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Hampshire 119 for 2 beat Glamorgan 118 for 6 by eight wicketsMason Crane marked his maiden England Test call-up with three wickets as Hampshire closed the gap on Glamorgan at the top of the NatWest T20 Blast South Group.Legspinner Crane was picked for the Test squad to face the West Indies later this month before leaving Glamorgan in a twist. James Vince then completed the thrashing with his 21st T20 fifty to ease Hampshire to an eight-wicket victory.Glamorgan won the toss and chose to bat on a slow pitch which had seen the Western Storm struggled to 70 in their Kia Super League defeat to Southern Vipers earlier in the day.Liam Dawson put aside his disappointment of failing to return to the England fold by bowling Aneurin Donald third ball of the match. And the left-arm spinner bagged the huge wicket of danger man Colin Ingram, who had smacked Gareth Berg over the fence, in the following over as Chris Wood held on at long-on.The visitors were struggling as they only reached 34 in the Powerplay and it was only going to get worse as Crane then came into the attack and proved why he has been called upon by the England selectors.The 20-year-old showed off his incredible googly to bowl opener Nicholas Selman to further pin Glamorgan.Crane then dragged Chris Cooke down the track to sky a top-edge to Gareth Berg at cover before snatching a third scalp a ball later on his dream day by having former South Africa Test star Jacques Rudolph stumped.The home grown leg-spinner ending with figures of 3 for 21, to boast a combined analysis of 5 for 36 with spin twin Dawson. Another Hampshire academy graduate, keeper Calvin Dickinson, again impressed with his quick hands on debut to stump Craig Meschede off the wily Shahid Afridi – leaving the visitors 65 for 6.Pakistan legend Afridi chalked up returns of 1 for 16 – although a dropped caught-and-bowled tainted his evening slightly.The Welsh side were heading for a sub-100 total before Andrew Salter crashed his highest T20 score of 37 – which included a huge six over long on – to help his side score 16 from the final over and set Hampshire 119 to win.Isle of Wight-raised Dickinson opened on his first professional appearance but departed in the first over as he was lbw to Ingram, while attempting a hoicked sweep.But from there Vince and Tom Alsop looked in fantastic nick pummelling the ball to all angles of the Ageas Bowl in a 68-run stand for the second wicket.Alsop in particular punched back-to-back powerful on-drives straight down the track.But after reaching 28 he picked out Marchant de Lange off Ingram on the long-on boundary to end an entertaining knock.At the other end, skipper Vince was caressing the ball through holes in the field with pure guile and appeared unstoppable as he reached a 32-ball fifty – eventually reaching an unbeaten 60.At the half way point Hampshire only required 26 – and they reached the target with 37 balls to spare to go second and within a point of Glamorgan.

After coming on as a substitute in Manchester United's draw against Galatasaray, Anthony Martial has come under fire for "not doing anything."

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United drop two-goal lead to draw 3-3 Schmeichel criticizes Martial's substitutionMan Utd's Champions League hopes in shamblesGETTYWHAT HAPPENED?

The Red Devils led 3-1 before the break thanks to goals from Scott McTominay, Alejandro Garnacho and Bruno Fernandes, but they gave up the advantage and finally drew a thrilling six-goal match in Istanbul. During the game, Erik Ten Hag made a lot of substitutions, but his replacement didn't really stand out. With only two touches in the Galatasaray box and 16 touches during the whole game, Martial was unable to record a shot despite being given more than thirty minutes to make an impression. One of the main concerns, according to Peter Schmeichel, was the decline in work rate once Martial was brought in to take Rasmus Hojlund's place.

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He told CBS Sports [via ]: "When you’re 2-0 up – and it’s not the first time we’re 2-0 up in this tournament – you kill the game. You make sure the other team can’t get into it. You keep the ball, you make sure you don’t make mistakes – and a lot of mistakes were made today.

"And of course, you also have to look at players like when Hojlund came off, a lot of the pressure from the very, very front disappeared. The guy (Martial) he (Ten Hag) put in doesn’t do anything, where you had before someone who works really, really hard for the team up front all of a sudden you don’t have that pressure.

"And that gives the other team a lot of opportunities to pass the ball around. So there are many, many things you can look at, but, again, if you score this amount of goals you expect to have more than one point."

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Ten Hag's campaign at United has been unsatisfactory, and the draw is only the most recent setback in this unfortunate run. The Red Devils' prospects of qualifying for the Champions League are now in shambles, and Ten Hag's choice to sign Andre Onana this summer will likely come under scrutiny following yet another performance marred by mistakes from the goalie.

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United's upcoming Premier League matchup against Newcastle presents another challenging task. Ten Hag's team has lost five of their first 13 Premier League games and is now four points outside of the top four going into the contest.

There was confusion and hysteria late on in the Vancouver Whitecaps’ MLS play-offs clash with LAFC, with the match referee knocking a player over.

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Action-packed encounter in CanadaLate goal ruled out for offsideOfficials off the hook after bizarre incidentWHAT HAPPENED?

The incident in question occurred in stoppage-time towards the end of a lively contest in Canada. The hosts found themselves trailing with a matter of seconds left on the clock, resulting in them sending everybody forward for a corner.

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As the ball was partially cleared to the edge of the box, Alessandro Schopf attempted to make his way towards it and keep the attack alive. He clattered into the referee, leaving him on the deck, and LAFC raced up the other end of the field as Denis Bouanga tapped into an unguarded net.

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The officials were unable to do anything about their involvement in a bizarre passage of play that swept from one end of the pitch to the other, but the effort was eventually ruled out for offside following a VAR review – much to the relief of those charged with keeping a lid on proceedings.

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Tim Ford – the referee at the centre of the drama – had already incurred the wrath of Vancouver boss Vanni Sartini when awarding a first-half penalty that Bouanga successfully converted, with the Caps losing their head coach to a red card in a game that eventually finished 1-0.

Jason Gillespie will join Kent as coach on a short-term basis while Allan Donald continues to gen up on a requisite coaching qualification

David Hopps23-Mar-2017Jason Gillespie will join the Kent coaching staff at the start of the season as cover for Allan Donald, the former South African fast bowler, who is still facing delays on his visa application to enter the United Kingdom because of the lack of the requisite coaching qualification.Kent’s chief executive Jamie Clifford bemoaned the “bureaucratic barriers” that have so far prevented Donald from taking up his post because he does not yet possess a Level 3 coaching certificate that is the minimum entry requirement to coach cricket in England.The fact that he was the first South African to take 300 Test wickets – he took 330 at 22.25 – and is an iconic figure in South African cricket history, has not spared him from the need to go back to school under a long-standing visa stipulation agreed between the immigration department and the ECB.There will be huge relief in Kent that they have plugged the gap at least on a short-term basis as they seek a bowling coach able to unearth enough talent in their crop of young fast bowlers to mount another promotion challenge.Gillespie, all tooled up as far as coaching certificates are concerned, left Yorkshire as the head coach at the end of last season after an agonising period which resulted in him deciding to move back to Adelaide and raise his family in Australia.Now he will join Matt Walker and the first-team squad, in the role of interim assistant coach, ahead of the upcoming Specsavers County Championship season.Gillespie said: “I am really looking forward to joining Kent. Obviously I moved back to Adelaide for family reasons last year but the opportunity to assist Kent on a short-term basis was one that I couldn’t resist and works well with my current situation.”I look forward to helping Matt Walker and Sam Northeast over the next couple of months until I hand over the reins to Allan Donald.”Gillespie has coached at Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League and Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League as well as winning back-to-back County Championships with Yorkshire in 2014 and 2015.Donald was appointed assistant coach in January 2017 but he is still awaiting a visa to work in the UK. Although he played 72 Tests and 164 ODIs, and has a wealth of coaching experience, his lack of a Level 3 qualification caused his initial visa application to be rejected and he will have to gain the required paperwork before being admitted.Clifford, Kent’s chief executive, said: “Jason brings a wealth of experience as a player and coach in England and overseas. It’s unfortunate that a world-class coach Allan is unable to join us as planned due to bureaucratic barriers but Jason will be a fine addition to the staff.”

John Hampshire, the former Yorkshire captain and England batsman who went on to become an international umpire, has died at the age of 76

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Mar-2017John Hampshire, the former Yorkshire captain and England batsman who went on to become an international umpire, has died at the age of 76 after a long illness.Hampshire, who scored a century on his Test debut, against West Indies at Lord’s in 1969, played eight Tests and three ODIs for England, but will be best remembered as an integral member of the great Yorkshire side that dominated the County Championship in the 1960s.In a 23-year career that included spells with Derbyshire, Tasmania and, briefly, Leicestershire, Hampshire scored a total of 28,059 first-class runs at 34.55, including 43 hundreds – the vast majority of those coming during his 456 appearances for Yorkshire.He debuted for the club as a 20-year-old in 1961 and won the County Championship on five separate occasions, holding his own in a team packed with club legends including Geoff Boycott, Ray Illingworth, Fred Trueman and his first captain, Brian Close. An upright front-foot driver with a strong leg-side game, he was one of the most handsome batsmen of his time.”Initially Yorkshire might have been a difficult dressing room to feel at home in, but Brian Close was a tremendous captain,” Hampshire told ESPNcricinfo in one of his final interviews earlier this year.”He integrated everyone. Most of the guys, they wanted to do well because they wanted the side to do well. And they wanted other players to do well. There were some terrific rows, but they were cricket rows. They weren’t personal vendettas or anything like that. Closey was the ringleader a lot of the time, but as soon as they were finished it was, “Right, come on, we’ll have a drink.”Hampshire, like many in that side, could be an intimidating figure on first meeting, but once respect was won, hidden behind a serious exterior was a warm and self-deprecating humour.Just a year after the end of his playing career in 1984, he became a first-class umpire, and stood for the first time in a Test match at Old Trafford during the 1989 Ashes.Later that year, he and John Holder were invited by Pakistan’s captain, Imran Khan, to stand as neutral umpires during Pakistan’s home series against India, a move that helped pave the way for that to become the standard across all international matches. In total, Hampshire stood in 21 matches up until 2002, and finally retired from the county circuit in 2005.Andy Flower, coach of England Lions, was a prominent figure in the Zimbabwe side that was coached by Hampshire upon their entry to Test cricket in the early 1990s and maintained the friendship from that point.”He was very passionate about Zimbabwe cricket,” Flower told ESPNcricinfo. “He grew to love the country, and its cricket, and he was a very important part of our early years. He gave us a really good grounding in the basics of the game, which served us very well.”I last saw him at Lord’s during the summer. He was there as a guest of the ECB, and we had a couple of great chats during the day. Even though he was unwell, he was always such a strong and generous guy, so he’d still be smiling and giggling at himself.”It was always the right balance with John, between playing hard on the field, and relaxing and chatting off it. When he was coach and I was captain, he would often sit me down with Scotch or a good wine – he fancied himself as a connoisseur – and we’d talk about the game for hours.”In March 2016, Hampshire stepped up to the role of Yorkshire president, an appointment he described as being “the icing on the cake” of his career. To some extent, it was a final show of brotherhood by Yorkshire because his county career at Headingley had ended in disillusionment. In 1978, Hampshire famously was instrumental in a batting go-slow at Northampton in protest at a six-hour century by Geoffrey Boycott. It cost his side a bonus point and Boycott the captaincy. Hampshire replaced him but only for two seasons, before he departed for a simpler life at Derbyshire.”From a very humble beginning, getting trains, trams and buses to Headingley to practice in the winter in hope of getting a game for Yorkshire Seconds, to being president. I think it’s quite an achievement,” he said.”John epitomised everything that’s good about Yorkshire County Cricket Club,” said Steve Denison, Yorkshire’s chairman. “Brave, talented and with a heart of gold, he captained Yorkshire, scored a century at Lord’s on his Test debut and became a highly respected umpire after hanging up his playing whites.”Loved by players and members alike, John capped his wonderful life in Yorkshire cricket as our club president last year. On behalf of everyone involved with and connected to the Club, I would like to extend our most sincere condolences to John’s wife Alison and two sons Ian and Paul. He will be sorely missed by all at Headingley.”

Glasgow Rangers will certainly miss Alfredo Morelos, despite his sharp drop-off in the previous few seasons. The Colombian striker scored 124 goals across just 269 games for the Ibrox side, yet his final two campaigns saw him net only 30 times, looking like a shadow of his former self at times.

Michael Beale decided not to offer him an extended contract, along with Ryan Kent and three others, and in time, it could perhaps be looked upon as the best choice for both parties.

With his departure, the Light Blues will require some attacking reinforcements ahead of next term, especially with Celtic racing away with the Premiership title last season, scoring 21 more goals than the Gers, an area which needs vast improvement.

The club have been linked with a move for West Bromwich Albion striker Karlan Grant according to Mirror journalist Darren Witcoop, who tweeted: “West Brom will listen to offers for striker Karlan Grant this summer. Grant has Championship admirers while Scottish side Rangers have registered an interest. Grant signed a six-year deal when he joined the Baggies for £15m in 2020 but he can now leave Albion.”

The forward is now valued at €4.5m (£4m) by Football Transfers and with three years left on his current deal, Beale may have to pay this sort of fee to secure his signature.

Could Karlan Grant replace Alfredo Morelos at Rangers?

Like Morelos, Grant had a fairly underwhelming 2022/2023 season, scoring just five times for the Baggies across all competitions, however, this shouldn’t put Beale off a potential move.

During 2021/2022, Grant netted 18 goals and grabbed six assists across 44 Championship matches, demonstrating how effective he can be in front of goal, while ranking first in the West Brom squad for goals, scoring frequency and big chances created as well as ranking second for shots per game, clearly suggesting his attacking talents were the best in the squad and if he could replicate this sort of form in Scotland, Grant could cause havoc for opposition defenders.

Presenter Colin Murray lauded the striker for being “clutch”, such is his talent for scoring vital goals and Beale would love a forward who could arrive at Ibrox and hit the ground running straight away.

77 goals and 22 assists in 274 matches isn’t the most prolific strike rate in the world, however his ability to float between a centre-forward role and coming just off the left wing means he can offer more than just goals for this Rangers side next season, with one of his key strengths being his ability to cut inside effectively as per WhoScored.

There will likely be more than one attacking option joining the club this summer, however, signing Grant, should remain top of the priority list, especially considering Beale lured Todd Cantwell to Ibrox following a disappointing six-month spell for Norwich in the Championship and he has already shone – bagging six goals and four assists in just 16 Premiership appearances.

Trevor Hohns has been named as Australia’s interim chairman of selectors, while Greg Chappell will serve on the panel temporarily following Rod Marsh’s departure

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Nov-20163:48

Coverdale: Search for long-term selectors important

Greg Chappell will join Australia’s national selection panel and Trevor Hohns will serve as chairman, after the departure of Rod Marsh from the role on Wednesday. Both appointments have been made on an interim basis only, following an extraordinary meeting of the Cricket Australia board on Wednesday night.Hohns has served on the national selection panel since 2014 in his current tenure, but previously sat on the panel from 1993 to 2006, including 10 years as chairman. Initially, he had continued in his role as Queensland’s state talent manager while also serving on the national panel, but will now relinquish that job to focus full-time on selection duties.Chappell has had two previous stints as a national selector, first from 1984 to 1988, shortly after his retirement as a player, and again from 2010 to 2011, before he took up the role of Cricket Australia’s national talent manager. Chappell will step aside from that position while he serves as an interim national selector.”It is vital that Australian cricket finds the best candidate for this role,” Cricket Australia’s chairman David Peever said. “Trevor is highly experienced as a selector, and will ensure we place our best players on the field this summer while we seek a permanent replacement for Rod.”Greg has been instrumental in restructuring our youth pathway program, driving the National Performance Squad, the introduction of a CA XI squad in the domestic one-day cup and creating clear pathways for talented youth in Australian cricket to aspire to wear the baggy green. His in-depth knowledge of up-and-coming talent in the Australian system will be invaluable.”The board will now begin a search for permanent national selectors, with no deadline having been set. Marsh’s tenure was originally to have ended in June next year.

Glasgow Rangers will end the campaign trophyless for the first time since 2020, and this will turn the summer transfer window into arguably the most important one since the Ibrox side were promoted back to the Premiership in 2016.

Michael Beale has a tough job on his hands and there will likely be some players moving on from the Gers, with Antonio Colak potentially one of them.

The Croatian striker has enjoyed a decent debut season at the club, scoring 17 goals in all competitions, yet he has struggled during the second half of 2022/23, starting just five matches under Beale. According to The Scottish Sun, the club could listen to offers for the Croatian hitman during the summer transfer window in a bid to move him on having rejected approaches from German and MLS outfits in January.

Beale obviously has his own targets in mind, and gaining a fee for Colak will allow him to fund these transfers. However, who could potentially come in and replace the 29-year-old ahead of next season?

Could Rangers sign Viktor Gyokeres from Coventry this summer?

Football Insider has claimed that the Light Blues are keen on signing Viktor Gyokeres from English Championship outfit Coventry City during the summer. However, they value the Swede at £20m, which could prove to be out of their price range.

Much will depend on whether the Sky Blues can achieve promotion to the Premier League via the play-offs, as if they lose to Luton Town, Beale may have a slightly better chance of securing a deal for the striker.

His goalscoring threat would certainly make him an instant hit at Ibrox. Across 49 matches this term, he has scored 22 goals and grabbed a further 11 assists, which is higher than any Rangers player, with James Tavernier registering 27 goal contributions – suggesting that Gyokeres would be a worthwhile addition to the first team if he could replicate his form in Scotland.

Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray lavished praise upon the player, even comparing him to Erling Haaland, saying: "He looks a yard more powerful and a yard quicker than everyone else, he’s a really confident boy.

"The way he buys himself space to shoot is pretty impressive and Coventry did well to hold onto him, he looks a really talented boy.

"Who is too fast, too strong and too big – you would suggest Haaland is like that and Gyokeres in this league looks a yard faster and stronger than the players he plays against in the Championship."

It appears as if the £4.5k-per-week machine needs to make the step up to the next level, and joining Rangers, where he would play Champions League football, could well be an ideal move for him.

Beale will be keeping an eye on the play-off final next week, that’s for sure.

Manchester United are interested in signing Juventus midfielder Adrien Rabiot as a free agent in the summer, according to a new transfer update.

Is Rabiot on the move this summer?

The Red Devils have a strong squad currently – one that is able to battle across multiple fronts at this stage of the season – but that doesn't mean that further signings won't be required bt the time the summer transfer window rolls around. They need to be in a position where they are genuine Premier League title challengers next season, as well as a team who are capable of going far in the Champions League.

Midfield is an area of the pitch that could do with some extra depth, with the recent absences of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen highlighting the dip in quality behind him in the squad. Indeed, United have lost three times during the Brazilian's time out suspended, with just two prior defeats in the league. Meanwhile, the Dane has only recently returned from injury to a team now firmly out of the title race as a result of their poor post-cup final form.

One player strongly linked with a move to Old Trafford in the past has been Rabiot, who ended up staying at Juventus over the winter. The Frenchman is out of contract at the end of the season, however, and it looks likely that he will leave the club and enjoy a fresh challenge. It looks as though United could be back in for the 28-year-old as they look to make inroads in the next window.

Could United seal move for Frenchman?

According to Tutto Juve [via Sport Witness], United are "ready to go on the offensive" when it comes to signing Rabiot this summer, seeing him as a good choice to come in and boost their midfield options. Described in the report as the "best midfielder in Serie A", he would be available on a free transfer, with "€10m or €15m in signing bonuses" on top.

We think Rabiot could be a really astute signing by United if they manage to get a deal over the line, with the 36-cap France international maturing as a player these days and scoring eight goals in 24 Serie A appearances this season.

He could be a player who acts as an upgrade on Scott McTominay and Fred and provide competition for Eriksen, providing box-to-box quality and pedigree, considering legendary former Italy midfielder Andrea Pirlo once called him a "complete player".

Manchester United's summer target Jeremie Frimpong would be keen to make a move to Old Trafford ahead of the upcoming transfer window.

Will Man United finish in the top four?

The Red Devils got back to winning ways on the weekend to give their hopes of a spot in next season's Champions League a much-needed boost.

Erik ten Hag's side remain three points ahead of Tottenham Hotspur with a game in hand over the north London side.

However, there may be some concerns as to whether Marcus Rashford will be available for the upcoming games after he seemingly suffered a fresh injury issue.

A spot inside the top four remains in their hands and it could be crucial for the Red Devils if they are to attract some of their summer transfer targets to Old Trafford.

One name which has been linked with a potential switch to Manchester is that of Bayer Leverkusen's Frimpong after his representatives held talks with United last week.

And speaking on his YouTube channel, Fabrizio Romano has claimed the £22k-per-week right-back would be keen on a potential move to Old Trafford in the summer window:

(3:00) "I can confirm that the player is really attracted by a possible return to the Premier League because he started his career in England and now in this case, with Manchester United it's a possibility that is really attracting the player.

"So they've had the player in the list since October/November. They sent, Manchester United, people from their scouting department to follow Jeremie Frimpong of Bayer Leverkusen.

"And so let's see if bids will arrive for Aaron Wan-Bissaka but Frimpong is one to watch and the player would be keen on the move to Manchester United."

Should United sign Frimpong?

The 22-year-old has been a key feature in the Leverkusen side this season having now racked up 27 appearances in the Bundesliga (via Transfermarkt).

And in those games he has been able to provide a seriously impressive return of eight goals and five assists having played predominantly as a right wing-back.

However, there could be an issue for Ten Hag's men ahead of the summer with the believed interest also coming from Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

The two European sides top their respective leagues and are looking certain to be playing in the Champions League ahead of the new season.

On the other hand, United's spot inside the top four is by no means secure with the Red Devils still to play Tottenham later this month.

It will be intriguing to see whether Frimpong's future could potentially be determined on whether United are able to seal a spot in next season's elite European football.

With the draw of playing for Barcelona and even the potential switch across Germany to Bayern in a league where he has so comfortably adapted since moving from Celtic.

United have seen Jadon Sancho come over from the Bundesliga and fail to hit the heights expected of him, however, there could be some confidence taken from the shared interest from some of Europe's biggest clubs.