Football (Sky Sports)

Football (Sky Sports)

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Rugby World Cup 2023 team guides: Pool D – England, Argentina, Japan, Samoa, Chile

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England, Argentina and Japan are all in Rugby World Cup 2023’s Pool D

We look at everything you need to know from Rugby World Cup Pool D, as 2003 champions England, Argentina, Japan, Samoa and Chile clash…

Rugby World Cup 2023 Pool D fixtures

Saturday September 9: England vs Argentina (8pm, Marseille)
Sunday September 10: Japan vs Chile (12pm, Toulouse)
Saturday September 16: Samoa vs Chile (2pm, Bordeaux)
Sunday September 17: England vs Japan (8pm, Nice)
Friday September 22: Argentina vs Samoa (4.45pm, Saint-Etienne)
Saturday September 23: England vs Chile (4.45pm, Lille)
Thursday September 28: Japan vs Samoa (8pm, Toulouse)
Saturday September 30: Argentina vs Chile (2pm, Nantes)
Saturday October 7: England vs Samoa (14.45pm, Lille)
Sunday October 8: Japan vs Argentina (12pm, Nantes)

England’s Rugby World Cup record

1987: Quarter-finals

1991: Runners-up

1995: Fourth place

1999: Quarter-finals

2003: Champions

2007: Runners-up

2011: Quarter-finals

2015: Pool Stages

2019: Runners-up

Key player

Maro Itoje. When England reached the Rugby World Cup final in 2019, second row Itoje was a player playing out of his skin, excelling at each and every aspect of Test rugby. His form has been patchy since, but with selection question marks all around Steve Borthwick’s side, if Itoje can reach his top levels, he could lead England far.

Maro Itoje was a pivotal performer in England's run to the 2019 World Cup final, and will be seeking to return to those levels

Head coach

Steve Borthwick. England head coach since December 2022, Borthwick was also previously England forwards coach under Eddie Jones between 2016-2020, before coaching Leicester Tigers as head coach between 2020-2022, winning the 2021 Premiership title.

The 43-year-old has had just one Six Nations campaign to date, which saw no improvement on Jones’ displays as they finished fourth after defeats to Scotland, France and Ireland. They also suffered World Cup warm-up defeats to Wales and Ireland.

Steve Borthwick took over from Eddie Jones as England head coach, but has not started well in the role

England’s 2023 Rugby World Cup squad:

Forwards (19): Dan Cole, Ellis Genge, Joe Marler, Bevan Rodd, Kyle Sinckler, Will Stuart, Theo Dan, Jamie George, Jack Walker, Ollie Chessum, Maro Itoje, Courtney Lawes, George Martin, Tom Curry, Ben Earl, Lewis Ludlam, David Ribbans, Billy Vunipola, Jack Willis.

Backs (14): Danny Care, Alex Mitchell, Ben Youngs, Owen Farrell (c), George Ford, Marcus Smith, Elliot Daly, Ollie Lawrence, Joe Marchant, Jonny May, Manu Tuilagi, Henry Arundell, Max Malins, Freddie Steward.

Argentina’s Rugby World Cup record

1987: Pool Stages

1991: Pool Stages

1995: Pool Stages

1999: Quarter-finals

2003: Pool Stages

2007: Third place

2011: Quarter-finals

2015: Fourth place

2019: Pool Stages

Key player

Julian Montoya. The Argentina skipper is a crucial leader for this Pumas squad, and pivotal to their scrum, lineout and maul efforts as a hooker. For Argentina to be a threat in this World Cup, their set-piece and discipline needs to be able to hold up and compete.

Leicester Tigers hooker Julian Montoya is Argentina's current captain

Head coach

Michael Cheika. Argentina head coach since March 2022, Australian Cheika – Wallabies head coach between 2014 and 2019 – will depart the role after the World Cup, with Felipe Contepomi taking over.

Cheika has brought a noticeable improvement to Pumas displays, leading Argentina to a 2-1 series win over Scotland in July 2022, in addition to victories over Australia home and away, the All Blacks on Kiwi soil and Pool D opponents England at Twickenham.

Former Australia head coach Michael Cheika has improved the Pumas, overseeing wins vs New Zealand, Australia, England and Scotland

Argentina’s 2023 Rugby World Cup squad:

Forwards (18): Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, Francisco Gómez Kodela, Joel Sclavi, Thomas Gallo, Eduardo Bello, Julián Montoya (c), Agustín Creevy, Ignacio Ruiz, Matías Alemanno, Tomás Lavanini, Guido Petti, Facundo Isa, Pablo Matera, Juan Martín González, Santiago Grondona, Marcos Kremer, Rodrigo Bruni, Pedro Rubiolo.

Backs (15): Gonzalo Bertranou, Tomás Cubelli, Lautaro Bazán Vélez, Santiago Carreras, Nicolás Sánchez, Santiago Chocobares, Lucio Cinti, Jerónimo de la Fuente, Matías Moroni, Emiliano Boffelli, Mateo Carreras, Rodrigo Isgró, Juan Cruz Mallía, Martín Bogado, Juan Imhoff.

Japan’s Rugby World Cup record

1987: Pool Stages

1991: Pool Stages

1995: Pool Stages

1999: Pool Stages

2003: Pool Stages

2007: Pool Stages

2011: Pool Stages

2015: Pool Stages

2019: Quarter-finals

Key player

Kazuki Himeno. Just as Michael Leitch was an outstanding back-row forward and leader for Japan in 2015 and 2019, in 2023 the star man is No 8 Himeno. The 29-year-old’s performances have been so strong he spent a season playing for the Highlanders in New Zealand in Super Rugby, and is a superb carrier of the ball and breakdown operator.

Japan back-row Kazuki Himeno is a superbly talented player

Head coach

Jamie Joseph. Japan head coach since 2016, New Zealander Joseph will be departing after the World Cup in France. He led the Brave Blossoms to stunning World Cup victories over Ireland and Scotland as hosts in 2019 and to a historic quarter-final place, where they suffered defeat to eventual winners South Africa.

Jamie Joseph oversaw a stunning 2019 World Cup campaign for Japan on home soil, but they have largely struggled since

Japan’s 2023 Rugby World Cup squad:

Forwards (18): Keita Inagaki, Craig Millar, Sione Halasili, Koo Ji-won, Shinnosuke Kakinaga, Asaeli Ai Valu, Shota Horie, Atsushi Sakate, Kosuke Horikoshi, Jack Cornelsen, Warner Dearns, Uwe Helu, Amanaki Saumaki, Pieter Labuschagne, Shota Fukui, Kazuki Himeno, Michael Leitch, Ben Gunter

Backs (15): Naoto Saito, Yutaka Nagare, Kenta Fukuda, Lee Seung-sin, Rikiya Matsuda, Jumpei Ogura, Ryoto Nakamura, Tomoki Osada, Shogo Nakano, Dylan Riley, Siosaia Fifita, Semisi Masirewa, Jone Naikabula, Lomano Lemeki, Kotaro Matsushima.

Samoa’s Rugby World Cup record

1987: Not invited

1991: Quarter-finals

1995: Quarter-finals

1999: Quarter-final playoffs

2003: Pool Stages

2007: Pool Stages

2011: Pool Stages

2015: Pool Stages

2019: Pool Stages

Key player

Steve Luatua/UJ Seuteni. We’ve split Samoa’s key player into two, an outstanding forward and an outstanding back. World Rugby’s new eligibility laws, which mean players who do not represent a nation for a three-year period can return to play for the country of their birth or that of a parent/grandparent, has seen a number of talented players from the Pacific islands return to squads.

Flanker Luatua picked up 15 All Blacks caps until 2016, and is a fabulous operator who could grace any forward pack, while La Rochelle’s European champion Seuteni is one of the best centres in the world.

Samoan centre UJ Seuteni was outstanding as La Rochelle beat Leinster in Dublin to win the 2023 European Cup

Head coach

Seilala Mapusua. Samoa head coach since August 2020, Mapusua picked up 26 Test caps as a centre for Samoa between 2006 and 2013.

It has been some time since Samoa have picked up a marquee victory in Test rugby, but with some of the players now available to Mapusua via World Rugby’s new eligibility laws, and Pool D not being a toughest group by any means, a quarter-final spot is not beyond the realms or aims.

Samoa head coach Seilala Mapusua picked up 26 Test caps as a centre for Samoa between 2006 and 2013

Samoa’s 2023 Rugby World Cup squad:

Forwards (18): Michael Alaalatoa (co-c), Paul Alo-Emile, Charlie Faumuina, Jordan Lay, Seilala Lam, Sama Malolo, Luteru Tolai, Brian Alainuuese, Theo McFarland, Sam Slade, Chris Vui (co-c), Sootala Faasoo, Miracle Fai’ilagi, Fritz Lee, Steven Luatua, Alamanda Motuga, Taleni Seu, Jordan Taufua.

Backs (14): Ere Enari, Melani Matavao, Jonathan Taumateine, Christian Leali’ifano, Lima Sopoaga, Alai D’Angelo Leuila, Tumua Manu, Duncan Paiaaua, UJ Seuteni, Nigel Ah Wong, Ed Fidow, Neria Fomai, Benjamin Lam, Danny Toala.

Chile’s Rugby World Cup record

1987: Not invited

1991: Did not enter

1995: Did not qualify

1999: Did not qualify

2003: Did not qualify

2007: Did not qualify

2011: Did not qualify

2015: Did not qualify

2019: Did not qualify

Key player

Martin Sigren. The skipper is one of only three players in the squad who plays outside of Chile, with the 27-year-old back-row currently a Doncaster Knights player. The 26-year-old has spoken about his nation’s ‘remarkable qualification’ and will lead the side with enormous passion.

Doncaster Knights back-row Martin Sigren will captain Chile in their maiden Rugby World Cup

Head coach

Pablo Lemoine. Chile head coach since 2018, Lemoine picked up 48 caps for Uruguay as a prop between 1996 and 2010, and leads Chile into their first ever Rugby World Cup after beating Canada (54-46 on aggregate) and then the USA (52-51 on aggregate) in qualifiers.

Chile’s 2023 Rugby World Cup squad:

Forwards (17): Javier Carrasco, Salvador Lues, Matías Dittus, Iñaki Gurruchaga, Esteban Inostroza, Augusto Bohme, Tomás Dussaillant, Diego Escobar, Javier Eissmann, Pablo Huete, Santiago Pedrero, Augusto Sarmiento, Alfonso Escobar, Raimundo Martínez, Clemente Saavedra, Martín Sigren (c), Ignacio Silva.

Backs (13): Lukas Carvallo, Marcelo Torrealba, Benjamín Videla, Rodrigo Fernández, Santiago Videla, Pablo Casas, Matías Garafulic, José Ignacio Larenas, Domingo Saavedra, Franco Velarde, Nicolás Garafulic, Iñaki Ayarza, Francisco Urroz.

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Martin Brundle on the Italian GP: 10 for Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton disappoints and Carlos Sainz stars

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Sky Sports F1’s Martin Brundle delivers his expert verdict on the Italian GP weekend after Max Verstappen made it 10 consecutive race wins in Monza.

That was one of the best Monza F1 Grands Prix and I thoroughly enjoyed it. For Max Verstappen to win 10 consecutive races, along with Red Bull taking all 15 races so far this season, it’s truly something to behold.

What an achievement to faultlessly keep up that level of performance and reliability on many different track layouts and in varying weather conditions, up against mighty opposition. Congratulations to each and every one of them.

If a tennis player or football or rugby team for example was so utterly complete and dominant, they would rightly be globally lauded at the highest level. As should this pairing be. Sport can and should be tribal, but you must surely also appreciate a level of excellence in others.

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Highlights of the Italian Grand Prix from Monza.

So I was a little surprised and disappointed that Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff played down this achievement over the weekend, because they rightly received their due reverence and appreciation during their years of total domination from 2014 to 2020.

At the same time Max and Red Bull will no doubt reflect on a few past actions and words which have diluted their current appreciation levels in some quarters. But it’s all to be expected when you put so many intensely competitive people into the same space.

Sainz the real star of Monza

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Sky F1’s Anthony Davidson was at the SkyPad to analyse Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc’s epic battle for the final podium spot in Italy!

The star of the Italian Grand Prix was undoubtedly Carlos Sainz. It was clear early on that Ferrari had really focused on Monza with their aerodynamic package and fresh power units.

This one mattered and Sainz was on form from the off. He threatened to be the one to deny Verstappen pole position, and when the pressure was on, he delivered.

Most people in the paddock thought Red Bull would have the faster race car and look after its tyres better on longer race stints, and that included Ferrari. Their drivers Sainz and Leclerc knew they would have to give it everything they had, and they surely did. Ferrari and their fans love an aggressive, passionate, and never-say-die driver, and have many former heroes such as Gilles Villeneuve as a benchmark.

Sainz’s defence against Verstappen and later Sergio Perez in the sister Red Bull, as well as his own team-mate Leclerc was brilliant, if right on the limit. He positioned his car perfectly and aggressively resisted moves around the outside, particularly at turn one. Sometimes his defensive moves were a touch late, he occasionally pushed the rules on moving more than once and also on the need to leave space on the outside of a corner. It was great to watch and full credit to the FIA stewards for allowing hard racing.

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Max Verstappen claimed first place at the Italian Grand Prix to set a new record of ten consecutive first-place finishes.

Rules sometimes not as clear as they seem

The rules are basically this: if your rival is trying to pass on the outside line, should they be fully alongside, front wheel to front wheel, then you have to give them space, which in effect means let them pass.

It’s not always easy to define exactly where the apex is in some longer corners, but in the 90-degree right/90-degree left first chicane, it’s clear enough.

The problem there is that it’s so narrow that two compliant drivers can barely pass side by side, and the driver on the inside will not have enough command over their front tyres to simply dial in even more steering angle. There will be contact along with drivers claiming to have been run out of road.

Both Ferrari drivers defended against both Red Bulls with guile and determination, but it was inevitable they would end up fighting each other for the final spot of the world’s best podium in front of the passionate Ferrari fans.

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Ted Kravitz is in the paddock as he reviews all the biggest stories from the 2023 Italian Grand Prix.

So they set about racing each other with plenty of aggression and a few near misses which was enthralling. Both drivers said they thoroughly enjoyed proper racing, Leclerc said it reminded him of his karting days. If the drivers love it and are allowed to race, then the fans will love it too.

Had the Ferrari boys wiped each other out and put George Russell’s Mercedes on the podium instead, there would have been chaos and recrimination all round. But they didn’t.

Perez race craft made him another standout performer

Sainz was the best non-Red Bull driver – 11 seconds behind Verstappen which is better than the half a minute or more in some races this year. Having said that, Max had to cruise at the end of the race to protect some car temperatures which were getting high.

It was also a standout performance from Sergio Perez. Slightly off the pace again in qualifying, his race craft to navigate past Russell, Leclerc and Sainz was top drawer.

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Watch the funniest moments from the Italian GP including George Russell and Alex Albon exchanging banter. In addition to Ted Kravitz’s UK geography getting tested.

That puts him 49 points ahead of Fernando Alonso in second place in the drivers’ championship, but I think much more importantly will give him great confidence heading into the final eight races. I sense he’s mentally back in control after some difficult races.

Russell had a strong weekend for Mercedes at a track where they were stronger than McLaren and Aston Martin. Lewis tripped over Oscar Piastri’s McLaren with a squeeze into the second chicane, for which he impressively took full responsibility and apologised to the Aussie rookie who was having a solid weekend again.

Alex Albon and Lando Norris travelled side by side in the same road car from and back to Monaco, and would spend the entire race nose to tail finishing a third of a second apart. Norris simply couldn’t find a way past the speedy Williams of Albon, who once again soaked up the pressure without error. This fight was typical of the battles throughout the field.

Liam Lawson once again impressed standing in for Daniel Ricciardo at Alpha Tauri, and it appears he will have a couple more chances yet before Ricciardo’s difficult hand fracture has sufficiently healed.

Elsewhere it was a weekend to forget for Alpine and to a lesser extent Aston Martin who could only manage ninth for Fernando Alonso, which would have been 10th without Piastri’s contact with Hamilton. However next up is Singapore, which is an altogether different challenge and will shuffle the pack again.

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Sky F1 travel to the Monza circuit ahead of the Italian GP on the train as part of our Sky Zero campaign to protect the sports we love.

Stick with decision on tyre combinations

This was the second trial for the Alternative Tyre Allocation (ATA) where drivers would be limited to 11 sets of dry tyres comprising of three hard compounds, four medium and four soft. This is two overall sets fewer than usual and also means just four sets of soft tyres instead of eight.

It would be a dry weekend and so a true test, which went well enough. It does make the Friday practice running even more difficult to decipher, especially as those not expecting to get through Q1 or even Q2 to take a completely different approach to the practice sessions tyre-wise. And it will surely always promote fewer practice laps rather than more.

I don’t mind which way we go as long as a decision is made and we stick to it. We simply have too many tyre combinations for the various qualifying and race formats and many of us in the paddock struggle to remember them without reading up each time, and I suspect the fans really can’t be bothered with it all either. The teams will adapt as required.

And so to the humidity and relentless floodlit corners of Singapore. I can’t wait.

Formula 1 returns in two weeks’ time with the Singapore Grand Prix and all sessions will be live on Sky Sports F1 from September 15-17.

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Tennis Scores & Schedule

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Tennis Scores & Schedule

US Open

ATP World Tour / Men’s Singles / Round of 128

Ilya Ivashka of Belarus is currently playing Juan Manuel Cerundolo of Argentina. The current score is 6-2, current set: 6-6, at tiebreak. . Current server is Juan Manuel Cerundolo
J.J. Wolf of United States of America is currently playing Zhizhen Zhang of China PR. The current score is 5-7, current set: 4-3. . Current server is Zhizhen Zhang
Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan, seeded 25 is currently playing Dominic Thiem of Austria. The current score is 3-6, 2-6, current set: 0-1. Current game: 30-G. Current server is Alexander Bublik
Richard Gasquet of France is currently playing Fabian Marozsan of Hungary. The current score is 3-6, 1-6, current set: 3-3. . Current server is Fabian Marozsan
Sebastian Ofner of Austria is currently playing Nuno Borges of Portugal. The current score is 7-6, 3-6, current set: 0-0. . Current server is Nuno Borges
Adrian Mannarino of France, seeded 22 is currently playing Yosuke Watanuki of Japan. The current score is 7-5, current set: 4-3. . Current server is Yosuke Watanuki
Pedro Cachin of Argentina is currently playing Ben Shelton of United States of America. The current score is 6-1, 3-6, 2-6, current set: 0-0. . Current server is Ben Shelton
Marcos Giron of United States of America is scheduled to play Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain, seeded 21, at 17:30. First server will be TBD
Jakub Mensik of Czechia, seeded Q is scheduled to play Gregoire Barrere of France, at 17:30. First server will be TBD
Roberto Carballes Baena of Spain is scheduled to play Holger Rune of Denmark, seeded 4, at 17:30. First server will be TBD
Casper Ruud of Norway, seeded 5 is scheduled to play Emilio Nava of United States of America, seeded Q, at 17:30. First server will be TBD
Rinky Hijikata of Australia, seeded WC is scheduled to play Pavel Kotov of Russian Federation, at 17:30. First server will be TBD
Lorenzo Musetti of Italy, seeded 18 is scheduled to play Titouan Droguet of France, seeded Q, at 18:00. First server will be TBD
Learner Tien of United States of America, seeded WC is scheduled to play Frances Tiafoe of United States of America, seeded 10, at 18:30. First server will be TBD
Laslo Djere of Serbia, seeded 32 is scheduled to play Brandon Nakashima of United States of America, at 19:00. First server will be TBD
Steve Johnson of United States of America, seeded WC is scheduled to play Taylor Fritz of United States of America, seeded 9, at 19:00. First server will be TBD
Zachary Svajda of United States of America, seeded Q is scheduled to play Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina, seeded 20, at 19:00. First server will be TBD
Jiri Vesely of Czechia is scheduled to play Enzo Couacaud of France, seeded Q, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Marton Fucsovics of Hungary is scheduled to play Sebastian Korda of United States of America, seeded 31, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Tommy Paul of United States of America, seeded 14 is scheduled to play Stefano Travaglia of Italy, seeded Q, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia is scheduled to play Juan Pablo Varillas of Peru, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Roman Safiullin of Russian Federation is scheduled to play Marco Cecchinato of Italy, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Aslan Karatsev of Russian Federation is scheduled to play Jiri Lehecka of Czechia, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Bernabe Zapata Miralles of Spain is scheduled to play Ethan Quinn of United States of America, seeded WC, at 21:00. First server will be TBD
Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada, seeded 15 is scheduled to play Mackenzie McDonald of United States of America, at 21:00. First server will be TBD
Sho Shimabukuro of Japan, seeded Q is scheduled to play Hugo Gaston of France, seeded Q, at 21:00. First server will be TBD
Dominic Stricker of Switzerland, seeded Q is scheduled to play Alexei Popyrin of Australia, at 21:00. First server will be TBD
Quentin Halys of France is scheduled to play Benjamin Bonzi of France, seeded WC, at 21:00. First server will be TBD
Hugo Dellien of Bolivia (Plurinational State of) is scheduled to play Borna Gojo of Croatia, seeded Q, at 21:00. First server will be TBD
SoonWoo Kwon of Korea Republic is scheduled to play Christopher Eubanks of United States of America, seeded 28, at 22:00. First server will be TBD
Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece, seeded 7 is scheduled to play Milos Raonic of Canada, at 00:00. First server will be TBD

WTA Tour / Women’s Singles / Round of 128

Kamilla Rakhimova of Russian Federation is currently playing Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, seeded 15. The current score is 2-6, current set: 2-5. . Current server is Belinda Bencic
Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia is currently playing Kateryna Baindl of Ukraine. The current score is 6-4, current set: 3-2. . Current server is Kateryna Baindl
Iga Swiatek of Poland, seeded 1 is currently playing Rebecca Peterson of Sweden. The current score is 4-0. Current game: 30-15. Current server is Iga Swiatek
Magdalena Frech of Poland is currently playing Emma Navarro of United States of America. The current score is 7-6, current set: 1-1. . Current server is Emma Navarro
Rebeka Masarova of Spain is currently playing Maria Sakkari of Greece, seeded 8. The current score is 6-4, current set: 5-3. . Current server is Maria Sakkari
Karolina Muchova of Czechia, seeded 10 defeats Storm Hunter of Australia, seeded WC. 6-4, 6-0
Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, seeded 18 defeats Fiona Ferro of France, seeded WC. 6-1, 6-2
Taylor Townsend of United States of America defeats Varvara Gracheva of France. 4-6, 2-6
Daria Saville of Australia defeats Clervie Ngounoue of United States of America, seeded WC. 0-6, 2-6
Lauren Davis of United States of America is scheduled to play Danka Kovinic of Montenegro, at 17:30. First server will be TBD
Anhelina Kalinina of Ukraine, seeded 28 is scheduled to play Sara Sorribes Tormo of Spain, at 17:30. First server will be TBD
Sloane Stephens of United States of America is scheduled to play Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil, seeded 19, at 17:45. First server will be TBD
Danielle Collins of United States of America is scheduled to play Linda Fruhvirtova of Czechia, at 18:00. First server will be TBD
Yuriko Miyazaki of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, seeded Q is scheduled to play Margarita Betova of Russian Federation, at 18:00. First server will be TBD
Bernarda Pera of United States of America is scheduled to play Veronika Kudermetova of Russian Federation, seeded 16, at 18:00. First server will be TBD
Katie Volynets of United States of America, seeded Q is scheduled to play Xinyu Wang of China PR, at 18:00. First server will be TBD
Lin Zhu of China PR is scheduled to play Mayar Sherif of Egypt, at 18:00. First server will be TBD
Kaja Juvan of Slovenia, seeded Q is scheduled to play Elisabetta Cocciaretto of Italy, seeded 29, at 18:00. First server will be TBD
Julia Grabher of Austria is scheduled to play Xiyu Wang of China PR, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Panna Udvardy of Hungary is scheduled to play Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Kimberly Birrell of Australia, seeded LL is scheduled to play Jennifer Brady of United States of America, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Elise Mertens of Belgium, seeded 32 is scheduled to play Mirjam Bjorklund of Sweden, seeded Q, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, seeded 4 is scheduled to play Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine, at 19:30. First server will be TBD
Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus is scheduled to play Magda Linette of Poland, seeded 24, at 20:00. First server will be TBD
Kayla Day of United States of America, seeded WC is scheduled to play Sorana Cirstea of Romania, seeded 30, at 21:30. First server will be TBD
Alize Cornet of France is scheduled to play Elina Avanesyan of Russian Federation, at 21:30. First server will be TBD
Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia, seeded 20 is scheduled to play Jasmine Paolini of Italy, at 21:30. First server will be TBD
Olivia Gadecki of Australia, seeded Q is scheduled to play Mirra Andreeva of Russian Federation, at 21:30. First server will be TBD
Anna Kalinskaya of Russian Federation is scheduled to play Katerina Siniakova of Czechia, at 21:30. First server will be TBD
Petra Kvitova of Czechia, seeded 11 is scheduled to play Cristina Bucsa of Spain, at 23:00. First server will be TBD
Laura Siegemund of Germany, seeded Q is scheduled to play Coco Gauff of United States of America, seeded 6, at 00:00. First server will be TBD

Rafa Nadal Open by Movistar

ATP Challenger Tour / Men’s Singles / Qualifying 1st Round

Mark Whitehouse of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland defeats Ugo Blanchet of France. 6-7, 3-6
Christian Langmo of United States of America defeats Rafael Giotis of Germany. 3-6, 6-7
Peter Gojowczyk of Germany defeats John Echeverria of Spain. 7-6, 7-6
Daniel Cukierman of Israel defeats Alexey Vatutin of Russian Federation. 2-6, 6-3, 3-6
August Holmgren of Denmark defeats Ivan Ivanov of Bulgaria. 4-6, 5-7
Kenny de Schepper of France defeats Igor Sijsling of Netherlands. 6-4, 6-7, 1-6
Maxime Janvier of France defeats Daniil Sarksian of Russian Federation. 6-2, 6-2
Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia and Herzegovina defeats Daniel Cox of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. 6-4, 6-4
Gastao Elias of Portugal defeats Miguel Damas of Spain. 6-2, 5-7, 6-1
Adria Soriano Barrera of Colombia defeats Bernard Tomic of Australia. 1-2
Edas Butvilas of Lithuania is scheduled to play Charles Broom of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, at 13:30. First server will be TBD
Izan Almazan Valiente of Spain is scheduled to play Ulises Blanch of United States of America, at 15:00. First server will be TBD

Challenger Citta’ di Como

ATP Challenger Tour / Men’s Singles / Qualifying 1st Round

Santiago Rodriguez Taverna of Argentina defeats Karl Friberg of Sweden. 7-5, 7-6
Calvin Hemery of France defeats Luca Castagnola of Italy. 0-6, 4-6
Manuel Guinard of France defeats Matteo Martineau of France. 6-1, 6-4
Mathias Bourgue of France defeats Andrea Arnaboldi of Italy. 7-6, 6-3
Samuel Vincent Ruggeri of Italy defeats Kyrian Jacquet of France. 3-6, 1-6
Alexander Weis of Italy defeats Lorenzo Rottoli of Italy. 4-6, 2-6
Miljan Zekic of Serbia defeats Enrico Dalla Valle of Italy. 7-6, 5-7, 7-6
Salvatore Caruso of Italy defeats Rocco Piatti of Monaco. 4-6, 6-3, 6-1
Moez Echargui of Tunisia defeats Maxime Chazal of France. 6-1, 6-7, 3-6
Louis Wessels of Germany defeats Chun-Hsin Tseng of Chinese Taipei. 3-6, 2-6
Giovanni Fonio of Italy defeats David Jorda Sanchis of Spain. 4-6, 6-3, 7-5
Henrique Rocha of Portugal is scheduled to play Valentin Royer of France, at 14:30. First server will be TBD

Zhangjiagang International Challenger

ATP Challenger Tour / Men’s Singles / Qualifying Final

Yan Bai of China PR, seeded Q defeats Yusuke Takahashi of Japan. 2-6, 1-6
Linang Xiao of China PR, seeded Q defeats Alexander Zgirovsky of Belarus. 6-7, 6-7
Jie Cui of China PR, seeded Q defeats Shuichi Sekiguchi of Japan. 1-6, 2-6
Leonid Sheyngezikht of Bulgaria, seeded Q defeats Matthew Romios of Australia. 4-6, 6-3, 4-6
Hanyi Liu of China PR, seeded Q defeats Colin Sinclair of Northern Mariana Islands. 6-1, 3-6, 6-7
Mikalai Haliak of Belarus, seeded Q defeats Ray Ho of Chinese Taipei. 6-3, 6-1

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Alex Albon: Williams driver praised by rivals after claiming fourth in Dutch GP Qualifying

Alex Albon will start fourth on the grid for Williams in Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix after equalling his career-best qualifying performance; watch the Dutch GP from 12.30pm live on Sky Sports F1, with lights out at 2pm at Zandvoort

Last Updated: 26/08/23 7:02pm

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Alex Albon believes the ‘right kind of wind’ helped him claim an impressive fourth place in qualifying of the Dutch GP

Alex Albon earned high praise from his rivals after equalling his career-best qualifying performance to claim fourth on the grid for Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix.

While Max Verstappen lived up to his billing as the star of the show by taking pole in Zandvoort, Saturday’s most eye-catching performance undoubtedly came from his former Red Bull team-mate.

Having delivered performances across the opening 12 races of the season that have seen him linked with a return to some of the sport’s top teams, Albon picked up where he left off in the first race after the summer break.

After impressing in practice, the British-born Thai driver topped Q1, before producing a sensational lap to match the multiple fourth places he claimed during his 18-month stint at Red Bull.

He was only denied a top-three start by two peers who have to this point overshadowed his achievements, McLaren’s Lando Norris and Mercedes’ George Russell.

Russell and Albon congratulated each other after their impressive qualifying performances in Zandvoort

Albon’s long-term prospects as an F1 driver appeared uncertain when he was let go by Red Bull, but the way he has rebuilt his career at Williams after a year out hasn’t gone unnoticed by his fellow drivers.

“I’m really pleased to see him up there and it shows when you get your confidence how that can really transform the performance,” said Russell, who spent three seasons with Williams before earning his Mercedes seat.

The British driver also praised the impact of Williams team principal James Vowles, who left his role as Mercedes motorsport strategy director to take up the position.

“Williams are making a huge amount of progress at the moment,” Russell said. “I think James Vowles is having a really positive impact there.

“I think he’s definitely the best man for the job for what Williams need at the moment for their sort of resurgence.

“So it’s great to see more than just the top teams fighting and that’s what we want in Formula 1. We want everybody to have a chance if they do a good job.”

Verstappen ‘impressed’ by Williams

Albon’s season driving alongside Verstappen left question marks over his pedigree, but the similar struggles endured by other talented drivers alongside the Dutchman put that in perspective.

While Verstappen’s generational talent is undeniable, there is a suspicion that the way Red Bull develop their cars to suit the two-time world champion’s driving style has also hindered his team-mates.

Despite the brutal nature of his Red Bull departure, Albon has maintained strong relationships with his former colleagues and has been talked about as a potential candidate to replace Sergio Perez when the Mexican’s contract expires at the end of 2024.

“I didn’t know what to expect with other teams coming in,” Verstappen said. “But they (Williams) have been quick all weekend in the wet and dry.

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Max Verstappen takes pole ahead of Lando Norris, George Russell and an impressive fourth place from Alex Albon at the Dutch GP

“That’s impressive to see and it’s great for the sport as well to have more teams up there.

“I’m very happy for Alex himself. He’s a great guy, he was my team-mate before and we always had a good time, so I’m very happy for him to be up there and have a very competitive car.”

Norris is best placed, in terms of recency, to understand the struggle of being a talented driver at the back of the grid.

While McLaren’s remarkable mid-season turnaround has catapulted him to regular front-row berths, Norris has also clearly been paying attention to Williams’ gradual improvement.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a big surprise because they have been very competitive at certain places,” he said

“But every now and then, like Silverstone he (Albon) was P1 in Practice and now they just managed to keep it more through qualifying and into Q3 especially.

“So happy for him and the whole team. Logan (Sargeant) was there all the way pretty much until Q3, so they look strong. They made some big progress this season, so it’s good to have them in the battle.”

Albon reveals ‘strange’ secret to Zandvoort success

Perhaps most surprised by their success on Saturday were Albon and Williams themselves, with the 27-year-old revealing what he thinks might be behind the outstanding qualifying display.

“All conditions – slicks, wets, yesterday in the dry – we have been quite surprised, actually. We are not normally known for our high downforce performance but it’s been working well this weekend.

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The team debate which driver on the grid has made the biggest improvements this year. You can listen to the latest episode of the Sky Sports F1 Podcast now

“I have been surprised, but the wind this weekend is perfect for our car.

“It sounds very strange, but in the corners where we are normally quite weak there’s a head wind, and in the corners where we’re normally quite strong there’s a tail wind.

“It sounds strange to say, but the wind has been very good for us. The car has been working really well. It’s been a lot of fun to drive around here so far.”

With more unpredictable weather forecast for Sunday, Albon will undoubtedly be hoping that the breeze – and his momentum – continues to blow in the same direction.

Sky Sports F1’s live Dutch GP schedule

SUNDAY AUGUST 27
8.55am: F2 Feature Race
12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Dutch GP build-up
2pm: THE DUTCH GRAND PRIX
4pm: Chequered Flag: Dutch GP reaction
5.30pm: Dutch GP highlights

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Sergio Perez reveals it has not been easy to watch Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen’s winning F1 streak

Sergio Perez is 125 points adrift of Max Verstappen going into the Dutchman’s home event at Zandvoort this weekend; watch the Dutch Grand Prix live on Sky Sports F1, with the track action under way on Friday at 11.30am and Sunday’s race starting at 2pm

Last Updated: 24/08/23 5:22pm

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Max Verstappen says he has enjoyed his summer break and believes the Red Bull car can break records in the right circumstances

Sergio Perez has revealed it has not been easy to watch team-mate Max Verstappen’s recent dominance in Formula 1.

Verstappen has won every race since April’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix and could equal Sebastian Vettel’s record of nine consecutive wins from 2013 with victory on home soil this Sunday at Zandvoort.

During that time, Perez failed to reach Q3 five times in a row and has taken three podiums from the eight races.

“Certainly it hasn’t been easy for me because I know the car’s potential,” said Perez. “Max has been exploiting that but when you don’t really have that feeling but you know that your car has a massive potential, it’s not an easy situation as a driver to be in.

“But certainly we have got a great race car and we just have to make sure we utilise it, because you never know when you’re going to have a car that is as good as this one.

“I’m mainly focused on myself. There are 10 races and I just want to get some victories and get that consistency, like we had in the last races and finish the season very strong. It’s only going to help next year, so that’s my target.”

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The F1 podcast team debate whether Red Bull and Max Verstappen have broken another second driver in Sergio Perez and what he can do to stay at the team

Perez opens up on driving style issues

Perez won two of the opening four events this year and was on the verge of taking the championship lead when he started from pole position at the Miami Grand Prix, with Verstappen in ninth.

But, Verstappen came through the field to win and Perez has also struggled in mixed conditions which have affected several events this year.

“There is no secret that as the car developed, I struggled a little bit more. Things were not coming naturally anymore and I had to go very deep on my driving style, adapt to it quite a bit, and change it, because the car has simply changed and I think in the last two races were a lot better in that regard,” explained Perez.

“It’s not easy because with amount of practice we have, you kind of follow one direction or the other and then you got stuck with it for the rest of the weekend. So it is not an easy situation for a driver to have.”

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Max Verstappen’s former performance engineer Blake Hinsey describes what it was like to work with the two-time world champion. You can listen to the latest episode of the Sky Sports F1 Podcast now

He added: “I think we have understood a lot of things, especially on the development side, how we can figure it out. The team really knows what I really like and where I do feel more comfortable at.

“We’ve done some improvements during the summer break to try to make me feel more comfortable, so hopefully this second-half of the season we can show a good improvement.

“It is quite complicated and I will have to go in more detail than I would like to. It’s just the sharpness basically at medium and high speed that I’ve been struggling with, especially when we had tricky conditions did change, takes away some of the confidence. I’m OK with it. It’s another challenge for me, so I’m looking forward to that.

“I think at the end of the day, the team is trying to make the fastest car, and sometimes the development suits one style better than the other. That’s just how it works.”

Sergio Perez hopes to win some of the remaining 10 races this year

Verstappen: Hopefully we can break a few records

Along with the winning streak record, Verstappen also has the opportunity to score the most points, podiums and wins a season.

Red Bull could become the first time to go unbeaten in a campaign too in a year which may be seen as a historic one in years to come.

“Hopefully [we can break] a few records but it’s not always in our hands entirely but so far it’s been a great first half of the year. Hopefully even with the break, we can keep it going,” Verstappen told Sky Sports F1.

On whether he feels extra pressure on home soil, he added: “Honestly, I think it’s just great. I mean for me, it doesn’t bring a weight on my shoulders or extra pressure, it’s just amazing that this is possible.

“Nobody 10 years ago even thought about a Grand Prix here, and that we’re able to do this now is fantastic.”

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Ahead of this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix, we look back at some of the most memorable moments from previous races at Circuit Zandvoort

Sky Sports F1’s live Dutch GP schedule

FRIDAY AUGUST 25
9am: F2 Practice
11am: Dutch GP Practice One (session starts 11.30am)
12.55pm: F2 Qualifying
2.45pm: Dutch GP Practice Two (session starts 3pm)
4.15pm: The F1 Show

SATURDAY AUGUST 26
10.15am: Dutch GP Practice Three (session starts 10.30am)
12.10pm: F2 Sprint Race
1.15pm: Dutch GP Qualifying build-up
2pm: Dutch GP Qualifying

SUNDAY AUGUST 27
8.55am: F2 Feature Race
12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Dutch GP build-up
2pm: THE DUTCH GRAND PRIX
4pm: Chequered Flag: Dutch GP reaction
5.30pm: Dutch GP highlights

Formula 1 returns after the summer break with the Dutch GP and all sessions will be live on Sky Sports F1 from this Friday. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW for just £26 a month for 12 months. Cancel anytime

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Lewis Hamilton vs George Russell, Max Verstappen vs Sergio Perez and all the F1 2023 team-mate duels

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Check out some of the funniest moments from the 2023 F1 season so far

The driver match-up at each Formula 1 team is always one of the biggest talking points of any season.

So with Fernando Alonso, Alex Albon, Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen among those performing particularly strongly against their respective team-mates after the first dozen rounds of this 2023 campaign, how do the key overall metrics stand at each of the 10 teams as the racing resumes in the Netherlands this weekend?

Notes on the head-to-head numbers: Qualifying scores are awarded on the results at the end of Q3 before any grid penalties are applied; If both cars from the same team fail to finish a race, then no head-to-head score for that race is awarded; The Sprint Shootout and Sprint results are not included in the main head-to-head numbers below.

Red Bull: All-conquering Verstappen

Qualifying: Verstappen 10 vs 2 Perez

Race: Verstappen 10 vs 2 Perez

Did Not Finish (DNF): Verstappen 0 vs 0 Perez

Points: Verstappen 314 vs 189 Perez

No surprises here.

Max Verstappen’s utter domination of the 2023 season is reflected in his team-mate head-to-head with Sergio Perez.

The score reads 8-0 to the runaway title leader in both qualifying and the grand prix since Perez’s win in Azerbaijan back in April, with the Mexican’s early-season hopes to mount a title challenge undone by a succession of qualifying disappointments amid his team-mate’s relentless front-running form.

Poles: 7 vs 2; In Q3: 11 vs 6; Average grid spot: 3.4 vs 9.3
Wins 10 vs 2; Podiums: 12 vs 7
Sprints: 2 vs 1

Mercedes: Hamilton regains the momentum

Qualifying: Hamilton 7 vs 5 Russell

Race: Hamilton 9 vs 3 Russell

DNF: Hamilton 0 vs 2 Russell

Points: Hamilton 148 vs 99 Russell

Considering George Russell started the season by outqualifying his team-mate at the season’s first four events, Lewis Hamilton has been in fine form since to swing the second year of the all-British head-to-head in his favour.

It has been the seven-time champion who has been able to extract the most from the improved – but not-yet-Red Bull challenging – W14 more consistently.

Hamilton delivered the car’s only pole position in Hungary and four of its five podium finishes up to the summer break.

Poles: 1 vs 0; In Q3: 11 vs 8; Average grid spot: 5.3 vs 7.9
Podiums: 4 vs 1; Races in points: 12 vs 10
Sprints: 1 vs 2

Aston Martin: Relentless Alonso sets the standard

Qualifying: Alonso 10 vs 2 Stroll

Race: Alonso 11 vs 1 Stroll

DNF: Alonso 0 vs 2 Stroll

Points: Alonso 149 vs 47 Stroll

Not for the first time in his long career, Fernando Alonso is setting a high bar in the battle against his team-mate.

Lance Stroll is the latest driver to experience the relentlessness of the two-time champion, with the podium-achieving form that Aston Martin displayed in the season’s early months very much reflecting well on Alonso.

Ironically, it was only really the Spaniard’s home event at Barcelona in June when Stroll had the upper hand for most of a weekend.

Front-rows: 4 vs 0; In Q3: 12 vs 8; Average grid spot: 5.3 vs 10.3
Podiums: 6 vs 0; Races in points: 12 vs 8
Sprints: 1 vs 2

Ferrari: Leclerc back ahead despite Sainz consistency

Qualifying: Leclerc 8 vs 4 Sainz

Race: Leclerc 7 vs 5 Sainz

DNF: Leclerc 2 vs 1 Sainz

Points: Leclerc 99 vs 92 Sainz

2023 is not proving to be the season Ferrari envisaged, so the battle to be top dog from weekend to weekend here hasn’t often counted for as much as the drivers would want.

Despite a tough start to the season with retirements from two of the opening three rounds, it’s Charles Leclerc who has fought back to lead in the key metrics, although Carlos Sainz continues to put up a decent fight against one of the sport’s outright fastest drivers over a single lap.

Indeed, Sainz has the more consistent results in qualifying – with only Verstappen achieving a higher average grid spot across the first dozen rounds – and races but Leclerc has achieved all the poles and podiums.

Poles: 2 vs 0; In Q3: 10 vs 11; Average grid spot: 6.6 vs 5
Podiums: 3 vs 0; Races in points: 9 vs 11
Sprints: 1 vs 2

McLaren: Norris still leading the charge

Qualifying: Norris 10 vs 2 Piastri

Race: Norris 9 vs 3 Piastri

DNF: Norris 0 vs 2 Piastri

Points: Norris: 69 vs 34 Piastri

Lando Norris continues to set the standard at McLaren, with the 23-year-old’s well-established speed and under-rated consistency a high bar for Oscar Piastri to try and emulate in the Australian’s rookie season.

But Piastri is faring pretty well, particularly recently following McLaren’s big jump in form, and qualified in and around Norris in the three rounds before the break.

Piastri started ahead for both Sprint and GP in Belgium, although the latter was ended in first-corner contact after a runner-up finish to Verstappen in Saturday’s shorter race.

Front-rows: 1 vs 0; In Q3: 8 vs 7; Average grid spot: 8.5 vs 10.3
Podiums: 2 vs 0; Races in points: 7 vs 5
Sprints: 1 vs 2

Alpine: 2023’s closest duel

Qualifying: Ocon 6 vs 6 Gasly

Race: Ocon 5 vs 4 Gasly*

DNF: Ocon 4 vs 3 Gasly

Points: Ocon 35 vs 22 Gasly

Expectations that the arrival of countryman Pierre Gasly next to Esteban Ocon would produce a closely-matched driver contest at Alpine have been vindicated.

While the performance of the team’s 2023 car has fallen short of expectations, and indeed prompted all manner of recent upheaval behind the scenes, the all-French driver pairing has generally performed solidly.

Ocon’s high was his run to the bottom step of the podium in Monaco, while Gasly took third in the sprint in Belgium.

*both drivers failed to finish the Australian, British and Hungarian GPs, so no scores are awarded for those races

In Q3: 6 vs 7; Average grid spot: 9.9 vs 11.5
Podiums: 1 vs 0; Races in points: 7 vs 7
Sprints: 1 vs 2

Williams: Dominant Albon’s star shining bright

Qualifying: Albon 12 vs 0 Sargeant

Race: Albon 10 vs 1 Sargeant*

DNF: Albon 2 vs 3 Sargeant

Points: Albon 11 vs 0 Sargeant

It’s one-sided numbers like this which have added weight to the case about Alex Albon again being a driver on the rise, three years after he lost form, confidence and ultimately his seat at Red Bull.

Being team-mate to a driver in his first year of F1 should have always given him a natural advantage, but Albon has still underlined that by achieving all four of Williams’ Q3 appearances and all 11 of their points.

Logan Sargeant got closest to a maiden point at Silverstone with 11th.

*both drivers failed to finish the Australian GP, so no score is awarded for that race

In Q3: 4 vs 0; Average grid spot: 12.7 vs 17.6
Races in points: 3 vs 0
Sprints: 3 vs 0

Haas: Hulk’s quali heroics the differentiator

Qualifying: Magnussen 3 vs 9 Hulkenberg

Race: Magnussen 6 vs 6 Hulkenberg

DNF: Magnussen 3 vs 1 Hulkenberg

Points: Magnussen 2 vs 9 Hulkenberg

At Haas, it has been Nico Hulkenberg’s qualifying prowess on his full-time return to F1 after four years that has proved the most consistently impressive factor of the team’s season to date.

The 36-year-old has reached Q3 six times – that’s half the races. Unfortunately, the car’s penchant for overheating its tyres over the longer race distances has regularly seen Hulkenberg quickly slip backwards.

He and Kevin Magnussen have therefore often found themselves in similar territory as races have progressed and the drivers have grappled with the car’s shortcomings, leading to an even Sunday score. Magnussen has only reached the top-10 shootout on a Saturday once so far this year, but he at least cause a stir when he got there in Miami by qualifying fourth.

In Q3: 1 vs 6; Average grid spot: 15.3 vs 11.8
Races in points: 2 vs 2
Sprints: 2 vs 1

Alfa Romeo: Bottas maintaining leader status

Qualifying: Bottas 8 vs 4 Zhou

Race: Bottas 8 vs 4 Zhou

DNF: Bottas 0 vs 1 Zhou

Points: Bottas 5 vs 4 Zhou

One of the closer team-mate battles in the field, albeit one taking place further back in the pack than the team would like.

The 10-time race-winning Valtteri Bottas continues to enjoy an edge in results overall, but the margins have often been close with the 24-year-old Zhou Guanyu displaying more consistency in his second year of F1.

Zhou took the team’s best grid spot of fifth in Hungary, while Bottas claimed their best Sunday finish of eighth all the back in Bahrain in March.

In Q3: 2 vs 1; Average grid spot: 14 vs 14.9
Races in points: 2 vs 2
Sprints: 1 vs 2

AlphaTauri: Improved Tsunoda faces fresh new test

Qualifying: Tsunoda 1 vs 1 Ricciardo / Tsunoda 8 vs 2 de Vries

Race: Tsunoda 1 vs 1 Ricciardo / Tsunoda 8 vs 2 de Vries

DNFs: Tsunoda 0, Ricciardo 0, de Vries 2

Points: Tsunoda 3, Ricciardo 0, de Vries 0

Having comfortably seen off Nyck de Vries in the space of 10 races, Yuki Tsunoda’s 2023 position as the lead driver at AlphaTauri will be challenged by Daniel Ricciardo, a multiple race winner, over the remainder of the season.

In the two races before the summer break, the nascent head-to-head was even, although Tsunoda did pick up just the team’s third point of an awful campaign with a strong drive to 10th in Belgium.

In Q3: Tsunoda 2, Ricciardo 0, de Vries 0; Average grid spot: 14.2 vs 16 vs 16.6
Races in points: Tsunoda 3, Ricciardo 0, de Vries 0
Sprints: 0 vs 1 / 1 vs 1

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Ireland vs England: Teams and talking points ahead of Saturday’s Rugby World Cup warm-up Test in Dublin

Ireland captain James Ryan admits to some nerves for the team ahead of the match against England

James Ryan admitted lack of competitive rugby in recent months for many of the Ireland team means there will be nerves for the hosts going into Saturday’s Rugby World Cup warm-up Test against England in Dublin.

It is a second preparatory international for world’s No 1-ranked team, who are regarded as one of the favourites to triumph at this year’s global gathering on the back of completing the Grand Slam in year’s Six Nations, but spluttered past Italy with a largely second-string selection a fortnight ago.

Since then, Andy Farrell’s squad have been on a week-long training camp in Portugal as they fine-tune themselves for next month’s tournament in France and skipper Ryan knows there is expectation on Ireland as they face an England side aiming to shake off two patchy performances against Wales.

“I think there’s a bit of nerves heading into this game,” Ryan, who deputises as captain with Jonny Sexton suspended, said.

“It’s the first game for a lot of us of this summer and playing England at home, there’s always a little bit of pressure. The lads are keen to make a statement with selection and everything coming up.

“This has never been a warm-up game for us. It’s been very much a Test match, that’s the way we’ve prepared for this game all week. It’s obviously a lot of the guys’ first appearance of the summer, so it’s going to be tough but we’re not going to make any excuses.”

England head to Dublin on the back of a 19-17 win over Wales at Twickenham, which saw them rebound from the defeat in Cardiff the week before but still left Steve Borthwick’s side facing plenty of questions about the potency of their attacking game.

George Ford secured England's win over Wales at Twickenham

George Ford, who kicked the winning points for England against Wales and starts at fly-half for the visitors on Saturday, acknowledged there are improvements to be made but insists they are working on getting it right ahead of their tournament-opener against Argentina on September 9 in Marseille.

“My experience is that of all departments of the game, it takes the longest to get the attack functioning,” Ford said. “We want to speed it up, we want to get there as quickly as possible.

“We know there’s an urgency that we need to start attacking better and causing problems and scoring tries – we understand that.

“The main thing is how we can be more potent when we’ve got the ball, how we can get the outside backs in space with the ball to create damage and cause chaos.”

An unfamiliar-looking Ireland team stuttered past Italy in their World Cup warm-up match two weeks ago

Ryan believes Ireland have their own issues in attack to iron out as well after head coach Farrell labelled their 33-17 victory over Italy in Dublin on August 5 “clunky”.

“We must have been distracted a little bit by something,” Ryan said, reflecting on that game. “We were a little bit off. I just thought our attack wasn’t where it needed to be, it wasn’t as cohesive or as fluid as it usually is.

“In fairness, they put us under a lot of pressure defensively. They like to get off the line quickly and be aggressive in their defence, so maybe we got a little bit spooked by that at times and we weren’t as calm maybe and accurate as we needed to be off the back of it.

“There were a few lessons in the game and we need to be better because England have a couple of games now under their belt and they will definitely be looking at this fixture as one which is as big for us as it is for them.”

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Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has criticised the “circus” surrounding his son Owen, with the England captain’s World Cup participation in doubt.

The build-up to this match has been overshadowed by the controversy around England captain Owen Farrell’s red card for a dangerous tackle on Taine Basham which was subsequently not upheld by an independent disciplinary panel.

Farrell still faces a wait to see if he will be able to take part in the World Cup though after global governing body World Rugby chose to appeal the panel’s decision and he has been withdrawn from the England squad for Saturday’s match.

Courtney Lawes will instead skipper the side and the flanker feels there are wider disciplinary issues England need to address after Henry Arundell, Freddie Steward and Ellis Genge were all sin-binned against Wales last week as well.

“We had a few silly cards that you really don’t want to get in Test match rugby,” Lawes said. “We’ve really been on the discipline from day one in camp, talking about how important it is at the World Cup.

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Courtney Lawes says England have a talented squad that is capable of proving their critics wrong at the World Cup.

“It was disappointing to get so many cards and give away so many penalties last week. It’s something we’re constantly working on and hammering down.

“We can’t afford those kinds of mistakes against Ireland. You’re not going to go a season without a card, but to the best of your ability you’ve got to be smart and streetwise with your actions.

“Even in those split seconds you’ve got to have a cool head and hopefully make the right decisions at the right time.”

Teams for Ireland vs England (5.30pm)

Ireland: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Mack Hansen, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Ross Byrne, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park; 1 Andrew Porter, 2 Dan Sheehan, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 4 Tadhg Beirne, 5 James Ryan (captain), 6 Peter O’Mahony, 7 Josh van der Flier, 8 Cian Prendergast.

Replacements: 16 Rob Herring, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Finlay Bealham,19 Joe McCarthy, 20 Caelan Doris, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Jack Crowley, 23 Keith Earls.

England: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Elliot Daly, 10 George Ford, 9 Ben Youngs; 1 Ellis Genge, 2 Jamie George, 3 Will Stuart, 4 Maro Itoje, 5 David Ribbans, 6 Courtney Lawes (captain), 7 Ben Earl, 8 Billy Vunipola.

Replacements: 16 Theo Dan, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Kyle Sinckler, 19 Ollie Chessum, 20 Jack Willis, 21 Danny Care, 22 Marcus Smith, 23 Ollie Lawrence.

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#Ireland #England #Teams #talking #points #ahead #Saturdays #Rugby #World #Cup #warmup #Test #Dublin

Challenge Cup final: Hull Kingston Rovers’ Elliot Minchella takes the long road to Wembley

Post By Sports Boots N All, Bradford, Bulls, Castleford, Catalans, Celtic, City, Crusaders, Cup, Dragons, FC, Fixtures, Giants, Harlequins, Helens, Huddesfield, Hull, K R, League, Leeds, live, News, Reds, Results, Rhinos, Rugby, Salford, Sky, Sports, St, Super, Superleague, Tables, tigers, Top Story, video, Warrington, Warriors, watch, Wigan, Wolves, World

Marc Bazeley

@MarcBazeley

Elliot Minchella is relishing his first Betfred Challenge Cup final appearance after rebuilding his playing career in the lower leagues following his release from Leeds Rhinos in 2015; the Hull KR forward and his team-mates face Leigh Leopards in Saturday’s final at Wembley

Last Updated: 10/08/23 5:38pm

Elliot Minchella is looking forward to his first Challenge Cup final when Hull KR face Leigh

On Saturday, Elliot Minchella will play in the first major final of his career when Hull Kingston Rovers take on Leigh Leopards in the Betfred Challenge Cup showpiece at Wembley. However, the back row has taken a road less trodden to get here.

The former West Bowling junior had made a promising start to his professional career with Leeds Rhinos, bursting onto the Super League scene with a try-scoring debut as a 17-year-old in 2013. However, an off-field incident the following year led to him being loaned out to London Broncos in 2015 and being released at the end of the campaign.

Minchella was left to rebuild his career in the lower leagues, first with part-timers Sheffield Eagles, where he had to find a day job outside of the game, and then with home-city club Bradford Bulls before earning a second chance at Hull KR three years ago.

Since then, he has become a vital part of the Robins’ pack and even pushed himself into contention for an England call-up. Most importantly though, Minchella has the opportunity to be part of a team competing for one of rugby league’s biggest prizes.

“It’s tough,” Minchella told Sky Sports, reflecting on life outside the full-time game. “I’d gone from being in a changing room with legends of the game at Leeds to being on a building site or working at a builder’s merchant.

“It was hard, but you lean on those experiences to make you better as a person. That’s what I live by, really – learn from the tough time and enjoy the good ones.

“I’m proud of myself to stick with it and not take no for answer. I kept working hard, kept knocking on the door, and I believe that if you keep working hard you get your reward in the end.

Elliot Minchella in action for Sheffield Eagles in 2017

“I haven’t had that just yet, but I’m proud of the journey I’ve been on. I’ve had that never-say-die attitude towards it and I’m looking forward to Saturday.”

Even since his move to Sewell Group Craven Park, things have not always run smoothly. The Robins finished bottom of the table in the pandemic-affected 2020 Super League campaign and Minchella then suffered a season-ending ACL injury in only the second game of the following season.

Nevertheless, the 27-year-old has been able to excel with both Tony Smith and now Willie Peters in charge of the team and believes he has found a club in Hull KR which suits him as a person as well as a player.

“We’ve probably got similar values,” Minchella, who signed a four-year contract extension with Hull KR in April last year, said. “We’re not flashy, but we’re hard-working.

I believe that if you keep working hard you get your reward in the end. I haven’t had that just yet, but I’m proud of the journey I’ve been on.

Hull KR’s Elliot Minchella

“It’s a hard-working community and I love it, and it’s a great fit for me. I think we’re going places and we’ve been on a journey as a club.

“My first year we finished 11th out of 11, and we’re currently sitting in the play-offs. We’ve been in a few semi-finals and obviously the final on Saturday. I’m proud to be a part of it and long may it continue.”

After getting within 80 minutes of a first Super League Grand Final appearance in 2021, Hull KR missed out on the play-offs last year. However, former Gateshead Thunder and Wigan Warriors scrum-half Peters’ first season in charge sees them firmly in contention to make the play-offs.

They have reached Wembley for the first time in eight years too and have an opportunity to bring the Challenge Cup back to east Hull for only the second time in the club’s history, with their sole triumph coming in a 10-5 win against bitter cross-city rivals Hull FC in 1980.

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Hull KR’s Brad Schneider reflects on a successful start to life in England and outlines what he and his side must do on Saturday against Leigh Leopards in the Challenge Cup final.

That final berth was secured courtesy of Brad Schneider’s golden-point drop-goal in the 11-10 semi-final win over Cup holders Wigan Warriors at Headingley last month and Minchella believes the attitude they showed that day is indicative of the approach instilled in pre-season.

“That’s something we pride ourselves on, never giving in and being relentless in what we do,” Minchella said.

“We didn’t go away in the semi-final; it took until the 84th minute but we got there in the end and that started in pre-season.

“We had a tough pre-season where we learnt some hard lessons about ourselves and your team-mates, and it brings you tight and connected as a team.

“It’s about never giving in and that’s what the city is about, that’s what east Hull is about, and that’s what we want to be as a team to represent them.”

Hull KR's only previous Challenge Cup win came in 1980

Minchella is aware of Hull KR’s Challenge Cup final history from both the good and the bad sides, insisting that even though none of the current squad were part of it, they will be learning lessons from the 50-0 defeat to his old club Leeds at Wembley eight years ago.

He is determined to ensure he is not just a participant in the final either as he goes in search of the first major rugby league honour of his career.

“There are people who would bite your hand off to be in these sorts of games,” Minchella said. “I appreciate it and enjoy it, but we’ve got a job to do and that’s win the Challenge Cup.

“I don’t just want to be a part of it, I want to win it and go down in history as a Challenge Cup winner.”

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#Challenge #Cup #final #Hull #Kingston #Rovers #Elliot #Minchella #takes #long #road #Wembley

Wales 20-9 England: Gareth Davies and George North help hosts to World Cup warm-up victory in Leigh Halfpenny’s 100th game

Marc Bazeley

@MarcBazeley

Gareth Davies and George North both scored tries, while Leigh Halfpenny kicked two goals and two penalties; Marcus Smith kicked England’s points; England head coach Steve Borthwick names his squad for the World Cup on Monday, with the sides clashing again at Twickenham next Saturday

Last Updated: 05/08/23 8:59pm

Gareth Davies goes over for Wales’ first try against England

Second-half tries from Gareth Davies and George North saw Wales kick off their Rugby World Cup preparations with a 20-9 victory over an out-of-sorts England at the Principality Stadium.

It was a battle of the kickers in the first 40 minutes, with three successful penalties from the boot of Marcus Smith compared to two from Wales’ Test centurion Leigh Halfpenny, giving the visitors a 9-6 lead at half-time.

But the hosts seized the initiative eight minutes into the second half when Gareth Davies was on hand to finish for a try and they surged further in front thanks to George North going over from close range just before the hour mark, with Halfpenny converting both.

Louis Rees-Zammit was unfortunate not to add a third try for the hosts before full-time when he was adjudged to have knocked on after a TMO review, but that did not take the shine off the result or the performance from Warren Gatland’s new-look team.

Inexperience no barrier as Wales youngsters seize opportunity

Halfpenny may have been making his 100th Test appearance for Wales, but the relative inexperience of the rest of Gatland’s team was shown by the fact the only other members of the starting XV with more than 50 caps were North and scrum-half Davies.

They were dealt an early blow too when hooker Ryan Elias was forced off six minutes in with a suspected hamstring injury, which will be of particular concern to Gatland given Ken Owens has already been ruled out of the World Cup due to a back problem.

Nevertheless, several of those players with only a handful of caps to their name came to the fore, with lively fly-half Sam Costelow, making his first Test start, and skipper in only his 10th appearance Jac Morgan playing key roles in the first try of the game.

Wales: Tries – Davies, North; Conversions – Halfpenny (2); Goals – Halfpenny (2).

England: Goals – Smith (3).

Having kept in touch with England thanks to Halfpenny’s goals in the first half, Wales took a 48th-minute lead after 22-year-old Costelow put a deft attacking kick to the right wing for Aaron Wainwright. The No 8 then sent fellow back-row Morgan racing away, who in turn fed support-runner Davies to finish.

Then it was the turn of the big guns to make their mark, with Dan Biggar – off the bench in place of Costelow – putting in a testing grubber kick which set in motion an attack finished by North on 59 minutes after he stepped a defender to create space and ghost over from close range.

Exciting winger Rees-Zammit, still only 22 but with 26 international caps already, was unfortunate not to add his 10th Test try when he chased down his own chip kick, knocking on while trying to ground the ball. Nevertheless, it was still a dominant display from Wales and a proud day for the 23-year-old Morgan, who was named player of the match as well.

Disjointed showing leaves England with plenty of questions

For England, meanwhile, the intrigue beforehand had been as to how Harlequins club-mates Smith and Danny Care would perform alongside each other in the halves, although in the 49 minutes they were on the field together there was not much to show for their partnership.

George North dives in for Wales' second try against England

Care’s kicking game was solid and his determination to get quick ball from the ruck encouraging, yet he was unable to make any of his trademark sniping runs before being replaced by Jack van Poortvliet, while in the first half Smith was always looking to run and put in some good kicks along with booting three penalties to put the hosts in front.

England’s best chance for a try arguably came when the fly-half and two other Quins team-mates, Alex Dombrandt and Joe Marchant, linked up in the 29th minute for an attack which opened Wales up. However, Max Mallins was unable to finish and Wales regathered the ball after a wayward offload.

Handling errors were a concerningly recurring theme for England in the match and they ended with those in double figures by full-time, ceding scrum dominance and the foothold they had given themselves in the first half by gaining more metres and dominating the territory.

What they said

Wales head coach Warren Gatland, speaking to Amazon Prime:

“I was a little bit apprehensive this morning because I wasn’t quite sure how things were going to go. I know the players have been working hard.

“I was looking for a performance and it was a good start today. It was a performance I was looking for and I thought the guys out there gave a performance today.”

England head coach Steve Borthwick, speaking to Amazon Prime:

“I thought in the first half we created lots of opportunities, but we turned over too much ball in the opposite 22 and you can’t do that in Test rugby. There are areas for improvement, but I thought the positive was how many entries we got into the opposition scoring zone.

“This game is one piece of information to help build a full picture [for selecting England’s World Cup squad], and I’ll make the decision in the next 24 hours.”

England did look the better side in the opening period, their sloppiness in possession aside, but as Wales stepped up their intensity in the second half, the visitors inexplicably dropped off.

“Credit to Wales in that 50-65 minute period, they were very, very good,” Borthwick said.

“Every one of these experiences will be positive for us as we build over the next few weeks to the World Cup.”

What’s next?

Wales and England do it all again on Saturday August 12 when they reconvene at Twickenham for the second Rugby World Cup warm-up clash against each other. First, though, England’s players face a nervous wait to see who will make Steve Borthwick’s 33-player squad for the global gathering when it is announced on Monday.

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#Wales #England #Gareth #Davies #George #North #hosts #World #Cup #warmup #victory #Leigh #Halfpennys #100th #game

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Alex Albon will start fourth on the grid for Williams in Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix after equalling his career-best qualifying performance; watch the Dutch GP from 12.30pm live on Sky Sports F1, with lights out at 2pm at Zandvoort

Verstappen ‘impressed’ by Williams

Albon reveals ‘strange’ secret to Zandvoort success

Sky Sports F1’s live Dutch GP schedule

Sergio Perez is 125 points adrift of Max Verstappen going into the Dutchman’s home event at Zandvoort this weekend; watch the Dutch Grand Prix live on Sky Sports F1, with the track action under way on Friday at 11.30am and Sunday’s race starting at 2pm

Perez opens up on driving style issues

Verstappen: Hopefully we can break a few records

Sky Sports F1’s live Dutch GP schedule

Red Bull: All-conquering Verstappen

Poles: 7 vs 2; In Q3: 11 vs 6; Average grid spot: 3.4 vs 9.3Wins 10 vs 2; Podiums: 12 vs 7Sprints: 2 vs 1

Mercedes: Hamilton regains the momentum

Poles: 1 vs 0; In Q3: 11 vs 8; Average grid spot: 5.3 vs 7.9Podiums: 4 vs 1; Races in points: 12 vs 10Sprints: 1 vs 2

Aston Martin: Relentless Alonso sets the standard

Front-rows: 4 vs 0; In Q3: 12 vs 8; Average grid spot: 5.3 vs 10.3Podiums: 6 vs 0; Races in points: 12 vs 8Sprints: 1 vs 2

Ferrari: Leclerc back ahead despite Sainz consistency

Poles: 2 vs 0; In Q3: 10 vs 11; Average grid spot: 6.6 vs 5Podiums: 3 vs 0; Races in points: 9 vs 11Sprints: 1 vs 2

McLaren: Norris still leading the charge

Front-rows: 1 vs 0; In Q3: 8 vs 7; Average grid spot: 8.5 vs 10.3Podiums: 2 vs 0; Races in points: 7 vs 5Sprints: 1 vs 2

Alpine: 2023’s closest duel

In Q3: 6 vs 7; Average grid spot: 9.9 vs 11.5Podiums: 1 vs 0; Races in points: 7 vs 7Sprints: 1 vs 2

Williams: Dominant Albon’s star shining bright

In Q3: 4 vs 0; Average grid spot: 12.7 vs 17.6Races in points: 3 vs 0Sprints: 3 vs 0

Haas: Hulk’s quali heroics the differentiator

In Q3: 1 vs 6; Average grid spot: 15.3 vs 11.8Races in points: 2 vs 2Sprints: 2 vs 1

Alfa Romeo: Bottas maintaining leader status

In Q3: 2 vs 1; Average grid spot: 14 vs 14.9Races in points: 2 vs 2Sprints: 1 vs 2

AlphaTauri: Improved Tsunoda faces fresh new test

Teams for Ireland vs England (5.30pm)

Marc Bazeley

Elliot Minchella is relishing his first Betfred Challenge Cup final appearance after rebuilding his playing career in the lower leagues following his release from Leeds Rhinos in 2015; the Hull KR forward and his team-mates face Leigh Leopards in Saturday’s final at Wembley

I believe that if you keep working hard you get your reward in the end. I haven’t had that just yet, but I’m proud of the journey I’ve been on.

Marc Bazeley

Gareth Davies and George North both scored tries, while Leigh Halfpenny kicked two goals and two penalties; Marcus Smith kicked England’s points; England head coach Steve Borthwick names his squad for the World Cup on Monday, with the sides clashing again at Twickenham next Saturday

Inexperience no barrier as Wales youngsters seize opportunity

Disjointed showing leaves England with plenty of questions

What they said

What’s next?

Poles: 7 vs 2; In Q3: 11 vs 6; Average grid spot: 3.4 vs 9.3
Wins 10 vs 2; Podiums: 12 vs 7
Sprints: 2 vs 1

Poles: 1 vs 0; In Q3: 11 vs 8; Average grid spot: 5.3 vs 7.9
Podiums: 4 vs 1; Races in points: 12 vs 10
Sprints: 1 vs 2

Front-rows: 4 vs 0; In Q3: 12 vs 8; Average grid spot: 5.3 vs 10.3
Podiums: 6 vs 0; Races in points: 12 vs 8
Sprints: 1 vs 2

Poles: 2 vs 0; In Q3: 10 vs 11; Average grid spot: 6.6 vs 5
Podiums: 3 vs 0; Races in points: 9 vs 11
Sprints: 1 vs 2

Front-rows: 1 vs 0; In Q3: 8 vs 7; Average grid spot: 8.5 vs 10.3
Podiums: 2 vs 0; Races in points: 7 vs 5
Sprints: 1 vs 2

In Q3: 6 vs 7; Average grid spot: 9.9 vs 11.5
Podiums: 1 vs 0; Races in points: 7 vs 7
Sprints: 1 vs 2

In Q3: 4 vs 0; Average grid spot: 12.7 vs 17.6
Races in points: 3 vs 0
Sprints: 3 vs 0

In Q3: 1 vs 6; Average grid spot: 15.3 vs 11.8
Races in points: 2 vs 2
Sprints: 2 vs 1

In Q3: 2 vs 1; Average grid spot: 14 vs 14.9
Races in points: 2 vs 2
Sprints: 1 vs 2