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British Athletics performance director explains background to harsh email sent to discus thrower Lally

Neil Black stands by his decision to turn down invitations from the IAAF for more British athletes to compete at the IAAF World Championships in Doha and the British Athletics performance director adds there is no bad blood between himself and discus thrower Jade Lally.

Lally is one of half a dozen British athletes who had IAAF invitations rejected by British Athletics and she posted part of a seemingly insensitive email written to her by Black on Instagram last week (see below).

Black’s email said Lally was “very unlikely to medal in Doha or Tokyo” but he told the media on Thursday in Doha that it was just part of a much longer and balanced message that contained a number of positive points.

Lally’s post drew uproar from athletics fans but Black explains: “The section that Jade put out there was one small paragraph. That was the factual paragraph within a broader email, which started with pleasantries and ‘congratulations on’ (having a baby this summer) and went on to discuss a number of other things. Jade replied to my email thanking me for it and we had quite a nice little chat.”

Black says he has known Lally for years, gets on with her well and would probably greet her “with a hug” if he saw her now. The performance director adds that development opportunities for athletes are restricted to non-global events like the European Championships, whereas World Championships and Olympics were more focused on medals.

Does he feel it is inappropriate to tell an athlete they are not good enough to win a medal at a major championships? “No,” he says matter-of-factly. “It’s a performance sport.”

He continues: “Nothing in the email suggested we were giving up on any of the athletes. All of the emails said, in some variation, ‘we don’t have a crystal ball but all the information that I’ve got at this point suggests to me that you are unlikely to win a medal in Doha and/or Tokyo’.

“All of the emails went on to say, but ‘positive, positive, positive’. We have to stick to the policy as it’s written.”

Shot putter Amelia Strickler and steeplechaser Phil Norman were among others who had IAAF invitations turned down by British Athletics.

On the eve of the biggest event of 2019, Black also talked about Laura Muir’s fitness after being hampered by a calf injury this summer. The performance director said Muir was usually in good shape all year around and did not need much racing to get race fit.

“Everything suggests that she’s in good shape, progressing towards great shape,” he added.

The British team generally, too, is ready for battle and Black says the preparation period has been smooth and trouble free. “It’s been the best preparation that we’ve had as a team,” he says.

IAAF president believes controversies surrounding world championships offer the chance to lead and learn

Sebastian Coe insists the more controversial aspects surrounding the 17th IAAF World Championships in Doha offer an opportunity to learn and the chance to showcase difficult issues.

During a pre-event press conference, the governing body’s president and local organising chief Dahlan Al Hamad fielded questions on difficult subjects which ranged from reported poor ticket sales to Qatar’s treatment of migrant workers and the safety of the marathon runners and race walkers who will tackle soaring temperatures and humidity.

Al Hamad reported that, as of two days ago, there had been 5000 tickets left for Friday evening’s opening session and was insistent that organisers were happy with sales.

As for the some of the more controversial concerns raised by the choice of host venue, and responding to a recent Amnesty International report which outlined the apparent exploitation of migrant workers in Qatar, Coe said: “Sport is a really good opportunity to showcase and to challenge some of those issues.

“I do encourage those organisations (such as Amnesty International) to work closely with sport – we can actually be quite a powerful alliance.”

He added: “No society is poorer for having sport enshrined in it. We’ve seen time and time again in the history of sport and particularly athletics that it doesn’t just sit there mirroring trends, it actually sets trends.

“Time and time again, athletics itself has changed all sorts of conventions and has often been at the infancy of change.

“So I’m really happy to be here and I’m very happy that the sport can be used in that way.”

Coe added that conditions for the women’s marathon, which starts at 11.59pm on Friday, are ‘permanently’ under review but also insisted that the hot and humid conditions – the mercury will be in the low 30s around that time – offer the opportunity to better understand how athletes can deal with extreme weather.

“We are monitoring this very closely,” he said. “The overwhelming thrust of this is the welfare of the athletes.

“I was pleased that, having spoken to so many of the delegations that are here, that their distance and endurance athletes who are preparing for the race walks and the marathons are actually training pretty comfortably on the streets. I have spoken to some of those athletes as well.

“This has given us the opportunity – and you don’t want to waste opportunities like this – for our medical teams and our health and science teams to actually understand a great deal more about the management of heat for athletes going forward.

“We have given the opportunity for athletes, voluntarily, to ingest a tablet which has a thermometer in it and it will allow us to monitor how they’re dealing with the temperatures, heat and humidity.

“I’m really pleased that we’re going to be able to use these conditions to understand a bit more about how, in future, we really can take our sport into areas of climatic challenge but at the same time fulfilling the capacity building that athletics needs.”

Coe was in optimistic mood as the start of competition draws closer and is particularly enthused by the current crop of athletes who are about to showcase their talent.

“I can’t actually remember a time in the sport when I’ve been so optimistic and excited about a young group of athletes coming through,” he said.

“If you look at our top ten lists across every discipline and in every continent, about a quarter are under the age of 23. I’m not sure we’ve had those metrics for some time so the sport is in great shape.

“We have some incredibly talented young athletes. They’ve hit the streets running in the last year and this will be a really good opportunity for them to understand a great deal more about championships racing en route to the Olympics Games next year.

“I think, over the coming days, that we are going to witness some outstanding performances.”

Doha 2019 facts

• 208 nations participating + neutral athletes and a refugee team will also be competing
• 1972 athletes entered: 1054 men, 918 women
• 37 of the 44 individual gold medal winners from London 2017 will defend their titles
• All 30 Diamond League champions are competing
• Allyson Felix, the most decorated athlete in IAAF World Championships history, will have the chance to add to her tally of 16 when she competes in the 4x400m relay
• At 49, the oldest competitor will be Spain’s Jesus Angel Garcia, who is contesting the 50km race walk
• The championships will be broadcasting to more that 160 territories with a combined audience of just over a billion people

A day-by-day guide to the athletics action in the Qatari capital

It has been a long season but now it is finally time for the IAAF World Championships.

When speaking to athletes during the course of this year, a recurring theme has been the balancing act involved in peaking for a moment which falls significantly later in the calendar than usual. It is a difficult trick to pull off but it would appear many have managed to do it. The recent Diamond League finals were evidence of that and there are rivalries and contests to savour right across the coming days of competition in Doha.

Here we take a day-by-day look through the world championships schedule.

Make sure you check out the September 26 edition of AW magazine for our full guide to the action, including rankings, news, interviews, facts, stats and more. A digital edition is available to buy and download here.

The dedicated Doha 2019 section of our website can be found here.

Live results | Final entry lists

Timetable

(UK times in brackets)

Day one – Friday September 27

16:30 (14:30) M Long jump – Qualification
16:35 (14:35) M 100m – Preliminary round
16:40 (14:40) W Hammer – Qualification Group A
17:10 (15:10) W 800m – Heats
17:30 (15:30) W Pole vault – Qualification
18:05 (16:05) M 100m – Heats
18:10 (16:10) W Hammer – Qualification
18:40 (16:40) W High jump – Qualification
18:55 (16:55) W 3000m steeplechase – Heats
19:25 (17:25) M Triple jump – Qualification
19:45 (17:45) M 5000m – Heats
20:35 (18:35) M 400m hurdles – Heats
23:59 (21:59) W Marathon – Final

The first medals of the championships will be claimed in the women’s ‘midnight’ marathon, which starts at 23:59 local time to try and avoid the worst of the heat out on the roads of Doha. “The overwhelming thrust of this is the welfare of the athletes,” said IAAF president Seb Coe in the pre-event press conference. “We are monitoring this very closely.”

Bahrain’s Rose Chelimo defends her title and goes up against athletes including Kenya’s two-time winner Edna Kiplagat. Britain is represented by Tish Jones and Charlotte Purdue.

Day two – Saturday September 28

16:15 (14:15) M Discus – Qualification Group A
16:30 (14:30) W 100m – Heats
17:15 (15:15) M 800m – Heats
17:30 (15:30) M Pole vault – Qualification
17:45 (15:45) M Discus – Qualification Group B
18:05 (16:05) M 400m hurdles – Semi-final
18:45 (16:45) M 100m – Semi-final
19:15 (17:15) W 800m – Semi-final
19:25 (17:25) W Hammer – Final
20:00 (18:00) X 4x400m relay – Heats
20:40 (18:40) M Long jump – Final
21:10 (19:10) W 10,000m – Final
22:15 (20:15) M 100m – Final
23:30 (21:30) M 50km race walk – Final
23:30 (21:30) W 50km race walk – Final

There are six titles to be won on day two, including in the men’s 100m and women’s 10,000m.

The women’s hammer and men’s long jump are up first, with Luvo Manyonga defending his title against world indoor champion Juan Miguel Echevarria, before the women’s 10,000m, which will not feature Britain’s Eilish McColgan after she chose to contest only the 5000m in Doha. Steph Twell will be pulling on the GB vest as she races over 25 laps of the track before switching her attention to the Frankfurt Marathon.

British champion Ojie Edoburun is joined by Adam Gemili and Zharnel Hughes – who are both entered for the 100m, 200m and 4x100m triple in Doha – for the shorter of the sprint events. USA’s Christian Coleman leads the world rankings with 9.81.

Again, to avoid the worst of the heat, the two 50km race walk events start at 23:30 local time, with Cameron Corbishley and Dominic King in action for GB.

Day three – Sunday September 29

20:05 (18:05) M 200m – Heats
20:40 (18:40) W Pole vault – Final
21:20 (19:20) W 100m – Semi-final
21:45 (19:45) M Triple jump – Final
21:55 (19:55) M 800m – Semi-final
22:35 (20:35) X 4x400m relay – Final
23:20 (21:20) W 100m – Final
23:30 (21:30) W 20km race walk – Final

Day three sees five finals take place. After qualification on Friday evening, British record-holder Holly Bradshaw could be among those going for the medals in the women’s pole vault in what she believes to be one of the most open ever competitions.

The men’s triple jump is set to see USA’s Christian Taylor and Will Claye fight for victory and behind them there looks to be another battle for bronze. Britain’s Ben Williams believes he will be among those fighting for a medal in a season which has seen him add 53cm to his personal best.

The final of the inaugural world mixed 4x400m relay takes place, while Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith could claim a first of three medals as she targets the 100m, 200m and 4x100m triple in Doha. Double Olympic champion Elaine Thompson and multiple global medallist Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica are among her competition.

Road action continues with the women’s 20km race walk.

Day four – Monday September 30

16:30 (14:30) W Javelin – Qualification Group A
17:05 (15:05) W 200m – Heats
18:00 (16:00) W Javelin – Qualification Group B
18:20 (16:20) W 400m – Heats
20:05 (18:05) M 110m hurdles – Heats
20:30 (18:30) W High jump – Final
20:50 (18:50) M 200m – Semi-final
21:15 (19:15) M Discus – Final
21:20 (19:20) M 5000m – Final
21:50 (19:50) W 3000m steeplechase – Final
22:10 (20:10) W 800m – Final
22:40 (20:40) M 400m hurdles – Final

There are six gold medals to be won on day four, in the women’s high jump, men’s discus, men’s 5000m, women’s 3000m steeplechase, women’s 800m and men’s 400m hurdles.

Authorised neutral athlete Mariya Lasitskene hopes to become the first three-time world high jump champion but faces competition from Ukraine’s Yuliya Levchenko. Morgan Lake jumps for GB.

Doha will offer the first world 5000m final since 2005 without Britain’s 10-time global gold medallist Mo Farah. All three Ingebrigtsen brothers – Henrik, Filip and Jakob – are entered, while Britain’s team includes Andrew Butchart, Ben Connor and Marc Scott.

The women’s steeplechase features Kenya’s world record-holder Beatrice Chepkoech and three British athletes – Elizabeth Bird, Rosie Clarke and Aimee Pratt.

South Africa’s three-time world champion Caster Semenya will not race for a fourth 800m gold following the IAAF’s new rules on female classification. USA’s Ajee’ Wilson leads the entries with 1:57.72, with Brits Alexandra Bell, Shelayna Oskan-Clarke and Lynsey Sharp hoping to be in action, should all have gone to plan in the earlier stages.

The men’s 400m hurdles is one of the most highly-anticipated events of the championships and the final takes place on day four, where defending champion Karsten Warholm, who sits second on the world all-time list, will likely go up against two other athletes who join him in the top four on the global all-time rankings – Rai Benjamin and home favourite Abderrahman Samba.

Day five – Tuesday October 1

16:30 (14:30) M Hammer – Qualification Group A
16:35 (14:35) M 400m – Heats
16:50 (14:50) M High jump – Qualification
17:30 (15:30) W 400m hurdles – Heats
18:00 (16:00) M Hammer – Qualification Group B
18:15 (16:15) M 3000m steeplechase – Heats
20:05 (18:05) M Pole vault – Final
20:50 (18:50) W 400m – Semi-final
21:20 (19:20) W Javelin – Final
21:35 (19:35) W 200m – Semi-final
22:10 (20:10) M 800m – Final
22:40 (20:40) M 200m – Final

Four titles are to be won, in the men’s pole vault, women’s javelin, men’s 800m and men’s 200m. USA’s defending champion Sam Kendricks will be looking for gold again as he goes up against Poland’s Piotr Lisek and European champion Armand Duplantis of Sweden, with Britain’s Harry Coppell aiming to make the final.

Nijel Amos stormed to the top of the world 800m rankings with his 1:41.89 in Monaco for the fastest time recorded since the London 2012 Olympics. USA’s Donavan Brazier will be another one to watch and British athletes Elliot Giles, Kyle Langford and Jamie Webb will be looking to make the final.

What will Noah Lyles do in Doha? The American clocked 19.50 at the IAAF Diamond League meet in Lausanne and seeks a first senior global title. Also in 200m action in Doha are Britain’s Miguel Francis, Adam Gemili and Zharnel Hughes, with Francis having clocked 19.97 this year and British champion Gemili and European 100m champion Hughes hoping to be back in action after racing the 100m.

Day six – Wednesday October 2

16:35 (14:35) M 100m – Decathlon
16:45 (14:45) W Shot put – Qualification
17:05 (15:05) W 100m hurdles – Heptathlon
17:30 (15:30) M Long jump – Decathlon
17:35 (15:35) W 1500m – Heats
18:00 (16:00) W Discus – Qualification Group A
18:15 (16:15) W High jump – Heptathlon
18:25 (16:25) W 5000m – Heats
18:50 (16:50) M Shot put – Decathlon
19:25 (17:25) W Discus – Qualification Group B
20:05 (18:05) M (110m hurdles – Semi-final
20:30 (18:30) W Shot put – Heptathlon
20:35 (18:35) M 400m Semi-final
20:40 (18:40) M High jump – Decathlon
21:05 (19:05) W 400m hurdles – Semi-Final
21:40 (19:40) M Hammer – Final
21:50 (19:50) W 200m – Heptathlon
22:35 (20:35) W 200m – Final
23:00 (21:00) M 110m hurdles – Final
23:15 (21:15) M 400m – Decathlon

Combined events action gets under way on day six, with both the heptathlon – set to feature a battle between Olympic and defending world champion Nafi Thiam and Britain’s Katarina Johnson-Thompson – and decathlon taking place.

The three finals are the men’s hammer, featuring Poland’s defending champion Pawel Fajdek and Britain’s Commonwealth champion Nick Miller, plus the women’s 200m and men’s 110m hurdles. In the 200m, Elaine Thompson is fastest of the entries after world leader Shaunae Miller-Uibo decided to focus on the 400m. Behind her on the rankings are Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Dina Asher-Smith, who both also contest the 100m. Asher-Smith is joined in racing the 200m in Doha by team-mates Beth Dobbin and Jodie Williams.

Olympic champion Omar McLeod of Jamaica will defend his world 110m hurdles title against entries including Britain’s Andrew Pozzi.

Day seven – Thursday October 3

16:35 (14:35) M 110m hurdles – Decathlon
16:40 (14:40) W Triple jump – Qualification
17:30 (15:30) M Discus – Decathlon Group A
18:15 (16:15) W Long jump – Heptathlon
18:35 (16:35) M Discus – Decathlon Group B
19:05 (17:05) M Pole vault – Decathlon Group A
19:20 (17:20) M Shot put – Qualification Group A
20:05 (18:05) M Pole vault – Decathlon Group B
20:10 (18:10) W Javelin – Heptathlon
20:40 (18:40) M Shot put – Qualification Group B
22:00 (20:00) M 1500m – Heats
22:05 (20:05) M Javelin – Decathlon Group A
22:35 (20:35) W Shot put – Final
23:00 (21:00) W 1500m – Semi-final
23:10 (21:10) M Javelin – Decathlon Group B
23:50 (21:50) W 400m – Final
00:05 (22:05) W 800m – Heptathlon
00:25 (22:25) M 1500m – Decathlon

Day seven will see the conclusion of the heptathlon and decathlon, with two other finals – the women’s shot put and 400m – taking place. Gong Lijiao defends her shot put title and Britain’s Sophie McKinna will hope for another PB performance, while Olympic champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo will look for her first world gold after 400m silver and 200m bronze medals. Emily Diamond and Laviai Nielsen race for GB.

While Nafi Thiam and Katarina Johnson-Thompson are set to fight it out in the heptathlon, the decathlon features France’s world record-holder Kevin Mayer and Britain’s Tim Duckworth.

Day eight – Friday October 4

20:05 (18:05) M 1500m – Semi-final
20:15 (18:15) M High jump – Final
20:40 (18:40) W 4x100m relay – Heats
21:00 (19:00) W Discus – Final
21:05 (19:05) M 4x100m relay – Heats
21:30 (19:30) W 400m hurdles – Final
21:45 (19:45) M 3000m steeplechase – Final
22:20 (20:20) M 400m – Final
23:30 (21:30) M 20km race walk – Final

Day eight sees six finals, with the men’s high jump – featuring home favourite Mutaz Essa Barshim – kicking them off. Next up is the women’s discus before the women’s 400m hurdles, where world record-holder Dalilah Muhammad and her US team-mate Sydney McLaughlin, the world under-20 record-holder, will be in the spotlight.

The men’s steeplechase is another open event, with Morocco’s Soufiane El Bakkali leading the entries with 8:04.82.

Michael Norman goes in quickest in the 400m with 43.45 ahead of his US team-mate Fred Kerley’s 43.64, with Matthew Hudson-Smith and Rabah Yousif racing for GB. The men’s 20km race walk gets under way at 23:30 local time, with GB represented by Tom Bosworth and Callum Wilkinson.

Day nine – Saturday October 5

16:30 (14:30) M Javelin – Qualification Group A
17:15 (15:15) W 100m hurdles – Heats
17:50 (15:50) W Long jump – Qualification
18:00 (16:00) M Javelin throw – Qualification Group B
19:55 (17:55) W 4x400m relay – Heats
20:05 (18:05) M Shot put – Final
20:25 (18:25) M 4x400m relay – Heats
20:35 (18:35) W Triple jump – Final
20:55 (18:55) W 1500m – Final
21:25 (19:25) W 5000m – Final
22:05 (20:05) W 4x100m relay – Final
22:15 (20:15) M 4x100m relay – Final
23:59 (21:59) M Marathon – Final

The penultimate day of action features seven finals, including the men’s shot put, women’s triple jump, women’s 1500m, women’s 5000m, both 4x100m relays and the men’s marathon.

Yulimar Rojas defends her triple jump crown against Olympic champion and two-time world winner Caterine Ibarguen. The women’s 1500m features a few question marks as world leader Sifan Hassan is yet to decide whether she will race the event following the 10,000m and British record-holder Laura Muir is continuing her comeback after injury, while Genzebe Dibaba was a late withdrawal due to plantar fasciitis. Sarah McDonald and Jemma Reekie join Muir on the GB team, while Jessica Judd, Eilish McColgan and Laura Weightman race the 5000m.

The men’s marathon sees defending champion Geoffrey Kirui and Britain’s world fourth-placer Callum Hawkins in action, while the men’s 4x100m squad goes in as defending champions.

Day 10 – Sunday October 6

19:02 (17:02) W 100m hurdles – Semi-final
19:15 (17:15) W Long jump – Final
19:40 (17:40) M 1500m – Final
19:55 (17:55) M Javelin – Final
20:00 (18:00) M 10,000m – Final
20:50 (18:50) W 100m hurdles – Final
21:15 (19:15) W 4x400m relay – Final
21:30 (19:30) M 4x400m relay – Final

The last seven titles to be claimed are in the women’s long jump, men’s 1500m, men’s javelin, men’s 10,000m, women’s 100m hurdles and both the 4x400m relays.

After leaping 7.16m, Germany’s Malaika Mihambo will look to continue her superb season in the long jump, with Abigail Irozuru, Shara Proctor and Jazmin Sawyers all hoping to make the final and USA’s Brittney Reese going for a fifth world outdoor title.

After racing the 5000m, Jakob and Filip Ingebrigtsen are due to take on the 1500m, with Neil Gourley, Josh Kerr and Jake Wightman the entries for GB.

Should all go to plan for them in qualifying, the men’s javelin will see Germany’s Johannes Vetter, Andreas Hofmann and Olympic champion Thomas Rohler competing, while the men’s 10,000m features Uganda’s world cross country champion Joshua Cheptegei and Ethiopia’s two-time world 5000m medallist Hagos Gebrhiwet.

Jamaica’s Danielle Williams and Janeek Brown lead the 100m hurdles entries list with respective times of 12.32 and 12.40, ahead of USA’s world record-holder Kendra Harrison who has clocked 12.43 this year. GB’s Cindy Ofili continues her comeback after injury.

Allyson Felix, who had her first child in November, could win a record-extending 17th world medal as she forms part of the US 4x400m squad.

TV guide

A list of broadcasters per territory can be found here.

Fans in the UK will be able to follow BBC coverage, with the team including Olympic and world champions Michael Johnson, Jessica Ennis-Hill, Denise Lewis and Daley Thompson plus triple jumper Naomi Ogbeta to offer a ‘current athlete’s perspective’.

Details of BBC coverage can be found here.

Jack Carty will start at fly-half as Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt makes four changes for his side's Pool A match against hosts Japan on Saturday.

Johnny Sexton is not included in the squad, having been taken off in the win over Scotland with a thigh niggle.

Rob Kearney and Keith Earls return to the back three as Jordan Larmour and Andrew Conway make way.

Chris Farrell partners Garry Ringrose in midfield as Peter O'Mahony is fit to start in the back row.

Centre Robbie Henshaw is again not included in the matchday 23 having picked up a hamstring injury in the first week of training in Japan.

However, Joey Carbery is set to return to action as he is named on the bench following his recovery from an ankle injury sustained in Ireland's first warm-up game against Italy in August.

Twenty-seven-year-old Carty made his international debut as a replacement against Italy in this year's Six Nations.

The fly-half followed up a strong season at Connacht with an impressive showing in Ireland's warm-up games, including a man-of-the-match display against Wales in Cardiff.

Sexton relinquished place-kicking duties during the first half of Ireland's 27-3 victory over Scotland but remained on the field until the 59th minute.

There is no place for Bundee Aki, despite the centre being passed fit after coming off early against Scotland, although O'Mahony has recovered having gone through HIA protocol.

Schmidt has resisted the temptation to keep Conway and Larmour in the side after the duo performed well in Yokohama, and reverts to his favoured back three with Kearney and Earls joining Ulster wing Jacob Stockdale.

Japan bench captain Leitch

The hosts overcame a shaky start to secure a bonus-point win over Russia in the tournaments curtain raiser last Friday.

Captain Michael Leitch is a shock omission from the Brave Blossoms' starting XV to face Ireland.

Instead, head coach Jamie Joseph opts to bring fit-again Amanaki Mafi into the back row, with flanker Lappies Labuschagne taking over as skipper.

Mafi's inclusion for Leitch, which sees Kazuki Himeno move from the back of the scrum to blind-side flanker, is one of three personnel changes in the pack.

Koo Ji-won comes into the front row for Asaeli Ai Valu as Luke Thompson replaces Wimpie van der Walt at lock.

Wing Lomano Lemeki also makes way as Rhoyei Yamanaka comes in at full back with Will Tupuo moving to the left wing.

Ireland: Kearney; Earls, Ringrose, Farrell, Stockdale; Carty, Murray; Healy, Best, Furlong, Henderson, James Ryan; O'Mahony, van der Flier, Stander.

Replacements: Cronin, Kilcoyne, Porter, Beirne, Ruddock, McGrath, Carbery, Larmour.

Japan: Yamanaka; Matsushima, Lafaele, Nakamura, Tupou; Tamura, Nagare; Inagaki, Horie, Koo, Thompson, Moore; Himeno, Labuschagne, Mafi.

Replacements: Sakate, Nakajima, Ai Valu, van der Walt, Tanaka, Matsua, Lava Lemeki.

Carlos Vela scored his 30th goal of the season, and Diego Rossi connected on the go-ahead score in the 70th minute as LAFC clinched the 2019 MLS Supporters' Shield with a 3-1 victory Wednesday over the visiting Houston Dynamo.

LAFC midfielder Eduard Atuesta put the game away with a goal off a direct free kick in the 82nd minute when he curled a shot from just outside the corner of the penalty area into the right side of goal.

LAFC (20-4-8, 68 points) finally clinched the best record in the league, in just its second season, by ending a five-match winless streak. The team did have four ties during that stretch but had not won since Aug. 21 against San Jose.

Vela became just the second player in MLS history to score 30 goals in a season as he moved one away from the record set by Atlanta United's Josef Martinez last season. Vela became the first player in league history with 30 goals and 15 assists in the same season.

LAFC seemed doomed to another tie, which would have left them just short of clinching the Supporters' Shield. But Rossi scored an opportunistic goal late in the second half off a diving header.

Dynamo defender Maynor Figueroa tried to clear a ball out of the Houston penalty area, but the ball hit off the crossbar and came back onto the field. Rossi went with a diving header off a high bounce and beat Dynamo goalkeeper Joe Willis for his 16th of the season.

Vela scored a goal in his seventh consecutive game when he converted on a penalty kick in the 23rd minute for a 1-0 lead. Lee Nguyen earned the attempt when he was fouled in the penalty area by Houston's Kiki Struna.

The Dynamo (11-17-4, 37 points) tied the score 1-1 in the 28th minute on an LAFC own goal. Struna directed a loose ball in the LAFC penalty area toward goal. The ball was cleared off the line by LAFC's Mohamed El-Munir, but it rebounded off goalkeeper Tyler Miller and into the net.

With two games to play in the regular season, LAFC are now three points behind the New York Red Bulls' MLS record of 71 points in a season set last year.

South Australia 5 for 177 (Cooper 52*, Nair 2-42) beat New South Wales 173 (Nevill 40, Richardson 3-25, Mennie 3-39) by five wickets

Incisive opening spells from Kane Richardson and Joe Mennie helped South Australia to a bonus-point five-wicket win over New South Wales at Allan Border Field.

The new-ball duo made the most of the helpful bowling conditions early after captain Jake Lehmann won the toss, taking three wickets each to dismantle the New South Wales top order.

They slumped to 5 for 27 in the seventh over and could only manage to post 173. South Australia veteran Tom Cooper steered the chase with a patient, unbeaten half-century to ensure they never lost wickets in clumps. They won with 11 overs to spare to secure the bonus point and leave New South Wales winless after two matches.

The toss was vital given the overhead conditions and the ball duly darted around in the first hour of play and made life difficult for the batsmen. But four of the first five players dismissed were guilty of pushing with hard hands well in front of their front pads.

Jack Edwards and Daniel Hughes both inside-edged booming drives, Moises Henriques was pinned lbw by a hooping inswinger, Kurtis Patterson nicked a peach from Mennie and Nick Bertus chopped on defending off the back foot.

Peter Nevill and Daniel Sams were forced to rebuild and produced 54-run stand, but scoring with fluency was difficult. Arjun Nair and Sean Abbott provided handy contributions down the order however New South Wales were bowled out inside 39 overs.

The chase was not as simple as it appeared as the sideways movement gave way to some variable pace and bounce.

Callum Ferguson got away to a brisk start striking four boundaries in 22 before edging Abbott to slip. Alex Carey, promoted to open in the absence of the injured Jake Weatherald, looked in complete control cruising to 36 before feathering an under edge flailing at a wide delivery.

Lehmann and Cooper broke the back of the chase from there before Lehmann was undone by some extra bounce from Nair to be caught behind for 37. There were some late wobbles with miscues from Harry Nielsen and Alex Ross keeping, but Cooper closed out the contest by reaching his second straight half-century.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson insisted all offseason that he would be running less.

After three games this season, Jackson offered another revelation.

"I hate running," Jackson said. "Only if I have to, but my job is to get the ball to the receivers, the tight ends, running backs. If I have to run, I'll do it, but I'd rather just sit back and pass it. I like throwing touchdowns instead of running them."

In three games, Jackson is averaging 33 passes and just nine rushes per game -- which is down from his 17 carries per game as a starter last season.

Jackson still has confidence in his rushing ability. In Sunday's loss at Kansas City, he scored a touchdown by faking out one defender and spinning past another to reach the end zone.

"I only could run it. There was no one open," Jackson said. "I had to make him miss. I'm one-on-one. I like my chances over anyone one-on-one."

Jackson is on pace to gain 917 yards rushing, which would rank as the fourth-most by a quarterback. When Jackson takes off, he often creates highlights with his ability to sidestep, fake out and hurdle defenders.

"He's wild, man. He's amazing," running back Mark Ingram said. "I don't think there is anything like him in the league, as far as just extending plays and being able to juke defenders. He's special. He can extend plays and buy time for us to get open, receivers to get open, or him take off and run at the last resort and juke people, spin around people, make people fall."

Jackson has made dramatic improvements as a passer this season. In the season opener, he became the youngest player ever to record a perfect passer rating. Jackson then set a team record for most touchdown passes in the first two weeks of a season (seven).

Entering Week 4, Jackson has the NFL's fifth-best passer rating (113.9).