but he warns there will be a bill to pay for leaving. can you go to your mummy and shake her for can you go to your mummy and shake herfor me. can you go to your mummy and shake her for me. she's not waking up. and the four—year—old twins who saved their mother's life — after working out how to unlock their mum's phone and call the emergency services. in a moment it will be time for sportsday but first a look at what else is coming up this evening on bbc news. we'll have the latest as president trump fights to get congress to pass his new healthcare bill. a vote is due in the next two hours — but hardline republicans are angry his changes to obamacare don't go far enough. at 810, we'll have a live debate on the state of british sport — with a panel of sportsmen and women and industry insiders. then at 101i0pm we'll take a look at some of tomorrow's front pages in our paper review. that's all ahead on bbc news. now on bbc news it's time for sportsday. hello and welcome to sportsday — i'm hugh woozencroft and there is lots in store for us this evening. can chris coleman's wales live up to the expectation as they prepare for a huge world cup qualifying clash with ireland. formula one is back but will it be lewis hamilton and mercedes year once again? we look ahead to the brand new season. and there's bad news for rory mcilroy at the wgc matchplay in texas and he didn't even lift a club! also coming up in the programme: the state of sport week focuses on ‘how sport saved my life' — we'll hear the inspirational story of two former soldiers. and we're with boxer anthony crolla as he looks to take back the world lightweight title — against the man he lost it to, six months ago. plenty to come in the programme but we're going to start with an important weekend of world cup qualification for all of the home nations. there's a lot at stake in dublin tonight as the republic of ireland take on wales in group d. only the group winners will qualify automatically for next year's world cup — it's still possible if you finish second but you must be one of the best eight of the nine group runners—up, and win a play—off. the republic are top of the group after four matches — wales are four points behind in third place. disappointing for the side ranked number 12 in the world, after home draws with georgia and serbia in their last two games. in a campaign, you get halfway and see where you are. are you fighting at the wrong end or the right end? so all this pressure on us is what we've always wanted. i've wished for it, dreamt about it. being halfway in the campaign and still having a say in who finishes top, who comes second, we're right in that. the players are confident, absolutely. we've got ten points and three of those games have been away from home. but there is naturally, we are going into the game with confidence, but there is a distance to go by the time the game is finished tomorrow evening, we are looking at halfway through the campaign. a distance to go, and if you are to ask any of the players and the coaches of any of the other national teams in our group, they will say the same thing. what i do think, the teams are capable of taking points off each other and that has been proved. martin o'neill will have plenty to ponder but if ireland can win the match it will be a huge fillip to their hopes of reaching russia next summer. the match kicks off at 745, you can listen in full on bbc radio 5live and radio wales. thomas kane looks ahead to the key tie from the aviva stadium. the republic of ireland have an outstanding home record and martin o'neill and they have not lost a qualifying match since took charge —— under. is a draw a good result? yes, i would say that, and i don't wa nt to yes, i would say that, and i don't want to be too cautious by saying that we will play for draw, because roy keane spoke about that, but in essence a draw is a good result because it keeps the run going that we have been on anichebe is the distance between ourselves and wales. —— and it keeps the distance. but that could turn into negativity of —— if you have a tendency to drop, but they can fall back on the luxury of a draw. it is important to not focus just on gareth bale? luxury of a draw. it is important to not focusjust on gareth bale? yes, knifing one of the most impressive midfielders in the premier league this season has beenjoe allen, and as much as we say, stop arab way, we know thatjoe allen, aaron ramsey, they have got quality —— stop gareth bale. their team is littered with real star quality players and you can't necessarily say stop gareth bale and used up the rest of the side, but we know that in the key moments by and large it has been down to gareth bale —— and you stop the rest of the side. what about brian mcbride, he died of course, and james mcclean has been back to derry. he went back there to visit family and the family of ryan, knew would hope that with his request to wear the number five showed would hope that with his request to wear the numberfive showed he would hope that with his request to wear the number five showed he will be fired up and he will want to play for him and his family. that is what i'm hoping for but we won't know until the game starts. james has a fiery streak and you would not want to ta ke fiery streak and you would not want to take that out of him at the start of the match. kevin, thanks for joining us. on sunday the other three home nations will be in action. gareth southgate will be hoping for his first win as the permanent manager of england while defeat for scotland would raise big question marks of gordon strachan's future as boss. here's how group f looks — england are top of the group, they face lithuania at wembley and after the performance against germany there are high hopes for southgate and his players. scotland host slovenia — they held england in one of their earlier matches and are four points ahead of the scots so defeat for strachan's side would leave a mountain to climb at the halfway stage. we are working hard. everyone still believes in what the manager wants to do and we have changed the way of playing a little bit because the squad has changed personnel wise and we are still working, working towards that and working together to find the best way for us to achieve results, but the most important thing, regardless what has gone on in this campaign, if we win on sunday we are back in the mix and we have a chance of moving up the group and qualifying. middlesbrough defender ben gibson has received his first senior england call—up ahead of sunday. he's been brought in following the withdrawal through injury of manchester united's chris smalling. gibson is already well respected by his new team mates. i've played with him on a few occasions with the under—21s. i've known him since then and we have got on quite well and i've seen him a few times. he's a very good player and he's been getting a lot of praise this season for how he's been playing for middlesbrough. it's fully deserved and hopefully he will enjoy his time here and you never know maybe he will make his england debut. for northern ireland, second place in the group is a realistic goal. they impressed at euro 2016 and have made a solid start to qualifying for next summer — although it already looks like nobody will stop the world champions germany in group c. michael o'neill's play norway on sunday evening, who have made a poor start, but have just appointed the former iceland boss lars lagerback as their new manager. england fans know all about him after the euros! when a new manager comes in you expect a lift, and norway have good players, they have had a poor start and underachieved. they are in a situation where they need a lift and they think he is capable of giving them back. it will be an interesting challenge for us and it is a game for them coming in, they have to win the game to keep their hopes alive, to be honest. meanwhile, england's women have returned to fourth in the fifa world rankings. equalling their highest position. the side came third in the shebelieves cup earlier this month after a 1—0 win over the usa, and have gone back above canada. scotland remain 21st, wales move up to 33rd and northern ireland are up to 55th. some club news now and tottenham's dele alli is banned for three european club games after his red card during the europa league tie against gent. the midfielder was sent off for a nasty challenge in the first half of the second leg at wembley. and the suspension will be served if spurs get into europe next season. which looks likely with the team currently second in the premier league. formula one returns this weekend. lewis hamilton will be looking to win the title once again. here's our formula one reporter tom clarkson. today was the day of the first practice sessions at albert park circuit behind me here in melbourne australia, is a very different formula i this season, with wider tyres and wider cars and much faster lap times, and the fastest time today was five seconds faster than here last year and that is a lifetime in formula i. if you were hoping that these new rules would shake up the order at the front i'm afraid your hopes have been —— because it is still lewis hamilton dominating proceedings. fastest this morning in the first practice session, fastest this afternoon in the second practice session and not bya the second practice session and not by a small margin either. he was half a second faster this afternoon than anyone else. that car that was second quickest was not his new mercedes team—mate valkyrie bottas who is replacing the outgoing world champ in nico rosberg, who announced his retirement from f1 in the summer, and a bottas was third with the ferrari of sebastian vettel stating in in front of him, and the ferrari of sebastian vettel stating in infront of him, and it has been a chastening experience for bottas in what is his first ride for mercedes. but of course the proof will be in the pudding. when we find out tomorrow in qualifying whether hamilton does indeed have this vast gap over everybody else. so it could well be that mercedes dominate for a fourth successive season with lewis hamilton favourite to become world champion for the fourth time. however, liberty media who are the new owners of formula one have drafted in expert help to try to improve ‘the spectacle.‘ my role on the racing side would be to be proactive, to work with the teams, to work with the fia, to find the right solutions to make our sport as great as possible in the future. and by great, i mean close racing, healthy teams, a true meritocracy of drivers, and all the things we know we have in a perfect world. rory mcilroy is out of the wgc match play golf. having only played one round. the second of his three opponents in the round robin group stage of the tournament in texas — gary woodland — pulled out. leaving denmark's soren kjeldsen who beat mcilroy on wednesday. needing only a half point in his match against argentine emiliano grillo to eliminate the northern irishman. kjeldsen was due to play his final group match against woodland. so since he's guaranteed a win, mcilroy can't qualify. england's tyrrell hatton and paul casey won to maintain their 100% records but masters champion danny willett is out. chris froome has moved up from fifth place to second at the tour of catalunya, his first european race of the year. spain's alejandro valverde won stage 5 to take the overall lead, having broken clear at the end of the stage. froome and alberto contador finished second and third, froome is now 23 seconds behind valverde in the overall standings. fellow brit adam yates has moved up to fifth. england wicketkeeper sarah taylor still hopes to play in this summer's cricket world cup. despite not being selected fora training camp in the uae next month. taylor's taken a break from the sport because of anxiety problems. now, for armed forces personnel who suffer injuries on the field of battle, their lives can change overnight. but sport can have a unique healing power — and for many former servicemen and women, it can give them a focus for the future. as part of the bbc‘s state of sport week, the former paralympian kate grey has been to meet two ex—military sportsmen — to hear their inspirational stories. can you put some water in that? the simplest of tasks can seem challenging when life as you know it changes with the smallest of breaths. i must have breathed in at the wrong time, and i inhaled what had kicked off the ground and i was diagnosed with fever. i can move my limbs but i don't have any strength andi limbs but i don't have any strength and i was not able to lift my child. q fever is a deteriorating muscle condition and as time passed by phil reached breaking point. condition and as time passed by phil reached breaking pointlj condition and as time passed by phil reached breaking point. i could not do the things i wanted to do, and i felt like a burden on my family and i tried to end my life and my wife caught me and we turned it around from there. and with the help of military charities it was introduced to shooting, a sport which was well suited to his condition. to shooting, a sport which was well suited to his conditionlj to shooting, a sport which was well suited to his condition. i found out i was good at it and i had something to do rather than sit and rest all the time and it gave me more purpose in life. the one defining moment was after a shot in rio, seeing my kids after a shot in rio, seeing my kids after and how proud they were, i will never forget that, that was the best day ever. like phil many other military personnel have gained life changing injuries, corey doffed —— lost his legs in an explosion. my kids came in, and they said, daddy, you know, you're going to get metal legs and you will be able to ride b i cycles. legs and you will be able to ride bicycles. at that point, i thought, it's not too bad. within four weeks he was testing out new prophetic ‘s and he tried a number of different sports but it was bobsleigh that took his fancy —— testing out new prosthetics. it is sense —— thanks to recovery centres like this where they can build new pathways. for corrie the target is to compete in the next winter games where bobsleigh will make its debut in the aaron picks. —— paralympics. bobsleigh will make its debut in the aaron picks. -- paralympics. it is what gets me up in the morning, and when i'm going to the gym, i'm determined to do it. that is the endgame. the circumstances you face asa endgame. the circumstances you face as a person, no matter how bad they are, or what you have done as a person, they will never define you asa person, they will never define you as a person. i have transport as a way to live rather than just exist. —— i have found sport as a way to live. well following a week of reports on the state of sport, this evening at ten past eight on bbc news there will be special debate programme. a panel of sports people and industry insiders willjoin hosts david eades and jessica creighton to reflect on the issues arising from the past five days. to rugby union now and england's attempts to arrange a fixture against new zealand later this year came from head coach eddiejones and weren't motivated by commercial reasons. the rfu's chief executive insists the opportunity to play the world champions was something he had to look into. the all blacks declined the offer to play at twickenham in november. i think every rugby supporter around the country would want to see england playing the all blacks in 2017 and so i felt honour bound to see if we could achieve that. it wasn't easy and potentially there we re wasn't easy and potentially there were difficulties about trying to do it but it was worth having a go to see if we could get what would be a great game. i had discussions with new zealand and they were very straightforward and very decent about it, and after some discussions and deliberations they decided they would prefer to play the barbarians rather than england and that is their call. i can understand that. there's been a blow for warren gatland's plans ahead of the british and irish lions tour to new zealand this summer. ireland's jamie heaslip and rob kearney are now doubts after undergoing minor surgery. both missed the six nations win over england last week. number 8 heaslip has had surgery on a disc problem in his back while full—back kearney has had an operation on a knee injury. both players have been involved in the past two lions tours but their club leinster are unsure when they will return. gatland names his squad on the 19th of april. northampton saints are one of the clubs welcoming back their international stars tomorrow, for the east midlands derby against leicester. england captain dylan hartley and wales wing george north will both start at franklin's gardens. northampton are sixth, a place below leicester in the premiership table and are keen to end a six game losing streak against their fiercest rivals. bbc lokk east's james burridge reports. very good evening to you. it is time for the saints show. no rest for one of the most famous rugby faces, george north, the welsh dragon, hunting down another lions tour and hoping to breathe fire into the saints's season ahead of another feisty derby with leicester.m saints's season ahead of another feisty derby with leicester. if you wa nt feisty derby with leicester. if you want a feisty derby with leicester. if you wanta game feisty derby with leicester. if you want a game to come back to which is not dissimilar to want a game to come back to which is not dissimilarto an want a game to come back to which is not dissimilar to an international, this is one of them, the rivalry between the clubs is huge. there is no hiding that. this game will be a good one to get back into in terms of the games. north is rarely out of the headlines, the latest case an alleged bike which took place during wales game against france in the 6—nation stash bite. one of the most extraordinary ends to a game that lasted 100 minutes, and no action has been taken to the frustration of the welsh winger. sometimes for the cameras that are there, they sometimes capture it and sometimes they don't, and this time it did not get picked up, and there is no ruling, but from my perspective it was disappointing. north is one of a number of international is returning tomorrow, england captain dylan hartley has played more games for his country than his club so far this season, and the last time he returned from international duty he was red carded and given a six—week ban. have a club handle their returnees will be critical to their chances. —— how the club. returnees will be critical to their chances. -- how the club. looking at what they've done in the last six weeks playing for england, wales and france, i suppose, weeks playing for england, wales and france, isuppose, and weeks playing for england, wales and france, i suppose, and shaking at how they've trained and where they are at. —— checking out. mentally it isa are at. —— checking out. mentally it is a fishing as much as physically and we will have a good chat with the lads and see how they are feeling —— mentor the —— mentally it isa feeling —— mentor the —— mentally it is a factor. franklin gardens is a sell—out for the first time this season, it has been a rough season for northampton and they need their stars to shine tomorrow. boxer anthony crolla is looking for revenge this weekend. he lost his wba lightweight world title last september to jorge linares — but gets the chance to win it back, along with the wbc title and ring magazine crown in a huge unification fight in manchester. there is some flash photography in this report from alex gulrajani. anthony crolla once his world title back and in september champions league champion, when he took on linares. ion is believed the fight was taken over, there was a fantastic shot which bars to me. the ha rd est you fantastic shot which bars to me. the hardest you have been hit? fantastic shot which bars to me. the hardest you have been hinm fantastic shot which bars to me. the hardest you have been hit? it was up there, i knew what was going on but my legs did not feel the same. linares showing his true class and that meeting but anthony crolla did enough to earn a rematch, and getting these two face—to—face for the second time is one thing but grabbing the public‘s attention is another. tony bellew and david haye managed to do just that, making huge sums of money on a pay—per—view television, for a nontitle fight. does it frustrate you that you are not getting the coverage for a big fight? it would not succumb to be with me, to throw insults to get more coverage “— with me, to throw insults to get more coverage —— it would not sit co mforta bly more coverage —— it would not sit comfortably with me. i know this is a big fight with boxing fans, and even this doesn't crossover, i'm willing to accept. anthony crolla is happy to be boxing after two years ago he was hit over the head with a paving slab after he caught neighbours at his —— after he called burglars at his neighbour ‘s home. just six laters it was back in the ring —— six months later. just six laters it was back in the ring -- six months later. it has made me appreciate things so much more. i know how lucky i am. getting his hands on a first world title wasn't easy and it took a rematch with a colombian, and he held that title until losing it last year. i've come back that you come back from a life—threatening injury and you have won a world title, and lost one, how do you put everything into context? i'm a realist and under no illusions, this is the toughest fight of my career. fighting lina res, fight of my career. fighting linares, i've got to use my head and not just my heart. linares, i've got to use my head and notjust my heart. no doubt it will be another tough night, but as anthony crolla has shown inside and outside the ring he never gives up. can he do it? well you can hear live commentary on bbc radio 5live tomorrow from quarter past 10 in the evening. boxing correspondent mike costello will be ringside, alongside steve bunce and heavyweight world title challenger hughie fury. we're going to return to football finally and the very special mascot who will lead out england against lithuania at wembley. you will know about the five—year—old sunderland fan bradley lowery, who is suffering from a rare type of cancer — neuro—blastoma. his mum gemma was elated with the news her son will be a mascot alongside his hero and "best mate" jermain defoe. guess who is going to the england match next week? who? jermain defoe. cheering are you buzzing? yes. at the very beginning it wasjust are you buzzing? yes. at the very beginning it was just amazing, his dream come true, his herojermain defoe, and now he calls his best friend. it isjust defoe, and now he calls his best friend. it is just normal for him now, but at the beginning, it was fantastic. to have that experience to have all the spirits is having at the moment so surreal. —— all the experiences. and it gives us memories that we can carry with us for the rest of our lives, as well. good luck to bradley on sunday. lizzie will have more sport on bbc news through the evening. the sun has been shining in many parts of the country today, and this isa parts of the country today, and this is a beautiful picture from north yorkshire and more good weather on the way for this weekend. there is an exception, across the south and south—west it has been pretty cloudy, and cornwall and devon quite overcast into the afternoon, but even here the clouds are now breaking up and the temperatures will be dipping away very quickly with those clearing skies, big high—pressure, establishing itself across the uk. in the centre of this high very light winds, clear skies and a frost developing with mist and fog very early on saturday morning. a starry night on the way. temperatures in city centres will be around 2—3, but in rural areas it would be more like minus 2—3 and even “11 in the north. saturday morning starts with a beautiful note, misty and foggy in some areas but by the time we get to the afternoon, stunning weather in the uk. a bit windy, with a cold wind in the south—eastern corner, so the coast will be 9 degrees, but some areas could see temperatures as high as 15—16 — areas could see temperatures as high as 15-16 - 17 areas could see temperatures as high as 15—16 — 17 degrees, and that will be mostly in western areas of uk. western of wales, for example. saturday afternoon not much change, the high pressure is still here, so clear skies and another cold night saturday night. saturday night into sunday the clocks change and so one o'clock in the morning magically becomes two o'clock in the morning. these are the sunrises and sunsets on sunday, at seven o'clock in wrexham and it will set at 735. the high—pressure again across the uk, another beautiful day, and the cloud will vary over eastern areas but overall it will be staying bright across overall it will be staying bright a cross m ost overall it will be staying bright across most of the uk. this is a look at the wetherby on that. the high—pressure looks as though it will slip further to the east —— at the weather beyond. that might bring some thick cloud, but not until around about tuesday. this is the weekend, settled weather with warm sunshine, but a touch of frost. goodbye. welcome to another grey day in london town. don't worry, it's red nose day. # a brand new red nose day # it's time to bring the goofballs out # get crazy ? shout "hooray" # we're here to persuade you not to go out on the lash # chill out, relax and give some cash # go on ? dip into your stash # they've called comics old and new # and rounded up the talent who had sod all else to do # so we jumped into our cars and now we're here at the 02 # it's going to be a crazy night # nojokes about my height! # the night is young #and so ami # got a gorgeous twinkle # in my eye! # don't feel dismay # we'll only stay for seven hours # a cavalcade of comic folk # each one with a differentjoke # an epic carpool karaoke # to make you happy music changes to "gangnam style" by psy # you won't believe that we all showed up # to fill your cup with red nose glee # a paradise of pros # as hilarious humour flows but we promise: # no puns, no puns, not one pun