Zimbabwe reach first Rugby World Cup since 1991
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Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Scotland captain Malcolm insists 'disruptive' off-field issues are a thing of the past as squad is unveiled for Women's Rugby World Cup
Scotland captain Rachel Malcolm insists disruption over player contracts is now 'finished' as preparations continue for the upcoming Rugby World Cup. Concerns were raised last month when Malcolm alleged her players had been put in an 'unfair' position ahead of the competition — with off-field issues threatening to derail the build-up. Several Scotland players had been left in the dark as to whether they would have their contracts renewed post-World Cup, and Malcolm admitted it had been a 'disruptive influence'. Speaking at yesterday's squad announcement in St Andrews, Malcolm said: 'As far as anything is going to happen, I believe, yes, it's finished. 'Everything else is pretty irrelevant when you go out there and you get to sing your anthem and perform. 'Ultimately, the thing that we love to do is play rugby. The thing that we've always dreamt of doing is playing rugby at the World Cup with the thistle on our chest. It's so close now and the excitement around this is building, it's been building this whole year. 'It's going to be probably the most phenomenal event in women's rugby, potentially women's sport, for a very long time. And I think it's up to us now to go and make the most of that opportunity.' The tournament, which is being hosted in England, will be the biggest ever Women's World Cup, with 350,000 tickets already sold for the event. It marks another major milestone for the Scots, who qualified after finishing runners-up in the WXV2 competition last October. They will compete in Pool B alongside Canada, Wales and Fiji, and they get their campaign under way against the Welsh in Manchester on August 23. Whether Lana Skeldon makes an appearance, meanwhile, remains to be seen. Scotland's most capped player has been named in coach Bryan Easson's 32-woman squad — despite injuring her ankle in last week's defeat by Ireland. The hooker appeared to be a serious doubt for the campaign, after screaming out in pain when she was stretchered off in the first half of the match in Cork. Easson said Skeldon had undergone an MRI, had been looked at by doctors, and was 'available for the Wales game'. He said: 'She has recovered well from injuries in the past. She had a knee injury that we felt might keep her out of the Six Nations, but her ability to recover and her diligence around her rehab is great. We are delighted to have her available.' For her part, Skeldon was reluctant to put a timeframe on when she might make an appearance at this summer's tournament. The Scotland stalwart, who was wearing a moon boot at Thursday's press gathering, admitted she would 'see how the next few weeks go'. 'I don't think it's for me or anyone to put a date on it, but I am in the best hands,' she said. 'Obviously it's much more positive than I was expecting, because it wasn't great when it happened. I'll take it day by day and see how I get on. 'I've only got two weeks, it's a tight turnaround, but I'll give it my best shot. I'm a pretty resilient person, so we'll see how I go.' Concerns have also been raised for fellow hooker, Elis Martin, meanwhile, after the player attended Thursday's media briefing on crutches. It's understood that this was only a precautionary measure, with the player suffering a slight niggle. Elsewhere in Easson's selection, Bristol Bears' pair Elliann and Rhea Clarke have become the first set of Scottish sisters to be selected for the same Women's Rugby World Cup squad.
Reuters
10 hours ago
- Reuters
New Zealand take 49-run lead over Zimbabwe with nine wickets in hand
Aug 7 (Reuters) - New Zealand did not take long to gain the upper hand over Zimbabwe on the first day of the second test, skittling out their hosts for 125 before reaching 174-1 in reply in Bulawayo on Thursday. Opener Devon Conway (79) and nightwatchman Jacob Duffy (8) were unbeaten at stumps as New Zealand led by 49 runs. Conway and Will Young put on 162 for the first wicket before Young chopped on a delivery from Trevor Gwandu to be bowled for 74 just before the close. Matt Henry, man of the match in New Zealand's comprehensive first test win, bagged another five-wicket haul with 5-40 in 15 overs while debutant Zakary Foulkes took 4-38 after Zimbabwe won the toss. Brendan Taylor top scored for Zimbabwe with 44, falling just when he looked on course for a successful return to the team at the age of 39. He was back after serving a three-and-a-half-year ban for breaching anti-corruption and anti-doping rules and before the match spoke of overcoming alcohol and drug addiction to revive his test career, which began 21 years ago. "How good is it that three years ago, I couldn't get out of bed and now I am here doing what I love, and that's representing Zimbabwe?" Taylor said in an emotional television interview before the first day's play. "I was in the dark depths of the abyss and trying to just get through this total and incomprehensible demoralisation of life. It was incredibly difficult." He was the fifth Zimbabwe wicket to fall when a ball from Henry looked to stand up on him and he steered an easy catch to Mitchell Santner at extra cover. Wicketkeeper Tafadzwa Tsiga made the only other significant contribution with an unbeaten 33. Fast bowler Foulkes was one of three debutants for the Kiwis, whose captain Tom Latham failed a fitness test on a shoulder injury, with Santner deputising for a second successive match. New Zealand won last week's first test, also at the Queens Sports Club, by nine wickets.
BBC News
10 hours ago
- BBC News
'I fell in love with the name and the colours'
This week, we are asking you to share your stories and photos about why you fell in love with is a selection of your submissions: Dennice: It was 1997 and the Premier League had just come to Ugandan TV screens. There was this game between Aston Villa and Liverpool. It must have been a Villa home game because firstly it was the colours that I fell in love with. Then the name itself was magical! I was already a fan of SC Villa,who got their name from Aston Villa apparently too. The name Aston Villa and our was love at first sight!By the way, we won that game 2-1. Send us your pictures and stories here
