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Posted by Rob Shepherd on Friday, July 7, 2017

The sun is shining, Wimbledon is in full flow and the Brits are having some degree of success on the hallowed grass. The transfer window is open so that means rumours are a plenty. I take a look at the back pages and share what has caught my attention this week in the sporting world.

Tennis News

Jo Konta’s win over Donna Vekic has been one of the highlights of this year’s Wimbledon. The Brit showed immense determination to win the three-set epic battle with Vekic. One person who was gushing with praise for Jo was Britain’s Andy Murray.

“I saw the end of Jo Konta’s win over Donna Vekic in the gym while I was waiting to go on, and her calmness in such a tense finish really impressed me. A number of times she was pretty close to getting broken at the end – she was 0-30 down – and she stayed focused and managed to get through it. You saw right at the end just how much emotion she had inside her. You don’t see Jo react like that too much and certainly not during a match, but it’s obviously in there.

She can go a long way here. She’s certainly good enough, and hopefully Wednesday’s match was the first of many on Centre Court. “

Shot of the tournament so far must go to a stunning effort from Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov. Grigor hit an amazing diving volley against Marcos Baghdatis. If you missed it, you can watch a replay here. I doubt we will see many better shots in this year’s tournament.

Today sees some intriguing matches taking place on centre court. First up we have Victoria Azarenka taking on British star Heather Watson. Azarenka is a former world number one so is likely to provide a stiff challenge to Watson who is ranked at 102.

Russian Karen Khachanov is the opposition for Rafael Nadal in the second match on centre court. Nadal is ranked world number 4 with Khachanov ranked at 34.

World 28 seed, Fabio Fognini is the opposition for our very own Andy Murray in the late match. Murray will be desperate to add a third Wimbledon title to his honours list.

Rugby News

British & Irish Lions Tour of New Zealand

The final and deciding Test in this week end of what has been a rollercoaster of a tour for the lions with mid-week lows to the high of last weekend.

The final test will define the tour and what is recorded in the history books with both sides building up the hype “bigger than the World Cup” and “what Rugby Needs”.

Since I Left You Last Time

17 June –  The Lions made the most of a powerful pack performance in the second half to run out 32 – 10 winners against the Moari All Blacks in what many described as the unofficial fourth test.  Leigh Halfpenny kicked five penalties and with a penalty try being awarded along with a try from Maro Itoje try completing the scoresheet.

The Lions followed up on the 20th June with another impressive win 34 -6 this time against the Chiefs. The English Winger Jack Nowell got two tries, after his earlier poor performances, with the Irishman Jared Payne also crossing the whitewash and with a penalty try early in the second half setting up a comfortable, but impressive win.

Then we came to the first test with the Lions in a upbeat mood only to see them downed 30-15 by the All Blacks. The lions were trailing 13 -8 at halftime after a try that will go down in the annals of Lions History after Sean O’Brien finish a sweeping end to end field move.

The Lions were undone in the second half by a brace of tries by Rieko Loane and the kicking of Beauden Barrett, however they came away with hope for the second test with a consolation try scored by Rhys Webb converted by Owen Farrell at the end of an enthralling game.

27 June the Lions headed to Wellington to play the last club and midweek game against the Hurricanes.  Full time score 31-31 at the Westpac Stadium.

The Lions led 23 – 7 at halftime, with what many thought was an unassailable lead thanks to tries from George North and Tommy Seymour and the kicking of Dan Biggar.

The Hurricanes came out brightly for the start of the second half cutting the lions lead to 23 -17 before a Dan Biggar penalty and a second try from Tommy Seymour pushed the tourists to a 31-17 lead. Then came the Hurricane onslaught scoring 14 unanswered points, the lions however missed a drop goal at the death in what was an amazing tour match and a fitting end to the club games.

All Blacks 21-24 British & Irish Lions. A breath-taking win by the Lions where Owen Farrell held his nerve to slot over the decisive penalty in the 77th minute. The Lions defense was immense stopping New Zealand crossing the try line restricting them to Just penalties albeit against 14 men after Sonny Bill Williams was shown a red card on the 24th Minute for a tackle or should we say shoulder charge on Anthony Watson.

 A Lions second half comeback after trailing to Beauden Barrett penalties after the break included excellent tries by Conor Murray and Taulupe Faletau with Owen Farrell kicking the Lions over the finishing line. 

What a Game Unbelievable skills and character ending an All Black 46 game winning streak, they last lost in New Zealand in 2009 against South Africa.

We now await with baited breath for the deciding test at Eden Park where the All Blacks are 37 games undefeated since the 23-20 loss to France on July 3 1994 and where the lions Fans are reportedly set to outnumber the home fans

Football News

The biggest story this week must be the fact that Everton have accepted a £75 million bid from Manchester United to sign striker Romelu Lukaku. Lukaku was in inspired form last year, scoring 25 league goals in 36 games. United struggled to kill off games last year so they will be hopeful that Romelu will fill the goal scoring void left by the departure of Zlatan Ibrahimović. Could Chelsea yet make a last-ditch attempt to sign their former player? Only time will tell.

Another team splashing the cash early is Arsenal. They broke their transfer record by signing highly rated forward Alexandre Lacazette from Lyon for £46.5 million. He scored 129 goals in 275 matches for Lyon and fans will be keen to see if he can replicate this form for his new club.

Fans of rival clubs have been quick to flock to social media to share the fact that Arsenal’s new defensive signing Sead Kolasinac has the record of scoring the fastest own goal ever in the World Cup. In 2014, Kolasinac put the ball into his own net to claim the unwanted record.

Inter Milan are the latest club to show interest in Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez. The 28-year-old has been repeatedly linked to a move away from the Emirates. Manchester City are also rumoured to be interested.

Manchester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho is inching his way towards a £25 million switch to Leicester City. Iheanacho has scored 21 goals in 64 game but has found it difficult to nail down a starting spot at City.