Tag Futebol

Andre Gale’s half-century was the highlight of England Lions’ innings as they reached 277 on the first day of their two-day tour match against St. Kitts and Nevis

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Jan-2011Stumps
Scorecard
Andre Gale’s half-century was the highlight of England Lions’ innings as they reached 277 on the first day of their two-day tour match against St. Kitts and Nevis at Molyneaux. Entering at 128 for 3, Gale stroked three fours and two sixes in his 53 to see his side past 200. Seamer Tonito Willett was the pick of the home attack, dismissing Gale, Liam Plunkett and Danny Briggs on his way to 3 for 60 off 22 overs.Openers Adam Lyth and Jimmy Adams gave the Lions a solid start after captain James Hildreth won the toss and opted to bat first, putting on 74 before Adams was dismissed for a patient 24. Lyth departed soon after for a fluent 45, but Hildreth and Ravi Bopara steadied the innings with a 52-run partnership for the third wicket.After Bopara’s promising knock was ended by medium-pacer Calvin Williams, Gale shared in two crucial partnerships to ensure his side reached a competitive first-innings total. He put on 61 for the fourth wicket with Hildreth and another 37 for the fifth wicket with Johnny Bairstow, easing past fifty in the process.Ben Stokes and Plunkett proved there was some fight left in the lower middle order, both making starts, but wickets fell at regular intervals and Kieran Powell ended the innings with a wicket maiden. He was back on the field shortly afterwards as he and fellow opener Shane Jeffers played out the remaining four overs of the day without losing a wicket.

MatériaMais Notícias

A grande maioria dos craques brasileiros, reconhecidos pela criatividade, genialidade e pelo poder de decisão, são negros. Pelé, Garrincha, Romário, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho Gaúcho e Neymar são alguns dos nomes presentes no imaginário popular.

Diante desse cenário, a pergunta que fica é: com tantos craques, por que não temos treinadores, dirigentes, ou mesmo presidentes de clubes negros?

Sociedades marcadas pelo racismo definem quem vai trabalhar utilizando a “cabeça” e quem o “corpo”,basta ver a posição de negros e brancos no mercado de trabalho nos dias atuais.

O desafio é defender o racismo como aspecto fundamental para essa questão no Brasil, país marcado pelo mito da democracia racial, ideia de que negros e brancos vivem de maneira harmoniosa.
Aqui, uma das justificativaspara a ausência do negro em espaços de poder está na pobreza, reflexo do histórico escravocrata. Esquecem, obviamente, que italianos, japoneses, entre outros grupos de imigrantes, também vieram pobres para cá, e hoje, enquanto grupos étnicos-raciais, ocupam espaços bem melhores que os negros no mercado de trabalho.

Outra resposta para essa diferença entre negros e os demais grupos, no senso comum, é de que italianos ou japoneses são mais esforçados ou até mais inteligentes do que os negros.
Mas como sustentar isso no futebol? Como explicar que mesmo ricos e reconhecidos como gênios, ex-jogadores negros não se tornam técnicos?

A suposta falta de inteligência do negro, diante da história do futebol brasileiro, soa absurda. Por isso, negar o fator racismo nesse processo é reforçar a própria manutenção dele.

Temos poucos treinadores, dirigentes e presidentes negros não por falta de saber ou competência. Temos poucos porque nosso país é racista, e o primeiro passo para superar essa questão, é reconhecê-la.

RelacionadasMais EsportesMundial de paraciclismo de pista terá 48 medalhistas paralímpicosMais Esportes14/03/2018Futebol NacionalBorja é o jogador com mais finalizações certas no BrasilFutebol Nacional14/03/2018Athletico ParanaenseAtlético-PR lança campanha de apoio ao atacante Ziquita, ídolo do clubeAthletico Paranaense14/03/2018

* Pedro Borges é jornalista formado pela Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) e co-fundador do portal de mídia negra Alma Preta. Ele é coordenador de comunicação da Iniciativa Negra por uma Nova Política sobre Drogas (INNPD), compõe a Comissão de Jornalistas pela Igualdade Racial (COJIRA), e participa da Rede de Jornalistas de Periferia. Pedro é colunista da Página B!.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Shakib Al Hasan’s fifth ODI century lifted Bangladesh to 241 in the fourth ODI against New Zealand•Associated Press

A dominant all-round performance from Shakib Al Hasan helped Bangladesh secure a historic series win in Mirpur, their first against a top-flight opposition. Shakib’s fifth ODI century rescued the home team from the depths of 44 for 3 and lifted them to a formidable 241, a target that proved nine runs too many for New Zealand, who now trail 0-3 in the series, with one game to go. Shakib then struck with the ball and, despite a valiant maiden hundred from Kane Williamson who battled through injury during the latter part of his innings, slammed the door on the visitors with three wickets to lead Bangladesh to a famous victory.New Zealand’s top order had not fired as a unit so far in the tour, and their performance in today’s must-win encounter was no different. BJ Watling was trapped in front for 6 by Abdur Razzak and Brendon McCullum soon followed him to the dressing room, despite having looked good for a characteristically frenetic knock with a couple of early boundaries down the ground. Ross Taylor, who had been the pick of New Zealand’s batsmen in the series, then compounded matters for his team by picking out the deep square-leg fielder in a style of dismissal that has become an all too familiar sight for his fans back home.Shakib was quick to have spinners operating at both ends and the ploy paid dividends once more. Aaron Redmond succumbed to a straighter one from Shakib in the 17th over, before Daniel Vettori perished while attempting to increase the run rate, leaving the visitors reeling at 80 for 5.Williamson and Grant Elliott, however, were on hand to provide some much needed stability to the New Zealand run-chase, and accumulated intelligently through the middle period to give the visitors some hope of reaching their target. Williamson was especially impressive in his approach, as he confidently negotiated the spinners who had wreaked so much havoc on his teammates throughout the series, picking up the singles and twos with relative ease and even hoisting Shakib over midwicket for consecutive sixes. Elliott, too, played his part in the recovery, feeding the strike to the well-set youngster at the other end, but fell during the batting Powerplay in the 37th over. Attempting to sweep Shakib, he managed only to top-edge it to Razzak who took an excellent catch, running backwards from square leg.Kyle Mills came and went, trying to hit out, further denting New Zealand’s hopes of a successful chase, and a hamstring injury that crippled Williamson soon after didn’t help matters either. Nathan McCullum arrived at the crease with 70 to get from 10 overs but despite some lusty blows, was not able to get his side close to the asking rate. Williamson reached his hundred in the 48th over, having batted through immense discomfort for a substantial part of his innings, but when Nathan McCullum and Daryl Tuffey fell off successive deliveries chasing an unlikely 20 runs in the last 11 deliveries, New Zealand’s hopes fell squarely on Williamson’s shoulders. Unfortunately for the visitors, the task proved too much for the young man.The challenge was before New Zealand when Shakib’s expertly crafted 106 off 113 deliveries had set up a competitive total for Bangladesh on a slow, turning pitch. He came to the crease with his team struggling, but combined well with Imrul Kayes to take the hosts out of immediate danger. He then posted half-century stands with Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah as Bangladesh recovered well. Shakib scored at around a run a ball throughout his innings, piercing the off-side field with surgical precision early on, but relying more on deft dabs and sweeps as the innings wore on in the energy-sapping Mirpur heat. The New Zealand slow bowlers were unable to cause him any trouble.Shakib’s departure with the score on 216 sparked a lower-order collapse, however, as the New Zealand seamers came back in the batting Powerplay to restrict the hosts, who at one stage threatened a total in excess of 260. Hamish Bennett, the debutant fast bowler, was especially impressive in the late overs, varying his pace and length to pick up a couple of wickets to go with his top order scalp and finish with figures of 3 for 44. Bangladesh were all out in the 49th over, but thanks to an excellent captain’s knock they had scored enough to secure a famous win and spark scenes of euphoric celebration from the Mirpur crowd.

Umar Gul produced a sensational career-best spell of 6 for 42 in ten full-length and late-swinging overs, as Pakistan came back to win at The Oval

The Bulletin by Andrew Miller at The Oval17-Sep-2010Pakistan 241 (Fawad 64, Anderson 3-26) beat England 218 (Morgan 61, Strauss 57, Wright 48*, Gul 6-42) by 23 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsUmar Gul was outstanding as he took six wickets to lead a stunning Pakistan comeback•Getty Images

Umar Gul produced a sensational career-best spell of 6 for 42 in ten full-length and late-swinging overs, as Pakistan’s cricketers overcame their recent troubles to secure an emotionally charged victory under the floodlights at The Oval. In front of a packed house who lived every moment of another tense finale, Gul built on the new-ball efforts of Shoaib Akhtar and Abdul Razzaq to defend a below-par total of 241, and keep the series alive at 2-1 down with two matches to come at Lord’s and the Rose Bowl later this week.During the mid-innings interval, Pakistan’s total had appeared insubstantial, after a piecemeal performance in which Fawad Alam top-scored with a diligent 64, but no single partnership had been able to take a grip of the contest. England’s response with the bat, however, lacked the authority they had displayed in the first two contests, and with Gul in the sort of form that forged his reputation as a limited-overs master, they failed to close out a contest that, in terms of pure run-rate, had been within their grasp throughout.Three of England’s batsmen made their mark with significant performances – Andrew Strauss continued his fine form with a 54-ball 57, Eoin Morgan showed typical authority in the middle of the innings with 61 from 74, while Luke Wright overcame a massive stroke of good fortune on 26 to finish on 48 not out – but with the exception of the opener Steven Davies, who made 18, no-one else reached double-figures as Pakistan mounted a vigorous defence on a chilly and intense evening’s work. The coup de grace was delivered by Razzaq, who bowled James Anderson for 3 to secure their second victory in consecutive visits to The Oval this summer, following their four-wicket win in the third Test last month.It was a double-dip recession of an innings from England. Though Strauss batted with his now-habitual fluency to push the score along at more than five runs an over, by the time he was bowled off the inside-edge to become the first of Gul’s six victims, the rest of the top-four had already fallen cheaply.Davies was bowled through the gate by Razzaq before Jonathan Trott, needing five runs to pass 1000 in all internationals this summer, was exquisitely yorked by Shoaib for 2, whereupon Ravi Bopara – in another unconvincing foray – snicked a thin edge off Saeed Ajmal to fall for 7 from 15 balls. One over later, and Michael Yardy – whose third-ball reprieve by Kamran Akmal ultimately forced the keeper to leave the field with a broken finger – was trapped lbw by a bamboozling late swinger from Gul, to leave England teetering on 103 for 5.Cue more magnificence from Morgan, as he and Luke Wright reinflated the innings with a run-a-ball partnership of 98 in 17.2 overs. In similar circumstances to those that he had faced against Australia at the Rose Bowl back in June, he picked the gaps with outrageous ambidextrous improvisation that he somehow made to look run-of-the-mill, while Wright – back in the side following an illness to Paul Collingwood – provided sensible support of the more conventional biff-and-block variety. Wright, however, should have fallen on 26, when Umar Akmal, the substitute keeper, whipped off the bails with his back foot clearly in the air. But umpire Doctrove – he of the 2006 Oval controversy – somehow decided that a replay wasn’t necessary.The pivotal moment of the match, however, came in the 39th over, with England seemingly cruising to their series victory on 201 for 5, with 41 still needed from 72 deliveries. So long as Morgan remained, the result was a foregone conclusion, but when Gul strayed onto his pads, he rashly leant into an airy clip over midwicket, and picked out the substitute Wahab Riaz at deep square leg. Three balls later, Tim Bresnan’s off stump was extracted for a duck, and though Stuart Broad was a handy man to have at No. 9, he could do nothing about a raucous delivery that crashed into middle. And when Graeme Swann slapped the last delivery of Gul’s spell to cover, England had shed four wickets for 10 runs in five overs. And from there, there was no recovery.It was the culmination of an impressive recovery from Pakistan, after their own innings had flirted with disaster right at the start of the day. After being asked to bowl first on a bright but chilly day, Anderson was the star of England’s show with an eye-opening display of attacking seam bowling – as opposed to the swing-based method that has earned him his rewards to date this summer. He claimed 3 for 26 in ten exemplary overs, to spearhead a bowling effort that never allowed a free-spirited batting order to flourish.Anderson took little time to prove a menace on a pitch with decent bounce, as he snagged Mohammad Hafeez’s outside edge with the final ball of his opening over, before Bresnan bowled Kamran Akmal for 5, via an unlucky deflection off his thigh pad. At 8 for 2 after 2.4 overs, Pakistan’s performance was heading down the pan, and their situation got worse at 31 for 3 when Anderson nailed Mohammad Yousuf with a nip-backer that replays showed would have trimmed the top of the bails.Fawad and Asad Shafiq did their best to regroup in uncomfortable circumstances, before Shafiq holed out against Swann to leave his team on 95 for 4, and their prospects dipped even further five overs later when Umar Akmal – not a batsman who will ever die wondering – tried to hook Bresnan off his eyebrows as he charged down the wicket, but managed only a top-edge to Swann at fine leg. Afridi showed signs of a return to form before running himself out as he deflected a shy from square leg onto his own stumps for 34, and Razzaq chipped in with a lusty 31 to give the innings some late impetus. But without Gul’s efforts, victory could never have been achieved.

Speaking to Give Me Sport, journalist Ryan Taylor of The Daily Express has made a West Ham United summer transfer claim involving Burnley defender James Tarkowski.

The Lowdown: West Ham eye January move…

A plethora of central defenders were tipped with a potential move to the London Stadium last month as manager David Moyes saw it as a transfer priority alongside the need for another striker (The Daily Mail).

The likes of Duje Caleta-Car were mentioned, with late window talks apparently held for the Croatian, while Manchester City’s Nathan Ake and Bournemouth loanee Nathaniel Phillips had also been linked (The Evening Standard).

Tarkowski, whose contract at current club Burnley expires later this year, was another name on the target list for Moyes with Express reporter Taylor now sharing an update on their interest.

The Latest: Taylor expects summer move

Speaking to GMS, the reporter says West Ham could in fact ‘enter the fray’ for Tarkowski again in the summer.

He explained: “All signs pointed towards him staying to the end of the season, then West Ham could enter the fray.”

The Verdict: Get it done?

While the Hammers couldn’t seal a central defensive signing for Moyes last month, recruitment chief Rob Newman would be remiss if he didn’t at least consider Tarkowski on a free.

The 29-year-old, who was once valued at his £50 million release clause by Burnley, looks set to leave for nothing in the summer and West Ham could secure a short term centre-back option at the very least.

Described as one of Sean Dyche’s ‘talismans’ and a ‘real leader’ by pundit Noel Whelan, Moyes’ side could benefit from a figure like this in the heart of West Ham’s defence – especially for no transfer fee.

In other news: ExWHUemployee: Moyes now personally wants ‘unreal’ international who’s also a Salthouse client, find out more here.

Ex-Rangers midfielder Barry Ferguson has suggested St Johnstone’s Zander Clark as a potential replacement if Allan McGregor leaves the club at the end of the season. 

The lowdown

McGregor, who turned 40 at the end of January, is out of contract at the end of the current campaign.

At the start of the season, Steven Gerrard rotated his ‘keepers, handing chances to Jon McLaughlin and Robby McCrorie, but McGregor has now started every league game since Halloween.

The Athletic’s Jordan Campbell recently wrote that he was expected to depart Ibrox in the summer, along with Connor Goldson and Steven Davis.

Significantly, Clark is also set to be free agent in five months’ time, meaning Rangers could snap him up on a free.

A report from The Daily Record in November revealed that The Gers were ‘closely’ monitoring the 29-year-old.

The latest Speaking on the Go Radio Football Show (via Glasgow World), Ferguson said he’d like to see McGregor stay for another year, but backed Jon McLaughlin and Clark to be able successors.”Jon McLaughlin is a really good backup keeper, I really like him,” he said.”Zander Clark is another, St Johnstone have had a poor season but Zander is still performing at a high level.”I’d like him to stay. He’s old enough to make his own mind up but I still think there’s football left in Allan McGregor.” The verdict

While he can’t compete with McGregor, who’s played more than 400 times for Rangers, Clark does at least have plenty of experience.

He’s one short of 150 games in the Scottish top flight, and he’s kept an impressive 51 clean sheets along the way – that ratio of 0.34 is not far off McGregor’s top flight ratio of 0.46, when considering the quality of the squads they are playing in.

It also bodes well that Steve Clark has called him up to the Scotland squad twice this season, and that St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson has dubbed him ‘phenomenal’.

The £405,000-rated ‘keeper does have some weaknesses – WhoScored say he could improve when it comes to long passing and claiming crosses – but perhaps the opportunity to snap him up on a free will prove too good to turn down.

In other news, Danny Mills reckons this 21/22 signing could soon be headed for the PL.

MatériaMais Notícias

Enfim o primeiro reforço! O Flamengo já está com tudo acertado com o jovem atacante colombiano, Marlos Moreno, que pertence ao Manchester City (ING), mas estava emprestado ao Girona (ESP). Em entrevista coletiva no Ninho do Urubu neste sábado, o vice-presidente de futebol Ricardo Lomba revelou que o atacante estará no Ninho neste domingo para realizar exames.

– Marlos chega no Brasil hoje a noite e chega no Ninho amanhã cedo para fazer exame – disse Lomba.

Marlos foi um pedido do ex-treinador Reinaldo Rueda, mas mesmo com a saída do colombiano, nome do garoto agradou a diretoria, que seguiu firme para contar com o futebol da joia em 2018.

O diretor executivo de futebol, Rodrigo Caetano, não entrou em detalhes sobre a negociação pelo atacante, mas garantiu que tudo já foi acertado com o Manchester City.

– A negociação com o Manchester já foi oficializada e conforme forem os exames, vamos confirmar a contratação.

Marlos surgiu como uma grande promessa no Atlético Nacional (COL) e comandado por Rueda, brilhou na campanha do título da Libertadores de 2016. O atacante chega por empréstimo até o fim de 2018 e deve ser apresentado na próxima semana, no Ninho do Urubu.

RelacionadasFlamengoPor conta de indefinição no Santos, Fla encerra conversas com ZecaFlamengo13/01/2018Futebol NacionalAtuais campeã e vice da Taça das Favelas estreiam neste final de semanaFutebol Nacional13/01/2018FlamengoFlamengo goleia o Elosport e terá o Coritiba pela frente na CopinhaFlamengo13/01/2018

Everton have been adding players to their squad this week, with two new signings made in the January transfer window so far.

However, when it comes to outgoings, speculation has been mounting amid a feud at the club, and Rafael Benitez has been addressing rumours today.

What’s the word?

The Everton manager didn’t hold back in his FA Cup pre-match conference this afternoon when it came to talking about a particularly sensitive subject which has been a hot topic of conversation over the last month.

Benitez ranted to the media about the rumoured exit of Toffees left back Lucas Digne and his perspective of the situation, namechecking Everton legend Peter Reid as he responded to questions.

He stated: “I think it was very clear. I want to ask the question to every fan and former players – what Peter Reid will do and say when a players says he does not want to be there. It’s there, simple.

“A couple of conversations with (Digne), he told me what he thought. What do you expect the manager to do when the player is thinking about to leave? I will say again: the fans, former players. What will Peter Reid say if a player goes to the manager and says he does not want to be here?”

“I’m talking about myself also wanting everything from the players. When they do not do that, I can be upset.”

The manager’s passionate speech comes after an argument with the Toffees defender in training just over a month ago, and it has now escalated to Digne being linked with a move away and Benitez confirming in this conference that the player wants to leave Merseyside.

Fans will be gutted

Everton have been struggling to pick up results over the last few months, with just five league wins from the first half of the season, and losing a player as experienced as Digne is something that the fans will be gutted to see.

Some supporters have taken to social media platforms to express their disappointment at the France international being frozen out, with one fan tweeting: “It really is a shame to see Digne leave like this”

The defender has become a fan favourite at the club after offering 126 appearances, six goals and 20 assists for the Toffees during his three-and-a-half years with the Merseyside club, and it seems a real shame for the Goodison Park faithful that the situation had deteriorated to this extent.

Digne did make the bench for the first time in a month last week, but it will be interesting to see if Benitez puts aside his tumultuous relationship with the left-back by naming him in the line-up for the FA Cup game against Hull City tomorrow evening, after a poor defensive performance in his absence against Brighton.

In other news – Imagine him and Doucoure: Benitez eyeing Everton swoop for £27m-rated “great talent”

There was only one burning topic of conversation at the close of the first day’s play at the Divisional Stadium – Kevin Pietersen’s voodoo-like curse by the Slow Left-Armers Union

Andrew Miller in Chittagong07-Mar-2010

It was only polite to ask James Tredwell to elaborate on his most successful day as an England offspinner, as he scalped six Bangladeshi wickets to enhance his chances of playing in next week’s first Test at Chittagong. But there was only one burning topic of conversation at the close of the first day’s play at the Divisional Stadium – Kevin Pietersen’s dreadful run of form, and the seemingly voodoo-like curse that has been inflicted on him by the Slow Left-Armers Union.Pietersen’s contribution to the contest lasted all of five balls in the closing moments of the day, but it was all that was needed to set tongues a-wagging once again. Mehrab Hossain Jr has claimed 45 wickets in 46 first-class games, and has a grand total of four Test-match victims to his name. But a solitary over was all he needed to bump Tredwell’s unstinting efforts off tomorrow’s front pages. Facing up to his fifth delivery, Pietersen propped forward uncertainly, and snicked a routine edge to the keeper.And so he was gone for 2 from five balls, taking his tally in all matches on this tour to 49 runs from six innings – and in each of his last four outings, including all three ODIs, he has been scalped by the same style of bowler. In the first match he edged Shakib Al Hasan to slip; in the next two games he was trapped lbw by Abdur Razzak.”He was a bit upset, he would have liked to get a score,” Tredwell told reporters at the close of play. “But we all know what KP’s like, he’s a confident character, and I’m sure he’ll come bouncing back. I’m sure Bangladesh will try to use [left-arm spin] to their advantage, but I’m sure he will come back with something else to throw at them.”Quite what Pietersen can come up with, however, is anyone’s guess, because his problems against slow left-arm are starting to become an embarrassment. He’d had his moments all throughout his career, most notably at Edgbaston in August 2008, when his attempt to mow Paul Harris out of the ground ended up with him holing out to mid-on, and sent England toppling towards a series-conceding defeat.But it turned from being an incidental issue to a real thorn in his ego during the tour of India in November 2008, when Yuvraj Singh bowled him through the gate in an otherwise unremarkable ODI defeat in Indore. One month later in the second Test at Chandigarh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni hauled Yuvraj into the attack at the very moment that Pietersen arrived at the crease. Though he escaped unscathed on that occasion, the message was clear – as Yuvraj’s earlier “bunny-ears” gesture had already made plain.Since then, his every failing against a left-armer has become a hot topic – and it is starting to make a visible dent in his statistics. Pietersen’s average in all formats against his nemeses hovers uneasily in the early 30s, compared to a solid plus-40 showing against all other varieties of bowling. And from Yuvraj (who has dismissed him four times in ODIs, more than any other bowler) to Daniel Vettori, Sulieman Benn and Harris in Tests, and now to Mehrab Hossain Jr, SLAB is intent on putting him in the mortuary.Come the Tests, Bangladesh are likely to have just the one such bowler to work on his weakness, but that man happens to be Shakib, the most fearless competitor in their line-up, and a man who will surely delight in the challenge. And of course, it is an added irony that England have not even got any left-arm bowlers of their own to enable Pietersen to hone his put-upon technique, with Monty Panesar overlooked in favour of Tredwell. Adil Rashid, who as a legspinner at least takes the ball away from bat, is not here either.But none of that is Tredwell’s immediate concern, of course. He has been selected on merit, and has done his utmost to make the most of his opportunity. “I’m certainly in contention [for a call-up],” he said. “I’ve only done the right thing. There’s less and less lead-ups going into international matches, so to actually perform in one of them is a decent thing.”I enjoy bowling with another offspinner,” he added. “It might cause problems for us if the batsmen come up with similar gameplans, but they’ve got a lot of left-handers, so that will come into our reckoning, turning the ball away from the bat.” As Pietersen will testify, such a skill really can get under a batsman’s skin.

Matthew Wade and Andrew McDonald sealed a five-wicket win that took Victoria to second on the one-day table

Cricinfo staff10-Feb-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsBryce McGain started New South Wales’ problems with 3 for 37 from 10 overs•Getty Images

Matthew Wade and Andrew McDonald sealed a five-wicket win that took Victoria to second on the one-day table. On a difficult day for batting, the Bushrangers used their local knowledge to reach their rain-reduced target of 213 with 10 balls remaining.Wade top scored with 50 off 68 balls, leaving with two runs to get, while McDonald was unbeaten on 42 as they recovered from Nathan Bracken’s double-strike that left them at 4 for 110. Both sides have a game remaining in the group stages but Victoria are now in a strong position to make the final as they hope to add the FR Cup to their Twenty20 win.The Bushrangers’ initial target of 225 was cut after a rain break and when the players returned David Hussey motored ahead. Hussey took charge with 45 off 40 balls, but Bracken enticed him to hit to deep cover and the next ball Aaron Finch went for 44 to a poor pull shot. New South Wales were unable to follow up with more pressure, but it was really their batting that let them down.Phil Jaques overcame an early hit to the helmet to produce the most fluent innings for the Blues and when he left for 60 off 65 the rest struggled to match his tempo. Jaques had extra responsibilities as Phillip Hughes was unable to score at a run every two balls throughout his 44, but the Blues lost 4 for 34 after Jaques was caught at long-on.The wicket was the first for the impressive Bryce McGain, who worked well in tandem with Brad Hodge as the pitch slowed when the ball softened. McGain had 3 for 37 off 10 overs, picking up the No.3 Steven Smith and Hughes, who was brilliantly taken by a diving Hussey at mid-on. Hodge returned 1 for 31 off nine with his gentle offspin, including the important bowled of Simon Katich on 2.Moises Henriques and David Warner both went skying attempted big shots and Dominic Thornely’s 32 was the third-best contribution. Dirk Nannes, who had rattled Jaques’ helmet, also made life difficult for the tail as he collected 3 for 40.