Steve Cooper has been confirmed as Nottingham Forest’s new head coach and is set to bring his former Swansea City sidekick Alan Tate in with him. The former Swansea boss, who left the club at the end of July, replaces Chris Hughton at the City Ground. Hughton paid the price for a poor start to the Championship season, where they took just one point from their opening seven games.

By Alex Bywater James Arthur, James Argent, Calum Best and a host of former Welsh sporting icons will take part in a charity football match on September 26 in memory of fanatical former Swansea fan Mitchell Powell. Dad-of-one Powell tragically passed away in February after he went into cardiac arrest while undergoing double heart valve replacement surgery. He was just 26. Powell was born with a heart condition and had undergone more than 20 operations over the course of his life which led him to becoming a dedicated supporter of the British Heart Foundation.

By Lucy Rees Gemma Grainger’s Wales team take on Estonia tomorrow night after winning 6-0 against Kazakhstan on Friday, at Parc Y Scarlets. Speaking to the media yesterday, Wales skipper, Sophie Ingle said: “Scoring 6 goals and keeping a clean sheet at International level is really good. “Training was really good today, a good vibe […]

Emily Thomas says she is looking forward to new opportunities after deciding to retire from top level gymnastics following a series of knee injuries Thomas, 20, and Wales’ leading artistic gymnast of recent years, has chosen to stop competing – dealing a blow to Wales’ hopes of medals at next year’s Commonwealth Games. The former Great Britain squad member and all-round Welsh champion suffered a knee injury in 2019 and although she battled back to fitness, a ruptured ligament in June of this year led her eventually to decide to retire.

By Rob Carbon Connah’s Quay manager Andy Morrison is concerned about a “lack of leadership” amongst his players, as the reigning champions fell to a 1-0 defeat to Bala Town on Saturday which means they are now already eight points behind the in-form TNS. The New Saints moved four points clear at the top of the JD Cymru Premier league after their 3-1 home win over Barry Town United as the wheels are in danger of coming off in the Nomads’ bid for a hat-trick of titles as they continue to see red. “We had to play for 40 minutes with 10 men at Barry and it was 65 against Bala. There is a pattern emerging over the last few weeks where we aren’t switched on after the initial intensity,” said Nomads boss Morrison.

Cardiff City have been labelled a “horrible” team to play against by Bournemouth’s Phillip Billing who has claimed his own side matched the Bluebirds’ muscle at the weekend before outplaying them. The Cherries went to the top of the Championship with their 1-0 victory at the Cardiff City Stadium where Billing scored the only goal of the game. The tall midfielder was part of a dominant display by the new leaders, who are unbeaten in the league this season and who, according to Billing, have quickly learned how to be “horrible” themselves under new boss Scott Parker.

Mick McCarthy has claimed Bournemouth are the “almost perfect” Championship team after his Cardiff City side fell to a subdued 1-0 defeat to the Cherries. It was a third defeat in four league games for the Bluebirds who spent most of the match chasing the ball and only came to life in the late stages. The victory moved Bournemouth to the top of the table and McCarthy was eager to lavish praise on the visitors, even though three other clubs have held them to draws in their eight games so far.

Cardiff Rugby and Scarlets look set to play their first away games against the new South African franchises in the new United Rugby Championship in Italy. With South Africa still appearing on the ‘red list’ of countries during the Covid pandemic, if the two regions went there to play they would be subject to 10 days in managed quarantine on their return. That would mean they would be unable to fulfil their first round fixtures in the Heineken Champions Cup, which take place on the weekend of 10/11/12 December.

Russell Martin insists Swansea City can use their astonishing rescue act at Luton Town as a springboard to take them up the Championship table. The Swans head coach heaped praise on his players for the manner in which they came back from 3-0 down at half-time to earn a point in their 3-3 draw. It still leaves the club just above the relegation zone on goal difference, but Martin insists the recovery suggests improvements are on the way if they can keep their best players on the field.

Rubin Colwill may have gone from hero to zero in the space of four days crazy days in the Championship, but Marlon Pack is still backing him and Cardiff City’s other youngsters to come good this season. The teenage Welsh international striker came on at the CityGround last Sunday and not only scored within a minute to notch his first senior goal, but then grabbed a superb second to earn his side a 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest. As the fans chanted his name after the game it became an even more memorable moment for the young striker.

Gemma Grainger has promised there is far more to come after Wales began their Women’s World Cup campaign with a thumping 6-0 victory over Kazakhstan The Wales manager – who celebrated her first victory in charge at the fourth attempt after succeeding Jayne Ludlow – is determined her team build on their flying start to the qualifying campaign. After watching Wales maintain their focus into the late stages of the match to pile on the goals at Parc Y Scarlets, Grainger insisted the level of performance must be continued when Wales visit Estonia in their next qualifier on Tuesday.

By Alex Bywater Newport County assistant manager Wayne Hatswell wants a big reaction from his side when they face Walsall at Rodney Parade on Saturday. Mike Flynn read his Exiles team the riot act after they produced a poor display in Tuesday’s 1-0 home defeat by Northampton Town. Boss Flynn promised changes for the Walsall game as a result with another home encounter and the chance to bounce back quickly on the horizon.

Scott Quinnell will be joining Gabby Logan as one of the new faces of BBC Wales’ Scrum V programme after the controversial axing of Phil Steele Former Wales and Lions star Quinnell – who has been a regular part of Sky Sports’ rugby coverage for over a dozen years – will step into Steele’s former role as pitchside reporter. The move is part of BBC Wales’ strategy to throw more money at building a higher profile, celebrity  presentation team in a bid to attract more viewers.

By Tom Prosser Ryan Giles has been one of Cardiff’s key players so far this season but his manager Mick McCarthy that he has tested positive for Covid for a second time, despite being double-jabbed. Giles missed Wednesday’s defeat to Coventry and will also not return for the Bluebird’s clash against Bournemouth on Saturday. “He’s got Covid. And what effect will it have on him? He’s had it once before and he’s double-jabbed,” explained McCarthy.

By Lucy Rees Wales begin their Women’s World Cup campaign tonight where they take on Kazakhstan at Parc Y Scarlets with hopes of qualification for the event in New Zealand and Australia in 2023. This will be new manager Gemma Grainger’s first competitive game with the side after being appointed at the beginning of the […]

Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and Chicago Bulls are all legendary NBA teams and young Welsh basketball players will soon have a chance to represent them, as Tom Prosser reports.   Michael Jordan and LeBron James are global sporting icons but soon there could be a pathway to such NBA legends that starts here in Wales. Basketball Wales and the NBA are joining forces to create a new league right here in Wales, that could one day mean the sport’s major stars of the future are produced somewhere near you. 

Dewi Griffiths has put the disappointment of not making it to the Tokyo Olympics behind him and is setting his sights on next year’s Commonwealth Games. The Swansea Harrier – Wales’ leading marathon runner – admits his “head went” due to the disappointment of failing to claim a place in Japan at the marathon trials in London last March. After leading for much of the race, Griffiths fell away in the closing stages, finishing fourth in 2:13.42 – outside the qualifying places and time.

Australia have confirmed they are coming to Cardiff to play Wales on November 20 – and the magical Quade Cooper could be running their show. The Welsh Rugby Union had already announced the clash as one of their four autumn Tests, but the Aussies had not been able to rubberstamp the fixture because of ongoing travel restrictions in their homeland due to Covid-19. But the Wallabies have now confirmed they are able to undergo a four-match tour that will see Tests against Japan, England, Scotland and Wales.

By Tom Prosser  Mick McCarthy has urged his Cardiff City players to “stick at it” as the Bluebirds aim to put the memories of their lacklustre 1-0 defeat to Coventry behind them when they take on third place Bournemouth on Saturday. “We’ll stick at it,” insisted McCarthy. “We had our chances near the end, we didn’t take them and we got beat.

By Rob Cole Glamorgan coach Matthew Maynard believes the Welsh county can go out with a bang as they take on Surrey at The Oval next Tuesday in the LV= Insurance County Championship. Gloucestershire beat Glamorgan by 10 wickets on Wednesday with two sessions to come as Zafar Gohar Khan finished with 6-43 at Cardiff […]