England forward Ollie Watkins is so averse to the public spotlight that he no longer goes shopping, but knows his profile is only going to get bigger.

The Aston Villa striker has earned a recall to the England squad for forthcoming games against Australia and Italy after his season burst into life with four goals in two games at the end of last month.

Watkins, who was not included in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the September games, does not feel comfortable walking around his local supermarket.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ollie Watkins (@olliewatkins)

But he also accepts that if he keeps banging in the goals for Villa and England, he is only going to get more attention.

“I go under the radar, maybe,” the 27-year-old admitted. “I’m not talked about enough profile-wise. But I know I have been producing on the pitch since Unai Emery came in. But I do go under the radar.

“I don’t know if it’s me being at Villa. You get some players that are just likeable and out there. I’m not really too fussed about that.

“I just like playing football. Maybe a lot of people said to me I need to push my profile. But I am happy with what I am doing on the pitch and that’s all that matters to me.

“The bigger you are, the more you are in the spotlight. It’s not that I don’t want that, it is doing my job. If I am doing my job and playing well, my profile will raise naturally.

“I remember when I moved from Brentford to Villa, I used to just go and shop in Sainsbury’s normal at Brentford.

“I came to try to do it at Villa and I couldn’t. I came home and I was fuming and I said to my missus I am never going out again, you will have to do the shop.

“Since then I don’t do the shopping, I don’t get ‘bothered’ but a lot of people want photos.

“I had my earphones in and people were like – they take two looks – is that him? When I see that people have clocked me, normally I try to avoid (them). Not because I don’t want to interact with them…once one person asks for a photo then two or three do and it’s hard to do shopping.”

Watkins believes the arrival of Villa boss Emery last year was the catalyst for kick-starting his career.

“Definitely, under (Steven) Gerrard, I know he played me all the time – I’ve played under all managers – but I wasn’t really getting the best out of my game,” he said.

“That wasn’t down to him, I had just kind of fallen into a rut, but I feel like I have gone on a different path and really focused on being a striker.

“Before I was trying to do everything, trying to cross it and get on the end of my own cross and head it. Now I am just focused, being the main man.

“He put a lot of faith in me and gave me confidence to go out and perform, just focusing on scoring goals and helping the team.

“I definitely felt like, I came from Brentford, I scored a lot of goals and in my first year I did well and then I found I hit a little bit of a rut.

“It is hard. When you are in that rut, you don’t know where you are going to end up or what is going to happen.

“I didn’t see my career anywhere else but Villa but it was hard to try and get out of the rut when it wasn’t going great for me.”

Harry Maguire admits he cannot keep just playing once a month for Manchester United but remains confident of winning back his place and helping Erik ten Hag’s team climb the table.

It has been a bumpy ride since the 30-year-old starred in England’s run to the Euro 2020 final, with the defender falling down the pecking order at Old Trafford and then losing the captaincy.

A widely-discussed summer move to West Ham did not materialise and settled Maguire remained at a club where he is trying to get his career back on track with next summer’s Euros looming large.

Gareth Southgate has been a staunch supporter of the centre-back throughout his ups and downs but admitted to concerns over his level of involvement, which the ex-United skipper is determined to improve.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Harry Maguire (@harrymaguire93)

“I have belief in my ability and what I have done in my career as every player should,” Maguire said.

“Every player who is on the bench should believe they should be starting, otherwise they wouldn’t be playing at a high level. I am no different.

“Listen, it’s been tough. I want to play games. I want to feel important to the club and I want to feel important to the rest of the team.

“At the moment I haven’t been playing anywhere near as much as I’d like. It’s the bottom line of it.

“I’ve just got to make sure I am ready to take the opportunities when they come along.”

Asked when gametime becomes an issue and, given Euro 2024 is coming up, whether that could be sooner rather than later, said: “Yeah, of course.

“I mean, I’m not going to sit here all my life and play once every month and if it carries on then I’m sure myself and the club will sit down and have a chat about things.

“But, honestly, at the moment I’m fully focused on two games for England, two big games.

“Then I’m fully focused on fighting and trying to get back my place at Manchester United and helping the team climb up the league to where we should be.”

England face Australia in a Wembley friendly on Friday before attention turns to the crunch Euro 2024 qualifier against Italy.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Harry Maguire (@harrymaguire93)

Maguire has kept his England place despite his struggles to break his way into Ten Hag’s line-up, making his first Premier League start of the campaign in Saturday’s 2-1 comeback win against Brentford.

“It’s not my decision whether I start the next game or not,” said the defender, who provided the assist for Scott McTominay’s winner. “I’m unsure on that. I’m sure in a couple of weeks I’ll go back and find out.

“Listen, if you look back on my last 15 to 20 starts for club and country, I would be happy to sit here and say ‘I’m really happy with my performances’.

“My record under this manager speaks for itself. I haven’t started as many games as I’d like, but my win percentage when I’ve played is ridiculously high.

“And of course there’s times when I can do more and times when I can improve and help the team, but, yeah, I’m just wanting to help the team.

“I’m wanting to help the team get out of this position that we’re in at the moment and hopefully we can do that in the coming weeks.”

Maguire benefitted from a string of defensive absentees as he made just his ninth Premier League start since Ten Hag arrived.

The Dutchman has always spoken positively about the defender in public, saying in August that he “has the abilities to be a top-class centre-back” and must “fight for his place”.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Harry Maguire (@harrymaguire93)

“I can only do what I’ve been doing in terms of when I’ve come into the team, bringing positive performances,” Maguire said.

“I’ve started two games this season and come on in a few off the bench, but, yeah, keep working hard in training.

“The manager can only watch training and make his decision from training and the games when I get the opportunity to play.

“I’ll keep working hard, I’ll keep pushing. I have great belief in myself.”

Australia play England at Wembley on Friday night but former national team head coach Ange Postecoglou does not envisage football truly taking off in his home country like it dominates in his current residence.

Postecoglou has enjoyed an excellent start at Tottenham and they are joint-leaders of the Premier League after eight matches going into this month’s international break.

Optimism is rife at Spurs but their 58-year-old manager remains pessimistic about the state of football in Australia, despite his nation co-hosting a successful Women’s World Cup this summer where the Matildas finished fourth.

Postecoglou spent four years in charge of the Socceroos and – despite achieving plenty – he has given up hope of the sport cracking life Down Under with subtle digs aimed at governing body Football Australia ahead of Friday’s friendly clash in London.

Asked about his Asian Cup win on home soil in 2015, Postecoglou replied: “It didn’t make an impact back there and that was kind of my frustration.

“I don’t think that anything they can achieve… when you look at what the Matildas did at the World Cup, unbelievable but you still won’t see an influx of resources to the game. You won’t. I guarantee it.

“They’ll build stadiums and other codes will use them. I just don’t think the nation as a whole has that inside them to understand you can make an impact on the world of football but it requires a kind of nationalistic approach that I just don’t think Australians – at their core – are really interested in.

“There’s a couple of things. One of them is obviously the sporting landscape, where there’s some pretty strong codes there that have generationally dominated the landscape.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (@tottenhamhotspurstadium)

“There’s Aussie Rules, that’s the indigenous sport of Australia. It’s kind of unique to them and they take great pride in protecting as their code. The rugby codes dominate.

“It’s very hard for football to make an impact in that space and I guess then the flipside of that is just how global the sport of football is.

“If I can compare that to a country like Japan, who also have the tyranny of distance and baseball’s pretty strong, they plant a lot of resources into football and you can see that’s making an impact. I don’t see Australia down that road.”

Japan was Postecoglou’s next destination when he walked away from the Socceroos job after he helped his country qualify for the 2018 World Cup.

The ex-Yokohama boss had managed Australia at the 2014 edition, but his departure seven months out from the global showpiece was a surprise and at the time he described the job as “taking a toll” both personally and professionally.

Postecoglou has been involved in coaching since 1996 and while he has taken the Premier League by storm so far, he does not expect his time at Tottenham to change the landscape of football in Australia.

“I don’t. I don’t know and maybe that’s just me, not being cynical, but I gave up that fight,” he explained.

“It’s a much easier space for me to live in because I was so frustrated for so long. It was my biggest frustration. One of my major drivers for doing what I did was to do that – to change football in Australia and that’s the reason I left.

“I felt I hadn’t made an impact at all. That’s easier for me to deal with than to think maybe I still can now with what I’m doing. I just think I’d be disappointed, so I’d prefer to think it’s not going to happen.

“I walked away from a World Cup. We qualified and I walked away. The reason I walked away was I just didn’t enjoy what I was doing.

“It’s not just doing the job and winning games of football, it’s got to be a higher purpose. My higher purpose in Australia was to change the game. I just don’t think that will happen.

“It was the right decision for me (to leave), it was the right decision for where I saw the next stage of my career and if I didn’t make that decision at that time, if I had waited until after the World Cup, I’ve got no doubt I wouldn’t be sitting here now.”

Postecoglou replied no when asked if he would manage Australia again and laughed off talk of replacing England chief Gareth Southgate.

He added: “England? Oh, come on mate. They’ve got a fantastic manager and I’m eight games into a Tottenham career. That’s how I think.”

Conor McGregor took another step towards returning to UFC by re-entering the US Anti-Doping Agency’s (USASA) testing programme.

The 35-year-old has not fought in the Octagon since July 2021 when he was beaten by Dustin Poirier for a second time and suffered a broken leg.

He has been out of the USADA testing pool since, but the agency announced he has re-entered.

It said in a statement: “We can confirm that Conor McGregor has re-entered the USADA testing pool as of Sunday, October 8, 2023.

“We have been clear and firm with the UFC that there should be no exception given by the UFC for McGregor to fight until he has returned two negative tests and been in the pool for at least six months.

“The rules also allow USADA to keep someone in the testing pool longer before competing based on their declarations upon entry in the pool and testing results.”

‘The Notorious’ has been rumoured to fight Michael Chandler before the end of the year but that will not happen until April 2024 at the earliest due to USADA’s rules.

England have been watching footage of their calamitous defeat by Fiji in August as a reminder of what not to do in Sunday’s World Cup quarter-final.

Fiji stormed Twickenham 30-22 to claim their first ever victory over the red rose in eight meetings and defence coach Kevin Sinfield has been showing clips of the worst moments to the squad ahead of the rematch in Marseille.

To offset memories of the one the nation’s lowest ebbs, Sinfield has also been demonstrating to England how far they have successfully rebuilt come since that grim day.

“That match has been brought up this week. We would have been stupid not to because it was almost like a line in the sand, something for us to step forward from,” hooker Jamie George said.

“We learned a huge amount that week and we are a significantly better side on the back of it.

“We weren’t physical enough and some clips have been shown because it is a reminder we can’t be that team again, playing against a very, very good Fiji who are very dangerous when you give them what they want.

“Kev Sinfield said ‘I wasn’t sure about showing you this, but we can’t be this team again’.

“We are still hurting from performances like that, I still hurt from performances three years ago. You don’t like to be reminded of those things but if that can fuel the fire then why not?

“It has been received really well and the way we trained today (Wednesday) showed our intent is going to be very different, there was a bite to training.

“We probably got a few things wrong tactically during the week of that game but emotionally and physically we were off as well for whatever reason. It was us not being the England team we wanted to be.

“Fiji running riot at Twickenham and it’s been like ‘that can’t happen’ and then showing some positive clips of where we have come to now, how we have defended through the World Cup.”

Since that victory, the Islanders’ progress has been mixed with the narrowest of defeats to Wales and a victory over Australia, followed by an escape against Georgia and shock loss to Portugal.

They grew steadily worse as Pool C unfolded, perhaps in evidence of the pressure they are under to meet the expectations of a hopeful nation and at being cast as darlings of the World Cup.

England are significant favourites heading into the Stade Velodrome showdown but lightning could strike twice against one of the most naturally gifted teams in the tournament.

“I’m a fan of their work. I like how they have grown their set piece, everyone talks about Fiji and thinks about their offloading game, which they are fantastic at, they talk about the way they move the ball but they are a team that if you break it down are based around the set piece,” George said.

“They have big men in the pack who know what they are doing, they have played in top leagues for a long time. The way they have evolved their game is impressive and they deserve to be in this quarter-final.”

Wales warmed up for Euro 2024 qualifying action by cruising to a 4-0 win over Gibraltar in Wrexham.

All the goals came in the first half as Kieffer Moore scored twice with Ben Davies and Nathan Broadhead also getting on the scoresheet.

After last month’s victory in Latvia, it was the first time Wales had achieved back-to-back wins since November 2021.

The performance, especially the opening period, will encourage Wales manager Rob Page ahead of the vital qualifier against Croatia on Sunday, even if Gibraltar’s standing in world football must be taken into account.

This was the maiden meeting between the two nations at senior level and also marked Wales’ return to the SToK Racecourse for the first time since beating Trinidad and Tobago there in 2019.

The Football Association of Wales were rewarded with a sell-out crowd of 10,008 as fans in the north showed their appetite to support the national team.

Page rested several regulars with the Croatia fixture in mind, when Wales will realistically need at least a point to keep alive hopes of automatic qualification for next summer’s European Championship finals in Germany.

Davies took over the captaincy in the absence of the injured Aaron Ramsey, the Tottenham defender winning his 81st cap as Gibraltar played the 81st match in their history.

Charlie Savage, the 20-year-old son of former Wales midfielder Robbie, Joe Low, Regan Poole and Liam Cullen were handed first caps.

Savage, in particular, could be satisfied with his night’s work as he showed composure in possession and exhibited a good range of passing.

Gibraltar came into the game 198th in the world with only nine nations below them on FIFA’s rankings table.

Preparing to play the Republic of Ireland in Euro qualification on Monday, Gibraltar had suffered six straight defeats and not scored since a 1-0 friendly win over Andorra 11 months ago.

The loudest cheer in the opening minutes came when Savage evoked memories of his father with a crunching, but fair, challenge on Tjay De Barr that left the Gibraltar forward on the floor.

Broadhead was off target with a couple of efforts before Wales took the lead after 22 minutes from an unlikely source.

Skipper Davies rose highest from Broadhead’s corner and Gibraltar’s fallibility in the air was punished again when Moore met Savage’s cross to score expertly off a post.

Daniel James, on early for the injured Wes Burns, was causing havoc down the left and forced a sprawling save from Dayle Coleing.

The over-worked Gibraltar goalkeeper also denied Savage twice and Liam Walker cleared another Davies effort off the line.

Broadhead then took James’ 35th-minute pass and turned smartly to find the top corner of Coleing’s net with a sweet right-footed strike.

Cullen twice went close and the fourth arrived on the stroke of half-time as James scampered free again to deliver a perfect cross for the waiting head of Moore.

Page made a raft of substitutions at half-time and the contest lost much of its rhythm.

The changes also removed the possibility of Wales eclipsing their record 11-0 win against Ireland in 1888.

Tom Bradshaw was inches from connecting with a Josh Sheehan cross that flashed across goal, but the second half was largely a nondescript affair.

James shook the crowd from their slumber with an angled effort that rattled the woodwork, but Wales had already achieved their objectives heading into Sunday.

John McGinn insists there is more to come from Scotland as they sit on the cusp of qualifying for a second successive European Championship.

Steve Clarke’s men have won their first five Group A qualifiers, including a 2-0 victory over Thursday’s opponents Spain at Hampden Park last March.

Scotland are top of the group, six points ahead of Spain having played a game more, and Aston Villa midfielder McGinn is confident about his country’s future.

He said: “There’s plenty more to come. We’re all at a good age. We’re getting more and more experience of these games.

“The great thing for us is there’s a couple of great young players bubbling away in the background that could come and improve us.

“It’s a really exciting time to be a Scotland player. The fans are here regardless of the results, but we’re now giving them some success which we’re enjoying. Hopefully we can carry that on.

“When you come back up the road you hear about the positive impact you’re having on the whole country. Everyone is behind the team again.

“We need to be better (than the win over Spain). We’re away from home, a team is stronger at home. It wasn’t as hot in Glasgow in March.

“We need to be aggressive, it’s in our nature as a country. Hard working, determined, we’ll fight for every ball.

“We need to get the balance right. We need to be physical and aggressive, but we’ve got some great players as well. At the Spain game, we showed good moments of quality.”

McGinn was not in the mood to get into a verbal battle with Spain captain Rodri, who claimed after the defeat in Hampden that the way Scotland played was “rubbish”.

He said: “It doesn’t matter anymore. I’ve probably lost count of the amount of trophies he’s won since that game.

“There’s not much we can say to him. He’ll have said things in the heat of the moment, but it’s gone now.

“He’s a world-class player who we all respect as a squad, and I think the country should follow.”

Steve Clarke believes Scotland’s maximum performance against Spain on Thursday night will be good enough to get them at least the point they need to qualify for Euro 2024.

The Scots have won their first five qualifiers including a morale-boosting 2-0 victory over Spain at Hampden Park in March.

Scotland are six points clear of Luis de la Fuente’s side at the top of the table and will qualify for next summer’s finals in Germany if they avoid defeat in Seville or if Norway fail to beat Cyprus on the same night.

Scotland have Georgia away and Norway at home in November to complete their campaign.

Clarke said: “Belief will be part of it, obviously we have to get the tactics right. The players have to put into practise on the pitch what we have spoken about on the training ground.

“They have to play to our maximum and belief is a part of that as well.

“We have to play our game as well as we can and I believe that will be good enough to get something from the game.

“They are a very good team. Obviously they won the Nations League in the summer.

“I think when we played them in March they were probably a little bit in transition between the previous coach and new coach.

“They had a disappointing World Cup campaign so we maybe got them at a good time in March. We know we have to be very good to get a positive result tomorrow night.

“I think we have been constantly improving over my tenure as head coach.

“We are improving all the time, we are striving to improve, trying to add little bits to our game that will make us more competitive against the top teams but we understand we still have a bit to go.”

“But we don’t come here thinking that we have to sit in and defend all night.

“We have to be as effective with the ball as we were at Hampden. We want to get the job done as quickly as possible.

“If we are good enough to get it done tomorrow night that would be great. If not we have two more chances in November and we have those chances because we started the group so well.

“We have 15 points from five games, that is a good start.

“We know we have to get more points to get over the line. Do I think this team will finish the group on 15 points? No, I think we will get more points. Whether that is tomorrow or in November.”

Clarke was diplomatic when asked about Spain captain Rodri, who claimed the way Scotland played at Hampden was “rubbish” as he accused them of wasting time, provoking his team-mates and falling over.

The former Kilmarnock boss said: “I can’t even remember what he said, to be honest. It is not something that I ever get involved in.

“That game was in March, this is October. A totally different game.”

Going The Distance could have a bright future having flourished in the mud to claim the British EBF Future Stayers Oath Novice Stakes on a wet afternoon at Nottingham.

Trained by Ralph Beckett, the son of Lope De Vega started his career by finishing third to David Menuisier’s Futurity Trophy-bound Devil’s Point at Ffos Las and then returned to the Welsh venue to open his account with a victory which was much more cosy than the winning distance of a neck would suggest.

Sent off the 11-8 favourite to add to his tally at Colwick Park, the Marc Chan-owned youngster took advantage of the late absence of the well-regarded Midair to hold off Hughie Morrison’s newcomer Surrey Fire at the finish.

“He knew his job today and I thought after Ffos Las (his first start) he would know his job,” said winning jockey Rossa Ryan.

“He was good (last time) when Laura (Pearson) rode him and he impressed me today, he’s just a good, honest horse. When I gave him the option to go, he stuck his head down and galloped and he doesn’t overdo things, he just jumps and travels at whatever momentum you want him at.

“He’s perfect really to ride and he’s done it well and I would say he looks like he has a bit to grow.

“I don’t think heavy ground is essential for him but he’s able to quicken on it. I imagine a trip next year won’t be a problem to him.”

The victory was part two of a double for the jockey who had earlier claimed the opening Trustatrader Apply Today EBF Novice Stakes aboard World Of Darcy for John Ryan.

Second in the National Stakes earlier in the season, the Soldier’s Call colt was in action over seven furlongs in the Tattersalls Stakes only two weeks ago, but thrived for the drop in class to register a confidence boosting success at 7-2.

The winning trainer said: “He’s only a small horse but his heart is in the right place and he can knuckle down in all sorts of ground. I don’t think he liked it really but was good enough to get through it.

“When we ran him over seven, Luke (Morris, jockey) said drop him back to six and get him some confidence because he had had a few hard days at work. Luke was right and Rossa gave him the perfect ride there.”

World Of Darcy holds an entry in York’s Rockingham Stakes on Saturday afternoon and that Listed event is one option connections will consider.

John Ryan added: “We’ve got a big entry at the weekend but we’ll look at that and see what the ground does. I think he won easily enough but the ground does drag it out of him and Rossa said he did empty out quick on that ground. But we’ll see how he recovers and make a decision tomorrow.”

Harry Eustace’s Divine Comedy (4-1) continued her rise through the ranks by picking up her third win of the season in the Trustatrader Fully Vetted Tradespeople Fillies’ Handicap, while there was a first success for the William Muir and Chris Grassick-trained Go Daddy (7-2), who showed plenty of heart to pick up the British Stallion Studs EBF Nursery Handicap.

“That was brilliant and we thought we had deserved a win earlier in the season,” said Grassick.

“William had selected him from the breeze-ups and did a fantastic job of going and securing the horse. He is busy buying new ones at the sales and will be delighted.

“Its a lovely story for the owners. They have been with William a very long time and this means a lot to them. They’ve had a lot of nice horses and lost a horse earlier this year. So to have a horse go and do this for them has really helped keep the dream alive for everybody and it will mean a lot to William. I’m sure he will have a tear in his eye at the sales.”

The ground deteriorating to heavy helped William Stone’s Dashing Roger (7-2 favourite) make all for a five-and-a-half-length triumph in the Trustatrader For Tradespeople You Can Trust Handicap.

“He’s just been waiting for this ground,” said Stone.

“He loves soft or heavy ground and it’s hard to find. If we can find the ground, he will keep running.”

David O’Meara’s Stressfree (100-30 favourite) built on a second at Ayr recently to open his UK account in the Trustatrader Approved And Reviewed Trades People Handicap, while the concluding Trustatrader You Can Trust Our Traders Apprentice Handicap went the way of the Olly Williams-trained Foursome (5-1).

Reece Topley insisted he was just getting started on his “unfinished business” in World Cup cricket after blowing Bangladesh away with four wickets in Dharamshala.

Topley claimed four for 43 as England coasted to victory against the Tigers, making a big impression after being recalled to the side following defeat to New Zealand.

It was a welcome day in the sun for a 29-year-old who has had to endure more than his fair share of dark times due to a litany of injury problems that could easily have ended his career.

Five different stress fractures in his back left him sidelined for long periods and denied him the chance to push for a place in the triumphant 2019 campaign, while his luck got even worse on the eve of last year’s T20 tournament in Australia.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Reece Topley (@reecejwtopley)

The 6ft 7in left-armer had been lined up to play a key role with the ball, only to trip on a boundary sponge during a fielding drill and rupture ligaments in his left ankle. When England went on to lift the trophy at a packed MCG, it was hard for him not to imagine his own hands on the silverware.

Now he has a real chance to control his own story. With his body holding up well and his game in good order, things are finally falling into place.

“When I came out here I certainly felt like there was some sort of unfinished business with World Cups,” he said.

“Last year it was certainly an opportunity missed, I was bowling really well in the lead-up and then sort of had the rug pulled out from under my feet.

“The last-minute injury was very disappointing, but I’ve been wrapped up in cotton wool this time and it’s nice to be here. Hopefully there are more contributions because I don’t feel like I’ve sort of scratched the surface with World Cups.

“Obviously being injured and not being able to do what you are good at, what you love, is awful. Watching others take your wickets or score your runs is another horrible thing.

“But you have to ask yourself what are the choices? Do you sit around and feel sorry for yourself or do you just have to crack on and get yourself back to full fitness?”

England’s circuitous route around India sees them playing in eight different cities across nine group games – with Ahmedabad and Dharamashala already in the rearview and Delhi up next for Sunday’s game against Afghanistan.

The constant cycle of internal flights and coach transfers means rotation has been discussed, especially among the fast bowling department, but Topley has already missed enough games for a lifetime and has no desire to sit out.

He described his omission in favour of spinner Moeen Ali against New Zealand as a “take your medicine” situation, but is willing to be a workhorse if required as the competition unfolds.

“There’s a lot of chat about the schedule. To be honest, it’s one game every five days, it seems,” he said.

“I mean, county cricketers do much worse. If we play for Surrey, we’d be more tired. It’s not really an excuse for us. Sevens games is 70 overs maximum.

“In our changing room, we’ve all played county cricket, which can be quite a torrid time. You have to play a lot more regularly than this seven weeks, so I think everyone in our team can handle it pretty well.”

An animal rights activist who ran on to the track at the Epsom Derby has been handed a suspended prison sentence for breaching a High Court injunction.

Ben Newman was filmed running on to the course as the 12-furlong Classic began on June 3.

The Jockey Club, which owns Epsom, had previously been granted an injunction banning the Animal Rising group, of which Newman is a supporter, from intervening in the event.

During contempt of court proceedings in London on Wednesday, the High Court heard Newman had admitted breaching the order and was given a two-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months.

Tim James-Matthews, for Newman, said he “reiterates his sincere apologies to the court, the claimant and those affected by his conduct”.

The court heard the “committed animal rights campaigner” had entered the track close to the finish line shortly after the start of the race – with the horses around two minutes away.

Mr James-Matthews said the horses could have been stopped if needed and that Newman’s actions were different from the 1913 suffragette protest in which Emily Davison was fatally injured after she ran in front of the King’s horse.

“This is not that case, this is a considerable distance – literally – from that scenario,” the barrister said.

Mr Justice Miles said he accepted Newman was “motivated by conscientious objectives” but did not rule on whether they were legitimate.

He continued: “The only issue for the court at this hearing is the appropriate sanction to be imposed on the defendant in respect of his admitted contempt of court.

“He deliberately flouted the order. His actions were planned in advance.

“He was not acting under pressure or compulsion and his actions were his own.”

Mr Justice Miles was told that Newman previously pleaded guilty to causing public nuisance in related criminal proceedings and had spent more than 30 days in custody prior to his sentencing in July.

Handing down the suspended sentence, the judge noted Newman had apologised and “tasted imprisonment”.

Following the sentencing, Nevin Truesdale, the Jockey Club’s chief executive, said: “Ben Newman’s decision to breach security and run on to the track while the Derby was under way was a reckless stunt which could have compromised the safety and security of humans and horses.”

He added: “We were always very clear that if anyone chose to breach the injunction then we would not hesitate to take further action.

“It has always been our intention for that action to be both clear and proportionate and we accept the sanction imposed on Mr Newman by the court today.

“More widely, it is our sincere hope that by pursuing this matter in the High Court it sends a very clear message to anyone who might in future consider disrupting races in such a way, that we will never tolerate illegal and reckless behaviour of this kind.”

The high-powered Miami Dolphins will be without one of their top playmakers for the foreseeable future.

Rookie running back De'Von Achane is being placed on injured reserve and will miss at least four weeks with a knee injury sustained in the Dolphins' 31-16 win over the New York Giants on Sunday.

Miami coach Mike McDaniel told reporters Monday that the team was evaluating the severity of Achane's injury and on Tuesday, NFL Network Insiders Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport reported he will miss several games. By Wednesday, the decision was made to place him on IR.

The injury, however, is not expected to be season-ending, but will keep him out for games against the Carolina Panthers, Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs. He will be eligible to return after the team's Week 10 bye for Miami's game against the Las Vegas Raiders on November 19.

It's still not certain when Achane was injured, though he didn't play in Miami's final two series against the Giants. The outcome, however, was also not in doubt with the Dolphins holding a comfortable lead in the fourth quarter, so it was initially believed he was being rested after rushing for 151 yards and Miami on its way to a victory.

The injury puts a damper on what has been a sensational three-game stretch for Achane, who has gone from relatively unknown to offensive sensation.

After being a healthy scratch in the season opener and recording only one carry for five yards the next week, Achane had a breakout game in Miami's historic 70-20 win over the Denver Broncos in Week 3, leading the team with 203 rushing yards while scoring four touchdowns.

He followed that performance with 120 scrimmage yards and two more TDs the following week in a 48-20 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

With another touchdown against the Giants, Achane became the first player in the Super Bowl era with seven TDs in his first four NFL games.

The 21-year-old leads the NFL with an incredible 12.1 yards per carry and is second in rushing yards with 460. He is 50 yards behind rushing leader Christian McCaffrey despite having 61 fewer rushing attempts.

His injury means Raheem Mostert will handle the bulk of the running back duties for the Dolphins, while Jeff Wilson Jr. could also be activated from injured reserve to add backfield depth.

Mostert has rushed for 314 yards with seven touchdowns and has another 128 receiving yards and a receiving score.

The Dolphins are atop the AFC East, and play the winless Panthers this Sunday followed by a highly anticipated showdown with the undefeated Eagles in Week 7.

Minella Indo proved he is no back number as he produced a superb front-running performance in the Irish Daily Star – Best For Racing Coverage Chase at Punchestown.

Winner of the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 2021 and runner-up to stablemate A Plus Tard 12 months later, Henry de Bromhead’s charge was pulled up on his most recent appearance in the blue riband back in March.

But despite the doubts, the 10-year-old was a well supported 15-8 favourite for his seasonal reappearance and the money proved right as he dominated from the front under Rachael Blackmore.

Minella Indo was soon bossing the proceedings, with last season’s Cheltenham Gold Cup third Conflated and his five-time Grade One-winning stablemate Delta Work his nearest pursuers for much of the way.

Blackmore steadily upped the ante and on several occasions outjumped the chasing pair before pulling clear before the home turn.

In the end it was left to Gordon Elliott’s apparent third string Hurricane Georgie to chase down the leader, but while she got within a length and three-quarters, Minella Indo was well on top at the line.

Betfair make the winner a 50-1 shot to regain his Gold Cup crown at Prestbury Park in March.

De Bromhead said: “He’s given us so many great days and I’m delighted to see him start his season like that. His work was really good, but it was also good before the Gold Cup and it just didn’t happen for him there. It was a messy start and it just didn’t happen for him.

“He jumped from fence to fence today, his ears were pricked and Rachael said he really enjoyed it. I’m also delighted that Barry (Maloney, owner) is here as well.

“We entered him in the north (Ladbrokes Champion Chase at Down Royal) but that’s only a couple of weeks away, so we’ll see. We can enjoy today and decide in the next couple of weeks what we want to do.

“The Grand National is something we can discuss. Coming here after the Gold Cup, we couldn’t make any big plans but we’re really encouraged now for the rest of the season.”