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It could be said that England are getting better. Not getting the better of Australia, for they are still facing defeat, but they have at least managed to take this fourth Test into the fifth day. Having been bowled out for 387 in their second innings, largely thanks to an innings of 145 from Michael Vaughan, they set Australia 107 to win. By stumps, eight runs had been knocked off that target without mishap.With Vaughan on his way to his second hundred of the series and passing Sachin Tendulkar’s aggregate number of Test runs in 2002 (the Yorkshireman now has 1481), England enjoyed a good morning. Nasser Hussain was in obdurate mood. Raising English hopes of an epic rearguard action to force a draw, he displayed impressive resolve while his partner scored more freely.Vaughan was the dominant partner during an 80-run partnership for the third wicket. He opened his account for the fourth morning by driving leg-spinner Stuart MacGill for a straight four – one of nine he stroked in the session as he reached his sixth hundred of the year from 153 balls. MacGill’s bowling appeared to be entirely to Vaughan’s liking as he helped England add 63 runs in the first hour of something that has been all too lacking in this series – a genuine contest of Test match cricket.Hussain’s defiant innings of an hour and a half came to an end when he was out-thought by Glenn MacGrath. Failing to spot the slower ball, he pushed it straight back to the bowler to be caught and bowled for 23.Vaughan found a new ally in Robert Key who again showed that he has the temperament for Test cricket. This pair kept the momentum going by adding 67 before Vaughan’s splendid innings came to an end. AfterFinding little difficulty with MacGill in his four and a half hour stay at the crease, he tried to late cut and steered the ball straight to Martin Love at slip to be out for 145.Key reached his first fifty in Test cricket, but having done so fell to the seventh delivery with the new ball as he edged Jason Gillespie to Ricky Ponting at slip.John Crawley and Craig White continued to offer resistance, adding 55 for the sixth wicket before a resolute innings from Crawley ended when he played on to Brett Lee for 33. That was the signal for the Australian attack to pour through the breach as England suffered their customary collapse by losing their last five wickets for the addition of 45 runs in 16 overs.In the next over, White was caught behind cutting MacGill. James Foster went in similar fashion, except that he was superbly caught by Martin Love at slip. MacGill claimed his fifth wicket when Andrew Caddick drove him straight to Steve Waugh in the covers before Steve Harmison was bowled by Gillespie to bring the innings to a close on 387, their highest total of the series, leaving Richard Dawson not out on a valuable 15.The target of 107 is no more than nominal for such a strong batting line-up. Had England managed to have taken a couple of wickets in the two overs before the close, a few feathers might have been ruffled but they did not and now only a day’s rain or the most unimaginable turn of events can prevent Australia taking a four-nil lead into the final Test.

Allan Donald and Jonty Rhodes have been awarded new contracts by South Africa’s United Cricket Board after reversing their decisions to leave the Test arena.However, it is likely that they would only appear in Test Matches in the event of injuries to other players.The pair had told the board that they only wanted to be considered for One-Day Internationals but have now accepted that it would be difficult for the UCB to contract players just for limited-overs games.Rhodes told South Africa’s Mail & Guardian: “To simplify matters I haveagreed to the UCB’s request to make myself available for Test cricket onceagain.”I would like to reiterate that I am not returning to Test cricket but thisdecision is to help the UCB solve certain issues that have arisen with myprevious decision to be available only for the one-day version of the game.”After suffering a succession of injuries in recent years, Donald ended his successful spell in England with Warwickshire and was viewing the 2003 World Cup as the finale to his career.But now both he and Rhodes have made themselves available for Test matches – but only as a last resort.One player who has not been awarded one of the 12-month contracts is Daryll Cullinan after he decided to sign for Kent, so making himself unavailable for the series against Zimbabwe.UCB chief executive officer Gerald Majola said: “When he comes back from Kentwe will discuss his future in South African cricket.”The players handed one-year contracts by the United Cricket Board are:Shaun Pollock, Mark Boucher, Paul Adams, Nicky Boje, Allan Donald, BoetaDippenaar, Herschelle Gibbs, Mornantau Hayward, Justin Kemp, Jacques Kallis,Gary Kirsten, Lance Klusener, Neil McKenzie, Andre Nel, Mfuneko Ngam, MakhayaNtini, Justin Ontong, Jonty Rhodes, Roger Telemachus.

An update has emerged on Newcastle United’s interest in signing Everton centre-back Ben Godfrey…

What’s the talk?

According to The Mirror, PIF are plotting a new Magpies bid for the England international after failing to land him in January.

The report claims that the defender, who the Toffees signed from Norwich for £25m in 2020, is high up on the club’s list of targets.

Coloccini 2.0

Eddie Howe can find Newcastle’s new Fabricio Coloccini in a deal to sign the former Canaries machine at the end of the season.

Coloccini was not the tallest of centre-backs, at 6 foot, and Godfrey is built in the same mould – standing at 6 foot himself. Instead of towering above strikers to dominate them in the air, they were and are able to use their reading of the game and athleticism to cut out attacks and defend their own goal.

The Argentine Toon icon has a career average 1.6 tackles per game along with 0.6 blocks, whilst only winning 1.3 aerial battles per match. Godfrey, meanwhile, has a career average of 1.3 tackles, 1.0 blocks and 2.0 aerial battles won per game, which suggests – along with their shared height – that they share a similar style of defending in terms of the volumes of specific defensive actions they complete.

He also has the potential to follow in Coloccini’s footsteps as a leader. Daniel Farke tipped him to become England’s captain in the future, whilst he has captained Norwich, England U21’s and Everton at points in his short career so far. This suggests that he has the leadership qualities to don the armband at St. James’ Park, just as the Argentine gem did for many years.

Godfrey has also shown that he can perform at Premier League level. Famous Toffees fan Tony Bellew called him a “revelation” last season and current Everton attacker Andros Townsend previously claimed that the 24-year-old has “massive potential”.

Last term, Godfrey averaged an impressive SofaScore rating of 7.03 for the Blues, winning 66% of his individual battles and making 2.9 tackles and interceptions per game. This shows that he has the ability to perform consistently to a high level in the top-flight, which is why he would be an excellent signing for the Magpies.

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He has also shown off his versatility whilst playing for the Toffees. The defender has been deployed at left-back and right-back, whilst he played as a holding midfielder for Norwich before Daniel Farke converted him into the centre-back he is now. This means that he could be a manager’s dream for Howe as he would be able to use him in a multitude of ways.

PIF must now work hard to land Newcastle’s Coloccini 2.0…

AND in other news, Left for £0, now worth 1100% more: Rafa had NUFC howler on “beautiful” £2k-p/w tank…

	The ICL’s latest tournament will be called the Edelweiss 20s Challenge © AFP

The Indian Cricket League (ICL) is the only tournament of its kind that can keep alive the “great India-Pakistan rivalry”. That’s the view of the ICL’s business head, Himanshu Mody, who was explaining its positioning vis-à-vis the ICC-backed Indian Premier League (IPL), which has a much higher profile and is operating on a larger scale.The launch of the Lahore Badshahs team, which will participate in the tournament that begins on Sunday, will “add a whole new dimension to the league,” Mody told Cricinfo. The side features 15 Pakistanis, including Inzamam-ul Haq, Mohammad Sami and Saqlain Mushtaq, and is coached by the former wicketkeeper, Moin Khan.The one who got away is the middle-order batsman, Mohammad Yousuf, who signed up with the ICL before moving over to the IPL. Mody said there was “no question of a compromise” on the issue. “It is the case of a signed contract that has not been honoured. There is no question of a compromise and we will fight the case to its logical conclusion,” he said.Incidentally, Yousuf was not picked by any of the eight IPL franchises during the players’ auction on February 20.That auction saw a turnover of US$42 million, and several players crossing the million-dollar salary bracket, and established the IPL as a force to reckon with. Mody, though, sought to play down the significance of those figures. “Cricket is a team-based sport where team dynamics and cohesiveness as a unit are critical, important ingredients for producing a high-quality cricket product. A mere assortment of star players does not guarantee a successful sporting product, as has been seen with past initiatives like World XI sides and the Afro-Asian games.”The ICL’s second international tournament, beginning on March 9, will span 30 days across three venues in India, with 13 additional international players and a second broadcaster in Dubai-based Ten Sports. This time, the ICL is riding a surge of international support with its star New Zealand recruit Shane Bond and the FICA appealing to the ICC to lift the ban on those associated with the venture.The ICL’s latest tournament will be called the Edelweiss 20s Challenge, after it struck a title sponsorship deal for its second season reportedly worth US$5 million with the financial services firm. That’s half of what the IPL gets every year from its title sponsors, the Indian construction major DLF.

45.1 overs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Sanath Jayasuriya and Kumar Sangakkara shared a 100-run stand for the second wicket © AFP

Sri Lanka have a template for winning one-day matches, and when it comes off, there’s little the opposition can do. Chaminda Vaas makes the early breakthroughs, Muttiah Muralitharan bamboozles in the middle-overs, part-time spinners race through tight overs, the target is manageable, and then becomes ridiculously so when Sanath Jayasuriya blazes away. New Zealand were the victims of just such a perfect plot, losing quite thoroughly by six wickets.Stephen Fleming called heads at the toss, correctly, that much must be granted him, but after that there was little that anyone in a black cricket shirt, other than the magnificently determined and versatile Scott Styris, could do that slowed Sri Lanka’s relentless pursuit of victory.Vaas has lost so much pace in recent times that he has to rely on all his experience, curling the ball back in to the right-handed batsman repeatedly before slyly slipping one through that holds its line. Not so when Fleming is about, it seems. Giving new meaning to the term walking wicket, Fleming shuffled obligingly across his stumps to Vaas and was trapped in front for a duck. For the fourth time in as many matches when it’s been New Zealand v Sri Lanka, the first line of New Zealand’s batting card has read SP Fleming lbw b Vaas 0.Ross Taylor missed three of the Super Eights matches with a hamstring injury, and he might just have wished he warmed the bench one day longer. He too bagged a duck, poking outside the off, only managing an edge that Kumar Sangakkara held niftily, diving to his weak right side and plucking the ball out of the air.If 4 for 2 was bad, and it was, given the batsmen who had been dismissed, Styris and Peter Fulton worked hard to ensure that it did not become disastrous. The problem for them was Vaas’ nagging accuracy, and with their freedom to attack curbed by the fall of early wickets, the pressure mounted and it was only a matter of time before a mistake was made. With the score on 59 for 2, Syris, who had 34 to his name at the time, tried to lap sweep Vaas round the corner. The ball ran off the face of the bat and lodged between Sangakkara’s thigh and pad, eliciting a confident shout for the catch behind. Billy Doctrove ruled against Sri Lanka, and if he hadn’t, the match as a contest might have ended then and there.Vaas had a third soon enough, when Fulton flicked one from the stumps straight to Chamara Silva at deep midwicket. If Vaas can pick up three, so can I, Muralitharan seemed to think as he bounded into the attack. Craig McMillan obliged, sweeping with hard hands, top-edging to short fine-leg.

Chaminda Vaas continued with his habit of taking early wickets dismissing the top three New Zealand batsmen in the first 20 overs © AFP

Jacob Oram held Sri Lanka up for a time, accumulating 31 in a partnership of 64, but he gave Tillakaratne Dilshan his wicket, coming down the pitch and hitting high rather than far, leaving Farveez Maharoof to settle under a swirler in the deep. Muralitharan then applied the stranglehold, sending Brendon McCullum – lbw to one delivered from round the stumps – and Daniel Vettori – another sweep that went wrong – for single-digit scores as New Zealand slumped to 155 for 7.The record will show that Styris, who isn’t the most obviously gifted or watchable batsman in the New Zealand team, scored 111 from 157 balls with eight fours. It will show that he managed 80 more than the next best batsman in his team and that he accounted for 50.68% of his team’s runs. It won’t, however, show that he at least gave his team a fighting chance against a team that seems to be building good momentum as the World Cup unravels.And further sheen will be taken off the Styris innings by the fact that Sri Lanka batted so comfortably for the best part of their innings that it underscored that there was nothing wrong with the pitch. Shane Bond doesn’t depend so much on pitches for the simple reason that his pace through the air, coupled with a bit of late swing, make him lethal in all conditions.But even Bond, who did try to soften the Sri Lankans up with some hostile short-pitched stuff, could have little impact, as Jayasuriya, in typical fashion, rocked along to a comfortable 64, adding an even 100 for the second wicket with Sangakkara. He provided the one thing New Zealand lacked when they batted – a decent partnership at the top – before he fell, against the run of play. Oram was the beneficiary as an attempted cut went off the bottom edge and McCullum took a sharp catch.Mahela Jayawardene was characteristically pretty for his 15, but fell to a soft dismissal, pulling a short one from Vettori to midwicket, and Silva knocked it about for 23 before lofting to long-off. During all this, Sangakkara did what he needed to all tournament and spent time out in the middle. At an opportune moment he cashed in with an unbeaten 69 and took Sri Lanka to a six-wicket win.

End of good times? © Getty Images

The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has prohibited alcohol from being brought to international matches, as it seeks to comply with the International Cricket Council’s (ICC’s) Safety and Security Pro Forma. Starting with the first one-day international against Zimbabwe at Antigua today, alcohol will not be allowed into the stadiums, but will be sold from concessionaire stands within the grounds at respective matches.”We want to meet our obligations as a member of the ICC and therefore it is important to adhere to this regulation,” Zorol Barthley, the WICB’s chief cricket operations officer, said. “Cricket in the Caribbean is steeped in tradition, but we are operating in a global marketplace and we must keep pace with international standards. This policy is part of the ICC Safety and Security Pro Forma which will still permit the sale of alcohol by concessionaires. Making alcohol available in this manner will help match authorities to manage the level of alcoholic consumption by fans.”The ICC’s Safety and Security Pro Forma was designed to ensure a safe environment for the game. As per the rules, glass bottles and cans containing alcohol and soft drinks will not be sold to spectators. Plastic is the norm, and spectators will have to submit mandatory security checks of their bags and hampers.The decision to prohibit alcohol to ICC-sanctioned venues was taken at the ICC chief executives’ committee meeting back in June 2003, but came into effect on April 1 after a two-year implementation period. Clive Hitchcock, the ICC’s cricket operations manager, added: “The reason for the cut-off date of April 2006 was to give those members that do not have a policy plenty of time to implement it at international venues.”It remains to be seen how this goes down in the West Indies, where spectators who have traditionally enjoyed a glass of rum or bottle of beer purchased from outside the ground will have to change their ways.

David Shepherd: a very popular umpire, and a very good one too © Getty Images

International cricket is so crammed full of firsts these days that the lasts rarely get a look in. Old players tend to fade away (or take coaching jobs in Sydney) rather than retire. But the second Test between West Indies and Pakistan at Sabina Park will feature a notable farewell: it’s the last Test match for the umpire David Shepherd.The Kingston game will be Shepherd’s 92nd Test – only Jamaica’s own Steve Bucknor (102) has officiated in more. And even Bucknor can’t match Shep’s current total of 167 one-day internationals (there will be a couple more in England before he finally hangs up that wide-fit white coat).Shepherd, who turns 65 in December, has been a fixture as long as most people can remember. He started as a ruddy-faced batsman for Gloucestershire – he hit 108 on his first-class debut, against Oxford University in 1965 – and continued, seamlessly, as a ruddy-faced umpire who soon floated to the top.He played for Gloucestershire for 15 years, with modest success – he crept past 10,000 runs, at an average of 24, collected 11 more centuries to go with that debut one, and he didn’t really bowl. But his ample waistline soon marked him out as one of county cricket’s characters: I can recall an amusing batting partnership between Shepherd, red-faced and blowing hard, and the whippet-like Jim Foat, with Shep in some danger of being lapped. He was nonetheless a handy one-day performer, and played in both Gloucestershire’s Lord’s final wins in the 1970s – the Gillette in 1973 and the Benson & Hedges in 1977.Popularity as a player soon translated into popularity as an umpire. He told Cricinfo recently: “I’d like to think I had a good relationship with most of the players I umpired. I think it helped that I played first-class cricket, it helps you to know what the players are thinking and going through if they are having a bad trot.” In the white coat his size somehow added to his authority – he looked like an umpire, which always helps. Shepherd stood in his first ODI in 1983, and made his Test debut against Australia two years later. Soon he was part of the Test-match furniture, calm and confident, authoritative without being authoritarian.He made mistakes – who doesn’t? – and was particularly upset a couple of years ago when the all-seeing TV eye showed that he’d missed a number of no-balls, some of which took wickets. Square-on cameras and Hawk-Eye are great innovations for the armchair viewer, but they make the umpire’s job a sight more stressful. And for the elite official, there’s another problem: “The travelling has been the major change, not being able to umpire Test matches in your own country. Now umpires are expected to spend large amounts of time away from their families and this has put some people off taking up the role.”What really cemented Shepherd’s name in the public consciousness, though, was not a super career but a superstition: those fey little skips when the score reaches Nelson – 111 – or a multiple. It all started back in the county dressing-room, with a belief that things would somehow work out better if no part of you was touching the floor, and carried on from there. The commentators were tipped off, and the cameras have zeroed in at the vital moment ever since: “I’ve always done it, I’ve always been superstitious,” he told us. “When I went into umpiring people said I should carry on doing the hop, but I thought I would look an idiot. But I decided to go with it …”The bottom line is that you could have all the hop-skip-jump gimmicks in the world, but if you’re not a damn good umpire you won’t survive very long in county cricket, let alone the international cauldron. Dickie Bird showed that, and David Shepherd followed suit.

Famous names from six different sports will line up for the Cystic Fibrosis Invitation XI against the Canterbury Crusaders. The 21st annual 40-over match will be played at Hagley Oval on Sunday January 18.Former Test players, Lee Germon, Geoff Allott and John Bracewell will provide the cricketing experience, along with Haidee Tiffen from the women’s side. Chris Flanagan, a grade player also joins in, while hockey international Hayden Shaw, and rugby players Robbie Deans and Leon Macdonald make the line up as well. National representatives in softball, basketball, and netball complete the squad.The charity cricket and gala day includes a celebrity auction of sports memorabilia, rugby goal-kicking competitions, donkey rides, catch a six competitions earning NZ$100 per catch, and lots of autograph and photograph opportunities with the Canterbury team and other sports stars.Invitation XI Lee Germon (capt), Geoff Allott, John Bracewell, Belinda Charteris, Robbie Deans, Chris Flanagan, Paul Henare, Rhonda Hira, Phill Jones, Leon MacDonald, Hayden Shaw, Haidee Tiffen, Clayton Willocks.Canterbury Justin Marshall (capt), Sam Broomhall, Ben Blair, Daniel Carter, Ross Filipo, Scott Hamilton, Chris Jack, Tony Koonwaiyou, Cameron McIntyre, Aaron Mauger, Nathan Mauger, Andrew Mehrtens, Scott Waldrom.

Peshawar batted themselves into a winning position by increasing their overall lead to a substantial 397 on the second day of their Quaid Trophy Grade-I clash against defending champions Lahore Blues at Arbab Niaz Stadium in Peshawar Wednesday.According to details available here, Peshawar were 314 for nine in their second knock having resumed at one without loss.After the drama of Tuesday when 20 wickets fell, the second day was dominated by Peshawar’s batsmen. Opener Riffatullah led the way with 85 off 109 balls in 148 minutes.Test reject Wajahatullah Wasti also weighed in with a solid 60 off 112 deliveries in a stay of two hours and 40 minutes.Slow left-armer Mohammad Hussain captured six for 58 to follow his 12 wickets in the last game against Rest of NWFP.