Inhoudsopgave van 2021-11-01 - Star

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za MORE than R104 billion in irregular expenditure at Transnet has come to light as the state-owned enterprise examines supposedly clean audits conducted during the state-capture years by private sector audit firms. The audits had largely misrepresented its financial position, especially on high-value tenders, the rail, port and pipeline group’s chief financial officer Nonkululeko Dlamini said at a presentation of the group’s results on Friday. This comes as the group reported a record net loss of R8.4 billion for its financial year to the end March 2021. Transnet attributes the loss mainly to the impact of Covid-19 on its port and rail operations. Further, it breached its loan covenants with an outstanding balance of R19.1bn as at September 30. Dlamini said audits by the Auditor General were still…

CASH is king for the Foschini Group (TFG) with cash retail turnover growth in its Africa business jumping by 37% in the second quarter of its 2022 financial year. TFG, which owns brands including Foschini, JET and Total Sports, on Friday said cash retail turnover now contributes 69.9% of total TFG Africa retail turnover and 79.1% to total group retail turnover. “Average approval rates for new accounts have normalised at 25 percent in the first half of the 2022 financial year, but overall credit retail turnover continues to be purposely restricted by stringent acceptance criteria in line with the prevailing economic conditions,” said the group. TFG Africa opened 54 new stores during the past quarter, while 24 stores were closed. At the end of the quarter, TFG Africa traded from…

Chris Harmse Foreign selling of bonds and equities on the JSE, reflecting some nervousness on the outcome of South Africa’s municipal elections yesterday, saw the rand depreciating strongly against the dollar, euro and pound. Weaker precious metals prices also started to take their toll on the currency, as gold, silver, platinum, and palladium recorded big losses on Thursday and Friday. The currency lost 43 cents against the dollar last week, trading at one stage close to R15.30, but closed on R15.10. Against the euro, the rand ended the week also 43c weaker, on R17.64, and against pound sterling the currency traded 30c weaker than the previous Friday, on R20.86. Foreign selling of bonds pushed the R186 up by 1.36%. World inflation fears are busy pushing most emergency currencies weaker,…

The Canadian singer Grimes has recently been photographed reading The Communist Manifesto after her split from the world’s richest man, Elon Musk – CEO of Tesla and SpaceX. Grimes, otherwise known as Claire Elise Boucher, was photographed in full fantasy costume on a street corner in Los Angeles while absorbed in the book. She has since taken to Instagram to explain that she is not a communist, more that she got sick of paparazzi following her so used it as an opportunity to troll. Though she did add that “there are some very smart ideas in this book”, so it seems she has read at least some of it. The Communist Manifesto was composed in late 1847 by German social activists Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It analyses and dramatises…

Zodidi Dano zodidi.dano@africannewsagency.com CHOOSING your subjects in Grade 9 is the first step in building your career path. What you choose to continue with to Grade 10 may well determine what matric exam papers you will write and therefore what tertiary qualification you will be pursuing. That being said, the Two Oceans Aquarium Education Foundation would like to remind pupils that they can select marine sciences as an eighth subject choice for 2022. Marine sciences was first offered at three “node schools” in the Western Cape in 2019. In 2020, it was recognised as an official school subject, and in 2021 it was included in the school curriculum. Since then, a number of students have been receiving instruction in the subject, both at the node schools and through the foundation’s…

LOAD shedding will not affect the matric examinations, the Department of Basic Education says. Eskom announced that it would extending load shedding up until Saturday. Matrics started their examinations on Wednesday. Department spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga said: “Load shedding… does not affect the examinations itself as natural light is sufficient for writing,” adding though that it could make them late because of traffic congestion. | Zodidi Dano…

YOU S3 NETFLIX Now married with a young baby, Love and Joe try to forge a normal life in the affluent suburb of Madre Linda. But old habits die hard. THE ESTATE SABC3, DSTV CHANNEL 193, 7PM Phasha delivers on his promise to Muzi and lies about Shadrack in court. Shadrack is painted as a crazy man. Martin is curious about what else Precious knows. THE RED ROOM SABC3, DSTV CHANNEL 193, 7.30PM Boncuk looks worried as she searches for the wise man. She thinks that one of them left her. Boncuk talks about Can and their meeting. Her joy and happiness can be seen in her eyes when she talks about Can. She tells Doctor that Can visited her in İstanbul, but she couldn’t meet him as…

Sacha van Niekerk sacha.vanniekerk@inl.co.za Celebrate Diwali with fusion sweetmeats and desserts that borrow inspiration and technique from various cultures, with deliciously modern twists. Soaked in spice-infused syrups, brightly coloured and beautifully moulded, mithai or sweetmeats are confectioneries of the Indian subcontinent. Their origin has been traced to at least 500BCE, when records suggest raw sugar and refined sugar were being produced. While many of the recipes have been handed down from past generations and are hundreds of years old, in recent years they have seen some major transformations, most of which are occurring on social media. With aesthetics being one of the most important aspects of what makes food “Instagram worthy”, it’s no surprise that main changes are to the appearance. Food bloggers, professional chefs and even home cooks have…

Kennedy Mudzuli kennedy.mudzuli@inl.co.za SO CONFIDENT is music producer InQfive in his abilities that he calls himself “The Special One”. “It’s very simple; I believe no one can do what I do; we are all born different,” said InQfive. Anyone who has listened to his songs such as Fake Love, Discreet Saxophone and Ngenelela, featuring Lizwi, as well as Back in the Days, featuring KG Smallz, will without doubt agree that InQfive is indeed the special one. For InQfive, every time he plays these songs, they make him remember where he has been and the things he was going through in his life when he composed them. They are classics and will always be special to him. The 25-year-old was born Tshepang Mpinga in Daveyton and raised in Boksburg. He…

FAROUK ARAIE | Gauteng Fifty years ago, stalwart and freedom fighter Ahmed Timol was murdered by apartheid’s ruthless security police. His death is a painful mirror into our hideous and sordid past. Using torture as a political weapon is an affront to civilisation. What brand of brutal inhumanity could possess the killers of Timol and 100 other cadres so deeply that they could murder so many human beings without compunction? They were a special brand of beasts programmed and trained to obliterate dissent. We must loudly proclaim “never again”. Never were the people of our land so united, so brave, strong, worthy of freedom and certain of freedom that they poured out their treasured lives in helping us attain freedom and liberty. We must remain vigilant to retain…

Molaole Montsho molaole.montsho@africannewsagency.com A 31-YEAR-old man was arrested for allegedly raping a wheelchair-bound woman in Bodibe, near Itsoseng, in North West. North West police spokesperson Colonel Adele Myburgh said the woman crawled out of the house into the street where she was assisted by a passer-by. “Otsile Juell Boinamo, 31, was arrested after he handed himself over to the Itsoseng police last Monday. He subsequently appeared in the Itsoseng Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday on a charge of rape," she said. "It is alleged that a 30-year-old woman with disability and utilising a wheelchair, was visiting friends and later went to a tavern on October 22 in Bodibe village near Itsoseng. “The woman was about leave the tavern at about 7pm when Boinamo volunteered to take her home. “However, on their…

In July, as the malls burnt and looters filled the streets, we were reminded, yet again, of just how unequal we are as South Africans. The unrest swept our nation, killing hundreds and destroying billions of rands’ worth of property. It was a tussle between the haves and have nots; a wake-up call that if we continue on this path we are set to fail. We need to admit that attempts to transform South Africa into a more equal society are not working at the pace we need. That we, 27 years on, have a situation where few are swimming in a sea of opulence, surrounded by increasing poverty. All you need to do is look at the statistics. Youth unemployment in the second quarter of 2021 stood at just…

Shifaan Ryklief and Brenda Masilela With more than 25 000 delegates and leaders from across the globe in Glasgow for the two-week long Conference of the Parties (COP26) summit, climate change headlines are expected to dominate this week. Last week, the UN Development chief Achim Steiner urged hosts UK to recognise the concerns of developing countries who are deeply indebted and under severe stress due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and that they should be the focus at the COP26 summit. He said that while the various nations present their plans to reduce emissions by 2050, it was important to recognise their dilemmas and that most who were promised financial support did not receive any. World leader in carbon emissions, China proposed that a fund be established to help poorer countries.…

Matshelane Mamabolo DAVID NOTOANE posted a picture on his Instagram account the other day to evoke two decades old memories that got me longing for a proper return to the football stadiums. Not that going back to covering matches now would be like it was back then when Notoane and Co were still playing. But after nearly two years of not attending live matches, just being at the stadium would be welcome, hence I envied my colleagues who were able to attend Saturday’s MTN8 final between Cape Town City and Mamelodi Sundowns. Unlike during our time though, those who were in Durban on Saturday would not have been on the pitch for post-match interviews with the winners. Damn they wouldn’t have gotten anywhere near the dressing rooms to witness the…

Eshlin Vedan eshlin.vedan@inl.co.za It was fitting that Denis Onyango was the hero in Mamelodi Sundowns’ penalty shootout victory over Cape Town City in the MTN8 final at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday night. The veteran goalkeeper, who wears the No 14 jersey for Sundowns, saved five spot-kicks in the thrilling shootout to lead Masandawana to their first MTN8 title in 14 years. “Every trophy is special but this one has been away for a long time,” said the veteran Ugandan. “Someone told me that I was lucky No 14 since I wear jersey No 14 and it has been 14 years since Sundowns won the MTN 8. “The shirt number may have made it possible but the boys fought well and kept on believing even when we missed…

Veteran strike force Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took Manchester United south to play Tottenham Hotspur with his job on the line, but lived to fight another day after the under-fire manager’s decisions paid off handsomely in a 3-0 Premier League win. The pressure on the Norwegian was intense after last week’s 5-0 horror show against Liverpool, in which Jurgen Klopp’s men embarrassed their historic rivals. United travelled to London for Saturday’s game after taking just one point from a possible 12 to fall well off the pace in the Premier League. Here, we looked at tactics Solskjaer employed against against Spurs, which lifted United back within touching distance of the top four. Solskjaer chose to pair Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani up front at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, selecting a strike…

Joaquin Correa scored twice in the space of eight second-half minutes to earn Inter Milan a comfortable 2-0 win over Udinese in Serie A yesterday. “It was not a simple game, Udinese are a physical team that worries everyone. The guys were great, we deserved to win,” Inter manager Simone Inzaghi told Sky Italia. “We must continue like this, we have won two games in a row without conceding.” The hosts struggled to break down a well organised Udinese defence in the first half despite the efforts of midfielder Nicolo Barella, who fired seven shots at goal before half-time. But a superb individual effort from Argentina forward Correa put Inter in front after an hour, and he fired in a second eight minutes later to earn the Nerazzurri a deserved…

Trent Boult led an inspired bowling attack as New Zealand thrashed T20 World Cup favourites India by eight wickets yesterday to leave Virat Kohli’s men facing a desperate struggle to reach the semi-finals. Boult and leg-spinner Ish Sodhi shared five wickets between them to restrict India to 110/7 after being invited to bat first in the Super 12 clash at Dubai International Stadium. Captain Kane Williamson and Daryl Mitchell, who made 49, put on 72 runs for the second wicket as the Kiwis romped home in 14.3 overs and handed India their second straight loss of the tournament. Jasprit Bumrah denied Mitchell his maiden half-century but the wicket proved a minor blemish for the Kiwis, who bounced back from their opening loss to group leaders Pakistan. India, who lost their…

PARTIALLY state-owned Telkom on Friday flagged record strong earnings growth for the half-year ended September 2021, as the trading environment remains challenging. “Telkom expects to sustain its top-line revenue compared to the prior year and grow its profitability slightly ahead of revenue,” the group said. The group said headline earnings per share are expected to increase by up to 35% and basic earnings per share were likely to jump by up to 30% compared to a year earlier. “This was mainly due to a significant decline in finance charges, fair value movements and foreign exchange losses compared to the prior period,” it said. Telkom informed shareholders last month that it was pursuing a separate listing of Swiftnet, the group's masts and towers business, on the JSE. Swiftnet is a Telkom…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za MTN Nigeria expanded its fintech, data and digital revenue during the nine months ended September 2021, despite losing 7.5 million mobile subscribers due to SIM card restrictions. MTN Nigeria chief executive Karl Toriola on Friday said the telecoms company expected the decline in the overall subscriber base to bottom out in the fourth quarter of this year as it continued to feel the pinch of the regulatory restrictions on new SIM sales and activations. MTN Nigeria is the multinational company’s most profitable African market, and has grappled with regulatory issues. It is working on shifting the perception of MTN away from that of a foreign value-extracting entity. “We expect the decline in the overall subscriber base to bottom out and return to positive net additions in…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za IMPALA Platinum (Implats) saw production drop during the quarter ended September this year as the mining company grappled with an unstable power supply and labour problems at its flagship Rustenburg operations. This was coupled with a critical skills shortage and logistical constraints at its Canadian mines. The company on Friday said total concentrate volumes decreased 6%, to 809 000 ounces, with a 5% decline in managed volumes to 592 000 ounces. It said gross refined and saleable production volumes declined 15%, to 741 000 ounces. Milled production at Impala Rustenburg decreased by 12%, to 2.59 million tons, while higher milled grade and yield gains resulted in a 9% decline in concentrate production to 315 000 ounces. Chief executive Nico Muller on Friday said that production was…

SOME 26 looted colonial-era artefacts are to be displayed in a French museum one final time before they are returned home to Benin, in what officials in that country have said is a “historic milestone”. The items, which include 19th century thrones, sacred altars and royal statues, were plundered by the French army amid the sacking of Abomey Palace in 1892 and have been held at the Musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac in Paris since 2003. The collection, widely referred to as the “Abomey Treasures”, will be presented to the public from today until Sunday as part of an event seeking to celebrate the arts, cultures and traditions of Benin, a news release issued by the museum last month said. The artefacts will then be handed back to Benin where…

Zodidi Dano zodidi.dano@africannewsagency.com THE Sanlam Group, together with the UCT Online High School, will be giving away scholarships to young South Africans from historically disadvantaged backgrounds. The scholarships will be awarded to 100 academically strong learners who may otherwise not have had the chance to realise their potential. It will cover 100% of their high school tuition over a five-year period – an investment of R14.5 million from Sanlam. Applications are open to Grade 7 learners from now until mid-November for admission to Grade 8 in 2022. The UCT Online High School was launched in July in partnership with Cape Town-based education technology company Valenture Institute. The aim of the new online high school is to make use of its proprietary learning technology, analytics and learner support model at the…

AS AMOST a million matrics sit for the National Senior Certificate examinations, from Wednesday, President Cyril Ramaphosa has offered his best wishes to the Class of 2021 and saluted the learners’ resilience in a second-consecutive year plagued by the Covid-19 pandemic. He called on learners to adhere to Covid-19 safety regulations during examinations and in the celebrations beyond, and urged them to present themselves for Covid-19 vaccination | Jonisayi Maromo…

Lutho Pasiya lutho.pasiya@inl.co.za World Vegan Day, celebrated annually around the world on November 1, in continuity with Vegetarian Awareness Month in October advocates reverence of species, including animals, and healthy plant-based food habits. Vegans come together for activities such as setting up stalls and planting memorial trees to celebrate the benefits of veganism for human health and a sustainable natural environment. Established in 1994 by The Vegan Society of the UK, Vegan Day’s popularity has since grown globally with an increasing number of people turning vegan every year. A vegan diet omits all animal products, including dairy and eggs, unlike vegetarians, who despite not eating meat still consume these animal by-products. Vegans eat only vegetables, fruit, nuts, grains, seeds, pulses, and beans; proven to be packed full of beneficial…

Staff Reporter AHEAD of the Local Government Elections today, Google said its search activity had shown that interest in the sixth municipal elections since 1994, had reached an all-time high. Data from the digital giant showed that in September, searches for “voter registration” reached the highest level since November 2008. At the same time, search interest in “how to register” in the context of elections surged. “In the run-up to the election, search interest for candidates doubled in October from the level recorded in August. “Searches around ‘election day’ have also been steadily rising: search interest for the topic more than doubled (+110%) in October compared with September, while searches for ‘November 1st’ increased by 480% and searches for ‘municipal election’ increased by 100% in the last seven…

| PowerFM POWER987 boss Given Mkhari has announced renowned businessman, published author and philanthropist, Dr Reuel Khoza as his guest at this year’s highly anticipated Chairman’s Conversation. Scheduled for November 25, the Chairman Conversation addresses the widening deficiency in thought-provoking conversations by the nation with itself. Khoza, who chairs the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) and Discovery Bank & Discovery Bank Holdings is described by Mkhari as the man who can indulge us on the path of least resistance he has undertaken – exploring each one of his gifts and curiosities within himself and ultimately becoming a world-renowned thought leader and paragon of knowledge and virtue on ethical leadership. Recently honoured and inducted in the 2021 Thinkers 50 Hall of Fame, Khoza has lived a long, fruitful and inspired life.…

JUVENTUS chairman and founder of the proposed European Super League Andrea Agnelli said at the weekend that he challenged anyone to say that the current system of professional soccer was satisfactory, as he again called for reform. Agnelli’s Juve, as well as Barcelona and Real Madrid, were the last of the 12 clubs who signed up to the Super League in April not to have distanced themselves from the breakaway project. The proposal unravelled quickly after widespread condemnation. Nine rebel clubs who had quickly pulled out of the breakaway, including Manchester United and Liverpool, agreed to pay a combined $30.32 million (about R463 million) to European soccer’s governing body Uefa as a “gesture of goodwill”. Agnelli, however, is still not giving up hope of making changes to the game. “Beyond…

A goalkeeping masterclass from Aaron Ramsdale helped Arsenal to a 2-0 Premier League win at Leicester City on Saturday as the in-form Gunners climbed to the cusp of the top four. Gabriel and Emile Smith Rowe gave the visitors a comfortable first-half lead, but only Ramsdale’s heroics denied the Foxes a sniff of a comeback at the King Power Stadium. Mikel Arteta’s team extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to nine games. The Spaniard praised his team’s resilience, but insisted there was plenty of room for improvement given their reliance on Ramsdale. “We had to suffer and managed the game really well in the second half,” he told BT Sport. “There were moments we didn’t manage well enough, but in the last 20 minutes we got control back. “We…

Beauden Barrett believes he has the energy and drive to remain a key player for the All Blacks after celebrating his 100th cap with an impressive display against Wales on Saturday. Barrett scored a pair of tries in the All Blacks’ 54-16 victory at a sold-out Millennium Stadium in Cardiff and the 30-year-old remains a vital component in Ian Foster’s team. “I was a very raw young boy from Taranaki who was all-out attack and who had little opportunities off the bench – a few cameos here and there,” Barrett said after the game. “But now being a more senior player and having a lot more responsibilities in my life, there is a bigger picture. I’m more conscious of that and do things for different reasons now and my purpose…

Afghanistan gained their second victory of the T20 World Cup group stage yesterday as they thrashed Namibia by 62 runs in Abu Dhabi. Afghanistan batted first and made 160/5 with former captain Asghar Afghan bidding farewell with 31. They then held Namibia to 98/9 as seamers Hamid Hassan, making his first T20 international appearance in five years, and Naveen-ul-Haq both took three wickets. Naveen was named Player of the Match but presented his award to Asghar, the former captain who had announced on the eve of the game that he would retire after it. After current skipper Mohammad Nabi won the toss and chose to bat, Mohammad Shahzad gave Afghanistan a fast start. The opener hit 45 off 33 balls with two sixes. After he holed out at deep square…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za MINING fatalities for the year had climbed to 55 by the end of last week compared with 43 during the same period last year, according to figures released by Minerals Council SA on Friday. This marks a second year of regression in the industry’s safety record; it recorded a total of 51 fatalities in 2019, the lowest number on record, and 60 last year. The mining industry experienced one of its worst weeks in the past month, with two multiple-fatalities incidents, the council said. Three workers at Sasol Mining’s Bosjesspruit Colliery in Mpumalanga died on Tuesday, following what the company described as an underground water compartment incident. A week earlier, at Harmony Gold’s Kusasalethu mine near Carletonville, a seismic event resulted in a fall of…

It is safe to assume that back in July 2003 when Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning originally started Tesla Motors, they had no idea what kind of global behemoth it would morph into. Nor what a business cult symbol Tesla chairperson and largest shareholder since 2008, Elon Musk, would become. It is a massive tribute to Nikola Tesla himself, the Serbian-American inventor who died penniless even after the number of scientific contributions he brought to the modern world, to have the company named after him. With TSLA (Tesla Inc) recently surpassing the $1 trillion (R15trl) mark – yes that is $1 000 000 000 000, 12 zeros if you don’t feel like counting – interest in this share has never been greater. Comparing Tesla to…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za THE government has decided to ramp up procuring additional renewable energy to shore up electricity supply in the country as Eskom’s generation capacity struggles to meet demand, but will take more than 24 months to come online. Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Gwede Mantashe last week said he planned to launch the 6th Window for bidders in the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) by January 2022. The Bid Window 6 will look to procure 2 600MW of renewable energy following an oversubscribed Bid Window 5 which also procured the same amount at reduced prices. “We are aiming to release Bid Window 6 by no later than the end of January 2022,” Mantashe said. “Bid Window 6 will also include 1 600MW of…

THE work environment in the digital era is a continuously changing landscape that requires adaptation and agility. Nowadays, an individual may start working in a position based on their formal qualifications but they often have sub-sets of other useful skills that could play a greater role in their career progression, allowing them to be promoted or shift roles. One of the gaps identified to meet business demands is to upskill and equip individuals with appropriate knowledge and skills for their new roles. Wits Plus has become instrumental in these capacity-building initiatives, both for mature adults who have qualifications and for those who don’t, to boost their development through various short courses. Adapting in the 21st century workplace Short courses are specific, concise and short-term and play a crucial role in…

Staff Reporter WHETHER it is trying to secure a job, a place at a tertiary institution post-matric, or simply making it through the academic year, it has been a stressful time for learners around the world. Now that the class of 2021 have officially entered the end of year final exam period, the need for effective stress management tactics is critical to achieving good results. Rebecca Pretorius, the country manager at global mentorship company Crimson Education, gave 5 tips from a team of educational experts: Practice makes perfect Knowing what to expect will give you a confidence boost. Use past papers to practise for upcoming exams. This will help you to identify where you are struggling so you can put extra time into understanding these sections. Manage your time…

STUDENTS and staff at Rhodes University will be required to produce proof of vaccination to gain access to the campus. The mandatory vaccination rule, which was approved by the university’s council, will be implemented next year. The university is preparing for the full return of students and staff. There is an exemption application process and alternative health status process for those who cannot take the vaccine on medical or other legitimate grounds. |…

Lutho Pasiya lutho.pasiya@inl.co.za WHETHER for philosophical or health reasons, some people are opting to stop consuming animals and are adopting a vegan diet. Making the switch can be a challenge for people accustomed to incorporating dairy and meat in their diet, but it could offer some health benefits. With November 1 being World Vegan Day, and the whole month of November being vegan month, we ask ourselves if going vegan for a month can really change someone’s life? The director at ProVeg South Africa, Donovan Will, said that signing up for their ProVeg Veggie Challenge can be life-changing – even if you do it only for a month. Will said more than 50 000 South Africans have signed up for one of these challenges in the past few years, and…

Kennedy Mudzuli kennedy.mudzuli@inl.co.za NATIVE Tribe has made many hit songs in his career, but his single Ancestor’s Calling does the trick for him To this day, the reaction when he hears it is “Woah, I killed that one”. He has several other songs that have captured the imagination of music lovers across the globe, such as Jahera Na, The Wolf And The Lion, Symbiote, Visions, Once Upon A Time, Winters Breeze and Kiwi’s Drumz. Such is the prowess of Native Tribe, born Tony Thamsanqa Magagula. When he decided to pursue his love for music, he had to Google for a suitable name. The 29-year-old is a music producer, DJ and owner of Suonare Records. He has two sisters and stays in Soweto Protea Glen Extension, and it is here…

Zaahier Adams, who is in the UAE courtesy of Emirates airline, picks five things we learnt from the Proteas’ crucial T20 World Cup victory over Sri Lanka in Sharjah on Saturday. Tabraiz Shamsi: Shamsi is the No 1 T20 bowler in the world for a reason. The left-arm wrist-spinner showed off his ‘bouncebackability’ with excellent figures of 3/17 that earned him the Player of the Match award. “I don’t think there was much turn in it, to be honest. I think you have to really focus on the areas that you hit and be really hard on yourself on that. I think just focusing on the right lengths and areas to hit, that’s all I was focusing on,” Shamsi said. Dwaine Pretorius: South Africa’s new go-to man with the…

Second-half goals from Raphinha and Rodrigo Moreno earned Leeds United a 2-1 win away at Norwich City in the Premier League yesterday, keeping the visitors out of the relegation zone and the home side nailed to the bottom of the table after 10 matches. Leeds stayed 17th on 10 points from as many games, three above 18th-placed Burnley, while promoted Norwich were left propping up the table on two points, still without a win. Leeds Boss Marcelo Bielsa was relieved that his side ground out the win after an industrious performance, and he voiced his support for his Norwich counterpart Daniel Farke. “A very important win given our position in the table, due to the results we have been obtaining that are not positive,” Bielsa told Sky Sports. “The job…

Newcastle United’s interim manager Graeme Jones believes the Premier League club are locked in a relegation battle and called on the team’s new owners to bring in a permanent manager who can breathe life into their campaign. Jones took temporary charge after Steve Bruce left by mutual consent earlier this month, two weeks after the club was taken over by a consortium led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Jones guided them to a 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace before they suffered a 3-0 defeat against leaders Chelsea on Saturday that left them second from bottom with four points after 10 matches and without a victory. “We’re in a relegation battle, there’s no question about that,” said Jones, whose side were starved of possession and largely defensive. “We need to…

Rugby Australia chair Hamish McLennan has left the door open for Samu Kerevi, Quade Cooper and Sean McMahon to return to the Wallabies squad after the Japan-based players’ contentious late withdrawal from the team’s European tour last week. The trio were recalled by coach Dave Rennie during last month’s Rugby Championship, with Kerevi and Cooper shining as the Wallabies notched up wins over the Springboks and Argentina. But the three, who have lucrative contracts with Japanese outfits, pulled out of the squad ahead of this weekend’s meeting with Scotland, preferring to remain with their clubs. “I wholeheartedly believe that all parties want to do the right thing,” McLennan told the Sydney Morning Herald. “Let’s not forget that Quade and Samu were in the Wallabies wilderness until they made a miraculous…

Scotland might have scored 10 tries and easily beaten Tonga 60-14 in their autumn international at Murrayfield in Edinburgh on Saturday, but coach Gregor Townsend is warning his side’s defensive skills need improving ahead of much tougher tests against Australia and South Africa over the next fortnight. Scotland were devastating on the front foot but also let Tonga, who were missing key players and had little preparation, have some attacking passages of play and a consolation try midway through the second half. Townsend is concerned defensive lapses could prove a lot more costly in their next two Murrayfield Tests, against Australia on Sunday and the world champion Springboks on November 13. “Defensively, we’ll have to be at our very best,” Townsend said. “Australia have shown they are a good attacking…