Andries Bekker congratulates Jaque Fourie after he scored one of the South African tries against England at Twickenham.
Andries Bekker congratulates Jaque Fourie after he scored one of the South African tries against England at Twickenham.

Haskell fights for time to let new England develop



James Haskell has come out fighting against England's rugby critics and has challenged them to give Martin Johnson's side at least a year before making any final judgement. The Wasps flanker was one of the few England players, along with Nick Easter and Danny Care, to enhance his reputation in the 42-6 defeat by South Africa at Twickenham.

Having lost to Australia the previous weekend, England now face the task on Saturday of trying to beat New Zealand, regarded as the best team in the world, to avoid an autumn whitewash by the southern hemisphere giants. Yet Haskell believes team manager Johnson has assembled a squad of players who will prove the doubters wrong. Haskell, in answer to accusations that the current squad were not up to the job, said: "We knew this was going to be a turbulent autumn internationals.

"We're playing against the best teams in the world and we're a new side. I'm not a big fan of making excuses. I hate doing it. "But I think we do have something special here. We've got a great group of players. They are the best available and we'll keep going forward. "We almost scored some good points, all it took was one pass that didn't go our way and that comes when you are a seasoned side. Rome wasn't built in a day and we are going to keep progressing."

Haskell believes Johnson should stick to the same game plan against New Zealand, who boast brilliant fly-half Dan Carter and back row forward Ritchie McCaw and who beat Wales 29-9 with a convincing second-half performance on Saturday evening. Haskell said: "I'm looking forward to playing against New Zealand and slowly building. "People are going to try to pick holes but we are a collective here. We are building to something.

"We are going to go away and work. You have got to take your knocks. "But we have got to have confidence in what we are trying to achieve and faith in the game plan that the coaches have put together and move forward." Haskell also confirmed the team's support for clubmate and fly-half Danny Cipriani, whose charged-down kick led to South Africa's first try on Saturday. He even insisted that several England players had the measure of their Springbok counterparts.

"I rate Danny very highly," said Haskell. "He's a great player. "The whole team were under pressure. We created a lot of opportunities that could have been turned into tries but South Africa were able to capitalise on errors and turn them into points. "But the passion was there, the intensity was there and the scoreline was flattering to South Africa. Certain [England] individuals had the better of their opposition."

Wales wind up their autumn Test schedule on Saturday still seeking a victory captain Ryan Jones believes will take his team "to the next level". New Zealand's success at the Millennium Stadium means Wales have now lost 30 out of 33 games against Tri Nations opposition since rugby union's professional era dawned 13 years ago. Australia are next up, with Wales needing to salvage the November series by repeating their 2005 success over the Wallabies.

And it would prove the perfect send-off into this season's Six Nations. Wales launch their title defence against Scotland at Murrayfield on Feb 8. Reflecting on Wales's fourth southern hemisphere failure in five months, Jones said: "If we can pick up on some of the tactical areas, then I think we can get closer to these sides. "Beating one of the southern hemisphere teams will take us to the next level.

"We have to move on, and the next game has to be our priority. If we can polish up a few things, we will get closer and closer." * PA Sport

End of free parking

- paid-for parking will be rolled across Abu Dhabi island on August 18

- drivers will have three working weeks leeway before fines are issued

- areas that are currently free to park - around Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Maqta Bridge, Mussaffah Bridge and the Corniche - will now require a ticket

- villa residents will need a permit to park outside their home. One vehicle is Dh800 and a second is Dh1,200. 

- The penalty for failing to pay for a ticket after 10 minutes will be Dh200

- Parking on a patch of sand will incur a fine of Dh300

Golden Shoe top five (as of March 1):

Harry Kane, Tottenham, Premier League, 24 goals, 48 points
Edinson Cavani, PSG, Ligue 1, 24 goals, 48 points
Ciro Immobile, Lazio, Serie A, 23 goals, 46 points
Mohamed Salah, Liverpool, Premier League, 23 goals, 46 points
Lionel Messi, Barcelona, La Liga, 22 goals, 44 points

Sustainable Development Goals

1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere

2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation

10. Reduce inequality  within and among countries

11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects

14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development