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Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tough one. Hope you know your movies! If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Behind the plate.

Green group hint: Don’t do that!

Blue group hint: Lights, camera, action!

Purple group hint: Paper or plastic?

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Catcher’s equipment.

Green group: Football penalties.

Blue group: Sports movies of 2001.

Purple group: ____ bag.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is catcher’s equipment. The four answers are chest protector, mask, mitt and shin guards.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is football penalties. The four answers are chop block, clipping, false start and holding.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is sports movies of 2001. The four answers are 61*, Ali, Hardball and Summer Catch.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ____ bag. The four answers are duffel, heavy, rosin and speed.

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