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Cormac Sharvin 5 shots off new leader Connor Syme

Connor Syme will go in search of a maiden European Tour title after carding a tournament-low eight under par round of 63 to take a one stroke lead into the final day of the Celtic Classic as Cormac Sharvin leads the Irish challenge 5 shots off the leader.

Scotsman Syme started Saturday’s third round four strokes behind halfway leader Sam Horsfield from England, but quickly made a move with three birdies on the front nine. The 25-year-old carded five birdies on the back nine as he went on to sign for a 15 under par total, one stroke ahead of Horsfield.

“I just played lovely, to be honest,” admitted the Scot, “It’s obviously very nice conditions and I got off to a decent start. I maybe didn’t play the front nine as well as I’d like but I managed to get to three under through nine, which was great. I holed the putts that I had opportunities on so it was a nice base to build on. It was nice throughout, really.”

Recent Hero Open winner Horsfield, who is seeking s second title since the European Tour season resumed, parred the first eight holes before his first birdie of the day on the ninth. Two gains followed on the 14th and 16th holes as, like Syme, he returned a blemish-free card.

“I felt like I was actually playing really well” said Horsfield, “I hit a lot of greens and as I said walking up nine, I was just waiting for my putter to get hot. I made a few nice putts, didn’t take advantage of the easy holes on the back nine but I’m happy with the position I’m in.”

Sebastian Soderberg from Sweded carded a bogey-free six under par 65 to move up to third place on 13 under par, one stroke ahead of Thomas Detry of Belgium, England’s Andrew Johnston and Adrian Meronk of Poland.

2016 Ryder Cup player Thomas Pieters of Belgium and England’s Callum Shinkwin share seventh on 11 under.

Ardglass golfer Cormac Sharvin signed for a 65, his best round of the tournament so far, leaving him on a three-round total of 203, five shots behind the Scottish leader. Jonathan Caldwell, on the other hand, carded his worst round of the week with a 72, which sees him three strokes behind his fellow Ulsterman.

Select Round Three Scores

198 C SYME (SCO) 68 67 63,
199 S HORSFIELD (ENG) 67 64 68,
200 S SODERBERG (SWE) 66 69 65,
201 T DETRY (BEL) 67 66 68, A JOHNSTON (ENG) 67 66 68, A MERONK (POL) 66 71 64,
202 T PIETERS (BEL) 64 68 70, C SHINKWIN (ENG) 68 65 69,
203 J MCLEOD (AUS) 65 69 69, W BESSELING (NED) 67 69 67, M WARREN (SCO) 66 72 65, J SCRIVENER (AUS) 69 69 65, C SHARVIN (NIR) 71 67 65,
204 R ENOCH (WAL) 69 66 69, S KIM (USA) 66 70 68, M SOUTHGATE (ENG) 67 70 67, S VINCENT (ZIM) 69 69 66, D HORSEY (ENG) 68 71 65, S VILIMIKI (FIN) 71 68 65,
205 J CATLIN (USA) 68 68 69, A OTAEGUI (ESP) 69 67 69, J MORRISON (ENG) 67 70 68, M KIEFFER (GER) 69 70 66, J SENIOR (ENG) 69 70 66,
206 J CALDWELL (NIR) 68 66 72, L GAGLI (ITA) 67 70 69, A COCKERILL (CAN) 70 69 67, A ARNAUS (ESP) 73 68 65.

Joshua Cheptegei breaks Kenenisa Bekele’s 16-year-old world 5000m record

World 10,000m champion Joshua Cheptegei set a new world 5000m record in a time of 12:35.36 at the Herculis EBS Diamond League meeting in Monaco on Friday night.

In the first regular top-flight international one-day meet since the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Ugandan produced an exhilarating performance running alongside the Wavelight at the Stade Louis II Stadium to wipe two seconds from Kenenisa Bekele’s 16-year old Hengelo world record time of 12:37.55.

The record had been one of the most longstanding in athletics, with many coming close but unable to surpass the incredible time set by Bekele back in 2004.

Friday’s 5000m event was Cheptegei’s first race since setting a world 5km record on the roads on 16 February, also in Monaco. The Ugandan said of his achievement:

“I’ve learned that anything is possible, if you have the right mindset and believe. I really thank Kenenisa so much for inspiring me when I started running. He has always been a big inspiration and motivation to me. This record is a special moment for me and I like to thank Kenenisa for his inspiration.”

Last year, Joshua enjoyed a brilliant campaign as he won the 5,000m at the Diamond League final in Zurich, the 10,000m at the World Championships in Doha, he set a world 10km record of 26:38 in Valencia, Spain, set a world 5km record of 12:51 in Monaco and s

Paced through the early stages by Roy Hoornweg (2:31.87 at 1000m) and Matthew Ramsden (5:03.77 at 2000m), Cheptegei took up the running at half way and continued churning out 61-second laps. He passed through 3,000m in 7:35.14 and then upped the pace slightly with a 2:30 fourth kilometre.

Having left the rest of the field way behind, he maintained his tempo and eked out another 2:30 split for the final kilometre, bringing him to the finish line in 12:35.36.

Kenya’s Nicholas Kimeli, who was just approaching the final straight as Cheptegei crossed the line, finished a distant second in a lifetime best of 12:51.78, while his compatriot Jacob Krop was third in 13:11.32.

Sam Bennett leads Deceuninck – Quick-Step at Tour de Wallonie on Sunday

Ireland’s Sam Bennett will lead the charge for Deceuninck – Quick-Step in the 47th Tour de Wallonie which begins on Sunday.

A mix of flat and hilly stages will make up the course, with the race starting in Soignies, a small municipality located in the Hainaut province. Not only the demanding parcours – that tilts towards the puncheurs – will influence the final outcome, but also the bonuses awarded at the finish (10-6-4), especially if the fight for the overall win will be a tight one, as was the case at the past two editions

Joining the Irish Champion, who won a stage at the Vuelta a Burgos two weeks ago, on the team at the 4-stage race will be Belgians Iljo Keisse and Stijn Steels, Michael Mørkøv from Denmark, Frenchman Florian Sénéchal, German rider Jannik Steimle and Czech Zdenek Stybar.

“The race has just four stages this year, but will serve as a good preparation for the next part of the season. The plan is to get a victory with Sam, he is capable of doing it and we have confidence in him. It won’t be an easy race, there’s a strong field at the start, but we are ready to fight daily and get the result we are coming here for”, said Deceuninck – Quick-Step sports director Wilfried Peeters, who will lead the team from behind the wheel.

Top 5 Young Footballers in The English Premier League 2020!

The key to building a club is having a closer look at young footballer prospects. During transfer windows, little attention is placed on youngsters.

When it comes to the English premier league, there are five young players you can’t ignore. The five top players need to be considered. Below is a list of youngsters you can have a look at during the year 2020.

  1. Bukayo Saka

The 18-year-old winger made a 7 minutes’ debut in the premier league where Arsenal played against Fulham. So far, he has been able to play 18 matches in all matches Arsenal has played over the last season. He has been able to contribute two goals and several assists. Arsenal’s defense dwindled due to injuries, and he has been taken as a replacement to fill up the position as much as it isn’t his natural position. His future is excellent as the gunners seek to rise through the ranks in the next league games.

  1. Harvey Elliot

He made his debut appearance after he was substituted for the match that Fulham played against Wolves. Elliot was born on April 4, 2003. He is a sort after playing with clubs such as Real Madrid and PSG. However, he made a spectacular move to Liverpool. His move to Liverpool was received with mixed reactions. However, it was a smart move with loads of achievements where he has been able to score three goals. The 16-year-old youngster is expected to perform even better in the coming season.

  1. Mason Greenwood

Mason has played for 415 minutes for all his EPL match appearances. The Manchester United striker was born on October 1, 2009. He has managed to score nine goals and two assists, which makes him the most impressive player. Ole Gunnar has developed a strong confidence in him such that he has been able to start on two matches and Europa league games. Being a teenager, he ignites hope to most fans and punters who visit gambling sites, including bk8, staking wages as they watch the youngster.

  1. Troy Parrot

His appearance when spurs score a 5-0 win over Burnely is a match to be remembered. Being the 2nd youngest EPL player born on February 4, 2002, his gameplay has impressed his manager, Jose Mourinho. Despite lack of a position during past matches of spurs even after Hary Kane was injured, back in Ireland, he has bestowed a great honor. The national team has high confidence in him attributed to some of the stellar performance, which makes them have hope in him as the one who will deliver them to the FIFA world cup.

  1. Brandon Pierrick

The 17-year old midfielder has only played for 7 minutes in his EPL matches so far. His most impressive game was a friendly match against Norwich City. It was an opener to having a chance to play for the senior team. He was offered an opportunity to play during an FA cup match. Hodgson, the crystal palace manager, is already impressed by him from the previous matches. Therefore, people can expect more from him when the league resumes.

With the youngsters playing, bookies, including bk8, are coming up with better odds for punters to enjoy as they watch.

Sam Horsfield one shot ahead of first round leader Pieters

Englishman Sam Horsfield’s impressive UK Swing form continued at the Celtic Classic on Friday as he ended the second round with a one stroke lead.

Horsfield, winner of his first European Tour title at the Hero Open a fortnight ago, shot a seven under par round of 64 on the Twenty Ten Course at Celtic Manor Resort to move one stroke ahead of first-round leader Thomas Pieters of Belgium.

Horsfield was two under for the day standing on the ninth tee but carded four successive birdies around the turn and added two more on the 15th and 16th holes respectively. He recovered from a triple bogey on the 17th with an excellent eagle on the 18th hole to sign for an 11 under par total.

Commenting on his eagle at the 18th, the English golfer admitted:

“(The eagle on 18) was actually funny, we had the exact same number into 17 at Forest of Arden when I won and hit that shot. So I hit the exact same shot and made the putt for eagle. 17 was not great, but to bounce back after making the triple I’ve got myself in a good position for tomorrow.”

Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston was four over for his round after five holes, but made an excellent recovery as he finished his round with an eagle and three birdies on his last four holes. He has a share of third place alongside fellow Englishman Callum Shinkwin and Pieters’ countryman Thomas Detry on nine under par.

American Sean Crocker, England’s Matthew Jordan and Jake McLeod of Australia are a shot further back on eight under par.

Thursday’s opening round leader Thomas Pieters said of his second round:

“I was going along nicely on the front nine but just couldn’t make a putt. I made some better shots on the back nine, a couple of mishaps on the 18th – it came out really dead, but that’s the price you pay if you hit it in the rough – all in all, I’m pretty happy. I made some good putts and hit some good golf shots so I’m glad.”

Select Round Two Scores

131 S HORSFIELD (ENG) 67 64,
132 T PIETERS (BEL) 64 68,
133 A JOHNSTON (ENG) 67 66, T DETRY (BEL) 67 66, C SHINKWIN (ENG) 68 65,
134 J MCLEOD (AUS) 65 69, M JORDAN (ENG) 68 66, S CROCKER (USA) 68 66, J CALDWELL (NIR) 68 66,
135 N ELVIRA (ESP) 66 69, S SODERBERG (SWE) 66 69, C SYME (SCO) 68 67, R ENOCH (WAL) 69 66,
136 S KIM (USA) 66 70, G MIGLIOZZI (ITA) 66 70, W BESSELING (NED) 67 69, J CATLIN (USA) 68 68, J SMITH (ENG) 68 68, A OTAEGUI (ESP) 69 67,
137 A MERONK (POL) 66 71, L GAGLI (ITA) 67 70, M SOUTHGATE (ENG) 67 70, A RAI (ENG) 67 70, J MORRISON (ENG) 67 70, W NIENABER (RSA) 70 67,
138 M WARREN (SCO) 66 72, E MOLINARI (ITA) 66 72, J SJ0HOLM (SWE) 68 70, F LAPORTA (ITA) 69 69, O LENGDEN (SWE) 69 69, J SCRIVENER (AUS) 69 69, S VINCENT (ZIM) 69 69, C HILL (SCO) 70 68, C SHARVIN (NIR) 71 67,
145 N HIJGAARD (DEN) 70 75, N LEMKE (SWE) 74 71, G MOYNIHAN (IRL) 74 71, S DODD (WAL) 75 70,
149 J VEERMAN (USA) 72 77, P MCGINLEY (IRL) 75 74.

Clandeboye golfer Jonathan Caldwell remains the leading Irish golfer, adding an impressive 66 to his opening round of 68. Cormac Sharvin improved on his first round by 4 shots as the Ardglass man signed for a 67 on Friday. Gavin Moynihan shot a 71 to add to his first day 74, while Paul McGinley bettered his Thursday’s score by a shot as he carded a 74 today. Neither Moynihan nor McGinley made it through to the weekend.

Grand Prix action at Balmoral this weekend

The Underwriting Exchange National Grand Prix is at Balmoral Park Championships on Saturday. This weekend, which incorporates a round of the Horse Sport Ireland Premier Series, will see 61 combinations go to post in the popular Grand Prix league. The Grand Prix on Saturday is sponsored by The Sloan Family (Beverage Brands.

Ulster riders will be well represented this weekend on the start list which includes former World Showjumping Champion Dermott Lennon, (Athletix Hero Z, L’esprit Hero Z and MJM Pursuit). Clem Mc Mahon (Hilton Banner), Annie Courtney – Cadam and Frank Curran (Ardragh Chekoff) will also be looking to take home their first Grand Prix win of the season.

Jonathan Smyth will be hoping to add points to his standing as he takes it on with three mounts Charlton Clio, Crystal Tom and Kilderrys Diamond. Smyth is currently lying top of the leaderboard with Crystal Tom on 28 points and will be looking to extend this lead with his closest rival Liam O’ Meara not jumping at this round.

Other names on the start-list include Cian O’Connor and his students, Max Watchman and Tom Wachman. HHS stud will also be well represented by Molly Hughes Bravo (Casanova Van Overis Z HHS Catwalk) and by Mikey Pender who has three mounts declared (Diamino Blue, HHS Burnchurch, and HHS Calais).

Captain Geoff Curran wins HHS Stud National Grand Prix

Captain Geoff Curran dominated proceedings at HHS in Kilkenny on Wednesday as he took the first two placings in the Underwriting Exchange Grand Prix.

Riding the eight-year-old, Tempo Manor, he was fastest of just two double clears in a time of 43.45 seconds. Curran opted for a safer approach with his second mount, Drumiller Lough and it paid off as he lodged the second clear of the class in 45.11 seconds and took home the winner’s share in the €2,000 TRM-sponsored class.

This round of the Underwriting Exchange Grand Prix saw 36 combinations take on the Alan Wade-designed course, which saw only five combinations going through to the jump-off.

National Grand Prix Champion, Liam O’Meara put in great challenge with Curraghgraigue Jack Take Flight, but a pole on the ground in a time of 39.75 seconds, would see him settle for third place.

Event rider Cathal Daniels had two on the ground with Cappog Tomy in 45.82 seconds, which saw him take fourth place.

Young rider John McEntee crossed the line having clocked up 20 faults with Hip Girl, but it was still good enough for fifth place.

Last year’s Hickstead Derby-winning rider Mikey Pender proved out of luck when not failing to book a place in the jump-off with Javas Gucci due to four faults. However, a fastest of the four faulters in a time of 76.79 seconds meant a sixth-place finish for him. Pender wasn’t too disappointed as he had claimed victory in the earlier 1.30m class with HHS Fortune when he produced the winning round of clear in 30.44 seconds.

Galgorm Castle Golf Club to host Irish Open from September 24-27

As expected, the European Tour has announced the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open will be played at Galgorm Castle Golf Club in Co. Antrim from September 24-27.

It will be the first time the venue will host Ireland’s national Open with the event moving into the date vacated by the rescheduling of The 2020 Ryder Cup to 2021.

The 2020 Ryder Cup would have been a celebration of Irish golf with three-time Major Champion Pádraig Harrington captaining Europe in the contest at Whistling Straits – the third Irish golfer to captain Europe in the past four contests. While that will now happen next September, the 2020 Dubai Duty Free Irish Open at Galgorm this September will mark a new chapter in the tournament’s history.

The 2020 Dubai Duty Free Irish Open was originally scheduled to take place at Mount Juliet Estate, Co. Kilkenny from May 28-31 last, but was postponed on March 30 due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

With quarantine restrictions for travellers into the Republic ongoing and the ban on mass gatherings still in place, the European Tour made the decision to move the tournament to the north where it will be subject to similar guidelines to the current ‘UK Swing’ events, including being played behind closed doors. The European Tour has also confirmed that planning remains on-going for the tournament to return to Mount Juliet in 2021.

The 2020 Dubai Duty Free Irish Open will now have a prize fund of €1.25 million and therefore will not be part of the Rolex Series.

Keith Pelley, European Tour Chief Executive, said: “The Dubai Duty Free Irish Open is an integral part of the European Tour’s schedule and despite the obvious challenges of staging any event in the current circumstances, we felt it was important to continue with the tournament providing we could do so safely.

Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Dubai Duty Free, said: “We are pleased that the Galgorm Castle Golf Club in County Antrim has been selected as a suitable venue, with the Galgorm Spa & Golf Resort as the official accommodation. Without a doubt, the tournament will be different this year but we think that the players and fans are going to enjoy this return to world-class golf on the Island of Ireland.”

Gary Henry, Managing Director Galgorm Castle, said: “To host the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open is an historic moment and wonderful opportunity to showcase the world-class facilities at Galgorm and demonstrates that Northern Ireland is open for business. The Northern Ireland Open, supported by The R&A on the European Challenge Tour will also be played at Galgorm at the start of September and so the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open will be another welcome boost to the local economy.”

Galgorm Castle Golf Club has hosted the Northern Ireland Open on the European Challenge Tour since 2013, including last year’s innovative tournament – the ISPS Handa World Invitational Men|Women presented by Modest! Golf Management which featured both a men’s and women’s competition.

Despite hosting the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open from September 24-27, the Co. Antrim venue will continue its involvement with the Challenge Tour by also hosting the Northern Ireland Open hosted by The R&A from September 3-6.

The Dubai Duty Free Irish Open at Galgorm Castle Golf Club is the fourth time the tournament has been played in Northern Ireland since 2012 when Royal Portrush became the first course north of the Irish border to host the tournament since 1953.

Pieters leads in Wales after opening round 64

Belgian golfer Thomas Pieters holds a one shot lead on his return to the sport following a superb first round 64 at the inaugural Celtic Classic in Wales on Thursday.

The 28-year-old, who hasn’t played since the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters last March, showed no sign of rust at the Celtic Manor resort with a seven under par round that included eight birdies and a single bogey.

“I putted well and kept my ball in play, so I didn’t really get myself in trouble”, admitted the first round leader, adding “It was tough pulling clubs sometimes and I put some new grips on which were very slippery, so I was struggling with that all day.”

The four-time European Tour winner, never looked back after dropping his only shot of the day on the second, coming home in 29 to move one shot clear of  England’s Toby Tree and Australian Jake McLeod.

Tree also dropped a single shot on the second hole in his six under par round of 65, while McLeod eagled the last to jump in to a share of second place.

The Englishman was satisfied with his opening round in Wales, however, admitting:

“I loved it. It’s a bit different to what we have played the last few weeks – a bit bigger, longer. It’s in great nick. It was a pleasure this morning, good weather, no wind.”

Italian Edoardo Molinari – who starred in Europe’s 2010 Ryder Cup win at the Newport venue – is a shot further back on five under par, alongside his fellow countryman Guido Migliozzi, Swede Sebastian Soderberg, Nacho Elvira of Spain, American player Sihwan Kim, Scot Marc Warren and Adrian Meronk of Poland.

Jonathan Caldwell was best of the Irish golfers as he carded a round of 68 to lie four strokes behind the Belgian leader. Cormac Sharvin shot 71 to sit 7 shots behind Pieters. Gavin  Moynihan was a further three strokes behind after his opening round of 74, one shot ahead of former Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley.

Round One Lead Scores Only

64 T PIETERS (BEL),
65 J MCLEOD (AUS), T TREE (ENG),
66 N ELVIRA (ESP), S KIM (USA), G MIGLIOZZI (ITA), M WARREN (SCO), A MERONK (POL), E MOLINARI (ITA), S SODERBERG (SWE),
67 L GAGLI (ITA), M SOUTHGATE (ENG), A JOHNSTON (ENG), S HORSFIELD (ENG), T DETRY (BEL), S BROWN (ENG), A RAI (ENG), N COLSAERTS (BEL), W BESSELING (NED), D COUPLAND (ENG), J MORRISON (ENG),
68 C SHINKWIN (ENG), J CATLIN (USA), J SJOHOLM (SWE), B STOW (ENG), M ANTCLIFF (AUS), M JORDAN (ENG), D HORSEY (ENG), S CROCKER (USA), C SYME (SCO), M SIMONSEN (DEN), J SMITH (ENG), J CALDWELL (NIR)
69 F LAPORTA (ITA), O LENGDEN (SWE), R ENOCH (WAL), A KARLSSON (SWE), A OTAEGUI (ESP), J HARDING (RSA), R RAMSAY (SCO), E CUARTERO BLANCO (ESP), M KIEFFER (GER), J SENIOR (ENG), Z LOMBARD (RSA), R FOX (NZL), M LEE (AUS), J SCRIVENER (AUS), S VINCENT (ZIM), S HEISELE (GER),
70 G GREEN (MAS), A QUIROS (ESP), J DONALDSON (WAL), N VON.

 

Munster academy player tests positive for Covid 19

It’s the major fear for all sporting organisations looking to get back playing and this afternoon Munster rugby have confirmed one of their academy squad has tested positive for Covid 19.

Munster Rugby have been assisting an Academy player within the wider training squad who has tested positive for Covid-19

As a precautionary measure the squad and Academy did not train today at the HPC and Thomond Park.

The individual immediately self-isolated on development of symptoms on Sunday.

The HSE have been contacted and the contact tracing process has commenced.

In taking all precautions Munster Rugby have immediately identified five academy players and one senior player as potential close contacts from social and household settings and the six players have already commenced self-isolating.

The province will await further guidance from the HSE in this regard.

The senior squad will return to the HPC on Monday to complete the third phase of the IRFU’s routine PCR testing and resume preparations for the Guinness PRO14 encounter against Leinster.

Test results will be released publicly in line with the process for phase one and two of these routine tests.

Munster Rugby Head of Medical, Dr Jamie Kearns, said: “The health and safety of our players and staff is the priority and that is why we are taking all precautions, going above and beyond, ensuring the safe resumption of training and rugby next week.

“The player involved has not been in the High Performance Centre this week and the HSE have confirmed that the training group are not considered as close contacts.

“The individual is continuing to be monitored medically and remains well.

“There are protocols and policies in place that everyone has been following, and we will continue to be vigilant in all our efforts as we move closer to the return of rugby on Saturday week.”

 

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