The Season 2010/11 - Newcastle humiliate Sunderland in Hallowe'en massacre

Newcastle United 5 Nolan 26, 34, 75; Ameobi 45+4 (pen), 70
Sunderland 1 Bent 90

A BRUTAL massacre took place at St James Park today as Chris Hughton's Newcastle United humiliated local rivals Sunderland in the 142nd Tyne-Wear derby.

Kevin Nolan scored the first hat-trick in the fixture for 25 years with Shola Ameobi scoring twice as United hammered Steve Bruce's men.

This was indeed a horror show for Sunderland and 51,988 people bore witness to the front pairing of Ameobi and Andy Carroll combining brilliantly all afternoon for Newcastle.

Ameobi and Carroll even showed a hitherto unforeseen turn of pace to terrorise the Sunderland defence, winning countless free-kicks and corners for the excellent Joey Barton and allowing Nolan to lurk in the box.

Then, when he got his chances, former Bolton Wanderers man Nolan finished with deadly accuracy, emulating Peter Beardsley's three-goal haul in January 1985.

He opened the scoring on 26 minutes, hooking the ball beyond three Sunderland defenders on the line after it had fallen to him invitingly from Mike Williamson's header off a corner.

And he made it 2-0 shortly afterwards, slotting home unmarked from 12 yards after the ball had broken to him from Carroll's attempted scissor kick.

Earlier in the move, Ameobi had carried the ball from the half-way line to the edge of the box with a surging run past three men before laying it off to Jonas Gutierrez to cross for Carroll.

With half-time fast approaching, a very good half turned for United into a dream one as yet more direct running, this time from Gutierrez, caused yet more panic in the Sunderland backline.

Argentine winger Gutierrez was only halted by a clumsy challenge from Nedum Onuoha and Ameobi stepped up to make it 3-0 from the spot, much to Nolan's chagrin.

Nolan would eventually get his hat-trick but first he had to wait for Ameobi to score his second, and the best goal of the day.

Danny Simpson delivered a fine cross from the right but the unfortunate Carroll smacked his header off the bar.

The ball fell to Ameobi on the edge of the box and he smashed an unstoppable rebound high into the net past Sunderland keeper Simon Mignolet.

With fully 15 minutes left, it was 5-0 as Nolan completed his hat-trick and Newcastle eyed a repeat of their earlier win this season over Aston Villa.

Once again, Barton delivered an accurate cross from a corner and again it was flicked on by Ameobi for Nolan to win the second header and send it goal-wards.

In the end, the repeat of the Villa result never materialised as Newcastle stepped off the gas and toyed with their opponents for the final quarter of an hour.

Darren Bent scored a last-minute consolation for the Black Cats' ten men, reacting quickly to a loose ball from a corner to volley past Tim Krul.

But, make no mistake about it, Sunderland had been second best all afternoon as Corbridge-born manager Bruce painfully had to admit.

It had not helped that they had played most of the second half a man down after former Magpie Titus Bramble had been sent off for a last-man challenge on Carroll.

However, this was just the icing on the cake for many Geordies who suffered five seasons of his shambolic performances earlier in his career.

An incredible but fully deserved 5-1 win, then - though, in some ways, this result should have been expected considering the Magpies' totally unpredictable season so far.

Hughton's team had enjoyed victory in the league three times before today - 6-0 against Aston Villa at home, and away at Everton and West Ham United. Newcastle also won 4-3 against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the League Cup.

However, a rather Jekyll and Hyde start had seen successive home games without a win against Blackpool, Stoke City and Wigan Athletic in the league, and Arsenal in the cup.

Media rumours that Hughton was living on borrowed time prompted the club to release a statement denying anything was afoot and new contract negotiations would open in the New Year.

But that whole episode smacked of a panicked media construct with the press pack left without a story after the recent situations at Anfield and Old Trafford had been resolved.

Indeed the first newspaper to suggest any doubts was the Daily Mail. Their motive? Well, they have been banned from St James Park for the last two seasons.

Sadly, the story was perpetuated in the Sunday weeklies where it gained momentum with also-banned former Newcastle Evening Chronicle gobshite Alan Oliver at the forefront in the People. More disappointingly still, even the BBC got caught up in the non-story.

It is safe to say that this arbitrary line of attack has been closed off for now after a wonderful performance, full of flair and attacking verve.

Indeed, from their 14 league and cup games so far this season, Newcastle have scored 26 goals and conceded 23, a combined average of 3.5 goals per game.

It would seem that Hughton has overseen the return of the Entertainers except now there is a new King Kev at the helm.

F1 2010: Alonso claims crucial Korea win to take title lead

FERNANDO ALONSO won a hectic inaugural South Korean Grand Prix to take the lead in the Drivers' Championship with just two races left.

Alonso finished ahead of McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari team mate Felipe Massa while the two Red Bull drivers, Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber, both retired.

The Spaniard's third win in the last four races puts him on 231 points, 11 clear of Webber and 21 ahead of Hamilton.

Vettel, in fourth place on 206 points, and defending champion Jenson Button, in fifth on 189, are still in with a mathematical chance of winning the title.

But, with Alonso in such strong form, it is just about impossible for them to close the gap at this late stage.

That is something which McLaren's Button has pretty much accepted after he could only finish 12th, failing to score after struggling for grip in the heavy Seongnam rain.

Quite how Vettel is so far behind in the title race is difficult to fathom, considering his qualifying record of nine pole positions in 14 races, including this one in South Korea.

But the young German's inability to convert Saturday successes into big points on Sunday has plagued him throughout the season.

This time, he was let down while leading by a lack of reliability in the Red Bull engine blew up on lap 46 of 55 to complete a miserable day for the Milton Keynes-based team after Webber's earlier accident.

The first ever Korean GP began behind the safety car due to rain described by Alonso as "the worst I have ever driven in".

Race director Charlie Whiting then suspended it for 45 minutes after just three laps. A further frustrating 13 laps behind the safety car followed before almost immediate drama as Webber spun off a soaked kerb, across the track and into Mercedes GP driver Nico Rosberg via a wall.

After another safety car break, Vettel looked set for a fourth victory of the campaign until Alonso dominated the latter stages of race.

First, he took back second place which he had lost in pits to Hamilton. Then, he closed the gap to Vettel who began to complain about the fading light as dusk fell.

It got worse for the German when his engine failed in spectacular fashion and Alonso eased home to continue a purple patch of form which began with his controversial win at Hockenheim in July.

Since then, the two-time champion has won in Italy, Singapore and now Korea. He was also in second place in Hungary and third in Japan when the Red Bulls dominated both qualifying and the race.

After the race in Suzuka, Webber looked in great shape to be the first Australian F1 world champions since Alan Jones for Williams in 1980.

But Alonso's experience of having won the title at Renault in 2005 and 2006 has started to tell in the second half of this season.

Now, as the most in-form driver - and having sensed Red Bull weakness and snatched the lead - it is Alonso's title to lose.

2010 Season Results

PODIUMS
Bahrain GP (Pole: Sebastian Vettel)
1 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari
2 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari
3 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes

Australian GP (Pole: Sebastian Vettel)
1 Jenson Button (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
2 Robert Kubica (Pol) Renault
3 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari

Malaysian GP (Pole: Mark Webber)
1 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault
2 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault
3 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes

Chinese GP (Pole: Sebastian Vettel)
1 Jenson Button (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
2 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
3 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes

Spanish GP (Pole: Mark Webber)
1 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault
2 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari
3 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault

Monaco GP (Pole: Mark Webber)
1 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault
2 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault
3 Robert Kubica (Pol) Renault

Turkish GP (Pole: Mark Webber)
1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
2 Jenson Button (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
3 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault

Canadian GP (Pole: Lewis Hamilton)
1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
2 Jenson Button (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
3 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari

European GP (Valencia) (Pole: Sebastian Vettel)
1 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault
2 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
3 Jenson Button (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes

British GP (Pole: Sebastian Vettel)
1 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault
2 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
3 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes

German GP (Pole: Sebastian Vettel)
1 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari
2 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari
3 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault

Hungarian GP (Pole: Sebastian Vettel)
1 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault
2 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari
3 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault

Belgian GP (Pole: Mark Webber)
1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
2 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault
3 Robert Kubica (Pol) Renault

Italian GP (Pole: Fernando Alonso)
1 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari
2 Jenson Button (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
3 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari

Singapore GP (Pole: Fernando Alonso)
1 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari
2 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault
3 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault

Japanese GP (Pole: Sebastian Vettel)
1 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault
2 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault
3 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari

Korean GP (Pole: Sebastian Vettel)
1 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari
2 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes
3 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari

REMAINING RACES
Brazilian GP (7 November), Abu Dhabi GP (14 November)

STANDINGS
Drivers' Championship
1 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari 231 (5 wins)
2 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault 220 (4 wins)
3 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes 210 (3 wins)
4 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull-Renault 206 (3 wins)
5 Jenson Button (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes 189 (2 wins)
6 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari 143
7 Robert Kubica (Pol) Renault 124
8 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes 122
9 Michael Schumacher (Ger) Mercedes 66
10 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Williams-Cosworth 47
11 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India-Mercedes 47
12 Kamui Kobayashi (Jpn) BMW Sauber-Ferrari 31
13 Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita) Force India-Mercedes 21
14 Vitaly Petrov (Rus) Renault 19
15 Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Williams-Cosworth 18
16 Sebastien Buemi (Swi) Toro Rosso-Ferrari 8
17 Pedro de la Rosa (Spa) BMW Sauber-Ferrari 6
18 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber-Ferrari 6
19 Jaime Alguersuari (Spa) Toro Rossi-Ferrari 3
Seven drivers have yet to score (Heikki Kovalainen (Fin), Jarno Trulli (Ita), Bruno Senna (Bra), Lucas di Grassi (Bra), Karun Chandhok (Ind), Timo Glock (Ger), Sakon Yamamoto (Jpn), Christian Klein (Aut))

Constructors' Championship
1 Red Bull-Renault 426
2 McLaren-Mercedes 399
3 Ferrari 374
4 Mercedes 188
5 Renault 143
6 Force India-Mercedes 68
7 Williams-Cosworth 65
8 BMW Sauber-Ferrari 43
9 Toro Rosso-Ferrari 11
Three teams have yet to score (Lotus-Cosworth, Hispania-Cosworth, Virgin-Cosworth)

Spending Review: Osborne wields his axe on the welfare state

CHANCELLOR George Osborne has announced there will be cuts of £18 billion to benefits as he wielded his axe on the welfare state in the Comprehensive Spending Review.

Mr Osborne revealed a further cut of £7bn in benefits on top of the £11bn which had already been identified in June.

The reduction in the welfare bill will come through a 10% cut in Council Tax Benefit, a new threshold for Housing Benefit and the well-documented changes to Child Benefit.

The £2.5bn saving from the cut to Child Benefit for higher-rate taxpayers caused the Conservatives bother at their own party conference at the start of the month.

But today's announcement affects a much poorer proportion of the population with a £4.5bn saving coming from the introdution of a time-limit on Employment Support Allowance.

Claimants of ESA who are reassessed as being fit for work will have one year to find a job before being moved to Job Seekers' Allowance which is paid at a lower rate.

However, many claimants of ESA are former manual labourers - men in their 50s for whom the jobs market is not favourable.

Those who are working will have to work for longer after Mr Osborne announced a rise in the State Pension age to 66 for both men and women by 2020, six years earlier than expected.

Meanwhile, public sector workers and local government were also hit hard by the spending review. Over the next four years, 490,000 public sector employee jobs will be lost and local councils face a real-terms cut of 27%.

It appears that the government is taking a huge gamble on an increase in opportunities in the private sector to cover the huge losses in the public sector.

Another risky decision was the introduction of rents for new tenants in social housing to be charged at 80% of the market rate.

This causes a problem for anyone who is evicted by a private landlord after losing their job as social housing may also now be unaffordable.

Elsewhere, the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice will have to make savings of 25% by 2014-15, including a real-terms reduction of 16% in spending on police.

And, while that percentage is not as high as the 25% feared by the Police Federation, Greater Manchester chief constable Peter Fahy has said that a reduction to the number of frontline officers will be unavoidable.

Other Whitehall departments affected over the next four years include Environment Food and Rural Affairs which takes an annual 8% hit, Energy and Climate Change which has its budget cut by 5% each year, and the Business, Innovation and Skills which faces an annual cut of 7.1%.

Of course, some of the cuts had been confirmed already while others had been perhaps intentionally leaked in an attempt to soften today's blow.

Already this week there had been the Strategic Defence Review which concluded that, while the two aircraft carriers HMS Ark Royal and HMS Prince of Wales will still be built, both will be sold after three years of service.

The Defence Review also confirmed that 7,000 Army jobs would go with the RAF and Navy losing 5,000 positions. The Nimrod spy planes will be cancelled and there will be a 10% cut in the counter-intelligence budget, despite it being named in the report as a priority.

In other known news, students in Further Education were dealt a severe blow when the governnment removed caps on tuition fees.

Controversially, Liberal Democrat ministers backed the move despite all Lib Dems MPs having signed a pledge before the election to oppose any rise.

Deputy PM Nick Clegg even appeared on video promising to oppose any rise and, after the previously-opposed increase in VAT, the change in heart represents a second major Lib Dem U-turn in a matter of months.

Amongst the gloom, there were some positives to take from the spending review. Pensioners will be pleased that the winter fuel allowance and free bus travel remain unaffected.

Additionally, cold weather payments will be kept, as will the right to a free TV licence for the over-75s.

For the rest of the population, the TV licence will be frozen for the next six years - a welcome decision considering it still costs a hefty £145.50 each year.

One of the areas to benefit most from the review was the NHS in England. It will get a 1.3% real-terms rise in funding over four years, a new cancer drug fund and £2bn towards social care by 2014-15.

But critics argue that the real-terms increase is so small that increased demand on the health service over the next four years will outstrip it.

Similarly, there is a small increase in funds for schooling in England from £35bn to £39bn but again it seems likely that demand will outweigh this additional supply.

The education sector had already taken a hit in July when the Building Schools for the Future programme was abandoned for a saving of £5bn.

At least the Lib Dems achieved one of their coalition aim with the introduction of a £2.5bn pupil premium and funding for 75,000 apprenticeships has been made available. However, Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) has been scrapped.

There will be substantial investment - £30bn - in road and rail projects across the country, including the new Crossrail project.

As ever, though, the plans come with a catch - train users can expect fares to rise 3% a year above inflation for the next four years to help fund improvements.

Incredibly, the department to benefit the most from the review was International Development which saw a 37% increase in its budget.

This allowed Mr Osborne to declare that "even in these difficult times, we will honour the promise we make to the very poorest in our world".

But, to low-income families in Britain, it would seem with this government that charity does not begin at home.

Labour's Shadow Chancellor Alan Johnson referred to Mr Osborne's statement as "a reckless gamble with people's livelihoods" but the previous government must take its fair share of the blame.

The current budget deficit is 64.6% of GDP, the highest since World War II, and even despite these cuts, total government spending is expected to reach £740bn by 2014-15.

However, it was disingenuous of Mr Osborne to play politics with the figures at the end of his speech.

The Chancellor claimed that the average of 19% cuts across all departments was less than the 20% cuts proposed by Labour in March but this is only the case with the massive reform to the welfare state factored in.

The cuts to the welfare state and to the public sector workforce mean, incredibly, that the announcements in this review hit the poorest 10% in society the most.

Mr Osborne is hoping for a huge increase in private sector jobs to make his plan work. It is a massive gamble, and one which he is currently odds-on to lose.

Brooker grows up and bows out

CHARLIE BROOKER brought down the curtain on 10 years of satirical pessimism and scathing cynicism yesterday by announcing he was leaving his Screen Burn column in the Guardian with immediate effect.

In a sadly somewhat self-gratifying final submission, Brooker gives various reasons for quitting the television review piece. Firstly, he explains that "11 years of essentially rewriting the phrase 'X is an arsehole'... is enough for anyone".

His departure does not stop from using this final article to recall some of finest moments over the years.

These have included hilarious comparisons between Jeremy Kyle and Satan, Alan Sugar and Mrs Tiggywinkle, and - perhaps best of all - Ann Widdecombe's face and "a haunted cave in Poland".

But Brooker now seems regretful of his treatment to certain celebs with his desire to see Jamie Cullum "sealed in a barrel and kicked into the ocean" causing him most guilt.

It is only by reading further, however, that Brooker's real reasoning for quitting starts to become clearer - and even then it is not spelt out in black and white.

He laments the fact that it was not only television presenters on the end of his wrath but, more often, the non-celebrities cast into the public eye through a myriad of reality television shows.

It is not a surprise that Brooker found so much material in reality TV with its "ceaseless parade of instant hate figures, plucked from obscurity and flung onscreen for us all to sneer and point at".

But he now feels that he was a "witless bully" who had fallen "into the trap of writing from the point of view of a cartoon persona".

Perhaps the real reason why Brooker has changed is the fact that he has grown up and fallen in love.

His marriage to former Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq after a whirlwind romance certainly seems to have softened him up. More pertinently, this is also the same Ms Huq who now fronts the X Factor spin-off show on ITV2.

I guess Brooker simply could not put himself in the hypocritical position of mocking hopeless contestants on X Factor at the same time as his wife puts a comforting arm around them.

He does not mention this reasoning specifically in his final column. Indeed, the closest he comes to admitting he has become too close to the world of television personalities himself, or - as he puts it - "one of 'them'".

Even this admission will come as no surprise to anyone who has followed his more recent television work closely.

Outside of Screen Burn, Brooker was lauded for the way in which he provided examples of dumbing down and exposed short-cuts at the highest levels of television media on his BBC4 show Screenwipe and its current affairs spin-off Newswipe.

However, his most recent television offering, You Have Been Watching, a quiz-show format on Channel 4, did not have the same cult appeal and led to claims from fans in cyber-space that he was losing his edge.

At the end of his final Screen Burn, Brooker attempts to soften the blow to his readers by promising a new column later this year.

But, in a life in which starting a family seems to be the priority, it is hard to see him pulling punches with anything like the same weight.

Chile miners emerge into the media glare

THE RESCUE of the Chile miners was a remarkable event which rightly captured the attention of millions around the world.

Engineering brilliance was followed by a flawless effort which took just 21 hours and 44 minutes from first miner to last.

Florencio Avalos, aged 31, was the first man to be recovered from the San Jose mine which had been his home for 69 days, yesterday at 00.11 local time.

Almost a day later, shift leader Luis Urzua, 54, was the last man to make the 2300ft ascent at 21.55 local time.

At the surface he was met by Chile's president Sebastian Pinera who had stayed on site to greet each and every miner as they emerged from the ground.

Mr Urzua was also met by thousands of reporters, eager to hear the first words of the man credited with guiding the men through their ordeal by rationing supplies.

This had turned into a major international media event. On site, there were about 2,000 journalists from all over the world, many filling the hours of waiting by asking perplexing questions to the relatives of the miners.

Indeed, when asked about the condition of the men, Chile's mining minister Laurence Golborne replied: "Calmer than the journalists!"

In fairness, many of the miners were happy to play up to the cameras and be serenaded by the national anthem after they stepped out of Fenix 2, the capsule which had provided their route out of the underworld.

Franklin Lobos, a 53-year-old former Chilean international footballer and the 27th miner to be freed, even played keepy-uppies with a ball presented to him by president Pinera.

But, most of all, the miners just wanted to see their families. When the first man, Mr Avalos, emerged from the hole in the ground, his young son burst into an uncontrollable flood of tears. It was the first chapter of what would prove to be a very emotional day.

Of course, all of it was captured for posterity on television. The BBC alone sent 26 people to Copiapo to cover the rescue effort, an exercise which has cost in excess of £100,000.

There are fears that the BBC has been so caught up by a vivid story with an unusually happy ending that it will not be able to cover other forthcoming major events such as Cancún climate summit and the Davos World Economic Forum to its usual standard.

The BBC will defend its spending by pointing out that the high ratings showed this was a story which had captured the public mood at large.

Meanwhile, reporter Tim Willcox emerged with a lot of credit by using his fluent Spanish to empathise genuinely with the locals during his interviews.

His colleague, Matt Frei, did not come across as well as Willcox, filling scenes of jubilation with a mind-numbing commentary when the pictures were already telling the story.

However, the coverage which was most wide of the mark came from the press and its comparisons of the disaster to reality television. This was quite clearly nothing like another mindless Big Brother series.

This was the survival of 33 men against the odds after 69 subterranean days, the first 17 of which passed without any contact with the outside world.

Now there will be plenty of contact to the miners from various media outlets wanting to find out more. Perhaps there might even be a film.

But, as with all groups of people, while some will revel in the publicity, others will prefer to stay out of the limelight.

What should not be forgotten is the fact that they have even got the choice to do either - and that is a credit to an amazing rescue effort.

Euro 2012 qualifiers: Abject England stutter to stalemate

ENGLAND produced a dismal display to toil to a 0-0 draw with Group G leaders Montenegro at Wembley.

Fabio Capello's men were lacking in ideas and imagination as the Montenegrins succeeded in claiming the single point which they clearly set out for.

The visitors actually came closest to stealing a win when Milan Jovanovic's fine looping strike hit the crossbar with five minutes left.

But the strike was out of keeping with a totally unadventurous performance from Montenegro who have yet to concede a goal in four qualifying games. The problem was that England did not have the guile to win the match either.

Luck played its part, as ever, and the German referee denied England a clear penalty when, minutes before he hit the bar, Jovanovic handled Ashley Cole's cross.

Other than that, though, there was little to go on. The wingers, Adam Johnson and Ashley Young, continually and predictably cut inside having been fielded on the opposite side to their natural foot.

Young later capped a frustrating night with a ludicrous dive, a hardly untypical move which blights his game.

Meanwhile, Wayne Rooney once again kept coming too deep and the presence of Peter Crouch simply encouraged midfielders Gareth Barry and Steven Gerrard to hit wasteful long balls.

The sight of Shaun Wright-Phillips and Kevin Davies coming off the bench is perhaps the truly depressing statement on England's squad depth, although that fails to take into account that both Joe Cole and Jack Wilshere were unused again.

At least Bolton Wanderers striker Davies, to his credit, caused more consternation in the Montenegro backline in 21 minutes than the ineffectual Crouch did in his 69 minutes on the Wembley turf.

And at least Capello can console himself that, despite this result, England remain in control of the group.

England are three points behind Montenegro with a game in hand and a much better goal difference, and should still make it to Euro 2012.

But that says more about the poverty of the other teams in this section - Bulgaria, Switzerland and Wales - than it does about the Three Lions' chances in Poland/Ukraine.

Wales are now rock-bottom of the group after a 4-1 defeat in Switzerland meant they have lost their first three qualifiers in a campaign for the first time since 1970.

The final result was rather harsh on Wales who were pushing for a second equaliser when Tranquillo Barnetta dived and won a penalty which was converted by Gokhan Inler.

That made it 3-1 with ten minutes left before Valentin Stocker rubbed salt into Welsh wounds in the last minute.

Earlier, Stocker had headed the Swiss into an eighth-minute lead before Tottenham Hotspur's outstanding Gareth Bale coolly equalised five minutes later.

But, with just over 20 minutes gone, Ottmar Hitzfeld's Switzerland were back in front when Streller took advantage of some slack defending, and that is how it stayed until a double-sucker punch late on.

In Group I, Scotland already look unlikely to qualify despite a brave performance against world champions Spain in a 3-2 defeat at Hampden Park.

The match looked like it was heading to script when 45 minutes of Spanish pressure paid off and David Villa converted a penalty after Steven Whittaker's handball.

It looked increasingly ominous for the Scots when Andres Iniesta made it 2-0 early in the second half but Craig Levein's men rallied.

Within ten minutes of Iniesta's goal, Scotland were level. First, Gary Naismith threw himself at a Kenny Miller cross and scored a brilliant diving header.

Then, just as the Tartan Army was catching its breath in Hampden, James Morrison got around the back of the Spanish defence again and his cross was diverted into his own net by Barcelona defender Gerard Pique.

But the dream comeback was ended on 79 minutes when Fernando Llorente escaped the marking of Stephen McManus to tap in from six yards.

Spain's 3-2 win, coupled with the Czech Republic's routine 2-0 success over Liechtenstein, means Scotland are now third in Group I.

Levein's men are five points behind the Spanish and two points behind the Czechs, having played a game more than both teams.

To complete a miserable night for British sides, Northern Ireland went from the sublime - a fine 0-0 draw against Italy on Friday night - to the ridiculous in falling behind to the Faroe Isles before Kyle Lafferty's late goal rescued a 1-1 draw.

Nigel Worthington's men missed a hatful of headed chances as the Faroes scored with their first attack of the second period on 61 minutes.

Woeful defending by Stephen Craigan and Aaron Hughes let in Christian Holst who twisted and turned both men before neatly finding the bottom corner.

Realising for the potential for an embarrassing result, the Northern Irish stepped up their game but Chris Baird and Johnny Evans headed wide from close range.

Just as it looked it was never going to happen, Lafferty got his side back on level terms with a precise shot in-off the post after a jinking run and a one-two with Chris Brunt on the edge of the box.

But, with 14 minutes left to find a winner, the Northern Irish lost their way once more, leaving Worthington clearly angry and frustrated.

The Republic of Ireland also drew 1-1 thanks to Sean St Ledger's early goal but that result in Slovakia will be looked upon much more kindly south of the border.

It could have been even better for Giovanni Trappatoni's men but Robbie Keane missed a huge chance for a 46th international goal when Everton's Jan Mucha saved his penalty on the stroke of half-time.

By then, the Irish had conceded their lead - Jan Durica had levelled on 36 minutes - and, in the second half, they conceded the initiative as Slovakia dominated.

In the end, though, a point apiece leaves Group B intriguingly tight with four games gone. Russia lead the way with nine points with the Irish in second on seven points, level with surprise package Armenia and the Slovakians.

GROUP-BY-GROUP SUMMARIES AND RESULTS

GROUP A
Second-half goals from Miroslav Klose, Mario Gomez and Lukas Podolski gave Germany a 3-0 win in Kazakhstan and put the three-time European champions five points clear at the top of Group A after four wins out of four. Neighbours Austria are the Germans' closest rivals after Martin Harnik rescued a point in stoppage time of an extraordinary 4-4 draw in Brussels in Belgium. Austria are second on seven points from three games, a point clear of Turkey and three points clear of Belgium, both of whom have played a game more. The Turkish embarrassingly lost their second game of the campaign 1-0 in Azerbaijan who recorded their first points.
Azerbaijan 1-0 Turkey
Belgium 4-4 Austria
Kazakhstan 0-3 Germany

GROUP B
An early Alexander Kerzhakov goal was enough to give Russia a 1-0 win in the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia, and that result puts Russia top with three wins out of four. Republic of Ireland are in second place on seven points, level with Armenia and Slovakia with whom the Irish drew 1-1 in Zilina. Armenia completed an excellent week for them - having beaten Slovakia 3-1 on Friday, they thrashed group minnows Andorra 4-0 in the biggest win of the night.
Armenia 4-0 Andorra
FYR Macedonia 0-1 Russia
Slovakia 1-1 Republic of Ireland

GROUP C
Italy remain top of Group C despite their fixture with Serbia being abandoned after just seven minutes by Scottish referee Craig Thomson after Serb hooligans threw flares and fireworks onto the pitch. It remains to be seen if UEFA will use the usual punishment of awarding the match 3-0 to Italy and forcing fifth-placed Serbia to play their next qualifier behind closed doors.
As it stands, Italy are joined on seven points by Slovenia after the Slovenians 1-0 win in Tallinn against Estonia but the Italians have only played three matches against Slovenia's four. Estonia are third on six points from four games, Northern Ireland fourth with five points from three games and Serbia fifth with just four points from three games. The Faroe Isles picked up their first point of the campaign in their 1-1 draw with Northern Ireland.
Estonia 0-1 Slovenia
Faroe Isles 1-1 Northern Ireland
Italy A-A Serbia (abandoned at 0-0, crowd trouble)

GROUP D
France and Belarus both enjoyed 2-0 home wins to set the pace in Group D. France are top on nine points from four games with the unbeaten Belarussians on eight points. Albania remain in third place for now on five points from four games, but they are just a point clear of Bosnia-Herzegovina who have a game in hand. Romania have also only played three times so far, but they have picked up just two points and they are in danger of repeating their fifth-place finish in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers. Luxembourg gained their only point so far in a 0-0 draw on Friday against Belarus.
Belarus 2-0 Albania
France 2-0 Luxembourg

GROUP E
Schalke striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar made it eight goals in four qualifiers as he scored twice in the Netherlands' easy 4-1 win against closest rivals Sweden. Ibrahim Afellay also scored twice as the Dutch stormed into a 4-0 lead by 55 minutes. Andreas Granqvist's goal was of little consolation to the Swedes who fall into third place, six points behind the Dutch.
Hungary are in second place with nine points from four games after Balazs Dzsudzsak scored in the 94th minute to give the Magyars a dramatic 2-1 win over Finland. Sweden are three points behind Hungary with a game in hand while Moldova are also on six points, but having played four matches. Finland and, predictably enough, San Marino are yet to score a point.
Finland 1-2 Hungary
Netherlands 4-1 Sweden
San Marino 0-2 Moldova

GROUP F
Euro 2004 winners Greece took advantage of Croatia's absence from action by beating Israel to go a point clear at the top of Group F. Greece have eight points from four games while Croatia have seven points from three matches, and the Croatians remain favourites at this stage. Georgia's 1-1 draw in Riga against Latvia was their third in four games and it keeps them unbeaten on six points, two clear of Israel and the Latvians. Rock-bottom Malta have yet to score a point after three qualifiers.
Greece 2-1 Israel
Latvia 1-1 Georgia

GROUP G
Montenegro successfully defended the Group G lead at Wembley in a 0-0 stalemate with England. The draw leaves Montenegro on 10 points from four games, three clear of the Three Lions who have a game in hand. Switzerland and Bulgaria have both picked up their first points in the last four days with victories over Wales who are without a point from their first three qualifiers for the first time since 1970.
England 0-0 Montenegro
Switzerland 4-1 Wales

GROUP H
Cristiano Ronaldo scored after just three minutes as Portugal beat Iceland 3-1 to close the gap on Norway at the top of Group H to two points. Leaders Norway were not in action but they have a perfect nine points from three games. Portugal are second with seven points from four matches after their slow start to the group. Denmark beat Cyprus 2-0 to stay third, just a point behind the Portuguese but with a game in hand. After three games, Cyprus have one point from their amazing 4-4 draw with Portugal last month while Iceland are yet to get off the mark.
Denmark 2-0 Cyprus
Iceland 1-3 Portugal

GROUP I
Spain survived Scotland's comeback to win 3-2 at Hampden Park and keep a perfect record of three wins out three. The Czech Republic remain in contention of a Group I upset after beating Liechtenstein 2-0 to stay just two points behind Spain. Scotland are two points further back but having played a game more. Lithuania join the Scots on four points, but from just three games while Liechtenstein are yet to score a point from their three qualifiers.
Liechtenstein 0-2 Czech Republic
Scotland 2-3 Spain

UNDER-21 QUALIFYING PLAYOFFS Second leg
England qualified for the Under-21 Euro 2011 finals after a 0-0 draw in Romania. This was a stalemate which England fans can be happy about as Stuart Pearce's men successfully defended the 2-1 lead they earned after goals from Jordan Henderson and Chris Smalling in the first leg.
But Scotland were beaten 2-1 by Iceland for the second time in a week despite Chris Maguire's goal from the half-way line straight from the kick-off after Gylfi Sigurdsson's opener. Sigurdsson scored again with ten minutes left at Easter Road to make it 4-2 on aggregate and kill the tie off.
England and Iceland are joined by Denmark as hosts, Spain, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Belarus and Ukraine. Belarus beat Italy 3-0 to overturn a two-goal deficit from the first leg while Ukraine's two-goal lead from their first leg was just enough to see them through on away goals.
Belarus 3-0 Italy (3-2 on agg)
Croatia 0-3 Spain (1-5 agg)
Greece 0-2 Czech Republic (0-5 on agg)
Romania 0-0 England (1-2 on agg)
Scotland 1-2 Iceland (2-4 on agg)
Sweden 1-1 Switzerland (2-5 on agg)
Ukraine 0-2 Netherlands (3-3 on agg, Ukraine won on away goals)
*Qualified for the Euro 2011 finals (11-25 June): Belarus, Czech Republic, Denmark (hosts), England, Iceland, Spain, Switzerland, Ukraine

Euro 2012 qualifiers: Belfast boys do it again but other British teams disappoint

NORTHERN IRELAND held out against heavy pressure for a 0-0 draw with Italy to notch another notable result at Windsor Park.

Recent qualifying campaigns have seen Northern Ireland beat England and Spain at home, and the resolute effort against the Azzurri has put Nigel Worthington's men right in the qualifying mix again.

It is early days, of course, and - despite their poor World Cup - the Italians are still top and strong favourites to win Euro 2012 qualifying Group C.

But with four points from two matches, Northern Ireland are above Serbia and Slovenia having played a game less.

Incredibly, that fine draw against Italy only puts the Northern Irish in third as Estonia are in second place on six points after their shock 3-1 win away to Serbia.

In the other match in the group, Slovenia beat Faroe Islands 5-1 at home. The Faroes are Northern Ireland's next opponents in Torshavn on Tuesday.

But, while there will be celebrations in Belfast, the results made depressing reading for the other British teams. Indeed, England probably had the best night - without even playing.

Unexpectedly, the Three Lions' supposed closest rivals Switzerland followed up their 3-1 loss to England last month with another defeat, 1-0 in Montenegro.

The unfancied Montenegrins now lead Group G with a perfect record of nine points from three games. On Tuesday, they face England at Wembley.

In the same group, Wales went down to a second successive 1-0 defeat, this time at home against Bulgaria.

And with Montenegro playing so well, the Welsh are already in serious danger of finishing bottom of the group. Brian Flynn's men are away to Switzerland on Tuesday.

Bottom place is not a fate about to befall Scotland after two wins in their opening two matches but a miserable performance in their third match against Czech Republic in Prague brought a deserved 1-0 defeat.

Head coach Craig Levein opted for a 6-4-0 formation which simply served to invite wave after wave of Czech attacks on the Scotland goal.

In fairness, the Scottish held out for 70 minutes but when Roman Hubnik headed in a corner, Levein was forced to change his tactics anyway.

It didn't work and Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech was barely tested in the last 20 minutes. The Scottish defenders and midfielders had conceded so much possession earlier in the game that they were totally exhausted by the time the attacking cavalry in Kenny Miller and Chris Iwelumo arrived.

At least Levein can console himself that, thanks to a 97th-minute winner against Liechtenstein last month, Scotland's position in the Group I is still pretty decent.

Group favourites Spain were 0-0 at half-time against Lithuania, and 1-1 at one stage in the second half, but eventually the defending champions ran out 3-1 winners to lead the group on six points out of six.

Below the Spanish, though, the group is much of a muchness. Scotland and Lithuania have four points from three matches with the Czechs in fourth place on three points from two matches.

Unfortunately for the Tartan Army, Scotland will expect to lose ground as their next fixture is against Spain on Tuesday night at Hampden Park.

Republic of Ireland also face a vital match in midweek in Slovakia after being beaten 3-2 at home by Group B top seeds Russia at the new Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

Spearheaded by Arsenal's Andrei Arshavin, Dick Advocaat's Russia were far too good for the Irish and took a 2-0 lead into half time after goals by Alexander Kerzhakov and Alan Dzagoev.

The game looked dead and buried five minutes into the second period when Roman Shirokov's shot took a wicked deflection off Richard Dunne and gave Shay Given no chance.

But, belatedly, the Irish launched a comeback and gained a lifeline when Robbie Keane was bundled over in the box.

Keane himself struck home the penalty for his 45th international goal and, six minutes later, it was 3-2 as Shane Long scored with a half-volley.

There were only 12 minutes remaining when the second goal went in, however. Unsurprisingly, a frantic finish unfolded but Giovanni Trapattoni's men were unable to steal a point.

At least the Irish will face a Slovakian team reeling from their own awful performance after they went down to a 3-1 defeat against Armenia in Yerevan.

That shock result leaves Slovakia, Russia and Republic of Ireland level at the top on six points from three matches.

But the Russians hold the advantage of having four successive matches against the minnows of the group, during which time the Irish and Slovakia play each other home and away.

Elsewhere in the qualifiers, Germany predictably took control of Group A with three wins out of three after an easy 3-0 home win over supposed second seeds Turkey.

Austria actually appear to be the Germans' biggest threat after they made it two wins out of two with their own 3-0 home win against Azerbaijan. Belgium gained their first win of the campaign, 2-0 away at Kazakhstan.

In Group D, France scored two late goals to beat Romania and go top of the table after the earlier failure of their unexpected challengers to get a win.

Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina cancelled each other out in a 1-1 draw in Tirana while Belarus were unable to breach the Luxembourg defence in a 0-0 stalemate.

World Cup finalists Netherlands made it three wins out of three in Group E with an instantly-forgettable 1-0 win in Moldova. In a rather bigger game, the Dutch face second-placed Sweden on Tuesday.

In the same group, Hungary remain a threat for now after the Magyars improved the goal difference with a huge 8-0 win over a hopeless San Marino side, the biggest win of the night.

Euro 2004 winners Greece earned their first win of the campaign in their third match, 1-0 against Latvia in Athens in a group which reeks of mediocrity.

Niko Krancjar scored twice as Croatia beat Israel 2-1 and went top of Group F with seven points. The Greeks lie third on goal difference after Georgia also made it five points from three games by beating Malta 1-0. Israel are fourth with four points from three games.

In Group H, Cristiano Ronaldo scored as Portugal finally got their stuttering campaign off the ground with a deserved 3-1 home win over Denmark.

The Portuguese had drawn 4-4 with Cyprus and lost 1-0 in Norway before sacking coach Carlos Quieroz for his interference with anti-doping agents during the World Cup.

New man Paulo Bento certainly made an impressive start against the Danes last night but it is Norway who continue to lead the way with a perfect nine points from three matches.

Indeed, the Norwegians are five points clear at the top after first-half goals from John Arne Riise and John Carew were enough for a 2-1 win over Cyprus in Larnaca. Norway have not qualified for a major championship since Euro 2000.

EURO2012 QUALIFYING RESULTS

GROUP A
Austria 3-0 Azerbaijan
Germany 3-0 Turkey
Kazakhstan 0-2 Belgium

GROUP B
Andorra 0-2 FYR Macedonia
Armenia 3-1 Slovakia
Republic of Ireland 2-3 Russia

GROUP C
Northern Ireland 0-0 Italy
Serbia 1-3 Estonia
Slovenia 5-1 Faroe Isles

GROUP D
Albania 1-1 Bosnia-Herzegovina
Luxembourg 0-0 Belarus
France 2-0 Romania

GROUP E
Hungary 8-0 San Marino
Moldova 0-1 Netherlands

GROUP F
Georgia 1-0 Malta
Greece 1-0 Latvia
Israel 1-2 Croatia

GROUP G
Montenegro 1-0 Switzerland
Wales 0-1 Bulgaria

GROUP H
Cyprus 1-2 Norway
Portugal 3-1 Denmark

GROUP I
Czech Republic 1-0 Scotland
Spain 3-1 Lithuania

Conservative conference: Cameron struggles in the calm before the storm

DAVID CAMERON made his first speech at a Conservative party conference as Prime Minister yesterday but it came at the end of his toughest few days since he took the job in May.

Mr Cameron has come in for some serious flak from his most loyal media allies after his chancellor George Osborne announced that child benefit would no longer be paid to higher-rate taxpayers, as of 2013.

The Daily Telegraph called the policy "crass and out of touch" while the Mail referred to a "growing backlash" over the cut.

In its leading article, the Mail also stated: "What we are emphatically not prepared to accept without protest is that the political class should yet again discriminate against one-earner families".

That discrimination refers to the fact that a single parent, or a family in which only one parent works, earning £44,000-a-year will lose their child benefit but a couple both earning £43,000 - ie. £86,000 combined - will not.

Unsurprisingly, this has called the practicalities of the cut into question. While polls show that the policy is overwhelmingly supported, only 41% of people agreed the above circumstance is fair against 46% who think the policy should be based on a proper means-test.

But the worst aspect of the Tories' handling of the situation was that the general furore seemed to cause outright panic and policy on the hoof.

On the night following Mr Osborne's speech, Tory children's minister Tim Loughton told Channel 4 news: "If there are ways we can look at compensating measures for those genuinely in need that will be looked at in future budgets.

"If the thresholds need to be adjusted there's plenty of time to look at that."

His interview brought a welcoming response from backbench MP Margot James who wrote on her Twitter: "Very good to hear Tim Loughton confirm child benefit proposal needs to be revised."

But Mr Loughton then used his Twitter account to suggest people were "overexcited over child benefit comments", adding: "Of course, I'm not calling for a review."

In the end, Mr Cameron himself had to step in and explain that the introduction of a tax-break for married couples from 2015 would compensate families affected by the cut.

However, that move would not help high-earning single parents or unmarried couples and the whole episode smacks of panicked backtracking last seen by the Labour government after the 10p tax rate debacle.

In his hour-long keynote speech, Mr Cameron listed that and several other failings by the previous administration but he devoted most of his time to his preoccupation with creating a so-called Big Society.

This is despite the fact that the whole policy is still too vague and, indeed, blamed by many Tories for their failure to gain a majority at the last election.

One of the critics is outgoing deputy chairman Lord Ashcroft whose 133-page-book Minority Verdict examines the Conservatives' failure to do better against such an unpopular incumbent government.

"There was a tentative hope that the attractive new leader really did represent the prospect of a better government offering real change," Lord Ashcroft wrote.

"This, though, was tempered by suspicions about lack of substance, concerns that the party was for the better-off rather than ordinary people and a residual fear that the change had been merely cosmetic".

Of course, the majority of Conservative supporters are hardly depressed about the current situation.

As the senior partner in the coalition, the Tories have been able to make much more of an impression than the Liberal Democrats. The fact that a poll of party members shows 84% support the coalition comes as no surprise.

The Conservatives are also doing well in the polls as an individual party, seeing off Ed Miliband's Labour bounce with their own increase to 43%, up from the 36% scored at the election in May.

With the party conference season now over, that could all change especially when the coalition announces a whole raft of cuts in the spending review on 20th October.

The Tories must hope they handle any backlash better than they did over the past few days.

For Mr Cameron will be well aware that this was very much a case of the calm before the storm.

The Season 2010/11: Chelsea stay in control while Liverpool suffer

Premier League
Table
CHELSEA recovered from their first league defeat at Manchester City by beating Arsenal 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to retain a stranglehold at the top.

A deft flick by Didier Drogba and a thumping free-kick from Alex were enough to give the Blues yet another win over the Gunners.

Carlo Ancelotti's defending champions are four points clear of second-placed City whose form has seen an upturn after a slow start.

City have now won their last three league matches against Wigan Athletic (2-0), Chelsea (1-0) and Newcastle United (2-1).

But, while their third victory in a row over Chelsea came courtesy of a virtuoso Carlos Tevez effort, success over Newcastle owed much more to a baffling refereeing display by Martin Atkinson.

The West Yorkshire official gave City a dubious penalty before turning down a blatant foul on Shola Ameobi which would have given the Magpies a chance of earning a well-deserved 2-2 draw.

Worse still, the incompetent whistler had earlier completely missed Nigel de Jong's brutal foul on Hatem Ben Arfa which left the Frenchman with two broken bones in his left leg.

Perhaps City's status as a top-four contender has brought them a new-found joy with the officials and they currently find themselves in the unusual position of being a point above Manchester United.

But that is more down to the failings of Sir Alex Ferguson's men on the road - a fortunate 0-0 draw at Sunderland made it four draws from their first four away league matches so far.

Arsenal are in fourth on 11 points after that defeat to Chelsea compounded a stunning 3-2 home loss to West Bromwich Albion on the previous weekend.

At one stage, the Baggies were 3-0 up and the victory has capped an impressive start by Roberto di Matteo's men.

West Brom are in sixth, level on points with Arsenal and fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur who came from behind to beat Gerard Houllier's Aston Villa 2-1.

Meanwhile, West Ham United remain bottom of the Premier League but the Hammers - on five points - are now unbeaten in their last three league games, having lost their first four.

Wolverhampton Wanderers are the team sinking fastest, also on five points, having lost their fourth league match in a row on Saturday in going down 2-0 away at Wigan Athletic.

Hugo Rodellega and Jordi Gomez scored the goals to give the Latics a vital win after Wolves thug Karl Henry saw red for another ridiculous challenge on Gomez after just 11 minutes.

But at least the referee spotted it this time and Gomez was able to carry on.

However, the big story at the bottom is at Anfield where Liverpool lost 2-1 to Blackpool to cap a simply atrocious start to Roy Hodgson's reign.

The Reds have won just once in the league all season - an unconvincing 1-0 home win over West Brom - and also went out of the League Cup on penalties to Northampton Town.

Just six points from their first seven matches leaves Liverpool in the bottom three but Everton fans can hardly crow from across Stanley Park.

That is because the Toffees have only just lifted themselves off the bottom by recording their first league win of the season, 2-0 away at Birmingham City.

David Moyes' men also only have six points from seven games but will hope that victory will kick-start their campaign after yet another slow start.

It should perhaps not come as a surprise that Everton finally got off the mark at Birmingham with the Blues having scored just twice in four home matches this season.

Alex McLeish's men look a shadow of the team which finished ninth last season in these early weeks, placed with seven points just behind Chris Hughton's Newcastle on goal difference.

The Championship
Table
QUEENS PARK RANGERS scored a stoppage-time winner at Crystal Palace to retain their six-point cushion at the top over Cardiff City after 10 league games.

Kieron Cadogan looked set to have rescued a point for struggling Palace with an 89th minute equaliser to Adel Taarabt's strike.

But Heidar Helguson replied with an even later goal for Neil Warnock's men who remain unbeaten with eight wins and two draws.

Cardiff City are in second place on 20 points, having recovered from successive away defeats to Leicester City and Ipswich Town by taking seven points out of their last nine.

On-loan Manchester City striker Craig Bellamy scored as Dave Jones' Bluebirds beat Barnsley 2-1 to follow up their hotly-contest 2-1 win against Millwall and 0-0 draw with Palace.

Newly-promoted Norwich City, on 19 points, are a surprise package in third place while Watford, just a point further behind, are another unexpected name in fourth.

Paul Lambert's Norwich capped their fine start by scoring seven goals in a week to beat strugglers Bristol City 3-0 and Leicester 4-3 while Malky Mackay's Watford made it four wins out of five by beating Sheffield United 1-0.

The Canaries' local rivals Ipswich seem to have put last season's nightmare behind them by moving into fifth place after Tommy Smith scored a late-winner for a 2-1 win over Leeds United.

Burnley, meanwhile, are in the last playoff place in sixth having settled most comfortably of the three relegated teams as proven by their recent 4-0 annihilation of Hull City.

Reading and Swansea City join Burnley on 16 points having both somewhat recovered from slower-than-ideal starts.

But the slowest start belongs to Bristol City who still seem to be reeling from Steve Coppell's decision to resign after just a single league game.

The Robins, now under Keith Millen, are bottom on six points and recent matches have provided little cheer with just one point and two goals in their last five games.

Second-bottom Crystal Palace are also in a rut with just one league win since the opening day of the season but the performance against QPR suggests the Eagles have enough to get out of trouble.

That should also apply to third-bottom Leicester who sacked Paulo Sousa after the 4-3 loss to Norwich, hard on the heels of a 6-1 collapse at Portsmouth.

The Foxes have now appointed Sven Goran Eriksson as their seventh permanent manager in four-and-a-half years, and the Swede witnessed a much-improved display in a 3-1 home win over Scunthorpe United before signing a two-year deal.

Portsmouth, on nine points, and Preston North End, on 10 points, are both just above the drop zone but they also have reasons to feel optimistic after both enjoyed an upturn in form.

Pompey followed up that 6-1 thumping of Leicester with a vital 3-1 victory over Bristol City and a spirited 2-2 draw at Middlesbrough in which they came back from 2-0 down.

Meanwhile, Preston beat Coventry City 2-1 then hit six past Leeds in a ten-goal thriller at Elland Road.

At one stage, Leeds were 4-1 up but Preston - who themselves suffered an amazing comeback in a 4-3 defeat to local rivals Burnley - will have found it very sweet indeed.

League One
Table
SOUTH coast joy was expected to be the story from League One this season with Southampton installed as odds-on favourites before a ball was kicked.

But, instead, the celebrations are coming from Brighton and Bournemouth after both clubs launched an unexpected bid for promotion.

Gus Poyet's Brighton & Hove Albion are top with 21 points from 10 league games after five wins and two draws from their last seven.

That form has put the Seagulls two points clear of Peterborough United who look a good bet to regain their Championship status after a humbling relegation last season.

Eddie Howe's newly-promoted Bournemouth are a further two points back in third with strong home form the main factor in their elevated position.

The Cherries have beaten Peterborough 5-1, Carlisle United 2-0, and Exeter City and Dagenham & Redbridge 3-0 but have just won once away, and lost 2-0 at local rivals Southampton on Saturday.

The other playoff places are also filled with some unexpected teams as the bigger names once again struggle to impose themselves on this division.

Carlisle United are in fourth place on 16 points, level with Keith Hill's newly-promoted Rochdale in fifth, unbeaten Colchester United in sixth, and Exeter City in seventh.

Charlton Athletic are the only one of the former Premier League teams in the top eight but the Addicks remained outside the playoff places after they lost their most recent league match 2-1 at Brentford.

Sheffield Wednesday's early season form disappeared in a four-match losing run in September but the Owls are back up to 10th after a 2-0 win over Notts County.

Meanwhile, Southampton are slowly recovering from the controversial sacking of Alan Pardew which came immediately after a 4-0 home win over Bristol Rovers.

That result was followed by five matches in a row without a goal in league and cup, four of which were losses.

But the appointment of Nigel Adkins in the St Mary's Stadium hotseat seems to have had a beneficial effect with two wins and two draws lifting the Saints to 15th, just four points short of the playoffs.

Last season's playoff losers Swindon Town - who played a season of Premier League football in 1993-94 - are just a place below Southampton and level points after a winless opening five games.

But, while Southampton and Swindon may only be four points off the playoffs, they are just two points above the bottom four, currently occupied by Tranmere Rovers, Leyton Orient, Brentford and Walsall.

Rovers and Orient struggled throughout most of last season and do not appear to have learned from the experience with just ten points and nine points so far.

Second-bottom Brentford are also on just nine points but the Bees have at least managed to claim the scalps of Everton, Charlton and Sheffield Wednesday in three of their last four home league and cup matches.

Chris Hutchings' Walsall look weak at the bottom on just seven points. The Saddlers must look to end a run which has seen them take just one point from their last 21, or else they could already start to be cut off from safety.

League Two
Table
PORT VALE have made an excellent start to their third attempt at escaping the basement division with 22 points from their first 10 games.

The Valiants remained top despite an unexpected 2-1 defeat to last season's Blue Square playoff winners Oxford United who brought to an end an impressive five-match winning run.

Indeed, Micky Adams' men did not concede a single goal in beating Bradford City, Aldershot Town, Macclesfield Town, Accrington Stanley and Shrewsbury Town before the Oxford slip-up.

But none of the chasing pack took full advantage with the four teams placed between second and fifth - Chesterfield, Rotherham United, Shrewsbury and Bury - all drawing.

Second-placed Chesterfield will be relieved just to get a point from a remarkable 5-5 draw with Crewe Alexandra, having been 4-1 down at half-time.

Two goals each from Jack Lester and Danny Whitaker, and a 25-yard stoppage-time screamer from Craig Clay rescued a draw for the Spireites after the Railwaymen had gone 3-0 up in the first 13 minutes.

Luke Murphy, Lee Bell and Byron Moore gave Crewe the perfect start before Lester headed his first. Tommy Lee then made it 4-1 on 26 minutes before second half goals from Lester and Whitaker's first penalty made it 4-3 with 11 minutes left.

Clayton Donaldson looked to have secured the points once and for all for Crewe by making it 5-3 with 10 minutes remaining but another Whitaker penalty and Clay's fine strike made it 5-5 at the new B2net Stadium.

Amazingly, it was not even the highest-scoring game of the day in League Two. That honour went to the match at the Crown Ground where sixth-placed Accrington Stanley beat Gillingham 7-4.

In a match with nine different scorers, Stanley took a 3-2 lead into half-time before on-loan Norwich striker Cody McDonald made it 3-3.

Stanley then pulled away as Phil Edwards converted two penalties and Terry Gornell made it 6-3.

Then, a third penalty - this time for Gillingham - scored by Ade Akinfenwa made it 6-4 with ten minutes left but James Ryan made it seven with a stoppage time strike and left the Gills without an away win in 17 months.

Accrington lie in sixth place, level on 15 points with seventh-placed Wycombe Wanderers and Torquay United in eighth.

The Chairboys ended a winless of run of six league draws and a defeat since their opening day success by beating Barnet 4-2 and Stevenage 2-0 in the space of three days.

But Torquay are now without a win in six league matches, having led the league at the end of August after winning their opening four.

At least Gulls fans can console themselves that they are not Hereford United supporters.

The Bulls prop up the league, having taken just two points since a win on the opening day of the season. Indeed, Hereford have taken just one point and scored just three goals in their last eight league matches.

Unsurprisingly, former Barnsley boss Simon Davey has got the sack and the task for the incoming man already looks a tough one.

Hereford are already three points adrift of their nearest rivals with a significantly worse goal difference. Surprisingly, those nearest rivals are Bradford and Lincoln City.

Despite average attendances of more than 15,000, the Bantams are second-bottom of the Football League with eight points from ten games, and just one win in their last eight.

Lincoln are in no better shape, also on eight points, and a four-match run without so much as a goal has brought an end to Chris Sutton's time in charge at Sincil Bank.

Barnet, on nine points, are less of a surprise at the bottom but again much better things would have been expected of a trio on 10 points - last season's playoff contenders Morecambe, Liverpool's League Cup conquerors Northampton Town, and relegated Gillingham.

Blue Square Premier
Table
CRAWLEY TOWN retained a three-point lead at the top of the Blue Square Premier after 14 games with a 2-1 win away at Luton Town.

Since taking just one point from their first two games, the Red Devils have won ten and drawn one of their last 12 to gain a commanding early position.

AFC Wimbledon are in second place on 29 points after a 5-2 win away at Mansfield Town who have dropped away to sixth, having led the league three games ago.

Third-placed Fleetwood Town on 26 points continue to defy the doubters, and the Fishermen have now extended their unbeaten run to nine games after a 0-0 draw with Wrexham.

Luton stayed fourth on 24 points despite that defeat to Crawley as fifth-placed Newport County could only draw with Eastbourne Borough while Mansfield in sixth suffered a heavy home defeat to Wimbledon.

At the bottom, Altrincham extended their unbeaten run to four games - but three of these have been draws - and before that, the Robins had taken just one point out of 30. Needless to say, Altrincham remain a long way short of safety on seven points.

Forest Green Rovers are also in trouble after three draws and six defeats in their last nine games has left them on 10 points.

And it has not been a good season in Cambridgeshire with both of the county's sides currently in the bottom four.

Histon suffered an awful run of one win and seven defeats in eight games before a recent upturn of four points from six has put them on 12 points altogether.

But it just gets worse for Cambridge United who lost their fourth straight game 2-0 away at Hayes & Yeading, replacing their hosts in the relegation zone.

Hayes are still just a point and a place outside of the bottom four on 14 points, level with Bath City and Barrow.

Europe wins epic Ryder Cup

EUROPE 14.5-13.5 UNITED STATES

Europe wins the 2010 Ryder Cup

GRAEME McDOWELL held his nerve as Europe regained the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor in Newport by the narrowest of margins.

McDowell won the final match of a memorable tournament 3&1 against the United States' Hunter Mahan to complete a magnificent year for the Ulsterman after his 2010 US Open success.

The decision to send McDowell out last proved to be prudent captaincy by Europe's Colin Montgomerie as McDowell had won on the course at the Welsh Open in June.

But the key to Europe's victory was the third session of two foursomes and four fourballs, played on Saturday evening and Sunday.

Europe won five of the matches - the other was halved - and it meant Montgomerie's men took a commanding three-point lead into the final session of Singles.

For the first time ever, the Singles had been delayed until the Monday after torrential rain wiped out almost all the playing time on Friday and the whole of Sunday morning.

It was hardly an unforeseeable prospect and the weather called into question the ridiculous decision to play Ryder Cup golf in the United Kingdom in October.

The blame lies with the American PGA Tour which insisted that its end-of-season FedEx Cup took place in mid-September, a space in the calendar usually reserved for the Ryder Cup.

The PGA Tour were able to do this because - unlike in Europe - the responsibility for the Ryder Cup in the United States rests with a separate organisation, namely the PGA of America.

And so, while the Ryder Cup is very much part of the European tour, it is not officially part of the PGA Tour.

That is something which drastically needs to change for the good of the competition and to prevent more October scheduling.

Play actually began at the scheduled time on Friday but was suspended after just two hours at 9.43am as heavy rain waterlogged vast areas of the fairways and greens.

A further two hours of action took place on Friday evening between 5pm and 7pm but none of the first session fourballs could be finished in time.

After a slow start, the US led in two matches by a hole, while Europe led in one match by a hole. A fourth match was all square, meaning there was all to play for when the players resumed on Saturday morning.

But, in the end, none of the matches changed hands and so while Lee Westwood/Martin Kaymer won the first point of the tournament for Europe, the United States took an early 2.5-1.5 lead.

USA increased their advantage further in the second session by taking three of the six foursomes matches played on the Saturday afternoon.

The efforts of Padraig Harrington/Ross Fisher and Ian Poulter/Luke Donald meant Europe won two matches while Westwood/Kaymer halved their match against Jim Furyk/Rickie Fowler.

But the score after two sessions was 6-4 to the Americans and the possibility of Europe taking a lead going into the Singles matches was fast diminishing.

However, after a pep talk from Montgomerie, the European players emerged for the third session with renewed fire in their bellies and turned the whole tie on its head.

By the end of the two hours of golf played on Saturday evening, Europe had a lead in all six matches.

Westwood and Donald were in particularly inspired form, 4 up after nine holes in a foursomes match against the in-form Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker.

Meanwhile, in the other foursomes match, McDowell and his Northern Irish compatriot Rory McIlroy were 3 up through seven on Zach Johnson and Mahan.

And the news was just as good in the four fourballs matches. Harrington/Fisher, Peter Hanson/Miguel Angel Jimenez, the Molinari brothers and Poulter/Kaymer all ended the day holding narrow advantages over Furyk/Dustin Johnson, Bubba Watson/Jeff Overton, Stewart Cink/Matt Kuchar and Phil Mickelson/Fowler respectively.

Then, on Sunday, the rain came again, and the slim hopes of avoiding a first Monday finish were washed away, with a revised start time of 1.30pm agreed.

Paths around the course came to resemble the Glastonbury mud at its worst, coincidentally on the day tickets for the 2011 festival went on sale.

By the time the players were back out on the course, Glastonbury 2011 had sold out but this would have not have even registered in European players' minds.

They knew that converting their overnight leads into actual points was vital as it would give them a huge advantage going into the Singles.

Westwood/Donald began a procession of Europe wins with a thumping 6&5 victory over Woods/Stricker.

And, in the other foursomes match, McDowell/McIlroy comfortably held off Zach Johnson/Mahan, winning 3&1 after taking the 17th hole with a birdie.

The fourballs matches were much less clear cut and all four of them went down to the penultimate hole at least.

Harrington/Fisher won 2&1 against Dustin Johnson/Furyk while Hanson/Jimenez won the last hole to beat Watson/Overton 2 up.

Poulter/Kaymer withstood a fine comeback at one stage to all-square by Mickelson/Fowler, eventually prevailing 2&1.

But, despite the best efforts of the Americans, USA never held the lead at any time in those three matches.

Their only chance rested in the match between the Molinari brothers and Cink/Kuchar.

Resuming 1 up, the Italians held that advantage until Kuchar nailed a 12-foot putt at the 10th hole to make the match all-square.

Kuchar then sank a 25-footer at the 13th hole to give the Americans a rare lead before the pairs exchanged holes at 15 and 16.

That left the Molinari brothers one down going to the final hole. Cink and Kuchar both carded par fives meaning either of the Italians could win a half-point with a birdie.

Edoardo missed his putt but Francesco made no mistake from just four-foot out after a fine approach shot.

The Molinaris had only managed to halve their match but, given the circumstances and the other results, it felt like another win.

It was another body blow to the Americans' confidence and it meant Europe would take a three-point lead going into the Singles.

Fears that the extra day might result in smaller crowds proved unfounded as 35,000 watched a dramatic day unfold.

Looking to secure his own Ryder Cup legacy, Europe skipper Montgomerie avoided the mistake of his predecessor Nick Faldo and named his strongest and most in-form players at the top of the order.

But it was the Americans who did better in the top matches as Steve Stricker overturned an early Lee Westwood lead to win the top match 2&1.

Stewart Cink should have won the second match for the Americans but missed a four-foot par putt on the 15th green when one ahead and the match finished all square.

Cink was in good company. In the next match, Furyk also blew several chances against Luke Donald who eventually prevailed 1 up.

Donald, though, was in particularly excellent form, holing from 20 feet on the 12th and the 13th to stay 2 up at that stage.

The next two matches on the card were a thrashing each as Dustin Johnson put away Kaymer 6&4 before Poulter responded for Europe by beating Kuchar 5&4.

Poulter's compatriot Fisher also looked set to score a vital point as he led 2 up at the turn, only for his form to desert him completely on the back nine.

Overton took full advantage and beat Fisher quite comfortably by 3&2 in the end.

That turnaround seemed to boost American spirits down the order with Woods particularly inspired against Francesco Molinari.

The Italian had no answer to Woods' blistering form which saw him shoot nine-under-par in 15 holes to win 4&3.

Mickelson and Zach Johnson had also lined up big wins against Hanson and Harrington, eventually prevailing 4&2 and 3&2 respectively.

And so, with Europe requiring two-and-a-half more points for victory, their Ryder Cup hopes relied on Jimenez, Edoardo Molinari and McDowell keeping their leads and holding their nerve.

Cigar-smoking Jimenez is far too wily and experienced a performer to let an advantage slip and indeed he accelerated away from Watson to win 4&3.

But Ryder Cup debutant Molinari did feel the pressure as rising talent Fowler, also making his debut aged 21, birdied the last four holes to win the last three holes and halve the match.

With the Hanson and Harrington matches out of reach, McDowell knew he would have to retain his lead in the so-called 'anchor match' for Europe to win the cup.

Another half-point would tie the overall score at 14-14 meaning the Americans, as holders, would retain the trophy.

Mahan had just pulled back McDowell to 1 up by winning the 15th hole with a birdie. Now was the time for a steady nerve from the man known as 'GMac'.

McDowell delivered immediately, regaining his two-hole lead with a birdie at the 16th.

And, at the 17th, it was Mahan's turn to feel the heat as he fluffed his chip from the front of the green. On missing the subsequent speculative 18-footer, the American conceded the hole and the match.

It was the first since 1991 that the Ryder Cup had been decided by the final match and Europe had done it - but only just - having actually lost three of the four sessions.

Nevertheless, Europe's victory extends the team's remarkable recent record of six wins out of the last eight editions - and four wins from the last five. Meanwhile the Americans are without an away win since 1993.

SESSION-BY-SESSION: HOW EUROPE WON THE RYDER CUP

Session One: Fourballs USA won 2.5-1.5
As the name suggests, this features four balls, one for each player. The player with the lowest score wins the hole for his team regardless of what his team-mate does. If two opponents have the same lowest score, the hole is halved.

Match one:
Lee Westwood(Eng)/Martin Kaymer(Ger) v Phil Mickelson/Dustin Johnson
Eur won 3 & 2

Match two:
Rory McIlroy(NI)/Graeme McDowell (NI) v Stewart Cink/Matt Kuchar
Match halved

Match three:
Ian Poulter(Eng)/Ross Fisher(Eng) v Steve Stricker/Tiger Woods
USA won 2 up

Match four:
Luke Donald(Eng)/Padraig Harrington(Ire) v Bubba Watson/Jeff Overton
USA won 3 & 2

Session Two: Foursomes USA won 3.5-2.5
Each pair of players takes alternate shots with the same ball. The pair with the lowest score wins the hole. If both teams shoot the same score, the hole is halved.

Match five:
Edoardo Molinari(Ita)/Francesco Molinari(Ita) v Zach Johnson/Hunter Mahan
USA won 2 up

Match six:
Lee Westwood(Eng)/Martin Kaymer(Ger) v Jim Furyk/Rickie Fowler
Match halved

Match seven:
Padraig Harrington(Ire)/Ross Fisher(Eng) v Phil Mickelson/Dustin Johnson
Eur won 3 & 2

Match eight:
Miguel Angel Jimenez(Spa)/Peter Hanson(Swe) v Tiger Woods/Steve Stricker
USA won 4 & 3

Match nine:
Ian Poulter(Eng)/Luke Donald(Eng) v Bubba Watson/Jeff Overton
Eur won 2 & 1

Match ten:
Graeme McDowell(NI)/Rory McIlroy(NI) v Stewart Cink/Matt Kuchar
USA won 2 up

Session three: Foursomes (matches 11-12) and Fourballs (matches 13-16) Europe won 5.5-0.5

Match 11:
Luke Donald(Eng)/Lee Westwood(Eng) v Steve Stricker/Tiger Woods
Eur won 6 & 5

Match 12:
Graeme McDowell(NI)/Rory McIlroy(NI) v Zach Johnson/Hunter Mahan
Eur won 3 & 1

Match 13:
Padraig Harrington(Ire)/Ross Fisher(Eng) v Jim Furyk/Dustin Johnson
Eur won 2 & 1

Match 14:
Peter Hanson(Swe)/Miguel Angel Jimenez(Spa) v Bubba Watson/Jeff Overton
Eur won 2 up

Match 15:
Edoardo Molinari(Ita)/Fracesco Molinari(Ita) v Stewart Cink/Matt Kuchar
Match halved

Match 16:
Ian Poulter(Eng)/Martin Kaymer(Ger) v Phil Mickelson/Rickie Fowler
Eur won 2 & 1

Session four: Singles USA won 7-5
Match 17:
Lee Westwood (Eng) v Steve Stricker
USA won 2 & 1

Match 18:
Rory McIlroy (NI) v Stewart Cink
Match halved

Match 19:
Luke Donald (Eng) v Jim Furyk
Eur won 1 up

Match 20:
Martin Kaymer (Ger) v Dustin Johnson
USA won 6 & 4

Match 21:
Ian Poulter (Eng) v Matt Kuchar
Eur won 5 & 4

Match 22:
Ross Fisher (Eng) v Jeff Overton
USA won 3 & 2

Match 23:
Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) v Bubba Watson
Eur won 4 & 3

Match 24:
Francesco Molinari (Ita) v Tiger Woods
USA won 4 & 3

Match 25:
Edoardo Molinari (Ita) v Rickie Fowler
Match halved

Match 26:
Peter Hanson (Swe) v Phil Mickelson
USA won 4 & 2

Match 27:
Padraig Harrington (Ire) v Zach Johnson
USA won 3 & 2

Match 28:
Graeme McDowell (NI) v Hunter Mahan
Eur won 3 & 1