A free playtest for Bungie’s Marathon has launched to strong numbers across Steam and Twitch, as the developer vows to fix ‘loose ends’ before launch.

The development of Bungie’s Marathon has been tumultuous to say the least, between delays, stolen art controversies, and studio layoffs, but that hasn’t deterred people from giving it a shot.

The extraction shooter, from the studio behind Destiny and Halo, launched a Server Slam playtest on Thursday (February 26) across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. While the game will cost £34.99 when it launches on March 5, this test is free for everyone until Monday March 2 at 6pm GMT.

The success of any live service title is dependent on its ability to retain players beyond its early honeymoon period, but the early signs for Marathon are positive, based on interest in the Server Slam.

The most positive indicator is the position of Marathon on Steam’s top sellers list in the US. As of February 27, the shooter is the third highest selling game on Valve’s storefront, behind only Resident Evil Requiem and Counter-Strike 2 (and so ahead of Arc Raiders).

Most notably, it’s jumped up 58 places over the past week, so clearly people are putting in pre-orders amid the Server Slam. It’s a slightly different picture if you switch to the UK top sellers on Steam, with Marathon in seventh, but it’s still a decent position.

Over on Twitch, it’s positive too. At the time of writing, Marathon has over 33K viewers, which is higher than Arc Raiders (26.4K), Fortnite (19.7K), and Minecraft (24.4K). So, it’s only below Overwatch, League Of Legends, Counter-Strike, and Valorant.

As they are both extraction shooters, Marathon’s success is inevitably going to be measured against Arc Raiders. As per SteamDB, Marathon’s concurrent peak player count is 143,621, which is quite far below Arc Raiders’ peak at 481,966 players.

Even if you compare them on their 24-hour peak numbers, Arc Raiders is still higher at 183,197, while Marathon sits at 143,621. It’s important to reaffirm, Marathon’s Server Slam is free right now, whereas Arc Raiders, which costs £32.99, achieved its highest player peak in January this year, several months after it launched in October.

There’s every chance Marathon could soar in popularity when it fully launches and beyond, just like Arc Raiders, but it’s not a common trajectory for most live service games, so we’ll have to see if it can maintain momentum.

At the very least, Bungie has been responding to complaints in quick fashion. Just a few hours after the Server Slam launched, the developer posted a list of issues which it is looking to address, including a confusing user interface, laggy mouse input, and performance woes.

‘Thanks to all of your feedback, we’ve got crucial intel that will help us make updates during the Slam and tie up any loose ends as we continue towards March 5,’ Bungie wrote on X.

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Asif Vali, 56, was jailed at Bolton Crown Court on Thursday (February 26) for a string of sex offences committed over a decade ago.

He denied all the charges, which were two counts of exposure, two counts of sexual assault and a single count of assault by penetration.

After a three-day trial, a jury found him guilty of the offences which were committed against a woman in Bolton in 2013.

They also found Vali, of Hill Cot Road in Astley Bridge, had performed sexual acts on himself in front of her “on more than one occasion”.

In what the court heard was “the leading offence”, Vali had sexually assaulted her in February of 2013 but she threw a cup of coffee over him before escaping.

Asif Vali (Image: GMP)

Judge Nicholas Clarke KC said Vali had “all the trappings of a successful life” and had “developed some standing in the local community”.

At the time of the offences, Vali was the manager of boxing champion and Olympic silver medallist Amir Khan.

Judge Clarke said: “You began by sending sexualised messages to her – she made it clear in her replies your advances weren’t welcome, but your sexual behaviour became worse.”

He called Vali’s behaviour “disgusting” and said his sexual advances were “both unwelcome and offensive to her”.

He said: “This was the most disgusting behaviour – unfortunately she was afraid of you and felt unable to report it.

“She knows what you know – that she offered you no encouragement at all.

“Hopefully these proceedings will bring some closure knowing that she has been listened to, heard and believed.”

Manchester United host Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday, with Michael Carrick hoping to welcome one player to his matchday squad

Manchester United will be looking to make it six wins from seven games under the guidance of interim head coach Michael Carrick when they host Crystal Palace at Old Trafford. United are back in action on Sunday afternoon (2pm).

The match comes just six days after they got back to winning ways with a 1-0 away victory over Everton. Benjamin Sesko’s 71st-minute goal was enough to separate the two sides. That result saw United open up a three-point gap to both Chelsea and Liverpool in fifth and sixth place.

The injury situation at Old Trafford is also looking better compared to the start of the season. With that in mind, here’s a look at the latest news from the treatment room at Carrington.

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Patrick Dorgu

Injury: Hamstring

The full-back has been unavailable for the last four Premier League games due to a hamstring injury suffered in the win over Arsenal last month. But there is hope that he could be back soon, with Denmark head coach Brian Riemer saying that there is a chance that he could be back for next month’s World Cup play-offs.

What Carrick has said: “Pat, unfortunately, he’s going to be out for a period of time. We’re still working through how long that’s going to be. We weren’t sure whether it was a little bit of cramp or whether it was something a little bit more serious, and at the moment, it looks a little bit more on the serious note.”

Possible return date: Vs Leeds United (H), April 11.

Matthijs de Ligt

Injury: Back

The defender has been out of action since the end of November with a back injury, with him missing the last 15 games in all competitions.

What Carrick has said: “Matthijs, he’s had a back issue, which has been a little bit slower to progress, really. It’s something we’ve been working through, and he’s getting there. He’s in the right direction, but, as I said, he’s just a little bit further behind.

“It’s one of those things that’s disappointing, but it’s just a part of football, unfortunately, so we’ll get him back when we can.

“It’s just the nature of the injury and the issue in the back. It’s a difficult one to pin down, especially time-wise. He’s definitely improving, so that’s a good thing, and we’re just working towards that really. There’s not much more I can give at this stage.”

Possible return date: Unknown

Mason Mount

Injury: Knock

The midfielder has missed the last four Premier League games with a knock but is closing in on a return to action.

What Carrick has said: “Mason is getting closer, really. He’s on the grass and he’s getting closer, he’s looking to train and be in around it pretty soon.

“He’s getting close. He’s just had to be patient really and he’s a big player, so we’re looking after him, making sure he’s ready for a big finish to the season.”

Possible return date: Vs Aston Villa (H), March 15.

Lisandro Martinez

Injury: Knock

The centre-back was not included in the squad for Monday night’s Premier League win over Everton, having previously started the last nine league games. It’s reported that the issue is only minor and he could make a quick return.

What Carrick has said: “Unfortunately, he just picked up something during the week. It doesn’t seem too bad at all, but we’re just kind of working through that at the moment, so he’s not available tonight.”

Possible return date: Vs Crystal Palace (H), March 1.

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NASA said Friday it’s adding an extra moon mission by Artemis astronauts before attempting a high-risk lunar landing with a crew.

The shake-up in the flight lineup and push for a faster pace came just two days after NASA’s new moon rocket returned to its hangar for more repairs and a safety panel warned the space agency to scale back its overly ambitious goals for humanity’s first lunar landing in more than half a century.

Artemis II — a lunar fly-around by four astronauts — is off until at least April because of rocket problems.

The follow-up mission — Artemis III — had been targeting a landing near the moon’s south pole by another pair of astronauts a year or two later. But with long gaps between flights and concern growing over the readiness of a lunar lander and moonwalking suits, NASA’s new administrator Jared Isaacman announced that mission would instead focus on launching a lunar lander into orbit around Earth for docking practice by Orion capsule astronauts in 2027.

The new plan calls for a moon landing — potentially even two moon landings — by astronauts in 2028.

“This is going to be our pathway back to the moon,” Isaacman said.

The first Artemis test flight was plagued by hydrogen fuel leaks and helium flow problems before liftoff without a crew in 2022, the same things that struck the Space Launch System rocket on the pad at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center earlier this month.

Isaacman stressed that “it should be incredibly obvious” that three years between flights is unacceptable and that he’d like to get it down to one year or even less.

During NASA’s storied Apollo program, he said, astronauts’ first flight to the moon was followed by two more missions before Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon. What’s more, he said, the Apollo moonshots followed one another in quick succession, just as the earlier Projects Mercury and Gemini had rapid flight rates, sometimes coming just a few months apart.

“No one here at NASA forgot their history books,” Issacman said. “We shouldn’t be comfortable with the current cadence. We should be getting back to basics and doing what we know works.”

To pick up the pace and reduce risk, NASA will standardize Space Launch System moon rockets moving forward, Isaacman said.

The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel recommended this week that NASA revise its objectives for Artemis III “given the demanding mission goals.” It’s urgent the space agency do that, the panel said, if the United States hopes to safely return astronauts to the moon. Isaacman said the revised Artemis flight plan addresses the panel’s concerns and is supported by industry and the Trump administration.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Police are appealing for anyone with information about the crash to come forward

A woman has died following a two-car crash in south east Wales. Emergency services were called to reports of a collision on the B4293 between the villages of Itton and Devauden, near Chepstow, Monmouthshire, at around 5.55pm on Thursday.

The Welsh Ambulance Service and officers from Gwent Police attended the incident which involved a Nissan Micra and a Range Rover.

The driver of the Nissan Micra, a 54-year-old woman from Cwmbran, was pronounced dead at the scene. Her family have been informed, the force said in a statement on Friday.

Gwent Police is appealing for anyone with relevant information, including CCTV or dashcam footage, to contact the police force via its website, call 101 or send a message on the Facebook or X social media pages, quoting log reference 2600061951.

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A councillor said: “These recent prosecutions show that anyone considering dumping waste illegally can end up out of pocket, so we would urge people not to run the risk.”

Two fly-tippers have been handed heavy fines after illegally dumping bags of household waste in locations in a Cambridgeshire city. Philimon Wakabikwa and Elena Ion were recently fined at Peterborough Magistrates’ Court after pleading guilty to fly-tipping offences following prosecutions by the authority.

According to Peterborough City Council, the bags dumped by Wakabikwa were found in Third Drove in Fengate with the waste traced back to him. Waste dumped by Ion was found in Clarence Road in Millfield. They were both fined £350 and each were ordered to pay a £140 victim surcharge and £200 costs – totalling up to £690.

Councillor Angus Ellis, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport, said: “We are fully committed to tackling fly-tipping which is a blight on our city and something we take extremely seriously. Whenever we obtain evidence of fly-tipping we will investigate and look to issue either a fine or secure a conviction in the courts.”

Cllr Ellis continued: “These recent prosecutions show that anyone considering dumping waste illegally can end up out of pocket, so we would urge people not to run the risk. There are several ways to get rid of waste legally, such as by visiting the Household Recycling Centre in Fengate or using a licensed waste company.”

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Sofia Tepichin was about 30 minutes into her club soccer team practice in October when she spotted a fast-approaching defender. She tapped the ball away and hopped over the defender’s outstretched foot, came down awkwardly, and heard a “pop.”

She immediately fell to the ground, pain shooting through her left knee and knew it wasn’t good. It was, she said, “heartbreaking.”

“And I knew personally that I tore my ACL,” Tepichin said.

Tepichin joined the growing ranks of female high school athletes tearing their anterior cruciate ligament, a devastating knee injury that researchers are pressing the sports world to take more seriously.

Decades of research on prevention methods is available, but parents, researchers and trainers say that teams, coaches and leagues aren’t doing enough to protect the girls and educate parents.

High school female athletes are most vulnerable

Sports fans hear often about high-profile athletes like U.S. Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn tearing their ACLs, and many ACL injuries are chalked up to bad luck or a part of sports that will continue to happen at all competitive levels.

Still, high school-age female athletes suffer these injuries at much higher rates than their male counterparts — up to eight times more likely, one study says — and adults, most often in noncontact situations in sports that require fast changes in direction, researchers say.

Biomechanics researchers, trainers and physical therapists say there are pre-workout warm ups and strengthening routines — such as FIFA 11+ or PEP — that can at least reduce the risk of an injury that takes such a high physical and mental toll on young athletes.

But, they say, most coaches lack training or expert help, and high school girls compete in settings with far fewer resources than the professional and collegiate levels. As a result, risk-reduction routines are rarely included in day-to-day coaching curricula and practices.

“The real crime in this is that the data has been out there for 25 years,” said Holly Silvers-Granelli, a physical therapist and biomechanics researcher who advises athletes, professional teams and major sports leagues on injury prevention. “People are clamoring for answers, and the answers are largely there.”

The trendline of ACL injuries isn’t entirely clear, but the National ACL Injury Coalition — formed by the Aspen Institute and the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York — said its analysis of data from high school athletic trainers showed that the average annual ACL injury rate for high school athletes grew almost 26% from 2007 to 2022.

The rate for girls grew more than 32%, compared to 14.5% for boys, it said.

On their own to recover

When they get injured, high school athletes and their parents often find themselves on their own to deal with it. ACL injuries can require surgery and a year of rehab, physical therapy and strength training, which insurance may not fully cover.

Recovery changes their routine and identity: They miss out on the camaraderie of the team and stand on the sidelines, which can be as hard as the physical trauma, parents say.

Many high school athletes who tear their ACL never perform again at the same level, if they even return to the sport, the National ACL Injury Coalition says. And once injured, they carry a heightened risk of another ACL injury and long-term complications like degenerative joint disease, researchers say.

The coalition has urged the sports world to treat ACL injuries like brain injuries, now that professional and youth sports have tried to improve training, rules and equipment standards to prevent and detect concussions.

Sophia Gerardi, a sophomore at Pennsylvania’s Apollo Ridge High School who tore her ACL during a basketball game in December, was told by her doctors that she’ll forever have to wear a knee brace to play sports. She had surgery in January, will miss volleyball season and hopes to be back for next winter’s basketball season.

Like many girls who tore their ACL, she didn’t recall getting any ACL injury-prevention training.

Surveys of coaches show that many don’t know about risk-reduction programs, aren’t trained to do them or aren’t encouraged to learn about them, said Vince Minjares, who leads the Aspen Institute’s ACL injury prevention project. Some coaches tell Minjares that it takes too much time.

He hopes that’s changing.

‘What is the solution’

This spring, the American Youth Soccer Organization — one of major national organizations in U.S. youth soccer — will roll out new age- and stage-based neuromuscular training programs aimed at preventing ACL injuries through warm-ups.

Coaches will get a regimen of exercises in bite-sized chunks, with video instructions. The goal is to build good habits before preteens age into more physical and demanding competition.

“My biggest shock was that this didn’t already exist,” said Scott Snyder, AYSO’s senior director of programs and education. “Everyone I talk to says, ‘Yeah, that makes perfect sense,’ but nobody’s done it yet.”

Last year, biomechanical researchers at the Scottish Rite for Children hospital in metropolitan Dallas began providing high school teams with resources typically only available or affordable at the professional and collegiate levels.

They created pre-season injury-prevention trainings, tailored for female athletes, to improve strength and movement quality. At the start of the eight-week program, each athlete gets a free motion-capture 3D-level assessment to identify weaknesses in strength, movement or balance. Another assessment at the end determines if the program reduced risk.

Future trainings could include nutrition and sleep, said Sophia Ulman, who directs the hospital’s Movement Science Laboratory.

“My team and I got tired of studying ‘why, why, why’ when there’s so many different possibilities to answer that question. And we wanted to move into the ‘what is the solution,’” said Ulman. Other biomechanics labs in the U.S. are trying similar outreach, she said.

One of the teams that participated was Plano East High School in Texas, where players — including Tepichin — had suffered a rash of ACL tears the past couple years.

Cristy Cooley, Plano East’s coach, said that getting a hands-on demonstration from trained professionals in proper exercises and movement patterns makes a big difference.

“It’s one thing talking about it,” Cooley said. “But it’s a totally different thing to show us.”

‘Something’s got to change’

Like other parents, Tiffany Jacob said she learned a lot about preventing ACL injuries that she wished she had known before her daughter — East Plano sophomore Aliya Jacob — tore her ACL last February. For instance, the surgeon told them three days a week of strength training is an absolute must for soccer players.

“Something’s got to change,” Tiffany Jacob said. “Coaches, clubs, something. They have to do something to prevent this because it’s just such a horrible injury.”

Aliya — who knows at least seven other female soccer players who tore an ACL, her mother said — is back playing for East Plano now. She endured twice-a-week physical therapy, the isolation of rehabilitation and, her mother said, “figuring out who you are when you’re not playing soccer.”

Tepichin, a high school senior, recalls her surgeon telling her to take a couple days to get all her sadness and anger out — and then devote herself to her recovery.

She’ll miss her last year of playing high school and club team soccer. Her next time on a field could be for Saint Vincent College in Pennsylvania, where she committed to the NCAA Division III team.

Tepichin has seen a sports psychologist, gotten comfort from others who underwent the surgery — her sister, her father and her friend — and found a new routine after having been constantly busy with two soccer teams and a job.

“There’s not a day that I go that I’m not working out or doing something,” she said, “or getting better for my health and my recovery.”

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Follow Marc Levy at http://twitter.com/timelywriter

They were selected following a consultation and some of them are already no longer 20mph

An update on which roads are changing back to a 30mph limit has been given by a senior councillor in Swansea.

Several roads – or sections of – which fell under the Welsh Government’s default 20mph limit for residential roads in September, 2023, are reverting to their previous limit. Some of them are already back to 30mph. The council had assessed 81 locations following a consultation and whittled them down.

In a written response to a question by Cllr Francesca O’Brien, of Reform UK, cabinet member for environment and infrastructure, Cllr Andrew Stevens, said he anticipated that the necessary work would be completed around mid-March.

The Labour cabinet member added: “I would confirm that all costs associated with both legal processes and physical works are being met through a grant provided by Welsh Government.”

The 20mph limit cost £34million to introduce in Wales. At the time councils were able to put forward exemptions though, meaning the 30mph limit would be retained, and Swansea had the highest number of exemptions.

Since then councils have continued to consider further changes under the relevant guidance. The Welsh Goverment said it allocated Swansea £205,000 for 20mph funding in 2025-26.

The roads referred to by Cllr Stevens that are changing back are:

• A48 – From Penllergaer to Pontlliw: from a point 60m south of Parc Penderi in Penllergaer to a point 60m south of Oaklands Road in Pontlliw
• B4295 – The Promenade, Penclawdd: from the current 30mph limit at a point 45m south-west of its junction with Graig-y-Coed west to its junction with Hall Lane
• B4296 – Pentre Road, Pontarddulais: from the current 30mph limit at a point 360m south of its junction with Park Terrace to a point 130m south of this junction
• B4296 – Pentre Road, Grovesend: from the existing 30mph limit at a point 50m north of its junction with Clos Brynlliw south to a point 10m north of Clos Pengelli
• B4296 Coalbrook Road, Grovesend: from the existing 30mph limit 420m north of its junction with Frampton Road northwards for a distance of 100m
• B4436 Mayals Road, Mayals: from its junction with Mumbles Road west to the 40mph limit at a point 100m west of its junction with Curlew Close
• B4620 Swansea Road/ Carmarthen Road, Llewitha: from the existing 40mph limit on Swansea Road 570m east of its junction with Hospital Road east to a point on Carmarthen Road 250m west of its junction with Ystrad Road
• B4603 Clydach Road, Morriston: From a point 30m north of its junction with Field Close north to a point 50m south of its junction with Llanllienwen Road
• B4603 Clydach Road: from its junction with the northern kerbline of junction 45 of the M4, north to a point 30m south of its junction with Christopher Road
• B4603 Clydach Road: from a point 20m south-west of its junction with Quarr Drive south-west for a distance of 690m
• Carmel Road, Winch Wen: from a point 40m east of Colwyn Avenue to a point 50m west of Crymlyn Road
• Brynmill Lane, Brynmill: from its junction with Sketty Road south-east to its junction with Park Place
• Gors Avenue, Townhill: from a point 10m west of its junction with Townhill Road to its junction with Carmarthen Road
• Townhill Road: from its junction with Gors Avenue to a point 10m west of its junction with Mayhill Road
• Heol Ddu, Mynydbbach: from a point 20m west of its junction with Llangyfelach Road west to the existing 40mph limit 20m south-west of its junction with Roger Street
• Heol y Cwmdu, Cwmdu: from its junction with Carmarthen Road to a point 10m west of the access road to Parc Cwmdu
• Mynydd Newydd Road, Blaenymaes: from the existing 40mph limit 50m south of its junction with Penplas Road to a point 20m north of its junction with Broughton Avenue
• Pant Lasau Road, Morriston: from the existing 40mph speed limit 113m south-west of the southern boundary of the property known as Brynsirol north-east to a point 60m south-west of its junction with Heol Maes Eglwys
• Pentregethin Road, Blaenymaes: from its junction with Pontarddulais Road east then south-east to a point 10m south-east of Woodford Road.

The council has previously said the roads that had been proposed and then discounted following the consultation hadn’t met the exemption criteria.

Speaking in March last year Cllr Stevens said: “The overall review of these roads and routes was undertaken using strict Welsh Government guidance, including factors looking at the characteristics of the road, the facilities in proximity to it, its historical safety record and environmental impacts of any change.” Ensure our latest news and sport headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source. Click here to activate or add us as Preferred Source in your Google search settings

The Welsh Government introduced the 20mph law because it said lower speeds would result in fewer collisions and a reduced severity of injuries.

A year after it came into force and following a backlash from many people ministers allocated an extra £5 million for councils to reassess limits on 20mph roads.

Welsh Government figures from last summer found there were 2,638 people injured, including deaths, on low-speed roads in the most recent 18 months, compared to 3,520 between April, 2022, and September, 2023, before the 20mph limit came into force – a reduction of 25%.