The opener is in line for an Australia debut after twice taking time away from cricket to protect his mental health and piling on the runs for Tasmania

The opener is in line for an Australia debut after twice taking time away from cricket to protect his mental health and piling on the runs for Tasmania Jake Weatherald and Justin Galeotti travelled separately on the short journey from the coffee shop to the nets for their scheduled hit. They trained as usual and with Galeotti oblivious to the fact Weatherald had just fielded a life-altering phone call from Australia’s chair of selectors, George Bailey, telling him his baggy green dream had almost arrived. The uncapped Weatherald was in the 15-player Ashes squad for the first Test. “It lasted about two minutes,” Weatherald says about the call with Bailey. “I didn’t want to bring it up [with Galeotti] because I felt like it would distract from the net session. I didn’t want to make it all about me. We’d have been talking about it the whole time and not training.” Continue reading...

A quarter of a century from his starring role in a 4-3 win over Liverpool, the Australian reminisces on playing in Croatia during civil war and opening a coffee shop after retirement It started how it finished: with a delicate chip. Twenty‑five years ago, Mark Viduka scored all four goals in Leeds’s 4-3 victory against Liverpool at Elland Road. While those around furiously pedalled, Viduka remained Buddha‑esque, bookending his efforts with deft wedges over Sander Westerveld. “I had to learn it over time,” Viduka says when asked whether his serenity was a superpower. “I played a lot of games where I was very nervous. When I was younger, I might just have belted it and hoped for the best.” Continue reading...

A quarter of a century from his starring role in a 4-3 win over Liverpool, the Australian reminisces on playing in Croatia during civil war and opening a coffee shop after retirement

Kevin Keegan pulled Les Ferdinand to one side. United had just claimed perhaps the most famous second-place finish in football history, with Ferdinand himself third on the list of Premier League goal ...

South Africa await in Wednesday's semi-final in Guwahati as Nat Sciver-Brunt's team seek to reach a third successive World Cup final

Eberechi Eze struck his first league goal since joining Arsenal, as Mikel Arteta’s side won 1-0 against the scorer’s old club, Crystal Palace

Brentford sprung a surprise against Liverpool, or did they? Our reporter, Sam Dalling, picks through the action

It was early in the week when Alan Pardew pulled Gael Bigirimana aside. United were preparing for a crucial 96 hours against two teams from the Stadium of Light. First came Benfica in the Europa Leagu...

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The Australian has endured a relatively lean two-year spell, but is scoring runs heavily in domestic cricket and targeting an Ashes impact

Jack Colback chuckles heartily. His conversation with newcastleunited.com is 20 minutes old but he has known since the opening second that this question would appear in some guise.

Sam Dalling on an amazing couple of days on the road with Newcastle United.

The England off-spinner talks captaincy, life under Charlotte Edwards and Nat Sciver-Brunt, and the team's World Cup prospects in India