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Nick Knight and Jim Troughton did their best to frustrate Surrey’s drive to win their third Championship title in four seasons, but the leaders still held their own on the first day at Edgbaston

Stephen Lamb27-Aug-2002Nick Knight and Jim Troughton did their best to frustrate Surrey’s drive to win their third Championship title in four seasons, but the leaders still held their own on the first day at Edgbaston. Knight made a steady 74 and Troughton a brisk 61 as the hosts ended the day on 300 for nine. Saqlain Mushtaq continued his magnificent run of form, with four for 88 for the visitors.Somerset’s hopes of lifting themselves away from the relegation zone haven’t improved, as they suffered a batting collapse after bowling Lancashire out for 251 at Old Trafford. Richard Johnson (six for 47) was the hosts’ main tormentor, while Andrew Caddick also took two wickets. Stuart Law made a brisk 77 and Chris Schofield 40 in an otherwise lacklustre batting effort. 20-year-old James Anderson then impressed again with two wickets as Somerset’s top order was swept away. At the close they were 91 for five.Anthony McGrath took a career-best four for 49 as Yorkshire, another side threatened with the drop, bowled Hampshire out for 269 at The Rose Bowl. Veterans Robin Smith (58) and Shaun Udal (40) starred for the hosts, and Udal then took a wicket as Yorkshire ended the day on 53 for two in reply, with Matthew Elliott unbeaten on 30.Leicestershire had the better of the first day against Sussex at Grace Road. Devon Malcolm took five for 38 as the visitors folded for 215, despite 62 from Robin Martin-Jenkins and 60 from Chris Adams. James Kirtley then broke through in the first over of the hosts’ reply to dismiss Trevor Ward, and at stumps Leicestershire were 50 for two.In Division Two, leaders Middlesex recovered from a disastrous start at New Road, after Kabir Ali (five for 70) had reduced them to 25 for three. But Ed Joyce (125) and Sven Koenig (81) added 142 for the fourth wicket before the fightback was completed by David Nash (67*) and Paul Weekes (46). Middlesex closed on 374 for seven.Jason Gallian kept Nottinghamshire’s promotion hopes alive with an unbeaten 162 against Glamorgan at Colwyn Bay. Gallian shared an opening stand of 172 with Guy Welton (92), and Usman Afzaal chimed in with 40 as the visitors reached 325 for three at stumps. Only Michael Kasprowicz shone for the hosts, with two for 42 off his 25 overs.Durham’s wooden spoon credentials were enhanced as they subsided for 240 against Northants at Chester-le-Street. Australian quickie Mathew Inness (four for 60) did the bulk of the damage. No one managed a half-century; Nick Phillips (47) was nearest. Although Steve Harmison managed one breakthrough for the hosts, Northants ended the day handily placed at 60 for one.

Somerset Sabres travelled to Chester le Street to face Durham Dynamoes in the NUL National League on Monday in a match that was always going to be difficult, following so close on the heels of the C and G Lord’s final match at the weekend

Richard Walsh02-Sep-2002Somerset Sabres travelled to Chester le Street to face Durham Dynamoes in the NUL National League on Monday in a match that was always going to be difficult, following so close on the heels of the C and G Lord’s final match at the weekend.After winning the toss and batting first Somerset lost the wicket of Matt Wood early on before Marcus Trescothick(41) and Keith Dutch (64),who was promoted to number three, added 70 runs for the second wicket.The Sabres suffered three run outs in their innings but there were useful contributions from Rob Turner(24) and debutant Arul Suppiah(22) before the innings closed on 204 for 9.The Somerset opening attack of Matt Bulbeck and Simon Francis produced an impressive opening spell and had reduced the hosts to 31 for 2 before Gordon Muchal(81) and Aussie Brad Hodge(77) added 128 for the third wicket.Both Muchal and Hodge were dismissed by Ian Blackwell, but by then it was almost too late and the Dynamoes went onto to record an eight wicket victory over their already relegated rivals.At the end of the match Somerset assistant coach Mark Garaway told me: "This was a disappointing result, after we created three good winning opportunities during the game."He continued: "We had a great start when we batted, but then had three unfortunate run outs. When we fielded we had fourteen fantastic overs at the start from Simon Francis and Matt Bulbeck , but we didn’t quite put the squeeze on and then they got away. We reined them back in toward the end but missed a couple of chances."He concluded: "Both of our new young players did some good things. Arul Suppiah looked very comfortable, he carried on what he has been doing for the Seconds all season and also gave an excellent fielding display. Wes Durston will probably be a bit disappointed with his performance, but when he bowled he stuck to it well, despite having a few runs hit of him at one stage."

A major update has emerged on West Brom goalkeeper Josh Griffith, regarding Sheffield Wednesday’s chances of potentially landing him this summer, and it’s not great news for the Yorkshire-based side.

What’s the talk?

According to The Sun journalist Alan Nixon, Lincoln are the club trying the hardest to land West Brom goalkeeper Josh Griffiths on loan this summer. Nixon responded to a question regarding Portsmouth’s interest in Griffiths, with the transfer guru explaining that Lincoln are leading the race, as things stand.

Yorkshire Live have claimed that Sheffield Wednesday are chasing a deal for Griffiths. Darren Moore is looking for a replacement for Kieren Westwood and has identified Griffiths as a target.

Fans will be fuming

Sheffield Wednesday fans will be fuming that Dejphon Chansiri has allowed this to happen. With Westwood out of contract at the end of the month and poised to leave on a free transfer, Moore has a major gap in his starting XI; between the sticks. This means that Wednesday need to bring in a new number one and Griffiths could be a player with the quality to be a first-choice option in League One.

The 19-year-old proved his class at League Two level on loan at Cheltenham last season. He kept 21 clean sheets in 44 appearances for Cheltenham as they won the title and secured promotion to League One. This suggests that he could have the ability to play at a higher level and he has the potential for further development given he is still in his teenage years. Therefore, he could be an ideal signing to come in and replace Westwood next season for Wednesday, to add some hunger and youth to the squad.

However, Chansiri has been dealt a blow by Lincoln working harder for a deal, as it stands, and Wednesday fans will be furious if he does not do something to change that. Chansiri needs to work as hard as Lincoln to get Wednesday back in the race to sign Griffiths, so that they avoid missing out on a potentially key signing to one of their League One rivals.

Chansiri and Moore will need work together to lure Griffiths to the club and overcome this obstacle that Lincoln have provided. The Owls need a goalkeeper for next season, letting one join a rival club would be a huge mistake, one that would rightly upset plenty of Wednesday supporters.

AND in other news, Chansiri must avoid grave mistake with £10k-p/w SWFC “threat” after news emerges…

A laid-back Pakistan team enjoyed a day of carefree batting practice at Country Club, the CFX Academy headquarters in the eastern suburbs of Harare, finishing the day with 352 on the board for the loss of five wickets

John Ward04-Nov-2002A laid-back Pakistan team enjoyed a day of carefree batting practice at Country Club, the CFX Academy headquarters in the eastern suburbs of Harare, finishing the day with 352 on the board for the loss of five wickets. With one unfortunate exception, all the leading batsmen enjoyed their meal but nobody made a pig of himself.The pitch was flat, although it had a little pace, and the bowling not too testing; none of Zimbabwe’s young hopefuls among the bowlers was able to trouble the batsmen or press a claim for a Test berth. Saleem Elahi (49) and Taufeeq Umar (86) enjoyed an opening stand of 127, before getting out and allowing two even better innings from Younis Khan (84) and a slim-looking Inzamam-ul-Haq (63).Inzamam-ul-Haq, scourge of Zimbabwe’s bowlers on their first tour here in 1994/95, was the master, toying with the bowlers for 63 off 62 balls before he decided he had had enough. Younis Khan looked to be heading for a century but was well caught at long leg by Nkala running in.The only batsman to miss out was Yousuf Youhana (1), ironically the one most in need of practice. He fell victim to cricket’s most unfair law, that which allows a non-striker doing his job properly to be fortuitously run out by an accidental deflection off the bowler. A straight drive from Younis and a boot from Blessing Mahwire, whose intention was merely to stop the ball, did the trick for the luckless Youhana, the man who played so many vital innings for Pakistan when they last toured Zimbabwe in 1997/98.Hasan Raza, officially the world’s youngest Test cricketer since he made his debut against Zimbabwe six years ago at the age of 14, finished the day unbeaten with 32, and Shahid Afridi with 21. Pakistan might well decide to bat on tomorrow to give them more sustenance.

Price tags today like Ben White’s are ridiculous, says former Leeds United midfielder Carlton Palmer.

Leeds are one club said to be interested in signing the Brighton defender this summer, but it is going to cost a lot of money to get him out of the Amex.

According to journalist Duncan Castles, the Whites will have to pay over £50m if they are to sign White, who spent the 2019/20 season on loan at Elland Road.

Arsenal are already said to have had a £40m bid turned down for the player, so it does indeed seem like Brighton are looking for the sort of money Castles has mentioned.

On White’s rumoured price tag, Palmer told FFC in an exclusive interview:

“All the price tags are ridiculous now. It’s supply and demand, you know, if somebody is willing to pay that, then that’s what you’ll get for the player. It’s not what the player’s valued at.

“No disrespect to the player. I think he had a fantastic season last season and he’s done really well, but clubs can actually pick a figure out because if they don’t want to sell you, they don’t have to sell you. And so they can pick a figure out and it’s whether that club’s prepared to go to that figure.

“There are very few players that go in the transfer market now that are actually worth the figure that the club’s paid. It’s all inflated prices.”

White certainly had a strong campaign. He averaged 1.7 interceptions per league game, which puts him only behind Yves Bissouma (1.8) in Brighton’s squad, as he thwarted attacks for his side (via WhoScored).

Paying £50m plus for the central defender, though, is questionable after one season in the top flight.

Many Everton fans have been left buzzing as an update emerged on their proposed new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock.

As per the official website of the Merseyside club, they will take possession of the Bramley-Moore Dock site on Monday 26th July, and will immediately begin the first phase of the project.

The new ground is set to hold a capacity of 52,888, and the first phase is to prepare the site to make sure that it is ready to build on.

Bill Kenwright and Denise Barrett-Baxendale each released their own separate statement showing their appreciation for the news, as the start of the exciting new project is set to get underway later this month.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/everton-updates-4/” title=”Everton updates! (4)” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

It does mean that the Toffees faithful will have to leave Goodison Park behind, but the opportunity of a shiny, new home is one simply too great to ignore.

Everton fans on stadium update

These Blues buzzed as the update was shared on Twitter, with one claiming that they were ‘delighted’ while another went as far as to label it as ‘massive news’:

“Well I for one am delighted to hear this!! Great news, and can’t wait to watch its progress. Please, please could there be a webcam to document the build, maybe on the @BramleyMoorePub roof? What a watch that’d be in years to come!! #UpTheStadiumBuildingToffees”

Credit: @CathyMcAlle

“Massive news for the club this! Congratulations all involved”

Credit: @david83jones

“Fantastic news onwards and upwards”

Credit: @denzadonadon

“Some good news for once!!!”

Credit: @Stu_jones86

“Happy days ahead”

Credit: @Everton1878Ste

“Goodison needs to be full every game & to be cherished, this is making me so emotional”

Credit: @EvertonEFC18788

In other news, find out what transfer update has Evertonians fuming here!

Somerset chief executive Peter Anderson was in reflective mood at the County Ground as he sat reading through some of the replies to the letter that he sent out to all members of the club following the disappointments of the 2002 season

SOMERSET05-Oct-2002Somerset chief executive Peter Anderson was in reflective mood at the County Ground as he sat reading through some of the replies to the letter that he sent out to all members of the club following the disappointments of the 2002 season.In all the Somerset boss has so far received 58 letters the vast majority of which thank him for going to the trouble of writing the letter.A small minority of the letters express concerns about the effect on the morale of the players.Many correspondents put forward their own views but by and large most were very understanding of the reasons why a losing team in a downward spiral would find it hard to stop their poor performances.Mr Anderson told me: "I am always appreciative of members writing to me whether I agree with their points of view or not, because it is important that the club knows the views of members."The Somerset boss continued: "We will shortly be starting our rounds of area meetings, and I hope members will take advantage of the opportunity of the chance to come along and air their points of view."Each of the area meetings will be attended by either Mr Anderson, or the Club Chairman Richard Parsons.The full list of meetings is as follows:Bath and Wiltshire Area, October 15th at Bath CC at 7.45pm attended by Richard Parsons.Mid Somerset Area, October 15th at Glastonbury at 7.30pm attended by Peter Anderson.South Somerset and Dorset Area, October 17th at Yeovil Town FC at 8pm attended by Richard Parsons.Taunton Area, October 22nd at The County Ground at 7.30 attended by Peter Anderson.Devon and Cornwall Area, October 23rd at the Coaver Club in Exeter at 8pm attended by Peter Anderson.Weston super Mare Area, October 24th at Weston super Mare Cricket Club at 7.30pm attended by Richard Parsons.North Somerset Area, October 28th at the Angel Inn, Long Ashton at 8pm attended by Richard Parsons.Bridgwater and Coastal Area, October 29th at the County Ground at 7.30pm attended by Peter Anderson.’If any members have any queries or want further details regarding their area meeting they should contact membership secretary Jo Arnold on 01823 272946.

Former Test slow-left-armer Nadeem Khan produced a match-winning spell as Pak Gymkhana defeated Total Energy by 19 runs in the Aga Khan Gymkhana Ramazan Cricket Festival at AKG Ground here Wednesday

Sports Reporter14-Nov-2002Former Test slow-left-armer Nadeem Khan produced a match-winning spell as Pak Gymkhana defeated Total Energy by 19 runs in the Aga Khan Gymkhana Ramazan Cricket Festival at AKG Ground here Wednesday.Nadeem, who was declared Man-of-the-Match, captured four for 17 in 4.3 overs as Total Energy were bowled out for 129 in 23.3 overs.Mahmood Hamid, who played a One-day International, provided good support with three for 20 with his off-spinners.Opener Faisal Mirza top-scored for Total Energy with 41.Earlier, Sohail Jaffar (46) and Irfan Ali (37) helped Pak Gymkhana score 148 for nine in 25 overs. Slow left-armer Arif Mahmood claimed four for 28.Summarised scores:PAK GYMKHANA 148-9 in 25 overs (Sohail Jaffar 46, Irfan Ali 37, Mohammad Naved 25; Arif Mahmood 4-28, Haaris Ayaz 3-23);TOTAL ENERGY 129 in 23.3 overs (Faisal Mirza 41, Mansoor Khan 23; Nadeem Khan 4-17, Mahmood Hamid 3-20).Thursday’s fixture: Tapal CC v Pakistan CC at 1.00pm.

Sporting Lisbon have named their price for Jovane Cabral, who has previously emerged as a transfer target for West Ham. 

THE LOWDOWN: WEST HAM AND LEEDS INTERESTED IN CABRAL

Along with Leeds, the Irons have been credited with interest in signing the 1.76m (5 foot 9) winger, who has seemingly made a good impression on both Premier League clubs during the 2020/21 season as Sporting clinched the Liga NOS title.

The 23-year-old chipped in with eight goals and five assists in all competitions last term as his team finished five points clear of FC Porto.

THE LATEST: SPORTING PREPARED TO SELL CABRAL FOR £12.8M

Portuguese media outlet A Bola have now claimed that Sporting are prepared to sell Cabral this summer, but only if their valuation of the winger is matched.

It is reported that they’re looking to obtain a fee in the region of £12.8m for his services amid interest from both West Ham and Leeds in the past. Indeed, the Irons had also been linked with the winger in last summer’s transfer window according to A Bola [via Sportslens].

It remains to be seen whether the Hammers will match the Portuguese champions’ valuation this summer as they make preparations ahead of the 2021/22 campaign, which is set to get underway in August.

THE VERDICT: PROMISING UPDATE FOR WEST HAM

This could turn out to be a smart bit of business by West Ham in the summer if they pull it off, as Cabral has shown that he can perform to a high standard at a good level of football. He was a regular for Sporting Lisbon in the Portuguese top flight last term and chipped in with multiple goal contributions as they clinched the title (Transfermarkt).

It is a somewhat surprising stance from Sporting, as you would have imagined they would have been doing all they can to keep him at the club, having played such an important role for them last season.

The prospect of playing in the Premier League could be a tempting proposition for the winger, and it’ll be interesting to see if West Ham submit a formal offer for Cabral this summer after hearing of Sporting’s valuation of him.

You would imagine that, along with Leeds, the Irons will feel that he is well within their price range, so the onus is on GSB not to pass up what seems a glorious opportunity to pull off some smart business.

In other news, this journalist explains why West Ham lost out on a prolific striker recently.

Waqar Younis, the Pakistan captain, is likely to lose not only the leadership of his country’s team in the forthcoming World Cup in South Africa next February, but also his place in the side

Qamar Ahmed19-Dec-2002Waqar Younis, the Pakistan captain, is likely to lose not only the leadership of his country’s team in the forthcoming World Cup in South Africa next February, but also his place in the side.Waqar for his lack of form and support within the team on the South African leg of the tour could be replaced by his old foe and new-ball partner Wasim Akram to take over the reins of captaincy for the important event.The enigmatic Pakistan cricket outfit is already in motion to implement the change. The only hiccup of course is the recommendation and the ban slapped on Wasim by Justice Mohammad Qayyum in his report on match-fixing and bribery stating that Wasim should not be given the captaincy of Pakistan in future.The recommendation of course will have no feet to stand on if challenged in a court of law because no substantial evidence of Wasim’s involvement in match-fixing has ever been presented nor allegations against him ever proved, and since he has been playing for his country ever since that report, that in itself qualifies him to lead his country as well.Wasim, a veteran of 104 Tests and 350 one-dayers, is hoping that the restrictions recommended in the report for him not being appointed captain of Pakistan could be lifted as soon as he arrives back in Pakistan after the culmination of the five-match one-day series in South Africa which Pakistan has already lost.”I hear from various quarters that the PCB is considering a change in captaincy and that I could be asked to lead the side. I shall of course consider it and love to lead Pakistan again. I also know about Justice Qayyum’s recommendations about me. But nothing has ever been proven and I think it is unfair that I can play for Pakistan but can’t lead it,” the former captain said.”I will however feel sorry for Waqar if he loses his place in the team,” he sympathised.Wasim, who was picked to play in both one-day and Test for this leg of the tour, however says that there was a misunderstanding about his availability for the Test.”I had it made very clear that I will play in only one-day matches, the reason being that I shall be going back to Pakistan after the end of the fifth one-day game in Cape Town. There is no confusion about it,” he said.Wasim is likely to leave for Pakistan along with Shoaib Akhtar who has also declared his unavailability for the two Tests against South Africa citing niggling pain in his right knee. Rashid Latif and Misbah-ul-Haq will accompany them also.Only last September both the coach of the team Mudassar Nazar and the manager Yawar Saeed were unceremoniously replaced by Richard Pybus and Brig Khawaja Mohammad Nasir.