Already closing in on the arrival of Jaka Bijol, Leeds United have now reportedly turned their attention towards a second defensive addition in what would be a bargain deal this summer.

Leeds to face Arsenal and Newcastle in opening run

Two months out from their Premier League return, Leeds now know who awaits them on the opening day in August. With the Premier League fixtures officially released, the Whites will square off against Everton at Elland Road on the opening day, before travelling to Arsenal for their first away game as part of a mixed opening run of games.

That first game against Everton will be Daniel Farke’s first real opportunity to see how prepared his side are for top-flight football. If reports are anything to go by too, it will be a squad full of fresh faces.

Already, Udinese defender Bijol is reportedly on the way to become Leeds’ second signing of the summer and the rumours are not stopping there. The Whites have also been linked to the likes of Rodrigo Muniz with reports even going as far to suggest that they’re prepared to spend £35m to secure the Fulham striker’s signature this summer.

In one swift move, Farke could have two new attacking options in Muniz and Lukas Nmecha, who arrived as a free agent to get Leeds’ summer business underway. The former Wolfsburg forward expressed his delight after officially joining the Yorkshire club, telling Leeds’ official media channels: “It’s just a great challenge and I’m really excited to get to know the team.

“I’ve spoken with the manager many times and I’m excited to play that style of football that they played in the Championship, even in the Premier League. I saw that there was dominance last season in terms of possession and the goals. I’m an attacking player, so obviously that’s exciting for me.”

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It’s not just attacking talents that Farke is after, either, amid reports that Leeds are also now interested in another impressive defender after Bijol.

Leeds keen to sign Lovro Golic

According to Fabrizio Romano, Leeds are now keen to sign Lovro Golic on a free transfer this summer. The 6’3 defender is set to leave AS Roma as a free agent and has attracted interest from Elland Road as well as German club Hoffenheim and Italian club Lecce.

At just 19 years old, Golic is someone who is full of potential and a player who has already been praised by the great Jose Mourinho. The young defender revealed the story of when the former Chelsea boss called him up to the Roma first-team, saying: “The team manager called me and told me that the next day I would have to train with Mourinho.

“At first I asked him if he had called the right player, I couldn’t believe it. When I entered the field, Mourinho asked Dybala what he thought of me, he replied that I seemed a real wall. When Mourinho told him that I was 16 he was incredulous. Even Abraham couldn’t believe I was so young.”

Chelsea are carrying on their busy summer transfer window after sealing a move for Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap, with Enzo Maresca’s side now setting their sights on another exciting young centre-forward.

Chelsea could sign second striker after Liam Delap

The former Man City starlet joins in a £30 million deal following Ipswich’s confirmed relegation to the Championship, and fresh off the back of a 12-goal Premier League season, there is potential for Delap to do well at Stamford Bridge.

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He could be their next signing after Liam Delap.

ByEmilio Galantini Jun 4, 2025

After completing a medical earlier this week (Fabrizio Romano), Delap becomes Chelsea’s first signing of what is expected to be a busy window, and it is believed yet another striker could still follow the Englishman.

Rank

Team

Points

GD

3

Man City

71

+28

4

Chelsea

69

+21

5

Newcastle

66

+21

6

Aston Villa

66

+7

7

Nottingham Forest

65

+12

This is made all the more possible by clubs showing a genuine interest in striker Nicolas Jackson, who could leave Chelsea this summer and make way for another number nine, likely to be Hugo Ekitiké of Eintracht Frankfurt as things stand.

“Liam Delap is joining as well as another striker that points in the direction of Hugo Ekitiké of Frankfurt,” wrote reliable journalist Simon Phillips, via his Substack, this week.

“There’s been a lot of contrasting reporting on Jackson and what his future will hold now it looks like two new strikers are arriving at the club.

“At the very least, he now has big question marks hanging over his head, but what is the latest on him?

“Chelsea do like Jackson, but there has been a desire to upgrade him and bring more competition in. They believe that he doesn’t have enough to lead Chelsea in the Champions League right now, so have looked to bring in others.

“In terms of a selling standpoint, they will very much listen to any offers that come in without actively pushing to sell him.”

Phillips adds that Manchester United, Aston Villa, Inter Milan and Atlético Madrid are all interested in the Senegalese and are considering making an offer, so an exit for Jackson is very much a possibility.

Now, as one African striker is faced with the prospect of leaving Stamford Bridge, another has been given the chance to join Maresca’s squad.

Chelsea make "official offer" to sign Villarreal striker Karl Etta Eyong

According to Africa Foot, Chelsea are seriously moving in pursuit of Villarreal striker Karl Etta Eyong.

The “promising” Cameroonian, as stated by this report, has scored 20 goals in all competitions this season, scoring once in La Liga for the first team and a further 19 for Villarreal’s B squad, with the 21-year-old also attracting attention from Toulouse, Getafe, and Leganes.

However, it is Maresca’s side who appear to be in pole position. Chelsea have made an “official offer” for Etta Eyong, submitting a five-year contract proposal until 2030, with the option of spending next season at sister club Strasbourg to help further his development.

There’s been no confirmation of whether the player or Villarreal are inclined to accept this proposal, but it may be one to watch over the coming days.

Tom Alsop 81 not out sets up declaration before hosts chip out five Leicestershire wickets

ECB Reporters Network25-Jun-2024Leicestershire 275 and 139 for 5 (Carson 3-38) need a further 325 to beat Sussex 442 and 296 for 6 dec (Alsop 81*, Hunt 65)Sussex took four wickets in the final hour to put themselves in a strong position to beat Leicestershire at Hove and consolidate top place in the Vitality County Championship second division.Offspinner Jack Carson removed Foxes’ skipper Lewis Hill, makeshift opener Ian Holland and Lewis Goldsworthy after slow left-armer James Coles had made the breakthrough when he bowled Rishi Patel. Ollie Robinson also claimed the key wicket of Australian Peter Handscomb as four wickets fell for 30 runs in 12 overs.It left Leicestershire 139 for 5 and still needing 325 in their pursuit of a target of 464 and with the pitch at the 1st Central County Ground showing signs of uneven bounce and occasionally sharp turn for Carson, the hosts will fancy their chances of picking up the five wickets they need on the final day to claim their fourth win of the season.Foxes’ openers Patel and Holland had settled in promisingly with a stand of 51 before Patel upped the tempo by twice hitting Carson over the midwicket boundary. Slow left-armer Coles took over and broke through with his fifth delivery. Patel hit him for a six and four earlier in the over before he was bowled off an inside edge shaping to cut.Carson returned at the sea end and removed skipper Hill with a beauty which turned just enough out of the rough to find the edge and Holland mistimed a reverse sweep, the ball looping off bat-pad to Ollie Carter at short leg.Robinson got the wicket he deserved in his eighth over when Handscomb, who had been off the field earlier in the day with a sore shoulder, fended a short ball outside off stump into Carter’s waiting hands. Just before the close Goldsworthy was caught at midwicket when he mistimed a slog-sweep to leave Leicestershire facing their first defeat of the season.Earlier, nightwatchman Sean Hunt scored his maiden first-class fifty as Sussex scored 230 runs in 54 overs before declaring on 296 for 6.Hunt, who has a career average of just 6.60 and a previous highest score of 22, cashed in after being dropped at slip by Handscomb off Goldsworthy when he’d made just 9. He needed 69 balls to score his first 13 runs but then raced to 50 by smashing 37 off the next 20 deliveries, including two sixes off slow left-armer Goldsworthy over the short leg-side boundary.Goldsworthy had opened the bowling with offspinner Louis Kimber in an effort to improve Leicestershire’s over rate and between them they sent down 21 overs in 55 minutes and 38 in the morning session with Kimber eventually bowling 24 overs unchanged either side of lunch without reward.Goldsworthy did pick up a wicket when Tom Haines, who’d added 64 for the third wicket with Hunt, chipped back a low return catch and there were two wickets for Scott Currie when Leicestershire reverted to seam. Hunt spliced a pull to mid-off for a fine 65 off 118 balls and Coles, after scoring a run-a-ball 45, holed out trying to deposit Currie over long-off.Leicestershire employed nine fielders on the boundary after lunch and Tom Alsop took advantage with an unbeaten 81, including three sixes, before Sussex declared shortly before 3pm and left themselves 40 overs and the final day to take ten wickets. By the close they were halfway there.

Daren Sammy told his West Indies team to put their eight-wicket loss to England “in the garbage” and insisted that they can still win an unprecedented third men’s T20 World Cup.West Indies set England 181 to win in St Lucia – at the ground bearing Sammy’s name – but only took two wickets as the defending champions cruised home with 15 balls to spare, thanks primarily to Phil Salt and Jonny Bairstow’s unbroken 97-run partnership for the third wicket. Sammy said that only on a flat pitch, his team were “about 25 runs short” of a winning total.”It’s part of the game,” Sammy said. “This loss will not dampen our spirits. We still believe we’ve got a team that could win this World Cup, and that’s what I’ll tell the guys inside when I speak to them: park this game, put it in the garbage. And we move forward to Barbados where we win against the USA, and then we have South Africa in Antigua on Sunday.”No-one said it was going to be easy. There are good teams in the tournament. Today, we came up against the defending champions and they got the better of us. But that doesn’t mean our tournament is over. Our destiny is in our own hands, and I feel I’ve got the 15, the group of men, that we believe that this tournament, we could win.”Related

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West Indies made two changes to the side that thrashed Afghanistan on Monday, reverting to the XI that beat New Zealand in Trinidad. Roston Chase and Romario Shepherd – who missed Monday’s game on paternity leave – replaced Shai Hope and Obed McCoy, who took 3 for 14 against Afghanistan and was unfortunate to miss out.”We could talk about it now in hindsight, but I’ve said it from day one: we have 15 potential match-winners,” Sammy said. “Obed did bowl well [against Afghanistan] but if you look at what Shepherd has done for us over the last year in T20 cricket, what he brings to the team, we thought going against them, especially the potential line-up England could have and the dual rule that he brings [was the right option].”West Indies are bottom of the nascent points table in Group 2 of the Super Eight and will almost certainly require wins against both USA and South Africa to qualify for next week’s semi-finals. “We did not execute our plans well enough – a couple of chances here and there – but in a tournament, there’s a game where the opposition will get the better of you,” Sammy said.”But that doesn’t mean we’re out of it. Now, in order to win, we’ve got to win all our matches and that’s what we’ll focus on. We’ll leave this game right here in St Lucia. It’s a short turnaround: we go to Barbados tomorrow and on Friday we have a game against the USA. We’ll meet as a selection group and see how best we could further improve our team based on the conditions.”

Glasgow Rangers’ busy summer transfer window just continues to click into gear at Ibrox.

With the start of European qualifying now less than four weeks away, new Gers manager Russell Martin is reshaping his new squad.

Plenty of new signings have already arrived at Ibrox, with more still to follow, but could the Light Blues be about to lose a key figure, or perhaps even two?

Rangers striker on the move?

On Wednesday, Rangers unveiled new signing Max Aarons, with the right-back joining on a season-long loan from Bournemouth.

Lyall Cameron was also presented last week, having signed a pre-contract in January, while the Light Blues are also chasing the signatures of both Conor Coady and Owen Beck.

In less good news, however, French publication RMC Sport are reporting that Ligue 1 side LOSC Lille are “in talks” with Rangers over a possible move for Hamza Igamane, adding that the Moroccan striker has “agreed to personal terms”.

Having lost star striker Jonathan David on a free transfer, les Dogues are currently in the process of reshaping their attack, with Jeff Carlisle of ESPN reporting elsewhere that they’ve ‘made an approach’ to sign LAFC centre-forward Olivier Giroud.

In terms of Igamane, Gavin Berry of the Daily Record believes that Rangers “have set” a £20m price tag on the striker, which would make him one of the biggest sales in the club’s modern history.

On the pitch though, this would be a major blow, especially considering it’s set to be all change in terms of Rangers centre-forwards this summer.

Why Hamza Igamane will be a bigger loss than Cyriel Dessers

Igamane is not the only striker seemingly on his way out of Ibrox because, as has been widely reported, Cyriel Dessers is set to join AEK Athens.

The latest reporting from Ewan Paton of the National states that the Greek side are currently offering £4m, while Rangers are holding out for £5m, but that a deal is close, with new manager Martin already ‘looking at replacements’.

Between them, Igamane and Dessers scored 45 goals last season, while the only other player to bag more than six was Václav Černý, who also won’t be at the club next season, having returned to VfL Wolfsburg, following his loan spell.

Thus, there are currently serious question marks over who will be leading the line against Panathinaikos in Champions League qualifying on 22 July, but which of the pair will be the bigger loss?

Appearances

46

55

Minutes

2,651

3,423

Goals

16

29

Assists

3

7

Goals – xG

+2.7

-2.5

Shots per 90

3.88

3.22

Big chances missed

7

31

Touches per 90

51

29

Touches in the area per 90

5.2

6.7

Average Sofascore Rating

7.08

6.81

As the table outlines, despite the fact Dessers scored 13 more goals, doing so in around 800 more minutes, all of Igamane’s underlying statistics are more impressive.

The most interesting statistic is the goals – xG metric where, in last season’s Europa League, the Moroccan finished second with +2.7, behind only Malick Fofana, while Cyriel Dessers was fourth-bottom on -2.5, out of all 712 players who attempted at least one shot in the competition, this according to FBref.com.

The table notes that Dessers missed a whopping 31 Opta-defined big chances across the Scottish Premiership and Europa League, hence why fans are pleased to cash in on him.

Igamane on the other hand, supporters will be sad to see him depart, but it would be for a fee the club simply cannot turn down.

When they won the league under Steven Gerrard, and then reached the Europa League final under Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Rangers should have cashed in on prized assets such as Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent and Borna Barišić, instead choosing to hold onto them as a sign of ambition, before they ultimately left for free.

Just a year after arriving from AS Far for a reported fee of £2.5m, Igamane’s stock is very high, with writer Kai Watson asserting that he is “destined for big things”, while Samuel Hutchinson of Total Football Analysis outlines his ‘meteoric rise’, believing he ‘performed exceptionally’ in an otherwise mediocre Rangers side.

Thus, Igamane could turn out to be a bargain for Lille at £20m while, for Rangers, this is the right time to sell, but their focus has to be working out how best to spend that money, because finding a replacement in a short period of time will be far from easy.

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With Jobe Bellingham set to join Borussia Dortmund, Sunderland have instantly reportedly turned their attention towards the transfer market and an impressive Ligue 1 forward.

Borussia Dortmund set to sign Jobe Bellingham

Despite earning promotion to the Premier League, Sunderland have lost Bellingham to Dortmund this summer. The midfielder will follow in his older brother’s footsteps by swapping English football for the chance to play for the Bundesliga giants. It’s a path that led Jude Bellingham to Real Madrid and one that his younger sibling will hope to take with similar success.

As for Sunderland, whilst they’ll be frustrated to lose such a talented young player ahead of their Premier League return, they’ll at least have money to spend following his departure.

Bidding farewell to the 19-year-old in a deal which could eventually rise to as much as €40m (£34m), the Black Cats could instantly put that transfer fee to good use and set Regis Le Bris’ side up for first-time survival next season.

On that front, the rumours as to who could arrive have already been circling. Recent reports have mentioned names such as Tommy Doyle, who could replace Bellingham, and former Tottenham Hotspur defender Japhet Tanganga.

The latter would be a particularly impressive arrival. Following his Championship revival at Millwall, Tanganga is ready to step back into the Premier League and could yet do so courtesy of the Black Cats. It’s there that he could be joined by a talented Ligue 1 forward too.

Sunderland in direct contact to sign Matthis Abline

According to Sky Sports’ Sacha Tavolieri, Sunderland are now in direct contact to sign Matthis Abline after they ‘sounded out his entourage’, rivalling Marseille for the Nantes forward this summer in a deal worth €20m (£17m).

The Ligue 1 forward enjoyed an impressive campaign in France, scoring 11 goals in all competitions in a Nantes side that only escaped a place in the relegation play-off place by three points. Now, after a standout season for his side, the Abline could yet be on his way to the Premier League.

League stats 24/25 (via FBref)	Matthis Abline	Wilson Isidor
Minutes	2,768	3,174
Goals	9	13
Assists	2	2
Expected Goals	8.5	15.2

Of course, Abline wouldn’t be the first French striker to arrive at the Stadium of Light. It wasn’t so long ago that Wilson Isidor was arriving and he has thrived ever since – scoring 13 Championship goals last season.

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The Nantes forward, once dubbed a “top talent”, could be even better than the Sunderland star, however. After outperforming his expected goals last season, whilst Isidor underperformed significantly, Abline has the potential to only increase his numbers with better chance creation around him. And at 22 years old, he may just be getting started.

Arsenal seem to have finally woken up this summer.

The club may not have officially announced any new signings yet, but over the last few days, the North Londoners have made rapid progress on several targets.

Brentford’s Christian Norgaard seems to be as good as in following the news that Thomas Partey is probably leaving, and talks to sign Christian Mosquera appear to be progressing very well indeed.

There has even been plenty of talk around Eberechi Eze moving to the Emirates, and in more good news, the club are also linked with a goalscoring phenomenon who’d be a dream teammate for the Englishman.

Arsenal target attacking reinforcements

While there were some murmurings of Arsenal being somewhat interested in Eze last summer, they never felt like anything more than loose rumours.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

However, in the last couple of days, what felt like nothing more than paper talk appears to have developed into something more, with stories claiming that talks have already been held and that the North Londoners are ready to do battle with Tottenham Hotspur for his services.

There is no doubt that the Premier League-proven international, who can play in multiple positions, would be an excellent addition to Mikel Arteta’s squad, but in even better news, reports are now heavily linking the club with someone who could get even more out of him at the Emirates.

At least that’s according to a recent report from journalist Buchi Laba via Caught Offside, who has reaffirmed Arsenal’s intense interest in Viktor Gyokeres.

He has revealed that due to the “crazy money” RB Leipzig are demanding for Benjamin Sesko, the Gunners have now reignited their interest in the Sporting CP star, and even though an offer has now been made, the club have restarted talks with the player and his camp.

In terms of the money needed to get the deal done, the report has revealed that the Portuguese outfit are asking for a fee in excess of £60m, although it is not entirely clear what the exact amount they want.

It could be a complicated and costly transfer to get done, but given Gyokeres’ incredible ability, it’s one Arsenal should be fighting for, especially as he’d be a perfect teammate for Eze.

Why Gyokeres would be an incredible teammate for Eze

While there are undoubtedly numerous reasons why Gyokeres would be an excellent teammate for Eze at Arsenal, from his experience of playing abroad to his rise from the Championship to the Champions League, one stands out above all others: his output.

In fact, this reason goes both ways, as the Sporting star will want to join a club that has a creative and prolific number ten in the heart of the midfield, which is exactly what the Englishman could be.

For example, in 34 Premier League games this season, the former QPR gem scored eight goals and provided eight assists, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 2.12 games.

In contrast, Martin Odegaard produced 11 goal involvements in 30 games, at an average of one every 2.72 games.

With that said, what is it about the Swedish international’s output that would make him such an incredible teammate to pair up with the Crystal Palace star this summer?

Well, simply put, instead of being impressive, or brilliant even, the former Coventry City star’s record in front of goal over the last two years has been nothing short of otherworldly.

For example, since moving to the Lisbon outfit in the summer of 2023, the Stockholm-born “monster,” as dubbed by one analyst, has made 102 appearances, totalling 8417 minutes, in which he has found the back of the net on 97 occasions, and provided 28 assists for good measure.

Appearances

50

52

Minutes

4169′

4248′

Goals

43

54

Assists

15

13

Goal Involvements per Match

1.16

1.28

Minutes per Goal Involvement

71.87

63.40′

In other words, the 27-year-old goalscoring “powerhouse,” as dubbed by respected analyst Ben Mattinson, has maintained an average of 1.22 goal involvements every game, or even more impressively, every 67.33 minutes.

Even if he was only able to produce a third of those numbers in England, he would still be one of the most dangerous forwards in the country and, in turn, help send Eze’s goal and assist numbers to the moon.

Ultimately, while it might cost a pretty penny, Arsenal should be doing all they can to sign Gyokeres this summer, as he could be the difference between another second-place finish and glory.

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PNG gave West Indies a near-scare in their opening game and will hope to go one better against a demoralised New Zealand side

Sruthi Ravindranath16-Jun-20242:12

Time for NZ to give Ish Sodhi a go?

Match detailsNew Zealand vs Papua New Guinea
June 17, Tarouba, 10.30am local timeBig picture: New Zealand look to end with a bangIs it one last time for New Zealand’s golden generation in T20Is? They only have three players under 30 in their side. None of their senior batters have come to the fore in the tournament so far. Trent Boult, well, has been Trent Boult-ing, but he’s confirmed this will be his last T20 World Cup.Though Kane Williamson believes it may not be the end of the road yet for many seniors, New Zealand bowing out of the tournament early will make them rethink the future.Related

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They did come together to show their prowess against Uganda in the last game, rolling them over for 40. Though all of their bowlers made a mark, their batting unit, one of their biggest letdowns this tournament, did not get much time in the middle. The win also came a bit too late, their fate already sealed: they will not be heading to the knockout stage of a men’s World Cup for the first time since 2014.Papua New Guinea, meanwhile, will be exiting with different emotions. They gave co-hosts West Indies a near-scare in the first game. Their spinners bowled superbly in that game. Their fast-bowling unit has been impressive. This will be the first time these teams come up against each other. Can PNG’s bowlers challenge New Zealand’s demoralised batting unit?Alei Nao has been a bright spot for Papua New Guinea•ICC via Getty Images

Form guide New Zealand WLLLW (last five matches, most recent first)
PNG LLLLWIn the spotlight: Glenn Phillips and Alei NaoNo New Zealand player is among the top 40 run-scorers at this year’s T20 World Cup. At No. 43 is Glenn Phillips with 58 runs in two innings. He top scored with a run-a-ball 18 against the unplayable Afghanistan bowling unit in the first game and followed it up with 40 against West Indies. He came in at No. 6 and counterattacked, hitting three fours and two sixes in his 33-ball stay, after yet another top-order collapse but his knock went in vain. He’s been one of the positives in New Zealand’s dull tournament.Alei Nao has been the pick of the bowlers for PNG. The 30-year old seamer struck with his very first delivery at this T20 World Cup, removing West Indies’ Johnson Charles for a duck in Providence. He has been excellent for PNG with the new ball and has taken a wicket in the powerplay in all three games. Nao has taken four wickets at an economy of 5.10 so far.Team news: No major changesPNG brought in left-arm quick Semo Kamea for Charles Amini in the last game against Afghanistan. Both teams are likely to go with the same playing XI barring any injury concerns.New Zealand possible XI: 1 Finn Allen, 2 Devon Conway (wk), 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Rachin Ravindra, 5 Daryl Mitchell, 6 Glenn Phillips, 7 James Neesham, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Tim Southee, 10 Lockie Ferguson, 11 Trent BoultIt’s been a disappointing T20 World Cup for Kane Williamson and New Zealand•ICC/Getty Images

Papua New Guinea possible XI: 1 Assad Vala (capt), 2 Tony Ura, 3 Sese Bau, 4 Lega Siaka, 5 Hiri Hiri, 6 Kiplin Doriga (wk), 7 Chad Soper, 8 Norman Vanua, 9 Alei Nao, 10 John Kariko, 11 Semo KameaPitch and conditions: Batters bewareThe pitches at the Brian Lara Stadium have not been too conducive to batting. The fast bowlers have had a bit of help with the new ball, while the spinners have found some turn. It is expected to be partly cloudy in the morning, and thunderstorms can be expected in spots throughout the day.Stats that matter: NZ’s batting woes New Zealand have the best economy rate of 4.22 in the powerplay in the T20 World Cup 2024 PNG have scored at a run rate of 5.22 this tournament, the third-lowest behind Uganda and Sri Lanka New Zealand have the second-lowest batting average (12.60) among Full Member nations at this T20 World Cup behind Ireland

Blistering half-century seals thriller off final ball as Hammond 66 goes in vain

ECB Reporters Network12-Jul-2024

Brad Wheal was in the wickets for Hampshire•Getty Images

Hampshire 177 for 5 (Howell 62*, Smith 3-35) beat Gloucestershire 176 for 9 (Hammond 66, Wheal 4-35) by five wicketsBenny Howell’s brutal half-century took down his former Gloucestershire team-mates to keep Hampshire Hawks’ Vitality Blast hopes alive.All-rounder Howell had already taken two wickets as Hampshire fought back to restrict their visitors – who have never won a T20 at Utilita Bowl – to 176.But he then clubbed four sixes and five fours to equal his T20 best of 62 not out to start a south coast party.The Hawks’ five-wicket win put them four points adrift of the qualification places with three matches to play, while fourth-placed Gloucestershire remain two points behind Essex.Miles Hammond and Cameron Bancroft saw off a couple of tricky new ball overs before tucking into their work after Gloucestershire had chosen to bat.Neither flaunted any flair but used timing and a lightning outfield to pick a boundary or two an over – as 49 stress-free runs came in the powerplay.But where Hammond ticked into gear – albeit surviving a couple of drops – Australia Bancroft came a cropper when Howell chopped one through him to end 92-run stand, Gloucestershire’s best opening partnership versus the Hawks.Hammond went past 350 runs in this year’s Blast and a seventh T20 fifty – coming in 36 balls – but the visitors went from looking at setting 200 to an almighty collapse.All told it saw eight wickets fall in 33 balls, with the vast majority of them caught slogging to fulfil the double-hundred prophecy.Scotland international Brad Wheal – now the owner of 50 T20 wickets for Hampshire. was the chief destroyer with four wickets. His figures of four for 35 were only ruined by a late six and four from Ben Charlesworth.Charlesworth was a rare Gloucestershire success in the second half with his 39 off 19 taking them to a par, but under what they had looked set for, 176.In reply, Ben McDermott started strongly by pumping fellow Aussie down the ground for a maximum, but James Vince strangling a pull shot behind off the last ball of the powerplay stemmed the hosts’ momentum.The following six overs went for 27 runs as Tom Smith led a Boa-like tightening on the Hawks.Tom Prest reverse swept to point and McDermott and Toby Albert both thumped to long off as Smith struck in his first three overs with analysis of three for 14.But a switch of ends for his last saw Howell explode with a pair of sixes in a 22-run over to take the equation to 63 off 30 balls, and swung the pendulum.Howell continued his assault against Marchant de Lange with another two huge hits and was also dropped by wicketkeeper James Bracey – his first Hampshire half-century coming in 22 balls.Joe Weatherley had been the onlooker for much of the fifty stand and fell when de Lange parted his stumps.A five-run over from Matt Taylor meant 31 was needed from the last two overs but Howell recharged with James Fuller to make it 14 off the last.It was taken down to four off the last delivery, which Howell scooped to the boundary to celebrate by ripping off his helmet.

Founder of African Caribbean Engagement programme ‘hopeful’ that sport is now awake to the needs of Black community

Andrew Miller16-Jul-2024Ebony Rainford-Brent, the founder and chair of the ACE Programme, says she is more hopeful than ever that English cricket understands the needs and challenges of Britain’s Black communities, one year on from the publication of the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) report into the sport’s structural inequalities.Speaking at the launch of a new strategy, ‘Road to Representation’, which seeks to bring ten cricketers through the programme and into the professional game by 2030, Rainford-Brent said that the tone of cricket’s conversation about race had been transformed in the four years since the ACE programme was founded in response to a 75 percent decline in Black British professional players.”I’ve gone from hopeless five years ago, in terms of people recognising there are issues around inclusivity within the game, and now I’m really hopeful,” Rainford-Brent said. “I think we’ve recognised the problem and we’re putting in initiatives across the game in response to the ICEC report. But I think it’d be a decade’s worth of real work to say the game has fully changed and opened up.”After launching at The Oval in January 2020, ACE (which stands for African Caribbean Engagement) has since expanded to five further hubs in Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester, Nottingham and Sheffield. A total of 26,000 young players have been engaged with the programme, of whom 200 are considered ‘elite potential’.Young players at The Oval as part of Surrey’s ACE programme•Surrey CCCACE’s rapid impact was recognised earlier this year when it was named as one of three target charities – alongside Chance to Shine and Lord’s Taverners – that will share £14 million of government investment, as part of a new drive to improve access to cricket at state schools over the next five years.Later this summer, ACE will announce the first recipients of its new Rookie Contracts – fully-funded opportunities for two young players (one male, one female) to develop their careers at first-class counties. And, with 21% of ACE Academy players now graduating into county pathways, Rainford-Brent is optimistic that their target of ten professional players before the end of the decade is attainable.”The reality is it’s a big, ambitious challenge, but that’s what we’ve been about with ACE over the past five years,” she said. “We’re already seeing that one in five of our talented youngsters are making it through to the talent pathway at junior counties, and some of those were hardly engaged with cricket before, or simply didn’t have the support. So if we keep producing at the rate that we are, we believe it’s possible to see that talent come through.”Related

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The new strategy also aims to accelerate female participation within ACE, with hopes that the current figure (circa 20%) could be closer to a 50-50 split by 2030. To that end, they have launched a new scheme called ‘Blaze Her Trail’, aimed at girls who have already achieved elite-level success in other sports, in particular athletics.”We realised with the women’s game, the development rate is slower,” Rainford-Brent said. “And we realised we wouldn’t get to representation if we just go through the traditional way. You look at other sports, bobsleigh and rowing do acceleration programmes, so we’ve done the same, and found female sprinters from our target demographics – guns of athletes who have competed at the highest level and are now trying to convert to fast bowlers.”Rainford-Brent recalled an encounter some years ago with Denise Lewis, the Olympic heptathlete, as part of the inspiration behind the initiative.”She was someone I idolised growing up, but Denise had never played cricket, although with her javelin background she just knew how to get into position. We don’t know how it will pan out, but a lot of people in the talent pathway have had the same theory. If it comes off, we will have another conversion pipeline in the next few years.”