Rob Howley is "Wales' most decorated coach" and will be a loss if he follows Robin McBryde to Irish rugby, says Martyn Williams.

McBryde has been appointed Leinster scrum coach, while Howley has been touted as Munster attack coach.

Williams wishes both coaches were kept within the Welsh system after the 2019 World Cup.

"If he [Howley] ends up in Munster it is great for them, not for the Welsh regions," said Williams.

The pair have been key members of Wales boss Warren Gatland's coaching team for more than a decade.

Howley has been Gatland's assistant in three Grand Slam triumphs and a British and Irish Lions 2013 series win in Australia and draw in New Zealand four years later.

The former Lions scrum-half was also acting head coach when Wales won the 2013 Six Nations title with Gatland on a sabbatical.

Munster attack coach Felix Jones will leave the province in June and Howley has reportedly had an interview with the Irish province.

"Ultimately he is the most decorated Welsh coach in the history of the game," said former Wales flanker Williams.

"You show me a Welsh coach who has a better CV than Rob Howley. You are judged on what you win, your trophies.

"Rob has been there and won Grand Slams and Six Nations Championships and been part of successful Lions tours.

"He has been an easy target and copped a bit of flak but he has come through all that."

Williams believes Welsh rugby cannot afford to lose Howley and McBryde with no Welsh permanent head coaches at any of the four regions.

"I still think it's a shame that we might be losing Robin and Rob," Williams told the Scrum V podcast.

"They should still be in the system in Wales and they are better than a lot of coaches that are in the system in Wales.

"All of the stuff they have learned and picked up, just to let that go across to Ireland, there has to be some way of keeping them involved.

"That is where our system falls down and it frustrates me.

"I played with and was coached by both of them. They have learned on the job because they did not have much coaching experience going into the international environment.

"But I understand if they want to get out of the goldfish bowl of Welsh rugby.

"They might be looking at wanting to go to Munster and Leinster because there is more chance of winning things there."

Wayne Pivac replaces Gatland as the new Wales boss after the World Cup with defence coach Shaun Edwards turning down a new contract as he prepares to join France from next year.

Gloucester fly-half Danny Cipriani has been voted Player of the Year by the Rugby Players Association.

The 31-year-old has helped Gloucester reach the Premiership play-offs during his first season with the club, but has not played for England since June 2018.

Having been voted the RPA's Young Player of the Year in 2008, he is only the third man to win both awards, after Christian Wade and Jonny Wilkinson.

Cipriani's Gloucester team-mate Ollie Thorley won Young Player of the Year.

Following his move from Wasps last summer, Cipriani endured a difficult start to his time at Kingsholm, being fined for an assault in a Jersey nightclub in August and receiving a three-week ban for a high tackle against Munster in October.

But he has also produced a string of eye-catching performances, including providing spectacular try assists in the Premiership matches against Bath and Northampton Saints.

In April, Gloucester coach Johan Ackerman said he felt "sorry" that Cipriani - capped 16 times by England - had not made more appearances at international level.

He spent five and a half years out of the England side between November 2008 and June 2014, and almost a further three between August 2015 and June last year.

Cipriani signed a new three-year contract with Gloucester on 2 April.

Thorley completes Gloucester double

Winger Thorley completed a Gloucester double when he was named Young Player of the Year at the RPA awards ceremony, which were held at Twickenham.

Former Gloucester wing Jonny May, now with Leicester, was named England Men's Player of the Year, while Tigers stalwart Mathew Tait, who was forced to retire in February, won the RPA Special Merit award.

Prop Sarah Bern took the England Women's Player of the Year accolade for her part in their Grand Slam triumph, with the Sevens award going to Alex Matthews.

Will Muir won the men's Sevens award, while Northampton Saints' Jamie Gibson (RPA Gain Line award) and retired Saint Rob Horne (RPA Blythe Spirit Award) were also honoured.

CONCORD, N.C. – Chip Ganassi Racing has announced a partnership with Badger Sport, a leader in the development and production of high quality, affordable sportswear, to become the team’s Official Apparel Provider for its NASCAR and IndyCar programs.

Under the new partnership, Badger and CGR will create unique social and digital content featuring the team’s NASCAR and IndyCar pit crews throughout the season.

Established in 1971, Badger Sport is a member of Founder Sport Group. Badger Sport manufactures high-quality performance athletic wear for teams and organizations guided by a simple promise –Quality for All.

Badger Sport performance tees and shorts, hoodies and fleece, fashion polos, quarter zips and outerwear deliver no-fade colors, no-stink antimicrobial protection, and no-sweat wicking, guaranteed for life.

Badger Sport is sold through a network of team dealers, decorators and wholesalers throughout the United States.

“As a company, we pride ourselves on being known as an industry leader in quality performance apparel for all – guaranteed,” said Russ Neale, SVP, Founder Sport Group. “We are thrilled to partner with Ganassi as their commitment to quality, teamwork and speed align perfectly with our corporate values, and we know our products are battle-tested to perform under intense conditions like the NASCAR pit.”

“The quality of Badger’s product offering for our team at the race track was at the center of this decision as the apparel’s style, functionality, and most importantly, durability made them an easy choice for us to partner with,” added CGR COO Doug Duchardt. “We’re also happy to showcase our NASCAR and IndyCar pit crew members in both of our social and digital content.”

CONCORD, N.C. – Kyle Busch will begin his assault on a second consecutive Coca-Cola 600 victory in a patriotic No. 18 M&Ms Toyota Camry that was unveiled Wednesday at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

As a prelude to the historic 60th running of the Coca-Cola 600 on May 26 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Busch revealed the look for his Toyota in addition to meeting Dona and Gene Griffin, the parents of fallen Army Sgt. Dale Griffin.

Griffin, who lost his life in 2009 during Operation Enduring Freedom, will be honored by having his name adorn Busch’s windshield as part of NASCAR’s 600 Miles of Remembrance program throughout the Coca-Cola 600 race weekend.

“It means a lot,” Busch said. “Having the opportunity to work with NASCAR and NASCAR Salutes to honor and remember our fallen who have given their lives to give us our freedom. It means a lot to have our Memorial Day weekend race, the Coca-Cola 600, at Charlotte because it’s our home and to have the opportunity to carry a fallen (military) member’s name on our race car is the ultimate honor.

“Being able to meet those families and spend time with them, hear their stories and hear who we’re honoring is what means so much to me and the rest of the field.”

Speedway Motorsports Inc. President and CEO Marcus Smith said the 60th Coca-Cola 600 promises to create lifelong memories for every fan through its spectacular pre-race salute to the military and the thrilling race that will follow.

“We take a lot of pride in the Coca-Cola 600 being the biggest celebration of all those who have served and who currently serve our nation’s military,” Smith said.

As part of Wednesday’s festivities – which also included a salute to Coca-Cola on National Have a Coke Day – Charlotte Motor Speedway revealed its plans for a 30-second moment of remembrance following Stage 2 of the Coca-Cola 600.

Once the green-and-white checkered flag flies, cars will be bunched up and led down pit road, where their engines will be shut off as the entire crowd observes a moment of silence in honor of the fallen American soldiers who gave their lives to preserve freedom.

Gene Griffin, Sgt. Griffin’s father, said that his son’s legacy will be enhanced thanks to Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing, NASCAR and Charlotte Motor Speedway with his name on Busch’s car and the emotional mid-race moment of remembrance.

“I’m overwhelmed,” Gene Griffin said. “I’m so thankful for everyone who’s willing to stop and remember those who paid the ultimate price. We’ve been so blessed with the relationships we’ve created here. We’ll carry this in our hearts forever.”

TOLEDO, Ohio – In 1981, 40-year-old Joe Gibbs started his professional football head coaching career with five straight losses, enduring a tough start before his Washington Redskins team recovered to win eight of their final 11 games.

Now, nearly four decades later, Gibbs’ grandson is trying to rebound from his own series of near-misses to capture his first major-league stock car victory.

Ty Gibbs, still just 16 years of age, made his ARCA Menards Series debut at Five Flags Speedway in March. He stayed in the fight all night long and made a pass for second in the final corner of the final lap.

In his second start, four weeks ago at Salem Speedway, the young Gibbs recovered from a spin to finish sixth. He crossed the line second in the most recent ARCA Menards Series race at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville.

While all of those results are nice, they aren’t what Ty Gibbs wants. He wants to win.

Not yet old enough to be eligible to race for the overall series championship, the teenager will compete for the Sioux Chief Short Track Challenge championship. The series within the series takes place on all tracks, paved and dirt, one mile in length and under.

The Sioux Chief PowerPEX 200 at Toledo Speedway will be the fourth start of Gibbs’ brief ARCA career, as well as the next race he is eligible to run at his young age.

Gibbs has tested a couple of times at the Glass City half mile last year in an effort to familiarize himself with the cars raced in the ARCA series. He will test again on Monday to work on race day setups and to continue to acclimate himself with crew chief Mark McFarland.

“Last year we came to Toledo Speedway to get some seat time in the ARCA car and some laps on the track knowing that we were going to be racing here during the 2019 season,” said Gibbs. “I was really surprised at how fast the track was but feel like I was able to learn some things that will help me when we get to the race weekend.

“I know Mark (McFarland, crew chief) and the No. 18 team will have a fast Monster Energy Camry and we’ll be ready to battle for the win at Toledo.”

Unlike his grandfather, who lost those first five games handily, Gibbs has come out of the box strong. In addition to his strong performances in the ARCA Menards Series, he also won a late model event at Myrtle Beach Speedway to start the season off on the right foot.

“The 2019 season has started out awesome, with a late-model win in Myrtle Beach and second at New Smyrna for the K&N East race and at Five Flags and Nashville for my first ARCA races,” noted Ty Gibbs. “I feel I did a lot of preparation during the off season to make sure my fitness and driving skill set stayed sharp and I was ready to get in the car and contend for wins each week. I had a rough time a few weeks ago at Salem and didn’t finish where we wanted to, but I’m ready to rebound at Toledo.”

With a limited number of opportunities to win in 2019, Gibbs is forced to maximize every chance he has behind the wheel. That’s not to say he feels extra pressure to perform. He places a lot of pressure on himself, just as every driver in his position would.

One person that doesn’t put any added pressure on him is his grandfather.

“Coach has always supported me in racing and anything I have been involved with,” continued Gibbs. “I feel like there isn’t too much pressure on me this year, but in the years to come they will be expecting results, just as they do from all of the JGR drivers.”

ROSSBURG, Ohio – Kevin Swindell has unfinished business in the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.

A spinal injury from a crash at the 2015 Knoxville Nationals ended his driving career — leaving him with one World of Outlaws victory as a driver — but it hasn’t stopped him from chasing wins.

For the past three years Swindell has been entering his No. 39 sprint car in various races, such as this weekend’s World of Outlaws doubleheader at Eldora Speedway.

However, the top wing no longer has “Swindell” stickered across the front of it. Instead it’s been names like Bayston and Bell that have adorned that space.

Accented by a teal strip and letters, Swindell’s name has found a new home on the side of the car as Swindell SpeedLab — the name of his team and other avenues, including apparel — signifying his transition to the role of car owner.

“I think any of the guys out there (in the sprint car community) would say they’ve thought about it (owning a team),” Swindell said. “Done right, I think owner-driver is the most profitable way to do it. But someone else driving for me never was a thought.”

It never was after his accident, either. Owning a team grew out of trying to help a young driver enter the top sprint car ranks.

In 2015, Swindell found himself acting as a driver coach and crew chief for Spencer Bayston, who at the time was running Parker Price-Miller’s spare car in select races. The two clicked. When Bayston was looking to do more sprint xar races the year after and rides fell through, Swindell said they linked up.

With that, the inaugural Swindell SpeedLab team was born.

“We really built it for him (Bayston) with no real future plan in mind for it then,” Swindell said.

The pair won multiple races together in the All Star Circuit of Champions ranks, and Bayston’s success propelled him to a current full-time ride in that series.

As for Swindell and his team, the vision into the future is a little blurry. Swindell said he’s not sure what the ultimate goal for the team is.

“We’ve been lucky so far just kinda letting it evolve on its own,” he said. “So, we’ll just keep seeing where it takes us.”

At the moment, he hopes to be able to continue helping young drivers. He plans to have Missouri-native Hunter Schuerenberg drive the car in a couple of races this year.

Going full-time with the World of Outlaws isn’t on the radar at the moment, but he’s still eyeing several victories against the Outlaws.

“It’s the premier dirt series in the world, in my opinion,” said Swindell, son of three-time World of Outlaws champion Sammy Swindell. “And it’s been such a big part of my family for so long that winning those races is huge to me. I think in a way there were things I left unfinished in the seat that now I’m chasing from this side with it.”

Swindell won his lone World of Outlaws race at The Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2006. He was 17 years old when he won, which at the time made him the youngest ever winner in the series, a record that was broken by 16-year-old Giovanni Scelzi last year.

After that, Swindell won several other sprint car and midget races — including four Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals triumphs in-a-row — and had a short stint in NASCAR before his 2015 accident.

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In St. Louis, there are two words that have come to indicate whether the Blues were victorious this season: "Play 'Gloria.'"

As in Laura Branigan's 1982 disco classic "Gloria," a certified platinum smash hit that has unexpectedly become the team's victory song.

The Blues won Game 7 against the Dallas Stars on Tuesday night, advancing to the Western Conference finals on winger Pat Maroon's double-overtime goal. "Gloria" played in the arena.

Radio station 98.1 FM KYKY in St. Louis also played "Gloria" to celebrate the win, at around 12:15 a.m. local time.

Then it played it again. And again. And again.

For 24 hours, the adult contemporary station put aside Maroon 5 and Taylor Swift for a tune that hit the top of the charts before any of the current Blues players were born. It was a vow made by morning show "Courtney and Company" that if the Blues won this round, the station would go "Gloria" for a full day.

"I feel like we were the push they needed," host Courtney Landrum joked Wednesday morning.

Blues fans immediately responded to the stunt. The station has been getting notes from fans who said they turned on the "24 hours of 'Gloria'" after the victory and haven't turned it off. Parents are sending in videos of their young Blues fans singing the chorus. Commuters who listen to the morning show have been writing in to say it took them "four and a half 'Glorias'" to get to the office.

"It captures this amazing moment in time where everyone in St. Louis is talking about hockey," said co-host Jen Myers.

The song has become synonymous with the Blues' turnaround this season, having gone from the basement of the conference to the conference championship round in five months.

"Whenever we come back in the dressing room [after a win], we're yelling, 'Play Gloria! Play Gloria!'" defenseman Joel Edmundson told the Blues' website earlier this season. "It makes us smile and have a good time."

It started when a few players were in a bar in Philadelphia, watching the NFC wild-card game between the Eagles and Bears, and the DJ kept spinning "Gloria" during the ad breaks.

"Everyone would get up and start singing and dancing," Edmundson told the team's website. "We just sat back and watched it happen. Right there we decided we should play the song after our wins. We won the next game, we got a shutout, so we just kept on playing it."

The tradition has continued throughout the season.

Branigan died in August 2004 due to an undiagnosed ventricular brain aneurysm. Her manager has thanked the Blues through the singer's Twitter feed and supported the team.

On behalf of Laura Branigan's legacy & "Gloria"???...GO BLUES!!!??? #LGB #PlayGloria #LauraBranigan #Gloria ~ Kathy Golik, Other Half Entertainment pic.twitter.com/dyNMmF9v06

— Laura Branigan (@laurabranigan) May 7, 2019

We got you, Joel.
We won't be playing anything else for 24 hours. #LGB #PLAYGLORIA https://t.co/P8mkrKzxUZ

— Y98 (@Y98) May 8, 2019

Landrum said "Gloria" is one of the most "fun and ridiculous" songs ever played.

"It just made us happy every single time," Myers said. "Especially when you get to the chorus. You just want to belt it out, even if you can't sing."

The Blues will next face the winner of Game 7 between the San Jose Sharks and Colorado Avalanche. Landrum said if the Blues make the Stanley Cup Final, Y98 will not only play "Gloria" again for 24 hours, but her show might remain on the air for that entire stretch.

The Pegula family, which owns the Buffalo Bills and Sabres, severed its relationship with the National Women's Hockey League.

Pegula Sports and Entertainment bought the Buffalo Beauts last season, and they were the only independently owned team in the five-member league.

The NWHL issued a statement saying it still plans to have a team in Buffalo, and that the league will operate it -- just as it did for the other franchises last season.

"The NWHL is pleased to regain operating control of the 2017 Isobel Cup champions and four-time Cup Finalist Buffalo Beauts," the statement said. "The fans of Western New York are among the most dedicated in the world, and we have had four exceptional seasons of winning hockey and large crowds in Buffalo. We will look to continue our relationship with the Harborcenter and its incredible staff, and in the Beauts' fifth season and beyond, we will build on their tradition of success."

The news comes on the heels of upheaval in professional women's hockey. More than 200 players -- including stars like Team USA's Hilary Knight and Kendall Coyne Schofield and Canada's Marie-Philip Poulin -- said they will not play in any professional league next season.

"We cannot make a sustainable living playing in the current state of the professional game," read a statement released by individual players on social media. "Having no health insurance and making as low as two thousand dollars a season means players can't adequately train and prepare to play at the highest level."

Many players have gone on record saying they want the NHL to support a women's league with financial and infrastructural resources, and sources told ESPN that the players hope the joint announcement could apply pressure on the NHL to act. It is notable that the Pegulas have a relationship with the NHL, as they own the Sabres.

The NWHL is the only remaining professional women's hockey league in North America after the Canadian-based CWHL made the stunning decision to fold after the 2018-19 season.

The NHL has said it will further explore the situation regarding professional women's hockey privately before determining any next steps.

The Beauts were widely considered the gold standard for professional women's hockey because of their relationship with the Pegulas. Beauts players received access to Sabres facilities as well as access to skills ice (which other teams do not have). Opposing players told ESPN that the Beauts had much nicer and newer gear than other teams. Buffalo players also got catered meals before games, and some Beauts players were helped with housing.

Beauts goalie Shannon Szabados -- who has said she will not play in a professional league next season -- was the only senior national Team Canada player in the NWHL last season. She told the ESPN on Ice podcast in March that Buffalo is "one of the best, if not probably the best-run professional woman's hockey team in the entire world."

"We have ice every single day, sometimes twice a day," Szabados said. "It's always open and available. Same with the gym and access to facilities, and it really is just top-notch. A lot of our staff crosses over, so our PR staff, you see a lot of videos of the Sabres guys wearing Beauts stuff. They posted a video the other day before our playoff game of Carter Hutton and some of the Sabres and other players wishing us good luck. It's a really unique relationship."

The NWHL still plans to function this season. When the CWHL folded, the NWHL said it would expand to two Canadian cities -- Montreal and Toronto. The league has not released any details on that expansion and sources told ESPN those plans are in doubt. After the 200 players announced their intention to sit out, the NWHL released a statement noting that it planned for increased salaries in 2019-20 and that a 50-50 split from league-level sponsorships and media rights deals have been offered.

"Of everyone working in women's hockey, we are among the players' biggest fans," the league wrote. "In 2015, there wasn't a professional women's hockey league in the United States. Prior to our launch just four years ago, there was never a movement for others to take over women's hockey, or for any wide-scale league in North America. In a challenging climate for women's sports, our leadership has been proud to invest a great deal of time and resources in women's hockey and these athletes. We believe in them."