Sporting Digest: Football

FALCAO, the 40-year-old former Brazilian international midfielder, has been approached to become the new coach of Japan in succession to the Dutchman, Hans Ooft.

HAROLD HORNSEY'S first step as Hartlepool's new chairman was to pay the players their overdue wages.

PAUL WARHURST, Blackburn's pounds 2.7m utility player who broke his leg four months ago, played 75 minutes of a reserve-team game against Derby County on Wednesday night.

HONG KONG, the host nation, will meet Denmark in Sunday's Carlsberg Cup final. Allen McKnight, the former West Ham goalkeeper, scored the decisive spot-kick for Hong Kong in a 5-4 shoot-out success over Romania in yesterday's semi-final. The penalties followed a 1-1 draw in which Dale Tempest, the former Fulham and Colchester striker, scored for Hong Kong.

CARLSBERG CUP INTERNATIONAL TOURNAMENT (Hong Kong): Denmark 0 United States 0 (Denmark win 4-2 on penalties); Hong Kong 1 (Tempest 71) Romania 1 (Dumitrescu 57) (Hong Kong win 5-4 on penalties).

FAI HARP CUP First round: Waterford 0 Cobh Ramblers 1. First-round replays: Dundalk 0 Galway 0 (abandoned, waterlogged pitch, 45 min); Glenmore Celtic 1 Sligo Rovers 2; Home Farm 2 Athlone Town 1; University College Dublin 1 Finn Harps 3.

PONTINS LEAGUE First Division: Leeds United 0 Notts County 1; Sheffield Wednesday 5 York City 1. Second Division: Stoke City 2 Barnsley 2; Middlesbrough 1 Scunthorpe United 1.

NEVILLE OVENDEN COMBINATION First Division: Bristol City 0 Arsenal 0; Brighton and Hove Albion 1 Luton Town 1.

INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY (Jeddah): Saudi Arabia 0 Colombia 1 (Valenciano 32).

WEDNESDAY'S LATE RESULTS: Dutch Cup quarter-finals: Ajax 7 Helmond Sport 1; Den Haag 1 NEC Nijmegen 3; RKC Waalwijk 2 Feyenoord 4; NAC Breda 1 PSV Eindhoven 0 (aet).

TRANSFERS: Scott Murray, striker, Fraserburgh to Aston Villa (trial); Stewart Hadley, striker, Derby to Mansfield (nominal fee); Glen Livingstone, goalkeeper, York to Walsall (trial); Tony Pounder, winger, Bristol Rovers to Walsall (trial); Mark Cooper, midfielder, Fulham to Exeter (free transfer).