Scotland staged another stirring fightback against France before being edged out by a late penalty from Thomas Ramos on an intoxicating Saturday night in the Saint-Etienne heat.
Gregor Townsend’s side – who overturned a 21-3 deficit to beat Les Bleus at Murrayfield a week previously – trailed 27-10 going into the final quarter inside the raucous Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.
The Scots roared back to level the match at 27-27 and would have gone ahead if Finn Russell had managed to convert Kyle Steyn’s second try of the match in the 72nd minute.
However, their hopes of only a second victory on French soil this century were dashed when Ramos’s reliable boot made it 30-27 with just two minutes remaining.
Scotland made six changes to the side that started last weekend’s 25-21 win over France at Murrayfield, two of which were enforced with the suspended Zander Fagerson and the injured Ben White dropping out. Captain Jamie Ritchie returned after being troubled by a minor calf issue in recent weeks.
After fielding a shadow side in Edinburgh last weekend, Les Bleus made 13 changes, restoring big-hitters like captain Antoine Dupont, Romain Ntamack, Gael Fickou and Jonathan Danty.
In addition to facing the side ranked second in the world, the Scots also had to contend with 26 degree heat as they emerged from the tunnel to a buoyant home support clearly revelling in the prospect of hosting the World Cup, which gets under way in less than four weeks.
The Scots – who were 19-0 down after 20 minutes on their last trip to France in February – could easily have wilted in the cauldron but they set about taking the sting out of the atmosphere by getting themselves into French territory from kick-off.
Following a sustained period of pressure, the visitors took the lead after four minutes when the ball was worked from left to right and Steyn ran on to a perfectly-weighted pass from Blair Kinghorn before evading a challenge from Gabin Villiere and touching down. Russell executed the conversion impressively from wide on the right.
France got themselves off the mark in the eighth minute with a penalty from Ramos, but Russell restored the Scots’ seven-point lead with a penalty of his own three minutes later. Ramos reduced the hosts’ deficit once more with another penalty in the 22nd minute.
The French momentarily thought they had gone ahead in the 29th minute when Dupont raced clear to touch down behind the posts but the celebrations were cut short as play was pulled back with Ali Price having failed to retreat the necessary 10 yards when Les Bleus took a quick penalty. There was some consolation for the frustrated home support, however, as the Scotland scrum-half was sin-binned for his infringement.
France, who had been building up a head of steam, soon capitalised on their extra-man advantage as Ntamack cut through the Scottish defence to plant the ball down left of the posts, and Ramos was once again on point with his kick to edge them three ahead.
The visitors desperately needed a strong start to the second half but their hopes were dented when they conceded two tries – scored by Damien Penaud and Charles Ollivon – within four minutes of the restart. The unflappable Ramos converted both times.
However, the Scots managed to reduce their arrears in the 62nd minute when Duhan van der Merwe bounded over on the left after a breakthrough attempt from Huw Jones was thwarted just before the line. Russell was off target with his kick.
The visitors – having appeared well-beaten – suddenly had some impetus and they closed to within five points in the 68th minute when Rory Darge forced his way over from close range after a slick build-up, with Russell adding the extras.
Remarkably, Scotland drew level four minutes later when Steyn ran on to a kick-through from George Horne to touch down on the right. Russell – with the chance to edge his team in front – was just wide with his conversion attempt.
Ramos made no mistake when presented with the opportunity to win a pulsating match for the French in the 78th minute.
England captain Owen Farrell is set to miss the start of the World Cup after being sent off in Saturday’s 19-17 victory over Wales at Twickenham.
Farrell’s yellow card for a shoulder-led tackle to the head of Taine Basham was upgraded to a red by the bunker review system, reducing the home side to 12 men because of the yellow cards shown to Freddie Steward and Ellis Genge.
England now face the prospect losing their captain for the critical opener against Argentina on September 9, with his availability for the remainder of the group stage to be determined by a disciplinary hearing next week.
Fixtures against Ireland and Fiji complete the warm-up schedule and, while those games would be included in a suspension, his outlook will be affected by being sanctioned for dangerous tackles in the past..
As recently as January he received a ban that was reduced to three games for attending tackle school.
“I’ll wait and see what comes of the disciplinary process,” head coach Steve Borthwick said.
“Right now it would be wrong for me to comment on an individual incident that would likely go through a disciplinary procedure. I’ll deal with the facts of the situation.”
England trailed 17-9 when Farrell departed yet remarkably they recovered to snatch victory through a Maro Itoje try and George Ford penalty.
“I am incredibly proud of the character that the players showed,” said Borthwick, who confirmed Jack Van Poortvliet suffered an ankle injury.
“To go down to 12 men and be resilient and fight your way through that situation is immense credit to them. They just keep going.
“And that’s something they’ve worked hard to instil in this group, which is not something you’d potentially have said in the past.”
Wales boss Warren Gatland felt it was the right call to upgrade Farrell’s yellow card to a red after seeing his replacement flanker Basham fail an HIA as a result of the tackle.
“It was the right decision on the day. Hopefully for Owen’s sake he doesn’t get too long a ban, you need someone like him in the game,” Gatland said.
“He’d be a big loss to England if he does have a lengthy ban. Given his previous I’m not too sure what’s going to happen with that, fingers crossed it’s not long for him.”
Steward was sent to the sin-bin for taking Josh Adams out in mid-air with a clumsy tackle and referee Nika Amashukeli awarded a penalty try after the England full-back tackled Liam Williams over the line.
“It was probably on the threshold of a yellow to a red. He’s taken him out high in the air,” Gatland said.
“Sometimes that decision, if it had been made by another official, might have been a red card. It was pretty close. It will be interesting to see what they come back with when they review it.”
Gatland revealed that Dewi Lake (knee) and Taine Plumtree (shoulder) are being assessed for the injuries they sustained in the first half.
The Wales boss admitted his disappointment at how Wales managed the final quarter when they let a 17-9 lead slip from their fingertips.
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has revealed he signed £52million midfielder Sandro Tonali after he “fell in love” watching his play for AC Milan last season.
The 23-year-old Italy international made a stunning Premier League debut in the Magpies’ 5-1 rout of Aston Villa on Saturday evening, announcing himself in English football in style with the opening goal and a commanding engine room display.
Asked if Tonali had exceeded his expectations, head coach Howe said: “I don’t know. I wouldn’t say so because that would be disrespectful to his ability.
“We pursued him for a long, long time, paid a big fee for him because I fell in love watching him play the game last year.
“He’s an outstanding talent. He can do a little bit of everything. Very similar to our other midfielders, he’s got a combination of a lot of attributes that I think will suit the Premier League.
“This is one game. I don’t want to go over the top and put more pressure on him, but it’s a really good start and I’m just pleased that he looked confident in the shirt, and the fans have certainly taken to him. That’s a great thing to see.”
Tonali set the ball rolling with the opener just six minutes into his first competitive appearance in a black and white shirt only for equally impressive Villa debutant Moussa Diaby to level in short order.
However, Alexander Isak struck either side of half-time to put the home side in control and late goals from substitutes Callum Wilson and Harvey Barnes rounded off a thrilling performance.
The romp left Newcastle top of the fledgling table, although Howe admitted that was of little significance to him.
He said: “It’s nice, but it’s not important at this stage for me. The most important thing today was our performance, our attitude to the game, how we tried to deliver what we asked the players to do.
“There’s a long season ahead and we know we come back to earth quickly because we have Manchester City away next week and that’s going to be a huge challenge, so my mind is already turning to that.”
Villa’s disappointment at the way the game unravelled was compounded by what looked like a serious injury to England defender Tyrone Mings which saw him carried from the field on a stretcher before the break.
Head coach Unai Emery said: “We don’t know what’s happened with this injury, but it doesn’t look good. Tomorrow we will scan him and hopefully it is not important. We have to wait for the scan, but it doesn’t look good.”
Howe, who saw Mings suffer an anterior cruciate ligament in 2015 shortly after he had signed him for Bournemouth, said: “I have to say he faced that period out with incredible courage and resilience, and what he’s done since that moment, to go on and play for his country and be outstanding in the Premier League, is testament to that resilience.
“We certainly wish him well and I send him all my love.”
Asked if he had been shocked by his team’s performance, Emery said: “At the end, 5-1 is a little bit more than we deserved.
“They [Newcastle] deserved to win, but not like that and that with the impact of injuries this week is very, very tough. We have lost two very, very important players for today in the match and for the next weeks.”
England’s Charley Hull shares the lead with American Lilia Vu going into Sunday’s final round at the AIG Women’s Open at Walton Heath.
Home favourite Hull, 27, carded a second successive four-under par 68 in the third round on Saturday, which included three straight birdies from the 15th, to sit level with Vu on nine under for the tournament.
Hull had trailed American overnight leader Ally Ewing by five shots at the start of the day before six birdies in total – tarnished by bogeys at the second and 14th – left her level with Vu, who shot a 67.
Three-time European Tour winner Hull told the LPGA website: “It was really good. Obviously it was so windy today, but we dug deep.
“I struck the ball pretty well. I was pretty confident and felt good out there, and I’m pretty proud of myself. I can’t wait to get back in the bath and just chill tonight. Another late tee time tomorrow.
“I’ve played the course a few more times and now I just feel excited and comfortable and just really enjoying it. Golf is a game. It’s a sport and you play it because it’s fun, and I just enjoy it.”
Vu, who won the first major of the year in April, the Chevron Championship, made seven birdies and two bogeys, and the joint leaders hold a one-shot lead over American Angel Yin (67) and South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim (68).
Ewing, who finished the day with a three-over-par 75 after six bogeys and three birdies, slipped to fifth place, two shots behind Hull and Vu.
Sweden’s Linn Grant will start the final day three shots behind the joint leaders after following up Friday’s 69 with a 68, while South Korea’s Jiyai Shin and American Andrea Lee are four behind on five under.
Hull finished the first nine holes on one under after birdies at the first and eighth sandwiched a birdie on the second.
A bogey at the 14th followed her third birdie of the day at the 11th and left her one shot behind Vu, who also dropped a shot at the 14th.
But Hull then rattled off birdies at the 15th, 16th and 17th to leave her well placed to challenge for her first major title going into the final round.
England’s preparations for the World Cup continued to unravel after captain Owen Farrell was sent off in a 19-17 victory secured through a late George Ford penalty.
At one point during the final quarter Steve Borthwick’s men were reduced to 12 men when Farrell – whose yellow card for a dangerous tackle on Taine Basham was upgraded to a red by the bunker – followed the sin-binned Freddie Steward and Ellis Genge into the stands.
England’s brainless final quarter saw a 9-3 lead overtaken by a penalty try and swashbuckling Tomos Williams touch-down as an otherwise lifeless encounter exploded into life the moment Steward took Josh Adams out in the air in the 60th minute.
A fourth successive defeat and slump to ninth in the world rankings beckoned, but they rallied bravely and even with three players off the pitch they claimed a maul try scored by Maro Itoje before Ford landed the winning penalty with three minutes left.
Farrell now faces a ban that could see him miss the World Cup opener against Argentina on September 9, with his recent three-match suspension for the same offence in January sure to count against him.
Jack Van Poortvliet sustained an ankle injury to leave England sweating on his fitness, while Dewi Lake, Taine Plumtree and Basham emerged concerns for Wales, who ultimately ran out of steam.
There was little to signpost the action to come in a dull first half that saw Farrell reward England’s solid start with a penalty.
The one-way traffic was eventually broken up by a 50-22 that gave the visitors a short-range line-out, but England defended the ensuing maul well and a rare chance was gone.
Two returning stars making their first appearances under Borthwick made pleasing starts, with Billy Vunipola barrelling into Wales up-front and Elliot Daly showing his athleticism in attack.
Slowly, Wales were clawing their way into the game but time and again were hampered by unforced errors as the match meandered along a stop-start path, unable to shake off its training ground feel.
Lake hobbled off to add to Gatland’s injury concerns at hooker but England were reeling soon after Van Poortvliet departed following an accidental collision and Henry Arundell was sent to the sin-bin for not retreating 10 yards.
The half finished with a red rose assault on the whitewash but in all-too familiar scenes they were unable to break through and had to settle for a second Farrell penalty.
Tommy Reffell was sin-binned for not releasing an opponent and over went another Farrell penalty, but Wales were finally off the mark when Owen Williams landed three points.
Plumtree was the next to exit nursing an injury as play continued to be marred by error after error, another promising spell of England pressure petering out.
Genge came on to win his 50th cap and was then shown a yellow card for collapsing a scrum, but worse was to come when Steward followed him into the sin-bin for taking Adams out in the air.
Adams was close to the line and Steward’s subsequent tackle on Liam Williams prevented a certain score, so a penalty try was awarded.
Somehow England were the the next to cross through a maul and when Ford landed a late penalty their against-the-odds escape act was complete.
Sandro Tonali paid off the first instalment of his £52million transfer fee as he marked a fine debut with his first goal and inspired Newcastle to a 5-1 drubbing of Aston Villa.
The 23-year-old Italy international opened the scoring just six minutes into his first competitive appearance for the Magpies and had a hand in two more of their goals as Alexander Isak helped himself to a double and substitutes Callum Wilson and Harvey Barnes struck late on after Moussa Diaby, also making his bow in England’s top flight, had levelled.
However, a hugely entertaining game win was overshadowed by a potentially serious injury to Villa’s England defender Tyrone Mings, who was carried from the pitch on a stretcher to warm applause from a crowd of 52,207 at St James Park after going down following a clash with Isak.
Neither Tonali nor Diaby wasted any time in making a significant impact for their new employers.
Less than six minutes had elapsed when the Italian timed his arrival into the six-yard box perfectly to volley home Anthony Gordon’s cross after Emiliano Martinez had parried Bruno Guimaraes strike, and he might have doubled his tally two minutes later but for the goalkeeper’s block.
However, Newcastle’s advantage lasted only fleetingly when Diaby, who had seen an earlier attempt from a tight angle saved by Nick Pope, was similarly well placed to equalise after Ollie Watkins had flicked on Lucas Digne’s left-wing cross.
But the impressive Tonali was not finished and it was his deep 16th-minute cross which was turned acrobatically across goal by the stretching Sven Botman for Alexander Isak to open his account for the season from close range.
Pope was relieved to see Watkins’ scuffed first-time effort from livewire Diaby’s pull-back after another menacing run slide just wide as an end-to-end encounter unfolded at frantic pace.
Villa’s fortunes took a further turn for the worse when Mings, just days after midfielder Emiliano Buendia suffered a serious knee injury, was carried from the field following a tangle of legs with Isak.
The visitors nevertheless refused to take a backwards step in a breathless contest and Watkins might have done better after meeting Digne’s corner unopposed, while Diaby fired into the side-netting from Luiz’s intelligent pass three minutes before the break.
Martinez picked up a stoppage-time booking for hauling back Miguel Almiron outside his penalty area with the home crowd calling for a red card and making their feelings towards referee Andy Madley abundantly clear when he did not produce one.
Another Villa new boy, Youri Tielemans, entered the fray as a half-time replacement for Leon Bailey, but Gordon saw a 51st-minute attempt deflected wide after Almiron had led a pacy counter-attack.
Tielemans helped to drive the visitors forward once again, but that allowed the Magpies to exploit the space they left behind, and they went further ahead with 58 minutes gone when Isak pounced on a slip by Ezri Konsa before chipping the ball over the advancing Martinez.
The Villa keeper had to race from his line once again to deny Joelinton, but recovered in time to field Almiron’s follow-up, although it was Pope who was called upon to repel Watkins’ 64th-minute drive before Matty Cash blazed over from the rebound.
Martinez was beaten once again 13 minutes from time when Barnes collected Tonali’s pass and crossed for Wilson to score, and although the Argentina international denied Wilson a second with an instinctive save, he was beaten again by Barnes in added time.
Peterborough boss Darren Ferguson hailed the character of his squad after bouncing back from play-off agony with a successful start to the new season.
Ferguson was also full of praise for midfield ace Hector Kyprianou after he hit the only goal in first-half stoppage time as Posh eased past Charlton 1-0 to follow up an opening day triumph at relegated Reading by the same scoreline.
Keeper Nicholas Bilokapic was a key figure for Ferguson’s new-look squad, pulling off smart saves in each half from Panutche Camara and Alfie May.
Jonson-Clarke Harris was then a whisker away from a late Posh clincher when he fired against a post at the death.
Ferguson, whose side were knocked out of last season’s play semi-finals by Sheffield Wednesday despite leading 4-0 from the first leg, said: “Two wins from two league games and through in the League Cup…it’s been a good week to start the season!
“We controlled the majority of the first half and it was a fantastic goal from Hector that got us ahead just before half-time.
“The boy is a talent. As soon as I came back to the club in January, I felt he was a player I could really work with and help develop.
“But we were careless in the second half. We didn’t look after the ball anywhere near well enough and that gave Charlton momentum, but they didn’t have too much in the way of clearcut chances.
“It is a really important result coming with another clean sheet and we have to give the players credit – especially the ones who were here last season – to recover from the way it ended with such an almighty blow.
“We’ve got our head down, worked hard and the fans will appreciate what this group are about. They’ll have a right go and won’t stop running.”
Ferguson and Charlton boss Dean Holden both featured on a list of a dozen bookings.
Holden admitted: “It goes down as a game we should have got more from.
“I’m really pleased with the performance but disappointed with the result.
“Football is all about both boxes. We conceded a goal we shouldn’t have and couldn’t take the chances we created.
“It was a poor goal to let in. We needed to clear a throw-in that bounced around the edge of our box, we didn’t and we got punished.
“It should have been 0-0, but we’ve come in 1-0 down so we had a bit of work to do at half-time in terms of mentality.
“Coming to Peterborough was always going to be a big test but for 20-25 minutes in the second half it was one-way traffic.
“There was a good chance for Alfie, Corey (Blackett-Taylor) got on the inside a few times, but we just couldn’t quite find that moment to get ourselves back level.”
Port Vale manager Andy Crosby believes his team learnt a lot from last weekend’s hammering against Barnsley after they bounced back to claim a 1-0 win over Reading.
Ben Garrity’s hugely-deflected shot settled the contest in the 72nd minute, earning Vale a morale-boosting victory after losing 7-0 on the opening day of the League One season.
It comes on the back of a 3-2 win over Fleetwood on Tuesday in the first round of the Carabao Cup, and Crosby was delighted by his team’s response to a tough defeat.
“We’re going to grow, we’re going to get better,” he said.
“It was a difficult 90 minutes last week and we gifted Barnsley opportunities. With a ruthless nature they scored them and they took advantage, but we learnt a lot, we spoke at length in a variety of ways and credit goes to the players.
“They’ve taken things on board, they’ve learnt from it and with two wins in the first week of the season, being through to the next round of the cup, it’s been a good week.
“It’s important that the players enjoy the wins.
“It’s good that they can appreciate the fans and stay behind and clap them. We have to do that whether we’ve won, drawn or we’ve got beat. We have to show our appreciation to the fans for their support, and I’m sure they’ll go home happier this Saturday.”
Andy Carroll had a golden chance to put Reading ahead with a 12th-minute penalty after Nesta Guinness-Walker was fouled in the box by Dan Jones, but goalkeeper Connor Ripley denied him.
The winning goal came 18 minutes from time as Garrity’s shot on the spin took a massive deflection before looping over debutant goalkeeper David Button’s head and in off the post.
The visitors nearly equalised in the dying moments when substitute Lewis Wing’s cross-shot hit the bar, but Vale held on for all three points.
Troubled Reading have now suffered back-to-back 1-0 defeats in the league after being relegated from the Championship last season.
Boss Ruben Selles believes his team need to come to terms with playing in a lower division sooner rather than later.
“It is what it is,” he said of the result. “These games will happen and as soon as we accept, everyone of us, that we’re playing in this division and we’re playing against tough opponents (the better things will be).
“We have to be respectful of everybody.
“Of course, I know that the fans are travelling and they’re disappointed, and I am too.
“We want to put on a good performance, but it didn’t happen and this is the message that is clear for me.
“But I will respect every single club in League One and this is the situation we’re in.
“We’re going to need to fight to win football matches and do it together, that’s it.”
St Johnstone manager Steven MacLean told his players to start looking over their shoulders as he claimed a 2-0 defeat at Ross County left them in a “dogfight” already.
Saints have followed their Viaplay Cup exit with successive defeats in their opening two cinch Premiership matches.
Goals from substitute Kyle Turner and defender Connor Randall either side of half-time put County in control, but the host could have been out of sight at that point.
Despite facing a lengthy injury list, MacLean pulled no punches in his post-match assessment in Dingwall.
“It was poor – individually, two players got pass marks. We didn’t show enough desire or commitment, didn’t win first contact or second balls. They out-battled and out-fought us,” he said.
“We need to get players in and we need to get players back from injury. We are in a dogfight already and they know that. We need help.
“The players who were out there haven’t done themselves any favours and they need to look over their shoulder. I include myself in that – we are all in this together.”
MacLean added: “Do you know what, we have been sitting here for two years. Some of those boys have let the club down. Either that, or they are not good enough. Simple as that.
“They need to start taking some responsibility. They have been protected long enough – (it is) not good enough.
“They will need to look over their shoulders. You have got to show a hunger and desire to do your job and do the fundamentals.”
County manager Malky Mackay was frustrated his side were not further ahead at the interval.
“I was probably a little bit disappointed at half-time that it wasn’t put to bed,” he said.
“We had some great opportunities in the first half. On any given day, we might have been 4-0 up and the game is dead. It wasn’t.
“Kyle Turner scored a good goal, but at 1-0 we realised Steven would be getting torn into St Johnstone and that they would come out flying.
“In those situations, the opposition can be a bit carefree and play passes they wouldn’t normally play because they have to get back into it. For 15 minutes, we settled it down and made sure we defended properly.”
Millwall manager Gary Rowett was especially disappointed with his side’s 1-0 defeat at home to Bristol City as it came on the day the club paid tribute to late chairman John Berylson.
This was the Lions’ first home league match of the season and those in attendance paid their respects to American Berylson, who died in July aged 70 having taken over the club in 2007.
The home side proudly wore T-shirts with Berylson’s face printed on the front during their warm-up, while American flags were unfurled in the Dockers Stand and wreaths were laid behind each goal by the captains.
On the pitch, though, Matty James’ strike four minutes into stoppage time ensured it was the Robins who came away with all three points, with Rowett upset that the team could not produce a performance to match the occasion.
He said: “The tribute to John was absolutely wonderful. His family being here was all the more special. The minute’s applause was immaculately done by both sets of fans. The atmosphere was brilliant.
“It’s particularly disappointing because – I’m a manager, you feel responsible – John’s family were here and you want them to have a positive experience at a game like this.
“We lacked energy, a little bit of spark. I thought it was a nothing game. It was a game that looked destined to fizzle out.
“We didn’t play with enough zip, energy, we are at home and have to make the running, get on the front foot. At times it felt soft, we haven’t really put our marker on the game physically.
“I expect the players to drive it a little bit more on the pitch – I think at times we need to show more determination. I felt we were waiting to show quality. I thought we were a little bit wasteful on the ball.
“We’ll have to lick our wounds.”
Bristol City had to wait until the final stages to break the deadlock, but came away with three points in their first game since selling Alex Scott to Bournemouth.
It was fitting that his midfield partner James was the man to clinch all three points, finding the bottom corner after a long throw-in.
But while that goal was fairly direct, manager Nigel Pearson explained that the plan had been to make Millwall run as much as possible.
“We are a side that are capable of out-running teams,” Pearson said. “We wanted this to be a running game. Their three centre-backs are not as mobile as our forwards. We wanted to stretch them.
“Our energy levels were great. I thought we were always dangerous. What gets results like this is the psychological aspects of dealing with situations.
“We dealt with their set plays well. That hasn’t always been the case for us. We’ve worked hard over the last two seasons to put that right.
“We have to be consistently good. That’s where the growth of the side will be measured this season.
“We dealt with what is an important occasion for Millwall – it’s important to be a part of that and show respect but be professional too.
“I thought we were positive from the start until the end. I think we thoroughly deserved to win the game. It’s a tough place to come. We were quite accomplished.”
Southampton manager Russell Martin admitted his side were too nervous after being bailed out by a 97th-minute equaliser to draw 4-4 against Norwich.
Adam Armstrong smashed in the last-gasp penalty to end a thriller at St Mary’s – which had seen the Canaries lead three times.
But Martin, in his first appearance in the home dugout on the south coast, was frustrated with the hangover from Premier League relegation.
“It was a fair result for both teams,” admitted Martin. “I would have been really upset if we had lost and really gutted for the supporters and players.
“It was a good advertisement for the Championship. It was entertaining. I don’t think either keeper did much wrong – it is madness they both conceded four goals.
“It was a strange and crazy game and I hope we don’t have many like that.
“There were too many moments that we wouldn’t have wanted. We gave them too many moments.
“I’m angry and annoyed at conceding four goals but on the other hand I’m proud about the team’s character and being so dominant in some parts.
“We had 31 shots which is a lot so there is plenty to be proud of but still be annoyed.
“It is the first time back this season and after last year there was too much nervousness.”
There were five goals in a crazy first half, which included three goals in 344 seconds, starting with Josh Sargent’s back-post header in the seventh minute.
Southampton burst back into the match and led after Jan Bednarek collected a rebound to score his first goal since April 2022, and Armstrong converted his first penalty of the match after Shane Duffy’s handball.
Gabriel Sara and Jon Rowe both netted to give the visitors the advantage again, only for substitute Che Adams to rifle in a fine finish into the bottom corner.
Christian Fassnacht thought he had won it six minutes from time after capitalising on Ryan Manning’s miskick but Armstrong ended the helter-skelter match from the spot, after Kyle Walker-Peters had been shoved by Dimitris Giannoulis.
Norwich boss David Wagner said: “No [it wasn’t naive to concede a late penalty], under pressure and away from home those situations can happen. I thought the players worked really hard but there was a lack of concentration at the end of the game that must not happen.
“We weren’t super clinical but we still scored four goals!
“Today it was entertaining. I think you have seen two quality sides early in the season when both teams want a win. I am happy about how brave the players were but I’ve seen we have a lot of work to do.”
Leigh Leopards hero Lachlan Lam revealed he entered unknown territory when he let fly with the drop-goal that sealed his side’s historic Betfred Challenge Cup final win over Hull KR at Wembley.
Lam was set up by team-mate Gareth O’Brien, who minutes earlier had missed his own glaring opportunity to clinch the winner in golden point extra time, and duly converted for the first time in his career.
“It was my first pro field goal, and it felt like I had a lot of time when I kicked it,” said Lam, one of the stand-outs of the season who added the prestigious Lance Todd Trophy for his man of the match display in Leigh’s 17-16 win.
“We’ve done a lot of work on it in the last few months because you know you’re going to be in that position at some stage,” added Lam. “Gaz missed the first one and had the trust to throw it back to me to take that kick.
“I dropped it a little bit on the angle but halfway towards the posts I knew it was going over. It happened really quickly. I went to celebrate and all of a sudden I was on my back.”
Leigh’s win, which continued an astonishing first season back among the top flight, was fashioned in the most dramatic of circumstances after Matt Parcell helped haul Rovers level with 80 seconds left of normal time.
After O’Brien missed the first chance to win it, the usually dependable Brad Schneider came up short for Hull KR with a rash long-ranger and gave Lam, the son of Leopards head coach Adrian, the chance to seal a fairytale title.
The pride was etched on the face of father Adrian, the architect of Leigh’s amazing campaign, who said: “It’s just incredible to talk about how this has happened.
“This time last year we were coming in to prepare for the (1895 Cup) final. How that’s gone around in the last 12 months, it’s an incredible story for rugby league for us even to be here.
“I don’t just want to make it about Lachlan but it was a special moment. I’ve thought this week how lucky I am having him playing here for my team and doing well.
“It was just a really weird moment when he went to take the field goal, the ball was thrown back to him and I thought, he’s going to win us the game here.
“I’ve coached him since he was six so what went through my mind was knowing how many times we’d been in the opposite position and been left heartbroken, so that was a bit of serendipity.”
Rovers boss Willie Peters hoped his side had the momentum following their late fightback but admitted a botched extra period cost them dear.
Instead of the ice-cool way in which they sank Wigan in similar circumstances in the semi-final, Rovers coughed up an early error then Schneider’s snatched effort failed to find touch.
“I thought our luck had changed and we had got the momentum,” said Peters. “But we’ve got to learn our lessons and Leigh showed us how to play in golden point, we took six carries and went for a long-distance field goal.
“We didn’t handle golden point very well but I’m very proud of the players. We just hung in there and it proves the fight and character of this team to keep going to the end there and lock it up.
“We had our chances so it’s really hard to take. We will have a good little break now but we have always come back and responded, and on Friday when we go to St Helens, if we want to be flat and complacent we’re in for a long night.”
QPR boss Gareth Ainsworth revealed that he told Sinclair Armstrong he would score his first goal for the club before the young Irish striker came up trumps in a 2-1 win at Cardiff.
The 20-year-old Armstrong opened his Rangers account before charging clear to set up Kenneth Paal’s second-half clincher, with Ike Ugbo’s open-goal finish nothing more than a consolation for Cardiff.
“I told Sinclair in the hotel this morning that he was going to score his first goal and the beaming smile on his face gave me confidence, never mind him,” said Ainsworth.
“He’s a man of few words. He just said: ‘Cheers gaffer’. He told me after the game: ‘You were right gaffer’.
“He’s a work in progress but I believe we’ve got a real diamond. He’s young and come out of a lower level in Ireland.
“He’s not had enough games in the Championship yet, but he will get there and he’s like a 100 metres sprinter.
“He’s the quickest player I’ve ever worked with and is going to cause serious problems for defences.”
Ainsworth’s position has come under scrutiny after failing to stop QPR’s slide following his move from Wycombe in February.
QPR narrowly avoided relegation from the Sky Bet Championship last season and lost 4-0 at Watford on the opening day of this campaign after conceding four first-half goals.
“I didn’t give them the best chance of being successful (at Watford) and it’s been a big week – and a big day – for me,” said Ainsworth.
“I thought ‘how do I get the best out of the players I’ve got?’ rather than thinking what’s got me success over the last 10 years.
“This is new now, it’s not what I’ve had, and we had to change.
“There is going to be some pain before we get better, but I can see the start now and I want to build.”
There was plenty of excitement around Cardiff with Aaron Ramsey, having returned to the club in the summer, making his first appearance at home since 2011.
But new Cardiff manager Erol Bulut said: “Many players were nervous – I don’t understand why. Maybe it is the first game in front of our fans. But that is not a reason to be nervous.
“We created enough to at least score a second goal and get a point. But two individual mistakes in the game meant the opponents led 2-0 and it’s not easy to come back to draw from there.
“We have to keep working on our mistakes. Also some players have to be much more active.
“From some players, it’s not enough. They have to give a better performance.
“Many players still have in their heads the last two years, how the Championship was for them.
“I try to push it out of them, to believe in themselves and focus on our target.”
Valerin Ismael shrugged off Watford’s wastefulness in front of goal in the goalless draw against Plymouth at Vicarage Road and accentuated the positives from their performance.
His side managed just three efforts on target from 20 attempts on goals, with striker Vakoun Bayo especially profligate.
Bayo struck shots wide in both halves as Watford dominated a Plymouth side that were always dangerous on the counter-attack.
“I am really pleased with the performance. We said yesterday that it is important that we put these performances in with consistency and with the right mentality. We saw that again today,” Ismael said.
“But we were not ruthless enough. We put ourselves in great positions and we played some great football, but when you miss opportunities, you keep your opponent in the game and they think that they can maybe get more than one point.
“I think we are on the right path. I am a winner, it is clear, but as long as you show the right attitude, you cannot win every game. As long as the players are brave, I will accept mistakes.
“We don’t say don’t worry about it, and I know that Bayo is disappointed that he didn’t get a goal, but it’s important that you create chances. He worked hard and I’m sure he will get better when he gets his fitness.”
Ismael embodied the bravery he demands from his players when he made a quadruple substitution after 56 minutes.
He added: “With the four substitutes we got exactly what we wanted. We wanted to keep up the pressure because at the end of first half, our energy wasn’t at the same level especially with our press.
“We wanted to keep up the intensity and it worked. We created so many chances in the second half, but when you are on top, you have to score.”
Plymouth manager Steven Schumacher was delighted by his side’s performance, particularly the determination of central defensive pairing Dan Scarr and Lewis Gibson.
Schumacher said: “The whole team worked really hard to get a deserved clean sheet and that’s what it’s going to be. We’re not going to be able to come into the Championship and coast through games.
“Dan and Lewis were superb whenever Watford managed to get behind us and get crosses in.
“I thought it was a really good game as nil-nils go, really entertaining. Two teams who did absolutely everything to get the three points.
“We knew Watford would come in full of confidence, so we had to get our organisation right behind the ball, but we also posed a threat on the counter-attack.
“I said to the lads at half-time that we could score and cause a massive upset. We had the chances to score. It wasn’t to be but it’s still very pleasing to have four points after two games.”
Schumacher’s satisfaction was all the greater given Argyle’s travel issues on the eve of the game.
He added: “Getting out of Devon in August is a disaster, so we decided to take the train, but an earlier train was cancelled.
“That meant there were no seat reservations and our players had to sit on the floor or stand up for three-and-a-half hours. The kit man came on the bus and it took him eight hours. The players could have used that as an excuse, but they didn’t.”
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