List of All Articles with Tag 'port'

Even before Joe Burrow’s season-ending wrist injury was announced, the Cincinnati Bengals already were facing a challenging road in trying to get back to the playoffs for a third straight season

Midfielder Weston McKennie will miss the United States’ Copa América qualifier at Trinidad and Tobago on Monday because of a knee injury

The English hockey team that Adam Johnson played for is holding a memorial game in his honor

The Boston Bruins say Milan Lucic is taking an indefinite leave of absence from the team after an incident Friday night

Jannik Sinner’s impressive run at the ATP Finals has continued after he beat Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-1 to reach the final in Turin much to the home crowd’s delight

Welsh hopes of qualifying automatically for Euro 2024 were dented by a 1-1 draw in Armenia. Lucas Zelarayan came back to haunt Wales again with a fifth-minute opener before a Nair Tiknizyan own goal in first-half stoppage time restored parity. The draw helps neither side as far as joining already-qualified Turkey in the top two is concerned. Even beating Turkey in Cardiff on Tuesday would not be enough for Wales should Croatia win their final two fixtures. If Croatia win those games, then Wales will be involved in the March play-offs. Armenia’s chances of a top-two place are almost certainly over, barring a Croatia collapse. Wales had a score to settle with Armenia after their humiliating 4-2 defeat in Cardiff five months ago, a result which left them playing catch-up in the race for next summer’s tournament in Germany. Rob Page’s side also had to turn the tide of history as Wales had never beaten Armenia in three previous meetings. Wales were unchanged from the side that produced last month’s stunning 2-1 win over World Cup semi-finalists Croatia. Brennan Johnson missed that game through injury and the Tottenham forward, fresh from his first Spurs goal, had to make do with a place on the bench. Armenia – ranked 95 in the world and 67 places below Wales – showed nine survivors from the team who had won in Cardiff in June, including Grant-Leon Ranos and Zelarayan who both scored twice then. Wales were behind inside five minutes after failing to deal with a corner. Danny Ward hesitated before Joe Rodon’s poor header looped towards Zelarayan, who shifted the ball onto his right foot and found the bottom corner with unerring accuracy. David Brooks fired over in reply and Neco Williams saw his effort deflected wide after Kieffer Moore had pounced on a home mistake. Moore headed wide but Wales were generally unable to sustain attacks, with Armenia dangerous on the counter. Vahan Bichakhchyan drove inches wide from one such raid, and Wales suffered another blow as Chris Mepham’s challenge on Zelarayan earned him a yellow card to rule him out of the Turkey game. Wales went close after 37 minutes when Williams pulled the ball back into Harry Wilson’s path and goalkeeper Ognjen Cancarevic was at full stretch to save. Then, just seconds from the interval, Connor Roberts sent over a long throw and Tiknizyan, under pressure from Rodon, headed into his own net. Johnson replaced Brooks within three minutes of the restart and the contest was developing a spicy edge, with Varazdat Haroyan cautioned for chopping down Wilson and Ethan Ampadu similarly punished for his reaction to the challenge. Armenia went mightily close as Bichakhchyan’s chip drifted over the head of Ward and onto the crossbar. The crowd held its breath as Zelarayan seemed certain to bury the rebound but instead, the game’s best player sliced it over. Armenia were slowly turning the screw, though Cancarevic was tested from outside the box by Jordan James and needed a second attempt to gather. Eduard Spertsyan had a clear sight of goal before being denied by one of an increasing number of last-gasp Welsh blocks. Moore’s header was held by Cancarevic and in a frantic finale, Ward produced a flying stop to deny substitute Edgar Sevikyan, who later shot wide with the goal at his mercy. Read More What do Wales need to qualify for Euro 2024? Armenia v Wales LIVE: Result and reaction from crucial Euro 2024 qualifier Injured Aaron Ramsey serving as Wales’s lucky mascot in Armenia Rob Page keen to focus on football after clearing air with FAW chief Noel Mooney Steve Clarke wants return to winning ways – Scotland v Norway talking points Khiara Keating surprised by her rise into Man City’s starting line-up this term

One of the biggest storylines in All Elite Wrestling at the moment and heading into Saturday's Full Gear pay per view is the identity of the person under the devil mask. For weeks 'the devil' has been stalking AEW world champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman, a with a small group of cohorts have been attacking both MJF's friends and enemies. MJF had previously used the devil mask himself during his entrances for big matches to emphasise the darker side of his character but the mask has seemingly been stolen by someone else as is now tormenting the world champ. The devil and his minions first attacked MJF's Full Gear opponent Jay White backstage on 27th September and then attacked MJF's new found friends The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn on 8th November. Whether we'll learn the devil's identity at Full Gear remains to be seen but here are some of the most likely candidates. MJF A theory amongst fans has suggested that the devil is actually just MJF fooling the audience and reminding everyone that despite turning face, he is a bad guy at heart. It would certainly be a unique swerve on the angle and would signify that MJF has had to go to a darker place to defeat Jay White, with the rivalry becoming personal in recent weeks. However, there are several holes in this theory as the devil has interrupted MJF several times on television, with the champion also insisting that the mask has been stolen from him. Using wrestling logic would help explain some of these inconsistencies if MJF was revealed to be the devil but we can't help but think it would be an overall disappointing conclusion. Adam Cole It's likely that Adam Cole was going to be the devil before suffering the knee injury that has put him of the shelf for several months. This small fact would suggest that Cole isn't the devil, unless AEW plan on dragging this out well into 2024. Cole though would be a safe pick at the most logical from a storyline perspective. Cole, who is one half of the Ring of Honor tag team champions with MJF, was unsuccessful in his attempt to win the world title at All In despite going to extreme lengths during the match. Cole was also insistent that they both win the ROH tag titles despite neither man actually needing the belts in order to further their careers. He hasn't shied away from his friendship with Roderick Strong and The Kingdom, who have claimed that they think MJF is the devil. The Panama City Playboy could use the likes of Strong and The Kingdom as his henchmen to do his dirtywork in the backstage attacks but Cole's injury and no scheduled return date would suggest to us that the possibility of this being Cole would work against the story as a whole. CM Punk This would seemingly be impossible but stranger things have happened in wrestling. CM Punk was abruptly fired from AEW in September following a fight with Jack Perry at Wembley Stadium during the All In show. Punk had voiced his displeasure with the management and other talent in AEW for sometime so it wasn't a surprise to see him given the shove despite being one of the company's biggest stars. You would think that would put the speculation to bed but several subtle references have been made about the Straight Edge Superstar on AEW television recently and that has only been further amplified by CM Punk making several devil references on his Instagram account. Punk also quoted the line 'the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convicing the world he didn't exist' during a famous promo from his time in Ring of Honor in the mid-2000s which some fans think he referenced on Instagram. It would certainly be a massive change in favours between Punk and AEW, especially as Fightful Select have ruled out the possibility of the devil being him with sources within AEW stating it would be a 'massive work' if it turned out to be the Second City Saint. Punk would certainly be the most exciting option but a lot of hoops would be needed to be jumped through for this scenario to transpire. Britt Baker D.M.D. Another person that Fightful's report ruled out as being the devil is former AEW Women's Champion Dr Britt Baker D.M.D. It's unlikely that Baker was ever considered to be the devil and would have possibly been an unpopular choice but speculation arose when Baker appeared to make devil horns during an appearance in the new Doja Cat video. Baker is also the IRL girlfriend of Cole. However, AEW sources have confirmed: "Dr. Britt Baker DMD hasn’t been under the mask, either, so her comments within interviews this past week were not a swerve, if people in the company are to be believed." Baker also confirmed this during an appearanace on KISSFM saying: "I'm not, but then I'm like, maybe I would be a good Devil. But it's not, it's not me. But If I could be, would I be? Maybe, cause then I'm like... who better to stir some shit up than me?" Samoa Joe This one wouldn't appear to make much sense as Joe is tough enough to handle himself and wouldn't need lackeys doing his dirty work but AEW have been laying it on thick in the past couple of days. In storyline Joe wants another shot at the AEW World Championship and MJF would have to give him one if he helped him defend the ROH tag titles against The Gunns at Full Gear. At the conclusion of this week's episode of Collison, MJF finally agreed to accept Joe offer to be his tag partner which led commentator Nigel McGuinness to say the "AEW world champion has made a deal with the devil." We personally think this is far too obvious of a distraction tool but it could work if given the right amount of explanation. Jack Perry A choice that would undoubtedly be very unpopular amongst the fanbase would be 'Jungle Boy' Jack Perry. The 26-year-old hasn't been seen on AEW television since All In at the end of August following his backstage fight with CM Punk at Wembley. Perry was handed an indefinite suspension for his role in the fight and hasn't been mentioned by AEW since. This came amidst poorly received heel turn from Perry that hadn't ignited the young wrestler's career who was a popular babyface beforehand. Bringing Perry back as the devil wouldn't do him any favours as he's yet to display the types a tropes a top heel would need to succeed, especially against someone as skilled on the microphone as MJF. Shawn Spears A leftfield choice and one that would possibly be as poorly received as Perry would be Shawn Spears. The 42-year-old Canadian hasn't wrestled for AEW since September 3rd and has only had four matches for the company this year. He has mostly been wrestling for Austrailian company WSW in recent months where he had held their world title. Spears though did have a long standing alliance with MJF up until the summer of 2022 and no formal explanation has been given as to their seperation. The story could go that MJF used Spears to get at his enemies although it wouldn't explain why the devil attacked The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn. The logical gymnastics behind a Spears reveal and what would be guaranteed to be an underwhelming response would say to us that it won't be Spears. There is also the possibility that it is none of these people and the identity could be a complete surprise. The only thing we can do is wait and see. Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Scotland host Norway in their final Euro 2024 qualifier on Sunday night. Steve Clarke’s side have already booked their place in Germany next summer after winning five of their first seven Group A games. Here are some of the key talking points ahead of the game at Hampden. Scotland now inspiring their rivals For much of their 23-year absence from major tournaments between France 98 and the Euros in 2021, Scotland would look to other nations for inspiration. Now the shoe is on the other foot. Norway – whose last major tournament appearance was at Euro 2000 – find themselves in a similar predicament to the one the Scots freed themselves from a few years ago. As the Scots prepare for a second consecutive visit to the Euros and Norway’s barren run from major tournaments extends to a minimum of 26 years, a Norwegian journalist asked both Steve Clarke and Callum McGregor on Saturday what his nation could learn from Scotland. McGregor almost seemed embarrassed, saying: “I’m probably not the guy to tell Norway how to qualify for the next campaign.” Clarke, meanwhile, kept the advice simple: “Trust the process, trust the coach, trust the players. Continue to work on the path you’re on if you think that’s the right path.” The Scots are very much on the right path under Clarke. ‘Mixed feelings’ over Erling Haaland’s absence Scotland boss Clarke admitted to “mixed feelings” after it was confirmed on Saturday morning that Norway talisman Erling Haaland would miss out with an ankle injury. The absence of the free-scoring Manchester City forward – who has 20 goals to his name already this term – takes some of the remaining sheen away from the dead-rubber match as a spectacle but it undoubtedly makes the task of securing a victory slightly easier for the Scots. Connotations over Euro 2024 draw Sunday’s match will have a bearing on Scotland’s status for the Euro 2024 draw in Hamburg in a fortnight. If they beat Norway by two goals or more, they will almost certainly be in pot two, while a one-goal victory, a draw or a defeat will likely see them in pot three. The way things are shaping up, it does not look like there will be a major benefit to being in pot two as opposed to pot three. Indeed some Scotland supporters have mused that – with Albania, Turkey and Hungary among the sides currently on course to be in pot two – it may actually be in Scotland’s interests to settle for staying in pot three, from where they would arguably have a chance of an easier draw. Long wait for home win over Norway Scotland have won the last two meetings between the teams, although both of those matches were in Norway, earlier this year and in 2013. They have not beaten the Norwegians in their last three encounters at Hampden. The most recent of those was the World Cup qualifier in 2008 when Scotland striker Chris Iwelumo famously missed an open goal in a 0-0 draw. The Norwegians also kept a clean sheet on their previous match in Scotland when they won 1-0 in a World Cup qualifier in 2004 that saw James McFadden sent off, while they drew 1-1 in Glasgow on the night the Scots sealed qualification for Italia 90. Scotland’s last home win over Norway came in a European Championship qualifier in October 1978. Party time for Tartan Army Whatever the result on Sunday, it promises to be a joyous occasion for the Scotland support as they savour the end of a memorable and ultimately successful qualifying campaign. The Scots have won each of their three home qualifiers so far and – after a run of four consecutive matches without victory this autumn – they will be hoping to finish off on a high as they take the acclaim of the Tartan Army at a sold-out Hampden. Read More Steve Clarke not concerned over which pot Scotland are in for Euro 2024 draw Liam Broady replaces injured Andy Murray in Great Britain’s Davis Cup team Matt Wallace produces stunning back nine display to shoot 60 and lead in Dubai Rohit Sharma highlights the importance of India’s work ethic ahead of final Khiara Keating surprised by her rise into Man City’s starting line-up this term Injury rules Andy Murray out of Great Britain team for Davis Cup finals

Defending champion Brazil recovered from an opening-game loss at the Under-17 World Cup to set up a second-round match against Ecuador in the Indonesian city of Surakarta on Monday

Steve Clarke insists he is giving no consideration to which pot Scotland end up in at Euro 2024 as he focuses on trying to end their successful qualification campaign on a high against Norway at Hampden on Sunday. The Scots sealed their spot in Germany last month, with two games to spare, and will learn who they will face in the group stage when the draw is made in Hamburg on Saturday, December 2. A victory by two goals or more against Norway this weekend would likely lift the Scots into pot two, while any other result is set to place them in pot three. Given the way things are shaping up – with the likes of Albania, Hungary and Turkey among the teams on course to be in pot two – there is a school of thought among Scotland supporters that they may have a chance of an easier draw by remaining in pot three. “Honestly, zero, I haven’t looked at it,” said Clarke when asked if he had given much consideration to the permutations. “It doesn’t concern me. “The main objective was to be there. Pot two, pot three… it’s all speculation because you don’t know how the other games are going to pan out so we’ll go out and do our best to win the game and then we’ll decide after that whether we want to be in pot two or pot three.” Asked how significant it would be to go to the tournament as a pot two team, Clarke said: “Not significant at all in my mind. I don’t think too much about it. “I just want to win game to game and make sure we’re always competitive whoever we play. We were seeded in pot two in the draw for this campaign and we want to be a pot two team going into the World Cup campaign. “If we can get to pot one, it would be great but that’s a long way away at the moment.” Clarke’s main objective at present to is to stop a four-game run without a victory and ensure Scotland end a memorable campaign on a high at a sold-out Hampden. “It’s always important to win,” he said. “We haven’t won for a while. We want to finish the campaign well in front of our own supporters at Hampden, so hopefully we can do that.” That task will be made slightly easier – in theory – by the fact Norway and Manchester City superstar Erling Haaland misses the match due to an ankle injury sustained in Thursday’s friendly against Faroe Islands. “It’s probably a little bit of mixed feelings,” Clarke said when asked about the striker’s absence. “I think for the crowd it would have been great to see a player of Erling Haaland’s standard at Hampden. “It would have been good for the defenders to test themselves against a top striker but unfortunately he’s not fit. “If you asked me that question me before a game that really meant something I’d probably be sitting here saying ‘yes, I’m delighted he’s not playing’ but for the game tomorrow, I think it would have been better if he played.” Haaland gave Norway the lead with a penalty in the last meeting between the teams in Oslo in June before Scotland roared back with two goals in the closing minutes to claim arguably the most pivotal result in their qualifying campaign. “It was a pretty dull game on a very hot, sunny afternoon,” recalled Clarke. “For us, it was about staying in the game as long as possible. Towards the end of the game I took a central defender off, went to a back four and stuck another attacking player on and thankfully it worked for us. “We got the equaliser at a good time and almost immediately before Norway had a chance to realise what had happened we were 2-1 in front and for the section, for the qualification of Scotland, it was obviously a big moment in the tournament.” Second-placed Scotland go into their final qualifier six points clear of third-placed Norway, who remain without a major tournament appearance since Euro 2000. Clarke believes the fact his team were able to win their first five games, while Norway failed to win any of their first three was the main difference between the sides. “The way the fixtures fell for us was good,” said the Scots boss. “We had three home fixtures to start and we managed to get maximum points from those fixtures. “Going to Norway when we did and getting the 2-1 win put the qualification into our hands and fortunately we didn’t let it slip. Group football is a sprint, it’s only eight matches. “You can’t really drop points early in the group because you put yourself under pressure later in the group. It’s normally Scotland that does that, to be fair!” Read More Liam Broady replaces injured Andy Murray in Great Britain’s Davis Cup team Matt Wallace produces stunning back nine display to shoot 60 and lead in Dubai Rohit Sharma highlights the importance of India’s work ethic ahead of final Khiara Keating surprised by her rise into Man City’s starting line-up this term Injury rules Andy Murray out of Great Britain team for Davis Cup finals Pat Cummins urges Australia to ’embrace’ World Cup final pressure against India

Najmul Hossain Shanto will lead Bangladesh in its two-match test series against New Zealand as the BCB named a team without several key players

Manuel Feller led Austria to a sweep of the World Cup slalom podium for the first time since