Bangladesh Cricket Board announced a 13-member squad including three left-arm spinners for the first Test against Zimbabwe beginning on January 6 at the Chittagong MA Aziz Stadium. Habibul Bashar will lead the side as usual and Khaled Mashud will act as his deputy.
   The selectors brought Enamul Haque Jr into the team expecting to dominate the visitors by his wily spin.
   All-rounder Mushfiqur Rahman and Nazmul Hossain did not find their places in the squad but another left-arm spinner Manjarul Islam survived the axe as he bats well too.
   ‘Mushfiqur was not impressive against India and the selectors were also uninterested about a seaming all-rounder this time from strategic points of view.
   ‘As we have taken a different strategy we emphasised on specialist bowlers especially the spinners. So we included three left-arm spinners against Zimbabwe,’ said chief selector Faruque Ahmed.
   Praising Enamul Jr as the second best spinner of Bangladesh Faruque said, ‘we picked Enamul against New Zealand but not against India. Again he retuned in the team as the new opponents are weak against spin. Naturally a team is reshuffled taking into account the different conditions and opponents. Talha Jubair, who had a nightmare with ball against India, still managed a place in the squad and the chief selector said he has faith in the medium pacer.
   ‘The performances of Talha against India may not be impressive but we have to realise which team and batmen were his opponents. We have faith in him and hope he will do better against Zimbabwe. We discussed about Alok Kapali’s inclusion in the team but he has not fully recovered from injury. He will be considered for the second Test,’ added the chief selector.
   Faruque made it clear that despite some encouraging performance by Khaled Mahmud he will not be considered for the Test team.
   ‘He is a one-day specialist and will play only one-day cricket,’ he said.
   The Bangladesh team will leave for Chittagong in the morning today and will do a light practice at the MA Aziz Stadium in the evening the same day.
   Squad: Habibul Bashar (captain), Khaled Mashud, Nafees Iqbal Khan, Javed Omar, Mohammad Ashraful, Rajin Saleh, Aftab Ahmed, Enamul Haque Jr, Mohammad Rafique, Tapash Baisya, Mashrafee bin Mortaza, Talha Jubair and Manjural Islam Rana.

Zimbabwe (384/3) lead BCB XI (316/7 dec) by 68 runs at stumps, day 2
   Two patient centuries by Stuart Matsikenyeri and Vusimuzi Sibanda helped Zimbabwe score 384 runs losing just three wickets and dominate the whole second day of the three-day match against BCB XI at the Chittagong Divisional Stadium on Sunday. The visitors have taken a 68-run lead as the Board XI scored 316 runs in their first innings for seven wickets before declaring on the first day.
   Two Zimbabweans, Hamilton Masakadza and Brendan Taylor, were undefeated on 26 and 11 runs respectively at stumps with the match heading towards an inevitable draw. After some encouraging performances by the home side it was the visitors’ turn to prove they are capable of adapting to the new condition quickly.
    Matsikenyeri was the hero of the day for his 150 and then accepting the retired out. He struck 17 boundaries and two sixes during his 331-minute stay at the crease.
   Sibanda scored 122 runs off 220 balls including 16 boundaries and one spectacular six. The duo added 241 runs for the second wicket to put the visitors in commanding position.
   In the morning, Matsikenyeri resumed the innings with Barney Rogers with overnight collection 12 and 18 runs respectively. Rogers retuned to the pavilion scoring 44 runs.
   Captain Rajin Saleh used seven bowlers to tame the Zimbabweans but was not successful.

National stars, Habibul Bashar, Khaled Masud and Javed Omar, were the architects of the facile wins of their teams Mohammedans, Victoria and Brothers Union in the Green Delta Premier Cricket on Sunday. Victoria defeated Uttara by six wickets, Brothers Union beat Abahani by 22 runs and Mohammedans outplayed Young Pegasus by 59 runs.
   Victoria crush Uttara
   Champions Victoria faced no trouble overcoming Uttara’s 200 for six in the Dhanmondi Cricket Stadium losing four wickets as national keeper Khaled Masud hammered 72 off 75 balls featuring eight fours and one six to lead his team to an easy victory. Fahad Khan (30), Md Selim (22 not out) helped Victoria to reach the target with 5.1 overs to spare.
   Earlier, Golam Rahman’s 60, Anisul Hakim’s 37 and a whirlwind 48 off 46 balls with six fours by Asadullah Khan took Uttara to a fighting total. Md Shahajada was the most successful bowler grabbing three wickets for 42 runs. Khaled Masud took home the man of the match trophy.
   Brothers trounce Abahani
   National opener Javed Omar, playing at number four, steered Brothers Union to a fighting total of 219 by scoring 60 off 75 balls with three fours. Skipper Halim Shah chipped in with 55 off 94 balls with two fours. The other notable contributors were Mustadir Litu (20), Aftab Ahmed (15) and the 28 extras. Abahani felt the absence of their regular skipper Naimur Rahman who was out of the match due to an injury.
   Abahani, losing their first four wickets within 74 runs, were in the back foot from the very beginning and never gained the momentum and ultimately was bowled out for 197. Opener Imran Ahmed (38), Sri Lankan world cup winner Kumara Dharmasena 54 off 62 balls featuring six fours and one six and 24 and 29 from Neeyamur Rashid Rahul and Shamimul Huq Bidyut reduced the margin of the loss. Javed Omar earned the man of the match award.
   Easy win for Mohammedans
   National captain Habibul Bashar found some runs with the bat before taking the national duties as his 59 off 69 balls with four boundaries and one six set the tone for Mohammedans at the Fatullah stadium. Nafees Iqbal (21), Shahriar Hossain (20), Parvez Ahmed (48) and Kenyan star Steve Tikolo (47) enabled Mohammedans to compile 229 for nine.
   Young Pegasus later reached 175 for nine in the stipulated 48 overs. Junaid Siddique (38), Sharifullah (35), Riaz Shiekh (26), and Rezwanul Islam (20) were the main contributors. Md Rafique and Arafat Sunny captured two wickets each conceding 25 and 27 runs respectively. Habibul Bashar was adjudged the man of the match.

Pakistan (292/9) against Australia at stumps, day 1
   Pakistan lost eight wickets for just 87 runs to slump to 292 for nine and squander a brilliant start by Salman Butt and Yasir Hameed on the opening day of the third and final Test with Australia on Sunday.
   Butt celebrated his maiden Test hundred with a fine 108 while Yasir blazed 58.
   However, their efforts were wasted when the tourists’ batting crumbled yet again as it did in the previous two Tests which ended in heavy defeats.
   Recalled leg-spinner Stuart MacGill captured five wickets while in-form paceman Glenn McGrath bagged three to leave the Pakistanis struggling when play ended early at the Sydney Cricket Ground because of bad light.
   Butt and Yasir put on 102 for the opening stand. Butt also shared a 91-run partnership with Younis Khan to help the tourists race to 193-1 when the wheels suddenly fell off.
   Younis departed for 46 when he drove MacGill straight to McGrath at mid-off, triggering a collapse that included the loss of three wickets in seven balls without any addition to the scoreboard.
   MacGill, playing his first Test in nine months after he pulled out of Australia’s tour of Zimbabwe last year on moral grounds, ripped through the opposition to finish the day with 5-87.
   McGrath, who took career-best figures of 8-24 in the first Test in Perth, claimed 3-38 including two wickets in one over while Shane Warne took 1-84.
   With the team ravaged by injury, Pakistan were not expected to provide much opposition for the Australians.
   But they defied the odds during the first two sessions of play with a determined display, albeit with a little bit of help from the Australians.
   Yasir could not believe his luck when he was dropped on successive balls in the second over of the day from paceman Jason Gillespie.
   Warne spilled a straightforward chance at first slip off Gillespie’s third delivery then wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist failed to hold a thick edge off the next ball.
   Yasir struck six boundaries and hooked Australian debutant Shane Watson for six to reach 54 at lunch. He was dropped again on 56 but his luck eventually ran out on 58 when he top-edged a sweep from Warne to Michael Clarke with the total on 102.
   Butt was initially less aggressive than his partner but raised the tempo after lunch.
   He brought up his second half-century of the series with a boundary off MacGill then reached his first Test hundred with a four off Warne.
   Pakistan lost Younis just before tea but were still in a strong position at 205-2 before their dismal collapse in the last session.
   Stand-in captain Yousuf Youhana fell for eight then Butt’s innings, which had spanned more than 4-1/2 hours and featured 16 fours, ended on 108 when he was caught by Gilchrist off McGrath.
   MacGill removed Asim Kamal for 10 then Shahid Afridi for 12 after the one-day specialist got off the mark with a six then threw his wicket away by hitting a waist-high full toss to McGrath in the deep.
   McGrath trapped Naved-ul-Hasan leg before wicket for a golden duck then clean bowled Shoaib Akhtar without scoring in the same over.
   MacGill completed his five wicket haul when he had Danish Kaneria caught behind but wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal at least kept the innings alive with an unbeaten 35 when the fading light forced the players off the field half an hour early.

Usha took a giant step towards their maiden hockey title routing strong contenders Mariners by 4-0 goals in the Green Delta Insurance Premier Hockey League at the Moulana Bhasani Stadium on Sunday.
   Pakistani forward Md Naeem’s hat-trick enabled Usha to earn their 10th win and a comfortable position at the top of the table.
   Usha, however, were not celebrating their big win as they were bidding farewell to their Pakistani trio – Md Nadeem, Md Naeem and Sajjad Anwar – who left Dhaka on Sunday night to participate in the Pakistan National Championship for their respective teams.
   Usha now have the ultimate challenge of facing Mohammedans and Abahani with their local recuits. Abahani, the second-placed team in the table, are two points behind Usha’s 30 and if Usha slip up Abahani will have the last laugh.
   Mariners were a cornered side from the very beginning as Usha dominated the scene with Nadim and Naeem in full flow. Mariners earned six penalty corners against Usha’s none but failed to convert any of them. Naeem opened his account through an opportunistic strike in the 12th minute.
   After receiving a forward pass from Rahul, Shuvo took a weak reverse hit from the top of the box that caught the Mariner defenders and the custodian on the wrong foot and Naeem neatly pushed the ball into the net.
   Naeem increased the margin in the 20th minute when he rushed past two defenders and put the ball in from a hand-shaking distance.
   Sixteen minutes after the lemon break Naeem completed his hat-trick slamming home with a strong angular hit after a Shuvo square pass.
   Md Nadim, the former Pakistani captain, showed his class when he scored the fourth in the penultimate minute shrugging off four Mariners defenders for his farewell goal.
   Mariners with two consecutive losses in the Super Five phase remained on 18 points.
   Abahani-MSC derby today
   Abahani have brought in Kuhan Shanmuganathan, the Malaysian captain having a 274-international match experience, as their third fireign recruit.
   He will take the field in the crucial tie against Mohammedans today.
   The 28-year-old midfielder completed his registration procedure as the first Malaysian player to play for a local side.
   ‘I have heard about Dhaka hockey from my good friend Dhanraj Pillay and I came here to gain a different experience, I am ready to perform to the best of my ability,’ said Kuhan. Abahani skipper Rajiv said his team are now more motivated after the inclusion of a world class player.
   Mohammedans captain Prince was upbeat about his chances. ‘We will fight till the last and we are motivated to give the best against our arch-rivals.

South Africa (164/3) against England at tea, day 1
   South African captain Graeme Smith survived a contentious caught behind decision but failed to capitalise as his side advanced to 164 for three at tea on the first day of the third Test against England on Sunday.
   Jacques Kallis was 47 not out with Boeta Dippenaar on eight at the break.
   Smith, who had earlier won the toss was on 70 when he bottom-edged a delivery from left-arm spinner Ashley Giles on to his pad and was caught behind by wicketkeeper Geraint Jones.
   As the England players rushed to congratulate Giles, Smith was given not out by umpire Daryl Harper. Television replays showed the left-hander clearly hitting the ball.
   Smith later slashed at a flighted delivery from Giles shortly after, took a thick edge and the ball ballooned off Jones’s leg to Marcus Trescothick at slip for him to be dismissed for 74.
   Gibbs chose not to play a delivery from Hoggard that was pitched marginally outside his off stump only for it to seam back and hit the stumps. He scored four.
   Smith and Jacques Rudolph steadied South Africa with a second-wicket stand of 61.
   Their resistance ended when Rudolph (26) was caught by wicketkeeper Jones off fast bowler Simon Jones just before the break.
   Andrew Flintoff ended the session with figures of nought for 30 from 12 overs.

Cricket’s world stars on Sunday signalled their support for victims of the overwhelming Asian tsunami by agreeing to play in the first of two benefit matches in Melbourne next week.
   Former Australian captain Steve Waugh will coach and manage a World XI which contains five Australians and four Test captains for the match against an Asian XI at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on January 10.
   Champion leg-spinner Shane Warne, who has come out of limited overs retirement to lend his services, joins Australian team-mates Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden, Glenn McGrath and Ricky Ponting, who will lead the side.
   Other top cricketers include Brian Lara and Stephen Fleming, captains of West Indies and New Zealand.
   The Asian XI, expected to include players from India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh, will be named Monday.
   A return match will be played in February in either India or Sri Lanka, the two cricket nations to have endured the worst from the Boxing Day disaster.
   International Cricket Council (ICC) chief executive Malcolm Speed said he expected the match at the 80,000-capacity MCG to raise “millions of dollars” through ground entry, sponsorship, television rights, ground collections and a telethon.
   ‘Cricket has a focus on the Indian Ocean. Many of our countries have a border on it,’ Speed said here on Sunday.
   ‘Cricket is the most popular sport in India and Sri Lanka. It’s important that worldwide we step up and show ... that we are capable of providing assistance, and capable of providing aid.
   ‘The response has been unanimous. Everyone right around the cricket world has said ‘we must do what we can’.
   ‘Any differences or rivalries that might have existed have disappeared.’
   The Australians wanted to be involved in the special match through their cricketing bonds with India and Sri Lanka, having toured both countries last year.
   Warne made his Test return from a drugs suspension at Galle, an area where thousands of people died and where the cricket ground was ravaged by the tsunami.
   The Australians also have a special bond with Madras in southern India - scene of the tied Test match in 1986 and where the Australians played just over three months ago.
   Waugh, who has his own charitable foundation in India, was especially keen to lend his services, and chose the world team with former New Zealand great Richard Hadlee.
   ‘Steve wants to do whatever he can ... it’s typical of Steve’s approach to charity,’ Speed said.
   The West Indians have three in the team - Lara, Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo - although they may struggle to get all three to play as they have only 14 players in Australia and one-day matches on either side of the January 10 game.
   ‘Certainly we’ll have representatives there because it’s something we want to support, but with only 11 (left) if we get any injuries or whatever we still have a commitment to play Australia A,’ said coach Bennett King.
   The December 26 tsunami, which was triggered by an earthquake off the coast of Indonesia’s Aceh province, has officially killed 127,000 people with the toll mounting.
   Rest of the World: Ricky Ponting (Aus/capt), Matthew Hayden (Aus), Adam Gilchrist (Aus), Stephen Fleming (NZ), Brian Lara (WI), Chris Gayle (WI), Chris Cairns (NZ), Shane Warne (Aus), Glenn McGrath (Aus), Dwayne Bravo (WI), Darren Gough (Eng), Daniel Vettori (NZ) (12th man to be named). Coach/manager: Steve Waugh (Aus).

England have been given an even chance of reclaiming the Ashes from Australia this year by former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram.
   ‘For the first time in eight years I can see a side which can compete on even terms with Australia,’ Akram told Reuters on Sunday.
   The left arm fast bowler who retired after the 2003 World Cup with a haul of 414 Test and 502 one-day international wickets said England had formed a very good team and can win the Ashes this summer at home.
   ‘I tell you it is going to be one hell of an interesting series. Australia obviously is the best these days. But guys like Andrew Flintoff, Steve Harmison and Andrew Strauss are mature players and have made England a very competitive and dangerous outfit.’
   While Australia completed five Test series wins last year including a first win in India in 35 years, England won 11 matches and drew two in the same period.
   The Australians have also won the last two World Cups in 1999 and 2003.
   Akram who played for 10 years with English county side Lancashire said the Australians were a first rate side at absorbing pressure and were mentally very strong.
   ‘And England is also getting there. That is why the Ashes this time could go either way,’ he added.
   Akram, now a commentator, said the Ashes rubber would be a big boost for the sport.
   ‘I don’t agree with the argument that cricket has stagnated due to the complete dominance of the Australians. They have set a benchmark for other teams and it is intriguing waiting to see which side dethrones them.’
   He also felt there should be no surprise over Pakistan being outclassed by Australia in the ongoing Test series.
   ‘I don’t know why people are so surprised. Pakistan went to Australia with a very inexperienced batting line-up. And I know that not only Pakistan but other teams have also struggled with more experienced players.’
   Akram gave his team a slim chance of doing well in the triangular one-day series with Australia and West Indies.
   ‘One-day cricket is unpredictable but it will take a lot of guts for our team to recover from the Test series battering.’

New West Indies cricket coach Bennett King says there are no problems in his working relationship with team captain Brian Lara.
   The West Indies arrived here Sunday to prepare for their triangular one-day series with Australian and Pakistan throughout January-February.
   King, the former head coach of the Cricket Australia Centre of Excellence, said he would have to do things differently with Lara, the side’s batting superstar, because of his standing in the game.
   King admitted 35-year-old Lara would follow his own training regime because of his age and experience, but said talk the left-hander was difficult to manage was way off the mark.
   ‘At the moment I don’t know where it (talk) comes from and I was conscious of going in with an open book and having heard all the rumours and all the innuendo and making my own opinion,’ King told a media conference shortly after the 14-man squad’s arrival here.
   ‘But from my point of view, he smiles at me every day and I smile at him every day, so it goes all right.’
   King said there was no problem unifying a side containing players from all over the Caribbean.
   But he added he would take a different approach to coaching Lara—a veteran of 112 Tests and 244 one-day internationals—because of his age, experience and place in the team.
   ‘We’ve got to be mindful of his longevity in the game and how we manage him so we get the best out of Brian for as long as he wants to play,’ King said.
   ‘Some people need to be treated differently and sometimes when you... start maturing, you need to also be adaptable to some of their needs and the players around them and the (other) players need to understand that too.
   ‘He’s had 35 years in cricket and he’s hit 10 million cricket balls in his career as it is, whereas a 20-year-old’s probably hit about 200,000 so it’s not going to take Brian that long to get into pretty good shape.’
   The West Indies’ lead-up to their arrival in Australia was dominated by fears the side’s best players—Lara among them—would not tour because of a sponsorship-related contract dispute.
   But Bennett was never in doubt the dispute would be resolved and said finding the resources to train his players properly had been of greater concern.
   ‘It’s been a pleasure to work with these boys from the islands and the limiting factor for them is... the amount of resources that are available within the Caribbean to consistently train and put in the hours that some of the other nations have the opportunity to,’ he said.
   King said his first goal was to have his side perform more consistently after it endured an fluctuating 2004 in which the West Indies lost a Test series to England at home, yet bounced back in September to win the Champions Trophy one-day tournament.
   The West Indies play Victoria in a day-night match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Wednesday, before matches against Australia A in Hobart next week.
   They launch the tri-series against Australia at the MCG on January 14.

Argentina drew first blood in the main draw of the Hopman Cup mixed teams tennis tournament here Sunday but had to sweat more than they expected to overcome Italy 2-1.
   The fourth-seeded Argentinian pairing of Gisela Dulko and Guillermo Coria had been tipped to win easily against the unseeded Italians but in the end the Group A tie came down to the decisive mixed doubles.
   World number 24 Francesca Schiavone had given the Italians a dream start at the Burswood Dome when she dispensed with a lacklustre Dulko in straight sets 6-1, 6-3.
   But things turned sour for Italy in the men’s singles when Davide Sanguinetti, who already faced an uphill battle to overcome world number seven Guillermo Coria, twisted his left ankle in the second game.
   Coria then powered through the set dropping just one game before the 110th-ranked Sanguinetti managed to shrug off the injury and fight back—taking the second set to a tie-break which he eventually lost 7/4.
   Sanguinetti then had to back up immediately afterwards in the doubles where he and Schiavone broke the Argentinian pair twice in the opening set but couldn’t maintain the advantage, eventually losing it 7-5 then caving in 6-0 on the final set.
   Dulko, who lifted her game dramatically in the doubles, said she was relieved to get the tie behind her.
   The 19-year-old rising star from Buenos Aires ranked 33 in the world had earlier seemed tentative in her Hopman Cup debut, making 46 unforced errors to virtually hand the match to her opponent.
   She started with a flourish, breaking Schiavone’s service in the first game, but then capitulated to lose the next six games in just 24 minutes.
   The Argentinian then struggled throughout the match to get her forehand working while Schiavone’s backhand was in impressive form.
   The first of the Group B matches will be played on Monday when the Australian pair of Mark Philippoussis and Alicia Molik take on the third-seeded Slovak Republic duo of Daniela Hantuchova and Dominik Hrbaty.
   Philippoussis is attempting to re-start his flagging career which has seen his ranking drop 100 places to 109 in the last 12 months while Molik is steadily climbing the women’s rankings and is aiming for a top 10 berth.
   Later on today favourites Russia, made up of Marat Safin—who arrived in Perth on Sunday after being honoured by the Russian Government on New Year’s eve—and French Open winner Anastasia Myskina will take on Germany’s Tommy Haas and Anna-Lena Groenefeld.

Batsman Damien Martyn was Sunday announced as the winner of the McGilvray Medal as the Australian Broadcasting Corpo-ration’s Test Cricketer of the Year.
   Martyn was presented with the medal by Australian prime minister John Howard after the opening day’s play in the third and final cricket Test against Pakistan at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday. The McGilvray Medal, voted by a panel of ABC radio commentators, honours Alan McGilvray, the voice of cricket on ABC Radio for more than 50 years.

Australian cricket fans at the opening day of the final Test against Pakistan at the Sydney Cricket Ground Sunday donated a total of 55,275 US dollars to the Asian tsunami relief fund, officials said.
   Organisers are expected to revise their target of 100,000 dollars for more fund-raising over the remaining four scheduled days of the SCG Test.
   A special match has been arranged on January 10 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground between a Rest of the World XI and an Asian XI with all proceeds going to the relief fund.
   Ricky Ponting will lead the Rest of the World side, which also includes world cricket stars Brian Lara, Shane Warne, Adam Gilchrist, Glenn McGrath, Stephen Fleming, Matthew Hayden and Darren Gough.
   The Asian team will be announced today.

Arsenal and Manchester United both won to maintain their pursuit but they will be painfully aware of how close Chelsea came to dropping at least a couple of points at Anfield.
   Fourth-placed Everton’s challenge faltered further as they suffered a 5-2 hammering at the hands of on-form Tottenham, their second successive defeat.
   Arsenal suffered a brief scare when Talal El Karkouri cancelled out Freddie Ljungberg’s 35th-minute opener with a long-range free-kick just before half-time.
   But the Swede restored his side’s lead three minutes after the restart and Dutch winger Robin van Persie completed an ultimately comfortable win for the Gunners.
   Darren Fletcher’s first goal for Manchester United, a ninth minute tap-in, and Ryan Giggs’s third in as many games secured the points at Middlesbrough. United have now taken 25 points from the 27 available in their last nine matches.
   ‘We’re in a great vein of form at the moment,’ said United boss Alex Ferguson. ‘We are playing with great conviction and consistency and it’s pleasing to see.’
   Dean Marney, a product of Tottenham’s youth development programme, scored twice as Spurs ran riot against a weary looking Everton at White Hart Lane.
   Reto Ziegler, Pedro Mendes and Robbie Keane also found the net while Tim Cahill and James McFadden responded for the visitors.
   In Saturday’s other action, Andy Cole scored twice as Fulham won for the first time in nine matches with a 3-1 victory over Crystal Palace, a result that sends Palace back into the relegation zone. Peruvian midfielder Nolberto Solano grabbed a late winner for Aston Villa at home to Blackburn.
   El Hadji Diouf brought an end to Bolton’s six-match losing streak with an 85th-minute equaliser that denied bottom side West Brom, who had gone ahead in the 13th minute through Zoltan Gera, their second win of the season.
   The New Year also brought an improvement in the fortunes of Newcastle, first half goals from Shola Ameobi and Lee Bowyer proving enough to secure a 2-1 win over Birmingham, for whom Emile Heskey pulled one back just after the hour mark.
   Norwich City leapfrogged Crystal Palace and moved out of the bottom three after securing a point in a 1-1 draw at Portsmouth.
   Damien Francis had put them ahead but Pompey equalised just after the hour mark with a penalty from Yakubu Aiyegbeni that the Nigerian striker had to take three times because of players moving into the box on the first two, successful, attempts.
   Southampton remained mired in deep trouble after a 2-1 defeat at Manchester City.
   An early strike from Paul Bosvelt and a superb solo effort from Shaun Wright-Phillips put City in control of the match and Southampton’s only consolation was a last-minute penalty from Kevin Phillips.

Sir Alex Ferguson praised the confidence in the Manchester United camp after Saturday’s 2-0 win against Middlesbrough ensured his team remained in touch with fellow title candidates Chelsea and Arsenal.
   Goals from Darren Fletcher and Ryan Giggs assured United of a comfortable win against Boro and their manager Steve McClaren, Ferguson’s former assistant, who has enjoyed great success against United since leaving the club for the Riverside in 2001.
   ‘We’re in a great vein of form,’ said Ferguson. ‘We have been playing with great conviction and consistency and that’s pleasing to see.
   ‘For 15 minutes after half-time they changed their tactics and played with five across midfield. That was their best period of the game. But we weathered the storm and got back into it by changing our tactics and we ran out good winners.
   ‘It’s never comfortable coming to a place like this. He (McClaren) has built a very good team and they have a passionate crowd. The result went our way, that’s the most-important thing.
   ‘We can challenge if we keep going. We have to be patient. We have to keep playing the way we have been doing. Our form has been terrific and all over the pitch we have great commitment, conviction and determination.
   ‘It’s much too early to talk about winning it though. There are 16 or 17 games still to play and we just have to wait and see.’
   United’s win was all the more impressive coming without injured Louis Saha and Ruud van Nistelrooy and with Wayne Rooney serving the first of a three-match suspension – a state of affairs which left Alan Smith as the only striker in Ferguson’s squad.
   ‘It was vital to get three points,’ said Smith after a win that left third-placed United nine points behind leaders Chelsea and four back of champions Arsenal.
   ‘Playing after everyone else puts that much pressure on you. But we’re confident in ourselves. There is a great team spirit and we put up a good performance.
   ‘At Fulham a couple of weeks ago we let the lead slip after dominating but the lads have responded well,’ the former Leeds United forward added.
   ‘I’m not complaining about playing on my own up front, I’m enjoying every minute of it. We have to keep on winning whoever is injured.
   ‘We have a big squad and a good enough squad to keep on winning and there are experienced players in the dressing room who have been there before. We have each of the teams above us still to play so we will be up there right until the end.’
   The only concern for United was an injury to Cristiano Ronaldo who limped out of the action with an unspecified ankle problem, leaving him doubtful for United’s Premiership clash with Tottenham at Old Trafford on Tuesday.
   Ferguson added, ‘It is very painful and we will have to see after he comes in for treatment tomorrow (Sunday).’
   For a disappointed McClaren, United’s display confirmed the strength of his former club’s title challenge.
   ‘When you see their focus, you can see that they think they can win the title again,’
   said McClaren. ‘We had possession but taking chances is what separates the men from the boys.
   ‘The quality of their players was there for everyone to see. You have to pass the ball well and we didn’t do that. We gave away two poor goals and didn’t pass to our usual standards.
   ‘I think you’ll see from this period on, the top three teams will pull away. That’s evident - they know they can’t afford to lose a game now.
   ‘You see these teams play with a different focus and tempo now. I think there’s a gap. Sometimes you can bridge it, but we had key personnel missing.’

Brazil World Cup star Roberto Carlos, continually thwarted in his pay demands at Real Madrid, denied press reports Sunday that he wants to leave the Spanish giants and said he had turned down an offer from London’s Chelsea.
   ‘I can confirm that there was the possibility to leave to join Chelsea. However I felt it would be better for me to stay in Madrid,’ he told Portuguese daily newspaper Correio da Manha.
   Arguably the world’s most famous left back, the speedy Brazilian joined Real in 1996 from Italian side Inter Milan and his contract with Real Madrid runs to 2007.
   The 31-year-old has publicly complained in the past over Real’s refusal to put him on the same wages as top-earners Raul, Luis Figo, Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo and David Beckham who all pick up six million euros free of tax a year.
   Last month Spanish media reported that Roberto Carlos, who is strongly linked with a move to Premiership leaders Chelsea next summer, had demanded a transfer after Real Madrid dropped him from the team’s 3-2 league win over Racing Santander on December 18.
   ‘I don’t know where they got that story from. I never said I wanted to leave, I feel very good at Madrid. I am not leaving unless management and the coach want me to,’ he said.

Newcastle United and Liverpool have been hit by major injury worries as the gruelling Christmas and New Year schedule begins to exact a heavy toll in the Premiership.
   As clubs face their fourth outing inside nine days, Newcastle Graeme Souness found his celebrations, at seeing his side end their seven-game winless run against Birmingham on Saturday, cut short by a shortage of strikers ahead of Monday’s visit to bottom club West Brom.
   Welsh striker Craig Bellamy, whose career has been haunted by injuries, limped out of the 2-1 win with a knee injury and joins skipper Alan Shearer and Patrick Kluivert on the sidelines.
   Stand-in striker Shola Ameobi, who scored one of the goals on Saturday, has been playing through the pain barrier with a shoulder problem in his last two games.
   But it’s the injury to Bellamy, who has already undergone five knee operations during his career, that is causing Souness his greatest worry.
   ‘Craig came off with a knee injury and we will have to see what that is on Sunday,’ said the coach.
   ‘He did not get a bang on it, it has just come on as the game has gone on. I do not think he got a bang on it anyway.’
   Shearer’s planned comeback stalled after the veteran damaged a calf muscle in training on Friday while Kluivert is still suffering from a hamstring strain.
   Liverpool, now 18 points behind leaders Chelsea after losing 1-0 to the Londoners on Saturday, go to Norwich Monday with injury worries of their own.
   Djibril Cisse is already out for the season with a broken leg while top-scorer Milan Baros is unlikely to play at Norwich joining Harry Kewell sidelines.
   To add to his problems, Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez lost Xabi Alonso for at least five weeks after picking up an ankle injury against Chelsea.
   ‘We are losing an important player now seemingly every week. Maybe we need 30 players in our squad to cope,’ said the frustrated Benitez.
   In Monday’s other matches, Blackburn face Charlton while Crystal Palace take on Aston Villa.

Southampton boss Harry Redknapp has given James Beattie 48 hours to let him know where he is going after revealing Everton and Aston Villa have had £6.5 million bids for the England striker accepted.
   Beattie was again omitted from the Saints’ squad this afternoon as Redknapp saw his team slump to a 2-1 defeat at Manchester City to remain marooned in the relegation zone.
   And, after giving Everton and Villa permission to speak to the 26-year-old, the new Saints boss is demanding a quick answer so he can launch a much-needed rebuilding programme.
   ‘James is talking to Everton and talking to Villa and we should get an answer by Monday,’ said Redknapp.
   ‘The fee is around £6.5million but Blackburn will get quite a bit of that as part of the deal that brought James here, so there is no way I will get all the money.
   ‘To be honest, I don’t care if I have nothing to spend, just so long as I can bring players in because if we don’t, it will be very hard to stay up.
   ‘If you look back over the past 12 months, we have won just seven games and picked up a few draws and 30 points would not keep you in this division.’
   Redknapp admitted the task of preserving Southampton’s top-flight status is far harder than he imagined when he agreed to succeed Steve Wigley in the Saints hot-seat last month.
   The new manager has still not seen his team record a victory since taking charge and is desperate to inject some pace into a squad that was ripped apart by Shaun Wright-Phillips this afternoon.
   ‘I need real pace all over the pitch,’ said Redknapp, who denied suggestions that he had made an approach for Newcastle centre-half Titus Bramble.
   ‘We are working hard but we lack certain ingredients, which is why we are in the position we are.
   ‘I don’t know where I am going to find the players I need but I will not be looking abroad. To get out of this, we will need people who have Premiership experience.’
   Clearly, Wright-Phillips is a man who will remain out of Redknapp’s price range.
   City chairman John Wardle has already claimed even a £20 million bid would not be enough to prise Wright-Phillips from Eastlands and his value to Kevin Keegan’s squad was never more obvious than it was today.
   Time and again the little winger ran the Saints defence ragged, capping a superb performance with an outstanding first half goal.
   Having picked the ball up close to the halfway line, Wright-Phillips danced past David Prutton and Matt Oakley before drilling a 25-yard shot beyond Saints’ beleaguered keeper Antti Niemi.
   ‘It wasn’t what Shaun did today, it was what he nearly did,’ said Keegan.
   ‘He didn’t have any luck whatsoever, someone always seemed to get in the way of him.
   ‘There is no doubt he is our most important player and I wouldn’t advocate selling him even if we got a massive offer. What kind of message would that send out?’

Former England football international Paul Gascoigne was gravely ill in hospital Sunday suffering from pneumonia and a possible collapsed lung, Britain’s News of the World tabloid said.
   Gascoigne, the 37-year-old former midfield dynamo popularly known as Gazza, collapsed at home on Saturday night and was rushed to London’s Princess Grace hospital, Britain’s best-selling tabloid reported.
   ‘Paul began feeling very unwell two or three days ago. He has pneumonia and a possible collapsed lung. They’re testing for other problems,’ his agent, Alex Armitage, told the newspaper.
   ‘He’s serious. It’s a possibility he’s got 101 things wrong with him,’ Armitage was quoted as saying.
   ‘It’s bloody awful, pneumonia. But he’s in hospital and being very well looked after with his loved ones all around him,’ he added.

Spanish football coach Luis Aragones should be punished following his latest racist comments, British sports minister Richard Caborn said.
   Aragones has in the past insulted Arsenal striker Thierry Henry and he has further brought about controversy after saying Jose Antonio Reyes was ‘a gypsy.’
   Aragones faces disciplinary action from the Spanish FA, who have launched an investigation into the coach telling Reyes that he was better than ‘that black Henry’.
   Caborn wants action taken by the Spanish FA and soon. 'When it comes to racism there should be absolute zero tolerance,' Caborn told the Sunday Mirror.
   'Punishing him is a decision that should have been taken some time ago. 'These latest comments by the Spanish manager only serve to confirm my view that there is an urgent need for strong action by the Spanish FA.'
   Caborn also criticised FIFA over the world governing body's decision to fine the Spanish only 45,000 pounds (64,000 euros) for racist taunts aimed at England's black players during November's friendly and under-21 matches.
   'FIFA missed an opportunity to stamp its authority and take some sort of symbolic action,' said Caborn.

Jim Dyet marks his debut for King’s Park with an astonishing eight goals in his side’s 12-1 win over Forfar in the Scottish Second Division. In so doing, Dyet sets the record for the most goals scored on a full debut in the history of British football. Another impressive first-day feat was that of Len Shackleton, who in 1946 grabbed six in his debut for Newcastle in a 13-0 thrashing of Notts County. Among the list of famous footballers who have marked their arrival at new clubs with a comparatively modest hat-trick are Jimmy Greaves, Alan Shearer, Luther Blisset, Tony Cottee, Ian Wright, Fabrizio Ravanelli, Stan Collymore, Jermaine Pennant and more recently Wayne Rooney.