Qualification for the 2016 European Championships in France reached the halfway stage last weekend, and with 24 teams competing in the finals the chances of the top seeds coming unstuck are remote. That doesn’t mean that there won’t be the odd blip along the way, and Gibraltar dared to dream after Lee Casciaro, a policeman and part-time footballer, notched his side’s maiden goal in Uefa qualification to level the score against Scotland in Glasgow before the home side ran out 6-1 winners, thanks in part to a hat-trick from Stephen Fletcher, the first by a Scotland player in 46 years. “We came here to score a goal and not show that we just sit on our 18-yard line. It was one of those ‘it will never last’ feelings, but I was loving it,” said Davie Wilson, Gibraltar’s manager.
Elsewhere, Gareth Bale took time off from being booed by Real Madrid fans to score twice for Wales in a 3-0 win against Israel in Haifa and propel Wales to the top of their group, Shane Long salvaged a point for Ireland with a last-minute goal in the 1-1 draw with Poland in Dublin and two goals from Kyle Lafferty secured Northern Ireland a 2-1 win against Finland in Belfast. England maintained their 100% record with a 4-0 swatting aside of Lithuania in London, which included a goal from Tottenham striker Harry Kane just 78 seconds into his international debut.
Vettel returns to top step
Sebastian Vettel, remember him? The German driver who refused to let any of the other Formula One drivers have their turn with the drivers’ championship trophy between 2009 and 2013 has been a bit of a stranger to the top step of the F1 podium of late, but his victory at the Malaysian Grand Prix in Sepang has, temporarily at least, breathed life into a season that many feared would be little more than a victory lap for current champion Lewis Hamilton. The British driver put on his best not-really-bothered-if-I-didn’t-win face through the Ferrari driver’s emotional post-race celebrations. “Today was a very special day and will always remain part of me,” sobbed Vettel.
Big names fall at Miami Open
Maria Sharapova and Juan Martín del Potro were the big names – figuratively and literally – to fall during the first week of the Miami Open. Sharapova went down 7-6, 6-3 to fellow Russian and World No 97 Daria Gavrilova in the second round while Canada’s Vasek Pospisil accounted for Del Potro, who was returning after a wrist injury, 6-4, 7-6 in the first round. Rafael Nadal, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Stan Wawrinka also failed to make it to week two. World No4 Andy Murray moved into the fourth round with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Colombia’s Santiago Giraldo. Murray could find himself with a new team-mate after Slovenian-born Aljaz Bedene, ranked No 83 in the world, was granted a UK passport. Bedene plans to appeal against a rule preventing players from representing more than one nation in the Davis Cup.
Porte rides high in Catalunya
Team Sky’s Richie Porte won the Volta a Catalunya last Sunday to add to his success at Paris-Nice this year to retain his place at the top of the UCI WorldTour standings. The Australian cyclist entered the final day with a five-second lead and claimed the title despite 2009 champion Alejandro Valverde winning the seventh stage in Barcelona. Porte came home safely in the peloton while Italian Domenico Pozzovivo, who was Porte’s nearest challenger heading into the final stage, had to settle for third place overall, one second behind Valverde.
