South africa women

Wales boss Wayne Pivac says that mental strength will be vital during a three-Test series against world champions South Africa. Just over three months after losing at home to Italy, Wales face the Springboks at altitude in Pretoria next Saturday. Games in Bloemfontein and Cape Town follow, with Wales returning to a country where they have never toppled their hosts on home soil. Ten previous Tests in South Africa all went the Springboks’ way – by an average scoreline of 41-14 – while Wales have only won four of the last 12 games against all opponents. “Nobody likes finishing on a sour note with a poor performance,” Pivac said, reflecting on the 22-21 Guinness Six Nations loss to Italy in March. Recommended By-elections show voters have run out of patience with Boris Johnson “It is a long time between drinks, as they say. For us, it is about making sure we reflect on that time wisely. From a mental point of view as well where we apply ourselves, … [Read more...] about Wales focusing on mental strength ahead of South Africa test

Spain is shifting its foreign policy towards Africa while lobbying the EU and NATO for support to address migration from the continent, aggravated by the Ukraine invasion, two senior government officials and two diplomatic sources told Reuters. Spain will use a NATO summit in Madrid this week to press its case, and is likely to ask for increased intelligence sharing by the alliance including on issues related to migration, the diplomats said. Even before Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, Socialist prime minister Pedro Sanchez had revived a strategy mothballed by previous governments of working with African partners to contain migration and to tackle root causes such as instability and climate change, two officials close to him said. That drive has now taken on more urgency, they added. “We are looking for good relations with all the neighbours around us and jointly managing phenomena that no one, not even the most powerful state on the planet, can deal with on its own,” … [Read more...] about Spain Turns to Africa, Lobbies NATO, Allies Over Ukraine-driven Migration

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 65 ELMAU, Germany (AP) — The Latest on the G-7 summit, the annual meeting of the leading democratic economies, which this year is being held in the Bavarian Alps in Germany; and on the summit of NATO leaders that will start on Tuesday in Madrid: NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg says the military alliance wants to increase the number of its rapid reaction forces from the current 40,000 troops to 300,000. Speaking at a press conference Monday ahead of a NATO summit later this week in Madrid, Stoltenberg said allies … [Read more...] about Live updates | NATO to boost reaction force, Ukraine support

There may come a day - and for many it is already here - when sportswashing is so common and accepted that it is no longer a talking point. But for me, it is not here yet. Saudi Arabia has bought big boxing matches, a Formula 1 race and Newcastle United and Qatar has bought a World Cup. All participants have been rightly grilled on the issue. So it is only right to quiz the golfers who are teeing up at the first Saudi-backed golf event at the Centurion Club this week - the LIV Golf Invitational London - on whether they feel they are being used to promote the Saudi regime. If they really care. And is there anywhere in the world where, as “independent contractors”, they would not ply their trade. Phil Mickelson , who called the Saudis “scary mother*******” in comments released in February that he thought were off the record, kept to the script yesterday. But Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood literally had no answers when I asked them if there was anywhere they would not play … [Read more...] about Feisty exchange with Poulter and Westwood over golf sportswashing shows moral compass

Self-confessed Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist David Coleman Headley's ongoing court testimony — in which he has implicated individuals allegedly connected to Pakistan's intelligence agency in the November 2008 terror attack on Mumbai — has not brought out anything India did not already know, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Saturday. He also said he would continue to use the bilateral dialogue process to press home the demand that Islamabad take action to curb the activities of jihadi groups and would also mobilise world opinion to ensure the “terror machinery” in Pakistan was effectively controlled. Speaking to journalists on his way back from a week-long visit to Africa, Dr. Singh said that even though the Headley trial had not brought out anything new, his government would study the proceedings once it was over. But he gave no indication that a rethink of the current dialogue-based policy towards Pakistan was on the cards. “It goes without saying that we must use every possible … [Read more...] about Manmohan: nothing new in Headley trial

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 26 ELMAU, Germany (AP) — Leading economic powers conferred by video link with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday as they underscored their commitment to Ukraine for “as long as it takes” with plans to pursue a price cap on Russian oil, raise tariffs on Russian goods and impose other new sanctions. In addition, the U.S. was preparing to announce the purchase of an advanced surface-to-air missile system for Kyiv to help Ukraine fight back against Vladimir Putin’s aggression. The new aid and efforts by the Group of Seven leaders to punish Moscow come as Zelenskyy has openly worried that the West has become fatigued by the cost of a war that is contributing to soaring energy costs and price hikes on essential goods around the globe. U.S. … [Read more...] about G-7 leaders confer with Zelenskyy, prep new aid for Ukraine

Lee Westwood has had a frustrating introduction to life in the LIV Golf series following a barrage of questions during the introductory press conferences - and an old tweet has surfaced leaving the Englishman humiliated. LIV Golf will stage their first three-day , 54-hole event at The Centurion Club near St Albans from Thursday amid a build-up littered with controversy and infighting that is threatening to tear the sport apart. It was confirmed on Wednesday that Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed and Rickie Fowler are the latest stars set to joining the lucrative tour, whose first event has a purse worth £20million while the series’ total purse is around £200m. The field for the inaugural event sees the likes of six-time major champion Phil Mickelson and former World No. 1 Dustin Johnson take on Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Graeme McDowell, Louis Oosthuizen, Charr Schwartzel, Branden Grace and Kevin Na. Johnson, who won the 2016 US Open and the 2020 Masters, officially resigned his … [Read more...] about Golf fans rinse Lee Westwood over Saudi series stance as embarrassing ESL tweet emerges

English golf stars Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter were left squirming after they were quizzed by Mirror Sport’s Neil McLeman after the pair linked up with the controversial LIV Golf Invitational Series. Westwood and Poulter are two of the biggest names to commit to the Saudi-backed breakaway circuit. On Wednesday both appeared in front of the world’s media, and unsurprisingly a number of questions surrounding their contentious appearance in the Series’ inaugural event were thrown at them. McLeman led the way, questioning the morality of the rebel circuit, due to the poor human rights record of the Saudi Arabian Government - who are funding the event. The newly introduced series has been heavily labelled as an act of ‘sports washing’ from the Saudi state, and this idea was put towards both Westwood and Poulter following their signing up. Comparing the human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia to Vladimir Putin , and asking whether Westwood and Poulter would compete in an … [Read more...] about Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter squirm as they face awkward questions over Saudi series

The inaugural Saudi-backed LIV Golf tournament has failed to secure a UK television deal despite the rights reportedly being offered to major channels. The 54-hole tournament gets underway on Thursday, with a prize fund of £3.8 million on offer to the winner. Overall, £25 million will be distributed to the 48-man field, with a team competition running alongside the individual event. And the rebel venture, the brainchild of LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman , has landed some savage blows to the PGA Tour this week. The notion that the first event would be short of star power was dismissed when Phil Mickleson confirmed he would be returning from a prolonged break from the sport to take his place in St Albans . Former world No 1 Dustin Johnson also shocked fans by revealing he had resigned his membership from the PGA Tour to sign up with Norman , making him ineligible for next season's Ryder Cup . And now Bryson DeChambeau has made a u-turn on his previous stance, and will play … [Read more...] about Saudi LIV Series snub as rebel tour fails to secure UK TV deal despite pitches

An international soccer match in Chile took an unexpected turn over the weekend after a pitch invading dog halted play. On Saturday, the Chile women's national soccer team played host to South American rivals Venezuela at the Estadio La Granja, Curicó. A friendly match serving as a warm-up for the Copa América Femenina, the game wasn't exactly action-packed with Chile mustering just one shot on target and Venezuela ultimately triumphing 1-0 thanks to a brilliant Mariana Speckmaier goal eight minutes from time. However, by then, the match's main highlight had already been and gone. That came in the 37th minute when, for reasons still unknown, a dog decided to run onto the pitch. Pitch invaders are nothing new in the world of soccer, but dog interlopers are a little less common. There are myriad reasons why someone may want to enter the field of play. Some do it for attention , others to protest a particular issue. Then are those who simply get carried away by the … [Read more...] about Playful dog halts soccer game after invading pitch for strokes—”Red card”