'I'm eager to get the season started'
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South Wales Guardian
17 minutes ago
- South Wales Guardian
John McGlynn hails his battle-ready Falkirk squad after draw with Dundee United
The Bairns won back-to-back promotions under their experienced boss and the fans watched the Championship flag being unfurled before the game, marking their return to the top flight after a 15-year absence. On-loan Barnsley forward Max Watters scored his first United goal in the 39th minute with a terrific volley, but midfielder Dylan Tait levelled in the 50th minute with a fine finish. Ivan Dolcek restored the Tannadice side's lead in the 71st minute with his first goal for the club before home defender Ethan Ross equalised with a deflected strike two minutes later for a deserved share of the spoils. McGlynn said: 'I don't think we've got our eyes closed. We know that the margins are finer in this league. 'We'll all look to learn from that and we will need to learn from that. But there's so many positives to take. 'A lot of these players have played in League One, they've stepped up to the Championship dealt with that, and today, I think they looked like Premiership players against Premiership players. 'We were 15 years out of it, the same group of players almost, stepping up to the challenge, 5700 season tickets. 'Dundee United filled their allocation as well. So great atmosphere. 'People want to come and be entertained. That was entertainment. That was definitely entertainment.' United boss Jim Goodwin was proud of his under-strength side's efforts in gaining a point after they had advanced to the Conference League third qualifying round against Rapid Wien with a 2-0 aggregate win over Luxembourg side UNA Strassen on Thursday night. He said: 'It's really strange to be sitting here on the opening day of the season and talking about the number of injuries we have. 'But there's no getting away from it. There's no excuses here. 'We're missing some real key players. Our captain and vice-captain, Ross Graham and Will Ferry. Ferry was a suspension. 'Ryan Strain, Amar Fatah and Kristijan Trapanovski were all missing and they can be great options for us off the bench or starting the game. 'A draw away from home, more often than not in this league, is not a bad result. 'On the back of us playing in Europe on Thursday, with the short turnaround and the lack of recovery time, I think we've got to be satisfied with a point. 'It was only a couple of years ago we were travelling to Arbroath to kick off the Championship season. 'In the space of two years, we're slightly disappointed to pick up a point on the opening day of the Premiership but looking forward to a game in Europe against Rapid Wien. 'When you put things in perspective, we've come a long way in a short period of time.' Ferry will be back from suspension for the midweek trip to Austria and Goodwin hopes some others will be available, although Trapanovski will see a specialist about his hamstring problem on Monday.
The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
Miyu Yamashita holds off Charley Hull to win first major at Women's Open
Japan's Miyu Yamashita held off a strong challenge from Charley Hull to win the AIG Women's Open by two shots on Sunday. Yamashita, who began the day leading by one from Kim A-lim, carded a steady final-round 70 in blustery conditions to land her first major title with an 11-under-par total of 277 at Royal Porthcawl. Hull, three strokes behind on six under overnight, emerged as the closest challenger as she picked up five birdies in a stretch of 10 holes either side of the turn. That twice took the Englishwoman within one shot of the lead but Yamashita, who put herself in a position of strength with three birdies on the front nine, was always able to keep herself in front. A key period came as Yamashita overcame a nervy missed birdie putt to save par on the 14th by holing from an awkward distance. At around the same time Hull, playing two groups ahead, dropped a shot at the par-four 16th after visiting a bunker and the rough before underhitting a chip. It might have been worse but for holing a lengthy putt to escape with a bogey, but another shot was given away on the following hole. That saw Yamashita's lead increase to three and allowed her to finish in relative comfort, with a bogey on the 17th the only blemish on her card. Hull ended joint-second on nine under – her fourth runner-up finish in a major – alongside Minami Katsu of Japan, who birdied the last to shoot 69. Kim's challenge faded with a round that featured six bogeys but the 2020 US Women's Open winner managed to claw her way back into a share of fourth place on seven under with a birdie on the last. Another Japanese player, Rio Takeda, was alongside her after a 71. Lottie Woad, winner of the Scottish Open last week on her professional debut, overcame bogeys on her first two holes to shoot 71 and finish in a tie for eighth place on four under. Another Englishwoman, Mimi Rhodes, had a moment to savour with a remarkable hole-in-one on the par-three fifth, thanks to a fortunate ricochet off playing partner Stephanie Kyriacou's ball. Australian Kyriacou, who made a hole-in-one herself in the second round, played first and went close to another ace with a shot that came to rest inches from the cup. Rhodes then played a very similar shot and, luckily for her, Kyriacou's ball was handily placed for it to deflect in off. That was the undoubted highlight of a 74 that saw Rhodes finish alongside Georgia Hall, who shot 75, on one under.
The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
Lando Norris ready to go all the way in championship battle with Oscar Piastri
Lando Norris believes his championship battle with Oscar Piastri will go to the wire following his victory at Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix. Norris started third and dropped to fifth after a poor first corner at the Hungaroring before he rolled the strategy dice – stopping one less time than his rivals – to take the lead and then held off Piastri's late charge in a brilliant finale. Piastri came within centimetres of colliding with Norris on the penultimate lap when he momentarily lost control of his McLaren as he attempted a banzai move for the win. But Norris survived and held his nerve to keep the fast-charging Australian at bay to land his fifth win of the season – his third in his last four appearances – taking the chequered flag just six tenths clear and reducing the championship deficit to nine points with 10 rounds remaining. Max Verstappen, who finished ninth on Sunday, remains in third in the standings but 97 points off the championship pace. 'I'm dead,' said Norris. 'In the final stint Oscar was catching and I was pushing flat out. My voice has gone a little bit. 'It has been a tough battle so far with Oscar and it is going to continue to be tough. The margins between us are pretty small. There are things I can do better and improve on, and I am sure he will probably say the same thing. So, it is going to be a good and tough fight, probably until the end. 'Even though the results have looked great, I'm not making my life very easy at the minute. If I can work on those things, then I'll be in a better place.' Norris' win in the concluding round before the summer break reignites his bid to land a maiden world crown. But the Bristolian can count himself somewhat fortunate to be standing on the top step of the podium. At the start, Norris got away well from his marks, but an attempt to pass Piastri on the inside of the opening corner backfired. Norris did not commit to the overtake and that left him in no-man's land, allowing George Russell and then Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso to breeze through. On lap three, Norris fought his way clear of Alonso but was then tucked up behind Russell and making little progress. Piastri and Charles Leclerc, who controlled the first stint of the race from pole position, stopped for new tyres on laps 18 and 19 respectively. Russell also peeled into the pits on lap 19 promoting Norris to the front. McLaren were now considering a one-stop strategy. Norris' race engineer, Will Joseph, was on the radio: 'Lando, 40 laps on the hard tyre, you up for it?' Norris replied: 'Yeah, why not?' On lap 31 of 70, the Englishman came in for his sole change of tyres before lighting up the timesheets with the fastest laps of the race so far. In his haste to catch up, Norris then dropped two wheels through the gravel on the exit of the chicane, which irked Joseph. 'Lando, just keep the focus, we don't want these mistakes,' he said. Leclerc, Piastri and Russell were all forced to stop again. When it all shuffled out, Norris led Leclerc by seven seconds, with Piastri five seconds further back. But Piastri was on the move, swatting Leclerc aside on lap 51 and then set about reducing Norris' nine-second advantage. With five laps to go, Piastri was just a second behind his team-mate, and on the penultimate lap, the Australian went for glory at the first bend. However, Norris retained his composure and remained ahead to land what could be a pivotal win in his championship charge. Russell took the final place on the podium with Leclerc a disappointed fourth. The next race takes place in the Netherlands on August 31.
