"The school coaches in New Zealand rugby are actually pretty good, now that I've travelled and seen other systems around the world they're top class, but Joe was another level above that."

Jarrad Hoeata was a 17-year-old entering into his final year at Tauranga Boys' College in New Zealand's Bay of Plenty region when Joe Schmidt arrived at the school.

Hoeata's memory of Schmidt the teacher is of a strict and authoritative presence, keen to quickly build a reputation and demand respect having arrived from a nearby rival school.

Then there was the rugby. The new deputy principal would also take charge of the school's first XV.

New Zealand's schools rugby system is, unsurprisingly, the standard bearer around the world - providing a seemingly endless conveyor belt of future All Blacks primed and ready to carry the mantle that comes with being the most feared nation in the sport.

Tauranga Boys' College was not a name that sat among the most prestigious rugby schools in the county.

"It's a big school and they do well in a lot of sports," explains Hoeata.

"But they don't really specialise in rugby like some of the big schools do."

Hoeata was among the school's promising rugby talents, but at that stage he was not knocking on the door of national recognition.

10 years after leaving the school he became an All Black, having spent years under the tutelage of several internationally renowned coaches including current Japan boss Jamie Joseph.

But it was in Tauranga, under Schmidt, that Hoeata took his first steps towards turning a hobby into a career.

"For me, it was the first time that I had a taste of true professionalism," he explains.

"It was just a totally different level from the coaches that had been there before.

"Things like attention to detail, planning phases in advance. A lot of things that the boys hadn't come across before where you had four phases in advance, and you knew as a player exactly where you were going and which ruck you were hitting.

At that point in time he was a bit of revolutionary in terms of where he was at a time."

'A frontrunner in that space'

In six years as Ireland head coach, Schmidt's meticulous approach towards his job and his team has become a hallmark of his era at the helm.

Stories from Chris Farrell and Will Addison, of receiving texts and detailed analysis of moments in their games from Schmidt when they were playing club rugby outside of Ireland, are among the indicators of the lengths the Kiwi has gone to cover every base.

One expects that his methods, and most likely his philosophies, have evolved over the last two decades. However Schmidt's forensic attention to detail has remained the cornerstone of his coaching from way back in Tauranga.

"I had never seen of it or heard of it, especially at school rugby," continues Hoeata.

"He was the first one to bring in a bit of analysis. At the time we actually did no analysis on the other teams, there might have been a little bit of chat around one of their superstar players but at schoolboy level there was no detailed analysis.

"He brought in a whole different level of picking apart their strengths and weaknesses which was another big thing for me.

"A lot of teams do that now, but he was a real frontrunner in that space."

"It was a big learning curve and something I hadn't seen until Joe came along, and I think that's what he's brought to his teams (since leaving New Zealand) too."

They don't know about Joe

Schmidt's passion for analysis was a hit, and three years after arriving at Tauranga he left to turn his attentions to full-time coaching with Bay of Plenty.

In 2007 he made the move to Europe and Clermont Auvergne, where three years as a backs coach were ended by the opportunity to come to Ireland as head coach of Leinster.

And nine years later we arrive at the World Cup quarter-finals, where the knock-out element now applies to Schmidt's coaching future as well as the competition.

Talk of his legacy as Ireland coach will have to wait until the conclusion of the tournament, as the biggest and most important chapter is still to be written.

However, he can be quite confident of being remembered fondly by Irish rugby fans having delivered three Six Nations, a Grand Slam and a number of historic results against southern hemisphere opposition.

He is likely to be remembered as Ireland's most influential coach in the professional era.

Interesting then, that such a reputation does not translate to his rugby-mad homeland.

"To be fair a lot of people in New Zealand probably wouldn't know Joe as much as you'd think," explains Hoeata.

"When you talk about Joe Schmidt in rugby circles, everyone thinks of a very educated rugby brain.

"They compare him to someone like (former All Blacks coach) Wayne Smith, who has a huge reputation in New Zealand.

"Because he left quite early, out of tight rugby circles probably quite of lot of people don't know a lot about Joe."

Schmidt has already enjoyed unprecedented success against New Zealand, with Ireland winning two of the three meetings since 2016.

However there is no doubt that Schmidt, and the rest of his charges, would sacrifice both their previous wins for a victory in Tokyo on Saturday.

A chance to reach the World Cup semi-finals for the first time beckons.

And for Schmidt, a chance to cement his reputation in Ireland and ensure his name becomes known far and wide in New Zealand.

As of late, Jordan Spieth isn't like most people when the idea of the weekend brings a sense of relief and relaxation. In fact, it's been quite the opposite for him.

Spieth hasn't won since the 2017 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, the longest drought of his already well-decorated career. There are many areas he can point to for that, but one glaring red flag has been his play on the weekends.

Last season, Spieth averaged 69.27 in his opening rounds and improved on Day 2 with an average of 68.32. Because of that, Spieth occasionally found himself in contention heading to the weekend, only to see those positive results erased in the blink of an eye. Spieth's average third-round scoring rose to 71.28 and was even higher in the final round with an average of 72.47.

"It was just a grind at the end of the season," said Spieth, who is fresh off a seven-week golf detox. "I wasn't playing great golf and just wanted to kind of have fun playing again."

After rounds of 70-65, Spieth looks the part of someone who is rejuvenated and having fun, and he's looking to carry that early-week success into the weekend. 

"I rolled in a lot of putts today, and certainly don't want to have to rely on that over the weekend," said Spieth, who tallied nine birdies Friday at Nine Bridges, his most since making nine in the opening round of the Farmer's Insurance Open earlier this year. "Certainly the ball-striking improved as well and I'm in position to try and do something similar to these first two rounds on the weekend."

After shooting a 4-under 68 in Thursday's opening round, Justin Thomas erupted for a bogey-free, 9-under 63 on Friday at the CJ Cup, setting the 36-hole tournament scoring record.

"I played well. I didn't do anything unbelievably," Thomas said. "It was just a very stress-free day."

It's been fairly stress-free for Thomas since returning from the wrist injury that gave him issues earlier this year. He notched a win two months ago at the BMW Championship, and is again playing the kind of golf reminiscent of when he ascended to the No. 1 player in the world.

Look no further than his performance Friday. Thomas began his day on fire out of the gate, carding four consecutive birdies. He would add another at the par-4 eighth to turn in 5-under 31. The back nine was no different, as Thomas notched four more birdies, including a tap-in at the 18th after narrowly missing an eagle putt that would have tied the course record.

"Obviously playing well, that makes it stress free, but I just kind of kept the ball in play off the tee, hit some good irons. I think I hit every green and made a couple putts early," Thomas said. "And then the back nine, I got a few close to the holes where those birdies came easier. So it just was a very easy 63 if you can somehow say that, but hopefully we'll be able to keep some of that going for the weekend."

This was Thomas' second 63 at Nine Bridges in the tournament's brief history. In 2017, he fired one in the opening round and would later go on to outlast Marc Leishman in a playoff for his seventh PGA Tour victory. That one, though, sticks out more to Thomas.

"I would say that one, the one two years ago, is probably better. It was quite a bit windier if I remember correctly," Thomas said. "So, I mean, they're both good, but I would say that one was maybe a little bit better."

MANCHESTER, England -- Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has said the Manchester United manager's job is not too big for him, but admits summer decisions have "harmed" his team.

United could end the weekend in the bottom three if they lose to Liverpool on Sunday, but Solskjaer said he believes he can handle the mounting pressure at Old Trafford.

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"I've never felt it's too big for me," Solskjaer told a news conference on Friday.

"I'm confident in what we're trying to do and with my staff, I've been so impressed.

"We have a plan and we have made some decisions in the short term that we knew would harm us but in the long term would benefit us, and that's part of the plan.

"Results are always the main thing and we can move forward quicker with results and performances."

Royal Challengers Bangalore became the first team in the IPL to have a woman support staff member with the appointment of Navnita Gautam as a massage therapist for IPL 2020.

As per a press release from the franchise on Thursday, Navnita will be working with head physiotherapist Evan Speechly and strength & conditioning coach Basu Shanker "to identify, evaluate, provide guidance and implement massage therapy to suit the team and any relevant prevailing conditions".

Navnita Gautam joins us as a sports massage therapist for the 13th edition of IPL. She will work to identify, and implement massage therapy to help the team prepare and recover better.
.
We are proud to be the first IPL team to have a woman support staff member.
.#PlayBold pic.twitter.com/Y7CFR0WKDB

— Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) October 17, 2019

She will also be responsible for performing specialised techniques pertaining to the preparation, motivation and physical ailments of individual players.

Talking about the appointment, the franchise chairman Sanjeev Churiwala said: "I am very pleased to be a part of this moment in history and another step in the right direction. The game has come a long way, in many ways, in terms of the women's cricket team and how many people are watching it, the interest was long due. Sport is a great enabler, but it is important to ensure that the principles of equity in participation also extends to its staffing bodies. Increasing participation and success by women in all sporting arenas have made this possible and we at RCB are very thrilled to have found great talent in Navnita."

In August, RCB, who are still looking for their maiden IPL title, had appointed former New Zealand head coach Mike Hesson as director of cricket and former Australia batsman Simon Katich as head coach in a complete overhaul of their support staff.

Sarfaraz Ahmed has been sacked as Pakistan's Test and T20I captain ahead of the November-December tour of Australia, and has also been dropped from both the teams following a run of poor form in the two formats. In his place, Azhar Ali has been named the Test captain and Babar Azam leader of the T20I side. Sarfaraz will, however, continue to lead Pakistan's ODI side.

Azhar's appointment is for the 2019-20 World Test Championship matches, while Babar will be in charge of the T20I side till at least the men's T20 World Cup in Australia late next year.

Sarfaraz's dismissal follows a dismal run for Pakistan, who are currently at No. 7 in the ICC Test rankings. In their most recent Test series, they were swept 3-0 away in South Africa in December-January, and, prior to that, had lost a three-Test series at 'home' in the UAE 2-1 to New Zealand. In T20Is too, Pakistan suffered an embarrassing 3-0 defeat at home earlier this month in Lahore in the hands of a Sri Lanka side without a number of their top players.

Ehsan Mani, the Pakistan Cricket Board's chairman, called the decision to sack Sarfaraz from the two formats as a "difficult" one.

"It has been a difficult decision to drop Sarfaraz Ahmed, who has performed well as a player and a leader," Mani said in a statement released by the PCB. "But, his loss in form and confidence is visible and, in the best interest of the team, it has been decided to leave him out and provide him the opportunity to reflect and regroup himself and try to reclaim his form away from international cricket.

"Sarfaraz Ahmed's contributions are second to none and being the gutsy cricketer and fighter that we all know he is, I have no doubts he will be back in Pakistan colours at some stage."

Pakistan did win five of their nine games at the 50-over World Cup in England and Wales this year, and only failed to qualify for the knockouts because of New Zealand's superior net run-rate, and have since beaten Sri Lanka 2-0 in a three-ODI series in Karachi, results that have helped Sarfaraz hold on to the job in the format.

"It has been an honour to lead Pakistan at the highest level. I want to thank all my colleagues, coaches and selectors who have helped me in this journey. My good wishes are with Azhar Ali, Babar Azam and the Pakistan cricket team, and I hope they will continue to grow stronger and stronger," Sarfaraz said.

Azhar is a veteran of 73 Tests, in which he has 5669 runs, and is second on the list of highest run-getters in the ongoing Quaid-e-Azam first-class tournament in Pakistan with 388 runs in four matches.

"There is no bigger honour than to captain the Pakistan national cricket team in the pinnacle format of the game," he said. "I feel humbled, excited and privileged, and with the support of the team, look forward to justifying the faith that has been entrusted upon me for the World Test Championship.

"Sarfaraz Ahmed has done an excellent job in transforming raw talent into experienced players and I now look forward to inspiring those skillful players in our endeavours to collectively achieve our World Test Championship objectives and beyond. These are exciting times in Pakistan cricket with a new team management. As a captain, I feel comfortable that there will be number of knowledgeable people in the hut who I can rely for advice and guidance.

"I am not only targeting wins, but also aim to provide opportunities to players to grow in stature and express themselves so that Pakistan cricket can resume its journey to the top. I have always played my cricket the hard way but in a fair manner, and will ensure I continue to uphold the spirit of cricket and enhance the image of the team and the country."

Babar, meanwhile, also has a tough job in his hands despite being handed the reins of the No. 1 side in T20Is - he is the No. 1 batsman in the world in the format too - but he called the elevation "the biggest thing" to have happened in his career.

"To be named captain of the No. 1-ranked side in the world is the biggest thing that has happened to my career to date," he said. "I am ready for this challenge and also willing to learn more in the process. I feel it has been a natural progression for me and I am delighted that the PCB has put faith in my capabilities.

"Sarfaraz Ahmed has led the side in the shortest format by example and it is my responsibility to take forward his accomplishments so that we remain a consistent, attractive and powerful side."

Stumps Queensland 3-70 (Burns 39, Agar 3-6) trail South Australia 221 (Andrews 78, Cooper 69, Neser 5-56) by 151 runs

Australia's selection chairman Trevor Hohns saw more wickets fall in a single day of Queensland's meeting with South Australia at the Gabba than he had for the entirety of the previous match he had witnessed, the four-day batathon between the Redbacks and Victoria on a piece of prime Melbourne roadway at Junction Oval.

Nevertheless, the greater amount of action enabled by a good and bouncy but by no means spiteful first-day Brisbane surface presented Hohns with little by way of helpful information so far as the prospects of the players he was primarily at the Gabba to see ahead of the first home Test of the summer, against Pakistan next month, was concerned.

None of Travis Head (a 25-ball duck), Alex Carey (14), Joe Burns (39), Matt Renshaw (18) or Usman Khawaja (2) were able to stand firm for more than a fleeting period against the moving ball. Indeed, Carey's contrivance to be bowled behind his pads when trying to paddle sweep Marnus Labuschagne in the last over of the morning session might well have caused Hohns to drop his cup of tea or fumble his lunch.

Instead, this was a day for Michael Neser, his strong domestic record bolstered further by plenty of top-level experience gained on the recent Ashes tour, Tom Cooper, Tom Andrews and, in the dying evening light, an incisive late spell from Wes Agar on his Shield debut for South Australia. Winning lbw verdicts against Burns and Khawaja either side of snaffling Renshaw via Carey's outstanding legside catch, Agar ensured the Redbacks a solid share of the day's honours, something a long way from their grasp when the first half hour saw three wickets go down for seven.

Head had chosen to bat first on a sunny day, only to see the young opener Henry Hunt fail to survive the first over of the match as Neser seamed one back in between bat and pad to flick the top of the off stump. Jake Lehmann, an inventive choice at No. 3 for the visitors in the prevailing conditions, pushed with hard hands at Neser and was taken by a juggling Cameron Gannon in the gully, before Head's far from comfortable stay ended when he was squared up by Gannon and fenced to a diving debutant Bryce Street in the cordon.

Jake Weatherald had been turfed by Street when firing a cut shot in the air in the second over, and looked the most comfortable of the SA batsmen as he mounted a miniature recovery with Cooper. However, Neser's return brought a ball straightening down the line of the off stump and an lbw that Weatherald appeared more or less resigned to even before the umpire raised his finger.

Carey looked at ease until the last over before lunch, and conditions were far more comfortable for batting as Cooper and Andrews staged an 89-run reprise of their big stand at the Junction, only this time in far more meritorious circumstances. Their half-centuries, while not enough to prevent Neser from scooping up 5 for 56, allowed SA to scramble to 221, a defensible tally if the visiting seamers bowled well.

Nick Winter and the returning Chadd Sayers did so, the latter running numerous away swingers past the outside edge of Burns' bat, but it took Agar's introduction to bring wickets, his heavy ball and angle into the batsmen providing a useful contrast to the new ball pair.

Burns departed lbw with what looked like more than a few words exchanged as the South Australians celebrated, and neither Renshaw nor Khawaja were any happier to depart before stumps when they had the chance to make valuable runs directly observed by Hohns, who with Justin Langer will be chiefly responsible for choosing the Test team.

NEW YORK -- CC Sabathia left it all on the field, but it wasn't enough for the New York Yankees, who lost a lot more than the fourth game of the American League Championship Series in an 8-3 defeat at the hands of the Houston Astros on Thursday night.

In what could have been his last appearance in pinstripes, Sabathia's knee buckled and his shoulder seemed to give out after he hurled his third pitch to George Springer while trying to get out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth inning.

Sabathia, who along with outfielder Brett Gardner is one of the two remaining members of the 2009 World Series championship team, limped off the field with tears in his eyes. He exited alongside head trainer Steve Donohue, serenaded by a standing ovation from the Yankees' faithful.

It might have been the last time the 39-year-old left-hander, who dealt with chronic right knee problems all season and most recently a sore left shoulder that kept him off the AL Division Series roster, would throw a pitch at what has been his home ballpark for over a decade. Sabathia announced in February that 2019 would be his 19th and final season in the majors.

"[CC] leaves it all on the field. I don't know the severity of what's going on with him, but you can never say that man never gave his all," outfielder Aaron Judge said. "Every single time he went out there, you had to rip the ball or rip his jersey off to get that man off the mound. He got everything out of that arm; that's a warrior right there. That's why he's been a leader of this team for so many years, and that's why he has so much respect around the game, and it was tough to see; he left it all out there."

Left-handed reliever Zack Britton, who spent eight seasons with the Baltimore Orioles before being traded to New York last year, reiterated the reputation Sabathia carries throughout the league.

"I played against CC longer than I've played with him so I know the respect that opposing teams have for him," Britton said. "He's done it in the game, but obviously off the field, too. He's really respected throughout the game, and guys know the type of career he's had."

Sabathia entered in the eighth inning to face his second batter of the postseason after reliever Adam Ottavino gave up a leadoff double to Alex Bregman, and Yuli Gurriel reached on a fielding error by first baseman DJ LeMahieu. The inning unraveled with a second fielding error by infielder Gleyber Torres, a hit batsman and, just when Sabathia looked to get out of the inning against Springer, the injury happened.

LeMahieu, who had an uncharacteristic two-error game for the first time in his career, had to hold back his emotions in talking about Sabathia coming off the mound.

"Real tough. It was a tough night, then that happened. I feel for C," he said. "From my perspective, this year in particular he's given it everything he's got, and I know he's pitched through a lot, and it was tough to watch."

Said outfielder Aaron Hicks: "It's tough man, he's a great person, a great player. He's gonna be a Hall of Famer. To see a guy like that go out like that is, is not the way you want to see it. He means a lot to this team, a lot to his organization, and for him to go out like that, it's not something you want."

Of the many things that befell the Yankees on Thursday night, their defensive mistakes proved costly against an Astros team that did everything right.

It was one thing for the Yankees to lose, and another one to lose in such an excruciating manner. The Yankees committed four errors, two of them in that eighth inning, the fourth time in franchise history they've had four errors in a postseason game, and the first since Game 2 of the 1976 ALCS (five errors).

And while Yankees' pitchers did give up two three-run home runs, one by Springer off starter Masahiro Tanaka and one by shortstop Carlos Correa off usually unfailing reliever Chad Green, the offense had another subpar performance.

The Yankees might have opened the ALCS with a bang, but they are close to finishing it with a whimper.

Their offense, which averaged 5.4 runs per game at home during the regular season, fifth best in the AL, combined for four runs over the past two games at Yankee Stadium. When including the two runs in their 3-2 loss at Minute Maid Park in Game 2, the Yankees have scored a total of six runs in the past three games of the series.

The Yankees' first and only win of this ALCS came in Game 1, when they scored seven runs, which they haven't been close to since.

"You got to have a short memory in baseball, especially after a game like that," Judge said. "That's the biggest thing. We can't sit around here and mope around about this game or the past couple of days, we have to refocus and refuel and get ready for the game tomorrow."

With their season on the line and Houston holding a commanding 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series, the Yankees will have lefty James Paxton versus Astros ace Justin Verlander on the mound for a do-or-die Game 5. Paxton told ESPN that Sabathia would be his inspiration when he takes the mound Friday.

"Every time he's on the mound, he gives us everything he's got, and that's what he did tonight. CC has had an amazing career, and it was too bad to see him get hurt like that," he said. "But it's also just a testament to just the heart he has for this team, going out there and giving us everything he's got until the last pitch."

"I have to go out there and do my thing," Paxton added. "I have to attack these guys and go to battle for my team, and give everything out there, just like CC did."

Scientists are beginning to understand the role fibre plays in performance. Peta Bee asks, are you getting enough in your diet?

Fibre – the roughage in plants – is crucial for healthy digestion and to feed our microbiota, the vast ecosystem of bacteria, fungi and yeasts that inhabit our digestive systems. When diets contain very little of it, the population of our beneficial gut bacteria has been shown to shrink and in the UK we consume less fibre than ever — British women amassing a daily average of 17.2g and men 20.1g, far less than the recommended daily amount of 30g.

A low-fibre intake is particularly bad news for athletes. In 2017, a study by doctors at Juntendo University in Tokyo concluded that “boosting fibre intake in young, healthy athletes may improve gut microbiota and confer resilience against stress”, another that fibre eaters are at less risk of knee injuries and osteoarthritis.

Studies have shown elite athletes to have a superior diversity of bacteria in their gut. But what is not yet known is whether they are born with this superior microbial composition or whether it evolves as a result of their training and diet.

“We do know that athletes are meticulous about eating, recovery and training, so this might influence their positive balance of bugs,” says Dr Jonathan Scheiman, a researcher in Harvard Medical School’s department of genetics who is researching the links between diet, gut health and performance.

What is certain, though, is that diet and lifestyle habits help to shape a healthy gut – and that fibre is an essential part of the equation for athletes. So how do you make sure you are getting enough?

Here we look at six easy ways to pack in more fibre:

Eat any bread, including white

Depending on its production and how much of the wheat grain it contains, bread provides varying amounts of fibre. Wholegrain is made with the entire grain – that is the bran (outer layer), endosperm (starchy middle layer) and germ (nutrient rich inner part), so is richest in fibre and naturally- occurring vitamins, minerals and healthy fats. Wholemeal and brown breads are made from wholegrains that have been milled to finer textures and multigrain bread is often made from a variety of flours, including white, with grains added.

“In terms of their glycaemic index (GI), or impact on your blood sugar levels, there is no difference between wholemeal, brown and white bread,” says Azmina Govindja, a dietitian for the British Dietetic Association. “Wholegrain bread has the lowest GI which means it releases glucose into the bloodstream more quickly.”

All bread varieties have their virtues, though. Even white bread – which has had the germ and bran removed – contains some fibre – about the same amount as you would get in a banana.

Select breakfast cereals wisely

Choose breakfast cereals which are not highly refined or sweetened – Weetabix and Shredded Wheat are good examples – and you will get a good supply of fibre. Your best bet, though, is oats which provide beta- glucan, a form of soluble fibre that feeds the good bacteria. It is also present in barley and rye, but the highest quantities are found in oats.

“A bowl of porridge has more fibre than a slice of wholemeal bread and a much lower GI than sugar-laden products, which means it provides an energy boost that should last you until lunchtime,” says BDA dietitician Helen Bond.

Oats also contain 20 unique plant compounds, called avenanthramides, that have a powerful antioxidant and immune-boosting effect and a 2013 study in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition found that people who ate porridge felt fuller and had better appetite control than those who ate the same number of calories from a sugary breakfast.

Eat black or brown rice

Brown rice is a wholegrain with nutritious germ and fibrous bran intact, whereas white rice is milled and processed with nutrients discarded. Your healthiest choice is wholegrain Basmati rice, which has the lowest GI and among the highest fibre of all rice types.

When it comes to black rice, a report by the American Chemical Society in 2010 labelled it as being among the healthiest foods, suggesting it rivalled berries for levels of healthful antioxidants.

“Just a spoonful of black rice contains more health promoting anthocyanin antioxidants than are found in a spoonful of blueberries, but with less sugar and more fibre and vitamin E antioxidants,” wrote the authors from the Department of Food Science at Louisiana State University.

Consume a dozen walnuts a week

Walnuts are rich in fibre and a study published in The Journal of Nutrition found they bring added benefits to the gut. Hannah Holscher, assistant professor of food science and human nutrition at the University of Illinois and author of the study, said a diet containing 42g of walnuts a week (about 12-15 nuts) “increases microbes that produce butyrate, a beneficial metabolite for colonic health” and that the “walnuts interact with the microbiome” to boost the immune system.

Add bananas, asparagus and avocado to your diet

Professor Glenn Gibson, head of food microbial sciences at the University of Reading, says that eating more cereals and wholegrains will aid your training.

“By boosting good bugs overall, you stand more chance of targeting those gut bacteria that generate acetate, which can be taken out of the gut via the bloodstream to muscles where it is broken down for energy.”

Consume plenty of leeks, onions, wheat, chicory root, garlic and artichokes, and banana and asparagus – all of which contain inulin, a form of soluble fibre.

“Foods contain insoluble fibre, such as wholegrains and avocados are also hugely beneficial,” Gibson says.

Get your spuds

Dr Tracey Robertson, a research fellow in the department of nutritional sciences at the University of Surrey, recently conducted a review of evidence on the nutritional status of the humble spud and published her findings in the journal Nutrients.

Eating the skin of a potato provides the biggest fibre boost – a jacket potato provides more fibre than two slices of wholemeal bread.

It is best to wait until white potatoes have cooled before eating them. “When a potato is cool or cold its structure changes,” Robertson says. “Some of the starch it contains goes through a process that turns it into resistant starch, a type that isn’t digested in the small intestine, but travels into the large bowel, where it is digested by the gut bacteria.”

Sweet potatoes aren’t necessarily better for us – they do contain more beta-carotene (which gives them their colour), but white potatoes trump them in terms of fibre.

Justin Thomas took a solid opening-round 68 and built on it Friday at the CJ Cup with a bogey-free, 9-under 63 to take a two-shot lead over Danny Lee into the weekend in South Korea. Here's how things played out:

Leaderboard: Justin Thomas (-13), Danny Lee (-11), Ben An (-11), Emiliano Grillo (-9), Jordan Spieth (-9), Cameron Smith (-8), Kyoung-Hoon Lee (-8), Ryan Moore (-8)

What it means: Thomas won this event back in 2017 in a playoff over Marc Leishman, and while there is still two rounds left, he's in position to contend yet again at a course that fits him well. However, no 36-hole leader has gone on to win in the brief history of the CJ Cup. But after the first two days, Thomas is showing he has what it takes to break that trend.

Round of the day: The No. 5-ranked Thomas began his day with fireworks, carding four straight birdies out of the gate, and kept it rolling all day. Thomas had an eagle putt on 18 for 62 that would have tied the course record, but couldn't get it to drop. Still, Thomas will head into the weekend with a two-shot cushion with no sign of slowing down.

Best of the rest: It was almost Lee until his lone bogey of the day at the 18th left him with a second-round, 6-under 66. But Spieth closed strong with two straight birdies to sign for a stellar 7-under 65 that has him lurking just four back of his buddy Thomas. Spieth arrived to South Korea well-rested and ready to break the dry spell and, through two rounds, has put himself in position to do just that.

Biggest disappointment: After opening with a 3-under 69 on Thursday, Brooks Koepka gave it all back Friday with a 3-over 75, and 13 back of the lead. The defending champion had just two birdies all day, coming on his outward nine that also included four bogeys. For the second time this season, Brooks is looking up the leaderboard at younger brother Chase, who carded rounds of 70-72 and sits at 2 under on the week.

Shot of the day:

Quote of the day: "Overall one of the better rounds I've played in a while." -Thomas