Punter | SilverScorpio.Com

Troops on way back for Broncos

April 13, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Brisbane could rush back as many as five players, including strike weapon Israel Folau, for Sunday’s clash with fellow NRL desperates Cronulla.

They will also be boosted by the return of popular skills coach Allan “Alfie” Langer, whose suspension was lifted after he was fined and disqualified from driving on Monday for drink driving.

“It’ll be good to have him (Langer) back. There’ll be a smile on their (the players’) faces when they see him and I’m sure he’ll be ready for their wise cracks,” Henjak said.

A bold punter backed the last-placed Broncos – who have won just one of their first five games – to win $264,000 in a single bet at $67 with Sportingbet Australia only hours before Henjak signalled the return of a number of top line players led by Folau.

He could be joined by exciting young winger Jharal Yow Yeh, suspended duo Ben Te’o and Antonio Winterstein and senior prop Nick Kenny, a late scratching from last week’s loss to the Dragons.

The injection of Folau and Yow Yeh will give the back line strike-power and take some heat off Darren Lockyer and Peter Wallace.

Brisbane took on St George Illawarra with the youngest and most inexperienced side in the club’s history outside of Origin dates.

They were gutsy in the first half and had a real dig despite some tough penalty decisions at crucial stages.

“The two suspended players will be back and Izzy (Folau) and Jharal could be back as well,” Henjak said.

“Nick Kenny is another possibility, so there’s a few troops there.”

Yow Yeh has not played this season after hurting his knee in the All Stars game in February.

“Jharal finished last year really well and he was good in the All Stars game and we were looking forward to him playing after a really good preseason,” he said.

“I’ll check them all in the morning (Tuesday) and see what the latest medical update on them is first.”

Brisbane’s biggest danger after tough games against big packs is looking at struggling Cronullag and thinking the task will be a lot easier at Lang Park on Sunday.

“I think we’re pretty desperate, I hope they’re not thinking like that,” Henjak said.

“We’ll be reminding them of the standard we need.

“We took some steps last week and we don’t want to go backwards, we want to keep improving.”

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Alfie Langer, all stars, bet, Broncos, clash, Darren Lockyer, Dragons, five games, Nick Kenny, NRL, Origin Dates, Peter Wallace, punter, Sportingbet Australia, St George Illawarra, stars game, winger, Winterstein, Wise Cracks, yow

Winehouse’s drug-ravaged teeth agony

September 20, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, September 19 (ANI): Singer Amy Winehouse is presently undergoing painful dental reconstruction, as her teeth have been spoilt by drug binges, sources say.

“Amy’s teeth were in a pretty gross state. They were brown and stained and needed major work on them and she was determined to get them back to their sparkling best,” the Sun quoted a source as saying.

“It’s all major work and it’s left her in almost constant pain, but she thinks the sacrifice is worth it.

“She’s been given some very strong drugs to cope with the pain,” the source added.

Meanwhile, Amy reportedly got involved in a furious bust-up with a punter at Soho’s Jazz After Dark club.(ANI)

Filed Under: Entertainment News Tagged With: agony, Amy Winehouse, binges, bust, dental reconstruction, drugs, gross state, jazz, London, punter, sacrifice, soho, Sun, teeth

Clarke rules out coup on Punter

August 28, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Edinburgh (Scotland), Aug.28 (ANI): Australia’s Test captain-in-waiting Michael Clarke has no plans to mount a coup against incumbent Ricky Ponting.

Clarke has dismissed the notion of captaining Ricky Ponting in the Australian Test side.

“He is our leader, and has been for my whole career, and in my opinion he’s certainly one of the best leaders I’ve played under,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted Clarke, as saying.

“I’m blessed to get this opportunity when he’s not here to get that fill-in role, but Punter’s our leader and I’m more than happy to continue playing under him,” he added.

Clarke will lead Australia against Scotland on Friday, and will hold the reins until Ponting returns to Britain for the last four of seven one-dayers against England.

On the idea of splitting the captaincy so that he would control the team for one-dayers and Twenty20s full-time, Clarke said: “I see Ricky as our leader, I don’t think it’s something we have to worry about at this stage.

“Punt’s playing fantastic cricket in all forms of the game, I think his series in the Ashes was very good once again. To me, we don’t have to worry about that because Ricky is our captain,” he said.

Clarke believes singling out Ponting for blame after the series loss is grossly unfair.

“The one thing Punt’s always said is that it’s part of the responsibility as a leader and as a senior player, we are going to be more responsible if we don’t perform,” Clarke said.

“That’s another great strength of Ricky’s: he does cop it on the chin. There are times he does cop a lot of flak but he cops it on the chin. He’s always positive around the team. He never lets that get in the way of his leadership,” Clarke said.

Clarke added that the entire squad had accepted responsibility for the 2-1 loss to England, despite Ponting shouldering the blame. (ANI)

Filed Under: Sports News Tagged With: ANI, ashes, Aug, Australia, australian, blame, Britain, captain-in-waiting Michael Clarke, captaincy, career, Chin, clarke, cop, cops, coup, Cricket, edinburgh, edinburgh scotland, England, flak, Friday, full-time, game, herald, idea, Incumbent, leader, leadership, loss, lot, Michael Clarke, morning, morning herald, notion, opinion, opportunity, part, player, playing, ponting clarke, Punt, punter, reins, responsibility, ricky, Ricky Ponting, role, Scotland, series, side, something, splitting, squad, stage, strength, sydney, sydney morning herald, team, test, test side, thing, way

Italian punter bags record £127m lottery jackpot

August 25, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, August 23 (ANI): An Italian punter has bagged a record 127 million pounds in a lottery jackpot.

Tourists from around Europe were said to have flogged Italy for the Suprenalotto.

But many had to face disappointment after a Bagnone player, in the province of Massa Carrara in Tuscany, picked the winning combination of 11, 27, 10, 79, 45, 88, reports Sky News.

The win is being claimed by Italy as the biggest lottery jackpot in Europe.

Players were said to have splashed more than 1.7 billion pounds since the start of the year in an attempt to scoop the top prize. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: ANI, attempt, August, Bagnone, Biggest Lottery Jackpot, Carrara, combination, disappointment, Europe, Italy, jackpot, London, lottery, Massa, Massa Carrara, NEWS, player, prize, province, punter, record, sky, sky news, start, Suprenalotto, tourists, Tuscany, win, winning combination, year

Ponting’s legacy as Oz captain on the line at The Oval

August 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Aug.19 (ANI): The fifth Ashes Test, which begins at The Oval from tomorrow, will be a defining one for Australia captain Ricky Ponting.

Victory at The Oval will hand Ponting something that is demanded of any Australia captain worth his salt, a series victory over England, in England, reports Fox Sports.

A draw or worse and Ponting will have failed in two attempts to overcome the old enemy – each series with the world’s No.1 team.

That Ponting engineered only the second 5-0 Ashes whitewash in between times will be remembered fondly, but, unfairly, it will be overshadowed by his failings in England.

A stalemate will be enough for Australia to retain the Ashes, but the man they call Punter will have just one outcome in mind: victory.

Ponting’s standing as an all-time batting great is secure, but for a captain who’s leadership qualities constantly come under question, it’s not stretching things to say his legacy is at stake.

“The pressure is on. Your captaincy gets rated on series wins, but also on how we go against the old enemy. It wouldn’t please Ponting to have another series defeat in England on his CV,” says ex-captain Allan Border.

“I’ve said from the start about how much it would mean to me to win here. It’s a chance I’ve been waiting for this whole tour and a chance the whole team has been waiting for,” Ponting adds.

Should Australia lose, Ponting will join Billy Murdoch as the only captains of Australia to lose two Test series in England. It would be an immovable blemish on his record, and grist to the mill for Ponting’s numerous detractors.

“He’s probably not saying too much publicly, but privately it would be burning that he wants to right that wrong. He wants to come away as an Ashes-retaining captain,” Border told Fox Sports.

Pushing 35, this will almost certainly be Ponting’s last tour of England. The Oval might even be his last Test match against the Poms. He’s had a mixed series with the bat and as a tactician, all the while contending with the goading of British media and fans who have not forgotten Ponting’s ill feeling in 2005.

Ponting’s vice-captain and heir apparent, Michael Clarke, has meanwhile been in astonishing form. Probably the player of the series to date, Clarke led by example with two very Ponting-like knocks, backs-against-the-wall centuries, at Lord’s and Edgbaston.

Despite Ponting’s advancing age and Clarke’s obvious leadership potential, Border does not believe The Oval result will have any influence on Ponting’s position as captain of Australia.

“I get the feeling Ponting’s very comfortable with where he’s at, both as a player and as a captain,” said Border, who started Australia’s long-running hold over in England in 1989, and who was an Ashes-winning captain three times.

“Stepping down as captain and continuing as a player doesn’t work in our system. Ricky will know when it’s the right time to hand over the reins,” he adds. (ANI)

Filed Under: Sports News Tagged With: age, Allan Border, ANI, ashes, Ashes-retaining, Ashes-winning, Aug, Australia, bat, batting, billy, blemish, captain Allan Border, captain ricky ponting, captaincy, chance, clarke, date, defeat, Detractors, draw, edgbaston, enemy, England, England Reports, example, feeling, Fifth Ashes Test, form, fox, fox sports, Grist, Grist Mill, heir, hold, influence, last test, leadership, leadership qualities, legacy, line, London, lord, man, Michael Clarke, mill, mind, murdoch, outcome, Oval, Oz, player, Poms, Ponting-like, position, pressure, punter, question, record, result, ricky, Ricky Ponting, right, salt, series, series victory, something, stake, stalemate, standing, start, stepping, system, tactician, team, test, test match, test series, time, tomorrow, tour, victory, while, whitewash, world, wrong

Barmy Army ups the Ashes ante against Punter and his boys

June 29, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, June 29 (ANI): England’s Barmy Army has upped the ante by releasing a tongue-in-cheek tune, bashing Aussie captain Ricky Ponting in time for The Ashes.

The recording titled “Hey Hey Ricky”, brought to you in association with online bookmaker Blue Square, is to be released this week complete with a Benny Hill style video.

The Sun quoted Barmy Army supremo Paul Burnham as saying: “We really want to get behind the boys and have cricket’s first Number 1 hit record.”

“We’ve got loads of fun stuff going on around the record including a hilarious video and a great dance – the Rickyroo – that we hope everyone can join in with,” he added. (ANI)

Filed Under: Sports News Tagged With: barmy army, benny hill, burnham, captain ricky ponting, Cricket, England, fun stuff, Hey, June 29, loads of fun, London, punter, ricky, Sun, tongue-in-cheek, ups

Oz’s tremendous past record forced ECB to shift first Ashes match from Lord’s

May 24, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Sydney, May 24 (ANI): Oz skipper Ricky Ponting believes that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) decided not to host the first Ashes Test match at Lord’s due to Australia’s enviable record there.

Amazingly, Australia has not lost a single Test match at Lord’s since 1934.

The Lord’s has been hosting the second Ashes Test, however 2005 witnessed the home of cricket hosting the first Test, which was too pocketed by the Kangaroos.

Punter doesn’t considers it a mere coincidence that the England and Wales Cricket Board was not to keen to start the Ashes there.

This time around, it has been decided that first Test will be in Cardiff, despite the pitch there being rated as poor, and the second Test will be at Lord’s.

“There was a fair bit of talk about it last time, starting the Ashes at Lord’s, given our record. This time around, it will be the second Test match, and I’ve got no doubt they changed it on purpose,” Ponting said.

Some of the records as mentioned speak volumes of Australia’s dominance at the Lord’s.

-Twenty-one-year-old Bradman scored 254 in 1930.

-Bob Massie took 16 wickets in a Test in 1972.

-Allan Border made 196 in 1985, and averaged 100 in five Tests.

-Glenn McGrath took 8-38 in 1997 among 26 wickets at 11.5 apiece in three Tests.

-Despite losing the 2005 Ashes, Australia beat England by 239 runs in the first Test at Lord’s.

However, the present Oz contingent is by far the least experienced squad to have played in the Ashes with only four of the 16-man squad to have played a Test at the Lord’s.

And none of the biggies such as Ponting, Simon Katich, Michael Clarke,and Brett Lee have done well.

Ponting has scored only 69 runs at a paltry average of 17.25.

But Ponting has vowed to change the records and engrave his name on the big record board’s hanging around the Lord’s pavilion.

“There’s all these big boards up around the rooms, and you want to get your name on those boards at Lord’s.That’s one thing that I’ll be certainly looking to do because I haven’t done very well there. I’ve made a one-day hundred there, but not done so well in Tests,” The Sydney Morning Herald, quoted Ponting, as saying. (ANI)

Filed Under: Sports News Tagged With: Allan Border, amazingly, ANI, ashes, Ashes Test Match, Australia, average, Biggies, bit, board, Bob Massie, Bradman, brett, brett lee, Cardiff, coincidence, contingent, Cricket, dominance, doubt, ecb, England, england and wales cricket board, engrave, Enviable Record, first ashes test, first test, glenn, glenn mcgrath, herald, home, kangaroos, lee, lord, man, man squad, May, mcgrath, Michael Clarke, morning, name, no doubt, none, Oz, pavilion, pitch, punter, purpose, record, Ricky Ponting, second test, Simon Katich, skipper, squad, sydney, talk, test, tests, thing, time, Twenty-one-year-old, wales, wales cricket board, wickets

Oz selectors endorse `Punter’ Ponting as skipper till 2011 World Cup

May 4, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Melbourne, May 4 (ANI): Ricky Ponting will continue to lead Australia in all three forms of the game until the 2011 World Cup.

The chairman of selectors, Andrew Hilditch, said he would not consider dividing the Test and limited-overs captaincy in the forseeable future despite the unprecedented workload facing the Australian team and the rising reputation of Ponting’s deputy, Michael Clarke.

“Leadership issues are things that we always think about. But we are really confident that Ricky will be more than capable of getting through to the 2011 World Cup, and I know that is something he would like to do, so I don’t see that as being an issue,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted Hilditch, as saying.

Hilditch said that he does not believe there is a need to give Clarke permanent control of the limited-overs sides before the next 50-over World Cup either to prolong Ponting’s Test career or rejuvenate the short-forms teams.

“We have been very careful with managing his workload in the last three or four years, and he really needed to have a break in our summer, which for lots of reasons was not a popular decision, but it was a pretty tough task to then send him to South Africa [for the Test series] and then go straight into one-dayers,” Hilditch said.

“It was pretty tough on him and he did very well. For a few weeks, at least, he is getting a break now. From time to time we will look at his workload, particularly on overseas tours and try and keep it to a manageable level, but for key events Ricky is always going to be a critical member of the side,” Hilditch said.

Clarke has indicated he is willing to wait.

“Let me make clear, our captain’s back home and we can’t wait to have him back. He’s a fantastic leader and I’m stoked that he’s happy to give me these chances, give me these opportunities to get involved and learn as much as I can,” Clarke said. (ANI)

Filed Under: Sports News Tagged With: Andrew Hilditch, ANI, Australia, break, captain, captaincy, career, chairman, clarke, control, Critical Member, cup, decision, deputy, future, game, Game World, herald, hilditch, home, issue, leader, leadership, Leadership Issues, level, limited overs, Manageable Level, May, Melbourne, member, Michael Clarke, morning, morning herald, need, Oz, punter, reputation, ricky, Ricky Ponting, selectors, series, side, skipper, something, South Africa, summer, sydney, sydney morning herald, task, team, test, test career, test series, time, workload, world, World Cup

Fan’s Racing Tip A Dead Cert For Family

April 9, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

A family is celebrating a £20,000 win on this year’s Grand National after getting a tip from beyond the grave. Skip related content
Related photos / videos
Fan’s Racing Tip A Dead Cert For Family

Racing fan Danny Shea died from kidney cancer five months ago, but he left his family strict instructions on how to spend the £250 he left them.

As instructed, the Shea family, from Eston in Middlesborough, placed the money on outsider Mon Mome who defied the odds and won the Aintree race at 100-1.

Mr Shea’s wife Pat said she ‘couldn’t believe’ her husband had finally picked a winner.

“He was generally pretty useless at picking winners,” she said.

“He didn’t have much of a clue, though he liked a bet. The best we hoped for was a place.

“I have to say I thought ‘what a waste of money’. But it’s what Danny wanted.”

Mr Shea, who was 66, had worked as an off-shore rigger before being diagnosed with terminal cancer in October 2007.

He knew he would not live to see this year’s National but was convinced that Mon Mome had the talent to defy the odds.

Pat’s brother Pete laid a complicated combination of spread bets with Mr Shea allocating £20 for each punter except Pat who had £60.

Mr Shea’s betting winners were wife Pat, son Martin, daughter Lesley, sisters Pat and Gloria, brother-in-law Pete, and friends Eddie, Freddie, Tommy, Rod and Kelly.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Aintree, bet, bets, betting, brother, Brother Pete, brother-in-law, cancer, Cert, clue, combination, content, danny, Danny Shea, daughter, Daughter Lesley, dead, Dead Cert, Eddie, Eston, family, fan, five months, freddie, Gloria, grand, grand national, grave, husband, kelly, kidney, Kidney Cancer, lesley, Martin, Middlesborough, Mome, Mon, MONEY, Mr Shea, national, October, off shore, outsider, pat, pete, place, punter, Race, racing, related, rigger, rod, Shea Family, Skip, son, spread, strict instructions, talent, terminal, terminal cancer, tip, tommy, waste, waste of money, wife, winner, year

National win from beyond the grave

April 9, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

For one family last weekend’s Grand National was more than just a race – it was the fulfillment of a wish from beyond the grave. Skip related content
Related photos / videos
National win from beyond the grave

Danny Shea, 66, a passionate horse racing fan, died from cancer five months ago.

But knowing he would never see this year’s race he left his family a “tip” and £250 to place the bet.

The Shea family, from Eston in Middlesbrough, scooped £20,000 after carrying out he dying wish and backing 100-1 outsider Mon Mome.

His wife of 40 years, Pat, 63, “couldn’t believe” her husband had managed to pick the winner.

“He was generally pretty useless at picking winners. He didn’t have much of a clue though he liked a bet. The best we hoped for was a place,” she said.

“I have to say I thought ‘what a waste of money’. But it’s what Danny wanted.”

Pat’s brother Pete laid a complicated combination of spread bets with Mr Shea allocating £20 for each punter except Pat who had £60.

Mr Shea’s betting winners were wife Pat, son Martin, daughter Lesley, sisters Pat and Gloria, brother-in-law Pete, and friends Eddie, Freddie, Tommy, Rod and Kelly.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: bet, bets, betting, brother, Brother Pete, brother-in-law, cancer, clue, combination, content, danny, Danny Shea, daughter, Daughter Lesley, dying wish, Eddie, Eston, family, fan, five months, freddie, fulfillment, Gloria, grand, grand national, grave, horse, horse racing, husband, kelly, lesley, Martin, middlesbrough, Mome, Mon, MONEY, Mr Shea, national, outsider, pat, pete, place, Place Bet, punter, Race, related, rod, Shea Family, Skip, son, spread, tip, tommy, videos, waste, waste of money, weekend, wife, winner, wish, year

Punter’s boys in 20-20 mode after Cape Town loss

March 24, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Cape Town (South Africa), Mar.24 (ANI): The Australian cricket team has put its innings and 20 run defeat against South Africa aside, and is now preparing for the opening Twenty20 International against South Africa.

According to The Age, the Proteas will host Australia for Twenty20 matches on Friday in Johannesburg and on Sunday (Monday AEDT) in Pretoria followed by next month’s five one-day internationals.

Australia’s Test squad were relaxing at their team hotel on Monday, which had been scheduled as the fifth day of the third Test but the match finished a day early.

The team travel to Johannesburg on Tuesday with an optional training session planned for Wednesday and another full session on Thursday.

Additions to the squad for the one-dayers include Nathan Bracken, Callum Ferguson, James Hopes, David Hussey, Ben Laughlin and Cameron White. NSW batsman David Warner and Victoria paceman Shane Harwood will return to Australia after the two Twenty20 games.

Australia were semi-finalists in the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007. The next world championship is to be held in England in June. (ANI)

Filed Under: Sports News Tagged With: Additions, AEDT, age, ANI, Australia, australian cricket team, batsman, Ben Laughlin, callum, Callum Ferguson, Cameron White, Cape Town, Cape Town South Africa, Championship, Cricket, cup, David Hussey, david warner, day, defeat, England, fifth day, Friday, Harwood, hotel, innings, international, James Hopes, Johannesburg, June, loss, mar, match, mode, Monday, month, Nathan Bracken, nsw, opening, paceman, Pretoria, proteas, punter, semi-finalists, session, Shane Harwood, South Africa, squad, sunday, team, team hotel, Team Travel, test, test squad, third test, Thursday, training, travel, Tuesday, twenty20 world cup, Victoria, Wednesday, world

It’s new turf for mug punter Glenn McGrath

March 20, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Sydney, Mar. 20 (ANI): Glenn McGrath is an Australian cricket bowling legend but the word is he’s a mug punter extraordinaire.

The McGrath Foundation is hosting a lunch for 900 at the Sydney Turf Club’s big autumn racing carnival day at Rosehill Gardens, where Sydney Confidential will also share a marquee with Myer.

McGrath will captain a betting team against his former teammate, the more racing savvy Mark Waugh, in the TAB’s Pink Punting Purse event, reports the Daily Telegraph.

Each team will have 1000 dollars to gamble, with all winnings going to the foundation.The TAB will still donate 2000 dollars if they lose the lot. (ANI)

Filed Under: Sports News Tagged With: Australian cricket, autumn, bowling, carnival, carnival day, daily telegraph, former teammate, glenn mcgrath, hosting, lunch, mark waugh, marquee, myer, pink, punter, PURSE, rosehill gardens, sydney confidential, sydney turf club

Soho has more fake prostitutes and drug dealers than real ones

March 2, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Feb 28 (ANI): A senior police officer claims that there are more fake prostitutes and drug dealers than real ones on the streets of Soho in London’s West End.oho was once known as a notorious area for its sex shops, but now while there are still some prostitutes who work inside some premises, the ones on the streets are almost all fake operators.

Det Chief Supt Andy Rowell says that the area has been cleaned-up by the police, but now the danger comes from con artists targeting gullible foreign tourists and out-of-town visitors.

The fake drug dealers pass off boot polish or liquorice as cannabis, and wax wrapped in foil as crack cocaine and aspirin pills, with the markings rubbed off on the side of a matchbox, as tablets.

Where the fake prostitutes are concerned, around 15 of them work together by taking a “deposit for a room” then disappearing, or luring a punter into an alleyway where a male accomplice will relieve them of their cash.

“A lot of visitors are thinking in the past, and these days Soho has been cleaned-up,” the Telegraph quoted Rowell, who is the detective in charge of the area, as saying.

“Yet hundreds of visitors from out of London come to Soho after the theatres have emptied looking for illegal after-hours activities.

“Their image of Soho is sadly out-of-date. We are continuing to step up our efforts at clamping down on these types of crime and we’ve largely succeeded.

“Soho is now a safe place to come and enjoy yourself – but please don’t come looking for drugs and prostitutes. You will almost certainly get something you didn’t expect,” he added. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: accomplice, alleyway, aspirin, cannabis, con artists, crack cocaine, detective, london feb, matchbox, oho, police officer, prostitutes, punter, rowell, safe place, sex shops, soho, Supt, town visitors, west end

Haddin steps in to lead, gives Punter and Clarke a rest

February 15, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Sydney, Feb.15 (ANI): Australian wicketkeeper batsman Brad Haddin will lead the national team for the first time today in the absence of Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke.

With the squad leaving for South Africa on Monday, the Australian selectors have told Ponting to take a break, while his deputy Clarke is recovering from an injury to his back.

“It’s probably come about in the same way that me opening the batting has come about – with blokes being rested or injured,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted Haddin as saying on Saturday.

The wicketkeeper-batsman has had a turbulent and thrilling first full season in the team, marked by fluctuating form and, recently, a controversy over a dismissal in which it appeared he had removed the bails with his gloves.

Nevertheless, the 31-year-old appeared relaxed yesterday after being told by selector Andrew Hilditch: “You’re it.”

“I was pretty excited [when I found out] – a little bit nervous – but now it’s sunk in, I’m really looking forward to it,” Haddin said.

Despite his joy at being named captain for today’s match, Haddin – who has experience leading NSW – said being the national team captain was not one of his goals.

“I’ll enjoy this occasion and do it as a one-off, but to do it on a full-time basis, it’s quite tough for a wicketkeeper to be captain full-time,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ponting expects Clarke to be fit for the first tour match in Johannesburg despite the Australian vice-captain having been ruled out of both Friday’s and today’s games with persistent back trouble.

Ponting, who himself has struggled with back injuries, said Clarke simply needed rest. (ANI)

Filed Under: Sports News Tagged With: absence, Andrew Hilditch, ANI, basis, batsman, batting, bit, Brad Haddin, break, captain, clarke, controversy, deputy, dismissal, experience, Feb, form, Friday, herald, injury, Johannesburg, joy, match, Michael Clarke, Monday, morning, nsw, occasion, punter, rest, Ricky Ponting, Saturday, season, selector, South Africa, squad, sydney, team, time, today, tour, trouble, way, wicketkeeper, yesterday

David Hasselhoff gets to grips with a gyrating go-go girl!

January 14, 2009 By Rajesh Leave a Comment

London, Jan 13 (ANI): American actor David Hasselhoff was spotted dancing enthusiastically with a go-go girl as she gyrated her body in front of him.

Hasselhoff, 56, got on stage at the Las Vegas nightclub Prive and rocked his hips to the rhythm of Daft Punk’s Around The World, at the same time staring unashamedly at the brunette’s boobs as she teased him.

The actor was seen holding the woman’s bare waist as he gyrated with her to the music, when was joined by a random punter, who sandwiched the girl in-between them.
The Baywatch star later appeared to simulate a sex act when a partygoer rubbed her bum against him, reports the Sun. (ANI)

Filed Under: Entertainment News Tagged With: actor david, american actor, baywatch, baywatch star, brunette, bum, daft punk, david hasselhoff, hips, las vegas, london jan, music, punter, rhythm, sex act, Sun

Jacko’s mantra for success: buying his own records?

January 10, 2009 By Rajesh Leave a Comment

London, January 10 (ANI): Michael Jackson is said to have come up with a new way of boosting his CD sales -buying his own records.

The ‘Black and White’ hitmaker was spotted shelling out 100 pounds at a store for a 20-CD set of his own work.

The singer allegedly tried to get ‘Visionary: The Complete Singles Collection’ in secret, but his weird disguise had apparently given away his secret to the staff, reports the Daily Star.

One punter said: “He covered his face like he didn’t want to be recognised. He looked more like a beekeeper, but it couldn’t have been anyone else.

“We couldn’t believe it when he bought his own stuff. He’d be better off just singing to himself.

“People were even joking he might want to look at the pictures to remind himself what he really looks like.”

The King Of Pop was believed to be cash strapped after being forced to put his Neverland ranch on sale to rid himself of debts. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: beekeeper, cd sales, Daily Star, debts, disguise, hitmaker, king of pop, London, mantra, Michael Jackson, neverland ranch, punter, singles collection