Category Uncategorized

New Zealand domestic cricket lost one of its longest-serving players of the modern generation today when Northern Districts stalwart Grant Bradburn decided to retire

Lynn McConnell18-Sep-2002New Zealand domestic cricket lost one of its longest-serving players of the modern generation today when Northern Districts stalwart Grant Bradburn decided to retire.His announcement completed 16 years of first-class cricket for Northern Districts.In the summer of 2000/01, Bradburn had reward for his unstinting service to his province when regaining his international status after a 10-year absence.The tall, off-spinning batsman played 127 first-class matches and scored 4978 runs at 27.81 while taking 250 wickets at 32.69. He scored 2289 runs in limited overs matches and took 101 wickets with a career economy rate of 3.73.He played seven Test matches and 11 One-Day Internationals and ended his career as the player with most matches for ND with 115 matches, 4614 runs at an average of 27.96.Bradburn remarked: “My love of the game is still very much alive and I will certainly miss the enjoyable moments that playing the game brings, however, with a wife and two young boys to share time with and a sports retail store to run, it is time to close the book on my playing days.”ND chief executive John Turkington said today: “Grant’s record stands for itself. He has been a loyal servant of Northern Districts cricket since 1985 and in that time his dedication to the Association has been exemplary. We know that Grant will maintain an interest in Northern Districts cricket and wish him all the best for the future.”

Former Leeds United defender Danny Mills believes Kalvin Phillips’ superb Euro 2020 campaign can only be a good thing ahead of next season.

The Lowdown: Phillips outstanding for England

England lost to Italy in the final on Sunday night, but there is no denying that a number of players stood out for the Three Lions.

Phillips was one of them, with the Leeds hero starting every game in the tournament and showing incredible energy levels in the middle of the park.

If Whites supporters already knew how good the 25-year-old was, the rest of the country has now sat up and taken notice, too.

[freshpress-quiz id=“359346″]

The Latest: Mills tips Leeds star to improve further

Speaking to Football Insider, claimed Phillips’ all-round game has shone throughout this summer, tipping him take his form with him to Leeds and go up a further gear:

“Going through those experiences, the highs and the lows, playing against quality opposition under severe pressure is so difficult to do.

“He’s made that step up really quickly and looks at home really quickly.

“That bodes well for Leeds for the rest of the season. He’s shown he’s not just a holding midfield player, he’s got more to his game. Most Leeds fans will have known that. It’s mind-blowing.”

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-united-news-8/” title=”Latest Leeds United news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Verdict: Most important player?

There is a strong argument to say that Phillips is Leeds’ most important player and he is going to be enormous for the Whites next season if they want to finish higher than last term’s ninth.

The Englishman is the heart and engine room of Marcelo Bielsa’s team – Gary Neville has hailed him as ‘amazing’ – but he also possesses great quality on the ball, completing 84.7 percent of his passes in the Premier League last season.

It’s nice to hear a pundit discuss what the now-England star will offer Leeds next season rather than debating fictional moves away.

In other news, Leeds have been tipped to sign a Euro 2020 star this summer. Find out who it is here.

Tottenham Hotspur winger Heung-min Son is set to remain with the club ahead of the 2021/22 season, after telling Nuno Espirito Santo that he’s looking forward to next term, according to Football Insider. 

The lowdown: Son linked with Tottenham Hotspur departure

Son has caught the eye with a number of strong performances for Tottenham Hotspur over the years, with the winger scoring 107 goals in 280 appearances for the club so far.

It appears as though those impressive showings haven’t gone unnoticed though, with Bayern Munich reportedly previously being keen on reaching an agreement to land Son’s signature in the future.

Spurs reportedly offered Son a new contract worth more than £200,000 per-week, and he was close to agreeing a new five-year deal before Christmas 2020, but an agreement was never reached.

The latest: Decision made on Son’s short-term future

Despite talks over a new deal seemingly stalling, a Spurs source has reportedly told Football Insider that Son will stay put.

They have claimed that he has already told newly-appointed Spurs boss Nuno Espirito Santo that he is looking forward to working under his management next term.

Son is contracted with Spurs until 2023, but it remains to be seen as to whether his long-term future remains with the London-based club moving forwards.

But for the time being, this will come as a huge relief to the Lilywhites hierarchy and fans.

The verdict: Huge boost for Spurs

This is a huge boost for Tottenham Hotspur, and the club’s supporters will be delighted if this recent update from Football Insider is true.

Son has become even more crucial recently, having netted Jose Mourinho called him ‘incredible’ and an ‘animal’.

With Harry Kane’s future at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium looking bleak, it will be vital for Nuno to build his new squad around a player of Son’s quality heading into the 2021/22 campaign.

Make no mistake about it, the South Korea star’s desire to stay is a huge boost for everyone at the club in what could have been an incredibly difficult rebuild if he and Kane were both to leave.

Many Everton fans have been left gushing as footage emerged featuring Yerry Mina.

As shared by Toffee TV on their Twitter page, the defender stepped up for Colombia in a penalty shootout against Uruguay in the Copa America and placed his effort nicely into the corner.

He then sucked his thumb and started dancing in celebration, much to the delight of many of the Goodison Park faithful.

Mina was a key player for the Toffees in the 2020/21 season, averaging more clearances (4.5) and shots (0.7) per game and having a higher passing success percentage (90.1%) then Ben Godfrey, Mason Holgate and Michael Keane (WhoScored).

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

Everton supporters will be hoping that he can return from the Copa America fully fit and ready to start the new campaign well under new manager Rafa Benitez.

Everton fans on Mina footage

These Blues were left gushing over Mina as the footage of his penalty and celebration was shared on Twitter:

“Get that lifetime contract out @Everton”

Credit: @JamesPMcCann97

“Somebody slap a lifetime contract in front of him, please”Credit: @LewMelia”I love that man”Credit: @Jordinho88″He’s a treasure”Credit: @trevor_p_malco”Hahahaha boss that”Credit: @jonnysmith1878″What a pen by the way”Credit: @peterlarlewisIn other news, find out what Phil Kirkbride update has left these Evertonians buzzing

Southampton are once again being linked with Arsenal ace Ainsley Maitland-Niles this summer and given his versatility, he could be a superb addition to Ralph Hasenhuttl’s squad ahead of next season.

What’s the word?

According to the Mirror, Arsenal are willing to let the 23-year-old leave the Emirates this summer, which has put both Southampton and Watford on high alert.

The report claims that Arsenal are tempted to cash in on the academy graduate as they look to fund some expensive summer moves, and Southampton could make an official approach for the England international as early as next week.

Would he be a good signing?

Southampton were heavily linked with a loan move for the youngster in the winter transfer window, so he is clearly a player who is on Hasenhuttl’s radar.

After Maitland-Niles made it clear that he sees his future as a midfielder rather than a full-back, where Southampton were perhaps keen to deploy him as back-up to Kyle Walker-Peters and Ryan Bertrand, he would end up joining West Brom on loan instead.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-southampton-transfer-rumours-and-news” title=”Read the latest Southampton transfer rumours and news!”]

During his time at the Hawthorns, he would make 15 appearances in the Premier League, managing no goals and one assist, earning a less than impressive 6.48 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

He would show his class in impressive back-to-back wins against Chelsea and Southampton earlier in the season where he made a combined eight tackles and three interceptions. That certainly helped West Brom to improve in the second half of the campaign but was ultimately unable to save them from relegation.

However, the £14.4m-rated Englishman has plenty of experience in the Premier League, would be able to add to Hasenhuttl’s depth at full-back and in midfield, and also has plenty of time to improve, so he could prove to be a shrewd signing by the South Coast club this summer.

Given his versatility, he certainly seems like the sort of player Hasenhuttl would love to have in his squad next season, so whilst he would likely cost more than the £10m limit the Austrian set for Southampton ahead of the transfer window, CEO Martin Semmens should definitely explore the possibility of bringing him to St Mary’s.

And, in other news… Hasenhuttl suffers fresh setback with “incredible” Southampton beast, Saints fans will be worried

Sourav Ganguly doesn’t enjoy a big reputation against short-pitched deliveries, but the India captain was forced to fend off a few testing balls off the field of play here yesterday.To his disappointment, the India players were stopped by a high-ranking local administrator when they attempted to take part in a light fielding session at the Antigua Recreation Ground just after midday."It’s difficult when you don’t get to practise on the Test match ground before the day’s play. That’s how it goes," Ganguly told reporters when asked if he was disappointed about the move taken by the Antigua Cricket Association official who threatened to call in police."We would have loved to practise, but if that’s the way their rule is, it is the same for both teams."With those opening remarks out of the way, Ganguly was given two bouncers. One stemmed from remarks in the Indian parliament that he was among a group of cricketers who had defaulted on taxes."They make so much money. I can’t remember all these things," Ganguly responded when asked if those charges could have a negative effect on his men at a critical stage of the Cable & Wireless series which is locked at 1-1 ahead of the fourth Test starting here today.The other bouncer Ganguly was forced to fend off surrounded comments he made on the quality of umpiring in the third Test at Kensington Oval.Under the International Cricket Council’s Code of Conduct, players and team officials are not allowed to publicly comment on the performance of umpires.But Ganguly, in a newspaper column in the Hindustan Times, said mistakes made by the TV replay umpire were unacceptable."One can understand mistakes made by the umpires in the middle, because they have a fraction of a second to decide, but not when you have 50 replays for something that was so obvious," the India captain wrote.Asked if he reckoned he could face a fine from the authorities for his actions, Ganguly said: "I didn’t comment on anything."A few minutes earlier, he told reporters: "I don’t want to stress on it. Everybody makes mistakes, but I hope it doesn’t happen again."

Test matches are supposed to be won on the sheer weight of player performances and not on the vagaries of pitches

10-May-2002Test matches are supposed to be won on the sheer weight of player performances and not on the vagaries of pitches.On the eve of the crucial fourth Cable & Wireless Test between West Indies and India, however, the strip at the Antigua Recreation Ground attracted as much attention as say, Brian Lara or Sachin Tendulkar.The surface at the ARG has not been used in a major cricket match since last July until three two-day Division 1 matches were played in recent weekends.And in the build-up to this key match with the series locked at 1-1, the pitch was watered on at least two occasions. About half-hour after the last instance, it was covered for the final time.It might be an unusual tactic, but even so, no one expects the strip to misbehave over the next five days."It should be a pretty hard surface, very good for batting and bowling as well," said Tony Merrick, the former Leeward Islands and West Indies "B" fast bowler who helped supervised the pitch preparations here."If I won the toss, I would bowl first. It (the pitch) is hard and compact. It will do a bit, especially on the first day."With the work we put in here and the amount of rolling and so on, there is going to be good, even bounce and a lot of carry."What’s for sure is the pitch has produced contrasting results as the years have gone by. It was a batting paradise in the 1980s and early 1990s, but in the last five Tests, all of which have produced outright results, there has been only one total of more than 350."I’ve never had any concerns about the Antiguan wicket," West Indies captain Carl Hooper said."We’ve always had good tracks here in Antigua. There have always been good for batting. I expect this one to be no different."The appearance of the pitch this morning might influence West Indies have named a squad of 12 which includes leg-spinner Dinanath Ramnarine.Even before that 12 was announced, Hooper was hinting at strengthening the batting to cover for a very weak tail that has produced next to nothing. It meant bringing in Ryan Hinds, but those thoughts have been put aside."Even though we won in Barbados, it would be folly of me to ignore the fact that we have not been having any contributions from the lower order," the West Indies captain said."Sooner or later it is going to get to us. Now that we are level 1-1, we’ve got to guard against all these weak areas."What we can do to strengthen it is lengthen the batting, but at the same time, it will probably weaken the bowling. We want to remain aggressive and positive."India, beaten badly by ten wickets at Kensington, have made their predicted change, swapping Harbjahan Singh for the world-class leg-spinner Anil Kumble.India were on top of the world after their 37-run victory in Port-of-Spain, but their recent defeat has again triggered many to question their ability to play away from home."We’ve played well abroad in the last year-and-a half. I am not a believer in the past," said captain Sourav Ganguly."What’s happened has happened. It’s always a new day, a new Test match. You’ve just got to play well those five days to win."Hooper is of the view that the psychological balance might have shifted slightly towards the West Indies after the Barbados Test."We might hold a slight edge. I suppose they can be forgiven in the first innings when the wicket had a bit of moisture and the ball seamed around and so on, but even in the second innings, I don’t think they batted so well," Hooper said."Having said that, one of their key players, Sachin Tendulkar, is probably not batting as well as he could. There is a thought there of maybe having the edge and maybe even wanting to insert them if we do win the toss and have four quicks go at them again."

Heading into the ongoing transfer window, it looked a rather bleak situation for Celtic.

The Hoops didn’t have a permanent first-team manager until last week while Parkhead was faced with a number of senior departures.

What’s the word?

After appointing Ange Postecoglou as their new boss, the future of Celtic football club looks a little more vibrant.

The Australian has already welcomed two new players to the club in Liaw Shaw and Joey Dawson but he now needs to crack on with first-team recruitment.

A move for Sunderland forward Charlie Wyke appears to be in the pipeline but he might not need to replace Odsonne Edouard.

That’s because Leicester’s apparent £15m deal to sign the Frenchman is falling through after a disagreement in fee led to the Foxes turning their attention to RB Salzburg attacker Patson Daka.

As a result, Edouard is weighing up his options and according to The Daily Mail, is considering staying at Celtic this season and seeing out the rest of his contract.

Huge boost

This might not be a welcome sight for Celtic’s finances but in terms of their chances next term, it represents a colossal boost for Postecoglou’s chances.

The 55-year-old has walked into a mess at Paradise but if Edouard remains in Glasgow, it will give the new manager a huge helping hand in their bid to overthrow Rangers.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-celtic-transfer-news-posetcoglou-ryan-delap-wyke” title= “Read the latest Celtic transfer news!”]

Towards the end of last season, it looked as though the Frenchman had downed tools. He was a shadow of his former self and ended 2020/21 with just three goals in his last ten matches.

Those initially looked to be his final outings in the famous green and white hoops but a stay would do Celtic the world of good.

After all, the 23-year-old has been the club’s top scorer for a number of years now.

His form in front of goal led the club to consecutive title wins in 2017/18, 2018/19 and 2019/20 while despite Celtic’s shoddy form of late, he still racked up 22 strikes last term.

Edouard is one of the greatest strikers Celtic have had in the modern era, something a tally of 83 goals in 168 matches testifies.

A bustling ball of energy, there are very few defences in Scotland capable of stopping him.

If Celtic did receive a fee for him this summer then it’s likely they will have spent that on funding a replacement. As such, they aren’t particularly losing out on much.

This feels like a win-win situation for the Bhoys. Postecoglou will be over the moon if he gets a chance to utilise his talents.

AND in other news, Celtic can rectify Toney howler by signing 41-goal gem who’s like “ice in the box”…

Many Glasgow Rangers fans have been wishing former manager Dick Advocaat well as he oversaw his last game as a manager before retiring on Sunday.

The 73-year-old spent three years in charge at Ibrox between 1998 and 2001 and had plenty of success with the 55-time Scottish champions. Under his stewardship, Rangers won the league twice, the Scottish Cup twice and the Scottish League Cup once. The Gers had some wonderful players during his time there, such as Ronald de Boer and Giovanni van Bronckhorst, and they were generally a joy to watch.

A few years later, he masterminded Zenit St Peterburg’s 2-0 triumph over the Gers in the UEFA Cup final in Manchester.

The Dutchman’s career has seen him manage all over the globe and his 41-year career in the dugout finally came to an end on Sunday – he went out on a high as Feyenoord beat Utrecht 2-0. A video has emerged of him getting emotional during the match, and that played on the heartstrings of many Gers supporters.

The clip was shared on Twitter by @FootballOranje_, and it attracted plenty of attention from the Gers fans. They took to the social media platform to share their thoughts, with some dubbing Advocaat an Ibrox “legend”.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about Advocaat below

“What a man”

Credit: @GaryFer20897483

“A great manager for sure. Enjoy your well earned retirement Mr Advocaat.”

Credit: @AmiableAlec

“Sad Day!”

Credit: @bill_fyfe

“Thank you Dick Advocaat. What a man”

Credit: @Battlefeverpod

“Broke my heart in Manchester in 2008 but the little general was some manager”

Credit: @stuartmcmullan

“What a legend, a true icon in football”

Credit: @SpeckyRSC

In other news, many Rangers fans are fuming over this politician’s comments.

Rotherham United have received a big boost in their bid to sign 21-year-old defender Jacob Bedeau as it has been revealed that Portsmouth are not interested in signing him this summer.

What’s the talk?

Earlier this season, The Athletic claimed that Rotherham, Luton, Barnsley and Huddersfield were all monitoring Bedeau’s situation at Scunthorpe. Bedeau is out of contract this summer and all four clubs have been looking at the defender as a possible target as they all ponder defensive reinforcements heading into the 2021/22 campaign.

Football Insider then added Portsmouth’s name to the list of clubs chasing Bedeau on a free transfer, which could have added more competition for Rotherham in the race for his signature.

However, Hampshire Live have provided a response to the report and stated that Bedeau is not a player Portsmouth want to add to their squad this summer, leaving Rotherham and the aforementioned Championship clubs as the only teams left gunning for his services.

Huge boost

This could be a huge boost to Rotherham’s chances of landing the 21-year-old centre-back this summer. Portsmouth could be a promotion rival to Rotherham in League One next year, given that the Hampshire-based club finished 8th in the table and Paul Warne’s side were relegated from the Championship.

The two clubs could be fighting against each other to secure promotion to the second tier, which means that interest from Portsmouth in Bedeau could have been a genuine challenge to Rotherham, given how similar the two clubs are in terms of thier potential ambitions and targets.

Despite only being 21, Bedeau proved to be a beast at League Two level for Scunthorpe. He averaged 3.2 aerial battles won, 3.8 clearances made and one block per game across 34 appearances.

Bedeau was adept at winning headers and putting his body on the line to defend his goal, showing great instincts for a young defender at a physical level of football.

Warne could integrate him into his squad to inject some freshness into his defence. Richard Wood, 35, Angus MacDonald, 28, and Michael Ihiekwe, 28, were his first-choice centre-back trio in the Championship, suggesting that there could be an opening for a younger player to come in and play a part in League One.

At the age of 21, Bedeau could learn from MacDonald, Ihiekwe and Wood to improve his game, whilst also being coached by Warne, in order to add to the strong qualities he has already shown in the fourth tier of English football.

Therefore, Portsmouth’s lack of interest in Bedeau could come as a big boost to Warne and Rotherham. Not only could Bedeau make an instant impact at Rotherham, as shown by his defending statistics from Scunthorpe’s season, but he could also have the potential to improve further and be a long-term asset for the club.