Hawk-Eye technology will feature in the final friendly played by Roy Hodgson’s side ahead of the tournament, but its readings will not be available to match officials during the game. Independent testers EMPA will observe the system along with representatives from the International Football Association Board (IFAB) and FIFA. This latest development follows on from previous testing during the Hampshire FA Senior Cup final at St Mary’s Stadium, Southampton on May 16.
The trials are being conducted alongside tests of the GoalRef system in Denmark. If the trials prove successful the IFAB could approve the introduction of goal-line technology at its special meeting on July 2, where a final decision on the subject is set to be made by the game’s rule-making body. The IFAB in March reduced the number of companies bidding to implement the initiative to two, rejecting six devices to leave those put forward by Hawk-Eye and GoalRef.
A statement from FIFA read: “FIFA would like to place on record its sincere thanks to The Football Association for their willingness to support the live match tests, a critical part of test phase two for goal-line technology. The phase two test results will be provided to the IFAB in order for a definitive decision on the use of GLT (goal-line technology).”
Source: www.sportbusiness.com
Garbutt shuns England in favour of Wembley appearance with Cheltenham - Daily Mail
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Luke Garbutt has put England duty on the back burner in a bid to help steer Cheltenham to glory in Sunday's npower League Two play-off final against Crewe at Wembley.
The left-back, on loan from Everton, was called up for Under-19 action as the Young Lions face a crucial triple-header against Slovenia, Montenegro and Switzerland.
Bigger fish to fry: Luke Garbutt has turned down an England under-19 call-up to play at Wembley
But a fixture clash means Garbutt has put Town's promotion tilt first and his fledgling international career to one side for the time being.
The promising defender, who has represented England at Under-16, 17, 18 and 19 level said: 'I've spoken to both the gaffer at Cheltenham (Mark Yates) and the England manager (Noel Blake), and throughout all conversations they didn't want to not allow me to have that chance of playing at Wembley in the play-offs.
'Obviously as a player you don't get many opportunities, either to play at Wembley or in a play-off final. So for those two to come in my first full season being in a first team, it's one I want to cherish and be part of.
'He (Blake) didn't want to not let me have that opportunity.'
Garbutt added: 'I gave my views upon it and the gaffer (Yates) really wanted me to stay and play in the play-offs, so England said we're not going to let your opportunity go to waste.'
London calling: Marlon Pack celebrates scoring his side's second goal against Torquay, sealing their trip to Wembley
The 19-year-old, who has made 36 appearances for the Robins this season, missed both legs of the semi-final triumph over Torquay due to a muscle strain.
But he returned to training on Monday and is now hoping to force his way into Town's starting line-up.
'That's the aim,' Garbutt said. 'Obviously it's everyone's dream to play at Wembley and I'll be doing all I can to get in the team.
'I've never played there before but I have been there when we won the European Championship Finals with England's Under-17s (in 2010), we paraded the trophy around the pitch at half-time.
'So it's going to be an exciting day, for sure.'
The game should be a close-fought affair, with the two sides separated by a single place in the league, although Crewe managed to record a league double over Cheltenham this season.
Source: www.dailymail.co.uk
Simon Grayson wants promotion for Huddersfield Town, not himself - The Guardian
When it comes to pre-match speeches Simon Grayson is a creature of habit. "Have no regrets," are the words the Huddersfield Town manager invariably uses to conclude his team talks and that message will almost certainly resonate around a Wembley dressing room on Saturday .
If Huddersfield win the League One play-off final against Sheffield United and end an 11-year absence from English football's second tier many will interpret it as a vindication of Grayson's managerial qualities in the wake of his controversial sacking by Leeds in February. The former Leicester, Aston Villa and Blackburn right-back or midfielder sees things slightly differently. "What happened at Leeds doesn't really motivate me, there'll be no extra satisfaction if we get promoted," he says. "I've never been the sort to be motivated by personal glory."
Outside the Galpharm Stadium the temperature is, unusually for a west Yorkshire town on the edge of the Pennines, approaching 30C. Inside a windowless ground-floor media room it feels even warmer, but Grayson retains his cool, body-swerving invitations to discuss the news that bookmakers have made him the third favourite for the Villa vacancy before further emphasising that he is in possession of one of the best disguised egos in football.
Listening to him talk fluent commonsense, it is easy to understand why, as a youngster at Leeds and, later, a senior professional at Leicester, he swiftly established himself as a firm favourite of those clubs' managers at the time, Howard Wilkinson and Martin O'Neill.
"It's nice to have a promotion on your CV as it suggests you're doing your job properly, but this isn't about me, it's about Huddersfield Town," says the straight-batting 42-year-old, who grew up in Bedale, north Yorkshire with Leeds posters adorning his bedroom walls and a love of sport fostered by his PE teacher father. "This club has been in League One far too long; it needs to get into the Championship. My remit is to get them there."
Fortunately for Huddersfield's chairman, Dean Hoyle, a greetings card magnate, Grayson specialises in this particular promotion. After extricating Blackpool from League One via the play-offs in 2007, he took Leeds up automatically before achieving – or as he concedes, "overachieving" – a seventh-place Championship finish last season.
At the time of his dismissal, they were 10th, three points off a play-off place. "I don't look back with regret or negativity," he says. "I loved every minute."
Two weeks later, the brother of Paul, the former Yorkshire and Essex cricketer who played two one-day internationals for England, was back in employment, benefiting from Hoyle's contentious dismissal of Lee Clark, who had led Huddersfield to a 3-0 play-off final defeat against Peterborough last spring.
By a peculiar quirk of fate Grayson was at that match as a pundit for Sky. "Did the players turn up?" queries a manager dubbed "Larry" by friends. "Did the best players play? Or was it simply that Peterborough played better?
"I was in the studio so I don't know what went on in the dressing room or what the players' reaction was. But I do feel the experience will benefit them. They've maybe learned things about responsibility.
"Maybe some went in thinking, 'We'll win it and just have to turn up.' Or maybe some thought, 'They're only Peterborough.' Maybe some lost focus, that's why we've been making sure they know they'll only be remembered if they win at Wembley."
The Peterborough defeat marked the start of the painful unravelling of Clark's once-close relationship with Hoyle. "No one deserves promotion more than the chairman," says Grayson. "I want to reward him for the way he's backed this club."
Hoyle has reconnected Huddersfield to its local community. Last Wednesday he embarked on a charity bike ride to Wembley, raising £50,000 that will transport 1,000 underprivileged children to the final. They will be hoping to see Jordan Rhodes add to the 40 goals he has scored this season in what promises to be the striker's final game for Huddersfield. Fulham are reportedly poised to offer £3.5m. It will not be enough. "That's what you pay for a 10-15 goal a season striker," says Grayson. "Not someone who has scored 40."
Not that a man who left O'Neill distraught when he swapped Leicester for Villa intends keeping Rhodes against his will. "You've sometimes got to think about what the player wants," he says. "But it's a two-way thing, offers have got to be suitable."
A winning goal at Wembley would further boost the price tag: "Hopefully Jordan's got a couple more goals left in the locker. He's up there with the best strikers I've worked with, he's very composed, he'll get something out of nothing."
The 22-year-old is also refreshingly low maintenance. "Strikers are a strange breed, sometimes you can't work them out," says Grayson. "But, character-wise, Jordan is close to not being a striker. I can work him out.
"He wants to learn. People say he's no different as a person to this time last year; 40 goals haven't changed him. If he gets into the Premier League he won't think he's made it, he'll keep working and working."
Much the same could be said of Huddersfield's manager.
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
WEMBLEY HOSTS GOAL-LINE TECHNOLOGY TESTS FOR ENGLAND FRIENDLY - express.co.uk
Sir Geoff Hursts strike at the old stadium, in the 1966 World Cup final, famously brought the issue to prominence as to whether a ball had crossed the line.
Having successfully come through a raft of scientific tests at Southamptons St Marys Stadium last month, the
final hurdle is a series of live tests before the vote in July on whether to licence the system.
The game will be Roy Hodgsons final preparation for Euro 2012.
But the referee will not be able to use the technology to make decisions which will affect the game.
The special watches which receive the goal signal will be worn only by independent testers and FIFA officials.
Source: www.express.co.uk
Sussex RNLI warning over warm weather tombstoning - BBC News
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has warned of an increase in people jumping off piers and cliffs into shallow waters in Sussex over the weekend.
They fear the warm weather will seen a rise in so-called "tombstoning".
The RNLI said that taking part could lead to serious injury or death if a person misjudged the water depth.
In July 2011 a man suffered spinal injuries after jumping off Brighton Pier.
Mark Bell, from RNLI Brighton, said: "It's very difficult to judge the depth of the water beneath you.
"It's also surprisingly cold in the water, it's only around 10-11C at the moment and that can do all sorts of shocking things to your body when you jump in."
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Sussex budget plan may include tax rebate - Delaware Wave
GEORGETOWN -- Sussex County is considering a tax rebate that would effectively cut county property taxes by 7.8 percent in the coming fiscal year.
Because of a 2011 budget surplus, a 3.5 cent property tax rebate is in the fiscal year 2013 budget unveiled Tuesday. To be eligible, property owners must be current on tax payments. The proposed budget keeps tax rates steady at 44.5 cents per $100 of assessed value.
Overall, the draft budget submitted to the Sussex County Council devotes $121.1 million to operating expenses and capital projects, which is down from $140.1 million in the current budget. Most of the difference comes because of the loss of federal stimulus funds for expanding sewer systems.
The proposal includes a 2.25 percent cost-of-living raise for county employees and a smaller adjustment for retirees with pensions. It also increases grants to local law enforcement agencies to $25,000 per town, the highest level since 2009, and allows for employee merit raises.
"We took a hard look at merits to make sure they are justified when they are requested," said Sussex County Administrator Todd F. Lawson.
The county's real estate transfer tax, its largest share of income, has fluctuated in past years, cresting at $36.3 million in 2005. It's now projected to bring in $13.2 million, about the same level as last year. .
"I feel this is the new norm the county will live by," Lawson said of the projection for the transfer tax.
Increases in one part of the budget reflect pain and strife in the housing market. The county expects revenue generated by the Sheriff's Office to rise to $4 million, up from $2.8 million, with much of the increase generated by fees collected for handling foreclosures.
The county is scaling back its work to expand public sewer pipes now that about $20 million in federal stimulus money is going away. But capital spending for other projects is increasing by 50 percent to $13.2 million. The county expects to spend $4.5 million for improvements to the Sussex County Airport runway.
The budget also supports a plan to expand the public library in Greenwood and make improvements to the Milton and South Coastal libraries. In Greenwood, $3 million in state and county funds will go toward tripling the size of the current library.
Source: www.delmarvanow.com
Asda launches fitness drive - Marketing Week
Asda is launching a health initiative designed to get local communities more active and involved in sport as part of its partnership with the Government’s anti-obesity initiative Change4Life.
The supermarket has partnered with the Fitness Industry Association (FIA) in a bid to take advantage of the increased interest in sport around this summer’s Olympic Games.
Asda will host 20 large-scale community-sporting events in playing fields or green spaces close to Asda stores around the UK, where its shoppers can try out new sports.
It hopes to help families find cheap activities they can do in their local communities that fit into their busy lives.
The supermarket will work with local charities, County Sports Partnerships and FIA members to showcase sports events including Kwik Cricket, football, martial arts, volleyball and Zumba classes.
Asda Active: Getting Britain Moving will be funded by Sport England’s Sportsmatch which awarded funds to the FIA. It will also be supported by Change4life’s sub-brand Games4Life and will leverage the Department of Health’s Chage4Life programme.
The initiative will be promoted by an online marketing campaign led by Asda, plus a digital and social media drive. It will also be promoted through local marketing channels and local stores.
Asda and the FIA will also use the events, which they hope will attract 50,000 people, as a data capture opportunity to build up a consumer panel. The organisations hope to use the data gleaned from the panel to gain insight onto the barriers and motivations to getting more people, more active, more often.
The events will run this summer, starting during the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee bank holiday weekend.
Asda previously worked with the FIA as part of Change4Life’s ‘Great Swapathon” initiative which saw the supermarket distribute vouchers for discounted swimming and gym sessions.
Source: www.marketingweek.co.uk
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