SpaceX Falcon rocket poised for flight from historic NASA launchpad

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket was poised for a debut flight on Saturday from a NASA launchpad idled since the end of the space shuttle program nearly six years ago.

Liftoff was scheduled for 10:01 a.m. (1501 GMT) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, pending good weather and the resolution of what the company described as a minor technical issue with the rocket's second-stage motor.

Space Exploration Technologies Corp, owned and operated by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, has not flown from Florida in six months. Flights were suspended after a rocket exploded as it was being fueled for a routine, prelaunch test at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The accident destroyed the rocket and its cargo and heavily damaged the launchpad.

SpaceX resumed flying last month from a second launch site in California while it hustled to finish work on the shuttle's old launchpad. Originally built for the 1960s-era Apollo moon program, the Florida pad was refurbished for the space shuttles, which flew from 1981 to 2011.

SpaceX signed a 20-year lease for the pad in 2014.

"My heart is pounding to come out here today. Not because you guys make me nervous, but because I've got a vehicle on this extraordinary pad behind me," SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell told reporters at the launchpad on Friday.

Perched on top of the rocket is a Dragon capsule loaded with about 5,500 pounds (2,500 kg) of supplies and science experiments for the International Space Station, a $100 billion research laboratory that flies about 250 miles (400 km) above Earth.

NASA hired privately owned SpaceX and Orbital ATK to resupply the station after the shuttles were retired. The U.S. space agency last year added a third company, privately owned Sierra Nevada Corp, for station cargo runs beginning in 2019.

By then, SpaceX intends to also be launching NASA astronauts, breaking Russia's monopoly on flying crew to the space station.

Shotwell on Friday dismissed a Government Accountability Office report this week that said SpaceX and Boeing, which also is developing a space taxi for NASA, have too many technical hurdles ahead to make their 2018 deadlines for station crew ferry flights.

Blackburn Rovers vs Manchester United, FA Cup 2016/17: Where to watch live, preview, betting odds and possible XI

Blackburn Rovers host Manchester United in the FA Cup fifth round tie on Sunday.

Where to watch live

Kick-off is at 4:15pm GMT. Live coverage is on BT Sport 2. Radio commentary of the game is available on BBC Radio 5 Live. Catch the highlights of the match on Match of the Day on BBC One and BBC One HD at 10:30pm GMT.

Overview

Blackburn registered a 2-0 victory over Blackpool in the previous round to seal a berth in the fifth round of the FA Cup. Sam Gallagher's ninth minute goal followed by Elliott Bennett strike 13 minutes later was sufficient for the Championship side to knock Blackpool out of the competition.

Owen Coyle will be hoping his side can emulate a similar performance, when they host United on Sunday. However, he will be aware that it will not be an easy task to register a victory over the Red Devils.

Blackburn suffered a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Sheffield Wednesday in their last fixture. In the last 10 matches played in all competitions, the Rovers have managed only three wins, which includes two wins in the FA Cup.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored a hat-trick in his last outing with Manchester United Getty Images

United enter this tie after a 3-0 win over Saint-Etienne in the first leg of the Europa League round of 32 clash. Zlatan Ibrahimovic was the star man for his side as he scored his first hat-trick for the Red Devils.

The Premier League outfit have been in fine form in the FA Cup, registering 4-0 win over Reading in the third round followed by a win over Wigan Athletic by a same margin late in January.

Jose Mourinho has already admitted that his side will not take the competition lightly. United are the holders of the FA Cup and their manager will be looking to progress further in the competition by registering a victory over Blackburn on Sunday.

What managers say

Owen Coyle: "Let's be honest, if we're at our maximum, and Manchester United are at their maximum, then ordinarily you would think they would have enough quality to go on and win the game. But if we're at our best, and they're slightly off, then that's when cup shocks are created. That's how it's happened over time, and there have already been some giant-killings this year, and that's what we have to try and do on Sunday. They might make changes but even if they do they will be of such a high calibre that regardless of who plays, this is going to be a really tough task," added the Ewood boss. But it's one that the players, the young ones in particular, are really looking forward to and it's a chance to stand toe-to-toe and be a real learning curve. It's a game that we're really looking forward to," Coyle told the Lancashire Telegraph.

Jose Mourinho: "So I don't throw it away. If I lose, I lose because the opponent was better or because we didn't play well but I am not going to throw it away. We go to Blackburn with that respect. We played already Reading and Wigan from the Championship so the level is not new for us. Plus, it's one thing at Old Trafford but another thing when you go away. So I go serious. Am I going to repeat this team (against St Etienne)? No. I'm going to change a few players obviously. But I'm going with a good team and I respect the competition a lot. Man United demands that you go serious to every game," Mourinho was reported as saying by the Daily Mail.

Betting Odds (betfair)

• Blackburn Rovers: 24/5
• Draw: 29/10
• Manchester United: 7/10

Mohun Bagan look to return to winnings ways at home game

Mohun Bagan will look to return to winning ways after two back-to-back draws when they face DSK Shivajians.

Mohun Bagan will look to return to winning ways after two back-to-back draws when they face DSK Shivajians in an I-League football fixture at the Rabindra Sarovar Stadium.

Out of a possible six, title aspirants Mohun Bagan collected two points from their two away matches and they would hope to turn it around against the Pune outfit.

Mohun Bagan have been flawless at home, winning all of their four matches so far as all eyes would be on Darry Duffy in the likely absence of their Haitian ace marksman Sony Norde who’s still not fully fit from his knee problem.

Duffy, who has found the back of the net six times till now, said the team has won without Norde and there’s not much of a difference.

“We win as a team. We played against Churchill (Brothers) without Sony. I don’t feel there is extra pressure when Sony does not play,” the Scot said.

Mohun Bagan won at home by a solitary goal against Churchill at the Barasat Stadium in their opening game of the season sans the Haitian.

In the first meeting between the two sides, Shivajians held Mohun Bagan to a goalless stalemate in Pune.

Duffy said the Shivajains were able to hold them in the first leg as they played defensive with five at the back and two holding midfielders.

“It would be difficult for any team to break that,” the former Salgaocar player said.

Coach Sanjoy Sen stressed on the fact that their backline has been the least porous of all the teams and that is a good sign.

Mohun Bagan’s defence drew a lot of flak after their AFC Cup preliminary stage game against Colombo FC at their home on February 7.

“We will try and maintain the all-win home record. Mohun Bagan have also conceded the least number of goals in the league. That holds our defenders in good stead. We will definitely try to score goals and win the match.”

The Dave Rogers-coached Shivajians have had a spate of good results recently with a draw against defending champions Bengaluru FC and win over Shillong Lajong on the road.

They were held by newbies Minerva Punjab FC in their last game.

Shivajians are sixth in the table with ten points from nine outings whereas Mohun Bagan are placed second, having garnered eight points more while playing one match less.