just three points and one place separate the two teams in the league although
hearts have played two games more than their hosts
hearts are in fine form and are unbeaten in seven games but aberdeen are on
high after win over dundee united last week
dundee united face the trip to firhill to take on partick thistle but are
unlikely to have pat fenlon at the helm for the match unless they agree
compensation with irish outfit bohemians
junior side irvine meadow are desperate for their match against spl highfliers
hibernian at easter road to go ahead in what will be one of the biggest games
ever for them
also on saturday first division side dunfermline athletic take on stenhousemuir
and st mirren face alloa athletic
frozen pitch put paid to celtic trip to morton the game has been rearranged
for tuesday but with freezing conditions expected to continue into next week
there is another pitch inspection scheduled for monday
wintry weather conditions also claimed albion rovers tie against stirling
albion ayr united brechin city edinburgh city montrose forfar athletic
st johnstone inverness ct motherwell livingston dundee raith rovers
airdrie united ross county inverurie locos and the all spl clash between
kilmarnock and falkirk
fixtures gmt unless otherwise stated
saturday
aberdeen hearts dunfermline athletic stenhousemuir hibernian irvine
meadow partick thistle dundee united st mirren alloa athletic
sunday
hamilton rangers
football gunners keen to beat the freeze and maintain momentum
london jan afp
everton fans will be hoping to avoid the fate that befell bolton supporters in
midweek when they arrived in london after long journey from the north west
only to find their game at arsenal had fallen foul of the weather
arsenal manager arsene wenger is as keen as anyone to see saturday fixture at
the emirates stadium fulfilled as he fears his side are already on the brink of
being forced to play three games week for the foreseeable future
the gunners are fighting on three fronts with the champions league and the fa
cup also on their agenda
had arsenal beaten bolton on wednesday night they would have gone second ahead
of manchester united and cut chelsea lead down to just one point
now it remains lottery to see who gets to play over the weekend as freezing
temperatures continue to put fixtures in jeopardy
the frenchman has already been busy with his calculator however and estimated
at the start of the season that the premier league will be won with lower than
usual points total
said few months ago that to points would win the title and stick by
that wenger said
if you multiply the current numbers by two then you will not be far from that
chelsea have played games and have points we have played games and
have points if you multiply that by two it points the champions will
be around there with
don forget we all have to play each other again nobody will run away with it
and get wins at the moment there are six or seven teams who could finish in
the top four and they will all play each other that means everybody will drop
points
with robin van persie and nicklas bendtner both out injured and theo walcott
also sidelined wenger knows he needs to bring in another striker if the title
challenge is to be maintained
that has prompted mountain of speculation with sources in spain indicating
that wenger would be willing to part with play maker captain and current top
scorer cesc fabregas if real madrid were willing to part with argentina striker
gonzalo higuain
both players are rated in the superstar bracket and have price tags to match but
wenger is thought to be exploring cheaper options as well
one appears to be giant ivory coast striker lacina traore who is currently
with the romanian side cfr cluj
traore certainly seems keen it is sensational to hear wenger is watching me
he said could be success in england even though am still young have
lot of experience and lot of ambition
it would be dream for me to get to play on team so great would have
chance there because arsene wenger relies heavily on young players
russia forward andrey arshavin is set to return following injury and the same
applies to midfielder denilson but fabregas is still out with hamstring
problem and alex song and emmanuel eboue are both away on african cup of nations
duty
everton look set to hand an instant debut to landon donovan the united states
forward the loan signing from la galaxy has been handed the number nine shirt
for the toffees whose manager david moyes is still beset with selection
problems
mikel arteta and phil jagielka are long term injury absentees striker louis
saha is unfit again and fellow forwards jo and aiyegbeni yakubu absent through
club suspension and international duty respectively
donovan was keen to adjust to the english game as quickly as possible will
have to get used to the style here but me and tim howard have had some
discussions about it and what to expect and think will be prepared he
said
like fast paced game like to take advantages and chances quickly and
that will suit me well going into world cup and playing in england will keep
me sharp
more us air marshals in sky but will it help
washington jan afp
in the wake of failed christmas day terror attack president barack obama has
ordered more air marshals onto us planes but questions remain about the
efficacy of the decades old program
in the days since nigerian born umar farouk abdulmutallab attempted to
detonate explosives aboard northwest flight over detroit obama has pledged
to boost the number of armed marshals on us flights
but there is scant evidence that the program has been able to deter or stop
terrorist attacks
the federal air marshal service shot to prominence in the wake of the september
attacks when people applied to join but the program has been
around since the late
it began under former president john kennedy and grew in strength as
hijackings became increasingly frequent
as airport security measures improved and metal detectors were installed the
program gradually dwindled
by september there were fewer than federal air marshals that were
actively being deployed to detect deter and defeat terrorism on board
aircraft said nelson minerly transportation security administration
spokesman
the attacks which killed nearly people led to massive growth in the
program though the exact number of marshals is classified
the transportation security administration tsa puts the figure at several
thousand and various reports put the level at around
with budget of million dollars the program runs its own two phase
week training program for new recruits
they are taught how to detect unusual behavior detain suspect and all
importantly fire weapon aboard flight in mid air said mike rush the
president of security company scg international which has trained air marshals
you teach them when and how to shoot and one of the most important things is
not to penetrate the skin of the aircraft he said
shot placement obviously is very important and the type of ammunition you
use you use ammunition that does not penetrate through the body that stops in
the body
life as marshal is hardly action packed though
marshals have to be patient very patient the life of an air marshal is ultra
boring percent of the time rush said
air marshals have in fact rarely been called on to stop an attack though they
often deal with unruly or drunk passengers
can think of single case where an air marshal has been reported to have
been involved in stopping terrorist incident said edward alden border
security expert at the council for foreign relations
others have been more unkind
in june republican lawmaker john duncan told congressional hearing that
the program was probably the most needless useless agency in the entire
federal government
we now have approximately in the federal air marshals service yet they
have made an average of just arrests year since
alden said boosting the air marshal program would be an inappropriate response
to abdulmutallab failed attack
the air marshals are last line of defense he said think the biggest
thing that came out of this was the need to improve the watchlisting process
rush former navy seal said the air marshal program can be extremely
effective but that abdulmutallab should never have been able to board plane
the problems with what happened on christmas day are not related to the air
marshal program that was pre screening that didn happen he said
others believe the program has the potential to be effective but only if it
adds more marshals
an alert air marshal might have flagged abdulmutallab said james jay
carafano security expert at the conservative heritage foundation
currently armed us air marshals cover only fraction of international
flights he said in policy brief
the us force should be expanded and the white house should press allies to
establish or expand their programs
alden noted that marshals may deter attackers or provide psychological
reassurance to passengers but he warned that intelligence coordination and
screening would be more effective at stopping attacks
the obama administration is trying both acknowledging that information given to
us officials by abdulmutallab father was not properly processed
homeland security secretary janet napolitano said the administration would also
strengthen the presence and capacity of air marshals deploying law
enforcement officers from the homeland security department to fill that role
us urges japan to help end base row clarify alliance
washington jan afp
the united states said thursday it will urge the tokyo government to help end
row over us airbase and clarify its stand on us japanese alliance that has
underpinned security in asia for years
hillary clinton will convey the message when she meets her japanese counterpart
katsuya okada in hawaii on tuesday when she begins her fourth tour of asia since
she became secretary of state one year ago officials said
president barack obama administration welcomed japan new center left
government but voiced irritation when it announced it may scrap the previously
agreed relocation of futenma airbase on southern okinawa island
during the talks in honolulu clinton will tell okada how important it is to
move forward on these issues in futenma kurt campbell her top diplomat for
asian affairs told reporters in washington
clinton will also tell okada that we also have to have very clear headed
recognition of how important this relationship is how many aspects need to be
maintained and engaged upon campbell said
campbell who will travel with the chief us diplomat praised the new japanese
government multi billion dollar financial support for us led efforts to
stabilize afghanistan and combat global climate change
so there are number of areas that we ve seen very clear statements on the
part of the japanese government of wanting to work closely with the united
states the assistant secretary of state for asia and pacific affairs
but the truth is that this is security alliance at its core he said
and security issues are important in complex and changing asia and we want
very clear set of statements on the part of the japanese government of desire
to continue to work closely with us said campbell
in the talks clinton and her team will discuss plans for marking the th
anniversary of the us japan security alliance which will occur initially on
january he said
during her visit to hawaii clinton will also deliver major policy speech on
the american approach to asian security architecture at the east west center
he said
campbell attributed some of the problems in ties to the adjustment to governing
made by prime minister yukio hatoyama center left government which was
elected in august after half century of conservative rule
the new government pledged to review past agreements on the us military presence
and to deal with washington on more equal basis
hatoyama stated preference is to move the futenma base off okinawa or even
outside japan altogether breaching an agreement signed in between previous
conservative governments in washington and tokyo
since its defeat in world war ii officially pacifist japan has relied on
massive us military presence to guarantee its security initially as an occupier
and later as an ally
but the dispute over futenma has raised fears among some japanese that this
alliance might cool at time when rising china is making its presence felt
across asia
campbell said clinton and okada will also discuss mutual security concerns over
the nuclear ambitions of both north korea and iran they will also discuss
china rising power as well as the military junta in myanmar
before leaving hawaii on january for papua new guinea clinton will meet with
the us military pacific command
on january clinton will travel to auckland new zealand she travels to
january to melbourne and canberra australia
in canberra clinton and us defense secretary robert gates will hold the th
australia united states ministerial consultations with their counterparts
foreign minister stephen smith and defense minister john faulkner
clinton campbell said will also seek advice from australian prime minister
kevin rudd chinese speaker about how the united states can better work with
china rising global power on issues ranging from iran to climate change
the us side will also seek his advice on indonesia with which washington is
forging strategic partnership he said
he also welcomed australian support for strong us japanese alliance as key to
asian security
golf sbs championship scores
kapalua hawaii jan afp
first round scores here on thursday in the season opening million dollar sbs
championship usa unless noted
lucas glover
nathan green aus dustin johnson matt kuchar martin laird gbr nick
watney
angel cabrera arg stewart cink sean hair john rollins
jerry kelly ryan moore geoff ogilvy aus
paul casey gbr retief goosen rsa kenny perry rory sabbatini rsa
yang yong eun kor
stephen ames can pat perez
brian gay zach johnson bo van pelt
michael bradley troy matteson steve stricker
mark wilson
heath slocum
yahoo expands web connected tv push
las vegas nevada jan afp
yahoo announced partnerships with television and other device manufacturers on
thursday as the internet company joins others seeking to jump from the computer
to the tv screen
consumers are in love with their televisions watching more tv and demanding
internet connectivity to further enhance their viewing experience said arlo
rose senior director of yahoo connected tv
yahoo said the online programs known as widgets for the increasing number of
web capable televisions would be embedded in more models and include video on
demand social networks games and online shopping
one year after announcing partnerships with samsung lg electronics sony and
vizio yahoo used the annual consumer electronics show here to announce tie ups
with china hisense viewsonic mips technologies and sigma designs
yahoo also announced it was releasing widget development kit to allow
developers to create their own tv widgets
vizio upcoming hdtvs will incorporate yahoo widgets as will web connected tvs
from hisense and viewsonic vmp media player
yahoo said the vmp media player will allow hdtv owners to view movies tv
shows web videos and photos and go shopping and play games with tv widgets
consumers can enjoy the greatest internet content while simultaneously viewing
their favorite programming said viewsonic americas vice president jeff volpe
mips will include the yahoo widget platform on digital tv and set top box
applications while sigma designs said it will offer yahoo widgets on blu ray
players and other devices
current yahoo widgets allow tv viewers to go online and shop at ebay or update
their status on twitter or facebook for example while watching tv
hong kong gold opens lower
hong kong jan afp
hong kong gold opened lower on friday at us dollars an ounce
down from thursday close of dollars
obama crosses fingers on china in new year
washington jan afp
president barack obama administration is starting the new year with its
fingers crossed on china hoping that upcoming tough decisions do not inflame
tensions with the growing asian power
the defense department on wednesday gave the go ahead to sell upgraded patriot
missile equipment to taiwan move that some experts said showed the cautious
approach of the obama administration as it enters its second year
the contract was part of package approved more than year ago under former
president george bush while the move is sure to upset china the obama team
has yet to authorize fresh arms to the island claimed by beijing
taiwan is not the only issue on the horizon obama is expected to meet as soon
as next month with tibet exiled spiritual leader the dalai lama who is widely
respected in the united states but is vilified by beijing
obama faced intense criticism at home in october when he declined to meet the
dalai lama the first time in nearly two decades that he has not met the
president during visit to washington
bonnie glaser senior fellow at the center for strategic and international
studies csis believed that obama has been cautious in his timing but not
necessarily in his underlying policy
there really was desire to try to get some trust and relationship building
before we started to make decisions that might irritate the chinese glaser
said
she said that beijing would yell and scream about the pentagon decision on
arms to taiwan even though it was part of previous package and the united
states has previously sold patriot missile equipment to taiwan
they fear that if they don soft response would be interpreted here in
washington as meaning that the chinese are willing to tolerate us arms sales to
taiwan she said
us experts sense sharper tone from china as its clout grows in the world with
the us economy wobbly and indebted to beijing which holds more than billion
dollars in us treasury bonds
undeniably the chinese have an attitude about them now said victor cha who
served as former president george bush top adviser on east asia
china made no known concessions to obama when he paid his maiden visit in
november unlike during previous visits by us leaders china did not release any
dissidents as goodwill gestures and did not nationally broadcast obama one
public forum
some western leaders also accused china of torpedoing efforts for stronger
agreement at last month climate change summit in copenhagen although beijing
said that premier wen jiabao played crucial role
but cha scholar at csis and georgetown university doubted there was yet
paradign shift with china outpacing the united states
we always have to remember that china is big flashy rising but still
american per capita income is dollars and in china it still
dollars cha said
john tkacik jr retired state department official long concerned about
china rise said the obama administration was letting down taiwanese tibetans
and uighurs muslim minority embroiled in ethnic clashes last year
he noted that the united states was legally obligated to ensure taiwan self
defense under the taiwan relations act approved by congress in when
washington recognized beijing as china sole government
the hesitation of the united states to even execute its own laws on dealing
with taiwan because of fear of china is psychological milestone in china
rise to superpower status tkacik said
the united states is now dealing with global superpower that unlike the
soviet union is in position to out produce it out spend it and out arm it
over the next decade and we simply don know what to do about it he said
football english premier league table
london jan afp
english premier league table ahead of this weekend matches played won
drawn lost goals for goals against points
chelsea
man utd
arsenal
tottenham
man city
aston villa
liverpool
birmingham
fulham
stoke
sunderland
everton
blackburn
burnley
wolverhampton
wigan
west ham
bolton
hull
portsmouth
football ferguson faces exam from former pupil
london jan afp
sir alex ferguson faces an exam from former pupil this weekend as manchester
united seek to bounce back from their fa cup exit at the hands of league one
leaders leeds united by beating the premier league form team
alex mcleish birmingham have confounded pre season predictions they would
struggle with an match unbeaten run in the league that has left them in
battle for european places rather than the scrap against relegation that so many
had predicted for them
united meanwhile have had to endure an extended inquest into the leeds defeat at
time when there is renewed focus on the level of the club debt and the
restrictions it imposes on manager sir alex ferguson ability to strengthen
squad that at times this season has been severely weakened by injuries
ferguson will relish the challenge presented by mcleish whom he managed as
player for both aberdeen and scotland and veteran winger ryan giggs played down
suggestions that the defending champions are on the verge of crisis
it has always been the same here one defeat and it is disaster giggs said
that is never going to change but we don get carried away with that just
the same as we wouldn get carried away if we had won on the bounce
united emerged from the festive season having cut chelsea lead at the top to
two points heading into month in which the londoners will have to do without
didier drogba salomon kalou michael essien and john mikel obi who have flown
to angola for the african nations cup
carlo ancelotti side travel to hull for lunchtime fixture on saturday with
michael ballack arguing that despite recent blip in form the italian coach
is doing good job
we have had too many coaches during my time at chelsea and that is not good
idea if you want success the germany captain said
jose mourinho avram grant and luiz felipe scolari all came and went before
guus hiddink had some time with us last season but it feels like carlo is here
to stay and that has to be good news
this team has connected with ancelotti and all the players believe he is man
who can work for us which is tribute to him because he has come into
dressing room full of highly experienced players who all have their own opinions
and beliefs
arsenal will again be without injured skipper cesc fabregas for everton visit
to the emirates but manager arsene wenger can call upon fit again czech
midfielder tomas rosicky who signed new contract at the club earlier in the
week
everton could hand debut to american star landon donovan who has joined the
club on loan from la galaxy until the end of season
arguably the most significant fixture at the weekend is sunday meeting of
liverpool and tottenham at anfield
spurs travel north knowing win could represent fatal blow to liverpool
hopes of clawing their way back into the top four having bolstered their own
place in the champions league qualifying spots with run of five consecutive
clean sheets
tottenham are also looking to complete home and away double over rafael
benitez men and croatian midfielder niko kranjcar admitted it six
pointer if we win the game we ll get nice lead in front of them
nothing will be decided this weekend but we really want to send out message
and keep proving that we can achieve that top four spot
spurs could have been ejected from the top four by the time they kick off on
sunday if aston villa win at wigan hours earlier
manchester city who are two points behind spurs but have played game less
are not in action until monday evening when blackburn visit eastlands
bolton will hope to finally have owen coyle finally installed as their new
manager in time for saturday trip to sunderland while coyle former club
burnley entertain stoke with first team coach steve davis in temporary charge
fixtures gmt unless stated
saturday
arsenal everton birmingham manchester united gmt burnley stoke
fulham portsmouth hull chelsea gmt sunderland bolton wigan
aston villa
sunday
liverpool tottenham gmt west ham wolves gmt
monday
manchester city blackburn
boxing pacquiao mayweather off as mediation fails
los angeles jan afp
the proposed mega fight between manny pacquiao and floyd mayweather is off and
mayweather said the filipino fighter was to blame after failed attempt to
salvage the bout through mediation
mayweather said thursday that pacquaio refusal to accept compromise on drug
testing procedures including blood tests sought by mayweather had scuppered
fight that many say could have been the richest in history
throughout this whole process have remained patient but at this point am
thoroughly disgusted that pacquiao and his representatives are trying to blame
me for the fight not happening when clearly the blame is on them mayweather
said in statement on thursday
not only did he want to fight pacquiao mayweather said he wanted to whip
him
the fight had been tentatively scheduled for march in las vegas the two
sides had successfully negotiated agreements ranging from split of the purse
to the type of gloves to be used
mayweather insistence on pre fight anti doping blood tests however proved
stumbling block
pacquiao promoter bob arum said wednesday the fight was dead insisting pacquiao
wanted the fight but mayweather didn
on tuesday the two sides had taken their cases to mediator in hopes of
resolution
in the end the parties could not agree on testing protocol acceptable to
all daniel weinstein the retired federal judge who oversaw the mediation
said in statement on thursday
weinstein also said that details of the discussions were confidential but said
both sides participated in good faith submitting proposals and considering
those of the other side
the mediator himself did not formulate recommend or issue mediator
proposal weinstein said the mediator did not make an evaluation or finding
that any one of the many proposals considered by the parties was the correct
protocol
mayweather initially called for repeated blood testing up to the day of the
fight pacquiao wanted day cutoff before the bout
mayweather says he eventually agreed to day cutoff prior to the bout before
medation began but that pacquiao wouldn accept
the truth is he just doesn want to take the tests mayweather said
in my opinion it is manny pacquiao and his team who are denying the people
chance to see the biggest fight ever mayweather added
the negotiations had been further muddied when pacquiao filed lawsuit in
federal court in las vegas alleging that mayweather and others defamed him by
falsely saying he had used performance enhancing drugs
pacquiao who has supplanted mayweather in the estimation of many as boxing
best pound for pound fighter has earned titles in seven weight classes
some have estimated their fight could bring each as much as million dollars
japan premier warns new finance chief on forex comment
tokyo jan afp
japanese prime minister yukio hatoyama friday warned his new finance minister
not to publicly comment on foreign exchange after the yen plunged on naoto
kan endorsement of weaker unit
the government basically should not discuss foreign exchange hatoyama told
japanese reporters when asked about kan remark thursday that he wanted to see
weaker yen
regarding foreign exchange stability is desirable and sharp fluctuations are
not desirable hatoyama said
hatoyama remark followed kan press conference thursday when the new finance
minister said he wanted the yen to weaken causing the currency to drop on the
foreign exchange market
my thinking is that it would be preferable if the correction continues toward
weaker yen said kan after being named as replacement for hirohisa fujii who
left the post for health reasons
many business leaders have said that yen exchange rate in the mid to the
dollar would be appropriate kan added it is rare for japanese cabinet
ministers to comment on specific currency levels
kan said he would cooperate with the central bank to steer the yen to an
appropriate level in break from his predecessor tolerance of stronger
currency
obama hot under collar over jacket ad
new york jan afp
passersby in new york gawked thursday at huge unauthorized advertisement for
jackets featuring president barack obama and the white house was not amused
the billboard for weatherproof garment company looms over times square showing
rugged and determined looking president in the brand dark jacket while on
visit to the great wall in china during an official trip last year
leader in style it says underneath
new yorkers and tourists snapped photos or just stared at the poster which
stood out even in the neon jungle of new york teeming center
some applauded the aesthetics of the most photogenic president in years against
