world News

THE Love Island All Stars winners have finally been revealed – scooping the £50,000 prize in a dramatic live final.

It’s been a season packed with drama, bombshells, and second chances.

Eroteme

Eroteme

In the end, Gabby and Casey stole the crown.

The couple beat fan-favourite pairs including Curtis Pritchard and Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu who came in third place, and Catherine Agbaje and Omar Nyame who were revealed in fourth place.

Also in the running were Elma Pazar and Sammy Root who came in fifth place.

Host Maya Jama made a jaw-dropping entrance into the villa, looking sensational in a daring cut-out dress as she announced the results to the final five couples.

Gabby and Casey looked stunned as their names were called, sharing a celebratory kiss as confetti rained down around them.

The couple, who found love in the South African villa, have gone from strength to strength – and now they leave with both each other and the cash prize.

Leaving together, Casey also gushed over Gabby and revealed he had already won.

He told Maya after finding out they had made the final two: “I absolutely adore her.

“She has just blown me off my socks since I got here. As soon as that first conversation I had with her it was game over for me.”

A dozen axed stars returned to South Africa and in a chaotic live final, islanders were seen and heard taking swipes at each other throughout the show.

Tonight, the finalists were also involved in some of the drama after Grace was accused of fakery.

TEXT MESSAGE ROW

Olivia Hawkins claimed she’d seen explosive text messages, allegedly from Grace, stating she had a game plan before entering the villa – and host Maya didn’t shy away from the conversation.

Before bringing it up with the warring pair, Maya told viewers: “It’s only our second year of All Stars and what a series it has been … it’s ended in complete chaos, just how we like it.”

The presenter said to Olivia: “Absolute scenes when you came into the villa the other day.

“The question we all want to know, do you have the receipts?”

The axed Islander doubled down on her comments and insisted she “had the reciepts.”

Olivia replied: “I’ve seen them, I’ve said what I’ve said. You know me, I’m very straight talking. I’m straight to the point. I honestly wish them the best.”

Grace retorted “I’m straight talking” adding “there were no receipts” and said she looked forward to “apparently seeing them”.

Elsewhere, viewers at home thought Sammy Root looked fuming that he came in fifth place after winning Love Island first time around.

One tweeted: “Sammy’s disappointed he didn’t win again! He thought Elma being favourite girl would get him the 50k.”

Eroteme

Eroteme

TRIBUTES, led by the Taoiseach, were paid to a former Fianna Fail TD, Cork Lord Mayor and Minister of State who passed away today.

Dan Wallace, 82, who has died after a short illness, served as a Cork North Central TD for 25 years before retiring in 2007.

The father-of-five was Minister of State at the Department of the Environment twice after serving as Lord Mayor of Cork between 1985 and 1986.

Mr Wallace was successfully re-elected in every general election since 1979, when he was first elected by Fianna Fail in local elections.

His retirement came in 2007 after serving 25 years in Leinster House.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin led tributes and said he was “deeply saddened” to learn of Mr Wallace’s death.

The Fianna Fail leader said: “I am deeply saddened to learn of the passing of my dear friend and former colleague, Dan Wallace.

“Dan was a dedicated public servant who gave almost 25 years of his life to representing the people of Cork North Central in Dáil Éireann.

“First elected in 1982, he was successfully re-elected in every general election until his retirement in 2007 – a testament to the deep trust and respect he earned from his community.

“Throughout his career, Dan was a tireless advocate for the people of the north side of Cork city.

“His passion for serving his people was unwavering, and he fought relentlessly to improve their lives.”

Martin added: “On a personal level, I will miss Dan greatly. As a young student, during the three general elections of the 1981-1982 period, I canvassed with Dan throughout Farranree, Gurranabraher and Blackpool.

‘NUTS AND BOLTS’

“I remember well the mixed grills that Ethel had ready for us when canvassing ended. I learned so much about the nuts and bolts of electoral politics from those days and from Dan.

“Since becoming leader, he encouraged me greatly and would text me advice on a regular basis. He knew my late father Paddy well as they both lived in Farranree.

“Beyond his many political achievements, those of us who had the privilege to work alongside him will always remember his quick wit, his warmth, and the great sense of humour that made him such a pleasure to serve with. He was not just a valued colleague but a cherished friend.”

Colleagues and friends have remembered him as being “one of life’s gentlemen” and a “highly regarded politician.”

‘SAD DAY’

One said: “A sad day for Cork and the history of the city, especially the Northside. He was of his era an era of a great generation who are now sadly aging or passing.

“I will always remember the days when I was young and a name always mentioned in the home was Danny Wallace. We will never see the likes of their generation again.”

Another one wrote: “Condolences to the Wallace family on the death of Danny. One of life’s gentlemen and a highly regarded politician. May he rest in peace.”

A third one added: “Such a lovely man. A proud Corkman, he was always true to his roots and beliefs.

FUNERAL DETAILS

“His contribution to the people of Cork will be long remembered. He is a real example of a life well lived.”

The former Fianna Fail TD died “peacefully in the tender care of the staff of the staff of St. Mary’s Ward at Mercy University Hospital”, an obituary notice read.

Mr Wallace is survived by his heartbroken wife Ethel (nee Sutton), family, and his daughters Fiona (O’Neill), Damian, Kieran, Nicola (Foley) and Andrea (Fitzgerald).

His obituary noticed added: “Sadly missed by his heartbroken wife, family, daughters-in-law Grace and Tracy, sons-in-law Roy, Shane and Kieran, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces, relatives, neighbours and a large circle of friends.”

Mr Wallace’s funeral arrangement details will be released at a later stage.

The muscle-flexing Memphis Grizzlies are in a tight battle for playoff positioning in the Western Conference. While the downright scary Oklahoma City Thunder have established themselves as the front-runners for homecourt advantage, the race for second place is wide open. Securing that spot could be the difference between a deep playoff run and an early […]

The post Ja Morant, Grizzlies geared up for 4-team fight in Western Conference playoff race appeared first on ClutchPoints.

The Tiger Woods-hosted Genesis Invitational wrapped up on Sunday afternoon. Swedish phenom Ludvig Aberg birdied the 18th hole to beat Maverick McNealy by one shot. But it was truly quite the comeback. McNealy birdied eight of his first 11 holes, including five straight. That helped him build a three-stroke lead on the back nine. Although […]

The post Justin Thomas’ hilarious reaction to Maverick McNealy prompts Ryder Cup plea appeared first on ClutchPoints.

The biggest name on the market this offseason in the NFL is Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett. The superstar defensive end requested a trade from Cleveland just before the Super Bowl after another very disappointing Browns season. The Browns were one of the worst teams in football this season and don’t seem to have a […]

The post Browns preparing ‘Hail Mary’ Myles Garrett offer despite trade request appeared first on ClutchPoints.

Team Canada got the job done on Monday afternoon in Boston, beating Finland 5-3 and booking their spot in the championship game of the 4 Nations on Thursday against Team USA. By no surprise, the legendary Sidney Crosby came through in the clutch when his country needed him most. The Pittsburgh Penguins star scored a […]

The post Sidney Crosby gets major praise from Team Canada HC after dominating Finland appeared first on ClutchPoints.

As the NBA prepares to resume action out of the All-Star break, plenty of narratives will be created. Conversations about the NBA Finals will continue, as will the playoff picture as a whole. The discussion about the NBA MVP award will also gain traction with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic looking like the clear two […]

The post NBA MVP Mondays: Donovan Mitchell enters the Top 5 appeared first on ClutchPoints.

KASPER SCHMEICHEL was on his way to the airport when the bad news broke.

His dream move to Bayern was off.

Reuters

Kasper Schmeichel will play against the club he almost signed for when he lines up for Celtic against Bayern Munich[/caption]

Getty

Schmeichel was set to stand in for legendary keeper Manuel Neuer while the German was injured, but the deal fell through[/caption]

AFP

The Dane has challenged his Celtic teammates to pull off the kind of underdog story he did when he won the Premier League with Leicester[/caption]

Two years on, he still isn’t sure why. All he knows is that fate has brought him here at last – with dreams of breaking hearts at the club generations of his family idolised.

On the eve of this monumental tie, Celtic’s 38-year-old keeper opened up on the deal he signed to replace injured legend Manuel Neuer, but which was never sealed or delivered.

Neuer was ruled out for ten months with a smashed tibia and fibula from in a freak ski-ing accident after Germany went out of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Schmeichel revealed: “There were discussions about me joining Bayern – basically, everything was kind of agreed and then it just fell through at the last second when I was on my way to the airport. 

“I’d spoken to the hierarchy and I knew what my role was going to be, it was keeping the seat warm until Manuel came back. 

“I was more than fine with that, to have played for a club of this stature would have been more than enough, so I said: ‘Send the contract, I don’t even need to know what it is, I’ll sign it anyway.’

“So, yeah, it would have been a dream come true, but it wasn’t to be.

“And look, it’s brought me here now with Celtic, so I’m very happy with that.

“It would definitely have been a dream to have played for a club like this, but it wasn’t to be and you’d need to ask them what the problem was.

“Sometimes life works in funny ways, though, as being here shows.

“Bayern is a club my family has followed forever, my grandfather was a great fan of theirs, so it came through that.

“He loved German football and Bayern Munich are kind of its flagship, so he always talked about them and it became a club I followed from an early age. 

“I have great memories of my dad playing in that Champions League Final against them for Man United in 1999, which was a very special occasion and a very joyful one for our family. 

“It’s great to play against them now, but it would be even greater if we could pull off something. 

“It would be a massive achievement, but I’ve been part of teams who’ve achieved things against the odds before, so why not?

“You have to leave everything out there.

“What has to go right? Almost everything, because you’re up against one of the best teams in the world.

“We go out with confidence, with hope, we’re in the tie and we’re not here to make up the numbers.

“It’s a huge task, but nothing worth achieving is ever easy.

“These occasions don’t just keep coming around, even though when you’re young you think they will.

“They’re the accumulation of all the sacrifice, of all the hours of works, all the times your parents drove you to games, they’re all so you have the chance to play on nights like this.

“To be play in arenas like this against the best in the world, that’s the dream when you’re a little kid.

“You’re running around pretending to be these guys, dreaming of being part of these occasions.

“You’re never going to get these days back, that’s why I just love them.”

Schmeichel doesn’t even try to hide his admiration for Neuer, his fellow 38-year-old whose comeback from that horrific leg break has earned him a contract extension until next summer.

He’s been a fan since they first faced each other in an under-21 international nearly 20 years ago.

Schmeichel said: “I’d heard about this guy that played for Schalke, he was already their captain and I remember him coming out to a good 2,000 Schalke fans behind his goal screaming his name.

“I thought: ‘Wow, this guy must have something.’

“So I followed him very closely and have come up against him a few times through the years for different clubs and for our national teams.

“He’s one of the best keepers ever to play the game.

“He revolutionised the position, he took the sweeper keeper to the extreme.

“Incredibly effective, incredibly brave, a level of bravery I’ve not really seen many other goalkeepers have. 

“His technical ability? Wow.

“He doesn’t have weaknesses, just so many strengths, he’s so complete in every aspect. 

“By the way, I don’t like the term old, I prefer experienced – and experience is the greatest thing you can have in this game.

“If you’re physically still able, with 800-900 games under your belt, that’s the greatest thing you can have.”

And then there’s Harry Kane, the former Leicester City team-mate whose strike at Parkhead last Wednesday night took his career tally against Schmeichel to NINETEEN.

Asked what he thought about Vincent Kompany‘s self-confessed smokescreen about the striker’s fitness for tomorrow night, the Dane just smiled and said: “He’ll play…”

He went on: “He’s one of these guys I really admire because watching him when he was at Leicester, when he’d come through same kind of system as me by continually going on loan as a youngster, you could see the drive, you could see the determination. 

“This guy wanted it, he wanted it more than anyone. 

“He went back to Tottenham, got his chance and he’s flown from there.

“I love playing against him, I love playing against the best because they test you, they challenge you.”

Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page

SON HEUNG-MIN has told Roy Keane: You are wrong about James Maddison.

Midfielder Maddison made it clear Keane WAS the target of his ‘shush’ celebration after netting the winner against Manchester United on Sunday, with a TikTok video posted later that night.

Getty

James Maddison directed his darts celebration at Roy Keane[/caption]

Getty

He shushed the former Manchester United captain[/caption]

It came after Red Devils icon Keane, 53, belittled the oche-obsessed star’s ability last week, saying: “Maddison isn’t bad, when he’s not at the darts.”

Now Tottenham skipper Son has leapt to his team-mate’s defence, revealing the pair discussed the stinging criticism and how to prove it to be wide of the mark.

South Korean international forward Son, 32, said: “Everybody has an opinion but I don’t care what they say.

“Madders is one of the best team-mates I’ve played with in my career.

“In big games, he steps up and scores goals, that’s why we’ve missed him.

“Me and Madders had a chat about this because he’s always had a good personality and been able to move on.

“He’s shown people that it’s wrong. He showed great character and put on a great performance.”

Keane’s comments about Maddison went viral — to the point where they even caught the Tottenham midfielder’s attention.

CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS

United’s legendary Treble-winning captain Keane claimed: “If you think he’s going to come back and get Spurs into the top six, you’re in cuckoo land.

“He’s a talented player. But if you’re a player in Spurs’ dressing room and Maddison’s back in the squad, you wouldn’t be looking and going, ‘He’s back, we’re going to be fine’.”

Keane’s dig appeared to fire up Maddison against the Irishman’s old club, as he returned from three weeks out with a calf problem to net the game’s only goal after just 13 minutes.

England star Maddison then hit back with his celebration where he made a ‘talking’ gesture with his hand before his trademark darts-throwing routine and then shushed Keane with his finger.

He did not name who it was aimed at in his post-match interview.

But it became clear later that evening with a video posted on social media platform TikTok.

The footage started with Keane’s criticism, then fellow pundit Ian Wright urging Maddison to “silence” the former midfielder’s damning verdict, before a clip of Maddison’s goal and celebration to the backdrop of amusingly dramatic music.

Maddison, who attended the Bafta Awards after-party on Sunday night, was one of four Spurs players to return from injury against United along with goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario and subs Brennan Johnson and Wilson Odobert.

After a long three months with so many absentees, Spurs’ problems look to be easing with Dominic Solanke, Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven hopefully back soon.

Son paid tribute to youngsters like Archie Gray, 18, and 19-year-old Lucas Bergvall for stepping up over the winter in the absence of the injured senior pros.

The Tottenham captain added: “I don’t want to dwell on our dreams or blame anything on us missing our main players.

“In the period of time they have been out, everyone at the club should appreciate the job the young players have done and never forget all the tough moments they have faced in the last two-and-a-half months.

“They didn’t deserve it but they have handled it really well.

“Now it’s the turn of the senior players to step up.”

YouTube @ stick to footbll

Keane had a pop at Maddison on Stick To Football[/caption]

Getty

Son Heung-min stood by his vice-captain[/caption]

A FAN says he bought two tickets for an Arsenal match — and found they were given free to Gunners star Gabriel Martinelli.

 Nathan Shaw, 51, paid £350 for the pair of tickets clearly marked “Player Complimentary”.

Getty

Arsenal insiders said Gunners star Gabriel Martinelli had not applied to use the tickets[/caption]

They were for seats in the away end for his team’s 2-0 win at Leicester on Saturday.

He said that after buying them, he was called by a club official saying they were originally allocated to injured £180,000-per-week Brazilian striker Martinelli, 23.

But last night, Arsenal insiders said Martinelli had not applied to use the tickets.

They were put in a central pot and redistributed to a ­contractor who asked for some. Sales manager Nathan, from Hawkhurst, Kent, snapped the tickets up from website Livefootballtickets for £175 each.

He had failed to get two of the 3,200 seats in the away end for himself and pal Cillian Oliver when Arsenal sold out their allocation of the £30 tickets.

Nathan, who has a season ticket for home games, got a message from the site telling him to pick up the tickets at a collection point at Leicester’s ground before the match, and to bring ID.

The message named a club worker.

Our source said the contractor had given the tickets to a pal who sold them to the site.

Nathan said: “I was delighted to get tickets but stunned when I picked them up and they were clearly complimentary ones given to a player.

“I got a call as well before the game, and the guy told me they were Martinelli’s.

“I don’t blame Martinelli and suspect he might have just not used them and someone else has sold them on. I doubt he needs the money.”

There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by Martinelli, who did not travel to the ­Midlands.

Arsenal and the site were approached for comment.