A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Clontarf pedigree could prove key
CRICKET:With 10 wins to their name, Clontarf go into today's RSA Leinster Senior Cup final against Pembroke at Claremont Road (11.0) as favourites, albeit against a side that has had an outstanding run to their first final since 1999.
Pembroke skipper and opening bat Theo Lawson has led from from the front with 261 runs in three innings, two of which he finished unbeaten in, while his younger brother Paul has claimed 13 wickets, including seven for 12 against Rush in the first round.
The Sandymount side will be without the Ireland under-19 duo of Robin Kelly and Barry McCarthy due to World Cup duty, with Gary Baugh and Jack Balbirnie coming into the side.
’Tarf are boosted by the return of their international duo of Alex Cusack and Andrew Poynter from their impressive semi-final victory over Railway Union, where skipper Bill Coghlan kept up his great form with an unbeaten 108.
EMMET RIORDAN
Carter's kick falls short as Chiefs win
RUGBY:The Waikato Chiefs foiled a spirited comeback bid by the Canterbury Crusaders yesterday to register a nail-biting 20-17 victory and reach the Super Rugby final for just the second time.
Tries from Sona Taumalolo and Liam Messam helped the Chiefs race to a 17-6 lead as the 40-minute siren sounded at Waikato Stadium but Ryan Crotty touched down from the final move of the first half and Dan Carter kicked the visitors back to within three points.
Carter looked set to further stoke the Crusaders’ chances of adding to their record seven titles when he lined up a penalty in front of the posts with four minutes remaining.
The kick would have tied the semi-final at 20-20 but it dropped just short and the Chiefs held on until the whistle in the face of constant pressure.
There will now be a new name on the trophy, with the Chiefs set to meet the Stormers or the Sharks in next week’s final. The South African rivals meet in Cape Town in today’s second semi-final.
McGee's reign ends as he proves no match for Goodall
TENNIS:Defending champion James McGee fell at the semi-final stage of the FBD Irish Open at Fitzwilliam yesterday, going down 4-6 4-6 to current British Davis Cup player and top seed Josh Goodall.
A nervous start saw McGee’s serve broken in the opening game and the Castleknock man played a poor first set. He struggled with his first serve percentage throughout the match, giving Goodall an opportunities to break McGee’s serve early in the second set, while he was rarely threatened on his own service games.
The crucial break eventually arrived in the ninth game after more impressive groundstrokes. Goodall, who has already won four titles this year, served out the match to take his place in today’s final.
He will play Australia’s fourth seed Michael Look in today’s final (2.30pm) after he caused an upset in beating French second seed Albano Olivetti 6-3 6-4.
In a match dominated by serve, it was Look who took his break point opportunities, while his groundstrokes were also more consistent and accurate than his opponent.
Rossi keeping all his options open
MOTOR SPORT:Valentino Rossi will decide his Moto GP future "in the next few weeks".
Nine-time world champion Rossi is out of contract at Ducati at the end of the year and has been linked with a return to Yamaha to replace Ben Spies.
He said: “I have spoken a lot with Ducati for next year and I am still waiting for some details and some important things with the contract.
“I have also some other options for next year but I think the situation will be more clear in the next weeks.”
Spies’s announcement on Tuesday that he was leaving Yamaha at the end of the season sparked speculation about Rossi returning to Yamaha to partner Jorge Lorenzo, who recently extended his own contract with the factory until 2014.
Rossi and Lorenzo had a turbulent relationship for two years at Yamaha when Lorenzo joined the team as a rookie and immediately challenged Rossi for the title, beating him to it in 2010.
