Tag Futebol

Andrew Gale, Yorkshire’s captain for their back-to-back Championship victories in 2014 and 2015, is the county’s new Ist XI coach – but director of cricket Martyn Moxon says it is not a return to the insular days of old

David Hopps14-Nov-2016Yorkshire’s director of cricket, Martyn Moxon, has vowed there will be no retreat to the insular ways of old after the county responded to the loss of Australian coach Jason Gillespie by promoting Andrew Gale from the ranks.Such assurances were conveyed to the first-team staff minutes before the official Headingley unveiling of Gale, who as Yorkshire’s 1st XI captain was one of the key figures in a renaissance which has brought two Championships in three years and supplied England with a steady stream of players. His opening words? “I bet this surprised you.”Gale has been an inspirational and respected figure as Yorkshire’s captain. His pride in the county has been unstinting, his sense of unity strong, his expectations expressed in straightforward terms that translated easily both within the squad and across the Broad Acres. His worth goes far beyond a playing-record of 8217 runs at 36.03. “I didn’t expect the opportunity to come as early as it has, but it is one that is too good to turn down,” he said.Nevertheless, Yorkshire’s history of self-sufficiency automatically invites the suspicion that they are sometimes overly tempted to trust their own judgment – it would certainly be in keeping with the political mood sweeping across the Western world – but Moxon has a broad outlook on such things and he welcomed the chance to scotch such a notion when he spoke to the players, many of whom had anticipated a high-profile appointment.”We are not seeing this as an insular appointment, absolutely not,” Moxon said. “I have mentioned that with the players. We don’t want to see this as ‘we know best’ and that we have been successful over the past five years so if we just keep doing what we are doing we will be fine. We know we need an open mind, we need to be looking at new ways of doing things and we need to keep moving forward.”Gale’s appointment was announced on the day of the Super Moon – the largest moon since 1948. Many astrologers contend that this is an omen, although they seem divided whether it is a sign of imminent prosperity or apocalypse.He immediately showed a willingness to question Yorkshire lore by advocating a root-and-branch examination, from junior cricket upwards, to address the county’s shortcomings in T20 cricket, an area to which Gillespie was unable to find a solution.”I think we could be a bit more dynamic in the way we play our one-day cricket,” he said. “At times we are a little bit one-dimensional. I don’t think we work hard enough on our skills in white-ball cricket and I also think we need to be a bit more fearless.”We are very traditional here in Yorkshire. The first thing you would teach a lad at 14-years-old is how to play a forward defence. You can make a career out of playing a scoop now. We need to change the mindset from top to bottom, right down to U-14s, U-15s. I know having played in the second team that there are other lads around the country who are a lot more skilful than our second team in the white-ball formats. Red ball is different – the lads know what they have to do – but from a white-ball perspective we are behind with our development.”There will be unworthy suspicions, too, that the choice of Gale, who has agreed a three-year contract, represents a cost-cutting measure only a week after Yorkshire, £22m in debt, protested that potential delays in the redevelopment of Headingley could seriously jeopardise their international future. “It’s nothing to do with the finances,” Moxon said, before adding light-heartedly, “Anyway, he might be on more money than Dizzy.”Gale has retired immediately, at 32, after first indicating at the end of the season that he wanted to prolong his career only to be persuaded by Moxon that the time was ripe. Michael Vaughan, the former England captain and a member of Yorkshire’s board, was another person who Gale used as a sounding board.He has immediate challenges, not least the choice of a successor for his own role as captain. Alex Lees holds the role in both limited-overs formats, but Gary Ballance is also an influential figure in a strong-willed dressing room and, if indications are that his England career is losing impetus, he is bound to receive serious considerationAn overseas player is also a priority. “It depends on what happens with England and we have one eye on that at the moment,” Moxon said. “But we are in the market for a top-order overseas batsman, I can say that for sure.”The appointment of Gale is a pragmatic response by Moxon, who was solely in charge of recruitment, after high-profile targets such as Paul Farbrace, the England assistant coach, and Richard Dawson, head coach at Gloucestershire – both former heads of the Yorkshire academy resisted overtures.There was even talk of Andy Flower, the former England coach, who is now in charge of England Lions, and Brad Hodge, the former Australian batsman who is making a name for himself as a T20 coach as assistant coach to Gillespie at Adelaide Strikers and with Gujarat Lions in IPL, also had his advocates.”Of course we were looking around and I’m sure you would expect me to do that,” Moxon said. “But when I appointed people like Dizzy or Farby it felt right. That is the biggest thing about this appointment: it feels right.Yorkshire’s 1st XI is an experienced group, especially among the bowlers, which has persuaded Moxon that continuity matters. “It’s important we keep that continuity and protect the environment that we’ve created, one that has been successful for us.”The qualities are the togetherness we have had in the group, the strong leadership we have had, everyone knowing their role, everyone enjoying each other’s success and an honesty within the whole group. It has been a true team on and off the field”What took up most of my thoughts was running the first team in the short term. It was clear to me he was the best man to do that. It was the least disruptive option. We want to avoid chopping and changing particularly when at a crucial period when the transition of the team is taken place.”Gale’s immediate conclusion when Gillespie confirmed that he would be returning full-time to Australia had been that the vacancy had come too soon for him. But he will take his Level 4 coaching exams as soon as possible – he is already Level 3 – and his involvement in coaching is already substantial.Jason Gillespie and Andrew Gale combined successfully as coach and captain•PA Photos

He is the joint owner of the Pro Coach Cricket Academy, which is based next to Yorkshire’s own academy at Headingley and which delivers a wide range of coaching clinics across the county for children and adults of all abilities – sometimes in alliance with Yorkshire. Yorkshire are expected to examine how that relationship exists to safeguard Gale from suggestions of any conflict of interests.”Initially we don’t need him to be a top-level coach,” Moxon said. “We need him to be a leader and a manager of men. He can do that. He will grow into the coaching side of things over the next couple of years. He is highly qualified in the way that he has led the team as captain over the past seven years and has expertise that we didn’t want to lose at the club.”Gale had admitted to Moxon and Gillespie in mid-season that he was not enjoying his cricket and was contemplating retirement. He had been disappointed to lose not just the captaincy, but only to make fleeting appearances in Yorkshire’s limited-overs side. His batting had become scratchy and his fielding was showing of signs of wear and tear. In September, he stared down an average of 21 in the Championship and resolved to carry on, but a coaching career was inevitable. It was just a matter of when and where.As potential coaches were openly discussed around the county, Gale was under no lllusions that his Yorkshire career was drawing to a close. He remained under contract, but he had averaging only 21 in first-class cricket in 2016 and Alex Lees had replaced him as Yorkshire’s captain in both limited-overs formats. His batting had become increasingly scratchy and his fielding was showing premature signs of age.”When I drove into Headingley a fortnight or so ago, as a player, I had the feeling of ‘here we go again'” he said. “Now I have driven here today with a real sense of excitement.”Obviously, I have experience at grassroots running my own coaching company, and I have worked with young batters as a senior player about how they can improve their game, but I know senior coaching is different. I am willing to learn on the job and I need to learn quickly.”Gale is too grounded to be overly concerned by the fact that he was not Yorkshire’s first choice. Most people are second choice to somebody, theoretically anyway. In fact, as club captain, he could hardly be unaware of the dead ends that Moxon came up against as he tried to find a replacement for Gillespie. But he also knows that when the applications came in, he was rapidly preferred.”I’m under no illusion that the club would have preferred an international coach, but Martyn’s philosophy was that if they couldn’t get that then they didn’t want too much change,” he said. “I know the players inside out so that transition should be easier than somebody we could have ended up taking a punt on: we could have ended up putting fires out in the middle of the season. The state that the club is in at the moment it just needs to continue the good work we have done.”Obviously, you are going to be more distant from the players. You are making judgments on their place in the team, and on their careers, but the relationship will naturally get further apart, but I know what makes the players tick and how to get the best out of them. Whether I’m captain or coach, that’s going to be the key in the short-term for this role.” I’ve never been frightened to make those decisions as a captain anyway. I guess there might be a few tough words but that’s part and parcel of the job.”

ScorecardSteven Davies is attracting the attention of several counties•Getty Images

Where Steven Davies plays his cricket next season is unknown. He is out of contract at Surrey, and, retaining England ambitions, wants to regain the gloves. Thanks to the emergence of Ben Foakes, he will not get to do that at Surrey anytime soon, but several counties, including Somerset, would give much for a keeper of his batting prowess.On this sweltering day at The Oval – much of a hearty crowd spent the day moving to avoid the sun, inverting a county cricket tradition of fans congregating under any rays of sunshine, real or imaged – Surrey had cause to thank that, for now, Davies remains all theirs.His pristine late cut, gliding the ball precisely through backward point, must register as one of the most delightful shots in the county game. A threaded drive through point off Simon Kerrigan, in between two men placed to stop just such a shot was followed, in the next over, by a sumptuous flick through midwicket off Arron Lilley; the outcome of both deliveries belied a lack of discernible effort from the batsman as they raced across the boundary. Each was a triumph of timing and grace over power.It says everything of Davies that, in this form, he was not the lesser stylist in his partnership with Kumar Sangakkara. The most notable contrast between the two was in intent: Davies’ fine half-century arrived in 96 balls, while Sangakkara’s took just 47. Their partnership of 77 in 17.5 overs – a product of sharp running as well as clean hitting – imbued new impetus into Surrey’s innings until Sangakkara scythed Nathan Buck to gully, where he was neatly taken by Haseeb Hameed.Davies, though, seemed hell-bent on returning the following morning, leaving the ball judiciously in between caressing the ball through the offside. He had made 59 fine runs when, to his evident consternation, a slog sweep picked out midwicket in the last throes of the day. It embodied a season in which he has provided wondrous shot-making, and yet is still averaging under 40 in Championship cricket.His disappointment at squandering a chance to make a match-defining innings was shared by several in the Surrey dressing room: not just Sangakkara, but also the openers Rory Burns and Dominic Sibley. Batting with great diligence and an austere mood out of sync with the sunshine, they extended their overnight partnership to 160 before both fell in consecutive overs to a zesty spell from Kyle Jarvis: Sibley played on; Burns cut aberrantly outside offstump, just when he appeared set on a second century, and 1,000 runs, in the Championship summer.The upshot is that, while Surrey have a dominant position, it is not quite the impregnable one they had threatened to build. For that Lancashire’s perseverance should be lauded. If their attack lacks an incisive streak, they are not short of tenacity. And, with two spinners in their ranks, they might feel that a final day target of 250 or so could imperil Surrey. Should either county have a positive result to toast, it will effectively ensure that they do not return to Division Two in 2017.Three years and three days after his only Test match was ruined by Shane Watson at this same ground, Simon Kerrigan again recorded figures of 0 for 53; this time, though, off 20 overs rather than eight. Sangakkara had briefly revived these memories, by driving Kerrigan through long-off for four, and then sauntering down the wicket and flicking him over long-on for six, in consecutive balls, but this was mostly a day of steadfast accumulation, not high-summer madness.

Manchester United are planning to bid for Harry Kane this summer, having now launched initial moves to sign the striker, according to a recent report from the Telegraph.

What's the latest Man United transfer news?

Man United legend Gary Neville recently claimed Erik ten Hag will need to strengthen a number of areas this summer, with a new goalkeeper, right-back, centre-back and striker all needed, and they are already looking at a number of different options.

The Red Devils have sent a scout to watch FC Porto goalkeeper Diogo Costa, indicating David De Gea could be replaced, while they are all in pole position to sign Bayer Leverkusen right-back Jeremie Frimpong, who could cost between £40m – £50m.

In terms of centre-backs, Axel Disasi and Kim Min-jae could be targeted, while United are said to have made an approach for Rasmus Hojlund to bolster their attack, with Victor Osimhen also of interest.

According to a report from the Telegraph, Man United have now started work on signing Kane, having begun their due diligence on how to handle negotiations with Daniel Levy, the Tottenham Hotspur chairman.

The Red Devils plan to bid for Kane, who could cost Premier League sides as much as £100m, as there is now little chance of the striker signing a new contract to commit his future to Spurs this summer.

Bayern Munich are also in the race for the England captain, however United hold a key advantage as he would rather stay in England, in order to continue to chase Alan Shearer's Premier League goal record.

Should Man United sign Harry Kane?

If the 29-year-old decides he wants to leave Spurs this summer, Ten Hag should undoubtedly make him his priority summer signing, as he is capable of taking United to the next level.

With 207 Premier League goals to his name, the Englishman is well on course to break Shearer's record of 260, and he has been hailed as "world-class" by teammate Eric Dier.

United have taken massive strides this season, having already won the EFL Cup, while recently booking their place in the FA Cup final, but they are lacking in the striker department, with Anthony Martial scoring just four league goals this season, having struggled with injuries.

As such, a new forward will undoubtedly be required this summer, and there is no better option than Kane, given that he has already proven himself as a top Premier League striker over a number of seasons.

Paul Farbrace, England’s assistant coach, has hailed Jonny Bairstow for the improvement in his wicketkeeping since the tour of South Africa

George Dobell22-May-2016Paul Farbrace, England’s assistant coach, has hailed Jonny Bairstow for the improvement in his wicketkeeping since the tour of South Africa and pinpointed work he did with Newcastle United football club.Bairstow was awarded the Man-of-the-Match award after the first Investec Test for a performance that included the only century of the game and nine catches behind the stumps. It was the second time in three Tests that Bairstow has claimed nine catches.But there were also several drops during the series in South Africa and Bairstow went into the Test against Sri Lanka with questions to answer about his suitability for the gloves. While one chance still went down on the third day, it was a performance that greatly encouraged Farbrace, a former wicketkeeper with Kent and Middlesex.Specifically, Farbrace felt Bairstow’s balance behind the stumps was much improved and credited England’s wicketkeeping coach, Bruce French, and a session spent with Newcastle learning tips from their goalkeepers for the progression.”The challenge we set him after South Africa was that you will play the Sri Lanka series and you will have the gloves, but we want a consistent wicketkeeper,” Farbrace said. “The wicketkeeper is picked first and foremost to take his catches and any run he scores is a bonus. The keeper sets the trend and the fielding level so if he is taking his catches everyone else takes confidence from that.”In South Africa he looked unbalanced. Predominantly he stood a fraction too wide and therefore, as the ball was delivered into the line of off stump and took the outside edge, his first movement was on to his left foot.”If you get a nick from there you’re off balance. You are diving backwards and the shape of your hand is almost behind you. When set still you can dive forwards and sideways and then your full hand is facing the ball. The only chance he dropped in this game he got done by the angle of the ball. The rest of the game, I thought he kept incredibly well.”I honestly think in the two months he has been away from South Africa he has worked hard on his game. He looked balanced and he looked very strong in his movements.”He and Bruce French have worked hard and that has really helped him. It is much easier to concentrate if you think you are going to get a nick every ball, as opposed to one coming past the bat every 25 minutes.”And he had a session with the goalkeeping coaches at Newcastle on balance and shape of the body. He really enjoyed that and got a lot from it. Simon Smith, who is their goalkeeping coach, and their keepers, Karl Darlow and Rob Elliot, had a session with him. They had a really good day making sure he was balanced before moving one way or another.”Farbrace confirmed that the England management have discussed moving Bairstow up to No. 5 in the batting line-up and have considered playing both him and Jos Buttler in the same side. With Bairstow now assured of the gloves for the foreseeable future, though, Buttler would need to score heavily in first-class cricket to win a recall as a specialist batsman. That seems unlikely, with his decision to play in the IPL excluding him from the first part of the Championship season and his involvement with the England limited-overs squads likely to rule him out of much of the rest of it.”We have had a lot of discussions with our top order talking about getting the balance right,” Farbrace said. “If you can get Bairstow and Buttler in the same side that would be very exciting.”We have talked about whether Jonny should bat at five. It is a bit like Root: when they are playing that well where do you bat them? Generally your best players bat at three. But he is playing out of his boots at four so maybe leave him reasonably happy with that.”It is more likely that the pair could feature together in limited-overs cricket. Certainly Bairstow’s form with the bat is making a strong case for his inclusion in all formats, with Farbrace admitting he has “every chance” for forcing his way in.”You could argue he should be in all forms of our game,” Farbrace said. “If he keeps playing like that then he gives himself a great chance.”He is like most cricketers in that he thrives on confidence. He is loving the big occasion. There was a bit of pressure here. He talked about how he wanted to score a hundred at Headingley and in his first few runs you thought ‘crikey, he is going to get a hundred’.”The big thing is to play your own way. We are not trying to complicate it. With Jonny it is: “good luck, go and play.” It must be a brilliant place for him. Let’s hope he keeps going for a number of years.”Farbrace also had warm praise for Alex Hales and words of encouragement for Nick Compton. Hales made a patient 86 in the first Test, showing much improved discipline outside off stump, while Compton fell for a duck.”I have read all the stuff about Nick’s intense personality,” Farbrace said. “But I have yet to meet a batman at the top level who is not intense about the way they prepare. He is passionate to score runs for England and I think a couple of scores back to back and he will be off and running. I would say his state of mind has been very good.”He is not a difficult bloke. He is an easy bloke to work with and he is passionate about scoring runs. He has everything you need from a top quality batter.”We felt in South Africa he showed enough to suggest he can score runs in international cricket. He did not necessarily cement his position but we showed him faith by picking him.”If Nick bats for a long period there are enough people around him who score quickly. You can’t have seven batsmen all looking to hit the ball. You have to have someone to hold the innings together. What gets pushed at players in red or white ball cricket is “play your game”. Don’t get picked to play for England and change the way you play. There is no pressure from us to put his foot down and start whacking it.”It was an important innings for Alex, too. I think we saw in South Africa enough signs to show he can play Test cricket. This innings will convince him he can.”There has been a lot of talk about him being a free scoring batsman but I don’t think he is. He is an accumulator. When he scores hundreds, he takes his time getting in.”England will name their team for the second Test at around 9am on Monday morning. Ben Stokes underwent a scan on his sore left knee on Sunday afternoon and the selectors wanted to assess that before making a decision on who to bring into the squad.

Hardik Rathod, who took late wickets on the second day of the Ranji Trophy final to keep Saurashtra’s hopes alive, said his team hopes to clean up Mumbai’s lower order early and bat well on the third day

Shashank Kishore in Pune25-Feb-2016

Think of Saurashtra’s bowling and Ravindra Jadeja comes to mind immediately. Scratch the surface, and then there’s Jaydev Unadkat. Eye-catching moments with the ball have been far and few if you look beyond these two. But on Thursday, there was a ray of hope in the form of Hardik Rathod.The 27-year-old isn’t a tearaway quick, but his ability to swing the ball can be mighty effective when he lands them in the right spot. While he was anything but consistent when Shreyas Iyer was at the crease, he found his rhythm towards the end of the day; his three late wickets of Abhishek Nayar, Dhawal Kulkarni and Shardul Thakur gave Saurashtra hope after they were sent on a leather hunt in the afternoon.Rathod’s career, although in its nascent stages, hasn’t panned out the way he would have liked. His last first-class appearance before the quarter-final was in December 2013 against Uttar Pradesh in Lucknow. Modest returns – 21 wickets in 11 matches – didn’t inspire confidence within the team management. But an injury to Shaurya Sanandia, that drew curtains on his season, proved to be a blessing in disguise for Rathod. He justified the call-up by picking up six wickets in the semi-final and complementing Jaydev Unadkat who finished with a 11-wicket haul, as Assam were handed a ten-wicket thrashing.A repeat of that show didn’t seem coming when Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav combined to flatten Saurashtra’s bowlers in the second session. “In the first spell, when Iyer was batting, he was going for his strokes and we were trying for wickets,” he explained. “The aim was that we should get him out as quickly as possible. In trying to try too hard, we either bowled too short or too full, and gave away a lot of runs. But in the evening, after tea, the plan was to limit the runs and create pressure. As runs dry up the pressure will tell.”When Suryakumar and Iyer were playing, we couldn’t execute our plans. Suryakumar was taking singles and Iyer was playing his strokes. So we had to keep changing the fields and our bowling strategies often, as a result of which our consistency went for a toss.”The tea break came to Saurashtra’s rescue. They had just taken the wicket of Iyer, and were two wickets away from breaking into the lower order. Cheteshwar Pujara, who briefly led the side in Jaydev Shah’s absence, brought the team together and gave them a pep talk. The bowlers, particularly, were all ears. The plan, according to Rathod, was as simple as it could get.”Both the captain (Jaydev Shah) and Cheteshwar Pujara told us not to try too many things, to bowl one line and length. ‘Force the batsmen to make mistakes and don’t vary too much from your disciplines. Let them play their shots, you just remain consistent’, that was the message they gave us,” Rathod said. “It worked for us towards the end.”On another day, it may have come a little too late, but in slicing through the lower order, Saurashtra have given themselves an opening. “On the first day there was moisture but today, second day, it played well, both for batting and, if you put in some effort, for the bowlers as well,” Rathod said. “You have to try harder on day three with the ball than on day one. The match is wide open. Tomorrow, we will look to get them out as quickly as possible. The less the lead, the better because there is every chance of this being an outright game. Get the two wickets early and bat well, that is the plan for tomorrow.”One man the team can take a cue from is Prerak Mankad, the debutant, who was fast-tracked into the team after consistent returns for Saurashtra Under-23s. He battled hard to make a composed 66, after walking in to bat at 108 for 7. It helped Saurashtra get past the 200-mark on a surface where batsmen needed to graft.”Ever since we got here, I had feelers from the coach that I would play, because this is a seaming wicket,” Mankad said. “The plan was to bat normally, but I hadn’t faced an attack of this quality before. Maybe in an Under-25 game against Rajasthan, we played on a similar surface, but not this kind of attack. The plan was to play close to the body and leave balls that are outside off stump, that was the plan.”From the morning, when I was included in the XI, the team motivated me. The environment was good, everyone was pushing me and my self-belief was good. When I walked out, Arpit Vasavada was already batting. That was very important for me because he is my captain in inter-district cricket, I have been playing with him for a long time. He kept giving me advice and I followed that.”

Erik ten Hag managed to lure some serious talent to Manchester United last summer, with the likes of Antony, Casemiro, and Christian Eriksen all joining the revolution at Old Trafford.

It marks a change from the signings his predecessor made, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer managing to secure deals for players who couldn’t quite cut it at United (Daniel James) or who were massively overpriced (Harry Maguire) yet it was a move for Donny van de Beek that has represented the worst value for money.

The Dutchman was signed for a fee of around £39m and with the 23-year-old enjoying a sparkling beginning to his career at Ajax, the outlay seemed like it could one day turn into a bargain for the club.

It hasn’t quite turned out like that, with van de Beek struggling to live up to the lofty expectations in Manchester while struggling for game time which has seen his value plummet in the process.

How much is Donny van de Beek worth now?

The £120k-per-week midfielder has played just 60 times during his spell at United, while his tally of two goals and two assists paints a picture of how poorly he has played in that time, failing to add the spark the club required when they signed him.

When Ten Hag took over last summer, the 25-year-old must have thought his appointment could rejuvenate him, especially considering the fact they worked together for two years at Ajax, yet he has featured just ten times in all competitions this term.

The midfielder has started just two matches in the Premier League this season, averaging a Sofascore rating of 6.49/10 across his seven appearances in total. He has failed to score or register an assist, averaged just 11.1 touches, and completed only 6.6 passes per game, hardly the quality that Ten Hag is demanding from his players.

Journalist Steven Railston was particularly vocal in his criticism of the player back in November following a loss to Aston Villa, saying:

“#mufc never recovered after conceding two early goals and they were second-best all over the pitch. A really disappointing performance. Donny van de Beek was anonymous again and he shouldn’t be anywhere near the starting XI. Bruno Fernandes couldn’t return quick enough.”

Having signed for £39m, the player is now worth just €20.5m (£18m) according to Football Transfers and this represents a decrease of 54%, with the likelihood that United won’t even recoup half of the fee they splashed out on the Dutchman should he leave in the summer.

It has been a woefully misjudged transfer and his performances on the pitch have failed to live up to expectations, hopefully, Ten Hag will be able to move him on sooner rather than later, at a significant cost to the club.

Heart of Midlothian suffered an agonising 2-1 defeat to Greek side PAOK in their Europa Conference League qualifier on Thursday evening.

With the match finely poised at 1-1, Lawrence Shankland scored a stunning goal which looked to have given Hearts the lead. It was chalked off, however, and Andrija Zivkovic netted the winner 15 minutes from time with a wonderful strike.

It wasn’t the result Steven Naismith would have hoped for, yet it showed that there wasn’t much between the two teams, and given how many young talents he has at his disposal such as Alex Lowry, Hearts could respond well next week.

How has Alex Lowry performed at Hearts?

The young midfielder joined on loan from Rangers, and it could turn into a stroke of genius from Naismith.

He has played five times so far and grabbed two assists while demonstrating glimpses of his vast talent during his two appearances in the Premiership.

Averaging just 45 minutes per game, the 20-year-old has taken 33 touches per match while making one key pass and one tackle per match, suggesting that he is comfortable getting on the ball and trying to make things happen, while also looking to win the ball back.

Having burst onto the scene in January 2022 by scoring on his Gers debut in the Scottish Cup, he couldn’t quite become a regular starter last term due to injury issues, and a loan spell looked like the best option.

There is no doubt a move to Hearts will aid his development. Naismith will only benefit from his presence for a year – however, could he perhaps unearth his own Lowry with a teenage starlet from the B side in Callum Sandilands?

Who is Callum Sandilands?

The 17-year-old joined the Gorgie side back in 2021 following his release from Rangers, and was previously lauded by John Rankin, who was the Hearts U18 manager at the time.

He said: "Callum first came in on trial back in June and really impressed us.

"He’s a goalscoring midfielder who brings so much energy to the team and he can also play in a number of positions across midfield.

"He’s got good vision and technical ability and, equally as important, has a fantastic attitude.

"I believe Hearts is the perfect place for him to continue his development and I look forward to seeing him progress over the coming months and years."

High praise indeed for someone so young, and his time in Edinburgh has enabled him to gain some crucial game time for the B team.

He has played across a few positions over the previous two seasons, most notably in an attacking-midfield role, yet the teen can also operate wide on the right or slightly deeper if required.

Like Lowry, Sandilands is a goalscoring midfielder who tends to push forward as often as possible, and across 41 matches for the B side, he has racked up an impressive 18 goals and four assists.

Yet to make his senior bow, Naismith could change that this term, especially if they do make the group stages of the Europa Conference League, with squad rotation vital to keeping the starting XI fresh.

The manager should enjoy Lowry for the single campaign he will spend at Tynecastle, but in Sandilands, he could unearth his very own wonderful talent who could go on to emulate what Lowry has already achieved.

The opener was dropped after the selection committee said they were unaware of the “shoulder pain” due to which he had failed to report to the ground for the game against Mumbai on Thursday

Arun Venugopal09-Feb-2018M Vijay has been left out of the Tamil Nadu side for the remainder of the Vijay Hazare Trophy after he “failed to report” to the ground for the game against Mumbai on Thursday due to “shoulder pain”. The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) made it clear in a press release that the state body, the selection committee and the team physio were unaware of Vijay’s injury.According to a top TNCA official, Vijay didn’t turn up to the SSN College ground, the venue of the match, on Thursday, and informed coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar about his injury at about 7.30 am, an hour and a half before start of play. With Tamil Nadu already hamstrung by an injury to opener Abhinav Mukund, Vijay’s unavailability was the last thing they needed. Ganga Sridhar Raju eventually slotted in as opener alongside Kaushik Gandhi.A source close to Vijay said the batsman was shocked by the development and was waiting to clear the air with the TNCA.Vijay, 33, played Tamil Nadu’s first two matches against Gujarat and Goa and scored 11 and 51. He has now been replaced by batsman Pradosh Ranjan Paul for the remaining matches.”How can we find a replacement at the last minute?” another TNCA official asked. “Vijay didn’t report to the ground and neither did he inform the selectors about his injury. It was very disappointing to say the least.”Vijay was unavailable for a comment on the matter.The TNCA is understood to have been unhappy with Vijay’s “attitude” over a period of time. “This isn’t the first time something like this has happened,” a top TNCA official told ESPNcricinfo. “The selectors weren’t even inclined towards picking him in the four-day squads [for the Ranji Trophy] in the first place because of issues with his attitude and general aloofness.”The official, however, confirmed the TNCA hadn’t initiated any disciplinary proceedings yet. “At the moment it’s only the decision of the selectors to not pick him,” he said. “In the future, once national players confirm their availability for a tournament they have to play the full competition. They can’t pick and choose matches. This issue might come up for discussion at the Executive Committee meeting of the TNCA.”India offspinner R Ashwin, who has picked up seven wickets in three matches so far, is also set to miss Tamil Nadu’s fixture against Andhra on Sunday. The official, however, clarified that Ashwin had sought the permission of the TNCA in advance, and the association, in consultation with the selectors, granted his request.

Alex Hepburn has been charged with two counts of rape and Worcestershire’s director of cricket Steve Rhodes put on leave because of the way he handled the matter

George Dobell29-Nov-2017

Worcestershire have been thrown into disarray after a player was accused of rape and the director of cricket put on leave by his county because he did not properly bring it to their attention.Alex Hepburn, the 21-year-old allrounder, was charged with two counts of rape on November 9 while Steve Rhodes, the club’s long-serving director of cricket, has been put on leave by Worcestershire and England after failing to report the player’s arrest in a timely fashion.Rhodes, who had been appointed to coach the England U19 team at the World Cup in the new year, has also been relieved of those duties and replaced by Gloucestershire’s Richard Dawson.It is alleged that, when Hepburn was first arrested on April 1, he approached Rhodes for assistance. Rhodes agreed not to pass on details of the allegation to the club’s board and, while the investigation continued, Hepburn was selected for the first team (in T20 cricket) and signed a one-year contract extension with the club.News that he had subsequently been charged resulted in the matter coming to the attention of the club and the ECB. It is understood they were told on November 9 and 10.Alex Hepburn has been charged with two counts of rape•Getty Images

Hepburn is suspended on full pay. He will appear in court on December 7. Rhodes is currently the subject of an internal disciplinary hearing, run by independent board members, which is expected to conclude within the first week of December. There is every chance is career at the club – extending back to 1985, is over.A West Mercia police statement said: “A man has been charged in connection with a rape investigation in Worcester. Alex Hepburn, aged 21 of Diglis, Worcester, was charged on 9 November with two counts of rape of a woman 16 years or older.”The charge is in connection with an investigation into the rape of a woman on 1 April 2017. Hepburn will appear at Worcester Magistrates Court on 7 December 2017.”Rhodes and the Worcestershire chief executive, Tom Scott, fell out earlier this year over the handling of Tom Kohler-Cadmore’s move to Yorkshire.Partially as a result and partially because the structure of the club prevented him from effectively managing Rhodes, Scott tendered his resignation and leaves the club at the end of the year.”The ECB can confirm Steve Rhodes will not be travelling to South Africa as head coach to the Young Lions on secondment fromWorcestershire,” an ECB spokesman told ESPNcricinfo. “Richard Dawson, the Gloucestershire head coach, will take on the role of head coach to the Young Lions squad in South Africa.”Hepburn moved to England from Australia in 2013. Having played for Western Australia U17, he represented Worcestershire twice in List Acricket in 2015 and made it into their T20 side in 2017.

Leicester City endured a bitterly disappointing 2022/23 campaign as they were relegated from the Premier League and they are now preparing for at least one season in the Championship.

Who have Leicester City signed this summer?

The Foxes have moved swiftly to make four new additions to their squad in order to bring the feel-good factor back to the King Power following the arrival of Enzo Maresca in the dugout.

Harry Winks, Conor Coady, and Mads Hermansen have all been brought in on permanent deals, whilst a defender in Callum Doyle has joined on a season-long loan from top-flight champions Manchester City.

A centre-forward also appears to be on the agenda for the club before the summer transfer window slams shut as they have been linked with Swansea star Joel Piroe.

How much would Joel Piroe cost this summer?

Football Insider recently reported that it would take a fee of at least £15m, and possibly up to £20m, to snap the lethal Dutchman up from the Welsh outfit, amid interest from Leeds United and Southampton.

If Leicester believe that they need a consistent scorer in order to fire them back to the Premier League then that could end up being a bargain price as the 23-year-old ace has proven himself to be a phenomenal striker at Championship level.

He could arrive at the King Power as a big upgrade on current striker Patson Daka for Maresca, based on their respective form over the last two seasons.

The current Foxes forward scored four goals in 30 top-flight appearances last term and that came after he managed five strikes in 23 league outings during his debut campaign in England.

This means that the Zambia international has found the back of the net nine times in 53 league matches for Leicester to date, which is one goal every 5.89 outings on average, and the club may not be able to afford to wait for him to find his feet this season as any points dropped could be vital in the race for promotion.

How many goals has Joel Piroe scored for Swansea?

Piroe, on the other hand, is coming off the back of two exceptional seasons with Swansea in the second tier.

During the 2022/23 campaign, the left-footed finisher scored 19 goals in 43 games and averaged a Sofascore rating of 6.99, which would have placed him third within the Foxes squad – albeit at a higher level.

That came after the "prolific" – as he was dubbed by EFL YouTuber Benjamin Bloom – striker plundered an eye-catching 22 goals in 45 league battles throughout the previous season, which was his first year in England.

The Swans marksman, who is a year younger than Daka, has proven himself to be a consistent and reliable scorer at Championship level, so his arrival could provide Maresca's side with a significant boost in their efforts to return to the top-flight at the first time of asking.

Daka is yet to prove himself to be someone who the head coach can lean on to produce goals on a regular basis, whereas Piroe would come in as a striker who could hit the ground running and be the focal point for the Italian head coach's team through the middle.

Therefore, the ex-Manchester City assistant could improve his strike force by winning the race to sign the hotshot before the deadline passes.