1 hr. ago
Irish Premiership
Carrick Rangers 1 - 0 Portadown FT
Paul Heatley scored the only goal of the game as David Jeffrey's return to Irish Premiership management with Portadown ended in a 1-0 defeat by Carrick Rangers at Taylors Avenue
There was controversy inside the opening two minutes Heatley, who had broken through, went down following a tangle with Jack Scott, but referee Steven Gregg waved play on.
However, the Ballyclare official was forced to reach for his red card on 26 minutes to dismiss Portadown's Liam Jessop for a high challenge on Michael Place.
#heatley #david #taylors
Carrick Rangers 1 - 0 Portadown FT
Paul Heatley scored the only goal of the game as David Jeffrey's return to Irish Premiership management with Portadown ended in a 1-0 defeat by Carrick Rangers at Taylors Avenue
There was controversy inside the opening two minutes Heatley, who had broken through, went down following a tangle with Jack Scott, but referee Steven Gregg waved play on.
However, the Ballyclare official was forced to reach for his red card on 26 minutes to dismiss Portadown's Liam Jessop for a high challenge on Michael Place.
#heatley #david #taylors
4 days ago
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — NASCAR's exhibition Clash is returning to Daytona International Speedway for the first time in six years.
The sanctioning body announced the move Tuesday, saying the race will be held Feb. 13, 2027. It will be sponsored by Wheatley American Vodka.
The race doesn't count for points and is the lead-up to the season-opening Daytona 500, which is set for Feb. 21.
Daytona hosted the Clash from 1979 to 2021. It was moved to a temporary track inside Los Angeles Memorial Stadium for three years in an effort to shake up the annual event and then relocated to tiny Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the last two years in a return to NASCAR's grassroots racing.
The event was postponed twice this year because of historic winter weather in North Carolina. Snow-covered roads were too dangerous for teams and fans to get to the historic short track.
#carolina #track
The sanctioning body announced the move Tuesday, saying the race will be held Feb. 13, 2027. It will be sponsored by Wheatley American Vodka.
The race doesn't count for points and is the lead-up to the season-opening Daytona 500, which is set for Feb. 21.
Daytona hosted the Clash from 1979 to 2021. It was moved to a temporary track inside Los Angeles Memorial Stadium for three years in an effort to shake up the annual event and then relocated to tiny Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the last two years in a return to NASCAR's grassroots racing.
The event was postponed twice this year because of historic winter weather in North Carolina. Snow-covered roads were too dangerous for teams and fans to get to the historic short track.
#carolina #track
15 days ago
Barring 15-year-old JJ Gabriel coming in for England Under-20 striker Ethan Wheatley, who has a minor calf problem, Manchester United's 25-man squad for their first two pre-season games in Helsinki and Trondheim has stayed the same.
That surely means anyone from the academy who has a chance of breaking into Michael Carrick's senior squad consistently this season will come from that group.
It means the academy players not involved – including the likes of Gibraltar international James Scanlon, midfielder Jack Moorhouse, who spent the first half of last season at Leyton Orient, and Gabriele Biancheri, who was at Rotherham, will have to seriously consider their next moves.
Australia full-back James Overy also falls into that group.
Overy missed a lot of football with United last term after being picked for both the Under-20 World Cup and Under-23 Asian Cup.
#group
That surely means anyone from the academy who has a chance of breaking into Michael Carrick's senior squad consistently this season will come from that group.
It means the academy players not involved – including the likes of Gibraltar international James Scanlon, midfielder Jack Moorhouse, who spent the first half of last season at Leyton Orient, and Gabriele Biancheri, who was at Rotherham, will have to seriously consider their next moves.
Australia full-back James Overy also falls into that group.
Overy missed a lot of football with United last term after being picked for both the Under-20 World Cup and Under-23 Asian Cup.
#group
25 days ago
There are a lot of new faces, but the talent level remains high for the defensive backfield. Daryus Dixson figures to jump into a starting spot at cornerback after playing in all 13 games in 2025. Audavion Collins and Zion Tracy should compete for the other starting spot. It would not surprise me to see them split snaps, and Tracy has experience as a nickel corner if Penn State chooses to run 4-2-5 schemes. The depth is a bit of a question mark, but Terry Smith has plenty of talent to work with.
Two Iowa State transfers- Marcus Neal and Jeremiah Cooper- will fill the void at safety left behind by Zakee Wheatley and King Mack. Neal has received significant NFL Draft attention for 2027 and has All-Big Ten potential after a breakout 2025 season. Cooper is a solid playmaker against the pass, though he is coming off an injury.
With no Ohio State, Oregon, or Indiana on the schedule, Penn State does not face many overwhelming passing offenses this year. USC and Washington should be the toughest tests for the secondary, and one of them is at Beaver Stadium.
Losing Tony Rojas to injury was not the deciding factor in Penn State’s 2025 meltdown, but his absence was felt immediately. Rojas tore his ACL after the Oregon game, and the Nittany Lions immediately gave up 42 points to UCLA the following game. He is a dynamic playmaker against the run and pass and the unquestioned leader of a rebuilt Penn State linebacker corps. There are a lot of questions around Penn State’s front seven, so Rojas’ health will be vital to the success of this defense. If he returns to form, the Nittany Lions should have one of the top linebackers in the conference.
Penn State is on its fifth defensive coordinator in the last six seasons, but D’Anton Lynn’s track record speaks for itself. He inherited a UCLA defense that finished No. 87 in total defense in 2022 and elevated them to No. 10 in 2023. When Lincoln Riley poached him away to coach the defense at USC, he took a Trojans defense that was a complete disaster when he arrived and made them serviceable immediately. Hiring Lynn appears to be a good fit for 2026 Penn State. With new players at all three levels of the defense and roughly half of last season’s production gone, the Nittany Lions need someone who can provide results on defense right away. The schedule is favorable and there are enough veteran players on the roster to make the transition smooth for Lynn.
Two Iowa State transfers- Marcus Neal and Jeremiah Cooper- will fill the void at safety left behind by Zakee Wheatley and King Mack. Neal has received significant NFL Draft attention for 2027 and has All-Big Ten potential after a breakout 2025 season. Cooper is a solid playmaker against the pass, though he is coming off an injury.
With no Ohio State, Oregon, or Indiana on the schedule, Penn State does not face many overwhelming passing offenses this year. USC and Washington should be the toughest tests for the secondary, and one of them is at Beaver Stadium.
Losing Tony Rojas to injury was not the deciding factor in Penn State’s 2025 meltdown, but his absence was felt immediately. Rojas tore his ACL after the Oregon game, and the Nittany Lions immediately gave up 42 points to UCLA the following game. He is a dynamic playmaker against the run and pass and the unquestioned leader of a rebuilt Penn State linebacker corps. There are a lot of questions around Penn State’s front seven, so Rojas’ health will be vital to the success of this defense. If he returns to form, the Nittany Lions should have one of the top linebackers in the conference.
Penn State is on its fifth defensive coordinator in the last six seasons, but D’Anton Lynn’s track record speaks for itself. He inherited a UCLA defense that finished No. 87 in total defense in 2022 and elevated them to No. 10 in 2023. When Lincoln Riley poached him away to coach the defense at USC, he took a Trojans defense that was a complete disaster when he arrived and made them serviceable immediately. Hiring Lynn appears to be a good fit for 2026 Penn State. With new players at all three levels of the defense and roughly half of last season’s production gone, the Nittany Lions need someone who can provide results on defense right away. The schedule is favorable and there are enough veteran players on the roster to make the transition smooth for Lynn.
2 months ago
Manchester United have reportedly reached a major call over the future of striker Ethan Wheatley as Schalke line up a summer swoop.
Wheatley spent the first half of the 2025/26 season out on loan at Northampton Town before United recalled him and sent him out to Bradford for the latter half of the campaign.
He took time to find his feet at Northampton under now-sacked boss Kevin Nolan but he eventually established himself as a key member of the squad. It’s understood that United considered his time at Northampton a success but felt his development would be better aided by going elsewhere.
Nolan was highly critical of United’s decision to recall the youngster just when he was finding his rhythm.
At Bradford, Wheatley also featured prominently, although he didn’t score as many goals as he would have liked. He finished the season with three goals in 37 games across all competitions.
Wheatley spent the first half of the 2025/26 season out on loan at Northampton Town before United recalled him and sent him out to Bradford for the latter half of the campaign.
He took time to find his feet at Northampton under now-sacked boss Kevin Nolan but he eventually established himself as a key member of the squad. It’s understood that United considered his time at Northampton a success but felt his development would be better aided by going elsewhere.
Nolan was highly critical of United’s decision to recall the youngster just when he was finding his rhythm.
At Bradford, Wheatley also featured prominently, although he didn’t score as many goals as he would have liked. He finished the season with three goals in 37 games across all competitions.
