Carragher suspended by Sky over spitting

LONDON • Football pundit Jamie Carragher has been suspended by Sky Sports until the end of the season after spitting in the direction of a 14-year-old girl following a verbal exchange with her father after Liverpool's 2-1 defeat by Manchester United on Saturday.

A Sky Sports spokesman said: "Sky has suspended Jamie Carragher for the remainder of the football season... We will ensure he gets the help he needs to guarantee something like this never happens again."

Former Liverpool defender Carragher, who has since apologised to the family of the girl and admitted his behaviour was "unacceptable", described the incident as a "moment of madness".

THE GUARDIAN

England keen to avoid three straight defeats

LONDON • Sam Simmonds believes the chance to avenge last year's Six Nations defeat at Ireland will be the perfect incentive for England, the outgoing champions, to end their poor campaign on a positive note.

Newly crowned Six Nations champions Ireland are hoping to seal their third grand slam on Saturday and England, who suffered back-to-back losses to Scotland and France, want a consolation win at Twickenham.

"We are not happy with the results... but it's a huge game against Ireland and we are all pushing in the right direction," Simmonds said.

REUTERS

MCG to ban parking over security fears

MELBOURNE • Australia's largest stadium, the Melbourne Cricket Ground, will ban parking during major sporting events to prevent vehicle attacks on pedestrians that have rocked major global cities.

The 100,000-capacity venue banned parking during the opening days of the Boxing Day Test between Australia and England's cricket teams in December, and will have similar restrictions for marquee events throughout the year, the MCG said on Tuesday.

A ban has already been implemented for the Australian Football League season-opener between champions Richmond and Carlton next week.

REUTERS

West Ham vow to ban pitch invaders for life

LONDON • West Ham say fans who invaded the pitch and threw missiles at the directors' box in Saturday's home loss to Burnley will be banned for life.

"Following the incidents which marred the second half... the club is working in close conjunction with the Metropolitan Police to identify those individuals," the club said in a statement.

The Hammers have 30 points, three above the drop zone with eight matches to play.

REUTERS