SYDNEY: Veteran Tim Cahill bid an emotional farewell on Tuesday (Nov 20) on his 108th and final appearance for Australia as Scottish striker Martin Boyle scored twice for his newly-adopted country. Tim Cahill is the Australian national team's all-time top scorer with 50 goals. (Photo: AFP/David Moir) Cahill, the Socceroos all-time top scorer with 50 goals, came out of international retirement to play the final nine minutes of Australia's 3-0 win against Lebanon in their last match before defending the Asian Cup crown in January. Coach Graham Arnold made sweeping changes from the line-up that drew 1-1 with South Korea on Saturday with Hibernian marksman Boyle, who recently secured an Australian passport, starting up front. He played alongside South Sudanese refugee Awer Mabil and added a spark that the Socceroos have been missing since Cahill announced his retirement at the end of the World Cup in Russia. Boyle, who played for the Scotland under-16s but qualified for Australia … [Read more...] about “Freak” Cahill makes emotional Australia swansong
sports
Shocking Macau racing car accident rings safety alarm bells
PARIS: Questions are being asked about safety standards in motorsports after a horrifying crash at the Macau Grand Prix on Sunday (Nov 18) led to 17-year-old German driver Sophia Floersch undergoing seven hours of spinal surgery. Sophia Floersch before her Macau horror crash AFP/K.Y. CHENG Why is the Macau Grand Prix dangerous? Motorcycle and racing car Grand Prix have been held for over 60 years in Macau, a town with the reputation as being the Asian Las Vegas, and the Formula 3 race in which German racer Floersch hurtled into marshals and photographers after flying off the track on Sunday is the most popular race of all. Raced over a temporary circuit at Guia, the 6.2-kilometre track is dotted with long straights where speeds of 275km/h are the norm, which are then coupled with tight, blind corners. As with most urban circuits the roads are narrow and there are few safety exits. Any driver losing control on a corner or chicane will almost certainly hit the barriers and … [Read more...] about Shocking Macau racing car accident rings safety alarm bells
AFF Cup: Vietnam held to goalless draw by Myanmar
Myanmar dominated ball possession in the opening minutes, deploying attacks along the touch line and produced crosses into Vietnam’s goal box. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese team chose to play slowly waiting for fast counterattacks. Despite their slow start, Vietnam enjoyed the first opportunity of the match as favourite striker Cong Phuong curled a low shot narrowly wide from a distance of 25 metres after 20 minutes. Four minutes after Phuong’s unsuccessful attempt, Myanmar deployed a fast counterattack in the right wing, in which Lwin Moe Aung fired a long-range strike that was not powerful enough to cause difficulty for Vietnamese keeper Van Lam. The pace of the match was sped up later, with opportunities constantly created by the Vietnamese side. Keeper Zin Hte rescue Myanmar a number of times. (Photo: vnexpress.net) Vietnam came close to opening the scoring in the 36th minute as Van Duc’s volley hit the right post, before Myanmar keeper Zin Hte rescued the home side … [Read more...] about AFF Cup: Vietnam held to goalless draw by Myanmar
Spain PM wants 2030 World Cup bid with Morocco and Portugal
PARIS: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday that he had pitched the idea of a joint bid between his country, Portugal and Morocco to host the 2030 World Cup. "I made the proposal, firstly to the government then to King Mohammed VI to launch a shared application with Morocco, Portugal and Spain to host the 2030 World Cup," Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said. (AFP/CRISTINA QUICLER) "I made the proposal, firstly to the government then to King Mohammed VI to launch a shared application with Morocco, Portugal and Spain to host the 2030 World Cup," Sanchez said in Rabat after a meeting with the monarch. "It will be the first two-continent application, with Europe and Africa, and King Mohammed VI welcomed the proposal warmly." Earlier this year the King ordered the Royal Moroccan Football Federation to launch their own World Cup bid but the office of the Moroccan prime minister, Saad Eddine el Othmani, refused to comment on Sanchez's statement when contacted by … [Read more...] about Spain PM wants 2030 World Cup bid with Morocco and Portugal
VFF vows to deal with illegal entry into stadium
The Vietnamese Football Federation said a security guard at My Dinh Stadium in Hanoi had been fired for letting fans without tickets climb the fence into the stadium. Guard let fan get in the stadium without ticket A group of men had co-operated with the security team to let fans without tickets get inside the stadium during the match between Vietnam and Malaysia on November 16. The fans had to pay VND300,000 each for the group. It is said that such activities have been going on for years. Le Hoai Anh, secretary of the VFF, said, "We'll work with the security firm and the guards must be strictly punished." VFF leaders, Hanoi police, representatives of My Dinh Stadium and KTC Security Company discussed the problem on November 19. KTC admitted that one of the guards let some people in when the second half of the match started. The guard has been sacked. The match organisers said they recognised the efforts from all parties and said it was the actions of a single security team … [Read more...] about VFF vows to deal with illegal entry into stadium