GB finish second at European Team Championships

Andy Turner was the only British winner on day two of the European Team Championships in Bergen as GB finished in second place overall behind Russia.

GB had five victories on Saturday and despite failing to hit those heights, they held off Germany in third.

Turner clinched victory in the 110m hurdles while Hannah England (1500m), Michael Rimmer (800m) and Phillips Idowu (triple jump) were all second.

Jo Pavey also came second in the 5000m, in her first track race for two years.

Pavey looked impressive considering her lengthy absence from the track and declared herself satisfied after finishing behind Germany's Sabrina Mockenhaupt in a thrilling race.

"It was frustrating at the end as I really wanted to get maximum points for the team," Pavey told BBC Sport.

"I'm a bit short still in terms of fitness and I was thrown in the deep end a little but I enjoyed it. My main focus is to qualify for the 10k [10,000m] at the European Championships in Barcelona."

Turner won the 110m hurdles in 13.48 seconds to clinch yet another individual victory for GB.

But he later revealed he was running with an injury that could yet rule him out of next weekend's European Championship trials.

"We had a team meeting this morning and I was under pressure to win, so I'm pleased," Turner told BBC Sport.

"Really I was just happy to have won the points considering I've got Achilles problems. When I run with the adrenaline flowing it's fine, but when I cross the finishing line it is killing me. I am only doing half my usual training sessions and I need to get it fixed.

"I really want to run at the trials and win five in a row. If I'm not in pain, I will run."

England meanwhile ran a very measured 1500m race to finish behind Ukraine's Anna Mishchenko in a time of four minutes 05.70 secs.

"I was a bit far back early on and tried not to panic," England said. "But I soon found a gap and got back into the top three and I tried to stay in contact but used my kick too early perhaps."

Rimmer ran a decent time of 1:45.62 secs to finish behind Russia's former Olympic champion Yuriy Borzakovskiy.

"He was very strong as I expected but I'm pleased with that," Rimmer told BBC Sport. "I've learned a lot over the years and knew I had to stay close to him."

World champion Idowu jumped 17.12m to finish second in the triple jump but the winner was not the pre-event favourite Teddy Tamgho.

The Frenchman could only manage 17.10m to finish third, having jumped 17.98 in the Diamond League a week earlier, with Ukrainian Viktor Kuznyetsov wining the event with his jump of 17.26.

"It was not my greatest competition but I got the points I was expected to," said Idowu.

"I know where my mistakes are and it's done now. I've got to keep my head down, improve technically, and focus on my jumping.

"I will have another three or four competitions ahead of the European Championships in Barcelona. I'm fit and healthy and I know I'll improve."

There was disappointment for Leon Baptiste in the 200m.

Baptiste, who is ranked number one in Europe this season, ran a decent first 100m but faded in the home straight, finishing in fifth place with France's Maritla Mbandjock winning in a time of 20.55 secs.

"I'm disappointed with today," admitted Baptiste. "I thought I could have done better, I've been training hard, I expected to win, but I've got to pick myself up ahead of the trials.

"I tightened up as I came off the bend and perhaps I need to learn how to run under pressure. I should have relaxed the shoulders but it's all good experience."

Elsewhere Steve Lewis failed to register a height as GB missed out on any points in the pole vault while Emily Freeman ran a season's best time of 23.34 secs in the 200m as she finished fifth.

Angie Broadbelt-Blake was eighth overall in the 100m hurdles in a time of 13.33 secs. Luke Gunn ran a solid race in the 3000m steeplechase, finishing fifth to earn more valuable points for GB.

Jade Johnson was sixth in the long jump with a leap of 6.26m while Britain's women's 4x400m relay team earned a fourth-place finish before the men's relay team came second in the final race of the weekend.

Britain's head coach Charles van Commenee was happy to have pipped Germany for second, highlighting how the likes of Dwain Chambers, David Greene, Martyn Rooney and Mo Farah had all beaten their closest rivals for gold in Barcelona next month.

"The individual performances were very encouraging," he said. "I'm optimistic ahead of the European Championships next month, the athletes took responsibility and handled the pressure."

Van Commenee is waiting to hear whether Olympic champion Christine Ohuruogu will be fit enough for the trials after suffering a quadricep muscle injury last week.

"Some injuries you can't tell straightaway. I expect to have some more clarity over the next few days," he added.

Ohuruogu is scheduled to take on reigning world champion Sanya Richards-Ross either side of the European Championships.

They will race for the first time this year at the Aviva British Grand Prix in Gateshead on 10 July, and again at the Aviva London Grand Prix at Crystal Palace on 13 and 14 August.

World Cup 2010: Switzerland have Spain playing the blame game

The result was not the only aspect of Spain's opening game that surprised me. I was also struck by the reaction of their players to defeat against Switzerland. It was not the response I'd expect from reigning European champions and one of the few teams at the World Cup who can be confident of recovering from an early shock and progressing.

To say the Spanish players were not happy as they walked off sounds like a statement of the obvious, but it wasn't the misery of the result that stood out. They were far from pleased with each other. There was a lot of finger-pointing going on and one player ended up in an argument with a member of the backroom team. There was no show of unity or harmony from Vicente del Bosque's players at all.

Spain must have a good team spirit – it is only two years since they won the European Championship, after all – and I know how upset players can be in defeat, especially in a game of that importance and with all the hype there has been around them in the build-up to the World Cup. But it looked as though quite a few Spanish players were keen to apportion blame elsewhere as they headed to the dressing room. I might be wrong, but their body language was poor.

I suspect the ire was directed at the back four and goalkeeper. If you dominate a game and it finishes 0-0 then players will usually have a good moan at the strikers. But if you have 70% possession and lose 1-0 then the strikers and midfielders are entitled to have a pop at the defenders. As a manager you don't want to see that, but that appeared to be the case.

Spain played some terrific football on Wednesday but concentration in defence is absolutely paramount when you play that way. They forced the issue against Switzerland. Not massively, there were no midfield runners for example, and had David Villa or Gerard Piqué scored in the first half the game would have been over and done with. But they had so much of the play they forgot to defend. It must have been galling for Del Bosque to watch his team have so much intricate possession and concede from one long ball down the middle that his two central defenders and goalkeeper should have dealt with.

Carles Puyol is a fabulous defender and Iker Casillas won his 105th cap against the Swiss, but they switched off and now their team are under tremendous pressure. You shouldn't have almost three quarters of the possession and lose, and you certainly don't concede to a long ball down the middle. Perhaps, because of their recent record, Spain lost sight of the fact that you can't score every time and that if you can't score, don't bloody concede. If you have to take a 0-0, take it.

Switzerland are in the box seat now and we should give Ottmar Hitzfeld and his players the credit they deserve. They made Spain go out wide. They never allowed them through the middle. They had a narrow midfield four and a back four that sat on the edge of the 18-yard box for the most part, and they were marshalled brilliantly. When Spain got out wide they were made to cross it and rarely got in behind the Switzerland defence. On the few occasions they slipped, their goalkeeper saved them. Philippe Senderos and his replacement, Steve von Bergen, and Stéphane Grichting, all had excellent games. They won almost everything in the air, didn't dive in and didn't allow Spain to play it to feet on the edge of their penalty area. Spain seemed to give up putting the ball into the box towards the end. It looked as though they knew they couldn't win it in that area.

I love the fact that Switzerland can come to a World Cup and beat Spain. Their style of play might not be to everyone's liking and I'm sure their tactics, and how Spain conceded, will encourage other teams to do the same against the European champions now. You have to go with what suits and Hitzfeld's team showed the favourites can be beaten. The tournament needed that.

Overall, I've been disappointed so far, but it's too early to deliver a verdict. Coaches have been afraid of pushing for the win and getting beaten. Everyone is desperate to get a foothold in the tournament in their first game, which I totally understand, but teams will have to change in their second games. The importance of winning now becomes greater than the fear of losing. There are several big teams that have to win their second games. Spain, England and Italy will all be going out to do so and the emphasis will change.

Warwick Smith's Scotland suffer second defeat in World Men's Curling Championship

Scotland have suffered their second defeat here at the World Men's Championship, going down 7-5 to Pete Fenson's USA in draw 13.

The score was tied at 2-2 after five ends. But this could have been so different if skip Warwick Smith had not kept Scotland in the game with a triple take-out with his first and then a freeze draw with his second stone forcing Fenson to play the draw with his final stone for a single.

Smith drew for two in the sixth end and the USA blanked the seventh before drawing for two in the eighth to tie the scores again at 4-4.

In the ninth Smith tried a difficult tap back which would have counted three shots but the Scots came out with only a single and a one-shot lead into the final end.

The Scots lay shot behind guards when Fenson played his first shot; nominating a freeze on the Scottish stone just behind the tee and protected by guards. The shot was perfectly played. There were a number of options open to Smith and after discussions with coach Derek Brown during one of their two permitted time-outs Smith played a guard.

There was just enough space on the swinging ice for USA to play a controlled shot through the port and rock off another of their shots in the house and remove the Scottish stone to lie the two required for the win.

The stone was laid perfectly and with good control of the sweeping by third Shawn Rojeski the stone crept through the port and the USA lay three shots to be tied with Scotland on six wins.

Canada lead the standings on eight wins followed by Norway on seven and then Scotland and the USA on six but with Scotland having a game in hand.

Meanwhile, at the World Curling Federation annual general assembly held on Wednesday, Scotland's Kate Caithness became the first women to be elected to the post of president.

She will serve for the next two years after defeating Canada's Les Harrison who was seeking re-election. Switzerland's Patrick Huerlimann was appointed vice-president.

Caithness has been involved in curling since the 1980s and is a past president of the Royal Caledonian Curling Club's Ladies' Branch and has been the acting vice-president of the WCF since 2006.

She has been the driving force since 2000 of world wheelchair curling culminating in its appearance as a Paralympic sport following the Winter Olympic Games at Torino, Italy in 2006.

The European Curling Federation has also announced that the European Mixed Championships along with the playing of the 'C' Division of the European Championships will be hosted by the Greenacres Ice Rink in Renfrewshire, on dates to be confirmed and that the 2011 European Championship will be hosted by Moscow.

EURO 2012 fixture draw in Tel Aviv

A draw will determine the fixture schedule in the four UEFA EURO 2012 qualifying groups where the competing nations have been unable to agree a schedule between themselves.

A draw will take place in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv next week to determine the fixture schedule for four groups in the UEFA EURO 2012 qualifying competition.
The draw will be made during the UEFA Congress activities, when all of the UEFA member national associations will be present for Europe's football parliament on 25 March.
The groups in question are Group B (Russia, Slovakia, Republic of Ireland, FYR Macedonia, Armenia and Andorra), Group F (Croatia, Greece, Israel, Latvia, Georgia and Malta), Group G (England, Switzerland, Bulgaria, Wales and Montenegro) and Group H (Portugal, Denmark, Norway, Cyprus and Iceland).
No agreement was reached in relation to a fixture list for these four groups by the deadline of Tuesday 16 March.
For associations in a group that has been unable to reach agreement, matches will be played according to the standard fixture list. The position of each association in the standard fixture list (A, B, C, D or E for groups of five teams and A, B, C, D, E and F for groups of six teams) will be drawn.
Further information on the draw in Tel Aviv will be given in due course.

England could play Wales in Swansea

The possibility of England playing Wales in Swansea has increased with Uefa set to decide the fixtures for the 2012 European Championship qualifying campaign.
The five nations drawn in Group G were unable to reach agreement on the fixtures, despite a meeting lasting nearly five hours in Zurich yesterday. Fabio Capello, the England manager, and John Toshack, his Wales counterpart, attended the meeting with representatives from Switzerland, Bulgaria and Montenegro.
Toshack’s prediction that it would be difficult to reach an agreement that would suit every country proved correct. Bulgaria and Montenegro were keen to ensure prime dates for the matches against England, because of the additional revenues that it would generate from television and sponsorship. England and Wales were unable to agree their fixtures.
The countries’ fate will be decided with a random draw at the Uefa Congress in Tel Aviv next week. Uefa’s decision is important because, for example, Wales would prefer to play England at the Millennium Stadium. The venue in Cardiff has already been booked for several dates, notably in October. The qualifying match would then have to be switched to Cardiff City’s new stadium or the Liberty Stadium, in Swansea.
The Football Association of Wales said: “At the Group G Euro 2012 fixtures meeting today the teams failed to reach agreement on a match schedule. All sides needed to be in agreement and this did not happen. Uefa will now make the draw in Tel Aviv, next week at the Uefa Congress.”

Capello hopes to be England manager for 2012 European Championships

Manager Fabio Capello has revealed that he would like to stay on as England coach until after the 2012 European Championship, which is to be co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine.

Capello admits that he would not be interested in any other job, loves living in London and enjoys his relationship with the players and the Premier League managers."I hope to still be here with England in 2012. It depends on the FA and results in the World Cup, of course, but I am really happy. I like my job. I like being England manager and I hope that after the World Cup finals I will still be manager for Euro 2012. Why not?" Express quoted Capello, as saying."I don't think about not being England manager. The football in England is exciting. The Premier League is good and I enjoy working with the English players," he added.The 63-year-old, who is currently recovering from a knee replacement surgery, further said that he is eager to get going again."I have a good feeling with the players, the managers and the FA.

I am comfortable here in England and with this job. When you have the confidence of the people you work with that is also important - the players, my staff, the supporters. It is not just about managing the team. It is everything," Capello said."I like living in London and so does my wife. I am happy here and I hope to be the England manager for the European Championships," he added.

Action replay with Finland is European Championship hope

For a team that beginned the Women's European Championship so badly, England could difficultly have hoped for a wagerer route to next Thursday's final.
Finishing third in their pair means they cannot meet holders and world champions Germany, or the much fancied Sweden, unless they are playing for the trophy.
And manager Hope Powell admits they got the draw they needed, even if it means facing the hosts in front of an 8,000 capacity crowd on Thursday afternoon.

'I think everybody would need to avoid the Germans,' she said. 'That's no contempt to Finland. They topped their group and we can't take anything for granted.'
Finland have never beaten England in women's or men's football and Powell's side won 4-1 when they met in February.
But she needed: 'The girls would be foolish if you look at the past results. We could have said that about Italy, you could have said that about Russia. We have to focus 100 per cent on this task and not think back to February because that is perfectly irrelevant.'
The game is a reverse of the opening match of Euro 2005, when England were the hosts, but Powell has no fear of a partisan home crowd.
'We're used to big crowds,' she said.
'We've had that experience. The girls are resilient. They know that on their day they can score goals.
'On their day they can compete against the very best and on their day has got to be tomorrow.