This year’s Tour de France has been packed with plenty of action and there’s a big reason that plenty more Brits and Mancs, specifically, have been watching: two of the best riders this year are a couple of brothers from Bury.
If you’re not clued up on the cycling world then you might be forgiven for not knowing the names Adam and Simon Yates and even for those clued up, the blokes from Bury were still considered relative outside contenders before the start of the race.
Nevertheless, the two twins from the Greater Manchester borough have been battling it out right at the top end of the competition and while the current two frontrunners are comfortably ahead of the pack as we head into stage 11, the Yates brothers are still well in contention for top 10 finishes.
If they play their cards right for the remainder of the tour, they could even take third and fourth. Who knows? It’s a long old race.
Emerging as leaders in the opening stage on Saturday, 1 July, Adam Yates took control of the yellow jersey after the first 113 miles with brother Simon in tow right behind him, meaning that there was a one-two finish for the Mancs on the opening weekend.
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Adam ended up finishing in 21st after stage two and behind Simon but retained the yellow jersey and did so right through to stage four after once again finishing first in stage three and still registering a strong time the following day, with Simon still boasting third in the standings at that point.
The leading Bury brother eventually conceded the yellow jersey but only dropped down to fifth overall with the slower of the two Yates sat not far behind in seventh. In fact, by stage seven, Simon had overtaken Adam before the pair swapped places once again.
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Regardless, the two have stayed within touching distance of each other throughout and have been delighting fans back home. Here’s Adam Yates reacting to his first stage win — safe to say, he was a bit knackered…
A delighted but exhausted Adam Yates reflects on his Tour de France stage win 🗣 pic.twitter.com/73S7Bkblq4
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) July 1, 2023
Adam finished fourth in his breakthrough season at TdF 2016 and became the first Brit to win the Vuelta a España in 2018.
Thankfully, the Yates boys happily traded back and forth, sharing each other’s slipstream and maintaining their momentum and have continued to help each other in spells despite under different banners — Adam racing for UAE Team Emirates and Simon with Team Jayco-AlUla.
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Better still, the brothers haven’t let the competition get in the way of the usual familiar banter, posting images with captions like, “Pesky younger brothers hey…” and even a bit of self-deprecation, with Simon joking that he is the “slowest man to ever wear the green jersey.”
Here’s hoping they finish the Tour de France 2023 nice and high and can boast some colours come 23 July. Keep it going lads, us Mancs are right behind you!
Featured Image — Tour de France/Simon Yates/Adam Yates (via Instagram)
Sport
Manchester Storm’s ‘own and loan’ scheme returns for 2026/27
Danny Jones
Manchester Storm have relaunched their much-loved ‘own and loan’ programme once again ahead of the 2026/27 season.
Having gone from a cult favourite option for die-hards to an increasingly popular choice among their growing number of supporters, it’s a great way for fans to get their hands on what could go on to be priceless collectables.
Set up over a decade and a half ago, the initiative has gone on to be replicated by multiple clubs in the Elite Ice Hockey League, across the country, and indeed beyond.
For anyone unclear on what exactly this scheme means for them, here’s all you need to know.
The own and loan sponsorship is essentially an opportunity not only to support the club and your favourite player, but to essentially reserve a valuable piece of match-worn memorabilia.
Put simply, fans can buy a squad member’s jersey and then loan it back to them for the season.
The shirt – be it home, away, created for cup tournaments or a special limited-edition sweater (of which MCR Storm have designed many over the years) – will then be worn throughout the course of the campaign before being given back to the owner, i.e. you.
Not just simply buying the shirt, but helping back the team’s talent, it’s one of the most direct ways people can contribute to the club.
The Greater Manchester side pioneered the push for this initiative here in the UK in the early 2010s, and with the local side now set to return to the AO Arena, where their journey began way back in 1995, you can expect plenty to mark the comeback with a special sponsored jersey.
Anyone who purchases an away strip will have their name featured throughout home games for the duration of the season – not a bad gift or way to secure a potential future collectors’ item.
You can see every player available to sponsor and find out all the information you need right HERE.
For regular matchgoers at the ‘Storm Shelter’, we’re sure it’ll be bittersweet to say goodbye to Planet Ice Altrincham, but just how excited are you about heading home to the AO Arena later this year?
Featured Images — Manchester Storm (publicity picture)/The Manc Group
Sport
League One set for an all-Greater Manchester playoff final as Bolton book trip to Wembley
Danny Jones
It’s official: we’re all set for a fully Greater Manchester League One playoff final as Bolton Wanderers are the latest to secure a return to Wembley against Stockport County.
The resurgent old Lancashire club clinched their spot in the knockout conclusion of the third division with a single strike in the second leg of the semis, and it wasn’t a bad finish, either.
Beating Bradford City 2-0 on aggregate, Bolton will now play familiar regional rivals Stockport, with Wanderers set to clash with County in a decisive derby once again.
Bolton‘s instinctive volley from Chelsea youth product and former Hull City man, Xavier Simons, resulted in some very satisfying limbs at Valley Parade.
The home fans did have plenty to cheer on the night, with efforts from Metcalfe, Power and Wright all either hitting the woodwork or being deflected just past it.
They thought they were level in the tie at one point after Kayden Jackson put the ball in the back of the net, but it was ultimately ruled out.
Agonising stuff for the Bradford supporters to burst into bedlam before the flag was raised for offside.
Many supporters will argue that the key moment came somewhat against the run of play, but The Trotters won’t care one bit as they book another trip down to the capital.
You can watch the rest of the highlights, including those scenes in the away end, down below.
Speaking even before the game, head coach Steven Schumacher told Sky Sports: “It’s a club we believe is bigger than this division, but this division is not easy to get out of.
“The expectation and the demand to get to the Championship is there, and once you’re in the building and you feel the mood when you win games, when you lose games, you can sense that this is a club that is desperate to get out and get to the next level.
“When you look at the size of both Bolton and Bradford and how well they are supported, both clubs are probably too big to be in League One. But that’s where both clubs find themselves, and one of us has got to find our way out of it if we can.”
You’d dare say he can practically smell promotion via the playoffs now; the local side has come quite a way since the lows of administration in 2019 and the bottom tier of the EFL – not without some heartbreaks in previous playoff finals – but could he be the one to get them back where they belong?
In case you missed the action from the other game, you can see more HERE, and to hear Schumacher’s thoughts after the decisive result, look no further…
Danny Jones -
12th July 2023 
