England and Lancashire County legend Jimmy Anderson has officially called time on his international career after retiring from Test cricket on Friday afternoon, and there was barely a dry eye in sight as he bid goodbye at Lord’s.
Anderson announced his retirement from England back in May and has now played his farewell game for his country, as well as claiming his final wicket with a win over the West Indies on the last day of the first Test. An era really has come to an end.
Helping thrash the Windies by innings and 114 runs, the 41-year-old Burnley-born bowler finished on 704 Test wickets in 188 matches over the course of 21 years – and it could have even been a nice round 705 had he not spilt a very simple catch.
Regardless, it was a humorous way to put a bow out following one of the most revered careers in English cricket, and today was only ever about saying goodbye as the heartwarming guard of honour he received before the game.
Admitting that he had already “come to peace” with retirement and that now is the right time to step aside and play his part as England ushers in the next generation, Jimmy has already joked that he’s looking forward to playing some more golf.
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However, thankfully, it isn’t ta-ra forever as the national team and LCCC veteran has already confirmed he will soon join the backroom staff to help develop future fast bowlers.
Anderson is also yet to confirm whether he will retire full stop and end his time at Lancashire, with head coach Dale Benkenstein stating that currently “it’s not a no” and they will simply do their best not to pressure him into making the decision either way.
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The embrace between him and long-time teammate, not to mention, best mate Stuart Broad was also one that had people in the ground and watching at home welling up.
As did this moving montage.
Congratulations on an unbelievable career and thank you for the memories. 🥹👏
With fans looking back on his truly remarkable tenure, one particular statistic we loved was shared by BBC’s Henry Moeran, who broke down that “supposing Jimmy Anderson’s run-up is about 19 yards, and he’s bowled 40,002 deliveries in Tests… that’s 760,038 yards or 430 miles”.
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As he added, by chance, this just so happens to be “the distance on foot to walk from the Utilita Bowl [in Southampton] to Chester-le-Street [Durham] via every Test venue in England.”
Fair to say he’s put in the hard yards of the best two decades.
Anderson was ultimately met with a standing ovation not only from everyone in the dressing at Lord’s but the entire cricket ground itself as he savoured his final moments in England whites.
We’re not crying, you are…
Jimmy's family and the whole of Lord's rise to applaud a true legend of the game 🥰
As the man himself has already reiterated, he feels as good bowling as he has ever done, so we’re still holding on to the hope that this isn’t the last dance altogether, and even if a dream return to England one day is off the table at this point, he can still shine for Lancs with the likes of 2024 T20 Blast ongoing.
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But for now, we bid Jimmy Anderson a heartfelt farewell and congratulate him on all of his incredible achievements playing for England – we hope he enjoys a little more downtime from here on out.
Naturally, he signed off in the best way he knew how…
See you later, legend, and we’ll cheers one to you at the pub later on.
Featured Images — England Cricket (via Instagram)/Sky Sports (via screenshot)
Sport
MCR Basketball to play special knockout game for the 2026 MOBO Awards in Manchester
Danny Jones
Manchester Basketball are set to play an exclusive knockout game here as part of the official MOBOs Fringe events for 2026, with this year’s awards coming to Co-op Live.
There’s a place in the last eight if they can seal a victory, too.
After what feels like a tricky couple of years for Greater Manchester’s main basketball franchise, things look to be on the up for the local team.
Rebrands and rebuilds aside, the Super League side is gradually climbing back up the standings, and with their European North Basketball League (ENBL) campaign still going strong, they could book their spot in the quarters with a win ahead of a big partnered evening in just a few weeks.
Set to face off against Croatian outfit, KK Dubrava, from Zagreb on 10 March, just a couple of weeks before the MOBO Awards get underway in Manchester, the match will be one of several events that the organisation are collaborating with.
With this year marking the MOBOs’ 30th anniversary year and, like with the BRITs, our city set to host it for the first time ever, this special game sets the tone for what’s to come in and around event week.
Fans can expect not just the major red carpet moments, but live DJs spinning hip-hop and afrobeats (courtesy of DJ Kay and special guest, DJ G2), plus a live halftime performance from a MOBO artist.
It’s yet to be confirmed who’ll be popping up centre court, but watch this space…
In case you missed the previous announcements, the 2026 MOBO Awards will see global rap icon Eve and acclaimed comedian and broadcaster Eddie Kadi host the landmark night for the North, not mention lots of other exciting stuff throughout the full Fringe schedule.
Performances already confirmed on the night include rising British superstar Olivia Dean, as well as FLO and Tiwa Savage, with more still to come.
Better still, for MCR Basketball, they also have the Super League Cup final coming up over at the AO Arena next month, too.
Tickets for all of these events are live now and available to purchase as we speak.
However, with prices for Manchester Basketball vs Dubrava, specifically, priced at just £5, we don’t expect these ones to last long.
Once again, set to be hosted on Tuesday, 10 March at the National Basketball Performance Centre over in Belle Vue, the tip-off is set for 7pm; you can secure your seats HERE.
And in case you were wondering what other big competitive events are coming to Manchester, Co-op Live is booked for its first-ever big sporting final.
Featured Images — Peter Simmons/Publicity pictures (supplied)
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Kate Scott praised for impassioned speech following more racism in Champions League
Danny Jones
Football pundit and sports presenter Kate Scott has been met with plenty of praise for her ‘expert’ handling of the fallout following more racism in the Champions League this week, delivering an emotional and impassioned speech about discrimination live on TV.
The Manchester-born broadcaster, formerly Kate Abdo, was serving as the host on her usual CBS Sports panel on Tuesday, 17 February, when the story of the playoff game between Benfica and Real Madrid – which included a worldie from Vinicius Jr. – was overshadowed by more allegations of racial abuse.
In case you missed it, Argentine player Gianluca Prestianni was accused of making racist remarks by both Vini Jr and Kylian Mbappe, but supposedly covered his mouth so as not to be caught on camera; the match was then stopped for more than 11 minutes.
Speaking in the aftermath amid the following European fixtures the next day, the Withington-schooled journalist and University of Salford graduate delivered an eloquent reaction to the controversy with peak professionalism.
Absolutely pitch perfect, and all those involved in preparing the statement should be applauded.
While Scott herself recognised that it’s a shame we even have to keep talking about issues like these rather than the sheer simplistic beauty of, well, ‘the beautiful game’, her response is an example of the job being done at arguably its very best: factual, ethical, moving and inspiring.
As you can see, Scott goes on to say, “This isn’t Real Madrid versus Benfica – it is right versus wrong. Vini Junior and Kylian Mbappe said that there was repeated racial abuse.
“Gianluca Prestiani said they misheard, but he covered his mouth to hide what he said from the cameras, and hopefully, we can all agree that if what you are saying on a football pitch is shameful enough to have to hide it from the public, then you’re wrong.”
The Portuguese club, which ultimately lost 1-0 in their first leg at home on the night, have released a statement reaffirming their commitment to “equality, respect, and inclusion” but reiterates that they believe Prestiani and feel he is now the subject of a “defamation campaign”.
Conversely, in a definitive and emphatic closing message, she signs off by adding the following: “The racial diversity on a football pitch in the Champions League is the representation of the global love for this game and the global belonging in this game. This is the very spirit of football.
“And if you don’t agree, then respectfully, you are the one who doesn’t belong.”
This is what the Athletic is supposed to be. Telling important stories & giving in depth analysis. I hope this signals that it will be its focus moving forward.
From CBS ‘Golazo’ show being applauded for tackling the subject head-on, to Cross herself being labelled as everything from “a role model” and “a benchmark” to “the best on the planet” in the outpouring of reactions on social media, it’s fair to say they absolutely nailed it.
Sadly, this is one of many recent examples of prejudice being shared publicly across various UEFA tournaments and beyond in recent years, but the only way we can truly help anti-hate initiatives is by continuing to call them out.
Danny Jones -
12th July 2024 
