Reuters Sports Schedule at 0600 GMT on Friday, Jan 16
Reuters sports schedule at 0600 GMT on Friday - - - - NFL Packers visit defending champion Seahawks in NFC title game We look ahead to the National Football Conference title game where the Green Bay Packers visit Seattle, who are one win away from becoming the first team in 10 seasons to reach the Super Bowl in back-to-back years. (NFL-PLAYOFFS/NFC, moved, 400 words) - - Brady, Belichick try to add to Super Bowl legacy Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick can add to their prodigious NFL partnership, while Indianapolis Colts Andrew Luck aims to take a giant step forward in Sunday's AFC title game. (NFL-PLAYOFFS/AFC, moved, by Larry Fine, 400 words) - - - - SOCCER Premier League managers face the media We will bring you all the latest news from the Premier League manager's news conferences ahead of the weekend matches. (SOCCER-ENGLAND/, expect throughout, by Michael Holden and Toby Davis, 400 words) - - Asian Cup, Australia (to 31) Group D Asian Cup favourites Japan face Iraq BRISBANE - After putting four goals past Palestine in their group opener, Japan look to make it two wins out of two against Iraq in Brisbane. The Iraqis will also be full of confidence after an impressive 1-0 win over Jordan in their first game. (SOCCER-ASIA/M16 (PIX), expect by 1100 GMT/6 AM ET, 400 words) - - Jordan and Palestine look to keep campaigns alive MELBOURNE - Jordan and Palestine face off at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, aiming to bounce back from opening Group D defeats with victory to keep alive their slim quarter-final hopes. (SOCCER-ASIA/M15 (PIX), expect by 0900 GMT/4 AM ET, 400 words) - - Plenty to ponder for Oman coach Le Guen Oman coach Paul Le Guen arrived at the Asian Cup hoping his side could upset the odds against two of the region's strongest sides but in reality, the Frenchman could do little to prevent his team from crashing out of the tournament early. (SOCCER-ASIA/OMAN, moved, by John O'Brien, 400 words) - - Stielike struggling to find the right blend SEOUL - The surge of interest in South Korean players after the 2002 World Cup has been a source of pride for fans back home, but for national team coach Uli Stielike it is a double-edged sword. (SOCCER-ASIA/SOUTHKOREA, moved, by Peter Rutherford, 400 words) - - African Nations Cup Congo's Le Roy set to extend coaching record MALABO - Congo's French manager Claude Le Roy will extend his record for most games coached at the Nations Cup finals when he takes charge of Congo in tournament's opening match against hosts Equatorial Guinea on Saturday. (SOCCER-NATIONS/CONGO, moved, by Mark Gleeson, 400 words) - - World Cup qualifiers Road to Russia World Cup begins in South Beach MIAMI - The first steps on the road to the 2018 World Cup finals were taken on Thursday when the CONCACAF region held its draw for the opening rounds of qualification, with Canada handed a tie against Dominica or the British Virgin Islands. (SOCCER-WORLD/CONCACAF-DRAW, moved, by Simon Evans, 400 words) - - La Liga Cordoba v Eibar (1945) Copy on merit - - Ligue 1 Girondins Bordeaux v Nice (1930) Copy on merit - - Dutch championship Ajax Amsterdam v Groningen (1900) Ajax bid to close gap on leaders PSV as Dutch league resumes AMSTERDAM - The Dutch league resumes after the winter break with Ajax Amsterdam hosting Groningen knowing a win will move them within a point of leaders PSV Eindhoven who play on Saturday. (SOCCER-DUTCH/ (PIX), expect by 2100 GMT/4 PM ET, by Geert Beckers, 300 words) - - - - NBA Rockets sets for clash with Durant's Thunder The Houston Rockets will try to close the gap on the Eastern Conference-leading Golden State Warriors when they host reigning league MVP Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder in one of the three games on the National Basketball Association schedule. (NBA-HIGHLIGHTS/ (PIX), expect by 0730 GMT/2:30 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 600 words) - - - - NHL Streaking Blues play host to Red Wings The St. Louis Blues will try to extend the league's longest active win streak to six games when they host the Detroit Red Wings in one of the 10 games on the National Hockey League schedule. (NHL-HIGHLIGHTS/ (PIX), expect by 0730 GMT/2:30 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 800 words) - - - - NORTH AMERICAN SPORTS Roundups of off-field developments in the major North American professional sports leagues. (moved, by The Sports Xchange, 400 words) - - - - GOLF No need to change Kapalua's formula: tournament director LOS ANGELES - For almost two decades, the PGA Tour's opening event of the year has been held on the picturesque Hawaiian island of Maui with a winners-only field, an elite aspect tournament director Nancy Cross wants to retain. (GOLF-PGA/KAPALUA (FEATURE, PIX), moved, by Mark Lamport-Stokes, 600 words) - - PGA Tour: Sony Open, Honolulu, Hawaii (to 18) Simpson and Casey lead after first round American Webb Simpson proved he has made a smooth transition to a regular-length putter after shooting an eight-under-par 62 for a share of the Sony Open first round lead with Englishman Paul Casey in Hawaii. (GOLF-PGA/, moved, 400 words) - - European Tour: Abu Dhabi Championship, UAE (to 18) McIlroy mounts late birdie surge in Abu Dhabi opener ABU DHABI - Rory McIlroy trails leader Martyn Kaymer by three shots after the first round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship. (GOLF-EUROPEAN/, expect by 1100 GMT/6 AM ET, by Matt Smith, 400 words) - - - - TENNIS Australian Open made in Melbourne MELBOURNE - Serb Novak Djokovic's chances of winning a fifth Australian Open title have been boosted by a kind draw in the opening week of the year's first grand slam, while women's top seed Serena Williams kicks off her campaign against Belgian Alison Van Uytvanck. (TENNIS-OPEN/, moved, by Ian Ransom, 300 words) - - Djokovic primed to reassert rule over Melbourne Park MELBOURNE - Last year's Australian Open kicked off the biggest shakeup in men's tennis for a decade but Novak Djokovic is primed to stave off the charge of 'Generation Next' and take back his throne at Melbourne Park. (TENNIS-OPEN/MEN (PREVIEW, PIX), moving at 1200 GMT / 8 AM ET, by Ian Ransom, 600 words) - - Serena and Sharapova loom large over women's field Serena Williams's Australian Open preparations included smashing a racquet in frustration, complaining of fatigue and losing matches to players she had never lost to before, yet still remains favourite to claim her sixth title at Melbourne Park. (TENNIS-OPEN/WOMEN (PREVIEW, PIX), moving at 1200 GMT/ 8 AM ET, by Greg Stutchbury, 600 words) We will also factboxes on the tournament and past men's and women's winners. - - ATP/WTA: Sydney International (to 17) Kooyong Classic, Kooyong ATP: Auckland Open, Auckland (to 17) WTA: Hobart International (to 18) Kvitova the favourite in all-Czech Sydney final SYDNEY - World number four Petra Kvitova is the strong favourite to claim her first title of the year and get a big confidence boost for the Australian Open when she faces fellow Czech Karolina Pliskova in the women's final at the Sydney International. (TENNIS-SYDNEY/, expect by 1000 GMT/5 AM ET, by Nick Mulvenney, 400 words) Copy on merit on other tournaments listed above - - - - CRICKET Australia v England, Sydney, ODI tri-Series England's captain Morgan faces first challenge v Australia Eoin Morgan faces his first challenge since being
