The coach says PLAY ON!

Sponsors & Coach Show Support For Rooney After Hooker Allegations – England coach Fabio Capello and principal sponsors are backing Wayne Rooney, despite newspaper allegations concerning a relationship with an average looking prostitute. At a news conference in Basel, the England manager said Rooney is in the correct frame of mind to play football – “We are here to play, not to focus on the private lives of players.” [skynews]

Convicted Fraudster, Jackie Selebi, Granted Leave To Appeal – Former police chief Jackie Selebi was granted leave to appeal only one aspect of his conviction. Judge Meyer Joffe rejected the majority of Selebi’s arguments why he should be granted leave to appeal his conviction and sentencing and only allowed Selebi to argue one ground before the Supreme Court of Appeal — that he received cash bribes from drug-dealer Glenn Agliotti. [mail&guardian]

Tony Blair Cancels Book Signing Amid Protest Fears – Tony Blair has cancelled a planned book signing in London on Wednesday to prevent causing the public and the police “a lot of hassle”. Mr Blair said: “I don’t want the public to be inconvenienced by the inevitable hassle caused by protesters.” Eggs and shoes were thrown at the former UK prime minister at a similar event in Dublin at the weekend. [bbc]

Kendra Reckons Laurence Fishburne Should Support Daughter’s Porn Career – Kendra Wilkinson says that the sex tape made by actor Laurence Fishburne’s daughter Montana is “what happens when a girl turns 18.” In a radio interview on Friday, the former Girl Next Door also had advice for Laurence, saying he “has to be there for her. He has to say “F” all, “F” Hollywood. And he has to learn to be there for his daughter. [radar]

Wyclef Reckons Sean Penn Was Too High On Cocaine To Notice – Still angry after his failed bid for president of Haiti, Wycef Jean hit back at Sean Penn for questioning his ability to handle the job: “maybe he ain’t see me in Haiti because he was too busy sniffing cocaine.”Wyclef performed the other night at Hammerstein Ballroom, and he addressed two of his most vocal critics from his attempt to run for president of Haiti — Penn and former Fugees bandmate Pras. [gawker]

Leaked Google Docs Reveal How Much Big Brands Spend On Search Ads – Ad Age has obtained an internal Google document that highlights some of the biggest AdWords buyers for the month of June 2010, offering insight into how big brands are using Google and how much they are spending.According to the documents, the biggest buyers of AdWords in June included AT&T Mobility, Amazon, eBay and BP. [mashable]

Columbian Declared World’s Shortest Man – A 70cm (27-inch) tall Colombian has been named the world’s shortest living man by Guinness World Records. Edward Nino Hernandez, 24, weighs only 10kg (22lbs). His mother said he had not grown since he was two years old. Mr Hernandez, who works part-time as a dancer, told the Associated Press: “I feel happy because I’m unique.” [bbc]

New Life For Maybach? – Disheartened by talk that Maybach could be given the axe? Then we may have some good news for you. Although as yet unconfirmed, reports indicate that parent company Daimler may be planning to keep its most prestigious marque around a while longer, with several new models planned to make it so.If they prove accurate, a slew of new Maybachs could be based on the upcoming new Mercedes-Benz S-Class. [luxist]

Kim Jong Il’s ‘Mini Me’ Almost Ready To Roll – Members of North Korea’s ruling party were gathering in Pyongyang for a rare meeting that could see the country’s leader, Kim Jong-il, name his youngest son as his successor.Although the exact date of the congress, the first of the Korean Workers’ party for 30 years, had yet to be announced, reports in South Korea said troops had moved into the capital, apparently in preparation for a parade to mark the event. [guardian]

Kidnapped Austrian Girl Autobiography Reveals Horrific Dungeon Life – For more than eight years she was held captive in an underground dungeon, at the mercy of a deranged kidnapper who called her ‘my slave’. Today, for the first time, kidnap victim Natascha Kampusch reveals the horror of her ordeal in full, from the moment she was snatched from the street as a ten-year-old. [dailymail]

Kevin Pietersen Fined For Stupid Twitter Outburst – Kevin Pietersen has been fined over his foul-mouth outburst on Twitter last week. The South African-born England batsmen had reacted angrily to being left out of the England squad for the one-day and Twenty20 series against Pakistan, calling the decision a “fuck up”. Pietersen was summoned to a disciplinary hearing at Lord’s today and was fined an “undisclosed sum”. [guardian]

What Did Murdoch Know, And When Did He Know It? – The Times story about how the Murdoch organization systematically hacked into the voicemail messages of just about anybody who is anybody in London—a story that few UK news outlets have touched, and that Scotland Yard has been loath to pursue—is a rousing whodunit with many smoking guns. But it is as menacing to the Murdochs for what’s not in it. Indeed, the story is even more powerful as a threat. [newser]

Princess Caroline Linked To Handsome Gallery Owner – Despite denials from Monaco’s royal palace that the marriage of Princess Caroline and Ernst of Hanover is in trouble, the couple have not been seen together for nearly 18 months. Adding fuel to the speculation about their union, new reports have emerged linking the elegant royal with a new love interest. [hellomagazine]

It might seem like the wrong time of year to buy a duvet, but not if there’s a good deal to be had. And R450 for a proper king size goose feather/down duvet IS a deal. Plus, if you play your cards right, they might just throw in a free iPad. Surely you’ve subscribed to their newsletter by now, right? No? Do it. [onedayonly]

Does Your Workplace Allow Laughter? We thought we’d check, because, you know, some places aren’t so keen on the “employee happiness” thing. If however you work for a company that’s only too pleased to have the general morale, intelligence, beauty and all-round life-savvy of its employees cranked up a notch or two, then tune in to 2oceansvibe Radio. More specifically, tune in today. World-class US stand up comic is today’s featured guest, so try not to laugh-snort too much, k? [2oceansviberadio]