Wales could be without George North for the remainder of their three-Test tour of New Zealand. The Lions wing injured him hamstring in his side’s 39-21 defeat to the All Blacks on Saturday and will now be examined to see if he able to take any further part.

Enzo Maccarinelli has retired from boxing after suffering a brutal first-round defeat to Ukrainian Dmytro Kucher on Friday night. Swansea’s former WBO world champion was stopped in the opening round by Kucher in their EBU European cruiserweight title clash at London’s York Hall.

Gareth Bale has accused England of believing their own hype and claimed that when it comes to passion the Three Lions are no match for the Dragon. The Wales striker will make his major international tournament finals debut on Saturday when Chris Coleman’s side open their Euro 2016 campaign against Slovakia in Bordeaux.

Chris Coleman has promised Wales will illuminate Euro 2016 with “a splash of brilliance” when they begin their first tournament campaign for 58 years on Saturday. Whether or not that comes from Gareth Bale, the Wales manager did not specify. But Coleman was in buoyant mood as he celebrated his 46th birthday in Bordeaux on the eve of his team’s first group match against Slovakia.

Sean Fitzpatrick has warned Wales the All Blacks will show little ring-rust when the teams meet in Auckland on Saturday. The former New Zealand skipper believes any hope Wales have of catching the world champions cold in their first game of the year should be quickly dispelled.

Lauren Williams has conquered Europe once already this year but it didn’t satisfy her ambition to enjoy more success. But the Welsh ace knows there will be more scrutiny on her performances when competing as part of a four-strong GB Taekwondo squad at the Greek Open on Saturday.

Aaron Ramsey has revealed that the wisdom of Arsene Wenger has given him the confidence that Wales could be a surprise package at Euro 2016. Ramsey and Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale will spearhead the Welsh challenge in France as the country contests its first major tournament in almost 60 years.

Wales’ group rivals England are about to start their Euro 2016 campaign against Russia on Saturday, with Jamie Vardy in their ranks. But has Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger done Wales – and the Gunners’ Aaron Ramsey – a big favour by messing with Vardy’s head? Dai Sport columnist NEIL MASUDA smells a conspiracy.

English sailor Magnus Hadley came away from Wales triumphant after winning the Stride Treglown Welsh Topper Championships held at Llandegfedd sailing club in Gwent. The main prize was won by Magnus Hadley, aged 16, from Queen Mary sailing club near Heathrow, with 14-year-old Oliver Vowles from Llangorse the top Welsh competitor in second while clubmate Thomas Willett, aged 10, beat sailors up to three years his senior to win the 4.2 class of fleet.

It is a measure of the global appeal of Gareth Bale that the first interview he did at Euro 2016 was in Chinese. Not just the questions, but his answers too.

Geraint Thomas has vowed to go ‘full gas’ when he leads Team Sky for the first time at the Tour de Suisse which starts Saturday. The nine-day event will likely be the Cardiff-born flier’s last race before he lined-up at July’s Tour de France.

Glamorgan’s Chris Cooke is targeting the later stages of two limited overs competitions after Glamorgan went top of their Royal London One-Day Cup group on Wednesday night. Victory over Sussex Sharks by 84 runs propelled Glamorgan to the top of the group – and they’re also sitting top of the NatWest T20 Blast South group after winning four games out of five in all competitions.

If any player should understand how to harness the power of the underdog at Euro 2016, it is Andy King. The Wales midfielder – who is set to replace the injured Joe Ledley for the opening match against Slovakia on Saturday – was part of the Leicester City squad that bit off more than the rest of the Premier League could chew last season.

Ardie Savea and Seta Tamanivalu are in line for their New Zealand debuts after being named in the matchday squad to face Wales. The world champions will play the opening Test of the Steinlager Series against Wales at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday.

Alun Wyn Jones will make his 100th appearance for Wales on Saturday, becoming his country’s fifth centurion when he reaches the historic milestone in the opening Test against New Zealand. Wales have made five changes from their last outing with captain Sam Warburton returning from injury to the starting XV alongside Gethin Jenkins, Ken Owens, Bradley Davies and Jonathan Davies. Uncapped flanker Ellis Jenkins is named on the replacements bench.

Hal Robson-Kanu insists he is fit for Wales’ Euro 2016 opener on Saturday – although he is likely to be on the bench. Like Joe Ledley, it looked a remote possibility a week ago that Robson-Kanu would make Saturday’s game in Bordeaux as he was struggling to overcome an Achilles tendon injury.

The FIA World Rally Championship will return to the heart of the historic city of Chester for the first time in 20 years on 28 October. The stars and cars from the Dayinsure Wales Rally GB (27-30 October) will visit the iconic walled city having completed their first day of competition in the legendary forests of mid-Wales.

Geraint Thomas has admitted he is keeping his Team Sky options open as he eyes a Grand Tour challenge. The Cardiff-born flier was believed to have signed a two-year deal with Sky when his contract extension was announced recently.

Joe Ledley is set to miss out when Wales start their Euro 2016 finals campaign against Slovakia on Saturday. The Crystal Palace midfielder has made a remarkable recovery after suffering a hairline fracture to his left leg on May 7, but manager Chris Coleman is unlikely to risk him for the match in Bordeaux.

Jayne Ludlow insists Wales women are making progress despite seeing their hopes of qualifying for next year’s European Championship finals ended by Norway. Wales lost 2-0 at Newport on Tuesday night and although they still have two games remaining, they are now nine points behind group leaders Austria and the Norwegians.