The tiny town of Whangamōmona on the North Island maintains some eccentric traditions – past ‘presidents’ have included a goat and a poodle

On a lonely stretch of highway that snakes through the North Island stands the town of Whangamōmona, New Zealand’s only self-declared “republic,” replete with its own borders and passport.

Earlier this year, it held its biennial jubilee and presidential “elections” where locals participated in old-fashioned carnival amusements: racing sheep, cracking whips and swimming in tanks with eels.

• Sam Matterface says Pearce is recovering in Canada
• 62-year-old was on plane from Las Vegas to Heathrow

The former England defender Stuart Pearce is recovering in a Canadian hospital after suffering a medical emergency on board a flight from the United States.

Commentator Sam Matterface, who Pearce works alongside for radio station TalkSport, has reported the 62-year-old is “in great spirits” after his flight from Las Vegas to Heathrow last weekend was diverted to St John’s in Canada.

Andrea Michelle Reyes was two when her mother took her from her father in Connecticut and fled the country

A woman who was abducted in Connecticut as a toddler has been found alive 25 years later in Mexico.

Andrea Michelle Reyes was two years old when she was taken by her mother, Rosa Tenorio, in October 1999, according to a news release from the New Haven police department. Tenorio did not have legal custody of Reyes, who was in the care of her father at the time of the kidnapping, police said.

Protesters launched burning projectiles and fireworks in clashes with police outside Greece's parliament on 7 March in renewed nationwide protests calling for politicians to be held accountable for a 2023 rail disaster that claimed 57 lives. The protests began in Athens and other cities as the centre-right government of the prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, faced a censure motion over the train collision. In a rare display of unity, four centre-left and leftwing opposition parties tabled the no-confidence motion, arguing that the government has failed to accept responsibility for multiple rail safety system failures identified by investigators

Manager says team can be more prolific despite 1935 Sunderland scoring streak being under threat on Saturday

Luis Enrique described Liverpool’s front three as “fighter jets” before their visit to Paris Saint‑Germain on Wednesday. He may have succeeded in grounding them but Arne Slot’s side still found a way to soar.

The exhilarating, aggressive football of Jürgen Klopp has given way to quality control under his successor, but Liverpool are no less effective for that shift. The league leaders, who can go 16 points clear with victory over Southampton on Saturday, have scored more goals after 28 games of this Premier League campaign (66) than at the same stage of their last title-winning season, under Klopp in 2019-20 (64). Plymouth, Tottenham (in a Carabao Cup semi-final Spurs ultimately lost 4-1 on aggregate) and Nottingham Forest are the only teams to prevent Slot’s team scoring in 44 matches this season.