A three-set win against Henman in the second round in Vienna in the early hours of last Thursday helped to raise Stepanek's ranking to No 14 in the world, and his 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 victory in the second round here yesterday will nudge him towards the top 10. When Greg Rusedski, the British No2, was beaten after three tie-breaks in the first round by Ivo Karlovic, he predicted the giant Croat would give Andy Roddick, the second seed, a hard time He was right Last night, the American was defeated 3-6, 7-6, 7-6. Few players have ever beaten Tim Henman twice within a week fewer still who have woken up with a stiff neck and wondered if they would make it to the court. Radek Stepanek, a 26-year-old Czech, fleet of foot and fast of hands, completed the double against the British No 1 at the Madrid Masters yesterday, though he rolled his head so much to ease the pain that it was a wonder it did not fall off. PRL says there was no such agreement with the RFU over the returning Lions.Leicester, who lost the tighthead prop Julian White for eight weeks after he was banned on Tuesday night for punching Newcastle's Andy Perry last week, learned yesterday that the loosehead Graham Rowntree could be out for up to six months after suffering a neck injury last Friday.The coach Frank Hadden yesterday named the Sale flanker Jason White as Scotland's 107th captain for the three autumn Tests against Argentina, Samoa and New Zealand.. According to PRL, England, through the RFU, are asking for more time with the players than they have already.The RFU has decided to withhold some £2.15m from the clubs including about £150,000 from three clubs - Wasps, Sale and Leicester - because their Lions players were in action inside an 11-week rest period following the end of the tour.
"There is no hope of us rolling over if the RFU throw money at us," the Gloucester owner said.One way to win over the clubs might be if the RFU were to scrap relegation for a set period - which would give the clubs more financial stability - or to reintroduce the play-off system, a deck stacked heavily in favour of Premiership clubs.Player release is one of the issues dividing both camps this season. The clubs are likely to resist calls to release their players for one of the four matches - not necessarily the All Blacks fixture. Tom Walkinshaw, the chairman of Premier Rugby Limited, which represents the 12 Premiership clubs, said: "We are under no obligation to release players for a fourth international, because that is in breach of the Long Form Agreement, which stipulates player release for eight internationals - three in the autumn and the five in the Six Nations." If the RFU tried to tempt clubs with cash incentives to release players for an extra Test, Walkinshaw was confident that they would be rebuffed. The power struggle for control of the game could come to a head when Twickenham stages a fourth autumn international next season against the New Zealand All Blacks to celebrate the opening of the new South Stand. "He is tough and durable, with great skills and a tremendous work ethic."Gene is in line to make his debut in the World Club Challenge against Wests Tigers in February, along with two recruits from Leeds, his 33-year-old countryman, Marcus Bai, whose signing is still to be confirmed, and the 30-year-old Chris McKenna..
Great Britain have flown to Spain for a four-day training camp before the Tri-Nations without two of their most influential players. The captain, Jamie Peacock, is having treatment after going into the Grand Final with a knee injury that saw him substituted twice during the game, and taking a knee in the groinat Old Trafford. His Bradford team-mate, Iestyn Harris, was also given permission to miss the trip, because he is awaiting the birth of his child.Bradford have continued their policy of signing veterans to defend their Super League title by recruiting Stanley Gene from Huddersfield.The 31-year-old Papua New Guinean utility player will arrive at Odsal on a two-year contract and will slot in at loose forward in a squad that is losing six of the players who contributed to this year's success."It's a great opportunity for me at this stage of my career to play at a big club," said Gene, who played for Hull KR and Hull before joining the Giants."Stanley is just the sort of player we are looking to bring to Bradford," said his new coach, Brian Noble. At the moment I'm just climbing the walls to get back into a car," said Legge. "Until I prove myself some more I know that both Champ Car and Formula One are out of my reach."The last woman to compete in Formula One was Giovanna Amati in 1992, but she failed to qualify for three races before being replaced by future world champion Damon Hill.Indy Racing League driver Sarah Fisher turned several demonstration laps behind the wheel of a McLaren at Indianapolis in 2002 but that run was merely a promotional exercise for a joint sponsor and did not constitute a test.. Growing up in England, it was always a goal of mine to drive a Formula One car.
