National sport - Maghull & Aintree Star

Blues boss backing Benitez

Birmingham manager Alex McLeish paid tribute to Christian Benitez after he inspired his side to a 2-1 triumph at Portsmouth last night.Read

Wenger tells young Gunners to focus

Arsene Wenger has called on his young Arsenal side to focus on eliminating their own "weak moments" rather than get obsessed with the chance of revenge against Manchester United or Chelsea in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.Read

Robben strike sends Bayern through

A stunning strike from Arjen Robben fired Bayern Munich into the quarter-finals of the Champions League at the expense of an unlucky Fiorentina who won 3-2 on the night but lost on away goals following a 4-4 aggregate scoreline.Read

Jerome at the double

Birmingham gained revenge for their weekend FA Cup exit against Portsmouth after sending the Premier League's bottom club closer to relegation with a 2-1 triumph at Fratton Park.Read

Rangers see off Killie

Steven Whittaker's impressive goalscoring form continued as Rangers restored their 13-point advantage at the top of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League with a 2-0 win at Kilmarnock.Read

Bendtner inspires five-star Gunners

Nicklas Bendtner's hat-trick helped Arsenal make history in emphatic style at the Emirates Stadium by overturning Porto's first leg lead to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League with a 5-0 (6-2 on aggregate victory) win.Read

Bent hat-trick gives Black Cats win

Sunderland's Darren Bent served up a priceless hat-trick for watching owner Ellis Short as their 4-0 win over Bolton finally ended their wait for a Barclays Premier League victory at the 15th attempt.Read

Pienaar shrugs off rumours

Steven Pienaar has dismissed reports suggesting he may be on his way out of Everton as "speculation".Read

Grand Slam stands out for O'Driscoll

Brian O'Driscoll collects his 100th cap for Ireland admitting his career has been invigorated by last season's Grand Slam triumph.Read

Delve facing Super 15 dilemma

Recalled Wales forward Gareth Delve is weighing up the possibility of joining England castaway Danny Cipriani in Australia next season.Read

Fergie expects supporting role for Becks

Sir Alex Ferguson expects David Beckham to be consigned to the AC Milan bench for his emotional Old Trafford return.Read

Robinson demands performance in grudge match

Andy Robinson insists inside knowledge alone will not be enough for Scotland to beat his native England in Saturday's Calcutta Cup clash at Murrayfield.Read

Difficult dilemmas for Johnson

England manager Martin Johnson described his selection decision for Saturday's Calcutta Cup showdown with Scotland as the toughest of his 18-month tenure.Read

Klitschko brothers keen to face Haye

Vitali Klitschko will defend his WBC heavyweight title against London-based Pole Albert Sosnowski on May 29 - and then flip a coin with brother Wladimir to decide who fights Britain's David Haye.Read

Flower still expects KP to blossom

Andy Flower watched a number of players enhance their Test credentials in the drawn warm-up against Bangladesh A but is still anticipating a major contribution from the man who conspicuously did not.Read