Leicester Tigers head coach Geordan Murphy has received a three-game ban for verbally abusing match officials.

The Irishman accepted two charges brought by the RFU following his side's 32-31 defeat by Bath in their final Premiership fixture on 18 May.

The 41-year-old will be banned for the first three matches of the 2019-20 season and not be able to coach.

Murphy has also been fined £1,500 and told to write a letter of apology to the match officials.

He has been ordered to write to referee Sean Davey, who was television match official at Welford Road, and send copies to the other officials at the game.

Murphy will also have to write an open letter to Leicester players and other staff apologising for his actions.

Tigers finished 11th in the Premiership this season after losing 15 of their 22 games.

RFU judicial officer Jeremy Summers said: "While the disappointment of the club's season is well known, criticising the TMO as Mr Murphy did was both wholly unacceptable and entirely inconsistent with the values of the game.

"Unfortunately match officials continue to be subject to improper attack, and those that find themselves before disciplinary panels in respect of such conduct should expect to be sanctioned appropriately."

ROSEVILLE, Calif. — Todd Gilliland will return to compete in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, joining with Bill McAnally Racing for Saturday’s race at Memphis Int’l Raceway.

Gilliland, a two-time champion in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West who now drives for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series, will team with BMR regulars Derek Kraus and Brittney Zamora.

Kraus, driver of the No. 16 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry that Gilliland piloted at BMR, leads the championship standings as the K&N East heads to the three-quarter-mile Tennessee tri-oval for the 150-lap event.

Gilliland will drive BMR’s No. 19 NAPA Power Premium Plus/NGK Toyota Camry at Memphis – filling in for Hailie Deegan, who will be competing in an ARCA Series race over the weekend at Pocono Raceway in Pennsylvania.

Gilliland, 19, has 19 career wins in NASCAR K&N Pro Series competition. He won K&N West titles with BMR and NAPA in 2016 and 2017.

He has one previous series start at Memphis. In that event two years ago, he appeared headed for a win; but a flat tire with less than 20 laps to go took him out of contention and left him to finish eighth.

Kraus – a 17-year-old NASCAR Next driver from Stratford, Wisconsin – has won two of the four K&N East races this year and has a four-point lead in the championship standings. He kicked things off with a victory in the season opener at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway and scored his other win in the second of two races of a doubleheader at South Boston Speedway in Virginia.

Zamora – a 20-year-old series rookie from Kennewick, Washington – drives the No. 99 NAPA Filters/ENEOS Toyota Camry. She also had a big weekend in the K&N West doubleheader at Tucson – winning her first career pole award, leading her first laps of competition in pacing the field for 26 circuits, and finishing third in just her fourth series start.

The Memorial Day weekend is now in the rearview, which means it is time for a new edition of the SPEED SPORT Power Rankings! Who is No. 1 this week? Click below to find out!

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – For the first time since 2010, the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will return to Martinsville Speedway in 2020 for the MaxPro Window Films 200.

The modifieds, which were a fixture at Martinsville for decades, will compete in a 200-lap race on May 8, 2020 as part of the spring race weekend.

“We get asked a lot about the modifieds a lot – from fans, from drivers, from media,” Martinsville Speedway President Clay Campbell said. “Now, we can say, ‘Yes, we will have them back next year.’ These cars are such an important part of Martinsville Speedway history and the time is right to bring them back.”

North Carolina-based Maxpro Window Films, an industry leader in window film technology, has signed on to sponsor the race.

“Maxpro Window Films is excited to be a supporter of and partner with Martinsville Speedway and NASCAR,” Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing Elizabeth Dillon said. “Not only are NASCAR fans a natural market for Maxpro’s automotive line of window films, but a lot of our employees and management team have deep roots in the Martinsville and Henry County area and we are proud to be associated with an organization with the history and tradition of Martinsville Speedway, so it’s a good fit for Maxpro.

“The modifieds have always been a fan favorite at Martinsville and Maxpro is thrilled to welcome them back for the Maxpro Window Films 200 and to sponsor their return. It’s always an exciting race and having it under the lights will be special. We look forward to an exciting weekend and we are thrilled to be part of it.”

The modified division first raced at Martinsville in 1960 and raced every year through 2002. Modifieds later returned to Martinsville in 2005 and competed at the track through the 2010 season. Virginian Ray Hendrick, who also is the career leader in overall wins at Martinsville with 20, is the all-time leader in modified wins at Martinsville with 13. NASCAR Hall of Famer Richie Evans is second with 10.

In qualifying for a 1986 modified event, Greg Sacks set the Martinsville Speedway track record for all divisions with a one-lap average of 101.014 miles-per-hour, a record that still stands.

“The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and Martinsville Speedway are a perfect match,” said Brandon Thompson, NASCAR Managing Director, Touring Series. “When you talk history and legacy – names like Evans, (Jerry) Cook and (Geoff) Bodine are synonymous with Martinsville. The Modified division and Martinsville Speedway are the cornerstones on which the sport was built. We’re excited about adding names like (Doug) Coby, (Justin) Bonsignore, and maybe even (Ryan) Preece – a new generation of Modified racing stars to the half-mile and look forward to being part of an incredible race weekend.”

The Maxpro Window Films 200 will add to an already exciting 2020 season at the historic half-mile speedway. The NASCAR Cup Series race will be under the lights in the spring, and the NASCAR Xfinity Series will return to the Speedway for the first time since 2006 as part of a triple-header weekend in the fall that will be the final race before the Championship Round of the NASCAR Playoffs for all three national touring series.

“I don’t know that I’ve ever felt this much excitement about an upcoming season at Martinsville Speedway,” Campbell said. “From the fans to competitors and media, it’s industry-wide excitement and we are all really looking forward to it.”

Gennaro Gattuso has left AC Milan by mutual agreement after 18 months in charge of the Serie A club.

"AC Milan wishes to thank Gennaro Gattuso for his leadership during the last eighteen months. A true legend of the Rossoneri, Gennaro stepped into the role during what was a difficult period for the club and has performed admirably, securing the Club's highest League points total since 2012-13," a team statement read.

The Rossoneri just missed out on qualification for the Champions League next season, finishing a point behind Atalanta and Inter Milan, and Gattuso said during an interview on Tuesday he no longer felt he could continue in the role.

"Deciding to leave Milan is not easy," he told La Repubblica. "But it's a decision that I had to take. There was not one precise moment when I decided, it was more a combination of all these 18 months as coach of a club who, for me, will never be like any other.

"I've lived these months with great passion and they have been unforgettable. It was a decision I found hard to take, but it is one I've thought long and hard about."

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Gattuso still had two years left on his contract, but he says he would not be seeking a settlement.

"My story with Milan can never be about money," he added.

Gattuso replaced Vincenzo Montella in November 2017 and he led them into the Europa League last season, repeating the feat in this, his first full season at the club.

Milan's 68 points this term is their highest single-season haul in six years, but it was still not enough to earn them a place in the Champions League, a competition they have not appeared in since 2013, when Massimiliano Allegri was their coach.

Milan CEO Ivan Gazidis thanked the former Rossoneri midfielder for his service to the club.

"I have had the privilege to get to know Rino Gattuso over the past six months since my arrival at the club," he said in a statement. "Rino has given everything to our efforts this season, and has worked tirelessly, always taking full responsibility, putting the club above every other consideration. I want to say from the bottom of our hearts, thank you Rino."

He leaves together with sporting director Leonardo, who stepped down on Tuesday after just one year at the club.

The former Paris Saint-Germain sporting director is reported to be in disagreement with Gazidis over the future running of the club and is being linked with a return to Paris.

Lancashire 47 for 2 (Jennings 26*, Payne 1-4) trail Gloucestershire 205 (Hammond 82, Mahmood 4-48) by 158 runs

No play was possible on the second day of the Specsavers County Championship match between Gloucestershire and Lancashire at Cheltenham.

Players arrived at the College Ground to find that a fierce storm the previous night had caused some water to seep through the covers, leaving a wet area on a length at the Chapel End.

Umpires Jeff Evans and Paul Pollard delayed the start and opted to make an initial inspection at 11.30am local time. Plans for a further look an hour later were abandoned because of a heavy shower and an early lunch was taken with the intention of another inspection at 1.30pm. By then more rain had fallen and play was abandoned for the day at 1.45pm amid continued concern that the nature of the pitch had changed.

Lancashire were due to resume their first innings on 47 for 2 in reply to Gloucestershire's 205.

Saqib Mahmood claimed 4 for 48 on the opening day, including the first three wickets of Gloucestershire's innings to stem a promising start by the hosts. There were two wickets each for James Anderson and Liam Livingstone, while Miles Hammond top scored with 82.

By the time bad light brought a close three overs early, Lancashire had lost Haseeb Hameed to a run out and Jake Lehmann, bowled by David Payne during an eight-over opening spell by the left-armer, which saw him concede only four runs.

Keaton Jennings remained not out 26 and Rob Jones was unbeaten on 14.

Retired defensive end Chris Long said Tuesday that his discussion last week about using marijuana shouldn't be viewed as an admission and that the reaction he has received has reinforced that "we have a long way to go" to overcome the stigma associated with the drug.

Long, who retired from the NFL last week after 11 seasons, discussed his comments made last week to "The Dan Patrick Show" on ESPN Radio's Golic & Wingo on Tuesday.

He said Tuesday that he hates "the word admission because I don't think you're admitting to using something that harmless, personally.

"I think the reaction has been interesting because even people that support you, it just shows the stigmatization is so ingrained. A lot of people like now are tweeting at me and every tweet is like, 'Hey man, are we gonna spark one up dude?' I'm like, chill with the stereotypes.

"Marijuana is a part of people's lives. It's not their life. And obviously then you have the minority, which is less than 10 percent of the responses I've seen, which are like, 'that stuff's the devil,'" he said.

He said the buzz he received from the interview wasn't a "good thing" because stories written about his comments buried the lead.

"The lead was not that I smoked marijuana. The lead was that I talked about trying to destigmatize it. And hopefully the NFL will hear some of their players talk -- former or current, if you have the balls -- to say 'something needs to change,'" he said.

The NFL and NFLPA announced new joint initiatives last week that could conceivably lead to a change in the league's attitude toward marijuana as a pain management treatment. A joint pain management committee will conduct research into pain management and alternative therapies, which could lead the league down previously unexplored roads.

"I think Roger (Goodell) is a guy who's trying to get out in front of things and hopefully this is no exception," Long said. "We're dealing with a generational stigma so you're used to your fans being old-guard people who bought into that stigma. I know some people struggle with it because marijuana, all the stereotypes are 'lazy, deviant people only smoke marijuana.' Well, if NFL players who are active in their community, are hard-working, they go absolutely nuts on Sunday and they play the game with violence and energy for three hours, that kind of challenges your stereotype. And it challenges the stereotype of football.

"I think at the end of the day, I would hope that they would consider lifting that kind of arbitrary ban. You've got one test a year; if you get tested more than that it's because you failed the test."

Long emphasized that he's not advocating marijuana just for pain management, saying: "Some guys want to get high. And what's worse: downing a six-pack of beer or smoking a joint?

"You get multifaceted benefits. If you have trouble sleeping, there's a lot of guys that need help sleeping. It's hard to turn your brain off after a 12- to 14-hour day of meetings and practice and abuse on your body and stress. Try coming home from a Sunday night game at 3 in the morning and not sleeping until the sun comes up," he said.

As for deciding to end his NFL career, Long said it "came down to deciding between staying in Philly in a situation that wasn't perfect -- and they were real upfront with me -- or starting over somewhere else." He said he considered Philadelphia "a second home."

"I joked that I could go play somewhere else and get carted off Week 3 and nobody cares. At least in Philly they'd give me a standing ovation or something. That's kind of the things that creep into your head," he said.

MINNEAPOLIS _ The Minnesota Twins have placed right-handed starter Michael Pineda on the 10-day injured list with right knee tendinitis and promoted Devin Smeltzer to take his place in the rotation.

The move was made Tuesday, with Smeltzer scheduled to make his major league debut against the Milwaukee Brewers.

The 23-year-old Smeltzer was acquired last season from the Los Angeles Dodgers in the trade for second baseman Brian Dozier. Smeltzer, a left-hander with a funky delivery, has a 1.15 ERA in nine starts this year between Double-A and Triple-A.

Pineda struck out six Brewers in six innings on Monday night. He allowed three runs and three hits without a walk. There was no sign of injury during or after the game.

Pineda, 4-3 with a 5.32 ERA in 11 starts this season, underwent Tommy John surgery in 2017 and also suffered a meniscus tear in his right knee last August that prevented him from returning last season.

Martin Perez, originally slated to start Tuesday, had his turn pushed back.

Major League Baseball's new format to elect All-Star starters is being put into place starting with the "primary" vote Tuesday, it was announced.

Voting begins Tuesday at 2 p.m. ET with a "primary" phase that includes a representative from each team at every position, including designated hitter in the American League. Primary voting will end at 4 p.m. ET on June 21, and the players with the three highest vote totals at each position will be announced that night on MLB Network.

The secondary phase, called "The Starters Election," will begin at noon ET five days later and last for 28 hours. The results, which will be reset from the primary, will choose catchers, four infield positions and three outfielders for each league and be announced on ESPN at 7 p.m. ET on June 27.

The remainder of the 23 players for the American League and 24 for the National League, including all pitchers, will be selected by player vote as well as AL manager Alex Cora of the Boston Red Sox and NL manager Dave Roberts of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The full rosters will be announced June 30 at 5:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

MLB is partnering with Google in the online-only voting system. Searching "MLB Vote" on Google will take fans to the ballot, which also can be cast via MLB.com and multiple MLB mobile apps.

The All-Star Game is scheduled to be played at Progressive Field in Cleveland on July 9.