
'Great to see respect for Scottish players' in Lions set-up
John Dalziel says he was surprised by the "respect" given to Scottish players by fellow British and Irish Lions coaches after he was confirmed as part of Andy Farrell's staff for the summer tour to Australia.Dalziel joins Richard Wiggleworth, Simon Easterby, Andrew Goodman and John Fogarty on the coaching ticket, with the playing squad to be announced on 8 May."The biggest surprise for me was the respect given to all the Scottish players by all the other coaches," Dalziel said. "Looking at the Scottish names on the list and the way they are speaking about our players as well as us in our bubble. "We know internally we've got a lot of world-class players, so it's great to see Scottish players are properly getting spoken about in circles like this."On what he will bring to the Lions camp, Scotland forwards coach Dalziel emphasised the importance of understanding and empathising with players."The key is the connection with players," he said. "You have to connect with them away from rugby and have the comfort to have a difficult chat about performance but also let them know you're there to pick them up and support them."

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Scottish Sun
24 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Tennis fans slam BBC live coverage of Queen's after Emma Raducanu snub ahead of Wimbledon
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) TENNIS fans slammed the BBC for snubbing live coverage of Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter's doubles debut. The all-star British duo teamed up for the first time at Queen's in the opening grass-court event ahead of Wimbledon. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter played their first competitive doubles match together Credit: Getty 3 The British pairing beat Fang-Hsien Wu and Xinyu Jiang 6-4 6-2 Credit: PA But despite the BBC holding the rights to the tournament and the euphoria around tennis after yesterday's epic French Open final, they opted against spotlighting two of GB's biggest names and instead only showed the singles action on the main show court - now called the Andy Murray Arena. While Sonay Kartal, Jodie Burrage and two-time Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova were live on TV, that meant that Raducanu and Boulter - second up on Court 1 - were overlooked on BBC Two. And their match against Fang-Hsien Wu and Xinyu Jiang was not available for British tennis fans to watch on either the red button or iPlayer. BBC presenter Isa Guha said: "Unfortunately, we won't be able to show you this match because we're focused on Andy Murray Arena, but we will be bringing you updates throughout the course of the afternoon." READ MORE ON TENNIS MIC MY DAY Wimbledon finals to be shown on new TV channel after 88 years of BBC coverage But wannabe viewers were not happy. One moaned: "Errrrr you've got two Brits linking up in the doubles - don't you think that might have been of an interest to the British viewers?" Another blasted: "You have the British women 1 and 2 playing together in doubles and you're not showing it? Make it make sense!! So frustrating!!" A third added: "You just showed a clip of Court 1 where Emma and Katie are starting their match; so why not show the match as a second option or one court on iPlayer and one on BBC Two? Very frustrating!" CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS A fourth complained: "Literally just showed us a clip of it why can't we watch it?!!!!" A fifth fumed: "Absolutely ridiculous you're not showing Boulter/Raducanu in doubles." Katie Boulter destroys tennis star fiance Alex de Minaur in four words after newly-engaged couple lose in doubles And a final user typed: "Why isn't Court 1 on BBC iPlayer though? Can't watch Boultercanu?" Boulter and Raducanu - nicknamed Boulteranu by some on social media - ran out 6-4 6-2 winners in 71 minutes, laughing and high-fiving their way to victory in joyful scenes in front of the 1,000-seater stand. The match was Raducanu's second WTA doubles match of her career - and a first win. Quizzed if they would team up again at Wimbledon, the former US Open champion downplayed their ambitions. Raducanu - delighted to have overcome any injury concerns as she ended the match with a volley - insisted: 'It's a spontaneous thing, we're just trying to do the best we can this week. "We thought about it in Madrid, Miami and Paris. 'Moving to the grass, which is a very different surface, it helps us get a feel of serving, returning and playing some points." Tennis stars' new careers PLENTY of tennis stars have stayed involved in the sport since retiring. But others pursued very different careers. Here are some of the best… I reached French Open and Wimbledon finals as a teenager but I quit to become a nun I won Wimbledon mixed doubles with my sister but got fed up with English weather so now run luxury B&B I was tipped for stardom aged 12 but retrained to become high-flying lawyer I earned £9m and won French Open before setting up bistro with Brazilian model girlfriend I'm last Frenchman to win Roland Garros, now I'm singer with six albums hitting No1 in charts I'm former world No1 but quit aged 29 - instead I went on to play professional poker and golf I was destined for the top but swapped lobs for labs as award-winning Harvard physicist But partner Boulter interjected: 'Scrap what she said - we're going for the Wimbledon title! "No, just kidding… we haven't thought about that. "We both return very well and have great volleys, so if one of us hits a good ball we can capitalise on that. "I'm very confident that Emma is going to put the ball away if I hit a good shot." World No37 Raducanu - who admitted she is still "wary" in public after he stalker hell - faces Cristina Bucsa in her opening singles match on Tuesday. Boulter, three places higher than her partner in the WTA rankings, takes on Ajla Tomljanovic. SunSport has contacted the BBC for comment on the snub, which comes after news that the BBC will have to share broadcast rights to the singles finals at Wimbledon with TNT Sports for the next five years. 3 Raducanu had only played one WTA doubles match before Credit: Getty


Daily Record
an hour ago
- Daily Record
Che Adams relieved to break Scotland goal curse as George Hirst makes striker's job 'easier'
The Torino frontman hadn't scored in more than a year before netting a hat-trick in the 4-0 demolishing of Liechtenstein Hat-trick hero Che Adams ended his Scotland goal drought in style and then set his sights on the World Cup qualifiers. The striker netted a hat-trick as Scotland beat Liechtenstein 4-0 in Monday night's friendly in Vaduz. The Torino star netted his first international goal for more than a year and then went on to net a treble. Now he wants to keep that red-hot form into the World Cup qualifiers, which start in September against Denmark. Adams beamed: 'Yes, honestly amazing. It's always a pleasure to put on this shirt and score. 'It's been so long since I scored in the shirt. So to score one and eventually get two more was amazing and a nice way to sign off the season.' Adams had finished as Torino's top scorer and he acknowledged drawing a blank for his country was weighing heavily on his shoulders. He claimed: 'Obviously as a striker it's always in the back of your mind. As a striker, you're the one to put the ball in the net. It was made a bit easier playing with two strikers. 'We were able to keep a constant threat in behind, putting them under pressure. I fully enjoyed it and hopefully we can build off this now into the qualifiers.' Adams netted his first international treble and now has a nice memento from his big night. The former Birmingham City forward admitted: 'Yes, I got it (the ball) signed from all the boys. I've had four or five, but I can't remember the last one. 'Obviously, it's a nice little touch to finish off the season and get some well-deserved rest." Scotland haven't qualified for the World Cup since 1998 and that is something Adams and his team want to address. It is 88 days from Tuesday until the action starts away to Denmark. He warned: 'Obviously, to put things right against Liechtenstein today, following the poor result against Iceland. It's going to come short and sharp. Yeah, exactly. It's been a long time (since we made a World Cup). 'But I think everyone's mentally preparing now, from today really to look forward to those games and get back into playing in those competitions.' Adams is following in the footsteps of the late, great Denis Law for club and country. He recently broke his Italian scoring record and is also making an impact for Scotland. He said: 'A lot of people were saying that actually over there (beating Law's record). As I said, I'm delighted to have finished top scorer for Torino. I love it. 'I think it's going to be difficult for anyone to go to a different country, different culture and different league. For me to do that, a lot of people say it's brave, but it's something that I felt comfortable with doing. 'I've enjoyed every minute of it and hopefully I can build off this season and go again next season. But as I said, today was icing on the cake. Just to get the three goals and build off this into the qualifiers.' Adams has been part of a successful Scottish surge in Italy. Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour won Serie A with Napoli, Lewis Ferguson lifted the Coppa Italia and Josh Doig also won promotion back to the top-flight with Sassuolo. Adams joked: 'No, I don't know. We're always speaking about the league and how difficult it is and how tactically different it is. I think everyone's enjoyed it. 'Everyone's had respectable seasons. Especially the boys, obviously, that won trophies and Doigy, the one that got promotion. 'I think everyone's building and learning and putting themselves into these situations that not many people would. 'I think we're coming out with a lot of rewards from it.'


Glasgow Times
an hour ago
- Glasgow Times
Ex-Hearts & Hibs defender hails Ibrox as 'noisiest' stadium
Demetri Mitchell, who currently plays for Exeter City, made the claim during an appearance on the 'From My Left' podcast. Read more: The 28-year-old, who played for both Tynecastle and Easter Road, said: "I've played in some big derbies like Hearts and Hibs. "I've played at Celtic Park. "I've played at Ibrox. "That's the noisiest stadium I've played in, Ibrox. "Bro, when the ball went out for a corner, my ears were ringing, ringing." Mitchell is not the first player to be impressed by the noise levels at the home of Rangers. Former Germany internationals Sami Khedira and Mario Gomez both recently praised Ibrox. Khedira, who won the World Cup with Germany in 2014, said: "For me, the most craziest experience ever was my first Champions League match. "We played Glasgow Rangers and it was such an amazing experience." Gomez, who won the Champions League with Bayern Munich, said: "I would say the Scottish fans like Celtic but to me I played against the Rangers and I will never forget this. "They've been really strong."