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The Independent
21 minutes ago
- The Independent
Lando Norris ready to go all the way in championship battle with Oscar Piastri
Lando Norris believes his championship battle with Oscar Piastri will go to the wire following his victory at Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix. Norris started third and dropped to fifth after a poor first corner at the Hungaroring before he rolled the strategy dice – stopping one less time than his rivals – to take the lead and then held off Piastri's late charge in a brilliant finale. Piastri came within centimetres of colliding with Norris on the penultimate lap when he momentarily lost control of his McLaren as he attempted a banzai move for the win. But Norris survived and held his nerve to keep the fast-charging Australian at bay to land his fifth win of the season – his third in his last four appearances – taking the chequered flag just six tenths clear and reducing the championship deficit to nine points with 10 rounds remaining. Max Verstappen, who finished ninth on Sunday, remains in third in the standings but 97 points off the championship pace. 'I'm dead,' said Norris. 'In the final stint Oscar was catching and I was pushing flat out. My voice has gone a little bit. 'It has been a tough battle so far with Oscar and it is going to continue to be tough. The margins between us are pretty small. There are things I can do better and improve on, and I am sure he will probably say the same thing. So, it is going to be a good and tough fight, probably until the end. 'Even though the results have looked great, I'm not making my life very easy at the minute. If I can work on those things, then I'll be in a better place.' Norris' win in the concluding round before the summer break reignites his bid to land a maiden world crown. But the Bristolian can count himself somewhat fortunate to be standing on the top step of the podium. At the start, Norris got away well from his marks, but an attempt to pass Piastri on the inside of the opening corner backfired. Norris did not commit to the overtake and that left him in no-man's land, allowing George Russell and then Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso to breeze through. On lap three, Norris fought his way clear of Alonso but was then tucked up behind Russell and making little progress. Piastri and Charles Leclerc, who controlled the first stint of the race from pole position, stopped for new tyres on laps 18 and 19 respectively. Russell also peeled into the pits on lap 19 promoting Norris to the front. McLaren were now considering a one-stop strategy. Norris' race engineer, Will Joseph, was on the radio: 'Lando, 40 laps on the hard tyre, you up for it?' Norris replied: 'Yeah, why not?' On lap 31 of 70, the Englishman came in for his sole change of tyres before lighting up the timesheets with the fastest laps of the race so far. In his haste to catch up, Norris then dropped two wheels through the gravel on the exit of the chicane, which irked Joseph. 'Lando, just keep the focus, we don't want these mistakes,' he said. Leclerc, Piastri and Russell were all forced to stop again. When it all shuffled out, Norris led Leclerc by seven seconds, with Piastri five seconds further back. But Piastri was on the move, swatting Leclerc aside on lap 51 and then set about reducing Norris' nine-second advantage. With five laps to go, Piastri was just a second behind his team-mate, and on the penultimate lap, the Australian went for glory at the first bend. However, Norris retained his composure and remained ahead to land what could be a pivotal win in his championship charge. Russell took the final place on the podium with Leclerc a disappointed fourth. The next race takes place in the Netherlands on August 31.
BreakingNews.ie
22 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Dublin cruise past Meath to claim seventh All-Ireland title
Hannah Tyrrell, Kate Sullivan and team captain Carla Rowe registered an impressive combined tally of 0-13 at Croke Park on Sunday as Dublin regained the TG4 All-Ireland senior football championship title with a commanding triumph over Leinster rivals Meath. Nicole Owens and Niamh Hetherton also bagged goals in a dominant opening half as Dublin ended their first season under the joint management of Paul Casey and Derek Murray with the Brendan Martin Cup back in their possession for the seventh time in history. Advertisement Needing just three points to secure the ZuCar Golden Boot for 2025, Tyrrell got the ball rolling in a repeat of the 2021 All-Ireland decider with an early 0-2 salvo. Things got even better for the Sky Blues when Owens struck a clinical sixth minute goal and Sullivan also added her name to the scoresheet before Emma Duggan finally opened Meath's account with a successful free on 10 minutes. While Duggan was on hand to cancel out a score from Rowe, Dublin pushed into overdrive either side of the first quarter mark with four points on the bounce from Tyrrell (two), Orlagh Nolan and Sullivan. The rampant Jackies then moved twelve clear when Hetherton buried a shot to the roof of the Meath net in the 22nd minute and even though Duggan contributed a brace of frees in response to Sullivan's third from play, Dublin brought an emphatic 2-9 to 0-4 buffer into the break. Advertisement This left the Royals with an enormous uphill task on the restart, but Meath were provided with fresh impetus when Duggan kicked two more points in advance of her Dunboyne club-mate Vikki Wall posting a fine effort from play. However, Dublin reinforced their superiority when Rowe knocked over a place-ball effort of her own and Tyrrell's fifth point of the day meant they were once again in front by double figures (2-11 to 0-7). With Sullivan bringing her own personal haul up to 0-4 off a subsequent attack, the Metropolitan outfit were on the brink of another top-tier crown heading into the closing quarter. Ciara Smyth, skipper Aoibhin Cleary and Duggan (with her seventh of the tie) all found the target for Meath as the final whistle approached, but although Tyrrell was withdrawn through injury late on, points from Hetherton, Niamh Crowley and the influential Rowe (two) ensured Dublin eased towards their second All-Ireland success in the space of three years. Advertisement Earlier, Tyrone manager Darren McCann said he was confident all through that they had the measure of Laois at Croke Park to capture the TG4 All-Ireland intermediate title for the second time in history. 'On the sideline, we felt totally in control. We were creating chances but we just weren't taking them, which was frustrating for us,' said McCann. 'The whole group have serious heart and determination as a collective and that was a collective performance. I was really happy with their performance today and the key thing was getting on top and staying on top.' Goals in either half from Aoife Horisk and Katie Rose Muldoon proved pivotal as they edged out Laois by six points to deservedly capture the Mary Quinn Memorial Cup at Croke Park. Advertisement TG4 All-Ireland Ladies Intermediate Football Championship Final, Croke Park,Laois vs Tyrone. Photo: ©INPHO/Leah Scholes In the process Tyrone bounced back from last year's final defeat to Leitrim to capture the TG4 All-Ireland intermediate title for the first time since they sole success in 2018. Laois manager Stephen Duff said they were always chasing the game but he was very proud of their effort. 'We didn't perform in the game. There was a bit of relief that we weren't further behind at half-time,' said Duff. 'Whether the occasion got to us or it was just a bad day at the office, it just wasn't a great performance. Advertisement 'We kept in the game in the third quarter but we probably needed another goal at that time and they managed to pull away in the end. 'We're savagely proud of everyone and we'll just take it on the chin.' Tyrone enjoyed a 1-7 to 1-5 interval lead with Horisk's 27th minute goal cancelling out an equally superb finish from Laois' Shifra Havill four minutes previously. There was little to separate the teams throughout a nervy second half but the decisive moment arrived in the 54th minute as Muldoon left Laois goalkeeper Eimear Barry helpless with a shot from close range. It was Tyrone that seized the early initiative through points from Sorcha Gormley and Cara McCrossan before Laois struck back to level parity by the fourth minute courtesy of scores from Jane Moore and Emma Lawlor. Lawlor edged Laois in front in the seventh minute, immediately after their corner-back Faye McEvoy had produced a superb goal line clearance at the opposite end, with parity restored soon after through a Niamh O'Neill free. Parity continued as Emily Lacey and Aoife Horisk (free) traded points by the end of the first quarter with the Ulster county re-establishing their two-point advantage thanks to Sláine McCarroll and the lively Gormley. However, their inaccuracy up front undermined their general control as O'Neill placed her shot too close to Eimear Barry in the 22nd minute and that profligacy was punished in an instant as Lawlor worked well in releasing Havill for an emphatic finish to the roof of Amelia Coyle's net. Frustration continued for Tyrone in the 26th minute as Gormley was denied from the penalty spot following a foul on Horisk but the latter made no mistake a minute later as she drilled home from ten yards to edge her side two points clear by half-time. Laois wasted little time in getting back on level terms as Mo Nerney and Fiona Dooley both scored within three minutes of the restart. Crucially, Laois were unable to get in front as this time as O'Neill (free) and Horisk responded for Tyrone, with the latter becoming increasingly influential as the contest evolved. Tyrone wrapped up the issue when Muldoon followed up well to net after fellow substitute Emer McCanny had been denied and they pulled away by the final whistle thanks to insurance points from O'Neill, Gormley and captain Aoibhinn McHugh. TG4 All-Ireland Ladies Junior Football Championship Final, Antrim vs Louth. Photo Credit: ©INPHO/Leah Scholes Louth manager Kevin Larkin said hailed his charges as they recovered from a poor start to bounce back from losing last year's decider to Fermanagh by capturing the TG4 All-Ireland junior football championship title at Croke Park for a record fourth time. 'What a group to work with. All of Ireland has seen it there. Penalty, four points down and the girls just kept going, kept going and we went in a point up. There was 20 seconds on the clock before the break and we didn't stop. We didn't try and slow it down. We could have slowed it down and gone in with a draw. It wasn't good for us, but again, the players called that on the pitch themselves. They're just a brilliant group. 'I've been saying it to the girls, their mental strength and their resilience is their biggest weapon. They're just fantastic and even the control on the ball. Eimear Murray put in a tackle there. I thought Lara Dahunsi was through and I was like 'ah, no' and Eimear gets a hand in. Rachel Beirth did not give your one an inch. 'It's all over the pitch. I know obviously the forwards will probably get the headlines, but everywhere over the pitch we were just fantastic,' said Larkin. Antrim, also bidding to become the first county to win the TG4 All-Ireland junior title four times, didn't build on their superb start and joint manager Chris Scullion lamented not taking chances in the second half. 'There was a couple of opportunities presented to ourselves in the second half. It just didn't fall our way today. It seemed to be mistake after mistake sometimes and we were constantly trying to regroup the girls to go again, go again. "It maybe took a toll on them, but I'm not taking anything away from Louth. Louth were brilliant today. "They set up defensively, kept their same structure and they were able to break out and it caused us problems. They were able to work the ball around and get their scores. Fair play to them. 'Whenever they attacked, we tried to block them out the same way they were doing to us. It's just unfortunate we just couldn't get the final ball, the final pass to ourselves to break through. Maybe get our chance. It did present itself right there at the end, but we were trying to get that instruction onto the field five, 10 minutes earlier to press up and push up on their kick-outs. To try and get the turnovers because we were still chasing the game. It's just unfortunate it just didn't go our way,' said Scullion. It was the Ulster side who initially hit the ground running with team skipper Bronagh Devlin superbly drilling a third-minute penalty into the roof of the Louth net after Theresa Mellon was adjudged to have been fouled inside the square off a Maria O'Neill free that dropped short. Mellon followed up the goal with a fine point for the Saffrons and even though Louth eventually opened their account through Aoife Russell, Omolara Dahunsi reinforced Antrim's early authority by splitting the posts at the opposite end. Dahunsi also found the range in response to back-to-back points from Louth corner-forwards Russell and Ceire Nolan, but in the temporary absence of Bronagh Devlin for a yellow card offence, the Wee County cut their deficit to the bare minimum with impressive contributions from Flood and Shannen McLaughlin. Although Antrim sharpshooter O'Neill was on target not long after Devlin's return, unanswered points by captain Aine Breen and the ever-dependable Flood (two) ensured Louth brought a 0-8 to 1-4 cushion into the interval. An outstanding score from the increasingly-influential Kate Flood left Louth two points to the good moving into the final-quarter and they were a step closer to another junior crown when Breen and substitute Mia Duffy added points in the 47th and 49th minutes respectively. Lucy White subsequently increased Louth's cushion and even though a late surge from Antrim produced three points on the bounce by Ana Mulholland, Mellon and O'Neill (a goal-bound effort that was deflected over the bar), the Wee County ultimately prevailed in the end.
BBC News
22 minutes ago
- BBC News
Norwich sign Serbia midfielder Topic
Norwich City have signed Serbia international midfielder Mirko Topic on a four-year deal, with a further year's 24-year-old has played for Familicao in the Portuguese Primeira Liga for the past two seasons, after spending his first four years as a senior player with his hometown club won the Serbian Cup in his first season with Vojvodina and has won four caps for his country."I'm very proud to now be a part of this club and this city," he told the club website., external"I spoke to [Canaries goalkeeper] Vladan Kovacevic a couple of weeks ago, and also the coach and sporting director. They convinced me to come when they showed me the goals and ambitions for this season."Topic becomes the third midfielder to join the Canaries in a squad overhaul following last season's disappointing campaign, with Jacob Wright arriving from Manchester City and Jeffrey Schlupp from Crystal Palace.
