Who’s excited for the 2019 Rugby World Cup then? With less than two months to go, rugby fans across the world will be dreaming of lifting the famous Webb Ellis Cup.
New Zealand are favourites but the chasing pack will be quietly confident of dethroning the All Blacks. With the 2019 tournament edging closer, we looked at nines of the greatest ever tries to whet your appetite.
So sit back, relax and enjoy the most spectacular tries in Rugby World Cup history!
John Kirwan (1987)
Kirwan scored the first try in Rugby World Cup history – and what a try it was. Some would even argue that it deserves to rank at the top of this list…
The All Blacks star picked up the ball just 10 metres from his own posts before embarking on a mazy sprint down the field. Italy tried to stop him but Kirwan was not for catching...
Jonah Lomu (1995)
The New Zealand legend scored what is arguably the best Rugby World Cup try of all-time in the 1995 World Cup semi-final win over England.
Lomu, a relatively unknown quantity back then, bulldozered Mike Catt to the ground before setting the All Blacks on their way with just two minutes on the clock and the rest is history.
Christophe Lamaison (1999)
France and New Zealand have enjoyed some tasty Rugby World Cup fixtures over the years, with both teams enjoying success. In 1999, it would be France who took an early lead…
Christophe Dominici was one of the best wingers in the business and his weaving run was enough to break up the All Blacks defence. Lamaison was the beneficiary, running in under the posts to give Les Bleus an advantage.
Stephen Jones (2003)
For a Welshman, there’s nothing better than scoring against England. And it was the turn of Jones to step up and put the English defence to the sword in 2003.
With the likes of Shane Williams and Gareth Thomas, Wales were the best counter-attacking team in the world. After an incredible break, Jones found himself in the right place to touch down for a famous try.
Kosuke Endo (2007)
Japan produced one of the greatest ever Rugby World Cup moments when beating South Africa in 2015 and they threatened to do the same to Wales back in 2007.
The rugby union minnows took a first-half lead in Cardiff, with flying winger Endo touching down for a spectacular score in the corner. The Principality Stadium stood as one to applaud a truly incredible piece of skill.
Yannick Jauzion (2007)
Jauzion was the try scorer but Frederic Michalak deserves plenty of plaudits for his presence of mind to create the game-winning chance.
With his first touch of the game, Michalak turned mid-tackle to offload the ball to Jauzion in support and he did the rest. That turned out to be the decisive score as France advanced to the semi-finals.
Vilimoni Delasau (2007)
Fiji have always been known for an enthusiastic approach and they were rewarded for their efforts in 2007, reaching the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals.
Without a doubt, Delasau’s try against Wales was a tournament highlight. Fiji’s quick hands created an opportunity for Delasau and he duly obliged, touching down between a pair of Welsh defenders.
Takudzwa Ngwenya (2007)
In 2007, Habana was widely regarded as the fastest rugby player on the planet. Step forward, Takudzwa Ngwenya to score one of the World Cup’s greatest tries.
The Springboks star was beaten for pace as Ngwenya cruised past him to finish off a terrific United States move. Although embarrassed, Habana went on to finish as the tournament’s top try scorer.
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
Alex is a sports betting tipster, specialising in Premier League football, the Champions League and horse racing.
He loves placing a weekly accumulator on the football at the weekend and dreams of landing the big winner that will take him back to Las Vegas.
As well as writing sports betting tips for 888sport since 2015, Alex has produced content for several international media companies, such as Goal.com and The SPORTBible.
As most summers seem to be, this one has been littered with transfer speculation and misleading rumours.
The talk of transfers always outweighs the actual action. Players do move eventually, but the number of deals that happen is seldom as high as the talk suggests. The transfer window has become its own area of entertainment for many...
The plane-tracking, rumour-craving part of football is as real as the matches themselves, with fans giddy with excitement about the potential arrival of a new star because of a liked tweet or a following spree on Instagram.
Luckily, it isn’t too long before actual real-life football is played again. The Premier League isn’t far off and some of the signings that actually happened will be making their debuts in mid-August as they look to impress a new expectant fan base.
Arsenal flirted with the idea of Crystal Palace winger for Wilfried Zaha. Instead, the Gunners moved for Lille winger Nicolas Pepe.
For a fee of around £80 million, Arsenal smashed their previous transfer record and have added yet more pace alongside star striking duo Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette.
Unai Emery still needs reinforcements elsewhere, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be excited about Pepe in the Premier League. Arsenal’s attack, with Mesut Ozil creating for the big two, was scary enough.
Adding Pepe, who produced 0.37 non-penalty expected goals per 90 last season, should take them to another level.
Expected to play out on the right flank, Newcastle’s defenders will be watching all the videos of Pepe they can find before the opening weekend of the season.
With an eye for goal, Pepe likes to cut inside, and don’t be surprised to see him given a lot of freedom to drift around the pitch from the right flank, potentially creating mismatches elsewhere on the pitch.
The excitement around Patrick Cutrone has waned over the last year or so.
He was the hot new Italian striking prospect after making his Milan debut back in 2017, but the continuous changes at the club saw him sold to Wolves for what looked like a bargain fee this summer.
Having played for Italy throughout the various youth levels, he made his full debut in 2018 but hasn’t followed that up with a second cap.
Limited to just 12 Serie A starts in 2018/19, this was a great buy-low opportunity for Wolves – they continue to be one of the shrewder teams in the transfer market.
His movement in the final third is superb, and with Wolves eyeing a Europa League run, there are plenty of minutes to go around.
While the 21-year-old may not start on opening day – Diogo Jota and Raul Jimenez will likely get the nod – he’s a great option off the bench for Nuno Espirito Santo, particularly if they are chasing a goal at the King Power.
Cutrone’s new side are 11/5 to win their first match of the season in 888sport’s football odds.
Tanguy Ndombele
Spurs’ need for a central midfielder has been alarmingly obvious for several seasons.
Getting to the Champions League final fortunately didn’t put Daniel Levy off throwing some money at Lyon to land box-to-box 22-year-old sensation Tanguy Ndombele.
Since Mousa Dembele’s decline and subsequent departure, Spurs’ midfield has been a mess. Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli have been forced to drop deeper, while Harry Winks’ injury issues have further complicated things for Mauricio Pochettino.
Ndombele doesn’t answer all those problems, but his ability to contribute all over the pitch will change the way this Tottenham side play.
Spurs host Aston Villa on the first Saturday of the Premier League campaign. The White Hart Lane faithful will be looking to their new man to take the game by the scruff of the neck, and no one would be surprised if he stole the show against the Villains.
Can Ndombele’s arrival push Spurs to the next level? They’re 18/1 in 888sport’s Premier League Odds to win the title…
Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Manchester United’s summer has been rumour central. Linked with new players every 24 seconds, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side are headline-makers even when there’s nothing happening.
Wan-Bissaka’s first challenge as Manchester United’s new right-back will be Chelsea at Old Trafford.
There’s no Eden Hazard to deal with fortunately for the former Palace man, but with Diogo Dalot impressing last season, he’s under pressure to get off to a good start at his new club.
One of the league leaders in tackles and interceptions last season, Wan-Bissaka’s defensive credentials are hard to challenge.
It will be fascinating to see how he does at the other end of the pitch, however, such are the different demands of playing for Palace and playing for Manchester United.
Moise Kean
Since selling Romelu Lukaku to Manchester United, Everton have been searching everywhere for a new centre forward.
Cenk Tosun didn’t pan out, Richarlison is better playing from the flank and Dominic Calvert-Lewin is limited. The signing of 19-year-old striker Moise Kean from Juventus is one of the most fascinating of the summer.
Kean scored six goals in just over 500 Serie A minutes last season, with a 0.65 non-penalty expected goals per 90. Still raw – as you’d expect for a teenager – Kean is far from the finished article, but his ceiling is as high as any young forward’s in the world.
He’s already appeared three times for Italy, and has a complete game, effective running in behind, holding the ball up or competing aerially.
The Toffees face a challenging trip to Crystal Palace to start the season. The blue half of Merseyside will be extremely excited to see Kean link up with Bernard and Richarlison.
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
Sam is a sports tipster, specialising in the Premier League and Champions League.
He covers most sports, including cricket and Formula One. Sam particularly enjoys those on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – notably MLB and NBA.
Watching, writing and talking about sports betting takes up most of his time, whether that is for a day out at T20 Finals Day or a long night of basketball.
Having been writing for several years, Sam has been working with 888Sport since 2016, contributing multiple articles per week to the blog.
With the closing of the transfer window looming ever-nearer former Arsenal defender Nigel Winterburn believes any hopes the Gunners have of attaining a Champions League spot this season depends on them securing a top quality centre-back.
“My worry is that if you look over the last couple of seasons the away form has been poor and the goals conceded has been 51 against both times in the league alone. That tells you that something isn’t working.
“The problem they have now is that Holding, Chambers, Papastathopoulos, Koscielny, Mustafi and Konstantinos are all centre-halves and that is making it difficult to bring in another one because the squad is top heavy with them.
"This makes it especially frustrating that we can’t find a partnership consistent enough to least propel us towards a top four position.
“My gut feeling is that we need to bring in another centre-half or these problems will only continue, those problems being an inability to keep clean sheets and seeing games out.”
What makes matters significantly worse of course is that the club’s captain and leader Laurent Koscielny is presently training with the kids after refusing to accompany the squad on a recent tour of the US.
Having skippered Arsenal many times over during his thirteen years at Highbury, Winterburn is both appalled and bemused at the stand-off that has only further complicated an already complicated summer for Unai Emery.
“I had a couple of run-ins with George Graham during his time there but I never, ever refused to play a game of football or refused to travel.
"He should have sought out a chat with the manager while they were away on tour and got that message back to the board as to why he was so unhappy with the situation.
“I think we’re all guessing why he was so upset. He may have thought there was a deal on the table and with the injuries he’s had maybe he feels like he’s put his body on the line for the club.
"Was there a free transfer in the offering? At the end of it all though you make yourself available to travel. You make yourself available to play. It’s such a shame that it looks like ending on a sour note for Koscielny and it really shouldn’t be like that.”
If the French stopper has dominated the headlines in recent weeks the story that everyone has been really talking about is Arsenal’s reported transfer budget of just £45m and this in a summer where Unai Emery was expected to rebuild the team to his own liking following Arsene Wenger’s long tenure.
With the club’s enviable financial resources and the Emirates Stadium built and paid for it was a restriction that immensely angered Gooners to the point of protest.
It came a somewhat of a surprise then when the news broke that Arsenal are closing in on a £72m deal for Lille’s lightning-quick winger Nicolas Pepe, with not only the price-tag raising eyebrows but the type of player they have decided to break the bank for. Winterburn however takes all this in his stride.
“We talk about limited transfer funds but we have to push that to the side because to then go out and spend £70m suggests there is no limited fund. I’m quite excited about the Pepe signing and I hope it goes through. It would be a disaster for the club if it didn’t.
"At the end of last season I was adamant that we needed a new centre-half; potentially a new midfield player and also a wide player as well with plenty of pace and ability to attack in the wide areas. We had a problem there and clearly Unai Emery believes that as well.
“He’s very direct, got good skill and seems difficult to knock off the ball. He seems willing to work back as well.
"I thought Arsenal’s approach work was too slow last season, particularly without Ramsey in the team, and he’s somebody who can move distances with the ball and be an exciting link-up with Lacazette and Aubameyang. I think that will be quite exciting for supporters.”
Pepe’s willingness to put in a defensive shift brings us naturally to a creative player who has regularly been criticised for not doing so, a failing that directly or otherwise led to a breakdown in trust between Mesut Ozil and his coach last term.
Can we expect a similar narrative to develop this time too or does Winterburn suspect the talented German may change his ways? The answer, the 55-year-old insists, lies in another new recruit.
“I love watching Ozil play when he’s at his very best but last season he wasn’t influential in the team and I’m not sure what was really going on.
"Was his mind not right? Was it the demands being put on him? Was it the new training regime? Did he not fit in to Unai Emery’s style?
“This season we will find out very quickly because Ceballos has come in who is a similar kind of player. So we will find out everything we need to know about Emery’s thinking within the first ten Premier League games.
"Whether Ozil can elevate this team to the next level or if Emery is not happy with his contribution. “
With the ink dry on Ceballos’ signature and Pepe expected to join very soon the final piece of business from the North London giants this window could well be the purchasing of Celtic’s Kieran Tierney and it would be remiss not to ask one of the finest exponents of left-backing his take on the potential signing.
Clearly, the two-time league champion would approve of any deal made.
“I think most full-backs now are strong on the ball and good athletes and are used to get forward. They’re used differently to when I played. Now they’re high and wide and in attacking areas earlier. Tierney fits that bill.”
This leaves us only with the coach himself who, after a year in the capital, remains something of an enigmatic quantity. Winterburn believes all will become apparent in the not-too-distant future.
“The problem is that we still don’t exactly know how Emery wants to play.
"That’s because he inherited a large group of players and it’s fine to have a process in mind and put that in action but if you then realise you don’t have the right players to play that way you have to adapt.
“That’s why this season will be very, very interesting – and particularly if we can sign a couple more players – because then we’ll get to see how Unai Emery wants to play and then make a proper judgement.”
England’s Ashes history is pretty up and down. Dominating through the late 1800s, the series became more competitive around the turn of the century, building to a period of Australian dominance through the 1930s, 40s and 50s.
England fought back in the mid-50s, only for Australia to hold the urn from 1959 through to 1971, when England won down under.
The 1970s and 1980s were mainly England’s, and included some of the best Test series between the two teams. The 1990s were all Australia, though, until that 2005 series.
Since then, it’s been all about home advantage. Australia haven’t won the Ashes in England since 2001, and England have been whitewashed twice in Australia since the beginning of the millennium.
For all the drama and heartbreak, there have been some magnificent Ashes moments for England down the years, here are some of the best…
Headingley Test (1981)
England were 1-0 down in the Ashes as the series headed to Headingley for the third Test. Having captained the first two matches, Ian Botham was replaced by Mike Brearley as skipper for the third match of the series.
Australia declared with 401 on the board in the first innings and quickly bowled England out for 174. The hosts were looking down the barrel. Defeat meant they could, at best, draw the series.
Botham provided resistance with a first innings 50. When England were following on, he strode to the wicket with that unmistakable purpose at 105/5. England needed a miracle.
What followed was the most remarkable counter-attack in Test match history. Botham crushed the ball around the ground as he made 149 not out, setting Australia 130 to win.
The tourists were still big favourites, but England’s all-rounder had given them a chance – a sniff of the most unlikely of Ashes victories.
If Botham was inspired with the bat, Bob Willis was possessed with the ball. Steaming in with his trademark snarl, Willis took 8/43 to bowl Australia out for 111 and level the series.
Harmison At Edgbaston (2005)
We were never going to get through this list without mentioning the greatest ever cricket match. After England raced to over 400 on the first day, and had a 99-run first innings lead, the Test was well and truly in their hands.
As they looked to bat Australia out of the match, though, Shane Warne and Brett Lee got England into trouble. A half-injured Andrew Flintoff battled England to 182 all out. Australia needed 282 to win.
Flintoff starred with the ball as he had with the bat. Dismissing Justin Langer and Ricky Ponting in one of the most unplayable overs in recent Test history, England were on course for victory.
Steve Harmison later bowled Michael Clarke with a filthy slower ball to make victory a formality as the match headed into day four.
Warne and Lee batted well together in the morning, chipping away at the 100 or so runs required. Warne stepped on his stumps after a delivery from Flintoff, bringing Michael Kasprowicz to the wicket with 62 to win.
It was meant to be easy from there. Instead, Lee and Kasprowicz fought their way to within touching distance despite a barrage from England.
With four to win, Harmison attemped a Yorker that became a full toss. Lee smacked it to the cover boundary – fortunately England had a fielder to keep it to one.
Kasprowicz was on strike. He defends one from Harmison. The next is a nasty bouncer, right at his ribs. The Australian number 11 fends it off, and it scrapes his glove on the way through.
Geraint Jones dives to his left to make an outstanding tumbling catch. England appeal. Billy Bowden raises a bent finger – England win by two runs, making it 1-1 in the series.
The match made the team, and the fans, believe that England can beat Australia and changed the course of cricket in this country.
Pietersen Saves The Ashes (2005)
Having two moments from the same series may seem like overkill, but if any Test series warrants it, it’s the 2005 Ashes. Needing just a draw at the Oval, England batted first hoping to kill the game.
Not making it to 400, though, gave Australia a chance. The tourists passed England’s score. Some well-timed, late-summertime dodgy English weather helped the hosts out, taking time out of the match.
England started day five at 38/1. They needed to bat sensibly and avoid collapse and the urn was theirs.
Glenn McGrath wasn’t keen on that idea – he dismissed Michael Vaughan and Ian Bell in consecutive balls to bring Kevin Pietersen, sporting a blonde-streak through his hair, to the wicket.
Pietersen survived early scares. Wickets fell around him. It became apparent England needed something special from their new man. Pietersen delivered.
Batting out the day wasn’t on Pietersen’s mind. He played a fearless – some would say reckless – innings, taking Warne, Lee and McGrath all around the ground. Maiden Test centuries do not come better than that.
Pietersen’s 158 included seven sixes (some of which were enormous), and secured England their first Ashes series victory since 1986/87.
As is tradition, the Oval is one of the 2019 Ashes Test venues – will we see anything like Pietersen’s knock?
Australia Skittled On Boxing Day (2010)
The Ashes was beautifully poised at 1-1 as the teams arrived at the MCG for the Boxing Day Test in 2010/11. With only one match to play, victory for England would see them retain the Ashes.
Andrew Strauss won the toss, which proved rather important. Strauss opted to have a bowl while many fans in England were just finishing off their Christmas Day celebrations.
Chris Tremlett got the tourists off to a flyer, getting Shane Watson in the fourth over. Tim Bresnan came on first change and got Phillip Hughes caught by Kevin Pietersen.
The big wicket was next: Tremlett nicked Australian captain Ricky Ponting off, with Graeme Swann claiming the catch in the slips. Australia were 37/3.
Michaels Clarke and Hussey put up some resistance. An 11-over, 21-run partnership was a wild success compared to their teammates.
Then James Anderson, who had faced criticism for his performances outside of England, got Clarke, Hussey and Steve Smith in quick succession. Clarke walked back to the pavilion with Australia 77/6. They were soon 77/8 and bowled out for 98.
By the end of day one, England already had a 59-run lead. They won the Test by an innings and 157 runs. Their Boxing Day performance provided the greatest Christmas present of all: The Ashes.
Broad At Trent Bridge (2015)
England were 2-1 up in the Ashes when they arrived at Trent Bridge. With no Anderson, however, the series felt very much in the balance.
When Andrew Strauss won the toss at Trent Bridge, it wasn’t a clear bat or bowl first kind of day. Stuart Broad wasn’t sure what was best – and all eyes were on him to deliver in Anderson’s absence.
The narrative was set for something out of this world. Broad was on 299 Test wickets. He got number 300 with the third ball of the match, getting Chris Rogers for a duck (his first in Test cricket).
Three balls later, Steve Smith was gone. Two balls after that, Mark Wood got David Warner. Then Broad got Shaun Marsh, Adam Voges (thanks to a ridiculous Ben Stokes catch) and Michael Clarke.
Steven Finn bowled Peter Nevill and Broad cleaned up the tail as the tourists were dismissed for 60. Broad finished with 8/15, the third-cheapest eight-fer ever, and his five wickets in 19 balls was the quickest five-wicket haul at the start of a Test ever.
England finished day one at 274/4 with the Test as good as over. England needed just two more days to win the match by an innings and regain the Ashes.
If you’re considering betting on the 2019 Ashes, Broad is a name to look out for once again – he loves the big stage.
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
Sam is a sports tipster, specialising in the Premier League and Champions League.
He covers most sports, including cricket and Formula One. Sam particularly enjoys those on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – notably MLB and NBA.
Watching, writing and talking about sports betting takes up most of his time, whether that is for a day out at T20 Finals Day or a long night of basketball.
Having been writing for several years, Sam has been working with 888Sport since 2016, contributing multiple articles per week to the blog.
The 2019 Ashes get underway on 1st August as England look to regain the urn after a difficult series down under a couple of years ago.
Australia, with the controversial trio of Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft back in the squad, are looking to win their first away Ashes series since 2001.
England come into the series off the back of a dramatic Test match win against Ireland.
After two batting collapses, Joe Root’s side snatched victory from the jaws of defeat thanks to a brilliant new ball spell from Chris Woakes and Stuart Broad as they dismissed Ireland for 38.
Consistency has been an issue for the Test side – it will be interesting to see how they adapt to the red-ball format after an intense World Cup. England are priced at 9/10 to regain the Ashes in 888sport’s cricket betting.
Without further ado, let's look at the five Ashes venues, starting with Edgbaston.
Edgbaston
Home to perhaps the best cricket match ever, Edgbaston and the Ashes brings up memories of that astonishing 2005 Test match. A match half as good as that and this summer’s series will be off to a thrilling start.
Of the 14 Ashes Test matches played at Edgbaston, Australia have won just three. The most recent was an innings drubbing back in 2001, a series which the tourists completely dominated.
The next tour saw that dramatic two-run victory for the hosts. England won convincingly in 2015 as James Anderson skittled the Australians in the first innings of the match.
The Edgbaston pitch will give the bowlers more than a chance. The weather forecast doesn’t look great, meaning lateral movement in the air is probable, and spinners got plenty of assistance during the World Cup.
England are Evens in the Ashes 2019 odds to win the first Test. Getting off to a good start is crucial – it may well come down to which bowlers make best use of the conditions.
Lord's
Of Lord’s 138 Test matches, which includes England’s recent victory over Ireland, 38 have been Ashes Test matches. The Home of Cricket has been Australia’s favourite English venue over the years, with the tourists winning 16 Tests of the 37 played.
From 1934 to 2009, England failed to win a single Ashes Test against the old enemy at the most famous cricket ground in the world.
Victory also followed for England in 2013, but they suffered a humiliating defeat in 2015 after Chris Rogers and Steve Smith scored 173 and 215 respectively.
While Anderson’s fitness remains a doubt for the first Test, the veteran opening bowler is expected to be back in time for Lord’s. His return will be significant, particularly if Australia manage to win in Edgbaston.
History doesn’t necessarily count for too much in a series like this, but touring sides often find another level when they walk through the Long Room.
Headingley
Like Lord’s, Headingley has plenty of happy memories for Australian cricket.
The 2005 series didn’t venture to Yorkshire’s home ground, and while they lost after a brilliant Mark Butcher century in 2001, three of their last four Ashes matches at the ground have ended in an innings victory.
With the conditions and wicket traditionally favouring seam and swing bowlers, both teams will fancy their chances of taking 20 wickets cheaply in this series.
Australia did just that in 2009, dismissing England for 102 and 263 to win emphatically as Ben Hilfenhaus, Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle and Stuart Clark dominated with the ball. This Australian attack is a lot more dangerous than that one.
England’s fortunes at Headingley have been mixed in recent years. The Joe Root-led side haven’t played their that much, however, and the England skipper will be happy to return to his home ground alongside his Yorkshire teammate Jonny Bairstow.
Old Trafford
Ashes history at Old Trafford is dominated by draws. England haven’t beaten the old enemy at the ground since the famous 1981 series, but only two Ashes Tests have been played there since 1997 and both ended in draws.
England were a few deliveries from victory in 2005, while Australia were in control in 2013 but rain forced it to a draw.
This will be England’s first Test at Old Trafford since 2017. The England side will be delighted to be returning to Lancashire’s new-look venue, having not lost a Test there since 2001, winning nine of the 11 matches played.
Many of those victories have been convincing ones, too. Depending on how you think this series will play out, Old Trafford may well be the decisive Test match.
England need to win the series to regain the urn – if Australia head to Old Trafford with a series lead, they can secure the Ashes by drawing this Test.
The Oval
Our 2019 Ashes preview mentions that this may well be a bowlers’ series. Both teams have exceptional fast bowling attacks, but their batting line-ups are vulnerable.
The Oval will be the opportunity for the batsmen to get their own back after what could be a ball-dominated first four Tests.
Traditionally at least, the Oval is the most batting friendly pitch in this series. If either side head to south London needing a draw, they will be extremely confident.
Often a dead rubber, the Oval Test has been pretty evenly split between the two teams over the years. It was home to a dramatic finish in 2013, and Kevin Pietersen’s majestic Day Five knock in 2005.
The nature of the fifth Test match makes it unpredictable, with teams having to play in different manners depending on the situation.
England beat South Africa at the Oval in 2017 and defeated India in 2018. Both of those victories will give them confidence, but will that count for anything with the Ashes on the line?
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
Sam is a sports tipster, specialising in the Premier League and Champions League.
He covers most sports, including cricket and Formula One. Sam particularly enjoys those on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – notably MLB and NBA.
Watching, writing and talking about sports betting takes up most of his time, whether that is for a day out at T20 Finals Day or a long night of basketball.
Having been writing for several years, Sam has been working with 888Sport since 2016, contributing multiple articles per week to the blog.
Goodwood Racecourse this week will host five days of thrilling equine action set against the backdrop of the beautiful Sussex countryside.
The Qatar Goodwood Festival – still popularly referred to as “Glorious Goodwood” – is one of the highlights of the flat-racing season.
It is a spectacle that has to be experienced. Fashion, combined with some of the greatest races in the world, go towards creating a great summer carnival. Here is a guide to each day of the Glorious Goodwood Festival 2019:
Tuesday (July 30th)
The Tuesday highlight is Goodwood’s newest Group One, the Goodwood Cup worth £500,000.
A rematch betweenStradivarius (John Gosden) and Dee Ex Bee (Mark Johnston) will light the touch-paper and provide all the fireworks the fans want on day one of the Festival.
A length separated the pair last time out in the Gold Cup over two and a half miles at Royal Ascot, with Stradivarius just doing enough to thwart the Johnston runner.
Stradivarius is seeking a record-equalling third success in the Qatar Goodwood Cup following victories in 2017 and 2018.
The five-year-old is now unbeaten in his last seven starts and is still on target for the Stayers’ Million, with its £1-million bonus, for the second year running.
Also run on the opening day of the Festival is the Lennox Stakes.
There are currently 17 horses declared, including Zaaki (Sir Michael Stoute) who was supplemented last week for £15,000 following his nose second in the Summer Mile at Ascot on July 13th. The four-year-old has been installed as the favourite.
Last year’s French 2,000 Guineas runner-up Hey Gaman (James Tate) finished second in the Minstrel Stakes over seven furlongs at the Curragh last time.
That performance came on the back of wins in the King Charles II Stakes at Leicester and the Prix du Palais-Royal at Longchamp.
This mile-long Group One race has previously been won by the world famous Frankel, the popular French grey Solow and in 2018, by Lightning Spear.
Circus Maximus (Aidan O’Brien) was supplemented for the Qatar Sussex Stakes at a cost of £70,000 last week, which has boosted the overall prize money for the race now to £1,059,250.
The three-year-old began this season by racing over further, including when sixth in the Derby, but relished dropping down to a mile when landing the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Lord Glitters was a closing third in this last year when given too much to do and must have a great chance of following up on his Queen Anne Stakes victory at the Royal meeting.
Thursday (August 1st)
The prestigious Group One Qatar Nassau Stakes is the highlight of the eight-race card on Thursday, worth £600,000. Previous winners include Ouija Board, Midday and Minding.
Unsurprisingly Aidan O’Brien is responsible for five of the 13 fillies and mares currently entered for the race.
Having saddled four previous winners of the Group One contest in Peeping Fawn (2007), Halfway To Heaven (2008), Minding (2016) and Winter (2017), the Ballydoyle genius seems intent on adding another Nassau to his tally.
O’Brien’s main hope appears to be dual 1000 Guineas heroine Hermosa.
The daughter of Galileo She finished runner-up to the French-trained Watch Me in the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot last month, and will be stepping up to a mile and a quarter for the first time this week.
John Gosden could saddle Mehdaayihand Terebellum, while Sir Michael Stoute is likely to challenge them all with Sun Maiden and Rawdaa.
Francis-Henri Graffard’s French Oaks heroine Channel and Mitsuru Hashida’s Japanese raider Deirdreadd a truly international aspect to the race.
Friday (August 2nd)
The sight of a packed field of horses hurtling at speeds of over 40mph past the Goodwood grandstands makes the £300,000 Group Two Qatar King George Stakes one of the highlights of the entire week.
With three further Group races being held on the same afternoon, the Friday of the Qatar Goodwood Festival has to be one of the most enthralling day's racing in the entire calendar.
Battaash is again due to contest the five-furlong King George Stakes, a race he won in 2017 and 2018.
Battaash’s victory in 2017 resulted in him being named as the best five-furlong performer anywhere in the world that year in the Longines Rankings, while last year he set a new track record for five furlongs at Goodwood of 56.50s.
If he wins it in 2019, Battaash will become the first three-time winner of the King George Stakes.
Battaash’s possible opponents include the in-form El Astronaute and the Aidan O’Brien-trained Sergei Prokofiev.
Joining the field late for Friday's Group Two feature is Henry Candy's supplemented mare Rebecca Rocks, a Listed winner at Ayr last month.
Also taking place on Friday afternoon is the ultra-competitive Golden Mile.
The William Haggas-trained Seniority is attempting to claim back-to-back wins in the Golden Mile for Her Majesty The Queen, who owns the horse. The son of Dubawi has hinted that a return to form is on the cards in two recent starts since returning to Britain.
Saturday (August 3rd)
The Qatar Stewards’ Cup takes centre stage for the final day of the Qatar Goodwood Festival.
This historic race provides racegoers with the opportunity to witness 28 of the finest equine speedsters dashing down the Goodwood home straight in an attempt to claim the £250,000 prize. Previous winners of this famous sprint include Soba, Loch Song and Hoof It.
The six-furlong Stewards' Cup is one of the hardest sprint handicaps to win and trainer Declan Carroll came agonisingly close to landing it last season with Justanotherbottle.
Beaten by just a short-head last summer, Carroll's charge is rated 4lb lower than he was for the 2018 renewal, and has been allotted 8st 11lb for it this year.
The lightly raced five-year-old must be in with another good chance this time around and has been popular in the horse racing betting.
The best of luck with all your “Glorious Goodwood” gambles this week.
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
Steven is a sports and horse racing enthusiast and is a member of the Horseracing Writers and Photographers Association (HWPA) in the United Kingdom.
He is a regular visitor to Paris Longchamp for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and a lifelong fan of the Aintree Grand National, a subject he writes about 52 weeks of the year. Last year he reached the impressive milestone of attending the last 30 renewals of the Grand National.
Steven graduated from the University Of Lancaster in 1996 with a B.A (Hons) in Urban Policy & Race Relations (major) with Contemporary Religions & Belief Systems (minor) and still wonders if any of these help him find the winners?
He writes for a number of websites and online publications and you can sometimes hear him at the weekend discussing racing on a number of local radio stations.
Throughout a 16-year career that took in 526 professional games and nine clubs Darren Huckerby befuddled defenders and got supporters off their seats.
With a playing style that was one part modern footballer, another part a throwback to the days when attackers twisted opponents in knots for the sheer heck of it the Nottingham-born talent was a fan favourite wherever he played, an achievement that clearly means a lot to him.
As he told 888Sport: “Whoever I played for, the fans keep me in high regard and as a player that’s all you can really ask for. Because that’s what you’re there for: to make the fans happier; to entertain.”
Here the former striker looks back on his life in the game and the clubs that formed him, starting with a city presently brought to its knees by a deeply unpopular owner.
Toon Turmoil
The mood around Newcastle could not contrast more sharply to Huckerby’s brief time there in the mid-nineties. Then a Keegan-led revolution was underway, with audacious football on tap and a fan-base loving every minute of it.
Now due to chronic under-investment St James’ Park is in the doldrums, with much of the blame aimed at the club’s divisive owner Mike Ashley. Huckerby’s thoughts lie squarely with the public.
“Newcastle fans just want something to believe in. They might win a few games and things might look rosy but after a couple of defeats all attention will be on the owner again.
"It’s difficult times and I don’t know how they’re going to push through this, not with Ashley still in charge. I don’t know how they’re going to turn things around. It seems like it’s getting worse and worse.”
Yet one reason to be cheerful can be found in this week’s £40m purchase of forward Joelinton from Hoffenheim, a rare example of expenditure from a board not exactly known for its free-spending.
Following the recent departure of Rafa Benitez however it is a signing viewed only with suspicion.
“You wonder why this money wasn’t spent three years ago when they had Rafa and things were on the up.
"If you want to give one of the best managers in the Premier League something to work with then you do it three years ago. It seems like they’re doing it now to get the fans back onside.”
With Ferdinand, Shearer, Beardsley, Asprilla and Kitson all ahead of him in the pecking order it’s perhaps little surprise that the teenage Huckerby struggled to make any impact in the north-east during his spell there. Even so, his memories are only fond ones.
“It was amazing. I’d signed from the bottom club in the third division straight to the top of the Premier League and fighting with Man United.
"The vibe around the city was incredible and two or three thousand people used to turn up to training. That was more than we used to get at Lincoln watching first team football. It was a big culture shock for me.”
Blue Moon Rising
Undoubtedly the highlight of Huckerby’s three years spent at Manchester City was the 2001/02 campaign that saw the Blues promoted back into the big time as champions.
Here he was once again reunited with Kevin Keegan and it will come as a shock to precisely no-one to learn that the football served up was expressive and attack-at-all-costs. For a player of Huckerby’s attributes it was manna from heaven.
“It was 100% enjoyable. Look at the attacking players we had. I remember first seeing Benarbia: I thought he was a taxi driver who had turned up to training.
"Then I saw him with a ball and thought ‘wow, this guy can play’. If he’d come over at his peak he would have been an absolute superstar, up there with Zola. That’s how good he was.”
“We had Berkovic, Shaun Wright-Phillips and the Goat and once we got going we just blew the Championship away. It was an actual joy and even with all the great things the club has gone on to achieve the fans still love that season. It was pure entertainment.”
Having secured top flight status City went out and bought Nicolas Anelka and Jon Macken to further strengthen their forward ranks and if this shows ambition by the Blues it additionally broke up a formidable goal-scoring partnership.
“What disappointed me is that there are not many Championship teams who have two strikers who score 70 goals between them. Then we didn’t play together once when we went up.
"Obviously the club wants to progress and don’t get me wrong Anelka was a brilliant player who proved that at every club he played for.
"But after scoring 70 goals between us you do think ‘I deserve the right to have a go in the Premier League’. Yet me and Goats didn’t play one game together.”
Canaries Flying High
So it was off to Norwich and it was here in East Anglia that Huckerby experienced possibly his purpliest of patches, immediately establishing himself as a terrace idol while finding a consistency that had thus far eluded him.
“(At Norwich) I changed my role a bit up front. I played left of a three and I was very, very consistent in my game for five years. A big part of that too was how the fans were with me.
"The Norwich fans loved me and appreciated what I did and took to me straight away. If you’ve got twenty thousand fans week in, week out urging you to do well that’s a big thing.”
Such was his devastating form that the traditionally bigger clubs inevitably took note. Interest from Liverpool was rebuffed by the player while Celtic were politely declined too, leading to their manager taking serious umbrage.
“Gordon Strachan was the manager and he wouldn’t talk to me for about three years after I said no. He was saying ‘You want to stay at Norwich and not play Champions League football?’”
Switching to the present-day, Huckerby still resides in Norfolk so he has witnessed close-at-hand the impressive work undertaken at Carrow Road that has resulted in an unexpected promotion and return to the Premier League.
“The last season was amazing, it really was. It’s not just what is happening on the pitch: they have revamped the old training ground; they have brought the community together.
"They’ve made a conscious effect to bring the fans back and Daniel Farke has done an amazing job bringing two or three excellent young players through. Plus he’s bought a few very good players on the cheap too.”
“I think Pukki will do well and wait until the Premier League sees Buendia.”
Surreal Era At Leeds
Before Manchester City and Norwich there was Leeds, and a £6m move to a club with genuine title-winning aspirations while huge debt amassed behind the scenes.
It was the strangest of times for the Elland Road outfit, not least for Huckerby who had so recently ripped the league apart with Coventry. Now he found himself demoted to the role of bench-warmer to obvious frustration that persists to this day.
“I didn’t play enough games to show people what I was about. I do believe that I was bought as an impact sub which wasn’t great for me to be honest because it’s hard to just come on for the last twenty minutes. I always felt like a bit-part player at Leeds.”
The 43-year-old’s take on what ultimately led to the club’s downfall is both revealing and damning.
“I believe the reason why it all went pear-shaped was because the club kept buying player after player that they didn’t really need. If you just keep buying players for the sake of it…you could see what was going to happen.
"It seemed like they were trying to buy every good young player in the country and hope for the best. You can’t do that and in the end it financially crippled the club.”
Crisis At Coventry
If the situation at Newcastle is thoroughly dispiriting courtesy of an apathetic owner that is nothing to the dire circumstances in the Midlands that has spiralled a club that once thrived down through the divisions and without a ground to call a home.
At Coventry, Huckerby was a prodigal son, scoring dramatic late winners against Manchester United and linking up with Dion Dublin to forge one of the most famous double-acts in modern times.
Now, due to the toxic decision-making of their hedge-fund owners SISU the club face a season ground-sharing at their neighbour’s Birmingham with little hope in sight.
“None of the Coventry fans want to be at Birmingham, not when they have their own thirty-thousand seater stadium sitting there doing nothing. The problem is that every game is an away game for them and that’s not giving yourself much of a chance.”
“It’s bordering on the ridiculous actually that it’s been allowed to get to this stage. Those that are in charge should hang their heads in shame because it’s only the fans that suffer. It’s not the players because the players come and go.
"It’s not the management because the management come and go. The owners come and go. But the fans who are there week in and week out, who have seen the good times and the bad times, they’re the ones who are going to suffer.”
There are a lot of massive rivalries in British football.
Whether based on geography, history or recent battles, books can be written – and I’m sure have been – on the construction of these aggressive clashes.
Plenty of fan bases will claim their rivalry as the fiercest. There’s obviously no metric for this, and it’s almost entirely subjective, but the debate rages on about the ‘biggest’ derbies in British football.
It’s a competitive field too, with potential winners of the ‘biggest derby’ title all across the nation. In this article, we’ve taken a look at the five greatest rivalries in British football…
Manchester Derby
Manchester City’s enormous investment breathed new life into the Manchester rivalry and gave a fresh significance to their derby matches.
The two teams duelled for titles in Alex Ferguson’s final seasons, with City famously snatching the trophy from United’s grasp in the final seconds of the 2011/12 campaign thanks to Edin Dzeko, Mario Balotelli and Sergio Aguero.
After decades of United superiority, it has been turned on its head in the post-Ferguson years.
Dysfunction at Old Trafford and continued improvement in the blue half of Manchester has seen City become the new force in English football, beating all before them in the same manner that Ferguson’s sides did for so many years.
The derbies have been a bit of a mixed bag in recent seasons. We’ve seen some drama, but there have been a fair few drab encounters too.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is under pressure to deliver as Manchester United manager, and that’s exaggerated by how far behind City they are. Solskjaer needs to close that gap to revitalise the Manchester rivalry once again.
Manchester United are outsiders to be the best northwest club in 888sport’s Premier League odds.
Old Firm Derby
The Old Firm rivalry between Celtic and Rangers means so much more than football. It has wider societal meaning unlike the vast majority in England.
While Scottish football has been in the shadows over the past few decades, the Old Firm Derby attracts worldwide attention in a way that few other matches can compare to.
Rangers’ 2012 demise raised questions about the Old Firm’s legitimacy, and for the first time in 120 years saw a season played without a clash between the Scotland’s two most famous clubs.
The rivalry has since been resumed, however, with Rangers still looking to end Celtic’s astonishing run of consecutives league titles. Celtic’s recent domination of the Scottish top flight has put them to within just four titles of Rangers all-time on 50.
Merseyside Derby
The Merseyside derby is the longest-running top-flight derby in English football, having been played every season since 1962/63. This one is all about the geography, with Anfield and Goodison Park barely a stones throw apart.
Once considered a friendlier derby, with a pride in Merseyside uniting the two fan bases, the rivalry has altered drastically through the 1990s and into this century.
It has seen more Premier League red cards than any other fixture and the atmosphere at Anfield or Goodison on derby afternoon is certainly not friendly, it’s become a hostile occasion with tackles flying in from all angles.
Liverpool will win the Premier League title at some point (maybe in 2019/20?), and it’s unlikely to be met with rapturous applause at Goodison.
As they chase that first Premier League title, the Merseyside derby is a problem fixture.
Dropping points is a crisis as they pursue Manchester City, and clashes with Everton are a banana skin (particularly if Jordan Pickford doesn’t drop the ball to Divock Origi).
Tyne-Wear Derby
The Tyne-Wear derby has taken a hit over the last decade or so with Newcastle and Sunderland both yo-yoing.
Barring a fortuitous cup draw, there will be no clash between the two northeast giants in 2019/20. The two sides haven’t faced each other since a 1-1 draw in March 2016.
The rivalry between Newcastle and Sunderland isn’t limited to football. Split by just 12 miles, it actually started in the English Civil War, but instead of Royalists and Parliamentarians, it now manifests itself at St James’ Park or the Stadium of Light.
Both fan bases create an atmosphere at the best of times. It gets cranked up to a new level for the derby matches, however.
That has a direct impact on the football on the pitch, with the opening minutes of Tyne-Wear derbies often played at a rapid pace with the ball bouncing around like crazy.
The rivalry has been home to some famous moments in the Premier League era, none more so than when Ruud Gullit benched Alan Shearer, who was named in our greatest Premier League XI of all-time, and Newcastle lost the match 2-1.
Gullit resigned before the next match after fury from the Newcastle fans.
North London Derby
Due to the standard of the two teams in recent seasons, the north London derby is one of the biggest in the world.
It all began in 1913 when Arsenal moved from Kent to north London, putting them just a few miles away from Tottenham. Since their first match in the Football League, the derby has taken place 185 times with Arsenal winning 77 to Tottenham’s 58.
Not many players have crossed the divide in the last century, but a few have in the Premier League era.
Sol Campbell departing Spurs for Arsenal is obviously the most well known, while David Bentley, William Gallas and Emmanuel Adebayor went the other way. It’s hard to see Harry Kane switching the new Spurs stadium for the Emirates, though.
Like its Manchester counterpart, the north London rivalry has altered over the last few years. Arsenal’s St Totteringham’s Day is no more and Spurs are clearly the better team after season upon season in the shadows of their nearby rivals.
*Credit for the main photo belongs to Scott Heppell / AP Photo*
Sam is a sports tipster, specialising in the Premier League and Champions League.
He covers most sports, including cricket and Formula One. Sam particularly enjoys those on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – notably MLB and NBA.
Watching, writing and talking about sports betting takes up most of his time, whether that is for a day out at T20 Finals Day or a long night of basketball.
Having been writing for several years, Sam has been working with 888Sport since 2016, contributing multiple articles per week to the blog.
It’s been hailed this week as an “English version of the Arc” and it is easy to see why that opinion has been formed given the stellar cast.
The £1,250,000 showpiece, run over a mile and a half and forming part of the British Champions Series, has attracted a quality field including the two-time Arc winner Enable; Anthony Van Dyck, the Derby victor; the current highest-rated horse in the world, Crystal Ocean; plus Defoe, the Coronation Cup winner. Not to mention Group One winners from France and Japan.
This race was first held in 1951 and was won by Supreme Court. The 1975 renewal featured Grundy and Bustino. These two top-class thoroughbreds fought out such a titanic finish that the race is regarded by many as one of the best in the history of the sport.
The conditions of the race are very interesting. Three year-olds carry eight stones and nine pounds, while older horses are allotted nine stones and seven pounds.
Fillies and mares receive a three pound allowance, while four pounds is deducted from any four year-old runner who ventures here from the southern hemisphere.
Trends & Statistics:
Age: 6 of the last 10 winners were aged 4.
Price: 3 of the last 10 winners were favourites, 6/10 came from the top 3 in the betting.
Last Run: 8/10 winners won on their last run before the King George, 10/10 winners had their last run within the last 50 days.
Ascot: 6/10 winners either ran in the Prince Of Wales’ Stakes or the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot on their last run.
Rating: 8/10 Winners had a rating of 118 or higher.
Trainer Statistics:
Sir Michael Stoute has been successful in 1981, 1983, 2002, 2009, 2010 & 2018.
Aidan O’Brien has registered winners in 2001, 2007, 2008 & 2016.
Runner-By-Runner Guide:
Cheval Grand
Trained by Yasuo Tomomichi and won Japan’s top mile-and-a-half race, the Japan Cup in 2017. Even though he was beaten 5½ lengths in last year’s race by Almond Eye, in his 29 starts he has consistently made the frame.
His only run this year was in Dubai in the Sheema Classic, when he stayed on well to finish second to Old Persian but this is a completely new ball game.
Crystal Ocean
Crystal Ocean is of the best middle-distance colts in training and holds high-class form between 1m2f and 1m6f.
Now a five-year-old he gained a well deserved first Group One win when landing the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot.
In rain softened ground he kept on stoutly to beat Magical by one and a quarter lengths, with Waldgeist another three and a quarter lengths back in third.
Defoe
Roger Varian has been thrilled with the Coronation Cup winner’s preparation since his Royal Ascot success in the Hardwicke Stakes.
Defoe also won the won Coronation Cup at Epsom by ½ length from Kew Gardens but is rated (119) inferior to the likes of Crystal Ocean (127), Enable (125) and Waldgeist (122).
Hunting Horn
Will probably be deploayed to ensure a good gallop for O’Brien’s main contender, Anthony Van Dyck in this. It is highly unlikely he will be causing any kind of Sovereign type upset here.
Morando
Winner of theOrmonde Stakes at Chester in May but was well beaten by Defoe in the Coronation Stakes and again by the same foe in the Hardwicke Stakes.
It will come as a major surprise if he can turn that form around. Only a major downpour can aid his cause.
Salouen
Trainer Sylvester Kirk is another that will be doing a rain dance for his contender here.
A winner over the course and distance in the Buckhounds Stakes in May, the five-year-old has since come third in the Coronation Cup at Epsom and was down the field in the Hardwicke Stakes.
He is a very game horse but a very ground dependent one.
Waldgeist
Improving with age and was a smart winner of the Prix Ganay in April.
Ran a fair enough third in the Prince Of Wales's here last time and the drier conditions, plus a step up in trip, should be right up his street.
Finished just a length and a quarter behind Enable when fourth in last year's Arc, so is obviously no back number.
Enable
A victory for Enable on Saturday will also be her 11th successive win under Frankie Dettori, a record which dates back to their Cheshire Oaks triumph back in 2017. If she collects the first prize she will have won this prestigious contest twice after scoring previously in 2017.
The dual Arc winner is a strong favourite to secure victory following on from her impressive win in the Eclipse at Sandown Park at the beginning of the month.
Enable registered her eighth Group One win when overcoming Magical on her seasonal return in the Eclipse and will obviously be a tough nut to crack.
Magic Wand
Looks a big price at around 66/1 given that she is likely to have her optimum conditions on Saturday and she could easily outrun her odds.
She won the Ribblesdale last summer before running a couple of decent races at Longchamp, and then she was whisked off for races in the USA and Meydan.
Anthony Van Dyck
Anthony Van Dyck will be receiving 8lb from odds-favourite Enable and will be hoping to emulate his father Galileo in lifting this esteemed prize.
No Derby winner has run in the King George as a three-year-old since Workforce was a beaten favourite in 2010 but his trainer Aidan O’Brien is confident his last run in the Irish Derby was just a blip.
Norway
Finished 8½ lengths third to Sovereign in Irish Derby at the Curragh last time but he is sure to be used as pacemaker in this contest. It’s pretty easy to look elsewhere to find the winner.
Conclusion: Who Wins?
One again it is very difficult to get away from the solid chances of Enable in this race. Her 2019 path has been plotted and this should be yet another successful step along it.
Steven is a sports and horse racing enthusiast and is a member of the Horseracing Writers and Photographers Association (HWPA) in the United Kingdom.
He is a regular visitor to Paris Longchamp for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and a lifelong fan of the Aintree Grand National, a subject he writes about 52 weeks of the year. Last year he reached the impressive milestone of attending the last 30 renewals of the Grand National.
Steven graduated from the University Of Lancaster in 1996 with a B.A (Hons) in Urban Policy & Race Relations (major) with Contemporary Religions & Belief Systems (minor) and still wonders if any of these help him find the winners?
He writes for a number of websites and online publications and you can sometimes hear him at the weekend discussing racing on a number of local radio stations.
Compiling a list of the best cricket matches of all-time isn’t easy. Over the sports 100-year-plus history, there have been countless dramatic matches across the different formats, including shock victories, rearguard-action draws and jaw-dropping ties.
With the 2019 Ashes series fast approaching, this is as good a time as any to ponder which matches rank as the greatest ever.
The conclusion brought a combination of majestic bowling performances, extraordinary white-ball clashes and some astonishing fourth-inning displays.
There will be a few obviously left off this list, but that’s inevitable when there’s such a catalogue of special matches to choose from. Here are six of the greatest matches in the history of cricket…
Australia vs West Indies (1960)
Australia and the West Indies began their 1960/61 Test series in Brisbane.
A slow start for the tourists was rescued by a dazzling century from Garfield Sobers – the greatest all-rounder to ever take a cricket field – but the West Indies were still at a first innings deficit after Australia posted 505, thanks to Norm O’Neill’s 181.
A second innings collapse from the West Indies saw Australia set 233 to win. Playing eight-ball overs, the hosts had 69 overs to reach that score.
Australia crumbled to 92/6, with hope fading into despair. Richie Benaud and Alan Davidson rallied to pull the game back in their favour.
The West Indies went from disastrous to magical in the field. Three of the final four wickets were run outs, and the Australians lost three wickets in seven balls as they were bowled out for 232.
It was the first ever tied Test match and there has only been one more in the 59 years since.
England vs Australia (1981)
The 1981 Ashes series in England is iconic even by the high standards of Ashes cricket. Ian Botham put in one of the all-time great individual performances with the aid of his fast-bowling partner turned Sky Sports colleague Bob Willis at Headingley.
England were in almighty trouble when a 227-run first innings gap resulted in a follow-on. It got worse when they fell to 41-4 with Mike Gatting, Graham Gooch, Mike Brearley and David Gower all dismissed.
England were on the brink of going 2-0 down in the Ashes with three matches played. The fifth wicket fell and Botham, fresh off a first innings 50, strolled to the crease.
What followed was an onslaught on the great Australian bowling attack that gave England a sniff of victory – though they were still outsiders. Botham’s 149 set the Aussies 130 to win.
Willis then took centre stage. Bowling first change, Willis bowled like a man possessed. He wasn’t talking to anyone, he bowled, he snarled, he returned to his mark.
His 8/43 is one of the most famous spells in cricket history and set the platform for England to win the Ashes 3-1.
India vs Australia (2001)
In 2001, Australia were at the peak of their cricketing power. When they scored 445 batting first in Kolkata, and quickly skittled Indian for 171, the remainder of the Test seemed to be a formality.
VVS Laxman was the lone first innings resistance as he notched 50, which turned out to be a sign of things to come when Australia asked India to bat again.
Laxman, an elegant, orthodox batsman, was promoted from six to three. The openers fell for a combined 69 runs, and Sachin Tendulkar barely troubled the scorers. Sourav Ganguly got 48 to take India away from trouble and made it certain Australia would bat again.
Then came the partnership that spun the match. Rahul Dravid joined Laxman at 232/4. Laxman was batting superbly. Dravid, who had unbreakable concentration and a rock-solid technique, began to compile runs.
He made 180, Laxman got 281, as they put on 376 for the fifth wicket. But it wasn’t over there...
Australia were set 384 to win. Harbhajan Singh shone with six wickets, helped out by three from Tendulkar, as India completed one of the greatest turnarounds in Test cricket.
England vs Australia (2005)
In a spectacular 2005 Ashes series, the 2nd Test match at Edgbaston still stands out. England were 1-0 down after a collapse at Lord’s, but the momentum turned when Glenn McGrath tripped on a ball during the warm-ups.
Ricky Ponting still decided to bowl first, which has become one of the most famous captaincy blunders in recent history.
England raced off to a rapid start, taking advantage of batsman-friendly conditions. The hosts posted a score of just over 400 on the first day and had a 99-run lead after bowling Australia out. It was advantage England, a good second innings would set them up for victory.
Brett Lee and Shane Warne had other ideas. The pair put England in a tricky position with Geraint Jones and hero of the hour Andrew Flintoff batting together.
Flintoff was in pain with a shoulder injury. He counter-attacked, however, leading England to 182. Australia had a chance, but the match was England’s to lose.
The openers started well for the tourists. Then Flintoff, who went on to win man of the match, bowled the over of the series, and one of the best overs in Ashes history.
He removed Langer and had the skipper Ponting in a mess before getting him caught behind. It was in England’s hands.
As the game ticked over to a fourth day, it felt like a formality. Australia needed 107 runs with just two wickets remaining.
Warne and Lee put on a few before Warne was dismissed hit wicket to that man Flintoff. Michael Kasprowicz battled alongside Lee to take Australia to within three runs from victory.
Steve Harmison charged in at Kasprowicz, bowling a sharp bouncer at the number 11. He fended it away, causing the ball to scrape his glove. Jones made an athletic catch down the legside for England to claim a sensational win.
Replays showed the ball hit Kasprowicz’s glove when it wasn’t on the bat, so it shouldn’t have been out, but this was in the days before DRS and there was nothing Australia could do.
Australia vs South Africa (2006)
Before the 2019 World Cup final, Australia and South Africa’s run-fest in Johannesburg was widely considered the best ODI ever played.
Australia became the first team to pass 400 in an ODI, scoring 434 for the loss of just four wickets after choosing to bat first. To this day, it remains the sixth-highest ODI total ever.
That seemed unassailable and, at the time, was a ridiculous score between two of the world’s best white-ball teams.
South Africa’s chase got off to a flying start thanks to Graeme Smith, and an early wicket saw Herschelle Gibbs come to the crease. Gibbs proceeded to take the Australian attack to all parts of the Wanderers as he smashed 175 off 111 balls.
Despite Gibbs and Smith’s mammoth efforts, it went down to the penultimate delivery with one wicket left.
A late 50 from Mark Boucher, with Makhaya Ntini at the other end, saw the hosts win it off Brett Lee, sparking incredible celebrations.
England held New Zealand to 241 in their 50 overs thanks to some excellent bowling. The pre-tournament favourites were expected to cruise to the total, but had a nightmare start with Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root and Eoin Morgan all dismissed before the team reached 90.
Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler rebuilt the innings, batting carefully without taking too many risks. The pressure was all on Stokes when Buttler went in the 45th over.
The New Zealand-born all-rounder rode his luck as Trent Boult stood on the rope and Martin Guptill’s throw ricocheted off his bat for an unconventional six.
He stayed there to the end, though, retaining the strike in the final over to take England all the way to a tie. That meant a super over.
Stokes and Buttler came back out, scoring 15 off their six balls. Jofra Archer, England’s new bowling sensation, took the ball.
The first delivery was a wide. Two were scored off the second and the third went for six. New Zealand needed seven off four balls.
Archer was the coolest man in the ground as he kept his line and length almost perfect. Needing two off the last ball, he followed Guptill across the crease, forcing the Black Caps’ opener to tap it into the legside to Roy.
Roy delivered pinpoint throw to Butler who broke the stumps before Guptill could return for two.
England won the World Cup because they hit the most boundaries in the match in the most astonishing, bizarre final the sport has ever seen.
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
Sam is a sports tipster, specialising in the Premier League and Champions League.
He covers most sports, including cricket and Formula One. Sam particularly enjoys those on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – notably MLB and NBA.
Watching, writing and talking about sports betting takes up most of his time, whether that is for a day out at T20 Finals Day or a long night of basketball.
Having been writing for several years, Sam has been working with 888Sport since 2016, contributing multiple articles per week to the blog.
