SPORTS DIGEST

SCoTlAnD will break new ground by appointing joint bosses following the departure of long-serving head coach Steve McCormack. John Duffy (Featherstone) and Chris Chester (Wakefield) will share the job as they succeed McCormack, who stepped down after the 2017 Rugby league World Cup after 13 years in the role. The first opportunity for Duffy and Chester will be the end-of-season European Championship. That event features matches against Wales, France and Ireland and doubles up as a qualifying tournament for the 2021 World Cup. ‘Steve did such a fantastic job,’ said Duffy. ‘They’re big shoes to fill but I’m looking forward to it.’ The 37-year-old is sure sharing the role will not be a problem, adding: ‘We’ll work it between us. He’s a great coach and he’s done a great job at Wakey. I look forward to working with him.’ An accident that left a motorcyclist in a critical condition marred stage five of the 2018 Giro d’Italia. The incident took place shortly before the race began yesterday, with reports in Italy stating that a car drove through a roadblock. A helicopter airlifted the stricken motorcyclist, who was working at the Giro d’Italia, to a nearby hospital, while the driver was arrested as the race was delayed by 15 minutes. It was otherwise a successful day for Italy, whose riders have now won three of the five stages, although the overall race lead remained unchanged. Enrico Battaglin edged out Giovanni Viscont to take the stage victory. Portugal’s Jose Goncalves finished third, with Simon Yates of Britain coming in fifth to retain third place overall, 17 seconds behind leader Rohan Dennis. Chris Froome is 55 seconds off the pace.