Gary Lemke looks back at a jam-packed sporting weekend as a relentless Liverpool beat Man City in a top-of-the-table clash as Max Verstappen raced to victory at the Qatar Grand Prix.
CALCULATORS COME OUT FOR LIVERPOOL
Liverpool kept up their relentless run of form with a 2-0 win over Man City that has seen themselves shorten to odds-on to win the English Premier League this season. And we’re only into the first few days of December. They’re now nine points clear of Arsenal and Chelsea with a third of the season gone as another clean sheet shut out the champions.
Soon, the stattos will be out in force. Over half of the teams leading at Christmas go on to win the title, but there are 25 games (max 75 points) remaining. The wobble will come. History repeats. The biggest points gap overturned in EPL history was when Arsenal came from 13 points behind Man United to win in 1997/98. United themselves twice closed 12-point gaps and three times chased 10-point gaps. The red ribbons for the trophy haven’t been ordered just yet, but I’d rather be Liverpool than Arsenal.
SPAIN LOSE FINAL BUT WIN NEW FANS
With all due respect to winners Fiji, the story of the opening leg of the HSBC SVNS Series wasn’t about them, despite winning the trophy in Dubai for the first time since 2015. It wasn’t about South Africa’s Blitzboks, seeking a sixth straight title in the Emirates, but who lost in the quarter-finals to New Zealand before being beaten by Olympic champions France in the playoff for fifth and sixth.
It was about beaten finalists Spain. We will have to see when the series comes to Cape Town later this week whether it was one of those sporting one-offs or the start of something special. Having signed off the 2023/24 season in 10th of 12 sides, they opened this campaign by beating New Zealand (twice), the USA and Great Britain, while losing twice to Fiji in finishing runners-up )17-5 in the final). They were a breath of fresh air in Dubai. Let’s hope those winds of change spread to Cape Town.
Two unbelievable teams. One incredible night 🏆#HSBCSVNS | #HSBCSVNSDXB pic.twitter.com/O7k1JRSXek
— HSBC SVNS (@SVNSSeries) December 1, 2024
MAX’S REMARKABLE MENTAL RESILIENCE
Normal service has resumed for Max Verstappen who has now won two of the last three grands prix, after going winless for 10 races, a streak that brought Lando Norris into the title race. The championship was decided at Las Vegas and when the drivers arrived in Qatar this weekend Verstappen was a four-time world champion.
Although the constructors’ title is still on the line, the fact that Verstappen won in Qatar is testimony to not only his brilliance but his mental strength. To maintain that level of intensity a week after winning the title, and the re-adjustment from Las Vegas to Qatar is extraordinary. Lando Norris too, and he would have finished second if not for a late 10-second stop-and-go penalty. These two drivers are on a different level this season.
BIG PAYOUTS AT THE BIG T ON SUMMER CUP DAY
Africa’s richest horse race, the R6-million Betway Summer Cup, went the way of the 20-1 shot Atticus Finch on a day when Turffontein crowds were reminiscent of the glory days. There certainly feels like an upsurge in interest in racing again, and that is extending to tracks around the country. As expected, it was a tough day for punters at the Big T.
The quartet (first four home) in the main race paid R224,437 and the Pick Six returned a dividend of R273,130. The three most fancied horses in the Summer Cup, See It Again, Royal Victory and Main Defender ran unplaced, while earlier in the meeting the Horse of the Year, Dave The King, again ran well below his best. We’re back to the Cape and Hollywoodbets Kenilworth this weekend, where this money’s rent money is firmly on Gimme’s Countess to win the Grade 1 Fillies Guineas.
Longshot ATTICUS FINCH kicked clear with a furlong to go to claim the Summer Cup at Turffontein (SAF). #bigpayouts
— Sky Racing World (@SkyRacingWorld) November 30, 2024
See Results: https://t.co/YITYa9rchY pic.twitter.com/AyRWhSbC1N
JANSEN SEALS EMPHATIC PROTEAS WIN
Those who took the advice to book a round of golf or Saturday afternoon would have had to run to make their tee-off time as South Africa duly wrapped up the first Test against Sri Lanka inside four days at Hollywoodbets Kingsmead.
The end came 16 overs after lunch with man of the match Marco Jansen applying the finishing touch to end with a match haul of 11 wickets for 86 runs. The result nudged the Proteas up the ICC Test rankings and closer to a spot in the final. They get another opportunity to earn points when the second Test starts at St George’s Park in Gqeberha on Thursday.
SHARKS HOLD ON AFTER LIBBOK SCARE
Some of South Africa’s clickbait gold medallists had predicted the Stormers to beat the Hollywoodbets Sharks in their United Rugby Championship showdown in Durban, but it was not to be as the home side closed out a six-point win, 21-15. To be fair, the Sharks nearly snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, with a 14-0 lead nearly turning into a last-moment reverse when Manie Libbok crossed the line for a Stormers try.
However, the TMO spotted a knock-on by the Bok pivot in the build-up. Away wins were again hard to come by, with two in eight games, one of them to unbeaten Leinster. The other was the Bulls, with an impressive 28-14 victory at Connacht.
ALSO WORTH TALKING ABOUT …
Shaun Norris won for a seventh time on the Asian Tour with a closing 68 for victory in the GT Cup in Japan. It was nearly a double South African golfing success, with Ashleigh Buha finishing runner-up in the Australian Open …
The women’s Proteas suffered a heavy nine-wicket defeat in the final of their T20 matches against England, meaning the visitors claimed a 3-0 clean sweep of the series ahead of their ODIs starting in Kimberley on Wednesday …
Stellenbosch FC inflicted a first home defeat on Pirates in Soweto this season, winning 1-0, while Sundowns resumed normal service with a 3-0 stroll over Sekhukhune United in the Betway PSL.
