Dundee marked their return to the cinch Premiership by coming from behind to salvage a 1-1 draw against Motherwell at Dens Park.

Theo Bair, who signed for the Steelmen earlier this week, enjoyed a dream debut as he opened the scoring at the end of the first half.

The hosts drew level after the break through midfielder Lyall Cameron with both sides ultimately having to settle for a share of the spoils.

Prior to kick-off, Dundee unfurled the Championship flag won last season before there was a minute’s applause in memory of former Scotland boss Craig Brown, who was part of the Dark Blues squad crowned Scottish Champions in 1961/62 and also managed the Steelmen.

The hosts were forced into an early change in just the sixth minute when Mexican defender Antonio Portales had to go off injured to be replaced by Josh Mulligan.

Both sides took their time to find their feet on an already-wet surface that was made worse by a torrential downpour.

However, as the first quarter passed, Dundee started to ease into the game without testing Liam Kelly in the Motherwell goal.

Instead, it was the keeper’s opposite number Jon McCracken who produced the first important save of the contest in the 21st minute when he dived low to divert a long-range strike from Blair Spittal wide for a corner.

As the half-hour mark approached, a Dundee corner kick was held up temporarily by referee David Dickinson as the Dens ground staff frantically tried to clear standing water from the opposite corner area.

Motherwell had another opportunity when Connor Wilkinson found space in the Dundee box, but his snap shot was deflected wide.

However, right on the stroke of half-time, the deadlock was finally broken by the Steelmen.

Stephen O’Donnell found himself in acres of space down the right and sent a tempting low cross into the box which was swept home with aplomb by Bair past McCracken.

The rain finally relented with Dundee having the first opportunity of the second half when Owen Beck swung a corner in from the left, with skipper Joe Shaughnessy seeing his header blocked on the line.

The hosts then had two chances in quick succession with Luke McCowan having a shot blocked by Kelly at his near post with the keeper saving the rebound from Zach Robinson.

However, Dundee finally equalised in the 68th minute when McCowan swung an inch-perfect cross in from the right with Cameron nodding the ball home at the far post past Kelly.

The Dark Blues had another chance when a Cameron cross was deflected onto his own post by Motherwell’s Dan Casey.

Both sides tried manfully to find a winner with the visitors forcing successive corners deep in stoppage time but Dundee held on to secure a draw.

Late goals from Yutaro Oda and Lawrence Shankland gave Hearts a winning start in the cinch Premiership as they defeated St Johnstone 2-0 at McDiarmid Park.

In a closely-fought game, Oda made the breakthrough with 15 minutes to go, drilling an unstoppable low shot past Dimitar Mitov,.

Shankland rubbed salt into the St Johnstone wounds by tapping in with almost the last kick of the game to double the advantage.

Hearts goalkeeper Zander Clark had earlier denied Graham Carey and Liam Gordon with strong saves, while Kyosuke Tagawa should have marked his debut with a goal for the visitors as he failed to capitalise on a one-on-one chance.

Despite competing well for large periods of the match, St Johnstone have now begun the season with four defeats in five matches, following losses to Stenhousemuir, Ayr United and Stirling Albion in the Viaplay Cup.

Saints boss Steven MacLean had unsurprisingly made six changes to the side who suffered the 4-0 loss to Stirling last week, while Oludare Olufunwa and Sam McClelland made their debuts after signing this week.

For Hearts, this game represented their first competitive match of the season, and they also gave debuts to new signings in the shape of Frankie Kent and Calem Nieuwenhof.

The match was initially delayed by 10 minutes due to a power issue with the VAR technology and the game began without VAR for a short period before the problem was resolved.

When the game did get underway it was the hosts who started better and captain Gordon should have given them an early lead as his sliced Carey’s cross wide from close range.

Hearts had started slowly but they grew into the match after the 20 minute mark, with Peter Haring heading a deflected Nieuwenhof cross wide and Nathaniel Atkinson skewing a low shot wide when well placed in the box.

Shankland had his first chance just before the break as he met Stephen Kingsley’s deep free-kick with a volley that was too close to Mitov in the home goal.

St Johnstone had the first chance of the second period as the lively Carey capitalised on a poor clearance by cutting inside and unleashing a powerful effort with his right foot that was parried away by Clark.

Clark was called into action again just before the hour mark, making a superb one-handed stop to deny Gordon a headed goal before the Hearts defence scrambled the ball clear of danger.

Hearts got better as the half went on and they should have scored in the 67th minute as Shankland met Kingsley’s low cross but his first-time shot was well stopped by Mitov.

Mitov then made an even better save moments later, sticking out a strong hand to deny substitute Tagawa when clean through.

Mitov’s heroics proved in vain, however, as Hearts made the breakthrough in the 75th minute.

Atkinson’s deep cross eventually dropped at the back post for Oda, who showed composure to take a touch and rifle a low shot across the St Johnstone goalkeeper and into the bottom left-hand corner.

Hearts could have added to their lead, with Liam Boyce and Kye Rowles seeing attempts saved by Mitov, before they wrapped up the win in style, as substitute Boyce broke clear and laid the ball on a plate for Shankland, who could not miss.

Dilan Markanday and Harry Leonard scored their first league goals for Blackburn to give them a hard-fought 2-1 win over West Brom in a pulsating season opener.

On their first league starts for the club, the duo did the damage in a devastating three-minute spell in the first half as Markanday slotted home from a narrow angle and within seconds of the kick-off, academy graduate Leonard hammered in his first senior goal.

The Baggies responded in the second half through Matt Phillips’ superb curling effort five minutes after the restart but they could not force an equaliser against a Rovers side that finished the game strongly.

Their frustration was summed up by Carlos Corberan being sent to the stands late in the second half.

Phillips stung the palms of Aynsley Pears in the 19th minute as the Baggies settled quickest, but were shell-shocked by a quickfire double as Blackburn went ahead a minute later when Markanday dispossessed Conor Townsend, and though Leonard could not get a shot away, Lewis Travis threaded a first-time pass to Markanday on the right and he slotted into the far corner.

Straight from kick-off, Sammie Szmodics cut out a pass and fed Leonard on the right and his rasping low drive flew in at Alex Palmer’s near post in the 22nd minute.

A neat one-touch move in the 34th minute almost gave Rovers a third but Tyrhys Dolan’s curling shot was parried away by Palmer.

Brandon Thomas-Asante almost found the far corner four minutes later when firing goalwards from the right but Pears got down well to push behind.

West Brom came out with real purpose and Thomas-Asante’s cut-back found Jayson Molumby in the area and his shot looked destined for the top corner but for a superb Joe Rankin-Costello block.

The visitors did get on the scoresheet in the 50th minute, though, as Phillips robbed Markanday and exchanged passes with Jed Wallace before curling beautifully into the right corner from 25 yards.

Thomas-Asante was wreaking havoc down the right and another teasing cross found Molumby in the 58th minute but he could not get the ball out of his feet and Rankin-Costello made a brilliant goal-saving tackle.

Rovers should have wrapped the points up 10 minutes later, though, when they cut the visitors open and Travis fed Leonard with Palmer to beat but he directed his shot past the far post.

A sensational Adam Wharton pass gave the teenager another chance minutes later but he once again fired his effort past the post.

The frustration of the afternoon got the better of Baggies boss Corberan who was dismissed for dissent, having already been booked earlier in the second half, and Darnell Furlong’s 89th-minute sensational block from Hayden Carter kept the margin of defeat to one.

Dominic Thomas and Tom Robson helped Queen’s Park start their cinch Championship campaign on a winning note as they edged out Inverness 2-1.

Caley Thistle started brightly as Nathan Shaw saw an effort saved while Charlie Fox’s last-gasp tackle stopped Charlie Gilmour going through on goal, but the visitors went ahead after 31 minutes when Thomas latched on to Barry Hepburn’s pass and fired beyond Mark Ridgers.

Robson doubled Queen’s Park’s lead three minutes after the restart as he caught Inverness’ defence napping before sliding an effort underneath Ridgers.

Jake Davidson rose highest to head home Cameron Harper’s corner four minutes from time but it proved to be a consolation as Inverness suffered defeat in their first outing of the season.

Troubled Reading began life in League One with a dispiriting 1-0 home defeat against Peterborough.

The Posh winner arrived shortly before the break through Ephron Mason-Clark’s looping header as the Royals played their first third-tier match in 21 years.

Reading had endured a torrid summer after relegation from the Championship, with numerous financial problems hampering the team rebuilding plans of new manager Ruben Selles.

But they enjoyed the better of the first half, with debutant Posh goalkeeper Nicholas Bilokapic forced into fine saves from Harvey Knibbs and Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan.

Peterborough, beaten play-off semi-finalists last season, took a while to warm up.

New Posh skipper Mason-Clark saw a fierce drive superbly tipped over by Reading keeper Dean Bouzanis but he nodded home in the 43rd minute from a precise Kwame Poku cross.

Mason-Clark departed soon after the interval due to injury, with replacement Ricky-Jade Jones’ angled effort denied by Bouzanis at his near post.

Reading pushed energetically for an equaliser late on but Peterborough held firm to complete a hard-earned win.

Scotland overcame the loss of key duo Ben White and Zander Fagerson to stage a stirring second-half fightback and defeat France 24-21 in an exhilarating World Cup warm-up match at Murrayfield.

Les Bleus, who fielded a largely second-string side, looked on course for a comfortable victory as they eased into a 21-3 half-time lead.

But the Scots, despite having Fagerson red-carded early in the second half, roared back to record a morale-boosting win with tries from Darcy Graham, Pierre Schoeman and replacement Dave Cherry.

The shine was taken off the triumph, however, by the sight of scrum-half White limping off with a worrying-looking ankle injury just four weeks out from their World Cup opener against South Africa, while they will also face an anxious wait to learn the fate of prop Fagerson following his dismissal.

Scots head coach Gregor Townsend made 13 changes to the experimental team that defeated Italy a week previously, with most of his big-hitters restored.

Finn Russell was handed the captaincy for the first time in the absence of regular skipper Jamie Ritchie, who missed out with a minor calf injury which medical staff hope will subside in time for next weekend’s rematch between the teams in Saint-Etienne.

The French starting line-up featured three debutants in Paul Boudehent, Emilien Gailleton and Louis Bielle-Biarrey, with Antoine Dupont, Gael Fickou and Romain Ntamack among a raft of established players given the weekend off.

The team selections meant Scotland – despite being ranked three places beneath the French – went into the match as favourites with bookmakers.

The hosts got the scoreboard up and running in the fourth minute when Russell kicked a penalty between the posts.

However, Les Bleus seized the initiative in scintillating fashion in the 14th minute when Baptiste Couilloud was set free to bound over the line after a brilliant break-away down the right involving Bielle-Biarrey and Matthieu Jalibert. The latter made no mistake with the conversion.

The visitors remained in the ascendancy and stretched their advantage after 24 minutes when debutant Bielle-Biarrey found a gap on the left and darted majestically through it after being fed by Jalibert, who duly converted.

Scotland’s woes deepened when White was forced off with an injury after half an hour, replaced by George Horne.

The scrum-half looked dejected as he made his way off the pitch and punched the bench in frustration before having his ankle bandaged up by medics and limping down the tunnel.

The Scots thought they had reduced the deficit in the 33rd minute when Duhan Van Der Merwe found his way over the line, but play was pulled back for a French scrum following a forward pass.

A disastrous first half for the home side was compounded in the last action before the break when Cameron Woki picked the ball up at the back of a ruck and plunged over the line from close range. Jalibert again added the extras.

Scotland started the second period in brighter fashion, with Graham running on to a cross-field kick from Russell and just doing enough to plant the ball down under pressure from Ethan Dumortier. Following a TMO review to approve the score, Russell kicked the conversion.

Just as the hosts looked to be finding their way back into the match, though, they suffered another blow in the 50th minute when Fagerson was sin-binned for a high challenge on Pierre Bourgarit. Following a bunker review, the offence was subsequently upgraded to a red card.

However, the 14 men further reduced the French lead in the 54th minute as Pierre Schoeman bulldozed his way through to touch the ball down, with Russell converting.

The Scots were rampant and they thought they had got their noses in front when Blair Kinghorn bolted in behind the posts, but it was ruled out for a knock-on by Graham.

Remarkably, however, they did get themselves ahead in the 67th minute when substitute Cherry pushed his way over. This time Russell hit the post with his conversion attempt.

The captain was more accurate six minutes later as his penalty gave the Scots a four-point lead before they withstood some late French pressure to see out the win.

New recruit Andre Vidigal enjoyed a dream debut as his brace inspired Stoke to a comprehensive 4-1 Championship victory at home to 10-man Rotherham.

The hosts raced into an early lead with Ki-Jana Hoever – returning for a second loan spell with The Potters – firing in an emphatic opener inside five minutes.

A dominant first-half display was rewarded in added time as Vidigal, who was a summer arrival from Maritimo, netted a quickfire double to heap misery on The Millers.

Matt Taylor’s half-time tactical tweaking sparked an instant impact as substitute Lee Peltier scored with his first touch to hand the visitors hope.

However, the early damage proved to be irreparable for Rotherham, who were reduced to 10 men after debutant Cafu was sent off.

Jacob Brown added a fourth with a late tap in as Stoke strode to an impressive and assured opening-day victory.

A productive summer in the Potteries had already seen 11 bodies arrive through the front door, with six new additions making their debuts in this encounter.

But it was a familiar face in Wolves loanee Hoever – who spent the second half of last season at the club – that handed the hosts a dream start.

A precise cross-field delivery from new club captain Josh Laurent found the onrushing Hoever, whose first-time volley crashed in off the underside of the crossbar.

Rotherham did threaten an unlikely equaliser when Ben Wiles was afforded space in the area, but his venomous strike was collected well by Mark Travers.

And that Millers’ miss would prove costly, as they soon found themselves three goals behind after a frantic seven minutes of stoppage time.

Winger Vidigal – who scored eight goals in the Portuguese top flight last season – took little time to open his account on English shores.

Daniel Johnson’s deep set-piece delivery was nodded back into the danger zone by Ben Wilmot with an unmarked Vidigal in position to slot home.

And the tricky forward was not done yet in an impressive first-half showing, finishing accurately on the rebound after Viktor Johansson thwarted Ryan Mmaee.

Disgruntled boss Taylor introduced Peltier at the interval and the defender looked to hand the away side a reprieve when he bundled home an effort immediately after the restart.

However, any chance of a Rotherham comeback was shelved when Cafu – a summer signing from Nottingham Forest – compounded a miserable afternoon by receiving his marching orders.

Starman Vidigal nearly completed his hat-trick when he met an accurate Hoever cross, but an instinctive Johansson save denied him a perfect introduction.

There was still time though for Stoke to add a fourth, with centre-back Ben Wilmot notching a second assist when Brown converted his flick-on to round off an emphatic win.

Stevenage started the new Sky League One season with a 1-0 victory at fellow promoted side Northampton.

Boro’s first ever win at Sixfields came courtesy of Carl Piergianni’s scrappy late goal as Steve Evans’ side began life in the third tier with three well-deserved points.

Cobblers hit the frame of the goal twice in the space of three minutes early on as Taye Ashby-Hammond tipped Patrick Brough’s shot against the crossbar before Tyreece Simpson found the base of a post from an acute angle.

Stevenage enjoyed a good spell in the middle of the first half, with Ben Thompson sidefooting wide and Aaron Pressley volleying past the far post, and they continued to edge proceedings after the restart but clear-cut chances were few and far between.

The visitors failed to hit the target with a number of long-range efforts, but they increased the pressure and eventually took the lead with nine minutes remaining through Piergianni’s close-range finish.

Jordan Roberts was denied by Lee Burge before Marc Leonard nearly rescued a point for the Cobblers, with his stoppage-time free-kick dropping narrowly wide.

Dillian Whyte has vowed to prove his innocence after returning “adverse analytical findings” in a doping test that led to the cancellation of his bout against Anthony Joshua next Saturday.

An eagerly-anticipated rematch between the British heavyweights was called off by Matchroom after the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association informed the promoters and boxing authorities about the test result.

It is understood Joshua could still fight at London’s O2 Arena as Matchroom seek a late replacement opponent for the former two-time world heavyweight champion but Whyte faces a battle to clear his name.

He wrote on his social media channels: “I am shocked and devastated to learn of a report by VADA of adverse findings relating to me.

“I only learned of it this morning and am still reacting to it. I have also just seen that the fight is being cancelled without having any chance to demonstrate my innocence before the decision was taken.

“I can confirm without a shadow of doubt that I have not taken the reported substance, in this camp or at any point in my life.

“I am completely innocent and ask to be given the time to go through the process of proving this without anybody jumping to conclusions or a trial by media.”

Whyte served a two-year drugs ban from 2012 to 2014 and was cleared of a doping violation in 2019 after UK Anti-Doping concluded the levels in his sample were “very low” and he was ultimately not to blame.

The Londoner added: “I insisted on 24/7 VADA testing for this fight, as I have done voluntarily and at my own expense for all of my fights for many, many years.

“This is not the first time that I have been reported as having an adverse finding for a substance which I have not taken, and as I did last time I will again prove that I am completely innocent.

“In the meantime all I can do is express my extreme disappointment to boxing fans, who will miss out on what was sure to be a great event.”

Whyte suffered his first professional defeat in December 2015 after being stopped by Joshua, who avenged a loss to his British rival in their amateur days.

While Joshua went on to win a world title in his next bout, Whyte rebuilt with 11 straight victories to become the WBC’s mandatory challenger before a savage knockout defeat to Alexander Povetkin in 2020.

He gained revenge in the immediate rematch but his only world title tilt to date ended in disappointing fashion when he was stopped by WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in the sixth round in April 2022.

He rebounded with an unconvincing majority points win over Jermaine Franklin last November in his most recent bout, while Joshua received criticism for his performance against the American in April.

That set the British pair on a collision course once again, and another win over Whyte would have put Joshua on the road to a showdown against ex-WBC champion Deontay Wilder in December in Saudi Arabia.

However, Matchroom said in a statement on Saturday morning: “Today, the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA) informed Matchroom, the Association of Boxing Commissions and the British Boxing Board of Control that Dillian Whyte had returned adverse analytical findings as part of a random anti-doping protocol.

“In light of this news, the fight will be cancelled and a full investigation will be conducted.”

Will Keane marked the start of his second spell as a Preston player with a late equaliser in a 1-1 Championship draw with Bristol City at Ashton Gate.

The hosts took a 47th-minute lead when a Harry Cornick long throw into the box caused havoc in the Preston defence and, after Nahki Wells fired against a post, Sam Bell was on hand to slot home the rebound.

But North End stormed back and it was no surprise when Keane, back at the club he served on loan from Manchester United in 2015, levelled after 86 minutes with a smart shot on the turn from the middle of a crowded penalty area.

It was no more than Preston deserved for an impressive second-half display that saw them create numerous chances. But City will see it as two points lost after leading for so long.

The home side made strong claims for a penalty after nine minutes when Wells went down under challenge from Liam Lindsay, but referee David Webb waved play on.

It proved the only moment of excitement for either set of fans in a turgid first half hour, full of passing errors, that saw the teams cancel each other out and defences dominate.

City suffered a blow after 22 minutes when skipper Andreas Weimann was forced off by injury, with Joe Williams sent on as his replacement.

The entire first half featured only one clear chance, created by City after 38 minutes, when Wells got in behind the Preston defence and picked out Bell at the far post.

The young striker could not have wished for a better opportunity, but fired his shot straight at goalkeeper Freddie Woodman, who advanced from his line to make a smothering save.

North End threatened from a couple of crosses, but were unable to force a save from Max O’Leary during an instantly forgettable 45 minutes.

Bell’s goal at the start of the second period finally set the game alight. But it was Preston, who responded best to it and last showed an attacking edge.

Mads Frokjaer had a 20-yard shot saved by the diving O’Leary and Alan Browne fired over from distance before connecting sweetly with a volley from a Kian Best cross and seeing his effort smack against a post.

City were all at sea. Zak Vyner had to bravely block a Keane drive and Brad Potts sent a low effort inches wide with Preston totally dominant.

Home boss Nigel Pearson responded by making two changes after 69 minutes, sending on striker Tommy Conway and winger Mark Sykes for Wells and Cornick, and his team seemed to have weathered the storm.

But still North End pressed and Keane’s leveller sparked joyous scenes among a large contingent of travelling fans.

Aberdeen picked up a point from a goalless draw after failing to register a single shot on target in a hard-fought encounter at Livingston.

There was no shortage of effort from both teams but there was a distant lack of goalmouth action.

Livingston finished the game strongly and at least asked questions of Dons goalkeeper Kelle Roos with efforts from Cristian Montano and Ayo Obileye.

There was little for the 4,000-strong Aberdeen fans to get excited about although Johnny Hayes will be kicking himself that he did not at least find the target from a good position at the back post in the early stages of the second period.

Former Livingston captain Nicky Devlin was in the thick of the action during a fiercely competitive start.

Devlin lined up on the right of a three-man defence that included Dons debutant Sloboden Rubezic.

The visitors created the first chance of note in the 14th minute when Duk met Leighton Clarkson’s cross but the forward glanced a header over the bar.

The Lions grew into the game and Mo Sangare got their first shot away in 22 minutes. Montano’s cross was only half cleared and Sangare chested the ball down before swinging a half-volley wide.

It was the home side that created another chance in first-half stoppage time but Jamie Brandon was unable to get a touch on Montano’s cross.

The second period began how the first half ended with both team’s refusing to give an inch.

Aberdeen midfielder Hayes was disappointed not to score after being found at the back post by Clarkson after finding the side netting as he slid in to reach the cross.

At the other end, Montano volleyed well over after Luiyi de Lucas’ cross was flicked on by Joel Nouble.

The Colombian then registered the first shot on target in the 70th minute when he connected with Scott Pittman’s cross.

The Lions were the team finishing strongly and they were asking plenty of questions of the Aberdeen defence by throwing crosses into the area.

Obileye should have done better when he was found unmarked at the back post from Andrew Shinnie’s corner but Roos got down well to the effort.

Duk then sliced an effort well wide with four minutes left after meeting Ester Sokler’s effort in the box.

Livingston sub Bruce Anderson was carried off on a stretcher in stoppage time after a lengthy delay having come off second best in an aerial challenge with Rubezic.

Valerien Ismael kicked off his Watford reign in magnificent style with a 4-0 win over a hapless QPR at Vicarage Road.

The red-hot Hornets produced a swashbuckling first-half display which saw them score all their goals inside 43 minutes as Rangers showed why many have tipped them to struggle to stay up this season under Gareth Ainsworth.

The visitors, who were without first-choice centre-backs Jimmy Dunne and Jake Clarke-Salter due to injury, handed a full senior debut to Joe Gubbins alongside recent signing Morgan Fox and both struggled to contain a rampant home side.

It took just 33 seconds for the Hornets to open the scoring when Tom Dele-Bashiru slotted past Asmir Begovic after a sublime reverse pass from the impressive Imran Louza caught out the flat-footed R’s defence.

Watford went close to adding a second when Vakoun Bayo met a James Morris cross only for Begovic to claw away his goalbound header.

And Louza doubled the hosts’ lead with a curling effort from the edge of the box in the 20th minute.

Francisco Sierralta and Ken Sema both went close to scoring as Rangers kept conceding possession and found themselves under constant pressure from the home side.

That pressure finally paid off again when Matheus Martins darted in front of Paul Smyth to nod home Sema’s corner in the 38th minute.

The lively Bayo then made it 4-0 two minutes before half-time when he fired home at the back post from a low Sierralta cross, with the Rangers defence once again in disarray.

Bayo almost added a fifth in the seven minutes of first-half stoppage time after outpacing Fox to race on to a long ball over the top, but his lob landed on the top of the net.

QPR, who were booed off by a packed away end after a chastening opening period, saw beleaguered boss Ainsworth bring on Sinclair Armstrong and Stephen Duke-McKenna for the ineffective Smyth and Charlie Kelman.

Republic of Ireland under-21 international Armstrong should have pulled one back for the Hoops when he got in behind the Watford defence, but was unable to turn the ball into the net from a tight angle in what was Rangers’ only chance of note.

Almost immediately the Hornets went close to a fifth goal when the impressive Louza hit the crossbar from distance before making way in a triple substitution from Ismael to a well-deserved standing ovation from the home crowd.

Rangers did manage to stop the bleeding in the second half as Watford were denied by two late smart saves from Begovic but they slumped to the biggest defeat in a season opener since 2012 – a campaign that saw them relegated from the Premier League.

Cambridge started their Sky Bet League One campaign with a 2-0 victory over Oxford.

The hosts moved ahead after 15 minutes when Saikou Janneh’s shot was spilled by goalkeeper James Beadle, allowing Jack Lankester to fire home the rebound.

Janneh played a major role in Cambridge’s second goal 13 minutes later, producing an exhilarating run down the left touchline before providing a perfect cross which was nodded in from close range by debutant forward Gassan Ahadme.

The momentum could have been turned in the final seconds of the half when Josh McEachran played a short free-kick to Cameron Brannagan, but his effort from outside the box was pushed away by Jack Stevens.

Janneh headed a James Brophy cross straight at Beadle, while at the other end Brannagan’s fierce shot went only narrowly wide on the hour.

Stevens produced a big save 14 minutes from the end, keeping out a Stan Mills header from point-blank range, to help Mark Bonner’s side make it five years unbeaten on the opening day of the season.