Hong Kong FA Vice Chair Steven Lo Kit-sing has appealed for the government's help to "put the sport back on track" after a string of suspected match-fixing cases in recent weeks. His call came "hours after graft-busters took into custody members of first division side Happy Valley on Sunday night" (SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST, 1/6). ... An Israeli int'l with Dutch Eredivisie side Vitesse Arnhem "has been refused permission to attend a training camp" in the UAE. The first-team squad "arrived in Abu Dhabi on Sunday but defender Dan Mori stayed behind to train with the reserves." Dutch politicians said the club's decision to go ahead with the visit was "cowardly" (GLOBAL TIMES, 1/6). ... Korean Baseball Organization club Nexen Heroes announced on Monday that they have "reached a strategic partnership agreement" with the reigning World Series champion Boston Red Sox. Under the partnership, "the Red Sox agreed to share their expertise in establishing and operating the farm system and in utilizing advanced metrics to analyze and evaluate players, among other operational techniques" (YONHAP, 1/6).
