Wildenstein winner Erevann, who will go to the Prix d’Ispahan now it is not on the agenda for his stablemate.

Rimaud confirmed: “That is the plan, he’s going to run in the Prix d’Ispahan.”