Sporting Digest: Football

The St Johnstone striker George O'Boyle scored against the run of play a minute before the interval to give Northern Ireland a 1-0 win over the Republic of Ireland in last night's B international friendly in front of a capacity 10,200 crowd at Tolka Park, Dublin.

Graham Roberts, the former Tottenham and England defender, has been dismissed as manager of Yeovil Town for disciplinary reasons.

Five countries have put in bids to stage the finals of the 2004 European Championship: Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and Austria and Hungary, who offered a joint bid.

Kasey Keller, Leicester's American international goalkeeper, came third in a poll of American football writers for US Player of the Year behind the Washington DC United defender Eddie Pope and the midfielder Claudio Reyna, who plays for Wolfsberg in Germany.