1. ”Sergio, on the other hand, was roaring with laughter, speaking quickly and at volume about topics I couldn’t quite hear without disguising myself as a potted plant and sneaking up behind them.
“As an extrovert who tends to get gabby in moments of tension, though, I heard enough to recognize a kindred soul.”
2. ”If there were a chance of getting the ball back every scrum, you could see more attack from outside these almost legislated zones. It could make rugby league more random. Attackers may be emboldened to pass the ball more, offload, toss it about in all parts of the field, knowing that dropping the ball isn’t an automatic handover.”
3. “The testing process is where things fall down. It costs money to run blood and urine tests, not to mention paying the personnel required to knock on athletes doors. Simply put, some countries can’t afford to fund their athletes, never mind fund an anti-doping programme.”
4. “In him, Italy have lost someone who showed concern not only for results but for the state of the game, its development and renaissance. He was an agent of change, challenging stereotypes in style of play and a football culture’s mentality towards young players.“
5. “Gregg Popovich, coach and Kaiser of the San Antonio Spurs, is no one’s idea of cowardly. So predictably, even obviously, it was Coach Pop who made the decision to hire Becky Hammon as the first full-time female assistant coach in any major professional men’s sport in the United States.”
6. “On the way back from work he will stop by a stall on the side of the road, pick up fresh fish and vegetables as he returns to his Coral Coast retreat. He consumes the coconuts which drop in his garden and he has even become accustomed to the Fijian climate – the blanket comes out when the temperature drops to the mid-60s.”
7. . The Germans used the wind as their delivery mechanism; they simply opened several thousand containers of the poison and let the breeze convey it toward the enemy.”
Football in the Great War, Ciao Prandelli and Rory's lunch with Sergio -- it's the week's best sportswriting
1. ”Sergio, on the other hand, was roaring with laughter, speaking quickly and at volume about topics I couldn’t quite hear without disguising myself as a potted plant and sneaking up behind them.
“As an extrovert who tends to get gabby in moments of tension, though, I heard enough to recognize a kindred soul.”
For Grantland, Shane Ryan has first-hand account of watching Rory McIlroy do lunch with Sergio Garcia before last Sunday’s final round.
2. ”If there were a chance of getting the ball back every scrum, you could see more attack from outside these almost legislated zones. It could make rugby league more random. Attackers may be emboldened to pass the ball more, offload, toss it about in all parts of the field, knowing that dropping the ball isn’t an automatic handover.”
Make the scrum a thing again in Rugby League: Matt Cleary argues the case in The Guardian.
3. “The testing process is where things fall down. It costs money to run blood and urine tests, not to mention paying the personnel required to knock on athletes doors. Simply put, some countries can’t afford to fund their athletes, never mind fund an anti-doping programme.”
David Gillick writes about his experiences and views on doping in athletics for RTE.
Over on ESPN, James Horncastle issues a late (but great) lament for the departure of Cesare Prandelli.
5. “Gregg Popovich, coach and Kaiser of the San Antonio Spurs, is no one’s idea of cowardly. So predictably, even obviously, it was Coach Pop who made the decision to hire Becky Hammon as the first full-time female assistant coach in any major professional men’s sport in the United States.”
The Nation’s Dave Zirin asks why the hell it’s taken so long.
6. “On the way back from work he will stop by a stall on the side of the road, pick up fresh fish and vegetables as he returns to his Coral Coast retreat. He consumes the coconuts which drop in his garden and he has even become accustomed to the Fijian climate – the blanket comes out when the temperature drops to the mid-60s.”
Again on ESPN (this time in the rugby section) Tom Hamilton talks with Fiji 7s coach Ben Ryan.
7. . The Germans used the wind as their delivery mechanism; they simply opened several thousand containers of the poison and let the breeze convey it toward the enemy.”
Brian Phillips paints the bleak picture of football during the first World War.
VIDEO: Olympic champ injured after pole snaps in training
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Sunday Papers Well read