MEN’S FOOTBALL: Ross Clarke bagged a first-half double as Glentoran moved within two points of Irish Premiership leaders Larne after cruising to a 4-0 win at Bangor on Tuesday evening. Linfield climbed a point above Coleraine into third with a 3-1 home win over Portadown, although they have played a game more. Substitute Joe Gormley scored a late winner for Cliftonville in their 1-0 victory at struggling Crusaders in the other midweek match.

MEN’S RUGBY LEAGUE: Defending NRL champions Brisbane get a quick chance to reignite their new campaign when they face Parramatta at the Suncorp Stadium tomorrow morning. Both teams lost their opening games with Brisbane failing to score a point and Parramatta going down to a 52-4 thumping at Melbourne. The Roosters meet the Rabbitohs in a Sydney derby tomorrow after the New Zealand Warriors have played Canberra.

HORSE RACING: Billy Loughnane rode his first ever five-timer at the huge cumulative odds of 666-1 during Wolverhampton’s Tuesday evening meeting. The 20-year-old Irishman is the current all-weather champion jockey and has ridden more winners at Wolverhampton than any other track. He currently leads this year’s all-weather championship, which runs from mid-October to early April, by 25 wins from second-placed Luke Morris.

MEN’S FOOTBALL: Nottingham Forest host Denmark’s Midtjylland tomorrow evening as the first legs of the Europa League’s last 16 kick off. Aston Villa are in Lille, Stuttgart meet two-time winners Porto, Bologna face Roma in an all-Italian affair and Panathinaikos play Real Betis. The remaining fixtures see 2011’s runners-up Sporting Braga visiting Ferencvaros, Celta Vigo up against Lyon and Genk taking on Freiburg.