Liam Hood strikes decisive late try as Castleford Tigers claim much-needed Super League victory at Hull FC on Friday night; win comes with Tigers head coach Ryan Carr still absent for personal reasons; Castleford arrest run of three straight losses in which they conceded 144 points

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Highlights of the Super League match between Hull FC and Castleford Tigers

Castleford Tigers ended a disastrous run in Super League with a late 18-14 win at Hull FC on Friday.

The Tigers had conceded 144 points in successive defeats to Wakefield, Warrington and Hull KR but bounced back at the MKM Stadium thanks to Liam Hood’s late try.

Castleford – whose head coach Ryan Carr remains absent for personal reasons – opened the scoring after 10 minutes when Renouf Atoni took a short ball at speed and Tom Weaver added the conversion

Liam Hood (right) struck late as Castleford Tigers won at Hull FC

Mikaele Ravalawa dived over to stretch the lead after Phoenix Laulu-Togagae had lofted a perfectly-weighted pass into the corner.

Weaver kicked a penalty to make it 12-0 but Hull launched a stirring fightback either side of the interval.

Jakob Arthur’s grubber kick was collected by Joe Batchelor and Aidan Sezer added the goal.

Hull claimed the lead as Harvey Barron took a high ball to touch down and Sezer sent over Lewis Martin in the corner.

But Hood burst over from dummy-half 12 minutes from time and Weaver enjoyed more kicking success as the Tigers climbed two places to ninth while Hull stay 12th.

Castleford Director of Rugby Chester: It’s been turbulent – I don’t know what situation is, the board will make call

Castleford Tigers Director of Rugby Chris Chester told Sky Sports:

“I’m not too sure [what the situation with Ryan Carr is]. My focus this week and certainly over the last few days has been getting these guys ready for a tough game against Hull FC.

“It’s been a really turbulent week.

“The board will make that decision when it’s right. My job has been to prepare these guys the best I possibly could and they showed some real heart out there and played for the badge tonight.

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Castleford Tiger’s Director of Rugby Chris Chester gives update on current verdict on head coach Ryan Carr’s job following his absence

“But I just want to say a few words on Danny Wilson [Castleford chief executive], who is laid up in bed, he hasn’t been well. We miss him here at the club.

“That win was for him.”

Sky Sports will show every game of the Super League live this season, including two matches each round exclusively live. The remaining five matches will be broadcast on Sky Sports+.

Liverpool’s owners Fenway Sports Group have sold a stake in Liverpool Football Club to a consortium including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

The world’s third richest person is part of the group fronted by former QPR co-owner Amit Bhatia. Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin is also part of the syndicate.

According to Sky News, the consortium has agreed to buy a roughly one-third stake in the club in a deal that values Liverpool at more than 7bn (£5.2bn). Closing of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

We take a look at some of the key questions surrounding what the deal could look like…

Who are Bezos and Bhatia?

Bezos is one of the most famous businessmen in the world and the owner of e-commerce giant Amazon, which he founded in 1994 out of his Seattle garage.

His other investments include aerospace company Blue Origin and venture capital firm Nash Holdings, which is the ownership vehicle for The Washington Post.

Bhatia is a 46-year-old British Indian entrepreneur, who has an investment banking background.

He currently manages a multi-asset investment firm called AyBe Capital which invests in range of diversified sectors including technology, media, property and real estate, consumer retail and health.

Bhatia is married to Vanisha Mittal Bhatia, who is the daughter of Indian billionaire Lakshmi Mittal.

He leads and manages 1892 Holdings, the consortium that has agreed the minority investment in Liverpool with majority owners Fenway Sports Group.

What are they worth?

Forbes estimates that Bezos’ personal fortune is in the region of $281bn (£209bn), making him the third-richest person in the world behind Elon Musk and Google co-founder Larry Page.

It’s unclear how much Bhatia himself is worth. But his father-in-law, billionaire steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, is worth an estimated £23.2bn according to Forbes. That makes him the 72nd richest person in the world.

What are their sporting interests?

Bezos is a big American Football fan and has previously been reported to have explored bids for the Washington Commanders and the Seattle Seahawks.

He is not known to hold a significant stake in any other sports team or enterprise currently.

Bhatia was just 28 when he joined the board of directors and became vice-chairman of QPR in 2007 after the Mittal family bought a 20 per cent stake in QPR, joining Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore as investors in the London club.

He spent five years as QPR chairman between 2018 and 2023 and stayed on as a director and co-owner until earlier this week when he transferred his stake in the club to majority owner Ruben Gnanalingam.

Through AyBe capital, Bhatia is an investor in TGL – Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods’ golf league which fuses golf and technology and features six teams with some of the best players in the world in a season-long competition.

His firm also invests in Switch Hitter, which is a media brand founded by Kevin Pietersen, delivering exclusive interviews and content with the world’s top cricketers.

Earlier this year, Bhatia’s father-in-law acquired a 75 per cent stake in the Rajasthan Royals Indian Premier League cricket franchise.

Why have FSG decided to sell?

FSG were under no pressure to sell but did indicate in 2022 that they were open to new investment in Liverpool, with the sale of a small stake to Dynasty Equity completed the following year.

Liverpool have enjoyed huge success under FSG, lifting every major trophy available to win.

FSG may think it is mission accomplished somewhat as far they are concerned, and therefore were amenable to fresh investment. They also stand to make a huge profit on their initial investment, with the deal for a 30 per cent stake worth more than five times what they paid for the entire club back in 2010.

How much have the consortium bought?

The consortium is acquiring a roughly one-third stake in the club.

Could the Bezos-backed group take over Liverpool?

Liverpool’s new minority investors have an option to become majority shareholders of the Premier League club for a valuation of around $8bn in the next 12 months, according to Sky’s US partner CNBC.

Sky Sports News has been told the agreement announced today includes a framework for future investment from the Jeff Bezos-backed consortium.

However, sources have stressed that the existence of such an agreement is not a guarantee of any future transaction.

Liverpool’s statement says FSG continues to retain majority ownership and operational control of the club.

What is the club valued at?

Liverpool are the fourth most valuable club in the world. The consortium’s investment in Liverpool values the club somewhere in the region of £5.2bn ($7bn), making it one of the sport’s richest-ever deals.

Who owns Liverpool?

FSG have complete operational control of Liverpool, but private equity firms RedBird Capital and Arctos Sports Partners hold minority stakes in the club. Dynasty Equity are also passive investors in Liverpool after injecting £164m into the club in 2023 in a deal valuing Liverpool at more than $4.5bn.

How much did FSG pay for Liverpool?

FSG were known as New England Sports Ventures when they paid £300m for Liverpool in October 2010 after a tumultuous period under former owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

When will the deal go through?

The deal – which was first reported on at the end of last month – has accelerated at a rapid pace. Now that everything has been agreed, the closing of the transaction will happen after regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions are met.

Who else is involved?

Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin and his wife Elaine are also part of the syndicate of investors. Saverin, 44, was part of a consortium which assembled an unsuccessful takeover bid for Chelsea during the 2022 auction triggered by Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

England opener Emilio Gay bagged a pair and Pakistan captain Babar Azam suffered an injury scare on an eventful second day of the Test match-warm up in Beckenham.

Gay, having been dismissed by Mohmmad Abbas on day one while batting for a County Select XI against Pakistan, snicked Mohmmad Ali behind on Friday to fall for a seven-ball duck.

The Durham batter had suffered a shoulder injury playing for his county in the One Day Cup earlier this month but his appearance in this game has probably allayed any fears over his fitness for the first Test at Headingley from next Wednesday, live on Sky Sports.

Babar, meanwhile, was struck on the right hand by a delivery from young Hampshire seamer Manny Lumsden and retired hurt on five from 17 balls.

A statement from Pakistan later said that the skipper would sit out the remainder of the game as a precautionary measure but that he will participate in the team’s practice session in Leeds on Monday.

Babar – whose side also play England at Lord’s (from August 27) and Edgbaston (from September 9) – struck one four in Beckenham batting in the No 4 spot.

Pakistan plummeted from 164-2 to 238 all out, in reply to their hosts’ initial 305 all out, as they surrendered a 67-run deficit on first innings.

England spinner Shoaib Bashir, hoping to be included in his country’s XI at Headingley, bagged figures of 4-76 from 20.2 overs, dismissing opener Imam-ul-Haq (37), middle-order man Salman Ali Agha (14) and then Aamir Jamal (8) and Ghazi Ghori (27).

Abdullah Shafique (61) top-scored for Pakistan, while Lumsden and Northamptonshire’s Saif Zaib picked up two wickets apiece for the County Select XI.

The home team extended their advantage to 195 runs by stumps after closing on 128-3 with James Rew (40), Caleb Falconer (52no) – the Middlesex youngster notching his second half-century of the game – and Zaib (24no) chipping in once Gay and opening partner Tom Haines (12) departed cheaply.

England vs Pakistan Test series fixtures

• First Test (Headingley) – Wednesday August 19 – Sunday August 23 (first ball 11am)
• Second Test (Lord’s) – Thursday August 27 – Monday August 31 (first ball 11am)
• Third Test (Edgbaston) – Wednesday September 9 – Sunday September 13 (first ball 11am)

Watch the three-Test series between England and Pakistan live on Sky Sports Cricket from August 19. Stream cricket and more sport contract-free with NOW.