England winger Nikita Parris apologised to former teammate Eniola Aluko on Wednesday for her public display of support to former England coach Mark Sampson.

The moment occurred when Parris scored for England against Russia during a match in 2017. Sampson had been accused of racially abusing Aluko and another player, Drew Spence, but Parris ran to Sampson and celebrated the goal with her boss.

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An inquiry into Sampson’s comments at the time ruled that he was guilty and was sacked from his position a day after Parris’ celebration.

Parris, who plays for Lyon in France, wrote an open letter to Aluko and posted it on her twitter page. It read: “Eni, I am sorry that my thoughtless actions caused you hurt.

“At the time I focused more on what I believed was showing unity when really it did nothing of the sort, it showed a lack of empathy, understanding and ignorance by singling out a voice who needed an ear to listen and a support system to help.

“I am now able to understand how I have been part of the problem which I aim to fight and eradicate.

“I am a proud black woman, I understand I have a social responsibility to help create change through my platform.”

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Immediately after the incident, Aluko called the celebration “naive”. She also said: “Some of them may have a special relationship with Mark Sampson and they have every right [to celebrate with him], but I think about the sensitivity at that time, and it wasn’t respectful.”

The FA sacked Sampson for what they described as “clear evidence of inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour by a coach”.

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They also apologised to Aluko and Spence, ruling that Sampson “made comments that were “discriminatory on the grounds of race”.

After England, Sampson went on to coach at League Two club Stevenage in July 2019. In September he was accused of using racist language in a coaches’ meeting. He was charged by the FA in November of that year, but in January 2020 that charge was dismissed out of court with an FA independent commission dismissing the claim.

By Michelle Casady

Law360 (May 2, 2018, 9:58 PM EDT) — A federal grand jury in Houston has indicted a money manager on 16 criminal counts related to her role in a scheme that prosecutors say defrauded a National Football League player who was her former client out of more than $1 million.

Tonya Lynn Adkism, 44, was indicted on the charges on April 26 and made her initial appearance, alongside her attorney Cornel A. Williams, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Hanovice Palermo on Wednesday morning, according to court records.

Adkism faces a significant prison sentence if…

By Michelle Casady

Law360 (May 2, 2018, 9:58 PM EDT) — A federal grand jury in Houston has indicted a money manager on 16 criminal counts related to her role in a scheme that prosecutors say defrauded a National Football League player who was her former client out of more than $1 million.

Tonya Lynn Adkism, 44, was indicted on the charges on April 26 and made her initial appearance, alongside her attorney Cornel A. Williams, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Hanovice Palermo on Wednesday morning, according to court records.

Adkism faces a significant prison sentence if…

He also declined to comment on whether the IRFU had any prior knowledge of his attendance at Belfast Crown Court during his day off on Wednesday.

After two questions of Best’s regular pre-game engagement, the IRFU media manager stepped in to say that Best would only talk about tomorrow’s Six Nations opener against France at the Parisian venue.

Later, when asked if he was aware of the controversy on social media around his involvement due to his decision on Wednesday, the press officer again stepped in before Best could reply.

Best attended court proceedings alongside Ireland second-row Iain Henderson and Ulster team-mate Craig Gilroy.

Jackson and Olding are accused of raping a 19-year-old woman in June 2016, with Jackson also facing an additional charge of sexual assault. They both deny the charges.

A third man, former Ulster Academy player Blane McIlroy, is charged with indecent exposure, while ex-UCD and Belfast Harlequins player Rory Harrison is accused of perverting the course of justice and withholding information.

All four deny the charges.

When asked about Ireland’s unusual position as favourites in tomorrow’s game, Best said the team were not getting carried away.

“I don’t think the favourites tag is something we’ve talked about. By and large we give the opposition the respect we deserve, we treat every opposition as they come and study them,” Best said.

“Our record here hasn’t been great, we’ve stressed that to the guys who haven’t been here before. That Champ win four years ago came down to the wire, we got a slice of luck but you make your own luck.

“Our standards are very high, we’ve players who are used to winning and we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to perform and put pressure on each other.”