The husband of India’s finance minister, one of the most powerful positions in Narendra Modi’s gov’t, has joined mass protests, led by the cockroach movement, against voter-list revision. Parakala Prabhakar says removing millions of registered voters is threatening democracy.
Published On 30 Oct 202630 Oct 2026
Share
In a rare Sunday hearing, a federal appeals court judge appointed by President Trump questioned how the Trump administration’s request to intervene in California’s ongoing midterm election in order to force state officials to set aside 20,000 ballots from voters whose citizenship it questions squares with the U.S. Constitution.
Judge Mark J. Bennett said that while the executive branch is “unhappy” with what California law requires for ensuring voters are citizens, the state has the right to determine the manner of its elections under the Elections Clause of the Constitution and Congress has not challenged that process, despite having the ability to do so.
“It seems to me that you want us to issue an injunction that is entirely inconsistent with the law the California legislature has adopted pursuant to the Elections Clause,” Bennett said. “How can we do that?”
Matthew Donnelly, a Justice Department attorney, said the Trump administration has good reason to believe those ballots are from ineligible noncitizen voters, and has the legal right under seperate federal criminal law to challenge their tabulation until state officials can prove otherwise.
Donnelly said both federal criminal law and state election law bar noncitizen voters from casting ballots, but “the problem is that California isn’t interested in enforcing that provision.”
The exchange came during an hour-long hearing before a three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, over the Justice Department’s unprecedented emergency request that the court order California Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan to immediately stop counting ballots from the 20,000 flagged voters until they can definitively prove those voters are U.S. citizens.
The appellate panel — on which Bennett was joined by circuit Judges Patrick J. Bumatay, another Trump appointee, and Gabriel P. Sanchez, an appointee of President Biden — did not issue a ruling, though a decision is expected soon given the emergency nature of the appeal.
How it will rule is unclear, though both Bennett and Sanchez hammered Donnelly with questions about how the Trump administration’s position squared with the law.
Rick Hasen, director of the Safeguarding Democracy Project at UCLA School of Law, wrote online Sunday that the court seemed “very likely to reject” the Trump administration’s appeal, with Bennett and Sanchez having “expressed great skepticism on both jurisdiction and the merits.”
In addition to questioning its constitutionality, Bennett also questioned how the appellate court even had jurisdiction over the case, given that the Trump administration appealed the matter to the appellate court before the lower district court had a chance to assess the facts in the case or issue an order.
“How do we have jurisdiction when the district court has said it’s going to rule expeditiously?” Bennett said. “I don’t see how we have jurisdiction.”
Bennett also questioned why the appellate court should ignore the claims of state elections officials that having to comply with the Trump administration’s demands in the few remaining days before the Nov. 3 election would be catastrophically disruptive to the election, given that the lower court has had no chance to assess those claims.
“Isn’t that sufficient to give us pause as to whether we should do exactly what [a state expert] avers is going to cause a catastrophe?” Bennett asked.
Bennett’s questions evoked many of the arguments made by the state in its own filings in the matter, which were repeated by California Deputy Solicitor Gen. Samuel P. Siegel during the hearing.
Siegel said there was “nothing” for the appellate court to review, given there has been no fact finding and no order out of the lower court, and that the administration’s demands were unconstitutional and illegal. He said the court did not have to wrestle with many of the arguments being put forward by the Trump administration, because it should simply reject the appeal for lack of jurisdiction and send the matter back down to the lower court.
Bumatay appeared most interested of the three judges in the damage done when noncitizens do vote, and the underlying question of how the state should handle objections to alleged noncitizen voters when they arise.
Siegel and Seth Waxman, an attorney for Logan, said there are existing processes for that — which require the challenger to present extraordinary proof, which they said the Trump administration has not done for the 20,000 voters it has flagged.
Sanchez repeatedly questioned the provenance of the administration’s list, asking which third parties were involved in providing the data. Donnelly could not answer, which Sanchez said raised questions about the reliability of the list.
The Justice Department appealed the case after a lower district court judge declined to immediately rule last week on its request for a temporary restraining order barring California officials from tabulating the flagged ballots.
In court filings, the administration argued that once mail ballots are removed from their envelopes in California, or a ballot has been cast in person, there is “no way to associate the voter with the ballot” or resegregate it from other cast ballots.
Attorneys for California, Weber and Logan have argued the demands are illegal, impossible to comply with before the Nov. 3 election and based on deeply flawed federal immigration and third-party data sets shown to be inaccurate and inclusive of legitimate voters.
In court filings, they have argued that the Trump administration’s argument “rests on mere suspicion, aroused by suspect data,” and that its lawsuit is at best “a reckless political stunt” and at worst “threatens to disenfranchise thousands of Californians this election.”
Independent elections experts have said the Justice Department’s efforts break with longstanding department policy of not wading into election-related issues within 90 days of an election, to avoid disenfranchising legitimate voters.
They also have said the Trump administration’s lists of alleged noncitizen voters and its authority to intervene are both questionable, including because the U.S. Constitution empowers states to run elections with oversight from Congress, not the executive branch.
The Justice Department sued California, Weber and Logan on Oct. 15, two days after Acting Deputy Atty. Gen. Trent McCotter wrote to Weber and Logan giving them 48 hours to set aside the ballots for the 20,000 flagged voters — whom McCotter claimed were “likely noncitizens.”
First Assistant U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli, the lead federal prosecutor in L.A., has claimed federal authorities have “overwhelming evidence” that tens of thousands of noncitizens are registered to vote in California, and has defended the methods used to identify those voters. He and other federal prosecutors in the state also recently charged 28 legal permanent residents in California with election-related crimes, including illegally registering to vote.
On Friday, the Justice Department sent letters to county elections offices statewide with demands that they segregate ballots from voters the Trump administration believes are noncitizens, drawing from the same list of 20,000 at issue in the case against Weber and Logan. In those letters, the Justice Department gave the county officials 48 hours to comply, and threatened them with criminal punishment if they refuse.
State officials have said neither Essayli nor other Trump administration officials have provided proof to back up their claims, and that their list of 20,000 voters is clearly inaccurate. Logan said a preliminary review of a subset of those voters found many were born in the U.S., weren’t registered and had never voted.
More than 3 million people have already cast ballots in California — and more than 500,000 have already done so in Los Angeles County.
The challenge to the 20,000 ballots in California is just the latest Trump administration attempt to intervene in state-run elections ahead of the midterms.
Federal judges in dozens of states have rejected Justice Department lawsuits demanding the states turn over their voter rolls to the Trump administration. Federal judges also have rejected multiple Trump executive orders trying to institute national voter ID and citizenship checks, and his administration’s attempt to empower the U.S. Postal Service to vet mail ballots.
Other cases — including over the Trump administration using unproven and inaccurate federal data sets to question the citizenship of state voters — are pending.
Democrats and voting rights groups are also bracing for fresh litigation from the Trump administration to challenge the outcome of pivotal election results the president doesn’t like — and are already defending against a lawsuit the Justice Department brought at Trump’s urging in Alaska, preemptively challenging a Democratic win in the Senate race there based on a third candidate sharing a similar name as the Republican incumbent.
Times staff writer Brittny Mejia contributed to this report.
On the same week that a court filing showed that construction on President Trump’s hotly contested triumphal arch could begin as soon as Nov. 5, another less reported development pointed to the possibility that the government might be misrepresenting its plans for Trump’s National Garden of American Heroes in West Potomac Park.
On Monday, the National Park Service held a meeting about a proposed redesign to the park, which is part of the National Mall and also where Trump wants to put his Garden of Heroes featuring more than 250 statues ranging from Humphrey Bogart to Kobe Bryant to Benjamin Franklin. Trump first proposed the idea in 2020, but it wasn’t until his second term — when he began a crusade to remake much of Washington, D.C.’s historic core according to his own predilections — that the plan looked as if it might manifest. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act even appropriated $40 million for the project.
The Garden of Heroes has remained largely in the background while preservationists focused on the demolition of the White House East Wing and the construction of a massive ballroom in its place, as well as the botched painting of the Reflecting Pool, and, of course, the gigantic triumphal arch.
But Monday’s NPS meeting about plans for West Potomac Park rang alarm bells for some when Judy Chesser, chair of the nonprofit conservation and preservation group the Committee of 100 on the Federal City, asked, “How does this relate to the Garden of Heroes that is being discussed in West Potomac?” to which the NPS spokesperson replied, “This is just an update to the tidal basin master plan we started before. This is not the Garden of Heroes.”
However, the Washington, D.C.-based education and advocacy organization Cultural Landscape Foundation noted that the rendering in NPS’ presentation and the illustrated “Pledge Agreement” from the National Garden of American Heroes Foundation contain similarities that “go way beyond coincidental.”
“Each includes a great lawn, a giant oval/circle, an amphitheater, a fountain, and a staircase to the Potomac River,” Charles A. Birnbaum, founding president and chief executive of the foundation, wrote in an email.
“In addition, the new design shown Monday amputates part of the FDR Memorial to accommodate the Oval. This is intentional. Clearly the Oval is meant to host something else or it would be re-scaled so as not to interfere with the FDR Memorial,” the email continued.
If this is the case, the strategy of downplaying or downright denying an intention to work on a Trump-backed project is eerily reminiscent of the strategy government lawyers used in a recent, highly publicized court battle over the removal of dozens of trees from a golf course that Trump is trying to transform into a premiere golfing destination.
In that instance lawyers repeatedly said there were no plans to renovate the golf course (thus preventing U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes from issuing an injunction against said renovations), only to chop down hundreds of trees on the course with no notice over a holiday weekend. Reyes was irate and sources familiar with the feud say that the judge expects the case to go all the way to the Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, as of 2 p.m. PDT, Thursday, opponents of Trump’s arch have filed a motion for an injunction on the possible Nov. 5 construction, arguing that Congress needs to approve any plan moving forward. This head-snapping whirlwind of motions and counter motions is expected by critics to continue to be the norm as Trump tries to push through as many of his D.C.-based renovations as possible before a new Congress is seated in January.
“What better way to celebrate the nation’s 250th anniversary than to shut down the legally required review process, ignore some 100,000 negative public comments, and fast track the construction of a bloated and deeply unpopular monument that the president claims is for him,” wrote the Landscape Foundation’s Birnbaum in a statement about the arch.
I’m Arts editor Jessica Gelt pitching preservationists for my personal garden of heroes. This is your arts and culture news for the week.
Our critics and reporters guide you through events and happenings in the SoCal arts scene. In your inbox every Friday.
By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service, which include arbitration and a class action waiver. You agree that we and our third-party vendors may collect and use your information, including through cookies, pixels and similar technologies, for the purposes set forth in our Privacy Policy such as personalizing your experience and ads.
American Sound Takes Flight
MUSE/IQUE explores the nation’s music from Aaron Copland to Paul Simon in a concert setting infused with storytelling and cultural context. Featuring Brandon Victor Dixon, Liv Redpath and the MUSE/IQUE Orchestra, led by Artistic and Music Director Rachael Worby.
7:30 p.m. Friday, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday. The Wallis, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills. thewallis.org
Bach to Broadway
The 31st annual concert, featuring Pueri Cantores SGV, the St. Andrew School Choir, Los Angeles Children’s Chorus and members of the L.A. Opera and L.A. Master Chorale benefits the restoration of historic St. Andrew Church.
7:30 p.m. St. Andrew Church, 311 N. Raymond Ave., Pasadena. saintandrewpasadena.org
Ballet Festival: Jerome Robbins at the Ahmanson Theatre
(Steven Pisano / The Joyce Theater Foundation)
Ballet Festival: Jerome Robbins
Three programs of the choreographer’s masterworks, curated by New York City Ballet principal dancer Tiler Peck, with dancers from New York City Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet and other major companies performing to live chamber music
7:30 p.m. Friday, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday. Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. musiccenter.org
Andrew Bird
The acclaimed multi-instrumentalist and songwriter joins with the Los Angeles Philharmonic to mark the 20th anniversary of his album, “The Mysterious Production of Eggs,” with orchestral arrangements, plus popular songs from his catalog.
8 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com
Aymeric Hainaux and François Chaignaud
The musician and choreographer team up for “Mirlitons,” a marathon vocal and dance duet.
8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The Nimoy, 1262 Westwood Blvd. cap.ucla.edu
Museum on Haunted Hill: A Celebration of Vincent Price
The institution pays homage to its original patron, the noted actor, art collector, advocate and historian, with an evening of after-hours access to exhibitions, casual screenings of classic Price films, drinks and snacks, music, a photo booth and haunted decor.
5-8 p.m. Vincent Price Art Museum, East Los Angeles College, 1301 Avenida Cesar Chavez, Monterey Park. vpam.org
PLAY: A Play
EmIly Mast’s unscripted conceptual performance features six players, guided by a coach, working against a clock and an evolving set of rules to examine “the invisible systems that govern power, behavior and care.” With Hugo Armstrong, Gregory Barnett, Chu-Hsuan Chang, Jessica Emmanuel, Jessica Hemingway, Aramazd Stepanian and Maxwell Transue.
7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 4:30 p.m. Sunday. The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, 152 N. Central Ave., Little Tokyo. moca.org
Sinners: Sounds That Summon
This exhibition examines the standout Club Juke scene in Ryan Coogler’s Oscar-winning 2025 film focusing on the guitar played by the character Sammie Moore (Miles Caton), costumes, objects and archival material.
Through March 14, 2027. California African American Museum, 600 State Drive, Exposition Park. caamuseum.org
Grand Ave Arts: All Access
Tenth annual celebration of L.A. downtown cultural corridor with free exhibitions, tours, performances, family-friendly activities and more from participating organizations including the Broad, Center Theatre Group, Colburn School, Classical California, Dataland, Gloria Molina Grand Park, Grand Performances, L.A. Opera, L.A. Phil, Los Angeles Central Library, Metro Art, MOCA, the Music Center and REDCAT.
11 a.m.-4 p.m. Grand Ave., between Temple and 6th Streets, downtown L.A. grandavearts.org
Kabuki in Motion: The Lion Returns
U.S. Kabuki Ken Kyu Kai presents this program of kabuki dance, Nihon buyō (Japanese classical dance), and live koto and shamisen music featuring artists from Japan and California.
4:30 p.m. The Huntington, Rothenberg Hall, 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino. huntington.org
Picasso Ceramics From the Rosenbaum Collection
The exhibition presents 63 original prints and limited-edition ceramics, including vessels, plates, pitchers and sculptural forms created by the artist after 1947.
Through Feb. 28, 2027. Bowers Museum, 2002 N. Main St., Santa Ana. bowers.org
Lucile Dollat
The French organist performs music from the 16th century to the present.
7:30 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com
Jason Moran Presents Duke Ellington: My Heart Sings
The pianist and composer performs with members of the Pacific Symphony to engage with Ellington’s work through a contemporary frame.
8 p.m. Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. scfta.org
The Music Man
Meredith Willson’s Tony Award-winning musical comedy brings smooth-talking con man Harold Hill to River City, where his schemes are curtailed when he falls for Marian, the local librarian.
Through Nov. 8. Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. centertheatregroup.org
Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal with Rafael Payare
The Canadian ensemble and its charismatic Venezuelan conductor (who also leads the San Diego Symphony) perform Dmitri Shostakovich’s “Symphony No. 10 in E minor, Op. 93,” plus Felix Mendelssohn’s “Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64” with Leonidas Kavakos.
8 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com
The 39 Steps
Patrick Barlow’s adaptation of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935 spy thriller (itself an adaptation of a novel by John Buchan) about an ordinary man entangled in international intrigue. Directed by Hunter Foster.
Through Nov. 22. Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach. lagunaplayhouse.com
The Who’s Tommy
The band’s 1969 rock opera featuring “I’m Free,” “See Me, Feel Me,” “Sensation” and, of course, “Pinball Wizard,” is transformed into a Broadway musical by composer Pete Townshend and original director Des McAnuff.
Through Nov. 15. Hollywood Pantages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Blvd. broadwayinhollywood.com
Nedra Ryan Taylor and Sarah Scott Davis in the play “Confederates.”
(Davis Northern)
Confederates
Institutional racism, as experienced in two different eras by Black women, is the subject of Dominique Morisseau’s 2022 dramatic comedy. Best known for her three-play cycle “The Detroit Project” as well as the book for the musical about the Temptations “Ain’t Too Proud,” Morisseau juxtaposes the plight of an enslaved rebel and Union spy during the Civil War with that of a contemporary political science professor facing a threatening work environment. Fountain Artistic Director Raymond O. Caldwell directs this sharp-eyed satire examining an unbroken thread of racial and gender bias in American history. (Charles McNulty)
Previews, 8 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, play runs through Dec. 13. Fountain Theatre, 5060 Fountain Ave. fountaintheatre.com
Seasons of America With Teddy Abrams & Ray Chen
The world premiere of Abrams’ L.A. Phil commission, written especially for violinist Chen, along with Julia Perry’s “A Short Piece for Orchestra.” Charles Ives’ “Three Places in New England, S. 7” and George Gershwin’s “An American in Paris.”
8 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com
Sasha Velour: Travesty
The Season 9 winner of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” performs a new solo work that spans queer history through lip-sync performances embodying various personas including a witch burned in a field, a clown who builds a theater and patrons of an underground gay bar.
7:30 p.m. Thursday-Oct. 30. The Wallis, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills. thewallis.org
Katie Folger gets ready at her home before her performance of “Getting in Bed With the Pizza Man” at the Elysian Theater.
(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)
ICYMI, the best of this week’s L.A. Times arts coverage:
Katie Folger moved to L.A. hoping to make it for the third time in nine years. She created a one-woman show and sold it out. Will the TV pilot sell next?
Former Times arts columnist Carolina A. Miranda wrote a fantastic profile of Todd Gray as he opens a new solo show at the Brick.
The Broad announced that it’s shipping 164 works to Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris for its most extensive exhibition ever mounted outside Los Angeles, timed to coincide with the most extensive phase of construction on its expansion.
Reggie Burrows Hodges, “Blackness in the Looking Glass and the Images of Currency: Carriage,” 2022.
(Reggie Burrows Hodges / Karma)
Artist Reggie Burrows Hodges has three concurrent shows in L.A. at the Getty, Art + Practice and California African American Museum. He prefers a low profile, but contributor Tara Anne Dalbow penned this lovely profile.
Latino Theater Company’s production of “Yamel Cucuy” is the story of a 13-year-old girl, ICE and Mexican folkloric monsters.
Times theater critic Charles McNulty headed to New York to review Billy Crystal’s “tremendously moving new Broadway show” “860.”
Enjoying this newsletter? Consider subscribing to the Los Angeles Times
Your support helps us deliver the news that matters most. Become a subscriber.
Ahmanson Theatre.
(Ryan Miller / Capture Imaging)
Center Theatre Group and the YMCA of Los Angeles this week announced a new partnership called “Every Age. Every Stage,” with the aim of making live theater more accessible to a larger swath of city residents. The program includes free ticket offers for Y members as well as theater workshops and career mentorship.
A marble torso sculpted during the early Roman Empire set a new world record for ancient classical sculpture at auction earlier this week when it sold at Sotheby’s New York for $34.3 million. That was almost three times more than its pre-sale estimate of between $8 million and $12 million.
— Jessica Gelt
California has an adults-only train car featuring stiff drinks and great views of the redwoods.
A US judge has ordered President Donald Trump to answer questions under oath in his defamation lawsuit against the BBC by 11 December.
Trump is suing the BBC over an episode of Panorama that edited together two different sections of a speech he gave before the riot at the US Capitol in 2021.
Charles Tobin, a lawyer representing the BBC, said in court that “we still haven’t been able to depose the plaintiff” with two months left in the discovery period.
Trump cancelled a previous deposition on 16 October, citing “matters of national importance” while he was campaigning in Georgia.
In US law, a deposition is an out-of-court statement made under oath in response to questions, which is recorded for use in later proceedings.
The judge in the case, US Magistrate Judge Enjoliqué Lett, said that Trump must sit for the deposition by 11 December, unless the discovery period is extended.
Last week, attorneys asked that Lett compel Trump to face deposition after the last scheduled meeting did not take place.
On that day, Trump attended a midterms campaign rally in Dalton, Georgia and a fundraiser at his property in Mar-a-Lago in Florida.
In a separate filing on Wednesday, Trump’s lawyers said that the president could appear for the interview between 11 and 22 January next year, and claimed that the BBC was “wrong to claim that President Trump is avoiding his deposition in this action.”
Trump’s lawsuit – filed in Florida – accuses the BBC of “intentionally, maliciously, and deceptively doctoring” the speech he gave outside the Capitol on 6 January 2021.
The BBC apologised for the error and said that the broadcast gave “the mistaken impression that President Trump made a direct call for violent action”.
The broadcaster has since asked that the court dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that the programme does not meet the legal criteria for defamation and was not available in the US.
In July, Trump’s lawyers conceded that they had no evidence that the documentary was available in the US on the BBC’s BritBox subscription service – as they originally claimed – or on the BBC’s website, BBC select or through US broadcasters.
Trump ultimately agreed to drop the lawsuit against BBC Studios, its commercial arm, after the BBC argued that it had “no role in creating or producing the documentary.
Typically, depositions take place in a lawyer’s office – rather than a courtroom – without a judge physically present.
Depositions, however, carry legal weight and take place under oath. They are recorded verbatim by a court reporter, and the transcripts can later be used as evidence during trials.
Dodger Stadium was eerily quiet on Wednesday, as a light rain fell over the already-yellowing grass. A crow perched on an empty seat. Scattered lights flickered in mostly-dark hallways.
Before the World Series had begun, the stadium was closed down for the season, hosting just one last event before officially wrapping up the 2026 slate.
In the interview room, tucked away at the entrance to the clubhouse, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and general manager Brandon Gomes took their seats at the podium for their end-of-season press conference.
There was the usual end-of-season checklist. Are you expecting any changes to the coaching staff or front office? “I expect status quo,” Friedman said. Is Shohei Ohtani going to undergo offseason surgery? “That’s not on the table,” Friedman said.
But from that emerged a persistent throughline.
The Dodgers had fallen short of their goal of a three-peat. But considering the age of the position-player core, the scrutiny owner Mark Walter is under, and MLB owners’ insistence on a salary cap in their early CBA proposals, was the Dodgers’ dynasty over?
“I welcome it,” Friedman said of such claims. “For us, and we’ve talked about this a lot, even after successes and we winning a World Series and then winning back to back, everything we do is for our fans. And there’s a lot of noise around us in general. We don’t really pay much attention to it. It’s a partnership we feel with our fans, and so people saying that we’re done and we’re on the downside of this run — it’s just more noise to us because everything for us is about the motivation we have to have a parade in the streets of Los Angeles next November.”
Friedman also didn’t seem to anticipate any trickle down from Walter’s outside ventures — Walter’s insurance companies are under federal investigation and face several lawsuits — affecting the Dodgers’ offseason budget.
“It’s been business as usual for us,” Friedman said. “We talked to Mark after we lost, and he was obviously really disappointed. But so much of his focus was on, ‘OK, what can we do? What are our plans? What are our thoughts for the off season?’ And our brains weren’t quite there yet, but so much of his focus was how do we put ourselves in the best position to win in ‘27?”
How will the Dodgers go about picking themselves up from their NLCS exit?
The Dodgers’ 2026 season wasn’t exactly a failure. They won 100 games in the regular season and lost in the playoffs to the only team that won more than that — the Brewers. But the Dodgers, with their star power and payroll, aren’t in the business of accepting moral victories.
Though plenty went wrong in the postseason, from Ohtani’s struggles following hisinjured list stint, to stalwart Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s surprising short start in Game 2 of the NLCS, the overarching theme in the Dodgers’ four straight losses to the Brewers was a lack of offensive execution, especially with runners in scoring position.
“Obviously throughout the latter part of the year, it was stuff we were talking about and trying to put our finger on,” Friedman said of the offense. “And in a lot of ways, it’s a little bit of a game of whack-a-mole, where it can be one thing for some period of time, and then it’s something else, and then it’s something else. Sometimes it’s noise, and sometimes it’s real. And what’s important for us is to be able to sift out the noise and isolate what’s real and what things we can improve upon. We’ll spend a lot of time really focusing on that in the off season.”
Asked if the age of the lineup could be a contributing factor, Friedman pointed to the strong finishes of some of the more veteran players on the roster.
“I don’t think it’s as easy as to paint it with that broad of a stroke,” he said.
Friedman, in an effort to continue to extend the Dodgers’ run of success, has kept in mind the cliff that successful veteran teams can fall off of, if the roster isn’t properly backfilled.
“This isn’t something that we just woke up and were like, ‘Oh wow, the age of our position player group,’” Friedman said. “We knew what things were going to look like in ‘26, ‘27, but also how talented these guys are, the way they prepare. And so much of our long-term contract bats are betting on the human — betting on the person, betting on the work ethic, betting on them doing everything they can to keep themselves in the best position to have success. But when you couple the core talent that we have at the major league level with the position-player strengths that we have in our farm system, that’s what makes us excited, is the art of how to onboard some of these young, talented minor league players.”
The Dodgers had the No. 1 ranked farm system as of mid-August, according to MLB Pipeline. But many of those prospects, including the three outfielders who the Dodgers’ Top 3 (Josue De Paula, Eduardo Quintero and Mike Sirota), are blocked by veteran players.
“For us, it’s just about having as many many talented players as we can, and things tend to sort themselves out,” Friedman said.
This offseason, the Dodgers will also have to figure out what to do about their soon-to-be free agents, a group headlined by left-hander Tarik Skubal. The two-time Cy Young winner was not only the best pitcher available on the trade market when the Dodgers acquired him from the Tigers at the trade deadline, but he’s in line to be the best pitcher available this offseason as well.
“It’s not easy for a guy to get traded in the middle of a season to come to a new city, new clubhouse,” Friedman said. “You have set routines, and you have to make those adjustments. It’s not easy. The way he was able to seamlessly transition, not just in terms of on the field, but in the clubhouse, I can’t say enough good things about the impact that he made in such a short period of time.
“We have a tremendous amount of respect for him on and off the field. … He’s put himself in this position to go out and be a free agent. And for us, it’s, continue to talk to [his agent, Scott Boras]. But he and his family have to make a choice over where they want to spend the next X number of years, and obviously we wish him nothing but the best.”
When asked about negotiations, however, Friedman spoke generally, saying the Dodgers were still “wrapping [their] arms around” their offseason strategy.
The impending lockout, which is expected to go into effect on Dec. 1 as soon as the current CBA expires, and uncertainty over changes in the next CBA, will certainly affect the free agent and trade markets this offseason. And though MLB navigated a lockout just five years ago, the owners’ push for a salary cap has many around the industry bracing for a longer work stoppage and murkier landscape on the other side.
“I never have any feel for how a market’s going to play out,” Friedman said. “We’ve kidded ourselves in the past that, like, ‘Hey, we think this is going to happen,’ and it just takes on its own life form. So for us, it’s just about being as prepared as we possibly can be, and pouncing on opportunities.”
IT IS two years to the day since Liam Payne’s family – and his millions of fans – had their hearts broken when the pop star plunged to his death from a third-floor balcony at the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires.
Now, a bombshell update has ripped through the investigation. Argentinian businessman Rogelio ‘Roger’ Nores, 38, once facing the terrifying prospect of prison for negligent homicide, has been officially cleared of all criminal liability. Two hotel workers have also walked free.
Meanwhile, two defendants charged with selling cocaine to Liam await their fate, but case sources now think a full trial over his death will never take place.
For Liam’s grieving family and millions of devoted fans, Roger being cleared does not bring closure.
It simply shines a spotlight on the agonising black holes still in the official narrative as a UK inquest into Liam’s death is still ongoing, despite a series of setbacks.
Here are the chilling questions that still demand answers:
While Nores and two hotel workers, Gilda Martin and Esteban Grassi, have had manslaughter charges dropped, the drug trail hasn’t gone cold. Toxicology reports confirmed a lethal cocktail of “alcohol, cocaine, and a prescription antidepressant” in Liam’s system.
Two men, Ezequiel Pereya, 22, and Braian Paiz, 26, are currently languishing in an Argentine jail awaiting trial, accused of selling Liam the narcotics.
Braian Paiz was working at a high end restaurant in Buenos Aires when he first met the One Direction singer on October 2, 2024.
He has claimed as Liam was leaving he asked the starstruck waiter if he had any cocaine and the pair exchanged Instagram handles.
Over a week later Liam, who was still in the Argentine capital, contacted him to ask for drugs.
Braian admitted in his witness statement: “He ended up convincing me to get [drugs] for him. And, in all honesty, I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to see him again. That’s why I agreed to do it.”
In a later newspaper interview, he said: “I’ve suffered so much psychological damage due to all this and the social condemnation, and of course I’m worried now I might be in prison for many years. But I don’t regret meeting Liam. I was a fan.”
But it has become clear Liam was getting drugs from many sources, so the question remains: how did a global superstar, supposedly in a secure VIP suite, become a target for local dealers? Was there a wider network exploiting vulnerable guests at the Casa Sur?
The two defendants charged with selling cocaine to Liam in the lead up to his death are still awaiting trial.
Restaurant waiter Braian Nahuel Paiz, 26, and hotel worker Ezequiel David Pereyra, 22, served over one year in police precincts and in a federal prison until they were released in March.
The Sun understands that there have been negotiations for a plea deal for the two young men.
That could mean that a full trial over Liam’s death never takes place.
The pair are accused of selling drugs to Liam but if the plea deal goes ahead that charge could be reduced to supply of drugs for free, which carries a maximum sentence of six months.
According to legal experts, given the pair have no prior criminal convictions, the sentence would already be covered by time served.
Pereyra’s defense attorney, Augusto Maria Cassiau, told The New York Post: “We would be inclined to accept the offer.”
Another heartbreaking chapter involves Cheryl, who shares 9-year-old son, Bear, with Liam.
Since Liam tragically passed away without leaving a will, his entire £25.7 million estate will eventually pass to his young son.
In May 2025, Cheryl was officially named as a co-administrator of his massive estate alongside attorney Richard Mark Bray.
However, her power is strictly administrative. She and Bray can “manage the money” but cannot distribute it without further legal authority.
Shortly after Liam’s passing, Cheryl issued a searing statement condemning the “abhorrent reports and media exploitation” surrounding his death, begging for Liam to be given “the little dignity he has left”.
Cheryl is a plaintiff, on behalf of their son Bear, in the case against the waiter and the hotel worker, who are charged with supplying Liam drugs.
The Sun understands that she could ultimately have the last say over any plea deal agreed with the Argentine authorities – but she, or her lawyers, have so far not objected to the rulings in Roger’s favour.
Now as the inquest stalls, how much longer will Cheryl and Bear have to wait for the final legal chapter to close?
The most haunting mystery of all. We know Liam fell from the third floor of the hotel, where he was staying in Room 10.
But the moments leading up to that fatal plunge are still shrouded in silence. The UK coroner, Crispin Butler, has been desperately chasing “eyewitness statements” from Argentina since late 2025.
Following his death, it was reported that Liam jumped off his balcony, perhaps trying to reach the swimming pool below that it was claimed he had been denied access to because of his intoxicated state.
But it later became clear he had fallen backwards, possibly after falling unconscious, causing unsurvivable injuries to his head and dying instantly.
The toxicology report read: “Due to the position in which the body was found and the injuries from the fall, it is presumed that Payne did not adopt a reflexive posture to protect himself and may have fallen in a state of semi or total unconsciousness.”
After forensic experts studied the singer’s hands, they did not find any defensive injuries, which led them to believe that “the injuries on the body were vital and produced at the same time, and that no injuries were observed that could suggest the intervention of third parties”.
Are there witnesses who saw the build-up? Were there warning signs ignored by hotel management before he stepped onto the balcony? And why did they let him back into his room?
For Liam’s family, the wait for justice is becoming a cruel joke.
The UK inquest has been delayed repeatedly, first pushed to May 2026, and now stalled again because British coroners are still waiting on fully translated case files and evidence disclosures from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Coroner Crispin Butler told a pre-inquest hearing there had been no updates since a last review in January 2025, when he said he would seek full reports and eyewitness statements before a final inquest.
He added: “We have had no further disclosure of evidence from Argentina via the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.”
It has been 24 months. Why are the Argentine authorities dragging their heels in handing over the final, unredacted timeline?
The White House is defending its new press secretary, Katie Zacharia, as she faces scrutiny over her legal credentials.
President Donald Trump described Zacharia as an attorney when announcing her appointment last week and she has referred to herself as a lawyer.
But when she was asked on Tuesday by a reporter in which state she had passed the bar exam required to be an attorney in the US, she said standing alongside the president: “When I moved to China.”
She does not appear to be registered to the bar in any state where she has lived. White House communications director Steven Cheung said Zacharia is “uniquely qualified and whip smart to help inform the American people”.
Responding to questions about her credentials, Zacharia said in a statement this week: “I practised international transaction law, with all the appropriate credentials.”
On Wednesday, a watchdog group, Campaign for Accountability, filed a complaint with the California State Bar Association.
They are seeking an investigation into whether Zacharia “repeatedly held herself out to the public as entitled to practise law without a licence to do so, conduct California law treats as a crime”.
The 42-year-old political strategist graduated from law school at Pepperdine University in California in 2011, the university confirmed.
A law degree is not a licence to practise law in the US.
The new White House press secretary told the New York Times on Wednesday that when she first began appearing on cable news, she had asked Pepperdine how she should identify herself.
She said she was advised by the university president that she could call herself a lawyer, but not an attorney.
Zacharia took the bar exam in California after graduating from law school but did not pass, according to the Wall Street Journal. California’s bar exam is widely regarded as one of the hardest in the US to pass.
A person with direct knowledge of the matter told the outlet that Zacharia took the exam around the same time that she was planning a wedding and preparing to move to China with her husband-to-be.
In the Los Angeles mayoral debate Tuesday night, I was reminded of two things.
First, as I’ve said before, it’s no surprise that roughly one-third of likely voters remain undecided with less than three weeks to go until election day.
Second, there is one key difference between the two candidates: We know who Mayor Karen Bass is, but we don’t yet know who Councilmember Nithya Raman is, even though she’s been leading in most polls.
Those two points are connected. I think a majority of voters want a change at City Hall because of the marginal progress on homelessness, the erosion of basic services and the bad decisions before and after the Palisades disaster, among a host of other issues.
But they’re not sure what they’d be getting in Raman.
Why not?
If you haven’t already seen the story a few days ago by The Times’ longtime City Hall reporting ace, Dave Zahniser, you need to check it out right here.
The headline neatly sums it up:
“L.A. mayoral candidate Nithya Raman has strong opinions. But they often change.”
Raman has flip-flopped so many times, it’s as if she’s having a political identity crisis, which is not a great selling point for a candidate.
She endorsed Bass, an ally, for reelection and then abruptly and surprisingly announced that she was running against her.
She rose to power as a darling of the Democratic Socialists of America and vowed to defund the police, only to later support an LAPD budget increase.
She embraced the so-called mansion tax, then said it needed an overhaul.
She supported and helped fund Bass’ signature homelessness initiative, Inside Safe, and now has turned against it.
“That’s the real wild card,” said Sara Sadhwani, assistant professor of politics at Pomona College. “She has flip-flopped so extensively on policy that it’s unclear which version of her values we would get.”
Look, it’s not uncommon for a candidate of the left, or the right, to move toward the center to broaden support. And there’s nothing wrong with learning on the job and evolving. It’s all too rare, in fact.
The problem for Raman is that in somersaulting around on core issues, she’s alienating some of the people she would need as allies in order to be an effective mayor.
They might come around, because in the city’s shared system of power, there are times when the City Council and mayor need to paddle in the same direction in order to get anywhere. But among the 15 City Council members, 13 have endorsed Bass, and that support includes even the DSA wing of the council.
I like the idea of a rebel as L.A. mayor, but the job is hard enough with City Council allies. Without them, Raman could be cooked. And it’s not as if she’d have an easy time winning support for much of anything from the powerful public employee unions and traditional business interests, which are for the most part aligned with Bass, for better and for worse.
Both candidates had their moments in the debate, although I gave the edge to Bass. During The Times’ live chat, I said I think L.A. really needs a leadership change, and I think Raman did not prove that she’s the answer.
It’s probably the second-most important political job in the state, in one of the great cities of the world, and along with the ducking and punching, I wanted more love, more poetry, more unbridled passion and a contagious sense of possibility.
And please, all you Spencer Pratt toadies, don’t send me your whiny little notes about how he was the guy all along. Identifying some of the obvious problems is easy enough. (I do it all the time.) Having a plan is another matter, and that’s why I never ran for mayor, and why Pratt faded out of the picture.
So what next, as the final three weeks of the campaign play out?
If I were Raman, who is 45, I’d go heavy on touting the work she’s done on eviction protections and capping rent hikes, because nailing down younger voters could give her the keys to the throne. On homelessness, she knows the issue better than most, has detailed what’s wrong with the Bass program, has made headway in her own district, and has laid out a plan to speed up progress and efficiency citywide.
But her best argument is that City Hall and the entrenched political establishment need a major shake-up, because the machine is now a jalopy.
“We cannot afford another four years of decline, of mismanagement, of excuses,” Raman said in the debate.
As for Bass, 73, you can’t count her out just yet because she’s a fighter, and she’s better at campaigning than at being mayor. She also is likely to benefit from the fact that older voters — who are most likely to go to the polls — favor her by a huge margin.
“You are not ready for prime time,” Bass told her former ally during the debate, and Bass also hammered Raman for taking “different positions on different days of the week.”
In 2005, Mayor Jim Hahn became the first L.A. mayor to lose a reelection bid in more than three decades, falling to Antonio Villaraigosa. It was a rout, at 58% for Villaraigosa to 41% for Hahn.
I don’t see a rout this time.
The question for Los Angeles is this:
Have you had enough of the mayor you know, and are you ready to roll the dice on someone you don’t?
steve.lopez@latimes.com
NEW YORK — The new White House press secretary is facing mounting questions about her background and resume as she transitions into her role as the public face of the Trump administration.
Katie Zacharia has long described herself as a lawyer as she has worked to establish herself as a commentator for conservative outlets such as Fox News and Newsmax. But so far, she and the White House have offered no evidence that she passed the bar exam in any state or in China, where she worked for a large law firm years ago.
The questions add to the confusion surrounding President Trump’s decision to hire Zacharia, who had worked for his social media company for only a few months when he announced her appointment and whose debut at the podium on Tuesday has been widely panned.
Afterward, the president was asked by reporters where Zacharia had passed the bar exam, following a report by the independent outlet Popular Information that she did not appear to be licensed in any state.
Trump stepped aside to allow Zacharia to answer.
“When I moved to China,” she responded over the sound of Marine One whirring in the background. It is unclear what she had intended to say or whether she had finished the sentence.
China’s notoriously difficult National Unified Legal Professional Qualification Examination can be taken only by Chinese citizens.
Asked what credentials she held, the White House passed along a statement from Zacharia, who received a bachelor of arts degree from Pepperdine University in 2007 and received her law degree from Pepperdine Caruso School of Law in 2011, according to the school and her LinkedIn bio.
“I practiced international transaction law, with all the appropriate credentials,” it read.
Steven Cheung, the White House communications director, added that Zacharia was “uniquely qualified and whip smart to help inform the American people about all the great things President Trump and his Administration have been doing, and she will do an incredible job as press secretary.”
According to her LinkedIn profile, Zacharia has been the senior communications advisor at the Trump Media & Technology Group since June and spent two months as deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security this year.
From 2011 to 2013, it says, she served as an associate on the International Practice Team at the Zhong Lun Law Firm in Beijing. She also worked as the manager of fundraising and communications for Compassion for Migrant Children, which assists the children of migrant workers, from 2012 to 2013.
More recently, it says she served as general counsel for Fix California, a group started by Trump administration official Richard Grenell.
Neither the firm nor the two groups responded to questions about her tenure and background.
Zacharia has long called herself a lawyer. On Instagram, she describes herself as the White House press secretary, “Wife, Mom, & Lawyer” (with three heart emojis after “Mom”).
And her official author page at the California Globe, where she wrote occasional commentary, says that, in addition to being a “regular commentator on Fox News, Newsmax,” she has “extensive experience in political advocacy, international corporate law, and non-profit work, including time as outside counsel for the World Bank and IFC in Beijing.”
A June 2026 news release from NovaRed Mining Inc. announcing her appointment to the company’s advisory board, which was first reported by Popular Information, said her “professional experience includes work related to international legal and financial transactions, including matters involving organizations associated with the World Bank Group and the International Finance Corporation during her tenure with Zhong Lun Law Firm in Beijing.”
In announcing her hire on his social media site, Trump described Zacharia as “a distinguished Graduate of Pepperdine University, and the Pepperdine Caruso School of Law, an attorney, and a frequent Commentator on outlets, including Fox News and Newsmax.”
“She has an unblemished record of support, and has been a loyal and brilliant supporter, right from the beginning. She is, likewise, a devoted fan and member of MAGA!” he added.
Zacharia is not listed as a member of the state bar in California, where she currently resides, according to a public database.
Rick Coca, a spokesperson for the State Bar of California, a regulatory agency that oversees state licensing, said in a statement that it has “no record of Kate Sharon Zacharia or Kate Sharon Black” or any version of her married or maiden names “having been licensed to practice law in California.”
Popular Information said the same was the case in all 50 states it had queried, plus Washington.
In response, the watchdog group Campaign for Accountability filed a complaint Wednesday with the State Bar of California asking it to investigate whether Zacharia misrepresented herself as a lawyer in violation of California law.
“In California, calling yourself a lawyer without a license isn’t puffery; it’s a crime. The State Bar should investigate whether Ms. Zacharia has misled the public about her credentials and hold her accountable if she has,” said the watchdog group’s executive director, Michelle Kuppersmith, in a statement.
The State Bar said it could not confirm whether the agency had received the complaint or was conducting an investigation, citing confidentiality laws.
Colvin writes for the Associated Press.
Much was made of South Africa’s run to the 2025 World Test Championship final at Lord’s.
They played only 12 Tests – no team played fewer – and qualified after drawing at home against India and losing in New Zealand, before beating West Indies, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
Mitigation for this latest Test also comes from the fact this is their first in almost a year and the majority of their batters played one domestic red-ball match to prepare.
Australia recently came off an eight-month break of their own and lost to Bangladesh in home conditions, as Conrad was keen to point out.
And last summer’s famous win over Australia and a 2-0 success in India proves they can beat the world’s top teams.
However, this Test only reinforced a worrying trend among South Africa’s batters.
Tristan Stubbs and Ryan Rickelton are fine white-ball players, but Stubbs’ two Test centuries have come against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, and Rickelton’s against Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
This was an obvious step up.
In the first innings, Stubbs, two overs after Wiaan Mulder had been bounced out, top-edged a pull to fine leg, and in the second he played a loose drive on one.
Opener Rickelton drove and edged at a wide ball late on day two and nicked through a pull in the fourth over on day four.
Similarly, Mulder scored 367 not out against Zimbabwe last year, but Bangladesh are the only other side he averages more than 30 against. His 110-ball stay for 29 on the final day before being strangled down the leg side was at least encouraging.
Wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne, in contrast, lasted only three balls before nudging Matt Renshaw’s part-time spin to slip. His Test average of 30.14 drops to 28 against Australia and 15 against both England and India.
Conrad said that “a few of the guys need to step up”.
“The real disappointment was the batting in the first dig on a really good wicket,” Conrad said.
“Yes, a world-class attack, but quite a few guys getting starts and not kicking on.”
By News Agencies and Reuters
Published On 4 Oct 20264 Oct 2026
An attack by the copilot on the pilot during a Flydubai flight has raised many questions regarding aviation security, and some of the official versions of the incident have come under scrutiny from online commentators and aviation enthusiasts.
About two and a half hours after Flight FZ1073 departed from Dubai International Airport on Wednesday, it went into a sharp descent before eventually making an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.
list of 3 itemsend of list
Media reports said the copilot attacked Captain Smit Machchhar. Passengers were able to overpower the copilot, identified by media as Hamam al-Hammami, after Machchhar managed to open the cockpit door during the attack, which the prosecutor general of the United Arab Emirates said was carried out with the cockpit’s crash axe.
While investigators continue working to establish a motive for the attack, several questions have arisen about the incident more generally across social media.
Here are five questions that are being asked:
Al-Hammami has been identified as an Omani national, according to media reports.
On Friday, The Wall Street Journal quoted unnamed sources as saying that Omani authorities previously blocked the suspect from flying in the country due to concerns over his ideological views.
On Saturday, CNN reported, quoting a regional diplomatic source, that the copilot had also been removed from flight training over similar concerns and was later reassigned to another position.
It added, quoting two sources familiar with the matter, that the pilot was removed from a job at Oman’s national airline last year over concerns about his views.
It remains unclear how al-Hammami managed to get the Flydubai route despite these security concerns.
Reports have emerged that Machchhar managed to open the cockpit door while covered in blood, allowing passengers to subdue the copilot.
One of those who subdued al-Hammami was Yaniv Hayoun, whom Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described as a plumber.
In a video with Netanyahu, who met him at the airport, Hayoun, 50, was asked how he knew what to do at the plane’s controls before another pilot took control. He said: “I watch Air Crash Investigation, Mr Prime Minister.”
“I jumped back, grabbed the controls and started pulling back the handles” the way he had seen in the Canadian investigation show, in which experts analyse plane crashes.
People on social media have questioned how a plumber could have handled an aircraft in the air.
According to the flight-tracking website Flightradar24, the Flydubai flight rapidly descended about two and a half hours after takeoff, dropping more than 5,180 metres (17,000ft) in less than two minutes.
While the midair drop caused mass panic among passengers, no one was reportedly harmed, according to the publicly available information about the incident. An Air India flight that dropped 90 metres (300ft) during turbulence in August injured at least 17 passengers.
A flight instructor, who recreated the Flydubai jet’s near-vertical dive in a simulator, said the plane would have exceeded its maximum structural speed and anything unsecured would have flown all over the cabin during the recovery’s negative G-forces.
Israel does not have official diplomatic relations with Oman, and Netanyahu has previously said such countries were not generally allowed to operate flights to Israel.
On Friday, Netanyahu said Israel was looking into whether the copilot had acted under anyone’s direction, warning that anyone involved would pay a “heavy price”.
On Saturday, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that government officials had received in advance the list of crew members and passengers who were on the flight, including the Omani copilot.
Security sources told Haaretz that the government bodies responsible for monitoring and checking foreign flight crews landing in Israel are the Ministry of Transport and Road Safety’s Security Department and the security agency Mossad.
According to The Times of Israel, Machchhar spoke to Netanyahu on Saturday. He told the prime minister that al-Hammami had asked to pray before the attack. Four or five minutes later, Machchhar was hit with “a big blow” to the back of his head, he said.
The flight departed from the UAE at 7:05am (03:05 GMT). The attack reportedly took place about two and a half hours later (05:35 GMT).
The predawn prayer time in the Emirates on Wednesday was 04:51am (12:51 GMT), which would mean al-Hammami’s prayer did not align with Islamic prayer times.
However, al-Hammami could also have been performing a different personal prayer before the attack.
What should be a little more straightforward is giving Kieron Bowie another start.
The Sassuolo striker was sacrificed just over 10 minutes into his first Scotland start to make space for Welsh in defence.
His partnership with Oli McBurnie showed promising signs in the 20 minutes or so they were together in Slovenia, but there was little time to build on that cameo against the Swiss. Surely he and the Hull City striker will get another chance?
If there were any concerns McBurnie wasn’t up for the fight – five years on from his last international involvement – they have been quashed in these past two games.
His work-rate as a largely solo striker – hauling his team up and holding the ball in – was commendable. If only Bowie was still on the field for the flurry of flick-ons he won in the first half.
Pocognoli has inherited one of the overriding problems Clarke wrestled with during his spell – scoring goals. That’s four games now without one, and the Scots are just 25 minutes away from setting a new – unwanted – record for failing to score.
In 1970-71, they went 447 minutes without finding the back of the net – it’s been 422 minutes of football since McGinn’s deflected strike against Haiti in Boston.
If there’s ever a time, boys…