FOOTBALL
Wolverines beat Huskies
The Michigan Wolverines on Monday rumbled past the Washington Huskies to end their 27-year title drought with a 34-13 victory in the US College National Championship game. The University of Michigan’s Wolverines, who last won the national college crown in 1997, scored four rushing touchdowns to cap an unbeaten season at Houston’s NRG Stadium. Michigan’s ground game proved too much for Washington, who themselves had been chasing a first national title since 1991. Michigan took control in the first quarter, with running back Donovan Edwards motoring into the end zone for a 41-yard rushing touchdown. Edwards then grabbed a second touchdown late in the first quarter, accelerating through a huge gap in the Washington defense before galloping 46 yards to score. Washington got a touchdown of their own just before halftime when quarterback Michael Penix Jr found Jalen McMillan with a 3-yard pass to make it 17-10 at the break. Michigan running back Blake Corum had a 12-yard run for a touchdown that made it 27-13 and victory was all but assured on the next Washington possession, when Penix was picked off by the Wolverines’ Mike Sainristil who raced 81 yards to the brink of the Huskies endzone. Two plays later, Corum grabbed his second touchdown of the night to make the game safe.
RUGBY UNION
Robertson seeks change
All Blacks coach Scott Robertson yesterday said that he was pressing New Zealand Rugby to change its rule banning overseas-based players from Test selection, saying he wanted to pick from the best available. The governing body has refused to budge on the issue, believing selecting players enticed overseas on big-money contracts would weaken the domestic game at Super Rugby and provincial level. Robertson said at his first news conference since taking over as All Blacks coach that he had asked the board to “keep an open mind.”
SOCCER
Henry discusses depression
Former France and Arsenal striker Thierry Henry has spoken of his mental health battles, saying he “must have been in depression” throughout his playing career. The 46-year-old ended his glittering 20-year club career in 2014, which also included stints at AS Monaco, Juventus, Barcelona and the New York Red Bulls. He scored 228 goals for Arsenal during his two spells, winning two Premier League titles before moving to Camp Nou, where he won a pair of La Liga crowns and the UEFA Champions League. A FIFA World Cup winner with Les Bleus, Henry has also managed Arsenal’s youth teams, served as assistant coach of Belgium and was the head coach of Monaco and Montreal Impact. He is currently the head coach of France Under-21s. “Throughout my career, and since I was born, I must have been in depression,” Henry told The Diary of a CEO podcast. “Did I know it? No. Did I do something about it? No, but I adapted to a certain way.” Henry said it had been a difficult time for him during the COVID-19 pandemic, when he was managing Major League Soccer side Montreal. “I was in isolation in Montreal, and not being able to see my kids for a year was tough,” he said. “Tears were coming alone. Why I don’t know, but maybe they were there for a very long time.”
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) is considering reducing its pitch clock by two seconds to help players better adjust to the rules applied at the World Baseball Classic (WBC). The proposal aims to shorten the pitch timer from 25 seconds to 23 seconds with the bases empty, and from 20 seconds to 18 seconds with runners on base. Currently, the WBC mandates that pitchers deliver a pitch every 18 seconds with the bases empty and 15 seconds with runners on base. The issue was raised during a pre-season CPBL managers’ meeting on Tuesday by Rakuten Monkeys bench and batting
‘SETTING THE TONE’: Donovan Mitchell said that their determination to dominate had nothing to do with past results, but was about a potential post-season clash The Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday boosted their NBA-best record with a 142-105 romp past the New York Knicks, tightening their grip on the Eastern Conference lead with an all-around dominant display. Donovan Mitchell scored 27 points to lead six Cavs players to score in double figures, connecting on five of seven three-pointers as Cleveland drilled 19 from beyond the arc. “I think the biggest thing was just try to set the tone early,” Mitchell said, adding that the determination to dominate had nothing to do with the Knicks’ first-round playoff win over the Cavs two seasons ago and everything to do with
BELGIANS ADVANCE: Club Brugge gave Atalanta a lesson in efficiency, as Gian Piero Gasperini’s team had 29 efforts at goal, compared with seven from the visitors Seldom has a player’s sending off had such an influence on a game. AC Milan was to left rue Theo Hernandez’s second yellow card — for diving — as Feyenoord advanced to the UEFA Champions League last 16 at the former European champion’s expense with a 1-1 draw in the second leg of their playoff on Tuesday, giving the Dutch team a 2-1 win on aggregate. Bayern Munich, Club Brugge and Benfica also won their playoffs, eliminating Celtic, UEFA Europa League winner Atalanta BC and French team AS Monaco respectively. “In soccer everything changes in a second,” said Milan forward
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