ON THIS DAY
1901: Snooker great Joe Davis was born. He won 15 world titles, starting with the inaugural competition in 1927, up to his retirement from the championship in 1946. He also won the world professional billiards title four times. He died in 1978.
1964: George Best made his debut for Northern Ireland, helping them to a 3-2 win over Wales in Swansea. He represented his country 37 times and scored nine goals but never played in a major finals.
1985: In an explosive contest, undisputed world middleweight champion Marvin Hagler stopped Thomas Hearns in the third round in Las Vegas.
1986: West Indies’ Viv Richards hit a Test century off only 56 balls against England on his home ground of St John’s, Antigua.
1989: The FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest turned into the worst tragedy in British sporting history, with 96 fans losing their lives in the Hillsborough disaster.
2005: Former Scotland coach Ian Mcgeechan announced he was quitting as the Scottish Rugby Union’s director of rugby to take up a similar post at Wasps.
2009: The England and Wales Cricket Board announced that former Zimbabwe captain Andy Flower had been appointed England team director.
2018: Manchester City were crowned Premier League champions as they took an unassailable lead in the title race following Manchester United’s 1-0 home defeat by West Bromwich Albion.
2020: Scottish clubs voted to end the Scottish Professional Football League season outside the top flight with immediate effect due to the coronavirus pandemic.
2022: Joe Root stepped down as England men’s Test cricket captain.