Sport 307

Issue 307 | May 31 2013

Rooney Talks exclusively to Sport

Contents

18

Issue 307, May 31 2013 Radar 04 Pay attention, 007 Aston Martin relives the golden age of motorsport as it should be with the CC100 Speedster

06 Boys of summer The previous stars of the show who made it – and those who didn’t – ahead of next week’s European Under-21 Championship in Israel

08 Flashback John Barnes recalls samba-ing round the entire Brazil side ahead of England’s match at the Maracana oFeatures this coming week

18

Wayne Rooney Talks exclusively about his 10 years wearing an England shirt, and the national side’s chances of finally picking up some silverware

27 Paul O’Connell On his return from injury, previous Lions failures and his high hopes for this summer’s tour down under

31

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This page: Stu Forster/Getty Images, Jeff Haynes/AFP/Getty Images

08

27

Sporting madness!

Tyson noshing on Holyfield’s ear, Cantona’s flying kung-fu kick and Serena’s death threat all make our list of sporting stars losing the plot

Extra Time 46 Kit Get the Lions look – and wear tourrelated merchandise with pride

48 Gadgets The LG BH9430PW Surround System is more powerful than you could possibly imagine. Use its force

50 Grooming What to wear on your face before you fall asleep on the beach this summer. Don’t forget your back

54 Games special

54

The seemingly very normal-sounding Joel and Ellie get stuck into a zombie apocalypse in The Last of Us | May 31 2013 | 03

Radar

p06 – European U21 Championship: the players who did and didn’t make it

p08 – When John Barnes took on the whole of Brazil, and won

Retro racer D

uring the Golden Age of motorsport, open-seater cars like this could be found embedded in hedges right across rural England, while the likes of Stirling Moss pushed them to their limit in exotic locations like Belgium. Aston Martin, famous for supplying cars to James Bond (before he betrayed his country by buying German) have revisited that era to celebrate a century of car building with a one-off concept car. The jaw-dropping CC100 Speedster is a modern take on the iconic DBR1, which won the 24 Hours of Le Mans race back in 1959. Pay attention, 007.

Head to cc100.astonmartin.com for more

04 | May 31 2013 |

Radar

Shop window I

srael is the setting for the 2013 European Under-21 Championship, which kicks off next week – and as always, clubs will be keeping a close eye on the talent on display. At the end of the tournament, the best performer will be given the ’Golden Player’ award – but it doesn’t always mean they’re certain to succeed...

A sign of things to come 2000 – AndreA pirLo

2002 – petr CeCh

2011 – JuAn MAtA

Although back then he was just a fresh-faced youngster with a girl’s name, the Italian midfield maestro still had wisdom in his feet.

He picked up the award after scoring twice in the final against the Czech Republic – one goal a trademark curling free-kick, and the other from the penalty spot. He didn’t dink it, but at least he still scored.

Almost single-handedly won the final, keeping a talented French side at bay and saving two penalties in the shootout that followed the 0-0 draw. His performances earned him a move from Sparta Prague to Rennes, and from there it was on to Chelsea – where he cemented his status with 10 consecutive clean sheets in a Premier League-winning debut season.

A quirk of the eligibility rules meant that Mata was actually 23 by the time this Under-21 tournament took place. Given how laughably easy he makes Premier League football look, we can only imagine the tournament was a stroll in the park, as the Spaniard netted two goals and provided two assists to help Spain ease to victory.

2009 – MArCuS Berg

1998 – FrAnCeSC ArnAu

2007 – roySton drenthe

The Swedish striker scored a record seven times in the tournament, securing a move from Dutch side FC Groningen to Hamburg in the process. He notched just four league goals in 30 appearances in his first year, however, and spent a year back in Holland with PSV before returning to Hamburg. Scored a single goal – for Sweden – last season.

The Barcelona academy graduate didn’t concede as Spain bored their way to victory on the back of three 1-0 wins. Subsequently found himself at the back of the queue at both club and international level (he never made a senior appearance), however – after a Steve Harper-esque 24 first-team games in six years, he moved to Malaga and is now retired.

The dreadlocked Dutchman helped his country to the title with three goals, earning him a €14m move to Real Madrid. Sadly, things didn’t quite work out. He started well, but found himself out of favour, moving on loan to Hercules and Everton before signing a permanent deal with Alania Vladikavkaz in the Russian Premier League.

peaked too early?

06 | May 31 2013 |

F

All pictures Getty Images

LionS At pLAy

eeling jealous of Mr Gatland’s Lions? Fear not, for June 14 sees new game Rugby Challenge 2 arrive, and it features those boys in red. There are more than 110 other teams to play as, not to mention a host of gameplay tweaks – but the main thing is you can beat the Aussies over and over again.

And that never gets boring.

Radar

Royal Mail Football Heroes Special Stamps are on sale now from www.royalmail.com/ footballheroes

England visit the rebuilt Maracana Stadium this week for a friendly with Brazil. They last played there in 1984, securing a shock 2-0 win thanks partly to a wonder goal from John Barnes, who picked up the ball on the left touchline before embarking on a mazy run and slotting past the keeper to score what was later voted the sixth best England goal of all time. Since there’s more chance of the stadium’s roof falling in than any of England’s current crop repeating that feat on Sunday, we asked Barnes to reminisce...

“I always say that I must have had an out-of-body experience, because I can’t remember doing any of that. When you score a goal by dribbling, you’re just reacting to the

The Big

MaTh 08 | May 31 2013 |

John Barnes cracks Brazil

people in front of you – you’re not thinking consciously about what you’re doing. When you score a free-kick, you put the ball down, you take it yourself in your head before you do it, and that’s why you remember it. When you score a goal by dribbling, you don’t know what people are going to do – so you react.

I can’t actually remember doing any of that, no matter how many times I see it.

“I remember the impact that it had, I remember scoring in the Maracana, but I can’t remember many specific details about the goal. I remember collecting it and beating one player, then thinking: ‘I wanna pass.’ But I couldn’t see anybody to pass to. I remember wanting to shoot [from the edge of the box],

B

aseball was revolutionised by the Oakland As’ use of sabermetrics, using statistics and maths to select players instead of relying on scouts – as documented in Moneyball.

Liverpool’s American owners tried to bring a bit of that mathmagic over to England – but some rats must have been chewing the cables of their supercomputer, because they ended up spending £75m on Andy Carroll, Stewart Downing and Jordan

but Tony Woodcock was in the way. He kind of jumped, because he thought I was going to shoot, and that kind of fooled them, so it was a bit lucky.

“It’s definitely one of the best I’ve scored, but I have scored more meaningful goals.

You have to look at the situation. Michael Owen’s against Argentina was in a World Cup knockout game, Ryan Giggs got one in an FA Cup semi final against Arsenal. It was a friendly against Brazil – they didn’t look too bothered, and they were probably pissed the night before. So yes, it was a great goal – but you have to look at the impact of it. If I was their coach, I would have been very disappointed that someone didn’t kick me.”

Henderson. There is still much for football to learn from numbers, though – and it’s detailed in The Numbers Game, by former goalkeeper Chris Anderson and former baseball pitcher David Sally.

They’ve worked out that managers have only 15 per cent influence, subs after the 79th minute are pointless, and that Darren Bent is more valuable than Wayne Rooney.

Their computer must be broken, too...

The Numbers Game (Penguin), out now

David Cannon/Allsport

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Eagles have landed But let’s be clear – winning the Championship playoff final isn’t really worth £120m

T Editor-in-chief Simon Caney @simoncaney

So I was pleased to see them win promotion to the Premier League. Malcolm died in 2010, Vince is currently doing something backstage at Portsmouth and, to be honest, the current kit could be sexed up a bit.

Still, they now have £120m, right? Thanks to winning one game – against Watford – Crystal Palace are now £120m to the good. This is received wisdom throughout football: that the Championship playoff final is the most lucrative one-off game in the whole of the sport. In fact if you read The Daily Mail, you’ll be thinking it’s actually £145m, and not the paltry £120m.

And, to a point, all of it is true. Playing in the Premier League does indeed bring riches. But it also costs. And it costs a lot.

Look at, say, Wigan – now on their way down and in line for a parachute payment. Or Stoke. Or, in fact, any team in the Premier League – most of whom are millions in hock. They are not living proof that to play in the top flight is to be in a land of riches. In fact, they demonstrate that other well-known football fact: that it is an industry like no other.

Colour reproduction: Rival Colour Ltd Printed by: Wyndeham Group Ltd

In any other walk of life, to run your business as most football clubs are run would be financial suicide. When the lion’s share of your revenues go out of the door simply on the salaries of a few people, you have to wonder.

And so it is that Crystal Palace enter this rarefied world.

A good few bob will need to be spent on summer signings.

Their wage bill is about to go through the roof. In fact, they may well need, ooh, about £120m to make ends meet. But I hope they do – even more so if they bring back the old kit.

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Cover of the Year

Dylan Hartley is no longer an impetuous kid. He’s a senior pro who should know better and deserves every second of his 11-week ban for dissent. Can you imagine if football were governed in the same way? There’d be no players available at all by the end of November.

I’m all for cricket captains making sporting declarations, but I would be the first to defend Alastair Cook’s decision to put the second Test against New Zealand beyond his opponents’ reach. The first job was to ensure England didn’t lose. Grinding the other team into the dust before pulling the final trigger breeds a strong mentality ahead of the Ashes. Nice captaincy.

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here is a real soft spot for Crystal Palace that lurks deep in my psyche. I think it has something to do with Malcolm Allison, Vince Hilaire and the best kit of the 1970s. I can think of no other reason.

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Flats on Friday

David Lyttleton

Radar Opinion

Darling, I’m just popping out for a bit

I

have never been much of a romantic.

Well, I say that, but I did once make a tape of love songs on my twin-deck stereo in my bedroom, using nothing but editing technique and obsession. The girl’s reaction to my cassette of passion was to openly mock me over my decision to include a song by Billy Ocean, and this is likely why these seemingly natural instincts were quelled. As for Billy Ocean, are you telling me this bloke wasn’t romantically successful in the 1980s? Exactly.

My wife once surprised me by telling me she’d booked a trip to Paris, just for the two of us. I then surprised her back by telling her that I didn’t really fancy it. It wasn’t that I had anything else on; it was more that the idea of sweating on Le Metro and having cigarette smoke blown in my face as I ate a croque monsieur made me feel less happy than the idea of walking my dog and watching telly.

This vile rejection has never been forgotten, but it did set a useful precedent. I inadvertently set the bar of romance so low that, since then, very little has been expected of me. I have still managed to cock things up a few times, forgetting anniversaries and even a birthday (though I did also once forget my own), but a man can generally come back from these things with heartfelt apologies and gifts.

All of this means that, when I do decide to do something lovey dovey, it goes down a right treat.

She’s not stupid though, Mrs F, and she knows very well that many of my romantic plans are laced with

12 | May 31 2013 |

self-interest. I never pretend otherwise, mind – and, as she sees it, she profits anyway. Usually, my request comes in the car on the way home.

“Did you have a lovely time?” I often ask – and, as she answers in the affirmative, I pile in with: “Oh yeah, I knew I had to run something by you.”

This is where it begins, and this time it is about sport. For the good of charity, I am, along with Lewis Moody and Danny Grewcock, cycling from John O’Groats to Land’s End in a few days – a pursuit designed to destroy both the body and soul of a man with my genetic make-up. I am terrible at cycling, and full of dread. But it’s all about the kids.

And, beyond charity, this trip means one thing to me: I am going to miss British & Irish Lions games. So, after what will be 12 days away from home, I have negotiated quite the reintroduction package. I will spend Day 1 with the family: catching up, cuddling and playing. Then, with my daughters both at nursery and Mrs F serving me food and coffee continuously, Day 2 will be my Lions day. I will watch every missed minute, reading every match report I can access between viewings.

I can’t wait for my gentleman’s area to be released from the saddle and I can’t wait for the cuddles, but Day 2 is also a real motivator. I love Lions tours as much now as I did when I was a chubby kid with muddy knees. You see, romance isn’t dead. It’s just all about negotiation. @davidflatman

It’s like this…

Bill Borrows

T

here were some media commentators who, for reasons best known to themselves, chose to link Carl Froch’s ill-advised declaration that he would like ‘to kill’ Mikkel Kessler with the recent sickening events in Woolwich.

They were attempting to draw a parallel that brought boxing and its proponents into disrepute.

For that reason, I would like to draw a distinction and also reference what happened in Woolwich.

These commentators were trying to buy gravitas at the same time as condemning a throwaway comment in the run-up to a fight. Should he have said it? No. Did he mean it? No. Was Froch in any way referencing events in southeast London? No. Did he apologise to Kessler?

After a fashion. It’s boxing. Deal with it.

“Lennox Lewis, I’m coming for you man. My style is impetuous. My defense is impregnable, and I’m just ferocious,” said Mike Tyson before their 2002 world title fight. “I want your heart.

I want to eat his children...” The press “Should Froch conference was named have said he Event of the Year by The would like to Ring magazine and, if memory serves, there kill Kessler? No. was some scuffling Was he in any way – but no heart was referencing events taken and no children were eaten. It’s boxing. in southeast Perhaps Froch should London? No.” have said: “I have fond feelings for Mikkel Kessler. What with his incredible cheekbones and eyes like limpid pools, I’m not sure I want to fight him. Maybe I’ll take him home to meet my mum. And, remember kids, we should all live in perfect harmony.” But he didn’t. It’s boxing.

And Froch is a boxer. A fighter. A warrior. A man who puts his life on the line to put food on his kids’ plates.

And that is precisely what distinguishes him from the poor, deluded, brain-washed arseholes who, it seems, chose to drive a car into an unarmed man walking down a street in Woolwich before assaulting him with a range of weapons and hacking him to death. “We want to start a war in London tonight,” one of them is reported to have told a female cub scout leader who fronted them up.

The distinction? One is barbarism and utter lunacy dressed up as religion and masquerading as a perverted form of justice. Froch-Kessler II is boxing. @billborrows

Plank of the Week Dylan Hartley, Northampton Saints and England There’s a reason why the words ‘British & Irish Lions’ do not appear here. That reason is because Hartley, despite a warning to shut up and get on with the game, called the ref “a f*cking cheat”. Beyond daft.

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Frozen in time

14 | May 31 2013 |

Latest rehearsals for the next series of the Tom Daley TV vehicle Splash! have been going well, even if some competitors are slightly concerned about health and safety. Just before this picture was taken, Jim Carver off of The Bill performed a belly flop that nigh-on ripped out his appendix, and here we see one of boyband A1 pulling off a dive that is – typically – all style and no substance.

(We josh, readers: this is the 27.5m board at the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series in La Rochelle, France – and jolly impressive it is, too). | 15

Romina Amato/Red Bull via Getty Images

A long way down

Wayne Rooney

18 | May 31 2013 |

Schoolboy international

Nike

He might have clocked up a decade of playing for his country, but Wayne Rooneyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s passion for England remains undimmed. In an exclusive interview, he tells Sport of his excitement at the current teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ideal mix of youth and experience >

| 19

Wayne Rooney

It’s not often you can say about a high-profile England player that going on international duty must feel like returning to a safe, warm place. asking if Tony Hibbert was in there too.

“No, Tony’s in the Under-21s,” Moyes replied.

“You’re in the full England squad.”

“My dream was when I broke through and got into the team.”

So says Rooney, looking back on being called up for his first full England game against Australia (below). “I was delighted. At 17, as I was, I just couldn’t wait to get there and try to... well, I probably knew I wasn’t going to start the game, but to try and get on. It was great for me that Franny Jeffers was in the squad. We went to the same school [the De La Salle Academy in Croxteth, Liverpool] and, for the area we were from, it was great to have two local lads in the England squad. We both came on at half-time and got to play up front together, so it was a great occasion for the area and for the school as well.”

Not that this was the start of Rooney’s relationship with England. While some modern-day footballers leave you with the impression that if they weren’t being paid to play, they wouldn’t be able to tell you what shape a football is – let alone stop to watch a game – Rooney is a genuine football fan.

Follow him on Twitter and – in between the odd Stereophonics recommendation, which you’re free to take or leave – he’s often commenting on the matches he’s watching in his own time in England, Spain or beyond.

In the pre-Twitter era, however, Euro 96 remains one of his formative football memories. “It was a great atmosphere around England and I always remember all our fans coming into the city of Liverpool, where I’m from,” he recalls. “It was great to see them and to watch the games on TV.” Rooney lists Paul Gascoigne and Alan Shearer as the England players he admired growing up. “Really exciting players,” he says. “Gascoigne was great on the ball and running forward; he was fantastic. And then obviously Shearer [was] scoring goals, so they were my favourite two.” >

History boy: Rooney becomes England’s youngest international on his debut at Upton Park in 2003 (a record taken

by Theo Walcott in 2006)

Jamie McDonald/Getty Images)

Wayne Rooney has maintained a professional silence regarding his club career since the retirement of his former manager Sir Alex Ferguson, despite the cantankerous old hairdryer leaving the media with a final expulsion of hot air regarding the future of the centre forward who has scored more goals for him than any other player throughout his long managerial career. However, the end of the season cannot have been entirely comfortable for the 27-year-old.

Rooney’s current form for his country, however, is excellent. Post-Euro 2012, he’s scored five goals in the four World Cup qualifying games in which he’s played, as well as netting against Brazil in England’s 2-1 win at Wembley in February. No wonder he seems in relaxed mood as Sport caught up with him at the launch of Nike’s new England away kit to discuss the national team.

This year also marks a decade since Rooney’s first senior cap. When the then Everton manager David Moyes pulled him to one side in 2003 to let Rooney know he’d first been called up for England, the teenager assumed he was in the Under-21s, innocently

20 | May 31 2013 |

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Wayne Rooney

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Did he do his best Gazza and Shearer impersonations in the playground?

“Yeah, you always try to emulate what football players were doing,” he confirms.

“I always remember Tony Yeboah scoring those volleys [for Leeds United] against Wimbledon and Liverpool – and I was always trying to do one of them.”

For England fans now in their late teens, the age at which Rooney made his international debut, their own formative international footballing memories will be of Euro 2004 and watching the young tearaway striker fearlessly shredding defences (including Switzerland’s, above). He went away to Portugal that summer a feted young footballer, yet came back a sensation and a household name.

“Sometimes it was difficult, being a young lad of 18 at the time.”

Looking back at his return from Euro 2004, Rooney says: “It takes a lot to adapt to, but if that’s what you want to be [a professional footballer], you have to get on with it.”

His memories of the tournament itself are also mixed. “We had a good squad of players and had a chance of winning it, I feel.

We were unlucky going out on penalties, but for me personally, I scored four goals in the tournament and then obviously got injured.

So it was a mixture; being happy to score the goals, then sad that I got injured [he limped off with a broken fifth metatarsal during the quarter-final defeat to Portugal].”

The highs and lows he felt at Euro 2004 have been reflected throughout his England career. There has rarely been a dull moment: from the rush of that spectacular big22 | May 31 2013 |

tournament debut or scoring nine goals in nine games as England marched to World Cup 2010 qualification, to the disappointment of going out to Germany in the tournament proper, or what Rooney says is his worst moment in an England shirt – “getting that red card against Portugal” at the 2006 World Cup. His current potent form under gaffer Roy Hodgson, however, has led to the England boss referring to Rooney as his “vice-captain”.

“It’s great that he feels that way about me,” says Rooney of his international manager. “But I always feel that, whether you’ve got the armband or not, you’ve got a responsibility anyway. If you want to be successful, you have to help each other and try to win games together. I think it’s something that we’ve got at the minute – it’s a great chemistry and a great atmosphere around the squad.”

He’s also enthusiastic about the young generation of England players currently part of the set-up. “It probably helps the likes of Tom Cleverly and [Danny] Welbeck that they’re in the squad together, because I remember when I got in the squad, I was

probably the only really young player there,” he says. “Whereas now there’s a lot of young players who came through the Under-21s together. The likes of Welbeck, [Daniel] Sturridge, [Jack] Wilshere, [Alex Oxlade-] Chamberlain, who’s a bit younger... they’ve all come through and now they’re all in the senior squad together, so I’m sure they don’t feel nerves. I think that’s only going to be good for England.”

Asked how different he is from the player he was a decade ago, Rooney emphasises how his experiences in Europe’s biggest club competition have helped him develop his game.

“I think tactically, I’ve learned a lot over the past 10 years,” he explains. “International football is a lot like Champions League football, so it’s been a great experience to play in Europe, and that helps when you play for England. I think you’re a lot more raw and you do things off-the-cuff [as a young player], whereas when you’ve been there for a while, you tend to think more about the tactics – working out ways of how you can get around players or how you can get in behind teams. That’s why I think England have a good blend: we’ve got a few senior players and we have the younger players coming through. Sometimes you need that rawness and that bit of excitement to break teams down.”

Rooney isn’t the only player in the England set-up with experience of playing in – not to mention winning – the Champions League (left). It applies to many of his international colleagues, including Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard at Chelsea, Steven Gerrard with Liverpool and current club teammate Michael Carrick. So what does Rooney make of the eternal question posed in this country as to why these players, who are such integral parts of successful club teams at the very highest level, have sometimes struggled to replicate that success for England? >

Highs and lows: celebrating with David Beckham after scoring against Switzerland at Euro 2004 (left); seeing red for his stamp on Ricardo Carvalho in 2006 (above)

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Wayne Rooney

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“I think we have to look at ourselves over the past 10 years and say we haven’t been good enough – and that hopefully we can be successful in future.”

Rooney is perfectly frank. “It’s tough. There’s two tournaments every four years and there’s so many different countries trying to win those trophies,” he says. “But I think over the past 10 years, there’s been better teams than us who’ve deserved to win the trophy more. So we have to just understand that, but keep trying to get to that point where we’re in a good position to win a trophy.

Hopefully we can do that.”

Rooney has, however, found individual success. His goal away in Montenegro in March took him to 26 competitive goals for England – a record he shares with Michael Owen. “Obviously you see it in the newspaper and some people talk about records, but I’m not really too fussed,” he confesses. “I’ve always felt that, to be successful, you have to win trophies. I could end my career with England being record goal-scorer and maybe even record caps-holder, but if you’re not going to be successful, then it’s pointless.

That’s what I play for England for: to try and help England be successful. That’s the aim.

It’s not to see how many caps or goals I can get – it’s to see if I can get a winner’s medal.”

24 | May 31 2013 |

Rooney talks with an intriguing mix of realism and ambition. On the one hand, he’s grounded about what a mighty challenge it is to win an international trophy. But on the other, his competitive nature means he will not define success as anything other than winning a major competition. Before any such thoughts can even edge into his mind, however, Rooney is fully aware that World Cup qualification has to come first.

“It’s gone alright,” is his assessment of a campaign that has seen England go unbeaten over six matches, but which includes a trio of 1-1 draws. “I think it could be a little bit better. If we could’ve turned one or two of those draws into wins, we’d be in a great position. But they’re tough games: Poland, Ukraine and then the last game away against Montenegro was obviously a tough game.

But if we win our next four, then we qualify top of the group. So it’s down to us, really.”

For England, those qualifiers begin again in September. Before then, the team debut the new away kit in a glamour fixture with Brazil at the reopening of the Maracana – and it’s a challenge Rooney clearly relishes.

“It will be great going out to Brazil to represent England.”

Looking ahead to this weekend’s friendly in Rio, Rooney says: “I’m sure the stadium will be full and it will be an amazing atmosphere.

You watch the south American games on TV and it looks brilliant, so it will be a great experience for us. I can’t wait.

“You said before about me growing up watching England as a young lad – Brazil were brilliant then. You remember watching the likes of Ronaldo and Romario, so to play against Brazil is a special feeling. I’ve been fortunate to captain England against Brazil [in a friendly in 2009, above] and now obviously I’ve scored against them [in England’s 2-1 win at Wembley in February this year], so it’s a great honour for me.”

More than this, Rooney sees it as a good motivation for the squad. “I think it will be good for us to go out there before the qualifiers, I feel, because you’ll get a taste of what it’s like to play out there – heat-wise and atmosphere-wise. I’m sure that will be good for all the players. We can see that that’s where we want to be in a year’s time – and hopefully we will be.”

At 28 years of age by the time of the next World Cup, Rooney should be ideally placed to make an impact on the biggest stage of all – providing the team can get there. He talks now of the tactical awareness that comes from the experience of Champions League football and having 80-plus England caps, but a childish excitement at pulling on the England shirt clearly still sparks within Rooney. He even finishes our interview talking about one day taking his kids along to watch England games after he’s retired.

That’s one for the future, however. He has dreams to chase on the pitch before then.

So, if you see him trying a Yeboah-style volley against Brazil on Sunday night, feel grateful that there’s still something of the schoolboy inside this experienced England international.

Alex Reid @otheralexreid

Leading by example: Rooney takes the captain’s armband for a friendly with Brazil in Qatar in 2009

For our preview of England’s friendly with Brazil at the revamped Maracana on Sunday, turn to page 38

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Paul O’Connell

wiTh The lions Tour seT To begin againsT The barbarians Tomorrow, Paul o'connell Tells sPorT why he's ready To leave a season of injuries, and a hisTory of lions failures, firmly in The PasT

How happy are you just to be in the squad after your injuries this season?

“I’m delighted. It’s a bonus for me just to be here.

Six months ago, or even three months ago, I never thought I would be fit. When my name was read out, it was great. I’m really thrilled to get another chance.”

Was the Lions always the aim once you got injured?

“You always have aims, but it was only based on the recovery timescale, so I was thinking I had a great chance to be back for the Heineken Cup quarter final against Harlequins – and if I could play well and we could win a few games, I had a great chance of possibly pushing my way into the reckoning... you know, maybe an outside chance. If I’d have been back a bit later, the Irish tour to Canada would probably have been the aim, but I was back early enough for my focus to be solely on the Lions.”

A lot of people predicted you’d be captaining this year’s tour party – did Warren Gatland have a little chat to you ahead of the official announcement?

“No, seeing my name come up on Sky Sports was genuinely the first I heard. I met Warren in an elevator on the way to the Munster v Harlequins game, and all we did was say hello and have some small talk. I knew he wasn’t saying anything to anyone, so it didn’t bother me. Look, I never thought for an instant that I was going to be captain. There’s so much media talk around the Lions this year – I’ve never seen anything like it. So players were being put on the plane, taken off the plane and given the captaincy week in, week out depending on their performances. There was so much hype that it was very easy to get wrapped up in it. I was delighted that people started talking about me going after the Quins game, but I never thought I’d be captain.” > | May 31 2013 | 27

Pinnacle Photography Ltd-Photo Agency UK

Third Time lucky

Paul O’Connell You’ve had a lot of highs and lows in your career. Where does the Test series defeat in 2009 rank?

“It’s right down there. That second Test was one of the most physically intense games I’ve been in, because both teams were just willing to do anything to win the game. If we had just sealed that game and seen it out, god only knows what would have happened in the third Test – there probably would have been 30 ambulances taking people away afterwards. It was a big disappointment; the pressure was intense and there were times when it was really tough and you’d love to just get on a plane and get out of there.

But, looking back on it, it was also a really enjoyable tour – and we became a very tight, close-knit team in a very short period of time, which isn’t an easy thing to do. People gave a lot of themselves to do that, and I was really proud to be part of that tour.”

Brian O’Driscoll recently told us that after three Lions tours, 2009 was the first time he realised what the Lions really meant.

Did you get that same feeling?

“Yeah, well people talk about the Lions and they’re almost thinking back to the 1970s and the ’80s, when these guys went on three-month tours and had this time period together to be really tight and to become this unit. We don’t have that time, so you

You went to New Zealand with the Lions on the ill-fated 2005 tour, and captained the side in 2009.

How much difference was there between the two tours?

“There was a massive difference, definitely. People like to blame Clive [Woodward] for 2005, but 20 minutes into the first Test, we’d lost our three best players – Lawrence Dallaglio, Richard Hill and Brian O’Driscoll. We weren’t the kind of team that could really tolerate that kind of loss of personnel.

Clive certainly tried things that needed to be tried to realise that they didn’t work. In professionalism, there’s a certain point where it has limited gains, and to win rugby matches you still need to be a tight unit.

And that’s something we probably didn’t work hard enough at on that New Zealand tour – having a bit of fun together, getting out together and sharing a bit of time together builds a tight unit, and we didn’t do that enough.

“South Africa, then, was probably helped by a few guys – the likes of Andy Powell – who were big characters and brought a lot of people together.

The 3pm kick-offs certainly helped because you were out of the ground at six or seven o’clock, so you got to spend a lot of time together over a beer or two after games, which you don’t really get in the games against Australia or New Zealand because you’re playing at eight and you’re out of the stadium at 1am.

All those little things made a difference and, you

“If we had just sealed that second test In 2009, god only knows what would have happened In the thIrd – there probably would’ve been 30 ambulances takIng people away afterwards” know, I suppose… 2005 was just very difficult.

Sometimes things conspire against you and sometimes things conspire with you, and a lot of things helped us in 2009. Then again, we still lost the Test series, so ultimately there wasn’t a huge difference between the two of them.”

In a way, is it nice to just be a tourist again, and not have the pressure of captaincy?

“Yeah, there is a bit of that. I certainly put a lot of pressure on myself when I’m captain, and it’s nice not to have that pressure now. I’ll be doing my best to help Sam [Warburton, this year’s skipper] out, though, and take a bit of that pressure off him.

I don’t mind the media stuff and the functions and stuff like that. The bit that’s tough is when you’re not successful as a captain, you tend to shoulder a bit of the blame yourself, and you put yourself under that sort of pressure. Well, I certainly would have anyway.

So, from that point of view, you can look after your own backyard in a sense when you’re not captain.

In the position I’m in, coming in after having played only seven or eight games, that’s probably not a bad place to be.”

That also means you’re fresh, though.

“Yeah, fresh is definitely the line I’ve been peddling to the management.”

actually need to work hard at it, whereas they didn’t need to do that back in the day. They got to go out four nights a week, leave their families and they were on a boat for ages and all this sort of craic. So in 2009, we really made a conscious effort to have a bit of banter and get on with one another, and from that point of view it was great to be part of it. We worked hard at the legacy, and keeping the tradition and the values that the Lions stand for alive. You don’t just arrive on tour and all of a sudden have these qualities of a tight squad: you need to work at it, and guys did go out of their way to do that.”

You’ve been on two unsuccessful tours, though.

Is there a sense of unfinished business this time?

“Yeah, every time a tour comes around, the value of the Lions and the Lions’ place in the rugby calendar is questioned. And, unfortunately, I’ve been involved in two tours where we’ve lost and probably added to the naysayers’ weight in the argument. This time around, I’d love to be involved in a winning tour.

That’s the plan, anyway. We’ll see what happens from here!”

Mark Coughlan @coffers83 British & Irish Lion Paul O’Connell is an adidas ambassador.

Buy the Lions shirt from adidas.com and join the conversation @adidasUK #StandTogether | May 31 2013 | 29

Stu Forster/Getty Images, David Rogers/Getty Images, Stu Forster/Getty Images

How important was that big win over Harlequins for you?

“It put me on Warren’s radar, so it was key. I probably didn’t play as well as the media made out – but I wasn’t going to complain. It was nice to be back in the frame and to be thought of as a possible tourist – because up to then, I didn’t stand a chance.”

n w o d t l e M

Sporting Madness

en h w s n e pp What has lose the plot athlete

lend Me your ear

“When I look back on my second fight wi th I still can’t believe that I bit his ear. I me Evander Holyfield, an, what was I thinking...?” asks Mi ke Tyson in Twice Bit book about the inc ten, a riveting new ident in June 1997 , when arguably th most famous spor e tsma In the third round of n on the planet did the unthinkable. his rematch with Ho frustrated by butts lyfield, Tyson – fro and possibly fearing m his bald-headed, Bible-bashing riv al a opponent’s right ea KO defeat – sank his teeth into his r and tore out a ch unk. Shocked refe Mills Lane halted th ree e fight, but then ra ther remarkably ch to restart it after ose docking Tyson two points.

Holyfield reacted ex ac tly th e wa y we would if we were facing an enraged Mike Tyson with a piece of our own ea cartilage on the ca r nvas, telling traine r Don Turner: “Put mouthpiece in; I’m my going to knock him ou get a chance to fu lfil his prophecy. Ty t.” Holyfield didn’t son went to work on his left ear and wa s fin round. If you can th ally disqualified at the end of the ink of a more outra geous sporting meltdown, we are – forgive us the pu n – all ears.

Twice Bitten, by Ge orge Willis (Mainstr eam), out on June 6

Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images, Jared Wickerham/Getty Images, Action Images

She iS SeriouS

John McE nr nothing o oe’s temper tantr n this. Aft ums had er a foot fau lt in her 2 being called for 009 US O final again pe s Williams b t Kim Clijsters, Se n semi rena awled at th “If I could , I’d take th e tiny line judge: shove it d is f**king ow b Despite p n your f**king th all and roat.” rotesting her innoc umpire an en d kill you. A judge (“I didn’t sa ce to y I would re you se r io was dock ed a point, us?”), Williams lose the m causing h e a $82,500 tch. She was later r to and told s he couldn fined force-fee ’t d balls for a any officials tennis t least tw o years.

Pretty fly

attacked Sports stars have tes, even ma opponents, team ve the front to ha w fe t bu – officials n stadium. ow his assault a fan in rouge mist When Eric Cantona’s s abused by wa he descended after nt off against a fan after being se , however, his 95 19 Crystal Palace in unds. Not for bo no ew kn s madnes nch or the pu n ria Eric the pedest , he went flying brutish nut. Instead ardings in ho g sin over the adverti and graceful of ble ra lne vu st that mo e kung-fu rn bo air violent acts: an s a fourwa lt su re d en e kick. Th ed to as re inc r month ban (late hours of 0 12 e, fin 00 0,0 nine), £2 doubling a d an ice community serv fty y he quota of of his already fairl > antihero cool.

| May 31 2013 | 31

Sporting Madness

Would I lIe to you?

“I did not move!” ye lled Drummond at the 20 US sprinter Jon 03 World Athletics Championships, ey eballs popping after being disqualified for false-starting from his 100m heat . Then, as an official brandished a come dy, oversized red card in front of his angry face, he took the only sane course of action.

Drummond lay down in his lane and refused to leave th e track, the situatio n exacerbated by repla ys that seemed to show he had a point . It after that gun going was 51 minutes off before the race was eventually run: surely one of the slowest 100m race s in history.

What a helmet

er after the backmark out at Eliseo Salazar being lapped at h las to ion cis de the race while Nelson Piquet’s the track and out of What made clumsily took him off d Prix was perhaps understandable. an ilean was still Gr Ch e an the 1982 Germ Salazar while th p llo wa to ed tri t ue to a helmet less sense is that Piq uet’s flimsy, spaghetti-armed blows dismal Piq . et up lm re followed by a wearing his he -speed accidents we ain in the back of a van F1 nd sta th wi to d designe uabbling ag t got the last two then began sq fresh air kick. The to the pits, but Pique ilian seized ck ba em th ive dr to az that picked them up iver stopped to separate them, the Br , leaving n dr oom off vr d an l ee wh laugh. After the va ing p behind the steer his opportunity to lea with a lengthy walk back to the pits. r ive dr e Salazar and th extra iPad content

See video of these s sporting meltdown via the free Sport magazine app

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32 | May 31 2013 |

Feel the burn

Frankly, w e on Jean v cannot better Pete an de Veld e’s final-h r Alliss’ commenta 1999 Ope n, ole meltd ry ow shoeless which ended with in the Bar the Frenc n at the ry Burn. S hman needs an o ad about 10 viser, he does. His here he is: “If anyb m o and so un inutes ago. This is golfing brain stopp dy ne e s surely no cessary. Oh, Jean o, so, so, so, so sa d tg d , of there. oing to climb dow Jean, Jean. He’s ...

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DPA/Press Association Images, Franck Fife/AFP/Getty Images, Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images, Ross Kinnaird /Allsport

no Ángel

The Derby

34 | May 31 2013 |

ApproAch with confidence After his 2000 Guineas demolition job, Dawn Approach bids for a classic double in tomorrow’s Epsom Derby. Jim Bolger, the unbeaten colt’s trainer, is in quietly sanguine mood

Saturday Investec Derby | epsom channel 4 & racIng UK 4pm

GoinG one better

A diplomatic response from a man who has been in his sport for longer than many of us have been drawing breath, but the bare facts report that the son has, to this point in his career, achieved more than his father.

While New Approach suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Henrythenavigator in his 2000 Guineas, going down by a nose after making every yard of the running, Dawn Approach powered home to win the Newmarket classic by five lengths earlier this month. It was Bolger’s first victory in the race.

“It was very satisfying,” he says. “I haven’t had many runners in it, so I couldn’t really complain too much about not having won it earlier. With New Approach it was only a bob of the head on the line that decided the outcome, so we had gone close before – and the main thing is that the few runners I’ve had in it over the years have run well. When you do decide to have a go, you need to make sure that the horse runs up to his best form. >

Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand | 35

Racingfotos.com, Shaun Curry/AFP/Getty Images

f

ive years ago, the multiple classicwinning Irish trainer Jim Bolger brought his then stable star across the Irish Sea to take his chance in the Derby. It was one of the few major races to have eluded Bolger through a long and distinguished career, but the omens were that it would continue to do so. His great hope, the champion two-year-old New Approach, had been beaten in both of his starts as a three-year-old – and his very participation in the race had been shrouded in mystery throughout a build-up plagued by rumour and misinformation.

Not that anyone seemed to tell the horse.

Ridden by Bolger’s son-in-law, Kevin Manning, New Approach refused to settle in the early stages of the race – but his superior class would still hold sway, a blistering turn of foot from the two-furlong pole helping him to a half-length victory over the high-class Tartan Bearer. New Approach (below, right) had defied the doubters, and his trainer had a maiden victory in one of the world’s most revered races.

Now, in 2013, Bolger is back for another tilt with Dawn Approach – not only the hot favourite to give his trainer a second Derby victory, but also a foal from the very first crop sired by the horse that brought him his first.

“He would be right up there with New Approach,” says Bolger, when asked how his latest star inmate compares with his father.

“It would be very difficult to split New Approach with Teofilo [another champion two-year-old trained by Bolger], and it would be equally difficult to split the pair of them with Dawn Approach. Officially, New Approach was rated a couple of pounds higher as a two-year-old [126, compared with Dawn Approach on 124 and Teofilo on 123], but we certainly never felt there was much difference between the three of them.”

The Derby

ExpErt viEw with paul KEaly of thE racing post

Staying power?

And that is with a horse that looks likely to go off as an odds-on shot to maintain his

36 | May 31 2013 |

unbeaten record at Epsom tomorrow, despite doubts over his ability to truly see out the mile-and-a-half trip. His old man may be a Derby winner, but Dawn Approach is more speedily bred and is yet to race beyond a mile. It’s a big step up in distance for a horse with such raw pace, but Bolger seems largely unperturbed.

“He wasn’t stopping in the Guineas, and better judges than I am have asked how far he would have won had that race been a mile and a half,” he says. “I’d be optimistic that he’ll get the trip – and any horses that I’ve had at Epsom through the years have run well, so I’d be optimistic that he’ll handle the track, too.”

Optimism has surrounded Dawn Approach ever since he made his debut at the Curragh four weeks before his second birthday, in March 2012. It has only grown since his victory in the Guineas, as a whole host of Derby trials came and went without any single horse laying down the kind of marker that would have his supporters even close to worried. The withdrawal of long-time talking horse Telescope last week saw his odds shorten even further – although Bolger remains respectful of the opposition.

“The Derby is the Derby, and it’s always very hard to win it,” he insists. “I would expect the standard of the race to be as good as it ever is, so whatever wins it is going to have to put on a good show.

And I hope it will be Dawn Approach.”

Tony Hodson @tonyhodson1

Should Dawn Approach win on Saturday, he would become the third horse in the past five years to complete the 2000 Guineas-Derby double, after Sea The Stars (2009) and Camelot (2012). Only two horses, Nijinsky and Nashwan, had achieved the feat in the previous 40

Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images

“We were obviously delighted with Dawn Approach in the Guineas, but that’s what you get from a horse of that calibre. While I was a little surprised to see him win so spectacularly, I have to admit that I did expect him to win.”

It is rare for anyone in horse racing to speak with such confidence, even in the aftermath of a victory as impressive as Dawn Approach’s in the 2000 Guineas (above). Bolger is not a man prone to hyperbole, but it is hard to miss the bullishness in his tone when he speaks about this horse – even if having a crack at the Derby was not part of the original plan.

“To give Sheikh Mohammed [Dawn Approach’s owner] his dues, I wasn’t thinking about the Derby at all until after the Dewhurst,” he admits, referencing the sixth and final of Dawn Approach’s victories as a two-year-old, at Newmarket last October.

“He suggested then that we should enter him, whereas I had been thinking more in terms of mopping up all the mile races and then maybe having a go at the Champion Stakes [over 10 furlongs] at the back end of the season. But I didn’t require any persuading when he did mention it. I said yes, that might be a good idea – that’s why we’re where we are now.”

Once-a-year punters hoping for a big-priced winner of the Investec Derby look set to be disappointed, as Dawn Approach appears to stand head and shoulders above the rest of the field and will probably be sent off at odds-on.

A son of Derby winner New Approach, his five-length romp in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket marked him down as a well-above-average winner, and he looks on course to become the third GuineasDerby winner of the past five years. The one doubt is stamina, but in all his races he has looked better the further he went, and he’s going to be hard to beat.

Ocovango, yet to be tested in three starts and trained in France by the legendary Andre Fabre, could be the one to give him most to do.

The Investec Oaks (Friday 4pm, Channel 4) also has a solid enough favourite in Secret Gesture, although this race has always been more prone to shocks – largely because winners tend to be pretty unexposed, having had only one or two runs in their first season.

Secret Gesture looked potentially brilliant when winning the Lingfield Oaks trial by an eased-down 10 lengths, but they looked a poor bunch behind her.

Instead, for an each-way punt at tidy odds, I suggest trying Madame Defarge for Michael Bell, who trained Sariska to land the race in 2009. She was an arguably unlucky third in a decentlooking 1m2f Listed race at Newmarket on her return; by a Derby winner out of an Oaks/St Leger winner, she is going to improve hugely for another two furlongs.

She needs to, but Bell (below) has given her a gallop round Epsom in a bid to familiarise his filly with the track, and that suggests he means business.

7 Days OUR PICK OF THE ACTION FROM THE SPORTING WEEK AHEAD

MAY 31-JUN 6 HIGHLIGHTS » Athletics: Rome Golden Gala » p40 » Cycling: Critérium du Dauphiné » p42 » Cricket: England v New Zealand – 1st ODI » p42 » Rugby Union: Barbarians v The Lions » p42 » MotoGP: Italian Grand Prix » p44

Samba summer

post-season tour of the US just in time for this week's

play at home, where the season is only about

clash with Ireland. Like that game, this visit is part

halfway through. They include spiky-haired starlet

of the FA's 150th birthday celebrations, and will

Neymar, although not for much longer: he ended a

be Brazil's first game at their remodelled national

protracted transfer saga by confirming he will join

stadium. The players don't appear desperate to be

Barcelona next season in a £51.3m deal.

part of those celebrations, though, judging by the

Despite the price tag, he failed to impress

What better way for England's Premier League

rate at which they're dropping out: at the time of

during England's 2-1 victory over Brazil in February.

stars to relax after a gruelling season than with

writing, Roy Hodgson has just five midfielders to

If Hodgson's ramshackle squad can manage a repeat

an 11-hour flight to Brazil? Chelsea's contingent,

choose from (plus Theo Walcott).

in the Maracana, it will be the perfect preparation for

in particular, must be absolutely sick of the sight of

This is less of a problem for Brazil, who are

the climax to their World Cup qualifying campaign

complimentary pretzels; Frank Lampard, Ashley

also using the game to warm up for hosting the

(in three months, against completely different

Cole and Gary Cahill arrived back from their club's

Confederations Cup in June. Eleven of their squad

opposition, in an utterly different climate).

38 | May 31 2013 |

Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand

Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty Images

Sunday fOOTBALL | INTERNATIONAL fRIENDLy: BRAZIL v ENGLAND | EsTáDIO DO MARACANã, RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL | ITV 8PM

7 Days THURSDAY ATHLETICS | GOLDEN GALA | STADIO OLIMPICO, ROME | BBC3 7PM

Slow Bolt's back in town Usain Bolt's first race on European

that Bolt's slow start reflected

soil this year comes in Rome's

anything other than a gentle warm-

Olympic Stadium, which will host

up for the huge summer ahead.

the fifth Diamond League meeting

Bolt's focus won't only be on

of the season. The Jamaican's third

getting faster – it will also be on

outing of 2013 follows a distinctly

finishing ahead of Olympic 100m

average run over 100m at the

bronze-medallist Justin Gatlin,

Cayman Invitational earlier this

whose 9.97s in Doha earlier this

month, where he edged out

month is the second-fastest of

countryman Kemar Bailey-Cole

2013 so far – behind Tyson Gay's

for the win – but it took him a

9.86s at the Jamaica Invitational,

pedestrian 10.09s to do so.

set at the beginning of May.

He started last season in similar

Elsewhere, Olympic 200m

fashion, running 10.04s in Ostrava

champ Allyson Felix and Olympic

before picking up the pace in Rome

triple jump gold-medallist Christian

five days later, where he clocked

Taylor are also set to compete, with

a more acceptable (by his own

Britain's 400m world champion

ridiculous standards) finishing time

Dai Greene likely to finally get his

of 9.76s. Three Olympic gold

season under way after having a

medals later, no one could argue

double hernia operation in March.

Halfway maison

Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP/GettyImages, Ari Versiani/AFP/Getty Images

FRiDAy > TENNIS | FRENCH OPEN | ROLAND GARROS, PARIS | ITV 4 11.30AM

As the first week of the French Open draws to a close, there is some good news for British tennis fans. With Andy Murray out with a sore back, there'll be no second-week disappointment or painful dissections of what that means for his Wimbledon chances, followed by the inevitable head-scratching over whether he's a 'one-slam wonder'. Summer has barely started, mind, so don't rule out a late appearance by all those aforementioned joys. Savour Paris, while it lasts.

40 | May 31 2013 |

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7 Days Friday CRiCKet | engLand v new ZeaLand: 1st odi | LoRd’s | sKy spoRts 1 10.45am

SuNday > CyCLing |CRitéRium du daupHiné | CHampéRy (switZeRLand)-RisouL (FRanCe) | Live FRom monday, bRitisH

international eye ahead of next week's

as a limited-overs team than in Tests – and,

Champions Trophy with a three-match series

when on song, skipper Brendon McCullum can

against the Kiwis. As they were for the

take attacks apart. While Graeme Swann,

equivalent series in New Zealand, the

James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Steven

England deck is robbed of its ace in Kevin

Finn probably all have their Champions Trophy

Setting the tone

Pietersen. With the in-form trio of Joe Root,

spots nailed down, there's competition for the

A traditional battleground and form indicator

Jonathan Trott and captain Alastair Cook

fifth bowling place. Tim Bresnan (below),

for the Tour de France favourites, the 65th

joined by big-hitting Jos Buttler and the

returning from injury, is the favourite – but if

edition of the Critérium du Dauphiné begins not

mercurial flair of Eoin Morgan, however, good

he doesn't perform, Warwickshire all-rounder

with its traditional short individual time trial, but

totals shouldn't be beyond them.

Chris Woakes is waiting in the wings.

with a 121-kilometre loop of the Abondance

England look to sharpen their one-day

New Zealand tend to be more dangerous

mounts and valleys, starting from the Swiss town of Champéry.

It will set what the organisers are calling an "ultra-mountainous tone" for the race – a week-long Alpine battle made up of eight stages and covering a total distance of 1,117km.

Like this summer's Tour, the route will favour the climbers. It follows, then, that Team Sky's Chris Froome (pictured) is one of the favourites – as he will be come July. Team Sky know how to win this one, with Sir Bradley Wiggins having taken the title in the past two years. He is not back to defend his crown for a second time, however – it will instead be Froome, Sky's main man for Le Tour, who leads an A-team including Paris–Nice champion Richie Porte and Tour of

Decisions, decisions

Norway winner Edvald Boasson Hagen.

His competition will have to do something special to beat the Brit – the only man to have defeated Froome this year is Vincenzo Nibali, and he won the Giro d'Italia last week.

SuNday tRiatHLon | itu woRLd tRiatHLon seRies: madRid | bbC two 2pm

Saturday | Rugby union | Lions v baRbaRians | Hong Kong stadium | sKy spoRts 1

Brownlee at the double After an ankle injury delayed his start to the season, defending world champion Jonathan Brownlee is looking for a second win of the year at the Madrid Triathlon this weekend. His first came at Yokohama in Japan this month, where the Olympic bronzemedallist led from almost start to finish to record the fifth series win of his career.

The Madrid course is a familiar one to the younger Brownlee brother (left), who won there last year with a performance that convinced GB selectors he and brother Alistair should spearhead Team GB's bid for medals in the 2012 Olympic triathlon.

The pair are ranked equal 11th in the current ITU world rankings, with one win apiece (Alistair cruised to a win in San Diego last month). But with his older brother missing Madrid with an ankle injury, Jonathan is in pole position to leapfrog him in the rankings as September’s Grand Final in London starts to come in to view.

42 | May 31 2013 |

EuRospoRt 2 12pm

tHurSday FootbaLL | aRsEnaL LadiEs v CHELsEa LadiEs | mEadow paRK, boREHamwood | Espn 7.45pm

Normal service resumed?

It's early days in the 2013 FA WSL season, and yet Arsenal Ladies have already lifted one hunk of silverware, winning their 12th Women's FA Cup by beating Bristol last weekend.

Now their attention turns back to league matters, and the visit of Chelsea to Meadow Park next Thursday evening. The Blues have made a decent start to the season, which got under way last month, with seven points from four games. New signings Eniola Aluko and Sofia Jakobsson have both settled well.

Arsenal's start to the season has been quite the contrast, with a 4-0 thrashing by Liverpool bringing their first league defeat in almost two years. Their FA Cup win went some way to reassuring fans that the status quo in women's football still stands (Arsenal rule, okay?), but their dominance isn't quite as assured as it has been in recent seasons. Yet.

SuNday basEbaLL | nEw yoRK yanKEEs v boston REd soX | yanKEE stadium, nEw yoRK | Espn amERiCa 1am

12.30pm After months of speculation, selection and sweary regrets, it's time for the 2013 Lions to kick off their tour with a money-making exercise in Hong Kong. It's Warren Gatland’s first chance to get his boys out on the field – but, on such a short tour, every game matters.

For their part, the Barbarians are likely to offer

The 2012 season was one that

much more resistance than they did in losing

Boston Red Sox fans would like

40-12 to England last week, with the likes of

to forget, finishing last in the AL

Dimitri Yachvili and Nick Evans pushing for a

East with the team's worst record

start. This is the game they've been waiting for.

in almost 50 years. Eight months

A strong Welsh contingent is set to take to

later they sit top of their division,

the field for the Lions, meanwhile, with last

rejuvenated under the leadership

weekend's respective club finalists (Leinster,

of John Farrell and playing great

Leicester and Ulster players) watching on. It's

baseball. Clay Bucholz (left) has

all about trying out combinations for Gatland

a 7-0 record – his 1.73 ERA is the

(left), so it will be fascinating to see how Mike

best among American League

Phillips and Owen Farrell play together – or how

starters – and on offense David

the second row duo work.

Ortiz is leading the team in style,

Giving captain Sam Warburton a first chance to lead, and getting his side through the 80 minutes with no injuries, will be Gatland's first priority, though.

belting eight home runs with a batting average in the .340s.

On Friday night the Red Sox travel to the Bronx to begin a three-game series with arch rivals the New York Yankees (the third game of which is being televised).

The Yankees opened the season with a three-game series against the Red Sox, which they lost 2-1.

This time they will be looking to get one over on their rivals.

| 43

All pictures Getty Images

The great Gat's boys

Yankees face another Boston beating

7 Days THURSDAY > EQUESTRIAN | LONGINES GLOBAL CHAMPIONS TOUR OF LONDON | OLYMPIC PARK, LONDON | BBC ONE 3PM (SATURDAY JUNE 8)

SUNDAY MOTOGP | ROUND 5: ITALIAN GRAND PRIx | MUGELLO | BBC TwO 1PM

Stratford gets showy

Return of the king Valentino Rossi is probably not quite where he hoped he'd be on his return to Italy.

The national hero has been reinvigorated by his return to Yamaha, but could only manage 12th place in the previous race after sliding off a slippery Le Mans circuit. He's therefore been leapfrogged in the championship by British rider Cal Crutchlow, who secured second place and his best ever MotoGP finish in France, despite the considerable handicap of a broken leg.

If you're in any doubt as to the insanity of this During London 2012, the only horses that made it

changed), with Team GB's gold medal-winning trio

Crutchlow immediately after the last race:

inside the Olympic Park were those being ridden by

of Nick Skelton, Scott Brash and Ben Maher the star

“I was more concerned about the chest and

police officers, who left steaming piles of you-know-

draws for the home crowd.

stomach because I coughed a lot of blood up

what in inconvenient places and posed for pictures

But it's American Laura Kraut and 16-year-old

on Saturday and had a nose bleed.”

with every toddler and OAP who passed by. But next

gelding Cedric who come to London at the top of the

week, it's the turn of some working horses with rather

rankings after the first three events of the season,

will be looking to build on that performance at

different CVs to strut around the site.

having won the previous round – the Grand Prix of

Mugello, which is one of the longest and fastest

Wiesbaden. She is, however, in danger of being

tracks on the calendar. It will be difficult – the

show jumping event, with a prize fund of £640,000

overshadowed by some of her competitors, which

Spanish trio of Jorge Lorenzo, Dani Pedrosa

– and it's coming to London for the first time, giving

include former world number one tennis player

and Marc Márquez have between them won all

those riders who were sent to compete in Greenwich

Martina Hingis, Bruce Springsteen's daughter

four rounds so far. Italy might be welcoming

Park last summer a chance to see what life is like

Jessica and numerous Middle East royals.

back a national hero in Rossi (above), but it

The Global Champions Tour is the world's richest

inside the Olympic Park. They'll be competing

It's sport, yes – but not quite as we know it.

in an area of the park that's now being called the ‘International Quarter’ (oh Stratford, you've

44 | May 31 2013 |

If he's stopped leaking by Sunday, Crutchlow

will almost certainly be the Spanish national anthem ringing out in Tuscany on Sunday night.

Tickets from £10 at globalchampionstour.com

Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand

Alexander Klein/AFP/Getty Images, Mirco Lazzari gp/Getty Images

sport, just read this quote from an unfazed

Guess which of these men got treatment from our online doctor?

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WIN ! A ROUND OF GOLF WITH DARREN CLARKE

Golf

Time to play

To enter, download this week’s iPad issue of Sport magazine and follow the link. It couldn’t be simpler.

Entries close on Friday June 7.

Play with the great man at Royal Portrush Here is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to win a round of golf on one of the world’s best courses with a former Open champion.

Sport has teamed up with Your Golf Travel & Tourism Ireland to offer one lucky golfer and three friends an amazing trip to Royal Portrush to play with 2011 Open Champion Darren Clarke on June 24.

The Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush is famed as one of the finest tests of golf on the planet, and nobody knows it better than local man Clarke, who grew up nearby.

Not only will you get expert advice from the five-time Ryder Cup player, but great course knowledge too!

- Return flights to Belfast - Transfers - 18 holes of golf on the famed Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush - An evening with Darren, dinner and a few pints - Overnight accommodation - Plus... the chance to win a dream trip to the 2014 Ryder Cup as a special guest of Darren’s!

| 45

ExTra TimE Making the most of your time and money

Kit

P54 Enjoy the harsh realities of a post-pandemic society with Joel and Ellie

One of the Pride T-shirt

Get the Lions look

Dump Tackle has a wide variety of quirky tops on offer, but this is our favourite because (a) it’s simple, and (b) it’s available in red, white, green or navy (geddit?). £17 | dumptackle.com

Lions 2013 replica Shirt

ClimaLite fabric makes this the lightest Lions top ever, while a traditional collar and an enlarged crest emulate tours gone by – when the Lions used to win.

From £50 | prodirectrugby.com

On Tour Down Under T-shirt

The Ronseal of Lions tops, also available in white, has it all: Australia; 13; Home Nations; On Tour; Down Under. Does indeed do exactly what it says on the tin. £25 | frontup.co.uk 46 | May 31 2013 |

99 Call Polo

Inspired by the infamous 99 call from 1974 (the signal for the Lions to pile into a ruckus), this will warn any Aussies not to mess with you – so long as you’re with 14 mates. £35 | frontup.co.uk

Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand

in partnership with

New CLAPHAM STORE

opens 1st June!

Race in-store now for up to selected shoes*

40% OFF

26 stores across the UK/ Ireland – find your nearest store online

www.runnersneed.com *Whilst stocks last.

ET

Gadgets

FROM a GaLaxy FaR, FaR aWay

A musical showerhead, a geek box, and a surround sound system more powerful than you can possibly imagine

LG BH9430PW Surround System

This is probably what Darth Vader had in his lounge before it was blown up by his miscreant son. It’s an eight-piece surround sound system with a frightening 1460 watts of power: more than enough to blow up your own lounge, in fact. £650 | currys.co.uk

Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition Plus

Ever tried to find a specific goal on YouTube, only to be confronted by dozens of irritating clips of people scoring on FIFA? Well, those videos have just become a lot easier to make – thanks to this. Designed for gaming, it lets you start recording instantly, and you can automatically upload your clips to YouTube and even insert a logo – so no one’s left in any doubt as to how big a nerd you are. £150 | pcworld.co.uk 48 | May 31 2013 |

QDOS Q-BOPZ

It might look like a plastic showerhead, but if it starts pumping out hot water then something’s gone seriously wrong with your phone. What it actually sprays out is music: three watts of it for up to seven hours (thanks to the built-in rechargeable lithiumion battery), via a Bluetooth connection to your phone or tablet. Use the suction cup base to stick it to your phone or any flat surface – like your shower wall, for example. £30 | qdossound.com

Logitech Keyboard Folio Mini

This ultra-thin keyboard case connects to the iPad mini via Bluetooth, and is available in a range of exciting colours. We’re definitely planning to get one because it will mean that when we’re travelling for work, we’ll be able to easily reply to emails and write articles – instead of just watching videos and playing games while tearing into a four-pack of Carling. On second thoughts, maybe we won’t get one after all... £70 | logitech.com Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand

The British & Irish Lions Tour to Australia 2013 Live and exclusive national radio commentary of every match only on

Sat June 1 Lions v Barbarians (Hong Kong, 12:30am) Wed June 5 Western Force v Lions (Perth, 11:00am)

Sat June 8 Queensland Reds v Lions (Brisbane, 10:30am) Wed June 12 Combined NSW & Queensland Country v Lions (Newcastle, 10:30am)

Sat June 15

NSW Waratahs v Lions (Sydney, 10:30am)

Tue June 18 ACT Brumbies v Lions (Canberra, 10:30am)

Sat June 22 1st Test: Australia v Lions (Brisbane, 11:00am)

Tue June 25 Melbourne Rebels v Lions (Melbourne, 10:30am)

Sat June 29 2nd Test: Australia v Lions (Melbourne, 11:00am)

Sat July 6

3rd Test: Australia v Lions (Sydney, 11:00am)

1089 / 1053 AM, on digital radio and online at www.talksport.co.uk facebook.com/talksport

#livelions

@talksport

ET

Grooming

CHASE THE SUN...

... and avoid colouring yourself fire-hydrant red when you do. Apply. Fall asleep on beach. Repeat

The after-sun soothing cream

Anthony Logistics

Book holiday to somewhere hot. Bake liberally in 40-degree sunlight, eight hours a day for two weeks. Oops – you’ve left yourself in too long. Stop yourself looking like a prat/an extra from Backdraft by slapping on some of this tan-preserving after-sun cream. It’s an all-over moisturiser containing aloe vera to soften and soothe, with glycerin and chamomile to calm and cool sun-damaged skin. Logical. £20 for 177ml | nivenandjoshua.com

The swivel stick Palmer’s Cocoa Butter

The neatest way to write offensive bantz on a friend’s back/protect the most sensitive areas of your own face. Cocoa butter hydrates, plus it comes with added vitamin E. £5.25 for 14g | amazon.co.uk

The factor 30 Nivea Sun Protect and Refresh Nivea’s Invisible Cooling Mist SPF 30 sun cream provides immediate protection and “a pleasurable cooling effect that leaves your skin refreshed”. It’s water-resistant, too. £8.49 for 200ml | boots.com

The all-purpose gel Ole Henriksen

Cooling, oil-free gel helps soothe irritated skin with aloe vera and chamomile. Perfect for rashes, cuts, sunburns and acneic skin.

Also made with purest green. £20 for 207ml | harveynichols.com

The factor 50 Ultrasun

It calls itself a sports sun spray, but it might as well be Kevlar as far as UV rays are concerned – because this non-greasy, water-resistant formula will make you bullet-proof. £26 for 150ml | johnlewis.com

How do you face your problem if your problem is your face?

This moisturiser isn’t the whole answer, but it’s a start.

50 | May 31 2013 |

Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand

ONLY THE BEST GET BETTER WITH AGE

NEW

WORLD’S

N1 O

MEN’S SKIN CARE BRAND*

*Source: Euromonitor International Limited; Nivea by global brand name in the category Men’s Skin Care; in retail value terms 2012.

Only available at Boots Shop online at boots.com

Available at larger Boots stores. Subject to availability.

Extra time Carmen Jordรก

52 | May 31 2013 |

| 53

reathe easy, gentlemen, for she is back. But not too easy – because the fairer sex will take over the world one way or another. Carmen Jordá here is on her way to conquering the world of motorsport.

Another name on Sport’s nominative determinism list (we’re talking about the first part), the Spaniard competes in the GP3 Series for Bamboo Engineering, having worked her way up through Spanish Formula Three and the European F3 Open series.

We were keen to bring you an image of Jordá replete in her finest fire-retardant racing suit and balaclava, but this is – as we understand it – her exact competitive get-up. It likely makes giving it the ol’ heel-and-toe more of a challenge. But then, you have to give the boys a chance somehow, right?

B

Heel and toe Lickerish/Edu Garcia

ET

games In association with

In yoUR hEaD – ThEy’RE fIghTIng

Battle an evil conglomerate to retrieve your memories and take on the Nazis with the Soviet Red Army. Or there is, of course, always the option of slaying a post-apocalyptic zombie

PS3

PS3, Xbox, PC

Remember Me

The Last of Us

A PlayStation 3 exclusive made by the same team that created the blockbuster adventure series Uncharted, this is a fight for survival in a post-apocalyptic world in which a mysterious disease is threatening to wipe out mankind. You play as lead character Joel: a hard man with a soft side, sworn to protect his young sidekick Ellie. The actionheavy gameplay is split between scavenging for weapons – as you

PS3, Xbox, PC

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Legendary Edition

If you missed it the first time, the ultimate version of this massive roleplay game contains the original game and all the extra missions and monsters in one handy package. From exploring dungeons to battling vampires and dragons, this is an openworld worldy you don’t want to let pass you by again.

Released June 9 54 | May 31 2013 |

The surprise reveal of last year was this actionadventure set in 2084, where you play a memory hunter capable of rewriting other people’s lives by getting inside their heads.

Mega-corporation Memorize has invented a new brain implant that enables the population to upload memories to the web, giving them an immense degree of control and enabling them to establish a surveillance state.

It’s an incredibly complex but wonderfully realised back story that has you exploring Neo-Paris as free-running heroine Nilin, with a heavy focus on combat so visceral it’ll make you wince.

There’s little in the way of variety – but it bursts with bold ideas.

Released June 7

explore the shells of abandoned buildings – and trying to survive attacks from both the infected and fellow survivors, who’ll stop at nothing to avoid impending death.

While the action is tense and the story compelling, it’s the relationship between Ellie (who also acts as your spotter for approaching threats) and Joel that makes The Last of Us a game in which your emotions will be flexed as much as your trigger finger.

Released June 14

PS3, Xbox, PC

Deadpool

While Marvel’s wise-cracking mercenary Deadpool is one in a million, the game is anything but. It’s a frantic but all-toofamiliar third-person action game, in which players chain together extravagant attacks to take down the bad guys. Sharp humour and killer one-liners raise a smile – but it can’t paper over the shallow gameplay.

Released June 25

nintendo 3DS

PC

Company of heroes 2

This real-time strategy game set against World War II’s Eastern Front casts you as the commander of the Soviet Red Army, engaging in frontline warfare in a bid to drive back Nazi invaders. Your strategic skills and tactical expertise are all that separates your men from certain death and victoriously reaching Berlin.

Released June 25

animal Crossing: new Leaf

There are no points or levels in Animal Crossing, just the opportunity to create a life in a rural village while exploring the sights, places and activities.

As mayor of the Animal Village, you can chill at a coffee shop, visit a tropical island, build new structures for your town... or visit other players’ towns using the Nintendo Wi-Fi connection.

Released June 15

Download the free Sport iPad app from the Apple Newsstand

”THE MOST DANGEROUSLY SOPHISTICATED FRAGRANCE IN THE WORLD”

NEW OCEAN ROYALE

© 2013 Danjaq, LLC and EON Productions Limited. All rights reserved. “James Bond”, and related James Bond Trademarks © 1962-2013 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation.

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