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The culmination of two years of Jewish sporting achievement will be recognised at the Maccabi GB awards on Sunday evening.

The Junior, Senior and Team accolades features a healthy spread of sports on the list of nominees. For me, the Junior category is the most intriguing with some top-class candidates in the reckoning.

Track et Field star Richard Goodman looks a good bet after putting himself on the map over the past two years. If you remember, he was my star of the 18th Maccabiah Games after bringing home double gold and only last week he became the Under 17 National Cross Country.

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An eleventh-hour reprieve prevented the MSFL from losing another team after Premier Division South Manx were taken over by Craig Edwards.

Following an embarrassing 12-2 mauling by first division Oakwood in the JC Cyril Anekstein Cup, Manx manager John Nitka resigned and it appeared that the team would become the sixth to fold this season.

Developments took a twist overnight when former player Craig Edwards agreed to return to the club and take charge. Edwards said: ?I will bring in some new players this week and we will stick it out for the last few games and rebuild.?

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London Maccabi Lions A, Lions B, Oakwood and Montana Boca United A have booked their places in the last eight of the JC Cyril Anekstein Cup.

Goals from Mike Pearson (2) and Ricky Kennet helped Lions A past Redbridge B. Lions B overcame top-flight rivals Hendon B 3-2. Ben Kon and an own goal put Hendon in the box seat, but Jonathan Green, James Stanley and Ricky Rinder sent Lions through.

Oakwood hotshot Anthony Kintish destroyed South Manx, claiming eight goals in a 12-2. Rob Davidson, Vic Librae, Dan Ash and Dan Geey grabbed the others to set up a trip to Faithfold A.

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AC Whetstone went top of the Under 13 Division One after inflicting HMH Purple's first defeat in a nine-goal thriller.

David Clements, Sam Grossman, Alex Woffenden, Joshua Silverman and Jonah Gordon Boyd netted for Whestone. Hendon Hawks A overcame HMH Blue to reach the Under 10 Challenge Cup final.

Josh Weiler plus an extra time winner from Joel Gottlieb set up a final against HISHU Blue on March 21.

London Maccabi Vale have been drawn away to Beaconsfield in the first round on May 2.

The Middlesex Sunday League team are running pre-season nets at Queens School in Watford from March 9 until April 27. For details email Adam Brand at abrand@firstunion.co.uk

Craig Ellis, one of Jewish football's great stalwarts, was described as a "great leader of men" by former Charlton Athletic manager Les Reed, on the night 150 people attended his testimonial dinner.

Reed, who worked with Ellis as head coach of last year's GB football squad at the Maccabiah, was one of several high-profile figures at the dinner, which included a question and answer session with Tony Adams.

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Glenthorne United A opened a four-point gap at the top of the Division One table with a 5-2 victory over North London Raiders. Elliot Mullish (3), Jason Levy and Stewart Block were the marksmen. Jonny Summerfield (2) replied for the Raiders.

London Maccabi Lions A were held to a 2-2 draw by South Mancunians. Andy Millar and a penalty from Nick Baum accounted for the Lions goals. Darren Coon and Mark Powell scored for Manx, who also missed a late penalty.

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Maccabi Masters Select XI 6-5 Glasgow Maccabi (AET)

Peter Morrison Maccabi Masters came back from the dead to win a sensational Peter Morrison Trophy last-16 tie, thanks to an extra-time strike by sub Laurence Swerner.

The balance of the match, which saw a hat-trick from Mark Wagman, constantly swung, with Glasgow coming from 2-0 down to lead 3-2, before Masters went 4-3 up. Glasgow then led 5-4 early on in extra-time before Masters struck twice more.

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Marc Sidney broke the bench-press world record on his way to becoming the British champion at Horncastle Golf et Country Club in Lincolnshire.

Competing in the Masters 2 (45-50 years) category at 125kgs bodyweight, Sidney, 47, from Hampstead Garden Suburb, lifted 206kgs.

He finished third overall at the British Championships and first in his class.

Having set the British record last April, Sidney is looking forward to the European Weightlifting Championships in Malta. He said: ?It's coming together nicely after a year of
training.?

Jewish youth rugby is alive and well after three players from local clubs were selected the Middlesex Under 15s 1st XV.

JFS Year 10 boys Abel Leaman and Adam Driver and Sam Isaacs from Merchant Taylors were in the starting line-up for their County's opening match of the season against Sussex in Brighton.

Lock forward Leaman and scrum half Driver, who both play for Harrow RFC in Stanmore and outside centre Isaacs, who plays for local rivals Watford-based club Fullerians, have also been selected for the RFU National Elite School of Rugby at London Wasps.

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Hamas on Thursday released a British reporter held in its Gaza enclave, the only foreigner to be arrested in the territory since the Islamist group seized power in June 2007.

A clean-shaven and apparently healthy Martin told reporters on the Gaza side of the Erez crossing with Israel that his release was a "great victory for the freedom of the media."

"I've been through a lot in last few days and weeks," he added, before being whisked to the crossing in an armoured vehicle.

Harry Redknapp, the Spurs manager, has expressed his fears for the future of the English game.

He told a Jewish Care business breakfast: ?Good, young British footballers are a dying breed. We're seeing more and more foreign players and foreign owners. Soon it will come to the point where every Premiership club has foreign players and owners. They come from a background where they are all winners but the only problem is that there can only be one winner.

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The father of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit on Wednesday urged Europe to use heavy aid to pressure the Palestinians into releasing him.

Noam Shalit told AFP that the Palestinians would struggle to "ignore" a resolution calling for the now 23-year-old to be freed, which is due to be voted on by European parliament lawmakers in Strasbourg, France, on Thursday.

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Joel Nathan will manage Team GB's junior football team at next year's European Maccabi Games in Vienna.

Nathan has been involved in junior Maccabi football for more than 10 years and led the Under 16 squad at last summer's Maccabiah Games.

Greg Bookman, manager of Redbridge Jewish Care A, will assistant Nathan. The former Wingate et Finchley player is widely regarded as one of the best young Jewish coaches on the circuit, having worked with a number of Professional Academies.

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Israel faces a World Group relegation play-off in September after losing 4-1 to Chile in the Davis Cup first round.

Israel will not know its opponents until after the second round matches in the Europe/Africa Group are completed on May 9.

In a match that started 24 hours late in Conquimbo due to the recent earthquake, Israel was always on the back foot. Both Dudi Sela (66) and Harel Levy (118) won the first sets in their respective matches against Nicolas Massu (92) and Fernando Gonzalez (10) but were each eventually downed by three sets to one.

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US Vice President Joe Biden said after talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday that Washington's commitment to Israel's security is "absolute, total, unvarnished."

"The cornerstone of the relationship is our absolute, total, unvarnished commitment to Israel's security," said Biden, who was in the region to encourage indirect Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and discuss international efforts to halt Iran's nuclear drive.

Israel unveiled plans Tuesday to work with its Arab neighbours to build a nuclear power plant in a project aimed at meeting the region's energy needs and promoting peace.

Israel has already chosen a site for the nuclear reactor -- the first to be put to civilian energy use -- in the northern part of the Negev desert, said Israeli Infrastructure Minister Uzi Landau.

"Nuclear energy can be an area of regional cooperation with the objective of promoting peace," Landau told a Paris conference on the civilian use of nuclear power.

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