Grandstand Live: November 18 - ABC Online

Updated November 18, 2012 13:25:33

Welcome to Grandstand Online's rolling weekend coverage, where we go around the grounds to keep you up-to-date with scores and interviews from across the nation.

Later today, Jamie Whincup will look to secure a fourth V8 Supercar championship should the points go his way in Winton; Ian Poulter and Adam Scott will shoot it out in the final round of the Australian Masters; while third and fourth-placed Newcastle and Perth will look to climb higher up the A-League ladder.

Coming up today:

• One-Day Cup: NSW v Victoria at North Sydney Oval (11:05am AEDT)


• V8 Supercars: Winton race two from 1:00pm (AEDT)


• A-League: Newcastle Jets v Wellington Phoenix (3:00pm AEDT)


• A-League: Perth Glory v Western Sydney Wanderers (4:00pm AEDT)


• As it happened: Saturday November 17

(All times in AEDT)

NRL

1:18pm: South Sydney has called a press conference for tomorrow morning, presumably to announce Rusty Crowe's departure. He and co-owner Peter Holmes a Court currently control 75 per cent of the club.

GOLF

1:12pm: ABC Sport's Steve Pearce is out on the fairways at Kingston Heath with Australian Masters leader Ian Poulter (13-under) and his playing partner, Aussie world number five Adam Scott (12-under).

He said it's a beautiful day on the course despite the rest of Melbourne getting some showers earlier in the day.

Looking forward to seeing how this final round shoot-out plays out. Another Ashes rivalry there, Drew Morphett reckons, and we love a good bit of Australia-England competition. Stay tuned.

CRICKET

1:03pm: The One-Day Cup action shifts from last night's belter at the WACA to North Sydney Oval today as New South Wales hosts Victoria. We'll be crossing back for updates both online and on the radio periodically throughout the day.

At the 25-over mark the Blues had reached 3 for 154 after the Bushrangers won the toss and sent them in to bat. New South Wales opener Scott Henry made a solid 61 alongside Brad Haddin, who hit 35 off 44.

The real killer though was Sean Abbott, who crushed 40 off 16 including four fours and three sixes. Someone tell him it's not a Twenty20 eh? North Sydney Oval's short boundaries certainly are getting a workout today.

Grandstand's Jim Maxwell, who's at the ground leading our coverage, reckons if you can't hit 15 to 20 sixes in an innings at the ground, you're not doing it right.

NRL

12:51pm: The gossip around Redfern is that Australia's favourite Kiwi-born frontman of The Ordinary Fear of God (and part-time actor) Russell Crowe is looking to sell his stake in the South Sydney Rabbitohs .

Rusty has been a part-owner in the club since 2006 and Fairfax reports that he'll hop off (geddit?) at the end of the 2013 season. The Bunnies declined to comment.

And who doesn't love this photo of the Gladiator? I sure do. How about the look of disdain on the face of the bloke in the background?

OVERNIGHT

12:45pm: In other results this morning, Sebastien Vettel will start in pole position in the US Grand Prix in Austin, TX, as he bids to become the youngest triple-champion in Formula One history. His Australian Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber qualified third-fastest.

In the Davis Cup final, the Czech Republic is 2-1 up after shocking Spain in the doubles rubber. Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek put their singles exertions behind them to beat Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez in four sets.

And in overnight Test cricket, India is well on top after day three against England in Ahmedabad, while Sri Lanka had Rananga Herath to thank for putting New Zealand in a spin on day one in Galle. Last night, the West Indies also beat Bangladesh in some thrilling day five action.

• Vettel sweeps to Texas pole, Webber in third


• Czechs stun Spain in Davis Cup doubles


• England battles but faces uphill struggle


• Five-wicket Herath puts Sri Lanka on top


• Five-star Best helps Windies rout Bangladesh

PREMIER LEAGUE

12:35pm: Results in the English Premier League went Manchester City and Arsenal's way this morning, with the defending champions thrashing Aston Villa 5-0 at Etihad Stadium.

The result was doubly good as bitter rivals Manchester United lost 1-0 to Norwich, while Chelsea slipped up at in-form West Brom.

Read the story - City goes top as Chelsea, United stumble

Meanwhile in the North London Derby, Arsenal romped to a 5-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur, thanks largely to Emmanuel Adebayor's stupid red card. Soon after the Togolese striker opened the scoring for Spurs, the former Gunner received his marching orders for a bad tackle on Santi Cazorla. The Gunners went on to a comfortable win and leapfrog their London rivals in the EPL ladder.

RUGBY

12:30pm: Meanwhile our neighbours across the Tasman enjoyed a 42-10 win over Italy despite fielding a mostly experimental All Blacks side, while South Africa cruised to a 21-10 victory over Scotland.

France continued its good form with a win over Rugby Championship travellers Argentina.

• All Blacks demolish Azzuri in Rome


• Boks hold firm for win over Scotland


• Clerc shines as France beats Argentina

12:15pm: The big result overnight came at Twickenham where the Wallabies went a long way to saving face after last week's Parisian punishment.

Australia helped itself to a 20-14 win over England - sporting an absurd 'regal shade of purple' outfit - with Nick Cummins scoring his first try in Test rugby to help the visitors on their way.

Berrick Barnes also chipped in with four penalties and a drop goal to confirm Australia's Cook Cup win.

Read more here - Wallabies hit back in style against England

The Aussies take on the Italians in Rome next week.

12:10pm: Hello again and welcome back for a second helping of weekend sport action. I'm Adrian Crawford and I'll be at the helm once again to take you through this sporting Sunday. As usual there will be plenty going on and I'll be putting all the latest results and Grandstand interviews on a plate for your consumption, as they happen.

For the tweeters out there, there'll be the usual questions and polls to keep you amused throughout the day, with the best responses and mentions getting featured on the blog.

Topics: a-league, soccer, australian-touring-cars, motor-sports, nbl, basketball, sport, australia

First posted November 18, 2012 12:15:59