Royal Ascot winner Burdett Road made an immediate impression on his hurdles bow with a clear-cut victory at Huntingdon.

Winner of the Golden Gates Stakes for Michael Bell in June, Burdett Road then tackled the Gordon Stakes at Goodwood before finishing third to Passenger in the Winter Hill Stakes.

Subsequently gelded and transferred to the care of James Owen by owners the Gredley Family, Burdett Road was sent off the 4-9 favourite in the Follow Us On Twitter @betrhino Juvenile Hurdle and he made short work of five rivals in the hands of Harry Cobden.

Though not foot perfect at the first attempt, Burdett Road galloped home 12 lengths clear of Palio and is a 33-1 chance with Paddy Power for the Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in March.

Cobden told Racing TV: “He’s a very good horse. He’s done a lot of things wrong there, but still won with his head in his chest.

“It probably wasn’t the world’s greatest juvenile hurdle, but just the manner he has gone around in the race – he was too keen, he’s a very good jumper and when he hit the front he danced away. He’s obviously got a good brain on him.

“I was confident, I knew there was one down my inside but I had so much horse left under me it wasn’t a problem. He’s definitely a Triumph Hurdle horse anyway, I’m confident of that. James has got a job to settle him down, manage him as well as we can.

“There’s an £80,000 juvenile hurdle at Cheltenham in just under two weeks and we were discussing whether to go for it or not – I’d say definitely run.

“The way he travelled through this race took the freshness off him, but he hasn’t had a race today. It’ll take a smart one to beat him.”

Danny Webb believes Chesterfield deserve their place in the FA Cup second round after Tom Naylor’s first-half header knocked out League One leaders Portsmouth at the SMH Group Stadium.

Former Pompey midfielder Naylor headed the National League pacesetters into a round-two tie with mid-table League One side Leyton Orient, and Spireites assistant manager Webb thinks they were value for the 1-0 win in front of a sell-out crowd.

Chesterfield claimed a deserved lead just after the half-hour as Liam Mandeville curled in a free-kick and Naylor beat goalkeeper Will Norris to the ball to head home.

Chesterfield had chances in the second half to add to their lead but were rarely troubled by a Portsmouth side who lost Regan Poole and Tino Anjorin to injuries before the break.

Webb said: “We needed them to be a little bit off their game and we had to be on it and both things married up today.

“I’m going to be biased but I think the best team won today. Portsmouth made it a real tough cup tie with their supporters and how they played at times.

“Supporters want to see flair, they want to see wins. They want to see goals but they want to see passion.”

Portsmouth head coach John Mousinho admitted his side were second best.

He said: “We got punished by a very decent side. There were plenty of things I thought we did well up until half-time but I thought second half Chesterfield were all over us to be honest.

“We don’t want to overreact but sometimes the best thing to do is take a breath and we will review the game on the bus on the way home.

“Our quality was very poor in the second half. We got in some very good spots but the ball kept going behind for a goal kick.”

LeBron James urged the Los Angeles Lakers to improve as his injury-hit side were blasted away by the Orlando Magic, who were inspired by Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero.

The Lakers' seven-game winning streak against the Magic came to an abrupt end as Los Angeles were outclassed in a 120-101 road defeat on Saturday.

Wagner led the Orlando charge with 26 points, one more than the impressive Banchero, while rookie Anthony Black scored 10 on his first Magic start.

Hosts Orlando were without injured guards Markelle Fultz (knee) and Gary Harris (groin), yet it was Los Angeles' James who bemoaned fitness issues hampering his team.

"That's definitely been our trend – offensive rebounds and points off turnovers," said James, who finished with 24 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

"We'll do a good job of getting a stop and then an offensive rebound allows them to score.

"It definitely helps when you have bigger bodies. We have three of our bigger bodies out right now with injuries.

"It would help, but that's definitely one of the ways we have to look at to get better."

Anthony Davis was a rare bright spark, managing 28 points, 13 rebounds and seven blocks for the Lakers, who were without five injured players for the road game.

Los Angeles played without Rui Hachimura (concussion protocol), Taurean Prince (knee), Gabe Vincent (knee), Jalen Hood-Schifino (knee) and Jarred Vanderbilt (knee).

However, injuries were no excuse for Los Angeles coach Darvin Ham.

"They're down bodies, we're down bodies and so the game basically comes down to mental approach," added Ham. "Their energy, their effort, they outworked us."

Just five days after a 106-103 reverse in Los Angeles, Banchero suggested the victory shows his Magic side can compete with any side in NBA.

"We don't look at any other team and think we can't match up," said last season's NBA Rookie of the Year Banchero, who went on to laud the performance of Black.

"Plus-32 for my dawg right here. Plus-32 is nuts. He just stepped up right away."

Magic coach Jamahl Mosley echoed Banchero's sentiment on Black, adding: "He wasn't afraid. He embraces moments, and he's willing to make the easy play, the easy pass and the right decision."

Lookaway will return to Cheltenham for the Unibet Greatwood Handicap Hurdle later this month having impressed at the track recently.

Neil King’s six-year-old was the winner of Aintree’s Grade Two bumper in 2022 and following a lacklustre start to life over hurdles last term, struck at Graded level for the second time when making all in the Sky Bet Novices’ Hurdle at Prestbury Park.

That was the perfect way to build on two successful outings over timber at Uttoxeter in the early part of summer and with a hurdling hat-trick secured, Lookaway will now head for the competitive handicap which headlines the final day of Cheltenham’s November meeting.

He is available at 11-1 for the race with the sponsors and his handler feels this is the ideal time to try his hand in deeper company.

“It was the perfect start to his season and we were obviously thrilled,” said King.

“We went there with high expectations and he couldn’t have done it any more nicely. Jack (Quinlan, jockey) has given him a nice positive ride from the front there, he’s jumped great, he’s travelled and won his race.

“The Greatwood is on the agenda. He’s gone up 10lb which one has to take on the chin. He could have gone up 5lb, 10lb or 15lb so we will take that there and that’s the definite next plan for him, to go back to Cheltenham for the Greatwood.

“He’s a young and improving horse and that’s the time to go for a handicap, isn’t it?”

Chelsea's spending should have the Blues competing for the Champions League but Jan Vertonghen says the quality of the Premier League and injury issues have hampered them.

The Blues once again splashed on big-money arrivals ahead of the 2023-24 season, bringing in the likes of Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia, Christopher Nkunku and Cole Palmer.

Caicedo's arrival broke the British record after his £115million move from Brighton, a mark only set in the previous season when Chelsea signed Benfica's Enzo Fernandez for £107m.

Their aggressive activity in the transfer market is yet to pay dividends, with Chelsea winning just three of their opening 10 Premier League games before Monday's visit to Tottenham.

Having also signed Axel Disasi, Nicolas Jackson and Robert Sanchez for significant fees, Vertonghen believes Chelsea's acquisitions should have helped a top-four challenge.

Former Tottenham defender Vertonghen, an Athlete Partner for APEX, told Stats Perform: "They had to make it into the Champions League.

"They signed so many players. When I saw the squad at the start of the year, I thought they had to reach the Champions League, with so many good young players and the signings they made."

Talented young midfielder Lavia and former RB Leipzig talisman Nkunku are yet to play a minute in the league for Chelsea due to injury.

With injuries taking their toll and the likes of Aston Villa, Brighton and Newcastle United exceeding expectations, Vertonghen acknowledged the struggles Chelsea face.

"They suffered a lot of injuries, and when you look how strong the Premier League is – it's not just Manchester City, Liverpool, Manchester United, you've got Spurs doing well, Brighton, Newcastle, Aston Villa, Arsenal.

"It's not a top four or six anymore, it's a top nine or 10 at the moment, especially when you see United and Chelsea being so far out.

"It's not easy. Chelsea should do better, but they've suffered a lot of injuries."

While referencing the challenges his former rivals are up against, Vertonghen suggested Chelsea are in safe hands with Pochettino.

The Belgium defender worked closely with the Blues head coach when at Spurs, helping Pochettino's former side to the Champions League final in the 2018-19 campaign.

"He's very good at shaping a team, shaping a squad," added the 36-year-old, who made 232 appearances for Tottenham.

"I think that's what he did very well at Tottenham. He got the right players in, the right characters, who wanted to work in his system and we had the perfect squad for that.

"A very good young core of guys who wanted to work hard and achieve big things and in his team I learned how to work and get the best out of my body. That's what I learned from him."

Arsenal have called for refereeing standards to be addressed and thrown their support behind manager Mikel Arteta’s after he branded the VAR decision not to rule out Anthony Gordon’s match-winner at Newcastle “an absolute disgrace”.

The Premier League club issued a statement on Sunday, saying they “wholeheartedly support” Arteta’s post-match comments after “yet more unacceptable refereeing and VAR errors”.

Gordon’s controversial goal secured a 1-0 victory for Newcastle and ended Arsenal’s 10-game unbeaten Premier League start.

“Arsenal Football Club wholeheartedly supports Mikel Arteta’s post-match comments after yet more unacceptable refereeing and VAR errors on Saturday evening,” read a club statement.

“We’d also like to acknowledge the huge effort and performance from our players and travelling supporters at St James’ Park.

“The Premier League is the best league in the world with the best players, coaches and supporters, all of whom deserve better.

“PGMOL (Professional Game Match Officials Limited) urgently needs to address the standard of officiating and focus on action which moves us all on from retrospective analysis, attempted explanations and apologies.

“We support the ongoing efforts of chief refereeing officer Howard Webb and would welcome working together to achieve the world-class officiating standards our league demands.”

Arteta failed to hide his anger at St James’ Park after referee Stuart Attwell awarded the Newcastle goal following a triple VAR check to see whether the ball had gone out of play before Joe Willock’s cross, whether Joelinton had fouled Arsenal defender Gabriel and whether Gordon had been offside.

Jayson Tatum found it "hard to process" the achievement of becoming the Boston Celtics' youngest player to 10,000 points in NBA history after Saturday's win over the Brooklyn Nets.

Tatum was one of five Boston players to finish with double-figure scores as the Celtics improved to 5-0 for the new season with a 124-114 win over the Nets.

Victory marked a memorable outing for 25-year-old Tatum, too, as he brought up the points landmark for the Celtics – surpassing previous record holder Antoine Walker, who was 26.

"It's kind of hard to process," Tatum said. "In the moment, it's a huge accomplishment. I'm extremely blessed to be part of such a great franchise.

"I've just been fortunate to be on some really good teams; have some really, really good coaches and obviously have some great teammates that have helped contribute to 10,000 points along the way."

Tatum is the 10th player in NBA history to reach 10,000 career points before his 26th birthday.

The Celtics star joined an illustrious list that includes LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, Tracy McGrady, Devin Booker, Bob McAdoo, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Dwight Howard.

However, his record-breaking efforts came as no surprise to Boston coach Joe Mazzulla.

"He shows up to work every single day," Mazzulla said. "He puts in the work and he dedicates his life to it.

"He doesn't miss days. He doesn't miss practices, games. And just his open-mindedness and wanting to be coached and wanting to be held to a high standard.

"When you have guys like that – that you can coach – it also allows you to bring the best out of everybody else and so he's one of the guys that sets the tone for us."

The four-time All Star finished with 32 points and 11 rebounds against the Nets before acknowledging he could not have foreseen his achievements after being the number three pick in 2017.

"I was ignorant when I got drafted," added Tatum. "First of all, I didn't even want to come [to Boston] because I didn't think I was going to play.

"They had Gordon [Hayward], and JB [Jaylen Brown], and IT [Isaiah Thomas], and [Marcus] Smart; I didn't think I was good enough to be on that team.

"It's been a long process. I've had to learn through the ups and downs, through my mistakes of late-game decisions or whatever it may be; just growing pains and playing enough games, being in enough playoff series, you learn from those things."

Tom Naylor dumped his old club Portsmouth out of the FA Cup as Chesterfield won their first-round tie 1-0 at the SMH Group Stadium.

Former Pompey midfielder Naylor headed home in the first half as the National League leaders defeated opponents who hold the same position in the League One table.

Ollie Banks forced Will Norris into the first save and then curled a shot just wide as the Spireites started well.

Portsmouth’s Paddy Lane shot at the near post but Harry Tyrer saved low to his left at the expense of a corner.

Chesterfield claimed a deserved lead just after the half hour as Liam Mandeville curled in a free-kick and Naylor beat Norris to the ball to head home.

Colby Bishop’s downward header was too close to Tyrer as the home side comfortably held their lead to the break.

Banks shot at Norris early in the second half and Armando Dobra twice saw penalty appeals denied as Chesterfield continued to dominate with an hour gone.

Portsmouth substitute Abu Kamara headed wide as the visitors looked for a way back into the tie.

But Paul Cook’s side had done enough to reach round two.

Norwich’s slump continued as they fell to a painful 3-1 defeat at the hands of 10-man Blackburn at Carrow Road.

The Canaries have now lost eight times in 10 games in all competitions, slipping to 17th in the Championship, and there were calls for head coach David Wagner to go during another below-par showing.

Blackburn scored twice in the opening 15 minutes through Tyrhys Dolan and Sammie Szmodics to take control, and a second from Szmodics early in the second half ended the game as a contest, even through Rovers’ Scott Wharton was sent off shortly afterwards.

Norwich got one back in injury time through Gabriel Sara, but it was no more than a consolation for the struggling hosts.

The Canaries were well off the pace in the early stages and were duly punished as the visitors scored two well-taken goals.

At times a slick Rovers side were able to play their way through a nervous looking City backline at will and it was no surprise when they took the lead after eight minutes with a goal of classic simplicity.

Joe Rankin-Costello found himself in some space on the right and slid the ball infield to Dolan who burst into the box before producing an emphatic finish into the roof of the net.

It got worse for the hosts in the 15th minute when Rovers added a second. Their defence was again caught square as Andrew Moran put Szmodics in and the striker buried an unstoppable low shot into the bottom corner to make it two.

There were chants of ‘You’re getting sacked in the morning’ from the Norwich fans when that one went in, with head coach Wagner already under pressure after his side’s poor run of form.

The Canaries did improve as the half wore on, and Ui Jo Hwang and Marcelino Nunez both got decent efforts of target before Onel Hernandez fired just wide from the edge of the area after being fed by Jack Stacey.

But overall it was still a poor first-half showing, and the second started in similar fashion for the Canaries as they shipped another soft goal four minutes after the restart.

This time Dolan had all the time in the world to clip a ball out to an unmarked Moran on the right and crossed low for Szmodics to tap in at the far post, with the Rovers top scorer getting the benefit of a tight offside call.

Norwich desperately needed a boost at that point and got one a few minutes later when Wharton was red-carded after bringing down Hernandez as the Cuban raced through on goal, although the subsequent free-kick from Nunez was comfortably gathered by Leopold Wahlstedt.

Wagner made a quadruple substitution on the hour mark in an attempt to change the course of the game and one of them, Christian Fassnacht, brought an excellent reaction save out of the Rovers keeper with a powerful back-post header.

Norwich were now firmly on the front foot, with Nunez blasting just wide and Sara seeing a goal-bound shot well blocked and they finally reduced the arrears in the second minute of injury time.

Wahlstedt could only parry a low cross from Przemyslaw Placheta and it fell nicely for Sara to side-foot home from just outside the six-yard box.

Queens Gamble is in line to continue her hurdles education when making her first start for Harry Derham at Newbury on Thursday.

The five-year-old was an early fancy for the 2023 Champion Bumper after impressively winning a pair of Cheltenham bumpers when previously trained by Oliver Sherwood.

She suffered a narrow reversal at the hands of Fergal O’Brien’s subsequent Aintree scorer Dysart Enos in her Cheltenham Festival tune-up at Market Rasen and although struggling to land a blow on rain-softened ground at the Festival itself, she remains of real potential as she seeks further experience over timber.

With Sherwood having bowed out from his illustrious training career, Queens Gamble now finds himself in the care of Lambourn-based Derham, with chestnut’s former handler working alongside as the young trainer’s assistant.

Derham is keen to get a run into the talented mare before her first key assignment of the year in the Listed Play Coral “Racing-Super-Series” For Free Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle at Newbury in early December.

He said: “She obviously did very well in her bumpers and it is very kind of Alex Frost and Ed Galvin and their families to send her to me and we hope that she progresses over hurdles this season.

“She will be entered for Newbury and we would like to go there, but I don’t think her owners or any of us would like to run her on bottomless ground and that would be something to consider.

“She’s ready to start her season now, so if we can go to Newbury that would be great and if not then we will find a suitable alternative quite soon.

“Her first big target is at Newbury during the Winter Carnival on December 2, the mares’ Listed novice hurdle, so we would love to get a run into her before then if we can.

“She’s obviously got to go and do it over hurdles and I’m confident she will. I don’t want to plan too far in advance but she’s looked very good in her bumpers and I’ve no reason to believe she won’t do well over hurdles.”

Queens Gamble was given an early introduction to hurdles at Warwick in May and although the manner of victory was far from emphatic, her training team feel there is a lot more to come.

Derham continued: “She won at Warwick and I think everyone was a little underwhelmed that day, but Oliver and the team there just felt she wasn’t quite at her best and won despite that.

“Obviously I’ve only known her since the beginning of this season and Oliver’s team seem to think she is a lot stronger this year. I’m certainly very pleased with what I can see and really looking forward to her.”

Although keen to take his time with an operator who could easily become the fledgling handler’s stable star, a return to the Cheltenham Festival for the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle could be on the cards for the spring if Queens Gamble progresses as expected throughout the season.

“That would be a big target this season if she keeps improving,” added Derham.

“Her bumper form would make her a live contender for a race like that and her schooling this autumn has been really good.

“So I do have that in the back of my mind and I don’t want to over-race her this winter with the thought that if she keeps improving and we can get her to the spring in good form, then that would be lovely.”

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe revealed his side’s hard-fought 1-0 win against Arsenal came at a price with Dan Burn and Jacob Murphy both sustaining injuries.

Anthony Gordon’s controversial second-half winner halted Arsenal’s unbeaten Premier League start to the season after a triple VAR check.

But Howe faces an anxious wait to learn the full extent of Burn’s back injury, while Murphy will have surgery after popping the same shoulder he dislocated last month and now faces three months out.

Howe, already without eight senior players through injury, said: “Two injuries that I don’t think you can do a lot about. Dan jumps for a ball, lands on his back and he’s in a lot of pain at the moment.

“So that looks worrying for us. Jacob – he knew there was a chance he could do his shoulder again, but he was prepared to take the risk.

“Unfortunately we lost him and we will lose him now to an operation, so a difficult moment, but the players just responded superbly.”

Newcastle extended their unbeaten league run to seven games and closed the gap on the title-chasing Gunners to four points after edging a tetchy, physical encounter of few chances.

“The players, the group have been unbelievable,” Howe said. “They’ve really stepped up. We’re in a difficult moment, we’ve got a lot of injuries.

“We’re playing in a lot of competitions, a lot of football, but the players are committed to everything and I can’t praise them enough.

“Again, we had to step up in a really difficult game against a top opponent. We’re stretched with injuries, losing players within the game again.

“We’ll have to see how Dan’s injury is. Dan’s been magnificent for us, we desperately don’t want to lose him, he gives us so much in different ways. Let’s see how feels.”

Howe admitted the decision to send second-half substitute Murphy into the fray had been a risk the player and medical team had been prepared to take.

When asked how long his rehabilitation would be, Howe added: “Off the top of my head I’m not sure, but it will probably be three months I think.”

Furious Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said VAR Andy Madley’s decision to award Gordon’s goal was “an absolute disgrace”.

In his post-match rant, the 41-year-old Spaniard said he was “embarrassed” by the standard of the Premier League’s officiating.

Madley’s four-minute check looked at whether the ball had gone out of play before Joe Willock crossed for the winner, whether Joelinton had fouled Gabriel and if Gordon had been offside.

Arteta was delighted with his players’ performance, adding: “I have to praise them. It’s not in their hands, it’s not in their control. I have to praise the players the way they played here.

“How much they limited Newcastle and how much we tried, it’s incredible. The way we competed against this team, because they are a top team.

“So to get out of the game like this, I feel sick. That’s how I feel, sick to be part of this.”

White Birch skips an option at Kempton on Monday but connections have high hopes there are plenty of nice prizes for him to win next season.

Third in the Derby to Auguste Rodin and King Of Steel, his only disappointing effort was in the Irish equivalent when he was hampered by an injured rival.

After that he went close at Leopardstown in a Group Three behind Adelaide River and he was entered in the Listed Floodlit Stakes at Kempton.

However, he is now finished for the season but all the major middle distance races will be on his radar next term.

George Murphy, assistant trainer and son of trainer John, said: “We decided he wouldn’t travel and that looks like the end for this year.

“He stays in training and we’re really looking forward to him. It’s easy to put a line through the Irish Derby and other than that, he ran some massive races.

“We’re really looking forward to next year, when he should be able to compete in a lot of nice races and do very well.

“Something like the Tattersalls Gold Cup will be an option, there are lots of races we can aim at so we’ll sit down and make a plan over the winter.”

England’s hopes of defending their World Cup title officially ended at the hands of Australia in Ahmedabad, a sixth defeat from seven games for Jos Buttler’s deposed champions.

Here, the PA news agency addresses some of the key questions around their troubled time in India.

When can they call it a day and come home?

Incredibly, given the protracted nature of their downfall, England still have two games to play before they can finally draw the curtain on this regrettable chapter. They face the Netherlands on Wednesday in Pune and Pakistan in Kolkata on November 11. Only then can they get a long-awaited flight back to familiar shores.

What is left to play for?

Traditional sporting cliches dictate that England are playing for pride or, failing that, ‘the shirt’. But things are a little more concrete than that. They are currently rooted to bottom spot in the table and need to somehow climb to eighth place to book their place in the 2025 Champions Trophy. Seen as a mini World Cup and an important staging post in the four-year ODI cycle, they cannot afford to miss out.

Is this the end of the World Cup-winning class of 2019?

In total eight of that triumphant squad survived to defend their achievement and it has seemed a stretch too far. Captain Eoin Morgan felt his forces fading and retired last year, while Jason Roy was axed at the eleventh hour. Both now seem preferable fates to what has played out over the past month. Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root have both stated that they do not plan to go anywhere but may yet conclude that 2027 is too distant a target. Ben Stokes seems certain to return to ODI retirement, Moeen Ali is the oldest member of the squad at 36 while Mark Wood and Chris Woakes may be better used in other formats. Adil Rashid does not play Test cricket and is still needed, but change is coming fast.

Are jobs on the line?

Jos Buttler has cut an increasingly forlorn figure as he fronts up to every fresh defeat with the same glassy-eyed stare, but he is keen to continue as captain. The support from his team-mates appears genuine and with the likely churn of personnel it is not easy to identify an obvious successor. Work on that should begin soon, though. As for head coach Matthew Mott, the terrain looks trickier. Despite being in charge for last year’s T20 World Cup win in his native Australia he is a relative newcomer and has less credit in the bank with England. His position was undermined somewhat by Morgan’s comments about an ‘unsettled’ dressing room but making him the fall guy at this stage would not reflect well on those who appointed him and odds are that he will get the chance to show he can oversee a refresh of the set-up.

What is next for the limited-overs team?

The comically congested international schedule waits for no-one. As such, England’s selectors are currently putting together their next squads for a white-ball tour of the West Indies in December. Expect plenty of fresh faces for the ODI leg, which should represent the first building blocks of England’s revamp, but a more familiar looking T20 group. England will be defending their T20 crown next summer in the Caribbean and USA and some of those who fell short this time are likely to have a shot at redemption. Stokes, meanwhile, is heading for surgery on his left knee as he focuses on his role as Test captain.