Archive November 1, 2025

When Motherwell manager Jens Berthel Askou claimed that “St. Mirren were really, really good at executing their gameplan,” it was probably the best post-game statement.

The Paisley side couldn’t have anticipated the League Cup semi-final on Saturday at Hampden’s script.

They did, however, face some early pressure from a Motherwell side, who had received praise for their play. However, they should have had a two-goal halftime lead, a passably comfortable second half, and two late goals.

On this All Saints Day, the St. Mirren support’s pre-game tifo read, “faith over fear.”

Faith in their approach, management, and system paid off with a deserved return to Hampden on December 14th against either Celtic or Rangers.

St. Mirren last reached the League Cup final in 2013, the last time they did so.

One of the best days in the history of Dundee United was led by John McGinn, Sportscene presenter Steven Thompson, and Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin.

Goodwin was watching his former team try to stop their 12-year wait for a showpiece event at Hampden, and he was undoubtedly impressed.

Afterward, he acknowledged that St. Mirren had accomplished what his team could not by midweek when they lost to Motherwell by 2-0.

Goodwin described it as “a tactical masterclass,” adding that it was flawless.

Simply put, St. Mirren didn’t let Motherwell’s game-changers play the way they wanted them to.

Under Askou, Elliot Watt has flourished, but the savage midfielder was unable to fill in. Elijah Just was kept inside, and Ibrahim Said and Tawanda Maswanhise were only allowed to fire wildly at the goal while Elijah Just was also kept inside.

Robinson remarked, “We allowed them to have the ball where we desired them to have it.” Then, we resurrected it numerous times.

The pitch expands significantly if you press them in their own six-yard box because they are a team that play it out from the back.

We dropped a little bit because they do what they do because they are good at it. We set up traps for them and gave them possession. We wanted to condense it until the pitch was in the middle and win it back.

Don’t be fooled into thinking they weren’t a threat in their own right, as St. Mirren neutered Motherwell.

With the assistance of a few friends, Mikael Mandron spearheaded a formidable attacking force that ended the victory with his two goals.

The 31-year-old performs well when he’s fit and firing, and he did it on his 100th run-out for the Paisley outfit.

As St. Mirren swept forward with speed, his ability to hold up the ball and allow his teammates to join in proved crucial.

Although his opener had a bit of controversy, such as the fact that a quick free kick in the build-up was taken with the ball moving, and his second, which came after a protracted VAR wait, was stunning, he still didn’t score the game’s goal.

Dan Nlundulu received that honor. His crucial second just before half-time was Hampden’s most impressive swing and strike in a long time.

That pair of goalscorers is not surprising. Unlike Richard King, who seized the third,

The defender was presumably hired to prevent St. Mirren from operating and shut down the business. The Jamaica international instead continued with a foray ahead and found the back of the net, though with some success.

He displayed, among other things, exactly what Robinson claims is a “mistake” on his side. More than just a physical, rough outfit, they are physical.

According to Robinson, “We actually have one of the smallest back fives in the league, so it’s a bit of a misconception.”

As Australia won the Rugby League Ashes, England received a brutal “reality check,” according to captain George Williams.

The Kangaroos won the series opener 14-4 on Saturday at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium, giving them a 2-0 lead over the team’s sold-out third Test against AMT Headingley in Leeds.

Australia’s first series defeat against the Ashes since 1970 was a goal that Shaun Wane’s side had in mind when they first started the series.

They had won the series by beating Tonga 3-3 and defeating Samoa 2-3 in the previous two years. England were unable to face the world champions as the Rugby League Ashes resumed after a 22-year break.

We don’t have any excuses. I don’t believe we’ve quite accomplished what we’ve been given, Williams said to BBC Sport, adding that we’ve had enough training to get it right on the field.

Australia deserves praise. They had a strong defensive line. However, there is still much to work on. We’re probably not as skilled as we thought we would be in this series.

Wane side’s performance at Wembley was significantly improved on Saturday when they returned to the rugby league heartlands of northern England, having been conspicuously defeated in an error-strewn display at Wembley.

England forced errors from the Kangaroos in a stirring opening period, despite having the entire field in position and possession, to scoreboard dominance.

Tellingly, England have only managed one try in 160 minutes, with St Helens hooker Daryl Clark’s late-range try in London.

In contrast, Australia has six goals in two games, and it was only when mistakes started to creep into hosts’ play after the break that decided they were going to be severely punished.

Hudson Young and Cameron Munster crossed before they did. England was ten points adrift after finishing with a 4-4 overall record.

“Proud for the majority of the game,” he said. We were good, I thought for 70 minutes, Wane said.

“We were severely harmed by the 10-minute switch off after half-time. In a test match, Munster’s first try was soft, and it ought not to be scored.

“We’re devastated,” After half-time, we were so happy the players had a dig, but we were so disappointed with it.

England’s immediate priority will be on attempting to recreate some pride, avoid a series whitewash, and end the errors that irritated Wane, despite the imminent completion of the next World Cup in Australia and Papua New Guinea.

“I desired to see more of Australia being thrown at it. The 61-year-old continued, “I wanted to build pressure in the game; we didn’t do that last week.

This week, we did. There are only a few areas in our attack where we could have put more pressure on them. We need to make better use of both [tries].

Australia is in good company, and that does not hurt them. We weren’t, but they show up and are ruthless when they get the chance, which is unfortunate, but defensively we can and should do better.

Since the last World Cup in 2022, England has hosted Australia in the same number of Test matches.

Wane believes that competing at the top of the international game thanks to the strength of the NRL and the caliber of the State of Origin contests between New South Wales and Queensland.

Wane added that there is no time for him to work with his squad during the season due to the congested Super League schedule, which will only raise further questions about how England can close the gap before visiting Oceania in 2026.

Wane continued, “They compete in a lot of Test matches.”

“We play 10-15 a year. To increase the intensity of the competition and increase our chances of winning these kinds of games, we need really intense games.

I was unable to even work with the players. I had the full support of everyone in Super League, but we never made it on the field during the season.

Head coach Gregor Townsend says his side now thinks they can defeat New Zealand for the first time in history after their first-ever win over the United States.

In what was their biggest victory in 100 years of playing at Murrayfield, the Scots ran in 13 tries to defeat the Americans 85-0. Darcy Graham and Jamie Dobie both scored hat-tricks.

Attention turns to Saturday’s showdown with the All Blacks in Edinburgh, where Scotland hopes to win the match for the first time on the 33rd occasion.

In 2022, the Scots fell by eight points, five in 2017, and eight more than once more.

In recent years, we’ve played two excellent matches against them, but we’ve struggled to deliver that kind of performance. All of these experiences, including those from today, must be incorporated into an 80-minute performance.

The players’ ability to feel confident comes from how well they practiced this week. That cohesion needs to be established quickly. There is no justification for that. The men are willing to do it, and they think they can do it.

Without key players like Finn Russell, Blair Kinghorn, and Ben White, Scotland were without them as the USA game approached the designated Test window, but they were ruthless in their destruction.

On his 50th cap, Duhan Van der Merwe scored two tries, both of which were hat-tricks, and Darcy Graham and Jamie Dobie both did so. Ollie Smith, Kyle Rowe, Stafford McDowall, George Horne, and Dylan Richardson all scored.

The players immediately showed signs of unity, which is difficult to achieve during a week of training, Townsend said.

We demanded physicality and effort, and we did for the most part. In the main, the players worked hard for each other, and we were aggressive and disciplined.