Bath boss Johann van Graan has questioned why three “headshots” on No 8 Alfie Barbeary were not formally reviewed by the match officials in his side’s Investec Champions Cup semi-final defeat to Bordeaux Begles.

The defending champions set up a final against Leinster with a 38-26 win at the Stade Atlantique, pulling away in the second half in a hard-fought affair.

It was Bath’s first semi-final in the competition since 2006, and the game may have materialised differently had three possible high tackles been picked up, including one by influential scrum half Maxime Lucu.

Commentating on Premier Sports, former England internationals Andy Goode and Lawrence Dallaglio both questioned why pertinent replays did not appear to be made available to referee Nika Amashukeli and television match official (TMO) Ben Whitehouse.

And Van Graan felt that more needs to be done to ensure that all of the angles are there to be viewed.

“I thought the officials did a fantastic job but there were three, we believe, headshots on Alfie in the 19th, 23rd and 42nd minutes,” said Van Graan.

“All that we as coaches, players, lovers of the game, ask is that there’s consistency right through every single game. I thought Nika Amashukeli did a fantastic job, and I thought Ben Whitehouse, the TMO, did the best that he could with the angles available to him. However, for such an amazing contest, we need to make sure they’ve got the footage they need.”

Bath had hoped to remain in the hunt for a second European crown with victory in the city where they claimed their first against Brive in 1998, but fell short.

Fly half Finn Russell rued a number of “silly mistakes” after the reigning Gallagher Prem champions exited the competition.

“We’re gutted,” Russell told Premier Sports. “We went behind in the first half, got ourselves back in the second half but we just didn’t really take our chances in that game.

“We gave them soft entries into our 22. There will be a lot of frustration from that game. I’m really proud of the boys, but there’s a lot of frustration from that. At this level you give soft penalties away and make silly mistakes you get punished for it.”

Bordeaux Begles will bid to defend their title against Leinster in Bilbao on Saturday 23 May. Ulster will play Montpellier in the Challenge Cup final a night prior.

Cherie DeVaux made history on Saturday by becoming the first female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. However, with a horde of media surrounding her at her backside stable Sunday morning, she was quick to give the credit to jockey Jose Ortiz.

“It’s almost as if he could script it,” she said.

With an entry that’s known for being a closer, DeVaux said she did not mind Golden Tempo drawing an outside post. He got the 19th gate in the draw, but after scratches, he moved into the 16th. While a ways away from the rail, it helped the colt avoid much of the bumping between horses at the start as they work to get inside position.

DeVaux said she’s not one to give her riders many instructions before a race. She kept it simple: “Don’t overthink it. If you can get out, just get a clear path and make a run.”

Mission accomplished, even if the horse doesn’t quite live up to his name.

“Golden Tempo doesn’t really give Jose any help by just falling back so far,” she added.

While the early front-runners posted blazing quarter times, Golden Tempo ran last in the field for the first three-quarters of a mile. However, as the speed faded, Ortiz had an easy route to the outside, and down the final stretch, he chased down Renegade, the bettors’ second choice, to win by a neck.

Another issue that may have been in Golden Tempo’s favor was not having to load into the gate a second time. That’s something several horses had to do after racing officials scratched Great White at the last minute for dumping jockey Alex Achard and falling over backward while being led to the gate.

“It was a rough trip, everybody was all over the place,” said Luis Saez, who rode seventh-place finisher Commandment. “He ran pretty well and made a nice move, but it was just a tough race.”

Commandment, one of two Derby horses trained by Brad Cox, was the co-second choice in the morning line. At post time, he ended up being the fourth choice at 6-1. Cox’s other horse, Further Ado, ended up the slight favorite over Renegade, with both breaking at 5-1.

Renegade was the morning-line favorite, despite drawing the inside post – a position that had not produced a winner in 40 years. However, the Todd Pletcher-trained colt and Irad Ortiz Jr., Jose’s brother, did everything they could to make some history of their own.

“He got a little roughed and got pushed out of his position,” Pletcher said. “But he kept on going and made his run. He just didn’t get there today.”

With the Kentucky Derby having the largest field of any U.S. thoroughbred race, longshots often find their way to the winner’s circle. Since 2019, the lowest payout for a $2 win ticket was Sovereignty last year, and his bettors still won $17.96.

One of the other big surprises Saturday was the bettors’ interest in So Happy. While he and jockey Mike Smith won the Santa Anita Derby, the colt was given morning line odds of 15-1. That was due primarily to his being sired by Runhappy, who was an excellent sprinter.

Bettors made him the third choice at 5-1.

So Happy stayed among the front pack for the first mile but faded down the stretch to finish ninth.

“He just did too much early on, and we went too fast,” Smith said.

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The incident followed a male spectator being ejected from the venue late in Saturday’s semi-final between Wu and Mark Allen after shouting: “Never forget the Epstein files.”

In February, the US government released millions of new files from its investigation into late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Names of some of the world’s most rich and powerful people with links to the disgraced financier are contained in the files.

There is no suggestion that appearing in the documents implies any wrongdoing. Many people who have featured in previous releases have denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.

There have been multiple disruptions during this year’s World Championships in Sheffield.

There were several instances of shouting during the Wu-Allen semi-final and fans have repeatedly been warned about phone usage.

In the second frame of the final, Murphy threw down the rest after missing a green, having appeared to be distracted by a phone ringing.

Spencer subsequently addressed the crowd and said: “Make sure your phones are on silent or switched off. Don’t be the person that has to be thrown out.”

Murphy recovered from 3-0 down to finish the first session level at 4-4 with Wu.

Legendary Man United boss Sir Alex Ferguson was taken ill before the game against Liverpool and Michael Carrick spoke about it after the game.

Michael Carrick said he was “very affected” by the news that his former boss, Sir Alex Ferguson, had been taken ill before Manchester United beat Liverpool at Old Trafford.

Ferguson was treated by medics in the tunnel area before being taken to the hospital in an ambulance, but it is understood the situation wasn’t an emergency and his condition is not thought to be serious.

Carrick found out about Ferguson’s health complaint before the game and admitted it had affected him. The 84-year-old Scot signed Carrick from Tottenham in 2006 and he remained on the club’s books after Ferguson retired as manager in 2013.

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It’s unclear whether Ferguson was able to watch United beat Liverpool 3-2 on TV, a result that confirmed a return to the Champions League, but Carrick hoped the victory would bring him some cheer as he recovers.

“I haven’t got any updates, so I don’t know the latest as we stand now,” Carrick told the media after the match.

“I did hear about it before the game, so I was aware of it before the game. All I can say is I wish him our thoughts here. I was very affected by it, and we just hope he’s all right. I just don’t know the latest.

“We hope for him to be in good shape and we wish him all the best. I’m certainly thinking of him and hopefully the result, when he hears about it, gives him a good boost.”

Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix and Disney+ with Ultimate TV package

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Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle to now include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, as well as 135 channels and full Sky coverage of the Premier League and EFL.

Sky broadcasts more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more with at least 215 live from the top flight alongside Formula 1, darts and golf.

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USC’s 2027 recruiting class is continuing to grow. On Saturday, the Trojans picked up another notable commitment, landing four-star defensive lineman Alifeleti Tuihalamaka.

Tuihalamaka is a Southern California product, attending nearby Oaks Christian High School in Westlake Village, California. 247Sports Composite ranks him as the No. 181 overall player and the No. 21 defensive lineman in the class of 2027.

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With the addition of Tuihalamaka, USC now has 13 commits in its 2027 recruiting class. Of those, nine are ranked as either four or five-star recruits by 247Sports Composite. 247Sports currently ranks the Trojans’ 2027 class as No. 3 in the country, behind only Oklahoma and Texas A&M.

Tuihalamaka is the younger brother of former Notre Dame defensive lineman Junior Tuihalamaka. The elder Tuihalamaka was recruited by the Trojans in the 2022 class, but ultimately chose the Irish instead. Now, five years later, Lincoln Riley and USC are trying to right that wrong by landing his younger brother.

This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC football lands four-star defensive lineman Alifeleti Tuihalamaka

DENVER (AP) — The Minnesota Wild will be without forward Joel Eriksson Ek and defenseman Jonas Brodin for the first two games of their second-round series against the Colorado Avalanche because of lower-body injuries.

Neither player made the trip to Denver. Wild coach John Hynes said the team is still “making a couple decisions on the lineup” ahead of Game 1 on Sunday night.

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The Avalanche will be without defenseman Josh Manson, who missed the series clincher against the Los Angeles Kings last Sunday with an upper-body injury. Avs coach Jared Bednar said Nick Blankenburg will slide into Manson’s place. The team acquired Blankenburg in a deal with Nashville on March 4.

“He’s played good in the time he’s been with us,” Bednar said. “We got him for a reason — like the way he moves, like the way he moves the puck. He plays with a little bite. He’s got to stay within himself. It’s going to be a challenge for him tonight, because the thing we’ll miss with (Manson) is the size, the strength, the physicality.”

Eriksson Ek had three goals and two assists in the Wild’s first-round series win over Dallas. He finished with a 56.4% faceoff win rate. Danila Yurov and Hunter Haight could be possibilities to take Eriksson Ek’s place.

“Ekky’s a big part of the team,” Hynes said. “When you lose a guy that plays that many situations, you have to do it collectively as a group, and it’s not all on one guy.”

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Brodin didn’t play in Game 6 against Dallas.

Hynes said given the break between Games 2 and 3 — the teams play Tuesday and not again until Saturday — that “both those guys will be reevaluated and see where it goes from there.”

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AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s mixed 4x400m team won bronze at the World Athletics Relays in Botswana, while four other GB teams also qualified automatically for the 2027 World Athletics Championships.

Alex Haydock-Wilson, Lina Nielsen, Jake Minshull and Yemi Mary John finished third in three minutes 8.24 seconds, behind the USA and Jamaica.

A place on the podium qualifies the 4×400 mixed team for the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championships in Budapest in September.

GB’s men’s 4x100m, the women’s 4x400m and the mixed 4x100m line-ups progressed to Sunday’s finals from Saturday’s heats, earning them a place in Beijing next year.

The women’s 4x100m team, who were disqualified after finishing second in their first day heat, came in second in their Sunday repechage to take one of four remaining World Championships slots.

However the men’s 4x400m quartet, who finished seventh in their first race, placed third in their repechage and will bid to qualify for Beijing on time at a later date.

The women’s 4x400m squad finished fourth, while the men’s and mixed 4x100m teams both failed to get the baton round in their finals.

British athletes won medals in all five relay events at the 2024 Paris Olympics, but failed to reach the podium at last year’s World Championships in Tokyo.