The derby carries particular significance because of Real’s recent difficulties at the Metropolitano, where they have won only two of their past 11 away matches, with the last in La Liga four years ago.
Atleti also won the corresponding derby last season 5-2 – a result that represented an early setback for Real’s previous project under Xabi Alonso.
This time, though, there is a different manager on the touchline.
Mourinho’s return this summer has brought a familiar emphasis on organisation and adaptability, but he insisted his tactical approach is dictated by the players available to him rather than a fixed philosophy.
“I’ve evolved alongside my players,” he said. “You have what you like and don’t like as a manager but then you have to work with the group of players you have.”
Simeone’s assessment of Real’s biggest weapon was clear.
“They’re better in transition than us,” said the Argentine, who has managed Atleti in over 800 games since taking charge in 2011.
He believes Real’s ability to turn winning the ball into instant attacking opportunities will be one of the key tactical elements in the game.
“When there’s a loss of possession, they look for [Kylian] Mbappe and Vinicius Jr, they play to that strength,” added Simeone.
“We have to read the game well and not allow any turnovers, so we don’t allow them to use those transitions.”
It is a warning that carries weight given the attacking options and speed available to Mourinho.
France striker Mbappe remains the focal point, while Vinicius Jr provides another route into space.
Real also have the quality to change the game from the bench, something the 21-year-old Espi has already demonstrated since his summer arrival from Levante.
Joshua Van retained his flyweight title with a commanding win over Alexandre Pantoja in their rematch at UFC 331 in Los Angeles.
The 24-year-old from Myanmar beat Brazilian Pantoja in December 2025 after Pantoja suffered an accidental elbow dislocation 26 seconds into the fight.
Van, the first UFC champion born in the 2000s, defended the belt against Tatsuro Taira in May but can now claim to be the best in the division after soundly beating 36-year-old Pantoja again.
“A lot of people said that was an accidental win, well, doubt me now,” Van said after extending his professional MMA record to 18 wins and two losses.
Pantoja took Van down in the first round, before landing heavy punches and knees in a fiery exchange, as Van retaliated with a slicing elbow.
Van, who moved to the United States when he was 12, then peppered Pantoja with left-handed jabs in the second round, and rocked the Brazilian with a fluid combination of punches in the third.
Pantoja controlled the fourth round as he took Van down but was unable to submit him.
In the final round, Van stalked Pantoja and knocked him down with an overhand right, securing the win in the judges’ scorecards.
Scottish fighter Casey O’Neill also won on the night, beating Eduarda Moura with an armbar submission.
Colwill’s boyhood hero, however, was much closer to home. Ever since being raised on recordings of Steven Gerrard he has aimed to emulate the Liverpool great.
“My old man had DVDs and I used to watch loads of Liverpool games of [Gerrard] playing when he was scoring goals,” said Neath-born Colwill.
“So, he’s a player, especially when I was younger, I used to try and model my game on.”
He may not yet have reached the Premier League stage that Gerrard graced but Colwill – the younger brother of Cardiff and Wales team-mate Rubin – broke into Bellamy’s squad in September 2025 making his debut in a friendly against Canada. His second cap came six months later against Northern Ireland.
“When I go on [Wales] camps, I’m trying to learn as much as I can off Craig and the top talent they have there,” Colwill added.
“There’s some top players there, like Harry Wilson and David Brooks, with a lot of them playing in the Premier League, which is every player’s aspiration one day – to play in what some would say is the best league in the world.”
Arsenal interested in struggling Endrick, Liverpool insist on keeping Wirtz, and Barcelona may launch a huge offer for Haaland.
Arsenal are keen on a January move for Brazil and Real Madrid forward Endrick. Concerns are growing over the 20-year-old’s game time in the Spanish capital. (Teamtalk), external
Liverpool are expecting offers for German midfielder Florian Wirtz in January. They have no intention to let the 23-year-old leave. (Football Insider), external
Barcelona are still interested in Manchester City forward Erling Haaland and could launch a huge offer for the 26-year-old Norwegian next year. (Football Insider), external
Juventus and Atletico Madrid are monitoring Arsenal‘s 24-year-old winger Noni Madueke before a potential move in the January transfer window. (Football London), external
Paris St-Germain forwards Ousmane Dembele, 29, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, 25, and Desire Doue, 21, are all in negotiations to sign new contracts in the French capital. (L’Equipe – in French), external
Juventus could move for a free agent goalkeeper after losing Polish loan signing Kamil Grabara, 27, to a torn ACL, suffered in training on Saturday. (Calciomercato – in Italian), external
After Moses Itauma and Conor Benn both experienced losses when skipping the British title route and heading straight for world title glory, Brown said he wants to go on the “journey”.
Chris Billam-Smith and Lawrence Okolie are two examples of those who have recently held the British cruiserweight title and gone on to win world honours.
Brown now holds the British and Commonwealth titles, and could look to European title-holder Viddal Riley next.
Riley, 29, last fought in April when he secured a unanimous points decision win over former world title challenger Mateusz Masternak.
When speaking to BBC Sport on Wednesday, the view of Old Trafford – the home of his beloved Manchester United – sat in the background.
Not since 1993, when Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn’s unification bout ended in a draw, has the stadium hosted a boxing match.
Brown said one day headlining at Old Trafford would mean more to him than belts.
Most importantly, Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn sees the vision: “Pat Brown, world championship, Old Trafford. I see it.”
Brown still has a long way to go if he’s to be mentioned in the same breath as former world champion Hatton, but he’s used his latest opportunity to make his mark.
Match of the Day pundit Alan Shearer praises the performance of Aston Villa’s Nicolas Jackson, saying Tottenham’s centre-halves “couldn’t keep up” with the 25-year-old striker.
Match of the Day pundit Danny Murphy praises Brighton’s “incredible” performance in their 3-0 win over Arsenal, predicting they will cause problems for Premier League teams this season.
Jim Harbaugh had never lost an NFL opener as a head coach… until last Sunday.
Now, with the Las Vegas Raiders coming to town, Harbaugh is looking to keep another streak intact. With him as coach, his Chargers are 4-0 against the Silver & Black.
If Sunday’s game isn’t a must-win for the Chargers, it’s certainly a high-stakes contest on the heels of an opening flop against the Arizona Cardinals.
The Chargers did precious little right in that 26-14 defeat at SoFi Stadium, the first Week 1 loss for Harbaugh in seven openers.
The Chargers, who were favored by 9½ points, failed to generate anything close to a rhythm. The newly unveiled Mike McDaniel offense failed to get any real traction, and Justin Herbert was sacked three times.
One of the few bright spots for the Chargers was receiver Ladd McConkey, but his availability remains uncertain.
Meanwhile, the Raiders dominated the visiting Miami Dolphins, 27-13, handing Klint Kubiak a victory in his coaching debut. Granted, the Dolphins don’t show a lot of promise.
Harbaugh’s teams have swept the Raiders each of the past two seasons. In fact, the last time the Chargers lost to the Raiders was a 63-21 debacle Dec. 14, 2023, and Chargers coach Brandon Staley was fired the next day.
UFC returns to Crypto.com Arena for the first time in eight years, and it does so with a card packed with big names and fighters looking to make the most of their opportunity to compete on the biggest stage in mixed martial arts.
Saturday’s main event will feature the flyweight title rematch between Joshua Van (17-2) and Alexandre Pantoja (30-6), a matchup that has been highly anticipated ever since their first bout ended prematurely. In December 2025, the two fighters faced off for the first time, but the bout ended after just 26 seconds when the Brazilian landed awkwardly after being sent to the canvas and suffered a serious arm injury, prompting the referee to stop the fight via technical knockout and crown Van the champion.
That victory made the Myanmar native a champion questioned by some, but Van legitimized his reign by prevailing in a grueling battle against Tatsuro Taira last May, stopping his challenger in the final round. For his part, Pantoja has not fought since that bout against Van, in which he suffered a dislocated arm.
In the co-main event, lightweight fighters Arman Tsarukyan (23-3) and Mauricio Ruffy (14-2) will face off in a bout that promises to define the division’s standings. Tsarukyan, from Georgia, has five straight wins, over Dan Hooker, Charles Oliveira, Beneil Dariush, Joaquim Silva, and Damir Ismagulov. Ruffy, from Brazil, has two consecutive victories in his most recent bouts, though he has won nine of his last 10 fights.
The card also features exciting preliminary bouts, including a matchup between Marlon Vera (23-12), who has been training in Southern California for years, and Canadian Charles Jourdain (18-1-1).
The main event at Crypto.com Arena starts at 6 p.m. PDT and will be broadcast on Paramount+. The preliminary bouts begin at 2:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on UFC Fight Pass and Paramount+.
The lineup includes a last-minute change. Brian Ortega was scheduled to fight on home turf, but due to an injury, his lightweight bout against Renato Moicano was removed from the card. As a result, Moicano will now face No. 11-ranked contender Tom Nolan in the main event of UFC Fight Night, which will take place on Oct. 31 at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
The last time UFC held an event at Crypto.com Arena was on Aug. 4, 2018, when T.J. Dillashaw defeated Cody Garbrandt by first-round knockout to win the bantamweight title at UFC 227.
Here is the full fight card:
Main card (Paramount +, 6 p.m.):
Joshua Van vs. Alexandre Pantoja, por el título de peso mosca
Arman Tsarukyan vs. Mauricio Ruffy
Patricio Pitbull vs. Dooho Choi
Alonzo Menifield vs. Iwo Baraniewski
Gable Steveson vs. Sean Sharaf
Preliminary Card (Paramount+ and UFC Fight Pass, 2:30 p.m.):
-13 M Elvira (Spa), F Celli(Ita); -12 J Veerman (US), A Del Rey (Spa) JJ Spaun (US)
Selected others:-11 R McIlroy (NI), A Scott (AUS); -10 S Bairstow (Eng), M Wallace (Eng), R MacIntyre (Sco); -9 J Smith (Eng), M Fitzpatrick (Eng), A Rai (Eng); -7 R Fisher (Eng), S Lowry (Ire); -6 A Fitzpatrick (Eng); -5 D Law (Sco), J Rose (Eng), E Ferguson (Sco), T Hatton (Eng)
Rory McIlroy left himself two strokes behind the third-round leaders heading into the final day of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.
Northern Ireland’s world number two made a superb eagle on the 18th to stay in contention with a 72, leaving him on 11 under.
Spain’s Manuel Elvira and Italy’s Filippo Celli share the lead after both made birdies on the final hole to leave them 13 under.
But there is a congested leaderboard with 20 players within four strokes of the lead.
Alejandro Del Rey, JJ Spaun and Johannes Veerman are one shot behind with an exciting finish in store on Sunday.
McIlroy is attempting to win a record-equalling eighth Race to Dubai title and can boost his hopes by securing the second Wentworth title of his career.
“There are a lot of people around the leaders,” he said after another round in blustery conditions.
“I think the conditions over the last couple of days are the reason why no-one has got away from the pack, just because it has played so tricky and difficult.
“I’ll probably try not to look at the leaderboards on the front nine, and if I need to play a little bit more aggressively on the back, I’ll do it.”
But the Chargers’ new offensive coordinator knows his unit must show urgency and improvement Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders after a rude wake-up call in the season opener.
“You have a lot of visions coming to a new team and working on something for months. The vision never looked like that,” McDaniel said of the Chargers’ 26-14 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. “That’s the beautiful thing about football; like life, time spent forecasting [and] visualizing things going a certain way … no one cares about that.
“So, it was a case of humble pie.”
Quarterback Justin Herbert never looked fully comfortable. He completed 17 of 27 passes with 207 yards, one touchdown and one back-breaking interception.
The time-of-possession disparity also played a big role in the loss, with the Cardinals controlling the ball roughly 15 minutes longer.
Herbert knows that can’t happen again.
“It’s another opportunity for us to go play football, to be better, and to put our brand of work out there,” Herbert said. “I don’t think we were happy or content with [the] Week 1 effort. So, we’re doing everything we can to fix it and be better.”
Facing a Maxx Crosby-led Raiders defense that held McDaniel’s former team, the Miami Dolphins, to 13 points in Week 1, the Chargers are focusing on often-overlooked aspects, such as understanding assignments, communicating more clearly, cleaning up penalties and operating as a collective.
“These are elementary things,” McDaniel said.
Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert celebrates with coach Jim Harbaugh, center, and offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel after a touchdown against the Cardinals on Sept. 13.
(Harry How / Getty Images)
The offense will need more production from several players, especially if wideout Ladd McConkey, who is questionable to play with a rib injury, is unavailable.
Wide receivers Quentin Johnston and Tre’ Harris, who each saw six targets in Week 1, should see increased involvement, as should speedy rookie Brenen Thompson.
“He’s been really good,” coach Jim Harbaugh said of Thompson. “Great opportunity for him [and a] great challenge.”
Tight end Oronde Gadsden II is another player who could play a key role in a revitalized passing attack.
“I would expect [Gadsden] to be more involved outside of an unforeseen situation where the game and the parameters with which you’re playing change, in which case we’ll address that,” McDaniel said.
Perhaps the most important player to watch Sunday will be Omarion Hampton. The second-year running back had just 12 carries for 43 yards and one touchdown while also losing a fumble against the Cardinals.
“Really just flush [Week 1],” Hampton said about the Chargers’ approach to facing the Raiders. “[And] look at all the stuff we can work on. Come back, regroup as a team, talk about what we need to do to move forward and make it not happen again.
“We all think the same thing … urgent to get how we want to play. That’s really the main thing going on in the locker room.”
Changes also will be apparent on the offensive line.
Trey Pipkins III (knee) won’t play against the Raiders, ending the rotation at left guard, at least for now. And while the team would rather be at full strength, Kayode Awosika — who played well against the Cardinals — will get a chance to prove himself without sharing snaps.
Nonetheless, as McDaniel emphasized, talk of expectations and adjustments don’t matter — it’s what shows up on film that does.
Good thing the Chargers’ new play-caller craves adversity.
“It’s been my favorite week of my employment here,” McDaniel said. “Because — I know [through] my experience in this league — do not measure anything beyond how a group of people handles adversity in the National Football League.
Alexandre Pantoja and Joshua Van hope their fight Saturday at Crypto.com Arena will last longer than 26 seconds.
It has been nine months since their first bout, which ended in less than a minute because of a Pantoja injury and made Van the UFC flyweight champion. Pantoja aims to reclaim the belt he lost at UFC 331, with the main event beginning at 6 p.m. and streaming on Paramount+.
Pantoja dislocated his elbow when he fell while trying to defend against one of Van’s moves on Dec. 6 at UFC 323 in Las Vegas. The fight ended immediately.
Van celebrated winning the 125-pound title, but both fighters walked away from that night feeling everyone deserved more than the premature result.
Alexandre Pantoja holds his arm after losing his flyweight title fight on Dec. 6 in Las Vegas.
(Ian Maule / Getty Images)
Pantoja, of Brazil, has not competed since that night. He has spent most of the past nine months recovering from the injury, while Van successfully defended his title once against Tatsuro Taira in May, winning by stoppage in the final round.
“It’s been [nine] long months,” Pantoja said. “I’ve been working hard. And at a certain point, I think that after two years as champion, five title fights — almost six title fights — at a certain point it’s good to take some time off, enjoy my family, enjoy myself. But at the same time, I’m really hungry to win again.”
Pantoja said he returned to the gym two days after that first fight. Although the injury kept him out of the octagon, he didn’t want to stay away from training for too long because he said that would have made it harder to get back to fighting at the championship level.
During his time out of the octagon, he observed how the division changed.
“I see a lot of good fights. We’re seeing the top 10 change almost completely,” Pantoja said Wednesday. “I see incredible fights in the flyweight division. And I think this Saturday, with my fight against Joshua Van in the main event here in Los Angeles, is very special.”
Van, meanwhile, enters the rematch coming off a five-round championship bout.
“I’ve been working on my ground game, and you’ll see it,” said Van, who holds dual American and Myanmar citizenship. “I tried it in the fight against Taira, but I didn’t quite pull it off. But this time, you’ll see a different level from Joshua Van.”
The champion’s confidence remains undiminished, as he sees the rematch as an opportunity to put any debate surrounding that first fight in 2025 to rest and prove his place in the division.
“When I beat him, I’ll be one of the greats in this division, and then the next challenger will come and try to take the belt from me,” Van said.
Pantoja said Van has changed since December, highlighting the fight against Taira and noting the champion has refined aspects of his fighting style.
Joshua Van celebrates after defeating Alexandre Pantoja in a flyweight title bout during UFC 323 on Dec. 6 in Las Vegas.
(Ian Maule / Getty Images)
“I think Van definitely evolved a lot after our fight,” Pantoja said. “He had the fight against Tatsuro Taira; I think he evolved and corrected some mistakes he made in that fight. So I think it’s going to be completely different.”
Pantoja doesn’t consider himself the same fighter who will face Van.
“The drive is always the same,” Pantoja said. “I’ve had the same drive since I was a kid — I’ve always wanted to fight the best fighters in the world. The drive is the same; it’s just that I think I’m much more mature now.”
Pantoja said Van is a top-tier fighter, but he believes the injury prevented both of them from showing everything they were capable of.
“He’s an incredible fighter,” said Pantoja, 36. “When you watch Joshua Van fight, his expression never changes — he always tries to stay in control. And that proves just how good you are.”
Although Pantoja officially lost that night, the injury changed the course of the fight before it could truly get underway.
“I injured my arm. I know that, as an athlete, I lost that fight, and now I have the opportunity to fight world champion Joshua Van — and that’s what I want. I want him at his best because I’m at my best too,” Pantoja said.
Tensions have escalated since their first encounter.
At a news conference in August in Los Angeles, the fighters got into an exchange that forced UFC president Dana White to intervene. Pantoja stood up from his seat after Van interrupted him, but the situation did not escalate into a physical confrontation.
“As far as I’m concerned, I’m his dad,” Van said. “He was being respectful before the fight, and I don’t know what he’s doing in interviews and stuff like that to make me look like the bad guy.”
Pantoja offered a different explanation.
“He does a very good job,” Pantoja said. “He needed a lesson. When I stood up, I tried to teach him a lesson. I’m from the ‘90s. Back then, if you didn’t respect your mother or father, you’d get a slap.”
Despite the disagreement, both have shown respect for their opponent’s skills. Van described Pantoja as a “very, very dangerous” fighter.
“He’s going to be motivated, he’s going to be hungrier, and I think this will be the best Pantoja we’ll see,” Van said. “So I’m very well prepared for this fight.”
Pantoja, for his part, knows he’s facing a champion who’s already had the chance to prove he can go the distance for five rounds. The Brazilian also viewed Van’s fight against Taira as a source of insight for his preparation.
“An incredible fight, very good,” Pantoja said of his 24-year-old opponent. “I think it’s a good fight for all the fans. It showed me something, but I know Joshua Van is very young and can fix a lot of things from that fight.”
For the Brazilian, the goal this weekend is clear.
“At the end of the day, what matters is the victory,” said Pantoja. “However it plays out — whether it’s by decision, split decision, KO or submission — I think the closer we get to the fight, the less those things matter. The closer we get to the fight, the championship doesn’t matter anymore, the money doesn’t matter — all that really matters is the win.”
Van doesn’t expect to let the fight go to the scorecards.
“I don’t think it’ll go five rounds; I’ll finish it within the first three rounds,” he said confidently. “It’ll be by knockout or submission, but I’m leaning more toward a knockout.”
If Pantoja regains the championship, he would become only the third flyweight champion in UFC history to reclaim the belt after losing it, joining Deiveson Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno.
For the Brazilian, returning to Los Angeles also holds personal significance. He recalled that it was the first city he visited when he arrived in the United States in 2014 and that, back then, he slept in a gym.
Now he’ll return as a title challenger in the main event of UFC 331.
“It’s so nice that people see where I started here and see how far I’ve come,” Pantoja recalled. “For me, the best part is being the same guy I was when I arrived here in 2014; I’m the same guy right now, and I’m very happy and proud of myself.”
The Manchester United Muslim Supporters group says club co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe “must go” after he spoke out against immigration levels and said the country was “on the slide”.
Billionaire Ratcliffe, who is one of Britain’s richest people and founder of petrochemical giant Ineos, made the comments in an interview with the BBC on Saturday.
Ratcliffe said the UK was in decline because of a combination of high taxes and high immigration.
He has previously apologised for “offending some people” with his language after saying the UK had been “colonised by immigrants”.
At the time, in February, United responded by saying the club “prides itself” on being “inclusive”, while BBC Sport cited a source familiar with the Glazer family as understanding the club’s majority shareholders were “horrified” by his initial remarks and saw them as showing “disregard for their ownership”.
“We condemned those comments then,” said a statement of no confidence from Manchester United Muslim Supporters Club (MUMSC) in the club’s ownership, issued on Saturday.
“He [Ratcliffe] subsequently apologised for his choice of language. We hoped a lesson had been learned. Clearly, it has not.
“This week, Sir Jim has again placed immigration and people receiving benefits at the centre of his explanation for Britain’s problems, arguing that nobody is ‘tough enough’ to deal with either.
“We find these latest comments deeply disappointing and completely unacceptable.”
Ratcliffe campaigned for a Leave vote in the 2016 European Union referendum and has been a tax resident in Monaco since 2020.
He acquired a 27.7% stake in Man Utd in 2024, and has since restructured the organisation, overseeing 450 redundancies, overhauling senior management and sacking two managers.
MUMSC highlighted that United’s “players, staff, stewards, security teams and supporters come from different countries, cultures, ethnicities, religions and backgrounds”.
The group added: “Manchester United would not be Manchester United without them. That diversity isn’t a weakness of Manchester United. It is part of Manchester United.”
In the statement, the MUMSC also called on the Glazer family to go.
MUMSC said its members were among the club’s fans who hoped Ratcliffe’s arrival “would finally signal meaningful change” after the Glazer family had “presided over Manchester United’s decline”.
However, the group pointed to “higher ticket prices” and “a stadium allowed to deteriorate”, along with “a football team that continues to fall further behind where Manchester United should be”, among their concerns which “now extend beyond the pitch”.
Manchester United entered the weekend sitting 13th in the Premier League after gaining four points from their first four Premier League games, and they were knocked out of the Carabao Cup on Wednesday with a 3-2 home defeat by Brighton.
“After years of decline, broken promises and repeated failure, Manchester United Muslim Supporters’ Club has lost confidence in the current ownership structure of Manchester United Football Club,” MUMSC concluded.
“Enough is enough. It is time for change. The Glazers and Sir Jim Ratcliffe must go.”
London City Lionesses earn their first away win of the season, ending a four-game streak without a victory on the road, as they emphatically beat a struggling Charlton side that have lost all three of their WSL games.
Let’s go back in time to the day when parents sent all their children to the same neighborhood public school, one brother after another, one sister after another. Coaches were thrilled. The youngest couldn’t wait to follow the big brothers, especially in football, to the school where they were once ball boys.
Fast forward to Thursday night at Davidson Field in Newport Beach. The quarterback for La Serna High was Grady Long. He’s the last of the Long brothers playing for La Serna. First was Dylan, a quarterback who went to Cal Poly Pomona to play baseball. Second was Jake, a quarterback who just got drafted by the Angels this year. Third was Owen, a 225-pound linebacker for Arizona State.
On the other team was junior quarterback JD Annett of Corona del Mar. Eldest brother Kaleb is the backup quarterback at Central Florida. Middle brother Brady is playing quarterback at Eastern Washington. JD made his first varsity start last week, then came Thursday night when he and Grady engaged in an entertaining duel that deserved to be on TV. Corona del Mar won 30-24 in a game that had four lead changes in the second half.
Long passed for 347 yards and two touchdowns. Annett passed for a career-high 289 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for two touchdowns. Each had best friends help them. Landon Armenta had nine catches for 221 yards and one touchdown for La Serna. Nolan Scott caught seven passes for 115 yards and one touchdown for Corona del Mar.
They’ve been best friends since kindergarten. La Serna raised in Whittier. What a game tonight for Landon Armenta and Grady Long in loss to Corona del Mar. pic.twitter.com/aZ4nmN5gUG
The game ended with drama. Long was driving La Serna to a potential game-winning score when he completed a pass to the 24-yard line on fourth down. The clock showed 0.00 on the scoreboard. Just like the Michigan-Western Michigan college game earlier this season, the officials put one second back on the clock for a final play. The La Serna crowd was getting excited. But then the officials realized La Serna was just short of a first down. Corona del Mar took possession and ran off the one second to win.
“It was a great football game,” La Serna coach Andy George said. “We ran out of time. Both teams played hard. Nothing but growth from here.”
It was a game between two 4-0 teams. One had to lose but it was fun for all, each team answering the other until time ran out.
As Annett was leaving the field with a big smile, he said he was going to FaceTime his brothers. In defeat, the 6-foot-4 Long, who’s also a star pitcher for the baseball team, held his head high speaking to family and friends, showing despite a loss he’s ready for the next game, the next challenge.
Even though the Longs have no more boys arriving at La Serna, there’s a sister who will be freshman next year at La Serna. And the brothers say she’s the best athlete in the family.
Can you say flag football?
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
Wolverhampton Wanderers v West Bromwich Albion. The Black Country derby. A fixture that goes back to the very dawn of English footballing time itself.
Now it’s back as a league fixture for the first time in more than five years, and in front of fans at Molineux since 2012.
It was first contested as a league game in December 1888 – the very first season of the Football League – when Wolves won 2-1. However, Albion had already won their first two meetings, in 1886 and 1887, both in the FA Cup.
Since then, there have been so many derby memories, both magic and tragic at opposite ends of the emotional scale.
And, since the explosion of televised football, so many of those moments captured on video to be relived – or mentally erased depending on your allegiance – over and over again.
It’s a fixture that the Black Country never stops talking about, the first the fans look for when the sides are in the same division.
And the pre-match banter begins earlier with every staging – and every look back at all those derby highlights from the past 40 years.
Steve Bull’s first derby goal in 1989, a toothlessly grinning Iwan Roberts’ Hawthorns hat-trick in 1996, George Ndah’s double on the back of an inspired Keith Andrews performance in 2001 and two-goal Steven Fletcher’s matchwinning efforts in May 2011 to help keep Mick McCarthy’s side in the Premier League.
For Albion, there was Darren Bradley’s 35-yard screamer in 1993, Bob Taylor’s late Hawthorns clincher in 1995, Jordao’s Molineux matchwinner in December 2001, the season when Albion pipped Wolves for promotion by three points, and Carlos Vela’s injury-time equaliser in Roy Hodgson’s first game in charge in 2011.
Motsepe began his inspection visit for Afcon 2027 in Tanzania before touring Kenya, where he inspected two venues in Nairobi: Kasarani Stadium and the newly constructed 60,000-capacity Talanta Stadium.
BBC Sport Africa understands that one of the main areas of concern in Kenya is the Kasarani and its corresponding training facility.
When Caf conducted its previous inspection in mid-February, the local organisers were told that stadiums and their associated training facilities should be around 80% ready by August.
However, Kasarani has seen limited progress over the past seven months, with several areas still requiring attention.
One of the biggest challenges is the playing surface, which is yet to be laid. Work is also required on cabling for broadcast and television operations, floodlights and the stadiums’ sky boxes.
Motsepe also pointed to the demands created by hosting hundreds of VIPs and heads of state, saying some stadium designs will need to be reconfigured.
“Security issues in relation to where the special guests, particularly the heads of state, will be seated requires a revision of the original plans,” the 64-year-old explained.
Kenya’s cabinet secretary for sports Salim Mvurya insisted preparations would be completed on time.
“I assure Caf and Kenyans we will accelerate the preparations for Afcon 2027,” Mvurya said.
“We will conclude everything by December to be sure we can have test matches in the various facilities.”
Wales face USA, who like South Africa are ranked above Wales, on Saturday, 26 September, also at Cardiff Arms Park, in their second outing of the new WXV campaign.
And while Wales will enjoy their deserved celebrations, co-captain Kate Williams is already talking about the importance of backing the performance up.
“After all of the tough times we have been through, as a team and Welsh rugby generally, we are going to keep working for the positive feeling to continue,” she said.
“What we want out of this WXV Series is more wins.
“Today just proved that what we’ve been doing works and we’ll be able to change our gameplan for USA next week.”
Lynn will be waiting on the fitness of scrum-half Seren Lockwood after she failed to return to the pitch after a head injury assessment, but he could be boosted by the return of Carys Cox, who gives him another exciting option in the backline.
Until then, he and Wales will enjoy victory before the work starts again on Monday.
