Chennaiyin FC appoint Gregory as Head Coach
Chennai: Chennaiyin FC on Monday appointed former Aston Villa manager John Gregory as their head coach replacing Italian Marco Materazzi. The 63-year-old Gregory has over four decades of experience as a player and coach with six appearances as 'full international' for the England national team. His coaching career started at Portsmouth and then he had spells at Plymouth Argyle and Wycombe Wanderers before his most notable four-year stint with Aston Villa in the English Premier league. Under Gregory's guidance Aston Villa finished runners-up in the 2000 FA Cup after losing to Chelsea in the last ever FA Cup Final at the Old Wembley Stadium. After leaving Aston Villa in 2002, Gregory was head coach at Derby County and Queens Park Rangers. He then had two stints in Israel at Maccabi Ahi Nazareth and FC Ashdod before moving to Kazakhstan where he coached FC Kairat. His last stint was at English third tier outfit Crawley Town.
South Africa skipper du Plessis to miss first Test
london: South Africa captain Faf du Plessis is to miss the first Test with England which gets underway on Tuesday due to family reasons, Cricket South Africa announced on their website on Monday. The 32-year-old batsman — who became only the fourth South African to score a century on his Test debut in 2012 — returned home for the birth of his first child last week, but will be unable to return in time for the opening match of the four-Test series. "Faf's wife gave birth to their first child last week but the difficult nature of the delivery has delayed his return to the UK," said South Africa team manager Dr Mohammed Moosajee. "The mother and baby have settled at home but he will be unable to make it back in time to take part in the first Test match. He will link up with the squad in the UK later this week." Opening batsman Dean Elgar will captain the side in Du Plessis' absence.
INDIAN POWERlIFTERS ClINCH GOlD AT HOllAND
New Delhi: Rajat Goel and Bhim Singh, students of Dronacharya Bhupender Dhawan and representing India for the first time at European Championship of the World Power lifting Union clinched gold medals after keenly fought tussles. The championship organized from June 30 to July 2 at Kerkdriel, Holland saw strong participation from various countries. Goel lifted gold in classic raw 110 kg weight category with a total lift of 600 kgs by defeating his close rivals from France and Netherlands while Bhim Singh clinched gold in 110 kg category by lifting 180 kg in benchpress.
Premier league & British Council join hands with SAI
new delhi: Premier Skills, in association with the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) initiated a coach education programme that aims to bring football enthusiasts together and equip them with the skills, knowledge and confidence required to create sustainable communities and a greater understanding of the role football can play in tackling other social issues. This week-long training program for 60 football coaches from the Sports Authority of India, Delhi Soccer Association and Kendriya Vidyalaya schools came to an end on 2 July at Jawaharlal Nehru stadium amidst a celebratory closing event. The Coach Education Programme was led by Jeremy Weeks, Premier Skills head coach who was supported by Tom Hughes, an early-years coach with Manchester City in the Community, and Elliot Sutcliffe, a coach with Manchester City.
I'll urge Pacquiao to quit: trainer Roach
Bangkok: While controversy raged over the scoring of Sunday's World Boxing Organization welterweight title bout in Brisbane, after all three judges awarded it to unbeaten Horn, there were doubts whether 38-year-old Pacquiao would return for a possible rematch. Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach said he would consider advising Pacquiao to retire after a glittering 22-year professional career in which he won world titles at an unprecedented eight weight divisions. "I'm going to talk to Manny about maybe calling it a day, maybe this is it," Roach said. Given no chance by most observers, the 29-year-old Horn's ultra-aggressive style rocked Pacquiao, with the three judges scoring the fight 117-111, 115-113 and 115-113 to the Australian before 51,000 fans at Suncorp Stadium. Pacquiao, (59-7-2) who insisted on a Brisbane rematch as a clause in his contract for the fight, declared however that he would "absolutely" return for a rematch. Agencies