Former Ireland flanker Stephen Ferris believes a British and Irish Lions game in Belfast would be "brilliant" for Ulster supporters who have been unable to attend matches over the last year.

The Republic of Ireland, England, Wales and Scotland are also possible hosts.

"To see the Lions playing in Belfast would just be superb," said Ferris.

"It would be brilliant for supporters, particularly Ulster supporters who have missed out on so much rugby over the last while."

The Lions are scheduled to visit South Africa in July and August with a three-Test series against the world champions.

However, some of the tour's details, including its location, are yet to be finalised given the global pandemic, with a final decision expected this month.

With Rugby Australia's bid to host the series having been turned down, there are four options remaining which include staging the series in the UK and Ireland and playing in South Africa with matches behind closed doors or limited crowds.

A postponement until 2022 or a cancellation are also possibilities.

Ferris says he cannot see the tour going ahead in South Africa this summer, but believes Belfast is a viable option to host a game given the UK's vaccine programme.

Since the start of the pandemic, Ulster have played games at their Kingspan Stadium home both behind closed doors and in front of limited crowds.

"Six months ago, it would have been unimaginable to even think about the Lions coming to our home country and playing in front of avid rugby fans," added Ferris, who scored tries in his two Lions appearances against the Golden Lions and the Free State Cheetahs in the 2009 tour to South Africa before injury ended his chances of a Test jersey.

"There's no possibility, in my opinion, from reading all the sources, of the tour going ahead in South Africa.

"Financially, everyone wants to see this going ahead. People want to go to matches and the vaccination rollout has been very good so far in the UK in general and especially here in Northern Ireland, so if we can all pull together, then why not?

"I think everybody would welcome the Lions coming to Northern Ireland.

"It would be brilliant to see some top-quality rugby players putting on their best show in, maybe not a sold-out Kingspan Stadium or Windsor Park, but fans will hopefully be there to support the lads and watching the cream of the crop play at a fantastic level."

Ferris, who earned 35 Ireland caps during his career, added that while his preference would be to see the tour postponed until next year, he does have a desire to see "top-quality rugby being played this summer".

"Personally, I would love to see it postponed and for it to be played in South Africa for the home advantage that would give them.

"The crowds, which I've experienced myself, are really tough to play under down in South Africa, 60 or 70,000 fans screaming at you.

"It's a tough place to play rugby so I think bringing the tour to the northern hemisphere would be a huge advantage to the Lions.

"Personally, I'd love to see it played next year, but unfortunately I don't dictate those things."

Ireland forwards coach Paul O'Connell believes Gregor Townsend has created the strongest Scotland team he will have ever faced as a player or coach.

"There's no doubt Scotland are an excellent side," said O'Connell.

"They're well coached, very physical, and they've got some real X-factor players as well, such as Finn Russell and Stuart Hogg," added O'Connell.

Scotland stunned England 11-6 at Twickenham to kick-start the Six Nations and the former Munster and Ireland lock also hailed head coach Townsend for adding an under-appreciated physical element to his team's exciting attacking play.

"I think any team that's coached by Gregor Townsend always attacks really well, but going back to his Glasgow days they always have an incredibly physical edge.

"You think sometimes if a coach is into attack his teams won't have a physical edge, but every single Glasgow team I played back in the day were excellent attacking sides but they were physical as well. And it's the same with this Scotland side now.

"So much of the good attack in the Autumn Nations Cup and the start of the Six Nations has come from Scotland. And then they are very, very physical as well.

"It was a fantastic performance by them against England in the first game, an excellent set-piece performance that laid a real solid foundation for them to go on and win.

"I think it's the best Scottish team I've ever gone up against, as a coach or a player. So I think they are in a very, very good place and we're very aware of the challenge."

Leinster flanker Josh Van der Flier must pass head-injury return to play protocols to contest selection for Sunday's Murrayfield trip, but otherwise Ireland have a fully fit squad.

Andy Farrell's charges will be itching for top form and victory in Scotland, having lost out 21-16 in Wales and 15-13 to France in Dublin.

'Tough challenges ahead'

The 48-10 win over callow Italy in Rome on February 27 offered some respite and plenty of cheer, but O'Connell knows full well that the final two fixtures - against Scotland and England - pose an entirely different challenge.

"These next two weeks against a resurgent, confident Scottish side, and an English side we've struggled against in recent months and years, it's a real tough challenge now, the last two weeks," said O'Connell.

"I think we've taken confidence from some of the things we've done in the last three games; we've probably been unlucky in some regards and we haven't helped ourselves in other regards.

"We've probably given sides a leg-up when we've played them at times and that's something that we just can't afford to do going forward in the next two weeks.

"You have to be hard to beat, you can't give things away to teams.

"Unfortunately we've done that a little bit and the next two weeks that's one of the most important parts of what we have to deliver.

"We can't give things away, we can't give teams a leg-up, because this Scottish team will take advantage of that."

DALLAS – In celebration of Women’s History Month, Heinricher Racing, the first female race team owned by Jackie Heinricher, has teamed up with Odessa Jenkins, the first black female owner of a nationally recognized sports league Women’s National Football Conference.

Today 96.4 percent of sports marketing dollars are spent on men’s sports – but women control 75 percent of all household spending decisions. Additionally, 40 percent of all sports participants are women yet only four percent of all TV coverage is focused on women’s sports. Both Heinricher and Jenkins recognize the marketing and business power of women’s sports.

“In racing, the car does not care if you are a man or a woman,” said Heinricher. “The car just wants to go fast. And with 95 percent of all racing marketing spent on men, yet 50 percent of all racing fans are women – it’s time to help brands see the power in women’s sports – and with this partnership we are here to take it to the next level.”

The power sporting duo launches their partnership at a time when companies are learning new ways to engage with diverse audiences and the power behind women sports fans and their retail spending. The combination of the marketing power of two of the most popular sports in America, football and racing, provides a unique one-stop marketing program for advertisers.

“In order to go where we have never been, women have to do what has never been done. This partnership between WNFC and Heinricher Racing is about combining our marketing power for brands that want to align with women’s sports and an entrepreneurial spirit,” said Jenkins. “It’s an honor for me to join Jackie and am I truly excited for the future of women’s sports.”

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Six NASCAR Cup Series teams were issued penalties for lug nut infractions on Tuesday, which included a one-race suspension for Stewart-Haas Racing crew chief Mike Shiplett.

Shiplett, the crew chief of the No. 41 Ford driven by Cole Custer, had two unsecured lug nuts after the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday. As a result, Shiplett was fined $20,000 and suspended for one race.

In addition, five other Cup Series crew chiefs were fined $10,000 for having one unsecured lug nut after the race. They were:

• No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford (crew chief Rodney Childers)
• No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford (crew chief Luke Lambert)
• No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota (crew chief Ben Beshore)
• No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota (crew chief James Small)
• No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford (crew chief Greg Erwin)

There were also one lug nut infraction each in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

Jason Trinchere, crew chief of the No. 16 Chevrolet driven by A.J. Allmendinger to victory in Saturday’s Xfinity Series race, was fined $5,000 for one unsecured lug nut. In the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Halmar Friesen Racing crew chief Trip Bruce was fined, $2,500 for one unsecured lug nut.

DENVER -- - This was a promising sight for the Colorado Avalanche: Nathan MacKinnon going through on-ice drills in an optional practice.

The speedy forward with the accurate shot appears on track to be back in the lineup Wednesday night against Arizona after missing the last three games with an upper-body injury.

It's a big lift for a banged-up team.

"I do expect him to play," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said after practice Tuesday. "He's our on-ice leader and we need that offensive punch."

The injury report remains extensive even with crossing MacKinnon off the list. The Avalanche are without defensemen Conor Timmins (upper body), Dennis Gilbert (facial surgery), Bowen Byram (upper body), Cale Makar (upper body) and Erik Johnson (upper body). They're also without forward J.T. Compher (upper body) and goaltender Pavel Francouz (lower body).

Hence, the need for an optional practice. Bednar just can't afford to tire his players out. So on Tuesday some rode, while others got treatment or went through stretching exercises. There were players who logged ice time, including MacKinnon.

He hasn't played since leaving the game in the third period at San Jose last Wednesday following a hit near his head. Sharks forward Joachim Blichfeld drew a two-game suspension for the contact.

The Avalanche have gone 1-1-1 in MacKinnon's absence, including a 3-2 loss to Arizona on Monday.

"To get him back in the lineup, the speed element, leadership element, a big-time game changer," said forward Jayson Megna, who was recently recalled from the Colorado Eagles of the American Hockey League.

Megna was one of the players who took the ice for the optional skate. It was a chance to watch MacKinnon at work. MacKinnon has five goals and a team-leading 17 assists this season.

"Just getting to watch him, learn how he does some things -- stick handling, shooting, some of his edge work stuff -- is really beneficial to me," Megna said.

The Avalanche have outshot teams by a 102-69 margin over the three-game stretch without MacKinnon. They have nine goals to show for it.

"We're not capitalizing on enough of our chances," Bednar said. "Nate, when he gets into scoring areas and draws attention to himself, he's either usually ending up with a real good chance or his linemates are. It's going to be a big lift for us to get him back."

The Colorado defense has held its own despite being decimated by injuries. The Avalanche limited Arizona to just 14 shots on goal, which marked the 13th straight game they've kept their opponents under 30 shots. The team record is 14 in a row, from Feb. 21 to March 22, 2001.

As for Makar's return, Bednar didn't have a timetable. The standout blue liner has missed six games.

"Until I can hear from our medical staff or from Cale himself, that he's good or ready to play or gearing up to play our next game, then I don't know when that's going to be," Bednar said. "It could be as early as tomorrow or it could be two months from now. I have no idea.

"My statement last game was the only guy I'm convinced who's coming back tomorrow or anytime in the very near future is Nate, because that's the only guy I have information on that says, 'Yeah, I'm ready to go and I'm playing.'"

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Danny Willett withdrew from the Players Championship on Tuesday after testing positive for COVID-19.

Willett was replaced in the field by Kramer Hickok.

The 2016 Masters champion is the first Tour player to withdraw from a tournament because of the virus since Padraig Harrington at Pebble Beach. Willett is the seventh known player this calendar year who has been forced to miss time, joining Jim Herman, Jhonattan Vegas, D.J. Trahan, Mark Wilson, Kamaiu Johnson and Harrington.

Ranked 69^th in the world, Willett is coming off a tie for 31^st last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. It was only his fourth start of the year.

Willett will now have to self-isolate under CDC guidelines.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Dustin Johnson didn’t fret over his worst finish since last July.

He had already diagnosed the problem.

“I didn’t drive it my best and so I played pretty poorly,” he said Tuesday at The Players. “Pretty simple.”

Though far from disastrous, Johnson’s last five rounds have stood out considering his red-hot form coming in.

Sunday at the Genesis Invitational, with a chance to win, Johnson shot over par in the final round for the first time in a year. At Concession, he was spotted before the tournament with about five drivers on the range. He didn’t find the answer – he ranked 59^th in strokes gained: off-the-tee on a course that was fairly forgiving off the tee.

Johnson tied for 54^th in the WGC-Workday Championship – his worst result since a missed cut at the Memorial in July. He came into the event with 11 consecutive finishes inside the top 11, including three wins. 

“Ball position was getting a little too far back, which causes me to hit it both ways,” he said. “It takes a little bit to work on that, but I fixed it and feel pretty good over the driver now.”

Johnson said he “drove it great” in a nine-hole practice round Tuesday at TPC Sawgrass, where he’s finished inside the top 20 in each of his past three appearances. Prior to that, he hadn’t been better than 28^th.

Despite woes on the field and a 2-4 record this past season, Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel said Tuesday he has not given football coach Jim Harbaugh a minimum win requirement for the 2021 season and that he's willing to think long-term with Harbaugh's employment.

Manuel gave Harbaugh a contract extension in January that will see him coach the Wolverines through 2025. The new deal has a reconfigured salary and bonus structure that reduces Harbaugh's base salary to $4 million in 2021 from slightly over $8 million in 2020 but allows for him to add up to $3.475 million in bonuses each season.

"Given the contract, obviously I am willing to be patient," Manuel said. "But he and I understand that we need to win. This is Michigan, nobody wants to win more than Jim in football, and me overall. We want success, so did I put a number to his first year? The answer is no."

Manuel said he didn't have a backup plan going into extension conversations with Harbaugh and went into the meetings as he does with every other head coach at Michigan. The two spoke about how to move forward and improve the team.

Part of that process for Harbaugh has been adding assistant coaches to the roster, including co-defensive coordinators Mike Macdonald and Maurice Linguist, linebackers coach George Helow, running backs coach Mike Hart and quarterbacks coach Matt Weiss.

"Very proud of the work [Harbaugh has] been doing with the staff that he's put together," Manuel said. "Some new and some consistent, but I'm excited about it. He and I have talked; spring ball is going very well.

"I have not had a chance to go to any spring practices at this point, but I have talked to him and I'm excited about what I'm hearing from him, the level of excitement, the level of engagement by the student-athletes and staff, it is all positive, and that's what we need."

Manuel spoke to Harbaugh this offseason about staff changes, providing some input, but said he ultimately left decisions on personnel up to Harbaugh.

While there is excitement around the new faces, Manuel knows it needs to translate to wins on the field. He can't predict the future and what will happen during the upcoming season, but he is encouraged by what he has seen and the conversations he has had with Harbaugh.

That has all led Manuel to have the confidence in Harbaugh into the foreseeable future without worry of a hot seat looming.

"I want him to move forward and build this and continue to drive us to have success in football," Manuel said. "Again, nobody wants to have more success in the sport of football at the University of Michigan than Jim Harbaugh. And so, for me, he has that flexibility, he has that space to continue to drive success here.

"Whether it's with his staff or recruiting, those things are, it's not a short-term play for me."

When asked what the expectation is for Harbaugh, Manuel simply replied, "Win."

TAMPA, Fla. -- Coach Bruce Arians made good on his word at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Super Bowl boat parade, when he told inside linebacker Lavonte David, "Your ass ain't going nowhere."

The Bucs on Tuesday agreed to terms with David on a two-year deal worth $25 million, with $20 million guaranteed, sources told ESPN, keeping one of the league's premier inside linebackers from hitting free agency.

The move comes just a few hours after the Bucs franchise-tagged wide receiver Chris Godwin, whom Arians also told at the parade, "Your ass ain't going nowhere, either."

David, who has quietly been one of the league's better inside linebackers since he was drafted by the Buccaneers in the second round of the 2012 draft, missed only seven total snaps during the 2020 season.

He registered 117 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, an interception, 6 passes defensed, 3 forced fumbles and 2 recoveries during the regular season, and he added 26 more tackles and a sack in the postseason as the Bucs won Super Bowl LV.

The longest-tenured player on the team and a captain for seven consecutive seasons, David, who turned 31 in January, is looked up to in the locker room and is largely credited for the development of Devin White, who enjoyed a breakout sophomore season in 2020.

In his nine NFL seasons, David has 1,124 tackles, 24 sacks, 128 tackles for loss, 55 QB hits, 12 interceptions, 52 passes defensed, 24 forced fumbles, 16 fumble recoveries and 3 defensive touchdowns.

Paul Pierce, Chris Bosh, Chris Webber, Michael Cooper, Lauren Jackson, Ben Wallace and Yolanda Griffith are among the finalists in the 2021 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class, announced Tuesday on ESPN's The Jump.

Pierce, a first-time nominee, spent 15 of his 19 NBA seasons with the Boston Celtics, winning a championship and Finals MVP in 2008. He's a 10-time All-Star and second on the Celtics' career scoring list behind John Havlicek.

Bosh was first nominated with the 2020 class but was not named a finalist. His playing career ended unexpectedly in 2016 after 13 seasons due to a blood clot issue. Bosh, an 11-time All-Star, two-time NBA champion and Olympic gold medalist, officially retired in 2019 as a member of the Miami Heat.

Webber, the No. 1 pick in 1993, was a five-time All-Star in his 17 NBA seasons and a primary part in Michigan's "Fab Five," whose legacy has reshaped college basketball for more than two decades.

Cooper spent 12 seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers as a member of the "Showtime" era, winning five championships. He was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 1987 and was named to the All-Defensive team five times. After his playing career, he went on to coach the Los Angeles Sparks, winning two championships and WNBA Coach of the Year in 2000.

Jackson is one of the most decorated women's players, winning WNBL MVP honors four times and WNBA MVP three times. She is a three-time WNBA scoring champion and seven-time WNBA All-Star, won Defensive Player of the Year in 2007 and was named WNBA Finals MVP in 2010 as she led the Seattle Storm to a championship.

Wallace, one of the greatest defenders in NBA history, was a four-time All-Star. He won a championship in 2004 with the Detroit Pistons. With a career average of only 5.7 points per game, Wallace was named to six All-Defense teams and is one of two players (Dikembe Mutombo being the other) to win four Defensive Player of the Year awards.

Griffith, an eight-time WNBA All-Star, won a WNBA championship in 2005 and was named Finals MVP with the Sacramento Monarchs.

Five-time All-Star Marques Johnson and five-time All-Star Tim Hardaway are also finalists.

Also named a finalist in this year's class: coach Rick Adelman, the ninth winningest coach in NBA history; Villanova coach Jay Wright, a two-time NCAA champion; coach Marianne Stanley, who led Old Dominion to an NCAA title in 1985; coach Leta Andrews, the all-time winningest high school coach, male or female.

NBA legend Bill Russell is a finalist as well, but in this case as a coach. Russell, who was inducted as a player in 1975, was the first Black head coach in the NBA and led the Celtics to back-to-back championships in 1968 and 1969.

Notable nominees who did not make the cut for the 2021 class: Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Becky Hammon and Swin Cash.

The entire class of 2021 will be unveiled during the NCAA Final Four, scheduled for early April.

The 2021 class is set to be inducted in Springfield, Massachusetts, in September. The 2020 enshrinement ceremony -- for a star-studded group headlined by Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett -- was rescheduled and relocated and is set for May 13-15 at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut.