Latest news with #JackTaylor
Yahoo
19-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Ben Green helps Somerset to victory over rival Gloucestershire
Ben Green conjured up an incisive performance with bat and ball as Somerset beat arch rivals Gloucestershire by 16 runs in a hard-fought Vitality Blast encounter beneath the Cooper Associates Ground floodlights, writes Andrew Stockhausen, ECB Reporters' Network. So often an unsung hero in the short format, Green top-scored with 36 not out from 22 balls with 3 sixes and dominated a crucial unbeaten stand of 42 for the eighth wicket with Craig Overton as Somerset posted 164-7 on a turning pitch after winning the toss. He then returned figures of 1-27 from four overs as Gloucestershire, buoyed by another half century from overseas star D'Arcy Short, were restricted to 148-8, much to the delight of a sell-out Taunton crowd. Gloucestershire skipper Jack Taylor claimed 3-19 with his off breaks and his brother, Matt, 2-11 as the visitors made Somerset graft on a used surface. In the final analysis, Green's heroics at the death made the difference in an uncharacteristically low-scoring contest. Short finished unbeaten on 71 from 52 balls with 5 fours and 3 sixes for Gloucestershire, while Jake Ball took 2-20 in four overs as Somerset finished their qualification campaign with 11 wins in 14 outings. Read more: Somerset suffer first away defeat in 2025 Vitality Blast competition Somerset clinch home Blast quarter final after five wicket win over Kent Somerset seal Blast quarter final berth with victory over Essex Accustomed to scoring freely in powerplays at Taunton, Somerset did not have things entirely their own way against the nagging accuracy of Gloucestershire's seamers. Tom Lammonby and Will Smeed came out breathing fire, only to fall to left armer Matt Taylor as the home side were reduced to 46-2 in the sixth. Lammonby mustered a six and a four in raising 15, only to drill a length ball straight to mid-wicket, while Smeed plundered 20 off a Josh Shaw over before losing off stump to a Taylor in-swinger and departing for 29. Making his final appearance for Gloucestershire before retirement, spinner Tom Smith lured James Rew into a trap, having the young left-hander held on the long-on boundary for 19 with the score 79-3 in the ninth. Trusting in pace off on a used pitch, the visitors introduced Ollie Price's off breaks at the River End in a bid to stifle Somerset's renowned firepower. He struck in his first over, Tom Kohler-Cadmore feathering a catch behind and falling for 21 as the cider county reached halfway on 91-4. Bowling leg spin, Jack Taylor then got in on the act, taking a looping return catch to remove Somerset skipper Lewis Gregory for six as the home side lurched to 105-5 in the 13th. Having scratched 14 runs, Sean Dickson then succumbed to Gloucestershire's captain in his next over from the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion end, playing across the line and missing a straight one with the score 114-6. On a roll by now, Taylor struck again in the 17th, persuading Lewis Goldsworthy to hit high to long-on as Somerset were further reduced to 122-7. When Green hoisted Jack Taylor over mid-wicket for six in the penultimate over, it was Somerset's first boundary for nine overs. He twice repeated the feat against David Payne at the death, 22 runs coming from the final over as Green and Craig Overton raised a valuable unbeaten eighth wicket alliance of 42 in 21 balls. Overton opened up with a maiden over, but Short and Miles Hammond both helped themselves to sixes in the second, bowled by Gregory, as Gloucestershire's reply received a welcome shot in the arm. Hammond then put Overton over the rope at deep mid-wicket, only to perish in the fourth over, bowled for 16 by a slower delivery from Jake Ball. Debutant Tommy Boorman got off the mark with a pulled six at the expense of Overton, who immediately avenged himself, having the youngster superbly held by Gregory at cover as the visitors slipped to 36-2. Spinner Goldsworthy was called into the attack to bowl the eighth and Short lifted him for six over long-on as the over yielded 11 runs. Jack Leach did rather better when replacing him at the River End, persuading Ben Charlesworth to hole out to mid-wicket for 16, while Jack Taylor was run out next ball without scoring as Gloucestershire subsided to 66-4 at halfway. With the required rate rising to 11 for the first time, Gloucestershire were in need of a big over. It came in the 14th, Ollie Price taking Leach for a six and a four to keep his side in the hunt. But when Price offered Green a return catch in the next over, last season's Blast champions were 102-5, requiring a further 63 from 35 balls. Short went to his fifth half century in six innings from 42 balls, but Gregory returned to remove James Bracey as Somerset took a vice-like grip on proceedings.
Business Wire
17-06-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Granite Point Mortgage Trust Inc. Announces Second Quarter 2025 Common and Preferred Stock Dividends and Business Update
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Granite Point Mortgage Trust Inc. (NYSE: GPMT) ('GPMT,' 'Granite Point' or the 'Company') today announced that the Company's Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.05 per share of common stock for the second quarter of 2025. This dividend is payable on July 15, 2025, to holders of record of common stock at the close of business on July 1, 2025. The Company's Board of Directors also declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.4375 per share of the 7.00% Series A Fixed-to-Floating Rate Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock for the second quarter of 2025. This dividend is payable on July 15, 2025, to the holders of record of the Series A Preferred Stock at the close of business on July 1, 2025. 'We have maintained strong momentum repositioning our portfolio with the completion of two more loan resolutions in the second quarter and the anticipated near-term sale of an REO office property,' said Jack Taylor, President and Chief Executive Officer of Granite Point. 'We continue to believe that our stock presents a compelling total return opportunity for investors. As such, and consistent with our goal of supporting long-term shareholder value, we repurchased 1.25 million of our common shares during the quarter, generating book value accretion.' Second Quarter Business Update In May, resolved a loan secured by a mixed-use office and retail property located in Baton Rouge, LA. As of March 31, 2025, the loan was on nonaccrual status with an unpaid principal balance of $79.9 million and risk rating of '5'. As previously announced, as a result of the property sale, the Company expects to realize a write-off of approximately $(20.8) million, which had been reserved for through a previously recorded allowance for credit losses. In May, resolved a loan secured by a hotel property located in Minneapolis, MN. As of March 31, 2025, the loan was on nonaccrual status with an unpaid principal balance of $52.2 million and risk rating of '5'. The loan was bifurcated into a senior and subordinate note structure and, as previously announced, the Company expects to realize a write-off of approximately $(15.4) million, which had been reserved for through a previously recorded allowance for credit losses. Anticipate selling an REO office property located in Phoenix, AZ, in the near-term near the GAAP carrying value. In April, extended the maturities of all repurchase facilities by approximately one year. During the quarter, repurchased 1.25 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $2.48 per share, for a total of approximately $3.1 million. During the quarter, the Company has funded approximately $10.7 million in unpaid principal balance on existing loans and has realized about $32.4 million in full and partial principal repayments, excluding the nonaccrual loan resolutions referenced above. As of June 16, the Company carried approximately $70.0 million in unrestricted cash. About Granite Point Mortgage Trust Inc. Granite Point Mortgage Trust Inc. is a Maryland corporation focused on directly originating, investing in and managing senior floating-rate commercial mortgage loans and other debt and debt-like commercial real estate investments. Granite Point is headquartered in New York, NY. Additional information is available at Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains, or incorporates by reference, not only historical information, but also forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are not historical in nature and can be identified by words such as 'anticipate,' 'estimate,' 'will,' 'should,' 'expect,' 'target,' 'believe,' 'outlook,' 'potential,' 'continue,' 'intend,' 'seek,' 'plan,' 'goals,' 'future,' 'likely,' 'may' and similar expressions or their negative forms, or by references to strategy, plans or intentions. The illustrative examples herein are forward-looking statements. Our expectations, beliefs and estimates are expressed in good faith, and we believe there is a reasonable basis for them. However, there can be no assurance that management's expectations, beliefs and estimates will prove to be correct or be achieved, and actual results may vary materially from what is expressed in or indicated by the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, including, among other things, those described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, under the caption 'Risk Factors,' and our subsequent filings made with the SEC. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional Information Stockholders of Granite Point and other interested persons may find additional information regarding the Company at the Securities and Exchange Commission's Internet site at or by directing requests to: Granite Point Mortgage Trust Inc., 3 Bryant Park, 24 th floor, New York, NY 10036, telephone (212) 364-5500.
New Statesman
13-06-2025
- Business
- New Statesman
The government is moving too slowly on AI
Photo by Jack Taylor / Getty Images for SXSW London When I first started grappling with the problem of AI and copyright as a minister in 2023, I grossly underestimated the difficulty: the two sides could surely be brought together to find compromises and workarounds. Sadly, it became ever clearer over months of talks that there was no mutually agreeable landing zone – we could satisfy the content creators or the AI labs, but not both. As the government approaches the first anniversary of its own forlorn attempts to find the elusive middle ground and temperatures rise on both sides, I've been urging them to take a different approach. First, let's think more clearly about where we want Jonathan Camrose Shadow minister for science, innovation and technology to get to. The eventual answer is surely a trusted, efficient marketplace for the use of copyrighted materials, where rights-holders can freely choose to license, sell or withdraw their property and developers can make rapid and affordable commercial choices. Prices will be set by supply and demand, with smaller rights-holders represented by collectives who process transactions on their behalf and distribute revenues. Second, what are the barriers that prevent us building such a marketplace? Among a great many, two stand out: offshoring and transparency. The UK can make any laws it likes, but any AI developer who doesn't like them can offshore training activity to a jurisdiction where they can legally conduct the same training with the same content. Not only would the problem remain unsolved for our rights-holders, but we would be pushing AI activity out of the country. Which brings us to transparency: there is a view that we could require any AI model used in the UK to declare all of the content used in its creation, thus solving the offshoring problem. I'm afraid this is wishful thinking. How would this vast quantity of information be sought, verified and audited? How would we enforce it? How would we establish a direct link between the expressed output and the suspected input? What if the training material is not copyrighted but an imitation of an imitation (and so on) of copyrighted material? I don't believe there is a form of words that can be made into a law that fixes AI and copyright in a way that satisfies all sides. I do, however, believe that a combination of technologies, standards and law can help us build the marketplace for copyright. Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe The key technology is going to be machinereadable digital watermarking that can be indelibly embedded in any file and would contain licence information. Crucially, rights-holders would need to easily (or automatically) apply watermarks to all of their material. This starts to address the transparency problem, but it only works if everyone agrees to use the same design – or at least to choose from a limited number of designs. It would depend, in short, on the existence of globally agreed technical standards – hardly a novelty in the internet age. Armed with such standards, governments would be far better placed to make the laws to create a fair and trusted marketplace for copyrighted materials. Globally standardised digital watermarks solve the transparency problem and transparency solves the offshoring problem. The government is moving too slowly. Technology is driving change more quickly now – it's time for boldness and agility. No country has solved this problem, and if we can then we have a chance to be a global leader in AI again. This article first appeared in our Spotlight on Technology supplement, of 13 June 2025. Related
Irish Daily Mirror
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Ireland's Jack Taylor pinpoints key reason for team's struggles in Luxembourg
Jack Taylor has told Heimir Hallgrimsson to trust him in the World Cup campaign. The Ipswich Town attacking midfielder used the Senegal and Luxembourg friendlies to enhance his claims for a bigger role - and in different positions too. He played off striker Adam Idah in the draw with Senegal and then came on in a deeper role against Luxembourg - and nearly won it at the death, but for the crossbar. Taylor's versatility is an asset and the English-born ace revealed how determined he was to seize this opportunity in Ireland's final warm-up games before the World Cup. "I knew there was a good chance of me starting, especially friendlies, to feed some new lads in who haven't had the opportunity yet,' he said. "I knew it was a big opportunity for me so I came in with a strong mindset to force myself into the manager's mind. "It was always the aim to be a starter. The lads did very well in the previous camps so I've been thinking to myself to impress with every opportunity I get.' Taylor continued: 'I can play numerous positions, I can do all of them and don't really have a set position. I just want to get the boys playing good, fast-flowing football 'We like to sit off in a 4-4-2 formation when we are out of possession, so it is a little bit deeper, but I'm quite a versatile player. 'I can adjust to roles quite easily so I don't mind where I'm playing as long as I'm playing and playing well, that's all that matters.' But Ireland boss Hallgrimsson won't stand for another performance like Tuesday's in Luxembourg when the qualifiers roll around in September. Ireland play Hungary at home before travelling to Armenia but Taylor feels there were reasons for the sloppy showing in Luxembourg. He said: 'There is context to it. It was the last day of the season for all the lads, all the lads know they are going on holiday the next day, so a bit of that comes into play. 'We prepared so well coming into this camp and all the lads knew the standards weren't where we had set them before. 'But you have to take the positives out of it. We have come away from home and got a clean sheet, but we know going forward that we have to improve. 'But we are definitely improving and we can only get better. We'll take a lot of positives from Senegal. Everyone just has to stay fit and be in top condition for September.'
Irish Examiner
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Jack Taylor: 'I wanted to force myself into the manager's mind'
Jack Taylor was the big winner from the summer friendlies with a view to the World Cup qualifiers kicking off in September. In the absence of five regulars — the rested trio of Josh Cullen, Finn Azaz and Mikey Johnston along with injured duo Chiedozie Ogbene and Sammie Szmodics — fringe players were urged to shine. Taylor, a clubmate of the latter pair at Ipswich Town, excelled — both on his first start against Senegal last Friday and by upping the tempo following his introduction away to Luxembourg on Tuesday. Two draws from the friendlies constituted a mixed return, particularly in the Grand Duchy, but when the dust settles the midfielder may recall these low-key end-of-season workouts as his springboard. From delivering a defence-splitting pass for Troy Parrott to nick a goal ruled out for offside or crashing his late 25-yarder off the crossbar, Taylor was a standout performer in a middling game. 'It was always my aim to be a starter,' said the Londoner, eligible through his Longford grandfather, after expanding his international exposure to 147 minutes over five caps. Taylor's fine effort from range crashed off the crossbar. Picture: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile 'The lads did very well in previous camps but I've been thinking to myself to impress with every opportunity I get. Hopefully, that start comes in the next window. 'I knew there was a good chance of me starting, especially friendlies, to feed some new lads in who haven't had the opportunity yet. I came in with a strong mindset of forcing myself into the manager's mind.' His versatility is a trait Heimir Hallgrimsson will lean on when the six qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup unravel over 10 weeks from Hungary's visit to Dublin on September 6. Newly-crowned Uefa Nations League champions Portugal and Armenia complete the four-nation group, from which the top team qualifies and runners-up enter the playoffs next March. Taylor started against the Senegalese in the supporting role behind Adam Idah, whereas he was slightly deeper for his 35-minute stint in Luxembourg. 'I can play numerous positions and can do all of them,' he explained. 'I don't really have a set position, just wanting to get the boys playing good, fast-flowing football. 'We like to sit off in a 4-4-2 formation when we are out of possession, so it is a little bit deeper. 'I can adjust to roles quite easily so I don't mind where I am playing. Playing and performing is all that matters.' Momentum is the word being attached to Ireland's run of two wins and two draws but the latest, being scoreless by a team 30 places below in the Fifa's rankings, threatens to decelerate their engine. 'There is context to it,' asserted Taylor, defending the lacklustre display. Ryan Manning, Jack Taylor, Jason Knight and Nathan Collins applaud the travelling fans after the game. Picture: Picture: Ryan Byrne/Inpho 'It's the last day of the season for all the lads. Knowing they are going on holiday the next day comes into play. 'We must take the positives out of it – going away from home against a side on paper you might say we should probably beat but they had some dangerous players. 'We kept a clean sheet but no doubt we definitely must improve.' Relegation means Ipswich begin preparations for Championship early, albeit Taylor and his fellow internationals get dispensation. He'll soon be back on the training pitch with colleagues he'll be ultimately competing with for places in the Ipswich and Ireland teams. 'It was a long, hard season in the Premier League and we'll enjoy the rest,' he outlined. 'But you can't get out of shape. You have to monitor yourself in the off-season. 'Sammie and Chieo are two players the manager (Kieran McKenna) has placed his trust in and, hopefully, they will be fit for the next camp. 'I know Chieo has had a long injury but he is such a professional and I think he will come back in top nick and ready to attack the September window.' Read More Nathan Collins happy to see Ireland carry momentum into World Cup qualifying
