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The clatter of three Western Australian wickets shortly before stumps has continued to afford Tasmania the whip hand by stumps on the second day of the sides’ Pura Cup match in Hobart. At the game’s midway point, the Warriors are at a mark of 4/137 in reply to the Tigers’ first innings tally of 9/446.Led by Shaun Young (2/20), the Tasmanian attack took until the final hour of the day to display the penetrative qualities which had hitherto been missing from both teams’ bowling line-ups. It was the medium pace of Young which did the major damage, his clever variety accounting for a spooned return catch from a well-set Simon Katich (38) and the departure of a very scratchy Murray Goodwin (3) to a leg before wicket decision. On his return after a long absence from the first-class arena, Gerard Denton (1/51) also made a crucial strike when he induced opener Mike Hussey (35) to play a mistimed pull and present Dene Hills with the opportunity to complete an excellent running catch behind square leg.But the presence at the crease of the clean-striking Damien Martyn (46*) and the determined mindset of Warriors’ captain Tom Moody might combine to ensure that the encounter yet develops into a tight battle for first innings points. On a placid pitch, Martyn played the most aggressive cameo of the match during the concluding stages to continue a romance with Bellerive that might well reach even more intense heights tomorrow. He could have been caught, either by wicketkeeper Sean Clingeleffer or first slip Daniel Marsh, when he top edged a cut at Denton with his score at a mere eight. But the two appeared to leave the potential chance to one another and, with the miss, went the Tigers’ opportunity to nip in the bud a rapid acceleration of the Western Australian run rate.”There’s a lot more batting left in our line-up and hopefully we can resurrect it tomorrow,” said Moody after play.And despite conceding that Tasmania was definitely in the box seat, the Western Australian skipper remained upbeat about the possibility that his team could still claim at least two points from the match.”There’s nearly two hundred overs left so who knows what can happen? It depends on how well we bat and how it all pans out late tomorrow and early on the fourth day.”Moody also hinted that he was slightly surprised by opposite number Jamie Cox’s decision to delay his declaration until seventy-seven minutes after lunch.”We were out there a bit longer than I expected; maybe they should have pressed on a bit quicker.”The Warriors’ bowlers and fieldsmen could have accepted at least some of the blame, though. The complexion of proceedings certainly might have been very different if they had capitalised on an excellent opening thirty minutes to the day. It was in that period that spinner Brad Oldroyd (4/90) snuck an arm ball through the defences of Young (43) and Brendon Julian (3/94) encouraged Marsh (110) to waft at an outswinger shortly after he had reached the landmark of three figures for the sixth time in his first-class career.The most crucial moment of the day loomed not long afterward when all-rounder Scott Kremerskothen (81) edged another Julian delivery to Moody at second slip with his score at six. The catch was grassed, and the visitors were left to pay a hefty price as Kremerskothen and fellow youngster Clingeleffer (50) set about adding a priceless 122 runs for the seventh Tasmanian wicket.Oldroyd finally removed Kremerskothen with a brilliant low return catch and Clingeleffer, two deliveries after raising an accomplished maiden first-class half-century, spooned a catch to cover off the bowling (the off spin bowling, no less) of Moody (2/82). By then, though, significant damage had been inflicted.”It was terrific, wasn’t it?,” said Cox of the pair’s alliance. “‘Kremer’ fell only one short of a career best and it was ‘Clinger’s first fifty, which was a good milestone … he’s done an excellent job in the first three games and we’re very pleased with the way he has come on.”Following a generally unpleasant nine hours in the field, the Western Australians encountered further annoyance when dashing opener Ryan Campbell (8) was trapped shuffling back and across his crease by David Saker (1/32). Hussey and Katich then added sixty-eight in fine style, and Martyn hit out brilliantly, but Young and Denton countered to leave the Warriors facing a big challenge to restore parity.

Scorecard

	Jon Lewis’s two wickets helped restrict Glamorgan to 202 © Getty Images

Craig Spearman and Chris Taylor led Gloucestershire to a six-wicket win against Glamorgan in the first match at the new-look Sophia Gardens. The home side struggled with the bat until Ben Wright lifted them over 200, but the stand of 106 between Spearman and Taylor swung it back Gloucestershire’s way.The Glamorgan new-ball bowlers gave their side a chance with three early wickets on a lively pitch that had some uneven bounce. Jason Gillespie had fellow Australian Marcus North caught behind after bowling Alex Gidman in the first over. When David Harrison had Hamish Marshall taken at slip Gloucestershire were struggling on 16 for 3.But Spearman played his naturally aggressive game and knocked the quick bowlers, especially Harrison, off their length with a series of strong pulls and cuts. He dominated the partnership with Taylor until being trapped lbw by Dean Cosker. However, Gloucestershire had the momentum and the required rate was never a concern. Taylor played with composure while David Brown twice cleared the boundary in his 53-ball 45 as the chase was completed with more than five overs to spare.Glamorgan were on the back foot for much of their innings and when Mark Hardinges removed Jamie Dalrymple they were 92 for 5. Wright, the former England Under-19 batsman, held the lower order together and added 55 with Alex Wharf. In the end, though, the total wasn’t enough to challenge Gloucestershire.

South/West Division

Team	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	N/R	Pts	Net RR	For	Against
Gloucestershire	4	2	1	0	1	5	+0.929	665/109.4	665/129.3
Somerset	4	2	1	0	1	5	+0.025	713/146.1	728/150.0
Glamorgan	4	1	2	0	1	3	-0.149	608/128.0	592/120.5
Worcestershire	3	1	1	0	1	3	-1.106	407/76.3	407/63.2
Hampshire	3	1	2	0	0	2	-0.161	749/129.3	750/126.1

The normally serene Southgate was victim to two ugly incidents on Monday © Martin Williamson

Middlesex’s Twenty20 Cup match against Hampshire at Southgate yesterday was marred by thieves stealing “several players'” wallets from Middlesex’s dressing room. A spokesman from Middlesex told Cricinfo that Hampshire’s team bus was also damaged by rocks thrown at it from outside the ground during the game.”As players, we make the effort to play in dangerous conditions and that’s the thanks you get,” Nic Pothas, the Hampshire wicketkeeper told the BBC. “We took a stand – we refused to sign autographs after the game. It’s very unfortunate. The windows of the bus have been smashed and the Middlesex guys have had all their valuables stolen, he said. “Last year we had an unsavoury incident when Dom Thornely got spat at at Sussex.”We are big boys. If people take the mickey out of you or comment about the way you look that’s happy days. But if people talk about what they want to do to your mother and it starts going to a more personal level then we have to take a stand. If you do that to us, then we won’t sign autographs for your kids.”Vinny Codrington, Middlesex’s chief executive, said that Pothas’s comments “were not targeted at Southgate specifically but were over Twenty20 crowds generally and we will be discussing this further with the ECB.”I am surprised to hear the suggestion that there was any verbal abuse or unruly behaviour at last night’s game. No such incidents were reported either to, or by, the stewards. Overall the atmosphere was friendly, family orientated and positive. It is a shame that two unrelated incidents by different individuals have been blown out of proportion and spoilt what was a very enjoyable evening, where much money was raised for Breakthrough Breast Cancer. Both these very unfortunate incidents caused by the individuals with no interest in Middlesex CCC or cricket in general must not be allowed to sully the reputation of our club or it’s terrific supporters.””I am, however, reviewing our stewarding for future matches at outgrounds. I will be reminding our stewards, all of whom are professionally trained, of their responsibilities prior to tomorrow night’s match at Uxbridge. We sincerely hope that all spectators will come, enjoy the day and the Twenty20 experience supporting both sides in a positive and enjoyable manner.”

Darren Lehmann swings, misses and is stumped by Luke Sutton © Getty Images

Division One

Yorkshire capitulated in the face of tight, controlled Lancashire seam bowling but ended the third day just 16 runs adrift of the follow-on target with that man, Jason Gillespie, providing another dogged tailend performance. Not for the first time this season, the Lancashire captain Mark Chilton turned to Tom Smith for a breakthrough who duly provided, bowling Matthew Wood for 13. And when Luke Sutton caught Matthew Lumb off Smith’s bowling, Yorkshire had stumbled to 99 for 3. Darren Lehmann and Anthony McGrath rallied with a fourth-wicket stand of 57, but Lehmann was outdone by Gary Keedy’s flight, allowing Sutton to whip off the bails. With the dangerman gone, Yorkshire collapses from 156 for 4 to 198 for 9 until Gillespie (39*) and Deon Kruis (21*), the No. 11, edged Yorkshire up to the follow-on target. If this last pair can knock off the final ten runs needed to avoid the follow-on, the game is as good as safe with just one day to go.Durham made slow but steady progress on the second rain-affected day against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge, but nevertheless made the most of their time in the middle to reach 332 for 6. Jonathan Lewis and Gordon Muchall extended their promising partnership last night, nothing up a vital hundred stand before Lewis was trapped lbw by Paul Franks. Gary Pratt batted cautiously for his 26 before Dale Benkenstein played the anchor innings, adding useful stands of 64 with Pratt and 47 with Gareth Breese. After a brief rain delay, Benkenstein was trapped in front by Mark Ealham for a patient 73 shortly before the close.

Division Two

Mark Ramprakash’s hundred put Surrey in control at The Oval © Getty Images

Michael di Venuto could only add a further three runs to his overnight 90, but two excellent hundreds from Steve Stubbings and Travis Birt has put Derbyshire into the comfortable position of 399 for 6 on the second day against Leicestershire at Derby. Di Venuto fell to David Masters for a fine 93, and the same bowler accounted for Chris Taylor (23) soon after. However, Stubbings continued where he left off last night to bring up his hundred and, together with Birt put on 148 for the third wicket to hand Derbyshire the advantage.Yet another hundred from Mark Ramprakash, together with useful and aggressive lower-order contributions has put Surrey in complete control of their match against Worcestershire on day two at The Oval. Ramprakash was in belligerent mood, cutting powerfully and lofting a huge six. He and Butcher (74) shared in a third-wicket stand of 156 before Ramprakash was bowled by Kabir Ali for a magnificent 118. Rikki Clarke then took up the attack in a brisk, and all too brief, 38, containing two sixes and four fours before James Benning smashed a 54-ball 52 as Surrey declared on 501 for 7. In reply, Worcestershire raced to 54 without loss, trailing by 446 runs.

South Australia have contracted four rookies for the 2005-06 domestic season.In addition to their prize recruit, Matthew Elliott, who has transferred from Victoria, the Redbacks have signed Tom Plant, Ken Skewes, Gary Putland and Shannon Hurn on rookie deals for next season. Four players who were contracted last season – Chris Duval, Jack Smith, Shannon Tubb and Luke Williams – weren’t offered new deals.SA have signed 25 players, including the Cricket Australia-contracted trio of Jason Gillespie, Shaun Tait and Daniel Cullen.Contracted players
Darren Lehmann (capt), Graham Manou (v-c), Jason Gillespie, Shaun Tait, Daniel Cullen, Greg Blewett, Matthew Elliott, Nathan Adcock, Cullen Bailey, Cameron Borgas, Ben Cameron, Mark Cleary, Mark Cosgrove, Shane Dietz, Callum Ferguson, Daniel Harris, Ryan Harris, Mark Higgs, Paul Rofe, Matthew Weeks, Trent Kelly, Tom Plant (rookie), Gary Putland (rookie), Shannon Hurn (rookie), Ken Skewes (rookie).

In an attempt to globalise the game, the International Cricket Council has announced that it plans to expand the game to 100 countries by the end of 2005. Ehsan Mani, the ICC president, was speaking at the two-day seminar organised by the Asian Cricket Council at Lahore where the issue of expansion was high on the agenda.The ICC has currently enrolled 89 countries, which includes ten full members, 27 associate members and 52 affiliate members. Mani added, “As well as increasing the number of playing countries, the ICC is targeting an improvement in the playing standards of its associate and affiliate members.”Commenting on Bangladesh struggling to put up a fight at the Test level, Mani said, “The ICC has been working very closely with the Bangladesh Cricket Board and the ACC to assist in the high performance development of the game in Bangladesh.”Mani also spoke about how the ICC had helped Kenya with their efforts to improve. “Kenya wants to play more one-day internationals and we have allocated an extra half-a-million dollars to them to further improve the quality of their game.”

The decision of the International Cricket Council to freeze $SUS2.5million of the payout due to New Zealand from the World Cup was “not unreasonable”, according to New Zealand Cricket chief executive Martin Snedden.He described the ICC action as prudent in the face of contract disputes.”I am confident that our decision not to play in Nairobi was correct and that our position is sound,” he said of New Zealand’s refusal to play the preliminary round match against Kenya.”Given the extent of the claims the ICC may face from Global Cricket Corporation it is not unreasonable for the ICC to hold monies payable to NZC, India, England and Sri Lanka until those claims have been resolved.”Obviously, if NZC ultimately receives less money than expected from the World Cup, this would have some effect on our cricket programmes, but it will be some time before the financial effects are determined,” he said.

Bottom of the table Essex pulled off a shock win against league leaders Worcestershire by 33-runs at Chelmsford with Graham Napier grabbing the headlines with a magnificent all-round performance.The 21-year-old, whose early career has been affected by a series of injuries, announced his well being with a swashbuckling 73 from only 60 balls as the home side reached 200 in a match reduced to 40 overs per side.The medium-pacer then took over with the ball to collect career-best figures of 6-29 to topple the Royals and inspire his side to only their second win of the season in the National League.Nasser Hussain, returning to first team cricket, opened the batting for Essex who won the toss, but found himself playing the understudy as he and Napier added 51 runs in eight overs for the second wicket after Darren Robinson had been dismissed for a duck.Napier scored 40 out of the first 50 with the England captain no more than an interested onlooker. Hussain had faced 24 balls and scored seven when Australian, Andy Bichel, removed his leg stump but Napier continued unperturbed, blasting 10 boundaries including four sixes before he was caught at mid-wicket.The Essex middle-order added useful contributions before Bichel returned to wrap up the innings with a hat-trick and leave his side a challenging target of 201 for victory.Despite losing Graeme Hick for 19, Worcestershire appeared on course at 122-2 but the loss of Anurag Singh for 61 – the first of Napier’s scalps when the all-rounder clipped his middle stump – sent the innings into rapid freefall.Napier continued his one-man show collecting wickets in each of his next five overs as the visitors folded completely losing their last six wickets for 24 runs to leave Essex celebrating their first victory against a first-class county since 3rd June.

Wilfried Nancy will soon have the opportunity to make his first signings as Celtic manager when the January transfer window opens for business next week.

The French head coach has lost four of his five matches in charge of the Hoops in all competitions so far, although he did win his first game against Aberdeen last weekend.

He will have learned a lot about his squad in those five matches and that could shape what he wants the club to do in the next transfer window, which is why Johnny Kenny may be in trouble.

Why Celtic need to replace Johnny Kenny

The Ireland international’s performances in the Scottish Premiership this season suggest that Celtic need to replace the striker when the January transfer window opens for business.

Celtic’s biggest xG underperformers

25/26 Premiership

xG

xG performance

Johnny Kenny

7.45

-3.45

Hyun-jun Yang

2.14

-2.14

Shin Yamada

1.47

-1.47

Kelechi Iheanacho

3.41

-1.41

Adam Idah

0.98

-0.98

Stats via WhoScored

As you can see in the table above, Kenny has been the most wasteful finisher in the entire squad, by some distance, with four goals from 7.45 xG this season.

The 22-year-old star has started the last two matches in the Premiership against Dundee United and Aberdeen, with Kelechi Iheanacho missing through injury, and struggled in both games.

In those two outings, the young Celtic centre-forward missed a whopping four ‘big chances’ to find the back of the net, from nine shots in total, and failed to score a single goal, per Sofascore.

Ultimately, Kenny has been incredibly unreliable in front of goal as the main man for the Hoops in the number nine position, which is exactly why the Scottish giants must replace him in January.

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Now, Celtic can ensure that the Irish flop does not have to start another league game for the club by adding a reported target to their squad next month.

Why Celtic should sign Evan Ferguson

Earlier this month, it was reported that the Scottish giants have been offered the chance to sign Evan Ferguson on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion, as his loan from Roma may be cut short.

Whilst it is not yet confirmed that the Irishman will be available next month, the Hoops should be pushing hard to bring him in if that aforementioned report is accurate and his loan in Italy does come to an end.

Ferguson, who has a £34m purchase option in his loan, has only scored one goal in 12 Serie A matches for Roma, per Sofascore, in what has been a frustrating spell for the young centre-forward, but he did showcase his quality in the Europa League against Celtic.

The Ireland international proved to be too hot for the Celtic defence to handle on the night, with the clip above showing that he was too sharp for Liam Scales to deal with.

Vs Celtic

Evan Ferguson

Minutes

69

Shots

3

xG

0.81

Goals

2

Touches

28

Passes completed

10/16

Key passes

1

Stats via Sofascore

Ferguson scored two goals from just 0.81 xG against the Scottish giants, which shows that he can be a clinical finisher, and that is backed up by his Premier League record with Brighton.

Prior to loan spells with West Ham and Roma, the 21-year-old number nine scored 13 Premier League goals from 10.30 xG for the Seagulls, per Understat.

The Roma loanee, who was hailed as “absolutely mustard” by U23 scout Antonio Mango, has shown that he can finish chances at an impressive rate at the top level, in the Europa League against Celtic and in the Premier League.

Subscribe for incisive Celtic transfer analysis Looking for smarter takes on Celtic transfers? Subscribing to the newsletter unlocks focused analysis of target players, finishing and xG data, and how signings would alter squad roles — valuable reading for anyone tracking Celtic recruitment and striker options. Subscribe Subscribe for incisive Celtic transfer analysis Looking for smarter takes on Celtic transfers? Subscribing to the newsletter unlocks focused analysis of target players, finishing and xG data, and how signings would alter squad roles — valuable reading for anyone tracking Celtic recruitment and striker options.

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Unfortunately, it has not quite worked out for him at Roma, with intense competition from the likes of top-quality forwards Artem Dovbyk and Paulo Dybala, but he has shown enough in his career so far to suggest that he could be a phenomenal signing for Celtic.

Ferguson is a striker who has the finishing qualities to come in and take advantage of the high-quality opportunities that the Hoops have been creating for Kenny this season.

This means that he could come in as an instant upgrade on his international teammate, who has been far too wasteful in front of goal, which would provide Nancy with a new regular starter up front.

Related Bad news for Scales: Celtic opens talks to sign "immense" star in January

Celtic have reportedly opened talks to sign a star in a deal that could spell bad news for Liam Scales.

Posts ByDan Emery

If Celtic can agree a deal to sign Ferguson on loan and manage to keep Iheanacho fit for the second half of the season, Kenny may never get the chance to start again if he ends up being the third-choice option, which would be fair based on his struggles this season.

	Sachin Tendulkar: a doubtful starter for Mumbai’s opening game on April 20 © Getty Images

Sachin Tendulkar has said he was not yet fully recovered from his groin injury, leaving him a doubtful starter for the Mumbai Indians’ opening IPL match on April 20.With just three days left for Mumbai’s first match, Tendulkar said he was still following a rehabilitation regime and was not 100% fit yet. “I am a little disappointed that I was not able to play in the two important matches against South Africa. I am yet to recover fully from the injury,” he told reporters.”The physiotherapist and the doctor had earlier advised me rest and now they have given me the exercises and I am following their advice,” he said. “There are two more days for the match. No decision has been taken as yet [whether he will play or not]. It will be decided before the 20th.”The Bangalore franchise has also been hit with a few injury concerns, with Anil Kumble set to miss their opening match on April 18. Nathan Bracken, the Australian left-arm seamer, has already been ruled out for at least four weeks and it would make the selection of the final XI a tricky process.Bangalore’s opponents for the first match of the IPL – Kolkata Knight Riders – have announced a 14-member squad for the opening match. The side, led by Sourav Ganguly, includes five foreign players – Ricky Ponting, David Hussey, Brendon McCullum, Chris Gayle and Mohammad Hafeez.The second match of the tournament features Chennai taking on Kings XI Punjab in Mohali. Yuvraj Singh, the captain of the Punjab side, has already spoken of the mini-battle that the contest is likely to throw up between him and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the captain of the Chennai franchise.”It’s a good way to build the hype (around the competition) by pitching it as Yuvraj versus Dhoni contest,” Yuvraj said. “Maybe, I will share a joke with him after the game.” Dhoni, however, will play in the side as a specialist batsman with Parthiv Patel set to keep wicket. “Dhoni has bruised fingers. We’ll see how things shape up in the next couple of days, but with Parthiv there, we don’t want to put unnecessary pressure on the Indian captain,” said Kepler Wessels, the coach of the Chennai franchise.