ON THIS DAY IN SPORT
1880: The Kennington Oval became the first cricket ground in England to host a Test match. England beat Australia by five wickets, with WG Grace scoring the first Test century on the ground.
1981: Offaly defeated Galway on a scoreline of 2-12 to 0-15 to win their first ever All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship title at Croke Park.
1991: James Warring took only 24 seconds to knock out James Pritchard in their world cruiserweight contest, which was the fastest knockout in world boxing title fight history.
1998: Media mogul Rupert Murdoch's BSkyB confirmed it was in talks to buy Manchester United, planning an estimated £600million bid to take a controlling interest at Old Trafford. The move was eventually blocked by the government following a recommendation by the Monopolies and Mergers Commission.
2004: Newcastle appointed Graeme Souness as manager.
2006: England beat Macedonia 1-0 in Skopje to make it two wins from two in their Euro 2008 qualifying campaign and extend Steve McClaren's 100 per cent start as manager to three games. England's campaign ultimately ended in failure as a 3-2 defeat at home to Croatia meant they missed out on a place in the finals in Austria and Switzerland.
2015: Iceland became the smallest nation to ever qualify for the European Championship following a goalless draw with Kazakhstan. The following summer they went on to reach the quarter-finals, knocking out England in the last 16, only to lose to hosts France in the last eight.
2017: Andy Murray announced on Facebook that he was unlikely to play again that season due to his ongoing hip injury.
BIRTHDAYS
Bruce Rioch (soccer) - former Scotland midfielder, who also managed Arsenal, Bolton, Norwich and Wigan, born 1947.
Pat Nevin (soccer) - former Everton, Chelsea and Scotland winger, born 1963.
Saeed Anwar (cricket) - former Pakistan opening batsman, born 1968.
Stephane Guivarc'h (soccer) - former Newcastle and Rangers striker who was part of the France '98 World Cup winning squad, born 1970.
Greg Rusedski (tennis) - former British number one who reached the 1997 US Open final, born 1973.
Carlo Cudicini (soccer) - Italian goalkeeper, formerly at Chelsea and Tottenham, born 1973.
Tim Henman (tennis) - former British number one who retired in 2007, born 1974.
Massimo Maccarone (soccer) - former Middlesbrough striker, born 1979.
Joseph Yobo (soccer) - former Everton defender, born 1980.
QUICK QUIZ
1. Who was Down's top scorer in their 1994 All-Ireland SFC final victory over Dublin?
2. Which Sky Bet League Two side play their home games at Boundary Park?
3. Who held the 100m men's world record before Usain Bolt?
4. Which two cities have two clubs in the group stages of this season's Champions League?
5. In which sport do teams compete for the Stanley Cup?
SPORT ON TV
Today (Friday, September 6)
CRICKET: The Ashes, England v Australia - Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports The Ashes 1000; Vitality Blast, third quarter-final - Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports The Ashes 1855
SOCCER: Euro 2020 qualifier, Wales v Azerbaijan - Sky Sports Premier League 1930, Under-21 Euro 2021 qualifier, Republic of Ireland v Armenia - eir Sport 1 1930
RUGBY UNION: England v Italy - Sky Sports Action 1900, New Zealand v Tonga - Sky Sports Action 0330
MOTOR RACING: Formula One, Italian Grand Prix, practice - Sky Sports F1 0945, 1345 and 1630
RUGBY LEAGUE: Super League, Hull KR v Hull - Sky Sports Arena 1900
ATHLETICS: Diamond League, Brussels - Eurosport 2 1900
CYCLING: Vuelta a Espana - Eurosport 1 1345
BASEBALL: MLB, Boston Red Sox v New York Yankees - BT Sport 1 0000
GOLF: European Tour, The Porsche European Open - Sky Sports Golf 1000 and 1400
MOTORCYCLING: World Superbikes - Eurosport 2 1025, 1500 and 1555
Tomorrow (Saturday, September 7)
CRICKET: The Ashes, England v Australia - Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports The Ashes 1000; Vitality Blast, fourth quarter-final - Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports The Ashes 1855
SOCCER: Euro 2020 qualifier, England v Bulgaria - ITV 1630, Serbia v Portugal - Sky Sports Premier League 1940; Vanarama National League, Hartlepool v Woking - BT Sport 1 1915; Women's Super League, Manchester United v Manchester City - BT Sport 1 1430
MOTOR RACING: Formula One, Italian Grand Prix, practice - Sky Sports F1 1045, qualifying - Sky Sports F1 1300
RUGBY UNION: Ireland v Wales - Channel 4 1330
GOLF: European Tour, The Porsche European Open - Sky Sports Golf 1200
RACING: Haydock - ITV 1325
CYCLING: Tour of Britain - ITV 4 1015, Vuelta a Espana - Eurosport 1 1345
BASEBALL: MLB, Boston Red Sox v New York Yankees - BT Sport 2 2100
MOTORCYCLING: British Superbikes - Eurosport 2 1100 and 1530; World Superbikes- Eurosport 2 1400
QUIZ ANSWERS
1. Mickey Linden (0-4); 2. Oldham; 3. Asafa Powell; 4. London and Madrid; 5. Ice hockey
