Barnsley progress to fifth round

League One round-up

Levein and de Vries join forces

Championship side Barnsley beat Southend United of League One to become the first team into the fifth round of this season’s FA Cup. Jamal Campbell-Ryce’s 20-yard first-half strike was enough to separate the sides at Roots Hall and give the Tykes only their second away win this season.

Swansea City stretched their lead at the top of League One to a massive 11 points with a 0-4 awy win at fourth-placed Doncaster Rovers. Ferre Bodde opened the scoring after 28 minutes before second-half strikes from Guillem Bauza, Jason Scotland (penalty) and Febian Brandy completed the rout. Doncaster’s Stephen Roberts gave away the 58th-minute penalty and was sent-off as a result as the Swans continued their march towards the Championship. Elsewhere, Cheltenham Town recorded their fourth straight victory with a 1-0 win over Carlisle United at Whaddon Road. Steven Gillespie’s 20th minute strike was enough to seperate the sides. Northampton Town beat Leyton Orient 2-0 at Sixfields.

In the Africa Cup of Nations, Ivory Coast are two points clear at the top of Group B after a comfortable 4-1 triumph over Benin while Nigeria and Mali played out a goalless draw.

There was yet more controversy at the African Cup of Nations where a rumpus erupted between Sudan players and Egyptian TV crew ahead of the Group C clash between the countries tomorrow. The Egyptian crew have claimed Sudanese players refused to grant an interview, which seemingly led to rather heated arguments at the Sudanese team hotel in Kumasi. Security guards and police were called to calm down the situation but one policeman was reported to draw a gun. No Egyptian players or officials were involved in the incident but the crew said they would be reporting events to Ghana police.

England will play Germany in a friendly match at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin on November 19.

Nigel Worthington has announced a 21-man squad for the friendly against Bulgaria at Windsor Park on February 6. There is a recall for Birmingham City midfielder Damien Johnson after an 11-month absence while Linfield striker Peter Thompson is also called into the squad. Tottenham Hotspur striker Dimitar Berbatov, Aston Villa’s Stilian Petrov and Martin Petrov of Manchester City have been named in the Bulgaria squad.

Chelsea have signed Argentinian striker Franco Di Santo on a four-and-a-half year contract from Chilean side Audax Italiano for an undisclosed fee.

Liverpool owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett have completed their £350m refinancing deal, revealed the latest design for their new stadium and thrown their support behind manager Rafa Benitez.

Liverpool striker Andrei Voronin faces six weeks out injured after suffering ligament damage to his ankle. The 28-year-old requires surgery and will certainly miss the first leg of Liverpool’s Champions League tie with Inter Milan next month.

Alan Shearer will not be returning to Newcastle United as Kevin Keegan’s assistant manager, but could still have a role with the club.

Wigan Athletic have signed 27-year-old striker Marlon King from Watford on a three-and-a-half year contract. .

Wigan Athletic have sold midfielder Denny Landzaat to Feyenoord for £1m. The 31-year-old is expected to sign a three-and-a-half-year contract with the Dutch club.

Watford have signed 22-year-old Fulham striker Collins John on loan until the end of the season, with a view to a permanent deal.

Southend United have signed 23-year-old Tottenham Hotspur striker Lee Barnard on a two-and-a-half year deal for an undisclosed fee.

Dundee United manager Craig Levein has signed Mark de Vries for a third time. Levein also signed the Surinam-born striker while at Heart of Midlothian and Leicester City. The 32-year-old has signed a contract until the end of the season.

Nathan Davies