Bristol Rovers manager Matt Taylor saluted matchwinner Scott Sinclair after he clinched a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Sky Bet League One’s basement side Carlisle.
The 34-year-old former Celtic forward struck a stunning second-half goal that capped an impressive comeback after the Cumbrians took a shock lead through Josh Vela’s volley after 16 minutes.
Veteran striker Chris Martin equalised from close range before the break following brilliant approach play by Jevani Brown before Sinclair had the final say after 51 minutes, cutting in before unleashing a shot that crashed in off the underside of the crossbar.
Taylor, who watched the game from the stand due to a touchline suspension, said: “I didn’t like being away from the touchline at all, apart from Scott’s goal because I was sat directly behind it as the ball flew in.
“It was the one blessing of being up in the stands that I got such a great view of a great goal and a real moment of quality.
“He’s so difficult to play against because he’s right-footed on the left, but it was one hell of a finish and I’m really pleased for Scotty.”
Sinclair’s long-term future is in doubt with his current deal due to expire at the end of this season, but he has certainly given Taylor plenty to think about.
“In terms of his intent, every single day Scott is a truly model professional which is why he’s had such a good career,” Taylor said.
“And he’s doing it out of his love for football and the club itself. He’s been out of the fold a bit this season in terms of personnel and formations.
“But he’s kept himself where he needs to be in terms of fitness and in training his impact has been absolutely excellent for a senior player.
“Now I wouldn’t say he’s come back to life, but he’s taken his chance and he’s contributed.
“Also, in terms of the fragile nature of the squad you need seniority there and ones like Scott who trust the game more and won’t get affected by being 1-0 down.
“I’m delighted for him and now we’ve got to look after him because he was stretching his calves towards the end, but the pitch is so heavy it would test anyone.”
Carlisle manager Paul Simpson took consolation from seeing his players raise their game following a crushing 4-0 defeat at home to Cambridge in midweek.
“It was a vast improvement on last week but sadly we’ve come away with nothing again,” Simpson said.
“I think we’ve been done by a real bit of quality for the equaliser and the second goal is disappointing because it’s not really come from anything.
“We have allowed him (Sinclair) to come inside and get a shot on target when we’ve got to send him down the line which is simple defending.”
Simpson added: “We’ve had goalscoring opportunities in the scramble in the six-yard box after a corner at 1-1 and you have to stick that in the back of the net.
“We’ve had two or three bites at the cherry and not been able to score.
“I’m disappointed that we’ve lost the game but the way the players went about their work today was much better than our last outing.
“And there were some good passages of play where we got into some good areas but we just weren’t able to apply the finish for ourselves.”
Man United could be without Toone until new year, says Skinner
Marc Skinner revealed that Manchester United could be without midfielder Ella Toone until the new year after she picked up a calf injury in training.
Toone has featured in five games in the Women's Super League this season, but is yet to register a goal or an assist so far this term.
The 25-year-old has missed United's last two games and was not selected in Sarina Wiegman's England squad for their upcoming friendlies against the United States and Switzerland.
She had previously appeared in a staggering 96 straight matches before missing United's WSL showdown with Leicester City last weekend.
But ahead of the Red Devils' meeting with league leaders Chelsea on Sunday, Skinner confirmed they would be without Toone for not only that game, but for the foreseeable future.
"We have three games [after the international break and before Christmas]. There's always the hope, but I think you balance and you go, 'right, if we can get her back, we get her back'," Skinner said.
"But we're just not going to rush her in this moment because it's a calf injury, it's your running mechanism. If we injure the running mechanism, it takes longer.
"So ideally we'd like her back for those games afterwards.
"The projection is she misses this game [Chelsea], she misses the international window, probably misses the first game after that, and then we'll see from there.
"But because it is such a short block of only three games, we'll assess whether it's worth that or actually resetting to come back after Christmas."
Al-Nassr 1-2 Al-Qadsiah: Aubameyang winner ends hosts' unbeaten run
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hit the winner as Al-Qadsiah inflicted a 2-1 defeat on Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League on Friday to end their 21-match unbeaten run.
Cristiano Ronaldo's seventh league goal of the season put Al-Nassr ahead, but Al-Qadsiah replied swiftly through Julian Quinones before Aubameyang struck the decisive blow.
The hosts drew first blood in the 32nd minute when Ronaldo slotted home after Al-Qadsiah goalkeeper Koen Casteels had spilled a routine catch from Talisca's cross.
However, Al-Nassr's joy was short-lived when Quinones brought down Turki Al Ammar's delivery five minutes later, with the Mexcio winger firing past Bento to level the scores.
Quinones also played a part in the winning goal after brilliantly turning the ball back across goal from Nahitan Nandez's search pass to tee up a simple finish for Aubameyang.
The result sees Al-Qadsiah move level on 22 points with third-placed Al-Nassr, with Al-Shabab also level with them.
Stefano Pioli's Al-Nassr are six points adrift of defending champions and leaders Al-Hilal, who also have a game in hand.
Vlahovic out of Juventus clash with Milan
Dusan Vlahovic will miss Juventus' trip to Milan in Serie A this weekend and is also a doubt for the Champions League game at Aston Villa, head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed.
Vlahovic returned from the international break with a muscle problem in his left thigh, and the manager, after he confirmed the Serbian's absence for Saturday's game at San Siro, was asked about his chances of playing on Wednesday at Villa Park.
"I don't know. He definitely won't be there tomorrow. We hope to have him back as soon as possible," Motta told a press conference on Friday.
"Injuries are part of football. Now it's Vlahovic's turn, but we'll keep playing with the same principles, attacking and defending together."
Vlahovic is the latest of Motta's injury problems at Juventus. Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez missed the last six league games and is still unavailable, while Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is a long-term absentee.
Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz will also miss the game with Milan and defender Juan Cabal recently suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, the same issue which will keep fellow defender Gleison Bremer out for the rest of the season.
"I'm really disappointed for Cabal because, like Bremer, he'll be out for a long time," Motta said.
"This is another reason to push ourselves, to commit that bit more so that these absences don't weigh too heavily."
Juventus go into the game as the only unbeaten side in Serie A but find themselves sixth in the standings in what is so far a very tight title race, with just two points separating Motta's side from leaders Napoli.
"It's very balanced and this is good for both us and the public," Motta said.
"We must all try to continue like this. We have to try to get as many positive results as possible."
Milan are one place behind Juve but six points off Motta's side.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
