Cardiff boss Erol Bulut was relieved to get his first league win in a last-gasp 2-1 victory over Sheffield Wednesday and believes it has been coming.
Wales skipper Aaron Ramsey had a hand in the opening goal of the game two minutes after half time as Ike Ugbo hammered in his third goal in four games since joining from French Ligue 1 side Troyes in the summer.
Barry Bannan’s screamer looked set to earn a point for Wednesday but Will Vaulks was adjudged to have handled the ball in the seventh minute of added time.
That gave Ryan Wintle the chance to step up and hammer home the winner from the penalty spot to give new Cardiff boss Bulut his first league win.
“I didn’t expect it [first win] to be so difficult. After three games, what we played, we were unlucky at Leicester and Leeds, conceding last-minute goals, so confidence was not like before,” said Bulut.
“That is why this game was really important for us. We could have been 2-0 up if (Callum) O’Dowda or (Yakou) Meite could have taken their chances.
“I think we deserved the win. Everybody fought and we really wanted these three points.
“Sometimes it’s not enough to play well. At Leeds, we played well for 45 minutes, 45 minutes at Leicester. We could have more points by now but 45 minutes is not enough.
“Today, for 90 minutes we were really fighting and we had our moments to make it easier for ourselves but I’m really happy we got three points for the morale of the team. It’s really important.”
Wednesday are still pointless after four games since coming up from League One.
“I think it was our best performance of the season today and we need to continue like this. After we drew level we began to control the game and tried to go on to win it,” said Wednesday boss Xisco Munoz.
“We need to improve on our clean sheets because at the moment we need to score at least two goals to win any game. We lost today because of some of our mistakes, it wasn’t so much a case of Cardiff winning it.
“I am very, very sad for my players because I know how hard they are working every day. We have lost the game because of some silly mistakes.”
Bulut confirmed after the game that goalkeeper Ryan Allsop has been given the go ahead to leave the club. He has been linked with a move to Hull.
“We got a message from his management. If somebody wants to leave, we don’t keep anybody here,” explained Bulut.
“For that shirt, you have to fight. He did it in years before but his management said they wanted to make their move, so we made our move also.
“We took Alex Runarsson on loan so we let him go.”
Defending champs Clarendon College secure 2-1 win over Denbigh High to kick off DaCosta Cup
Defending champions Clarendon College opened their ISSA DaCosta Cup campaign with a tense 2-1 win over Denbigh High at the Catherine Hall Stadium in Montego Bay, Jamaica on Saturday.
Clarendon College took an early lead in the fourth minute when Justin Hayles latched on to a through ball to finish across Denbigh goalkeeper Kevin Pryce into the bottom corner.
They went two ahead when Terron Williams scored directly from a corner kick in the 22nd minute.
Denbigh were the more attacking team to start the second 45 minutes and were handed a lifeline when Tayo Cross converted a late spot kick won by substitute Rahjaun Cassanova.
In the end, however, Clarendon College held their nerve to ensure that they got the three points to kick off the defense of their title.
Clarendon College will next take on Lennon High on September 14 while Denbigh will face Claude McKay a day earlier.
Mona High begins defense of Manning Cup title with 7-0 win over Waterford
Mona High School started the defense of their first ever ISSA Manning Cup title with a dominant 7-0 thrashing of opponents Waterford High at Catherine Hall Stadium in Montego Bay, St. James on Saturday.
Man of the match Carlton Brown scored a pair of goals in the 17th and 37th minutes, the first being a brilliant right-footed strike from long range that evaded Waterford goalkeeper Jaheim Daley.
In between those two strikes, Savi-K Morton made it 2-0 in the 31st minute through a well-placed left-footed shot from just inside the 18-yard box.
Captain Robino Gordon made it 4-0 ten minutes later with a close-range finish, a score that would hold until the end of the first half.
Just a minute into the second 45 minutes, Alex Suazo made it 5-0 with the second long-range strike of the day.
The scoring was completed by Kshaine Gordon (67’) and Denzel McKenzie (70’).
“It’s really important to get off to a good start and we have more to come,” Brown said in a post-match interview.
Mona assistant coach Kyle Butler believes his team could have done even better but was happy with the win nonetheless.
“Definitely a statement win. The foundation is there but we’re still in second gear. We still have a lot that we can improve on. We could have won 10-0 easily but as I said the foundation is there and we want to build on that,” he said.
Waterford High coach Kevin Reid expressed disappointment at his team’s performance.
“It’s a disappointing start for us. Experience got the better of us today. Nevertheless, I believe they learned something to day and I believe the best team won. We just have to get back in training and put in some more work and, hopefully, we will have a better second game,” he said.
Mona will next take on Jonathan Grant on September 12 while Waterford will tackle Charlie Smith on the same day.
United States 1-2 Canada: David helps continue Marsch's impressive run
Canada continued their impressive run under Jesse Marsch after their Copa America exploits, beating the United States 2-1 in a friendly at Children's Mercy Park.
Goals in either half from Jacob Shaffelburg and Jonathan David handed Canada the advantage, with Luca de la Torre's goal proving a mere consolation in another dominant display from the visitors.
A frenetic start to proceedings was rewarded in the 17th minute as Johnny Cardoso's loose touch allowed David to tee up Shaffelburg to finish beyond Patrick Schulte.
Canada restricted their opponents to just one shot in the first-half but were unable to build their lead despite registering 11 shots, five of which were on target.
But they got the goal their performance merited after the break, again pouncing on a mistake by Michael Varas's side, with David finishing into the roof of the net.
De la Torre responded with a composed finish after neat play from substitute Aidan Morris, but Canada were able to see out the result with relative ease on enemy turf.
Data Debrief: David dazzles in Kansas
Having already scored three goals in seven appearances for Lille this season, David transferred that goal-scoring touch to the international stage.
The 24-year-old impressed against the USA, recording more shots (four) and shots on target (three), while also registering an expected goals (xG) tally of 1.12 to Canada's 1.95 total.
Canada's triumph was their first win against the USMNT on American soil since 1957, ending the US' 23-game unbeaten home run against them, the longest against any opponent in team history.
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