The Racecourse Ground has been honoured by a lineage of talent throughout the distinguished history of Wrexham Football Club. These players have left their mark on football history through thrilling moments and stunning victories, making their names associated with the Red Dragons' unwavering pride.

In more recent times, the likes of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have transformed the Welsh club with League One football now set for next season, with a number of players trying to work their way into the history of the club.

Wrexham in League One: Latest standings, fixtures, results & key dates

FFC has all the latest Wrexham info as they seek promotion from League One, along with a look at the Red Dragons’ journey to where they are today.

ByStephan Georgiou Oct 8, 2024

With that, here is the list of who we believe are the ten greatest Wrexham footballers, based on their overall impact at either club or international level during their careers…

1

Tommy Bamford

1928-1934

2

Gareth Davies

1967-1983

3

Bert Goode

1910-1926

4

Darren Ferguson

1999-2007

5

Phil Hardy

1990-2001

6

Mickey Thomas

1972-1993

7

Arfon Griffiths

1959-1979

8

Aly McGowan

1953-1963

9

Carlos Edwards

2000-2005

10

Paul Mullin

2021-present

10 Paul Mullin 2021-present

Paul Mullin still has a long way to go if he is to climb even further up this list, but the performances he's put in over the past couple of years for Wrexham have been nothing short of amazing.

He's scored 99 goals and laid on 10 assists in his 131 games at Wrexham so far, which has helped the Red Dragons secure promotion from the National League and League Two.

Appearances

131

Goals

99

Assists

10

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ByMark Marston Apr 10, 2024 9 Carlos Edwards 2000-2005

Carlos Edwards was a powerful winger whose electric pace and flare lit up the Racecourse Ground.

He played a significant role for the club, featuring in 128 games and contributing 16 goals along with five assists, as well as helping secure Wrexham's promotion to Division Two in 2002/03.

Appearances

128

Goals

16

Stats

5

8 Aly McGowan 1953-1963

When McGowan joined Wrexham, he was working in the mines. He provided excellent service to the team as a hard-tackling full defender, amassing 478 appearances in total.

During this time, he won three medals for winning the Welsh Cup, played for the team that advanced to the 1960/61 League Cup's fifth round, defeating First Division outfit Blackburn Rovers, and lined up in the storied FA Cup match against the Busby Babes, which drew a record-breaking crowd to the Racecourse in 1957.

Even though a leg break interrupted his career too soon, he kept up his excellent work for the club as a coach and groundskeeper.

Date of Birth

22 January 1930

Position

Defender

Appearances

487

7 Arfon Griffiths 1959-1979

Raised in Hightown, Griffiths set a record with 592 league appearances for Wrexham over his 20 years with the club. In 1978, he led the team to the Third Division title and the Welsh Cup.

He also helped Wales to the quarter-final play-offs of Euro 1976 in front of his hometown fans in Wrexham thanks to a winner against Austria, as well as running rings round England on his Racecourse return in 1980.

Date of Birth

23 August 1941

Appearances

592

Achievements

Third Division title & Welsh Cup

6 Mickey Thomas 1972-1993

Mickey Thomas, who ended up securing a big-money transfer to Manchester United, assisted Wrexham in 1978 to achieve their first-ever promotion to the Second Division.

He made headlines across the country when he returned to Wrexham for a second stint, setting the stage for an all-time FA Cup upset of Football League champions Arsenal in January 1992 by scoring a sublime free kick to equalise.

He made 331 appearances for the Dragons, scoring 43 goals for the club.

Appearances

331

Goals

43

Achievements

Promotion to Second Division & Knocking Arsenal out of the FA Cup

5 Phil Hardy 1990-2001

Phil Hardy played 485 matches in a Wrexham shirt, which sees him sit fourth on the all-time list.

In addition to collecting a runners-up medal and a winners' medal in the Welsh Cup, Wrexham advanced from the Third Division in 1992/93 and made it to four FAW Premier Cup finals, winning three of them.

Position

Left-back

Appearances

485

Achievements

Won Welsh Cup, won promotion to Second Division and three FAW Premier Cup titles

4 Darren Ferguson 1999-2007

Darren Ferguson was a very reliable figure in the middle of midfield for the Dragons, making 310 appearances, scoring 51 goals, and captaining them to win promotion to Division Two in 2002/03.

He won the FAW Premier Cup with Wrexham in 1999/00, 2000/01, 2002/03, 2003/04, as well as the Football League Trophy in 2004/05.

Appearances

310

Goals

51

Achievements

Four FAW Premier Cup titles, Football League Trophy winner & promotion to Division Two

3 Bert Goode 1910-1926

Bert Goode was as prolific as they come. He scored a whopping 148 goals in 275 appearances during his time at Wrexham, which puts him second on the all-time goalscoring list for the Red Dragons.

Position

Forward

Appearances

275

Goals

148

2 Gareth Davies 1967-1983

Gareth Davies is the second-most-capped player for Wrexham with 612 games.

During his 16-year tenure with the team, he won Player of the Season in 1977/78, and was one of the team's top players in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, while also developing into a North Wales club legend and a devoted fan favourite.

Position

Central defender

Appearances

612

Achievements

Player of the Season in 1977/78

1 Tommy Bamford 1928-1934

The club's scoring records are dominated by Tommy Bamford's amazing accomplishments. He has not only scored many more goals than any other player, but he also averaged more goals per game.

With 207 goals in just 246 games, he has an incredible strike rate that puts him 65 ahead of Arfon Griffiths in second place. And, that wasn't all, as he scored the most hat-tricks, too.

Although Mullin got close, Bamford scored a club-record 44 league goals (and 51 goals overall) in the 1933/34 campaign, setting another record that still stands today.

Appearances

246

Goals

207

Achievements

Record Wrexham goalscorer & club-record 44 league goals in 1933/34

Tottenham scouts have been working overtime as they look to add quality to Ange Postecoglou's squad, and were spotted keeping a keen eye on a free-scoring striker ahead of the summer.

Spurs need depth in summer window

With their Premier League season threatening to fizzle out after a bright start, attentions have turned even more to the surgery required in north London this summer.

They made a good start to proceedings in Ange Postecoglou's first two transfer windows in charge, signing Gianluca Vicario, James Maddison, Micky van de Ven, Manor Solomon and Brennan Johnson to bolster their ranks in the summer before signing Radu Dragusin from Genoa and Timo Werner on loan in January.

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ByBen Browning Apr 29, 2024

They also confirmed permanent deals for Pedro Porro and Dejan Kulusevski, taking their season spend over £200m. There is still plenty of work to do though, with plenty of squad players expected to leave this summer.

A new attacker is a must, though it remains to be seen whether Werner's loan move is made permanent. Though Heung Min-Son remains clinical, there is certainly a vacant spot at no.9 in north London should the right man become available, which has seen Spurs linked with Ivan Toney already this season.

Cover is also required at left back, with Ben Davies likely to leave in the summer and no obvious alternative to young defender Destiny Udogie. The same can be said at right back, with Emerson Royal's future again unclear.

Another key area is in midfield; Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg started the north London derby but has fallen out of favour with Postecoglou, while Oliver Skipp is clearly surplus to requirements.

Tottenham's current midfield options

Player

Premier League starts

Yves Bissouma

23

Pape Sarr

22

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg

7

Rodrigo Bentancur

10

Oliver Skipp

4

With that in mind, Tottenham's scouts have been keeping a close eye on one player in particular.

Spurs scout Gyokeres and teammate

Now, reports from Portugual [via Sport Witness] detail that Spurs had a representative at Sporting CP's most recent clash with Porto on Sunday, in order to keep an eye on two targets.

It is claimed that one of the players that Spurs were among the interested parties for is red hot striker Viktor Gyokeres, who helped his side fight back from 2-0 down with his 39th and 40th goals of the season.

The Swede only joined Sporting from Coventry City 12 months ago, but is already set to be on the move this summer and has an £86m release clause in his contract in Lisbon.

But he wasn't the only one Spurs were keeping an eye on, with previous reports having linked them with a move for midfielder Morten Hjulmand. In fact, this latest update even suggests the Lilywhites were there more so for the tough tackling midfielder than his free-scoring teammate.

Were they true, they would have been impressed with what they saw, as the 24-year-old turned in a top performance, wining six tackles, making eight recoveries and maintaining an 88% pass accuracy in the Sporting engine room.

On just £33k per week at Sporting, there is no indication of any release clause in his deal, but he is valued at 30m euros by transfer site Transfermarkt. Could the Dane come in as an upgrade on compatriot Hojbjerg this summer?

Back in May, at the height of Cricket Australia’s anxiety about the impact of Covid-19 on this season, draft plans for the Sheffield Shield had it pared back to just five rounds, all played after the conclusion of the BBL.As for as the pointy end of the red-ball portion of the summer, the weeks leading into the Test series with India, the national selectors would have been compelled to stick with what they knew. The chances of anyone emerging from domestic ranks with a rush of runs or wickets in the domestic competition would have been non-existent.In subsequent weeks, either side of the exit of CA’s former chief executive Kevin Roberts, Shield scenarios gradually returned to something a little more recognisable, even if there was far from universal agreement about exactly how it should look.ALSO READ: Sheffield Shield preview – Squads, players to watch, new signings and fixtures The requirement for a 10-round competition plus a final is inked into the MoU between CA and the Australian Cricketers Association: as of Saturday, the tournament will begin with four rounds across three grounds in Adelaide, with the remainder to be played in 2021 in what the high performance chief Drew Ginn hopes will be a far less regimented patchwork of border and health restrictions. As it is, Ginn said that the domestic season would be stretching far deeper into April than usual, while plans will be reassessed every two weeks.”There’s been lots of permutations. I’d be safe to say I’ve seen a spreadsheet that’s just grown in columns across the page,” Ginn said. “We started out to play a full domestic home and away summer and play everything we possibly could. Five months ago we started looking at the various scenarios we might be confronted with, so we worked that through not only with the states but also the ACA, and it’s safe to say some of the potential scenarios weren’t really palatable to anyone.”Our intent has always been to run the full competitions and maximise cricket as much as possible. We’re also fitting in with our other priorities, and India’s a massive priority for the international season for us and we’re really excited to see that come to life, and the Big Bash and WBBL. State cricket fits in with those other competitions as a really important backbone for what we do, but scheduling conversations and scenarios have been mapped out extensively.”We’re dealing with changing situations with government restrictions and changing situations with Covid-19. We’ll keep assessing on a two-week cycle, just to make sure we’re adapting and doing what we can, and if anything throws up a spanner, we’ll deal with that as it comes.”Karen Rolton Oval will be one of the venues used for Sheffield Shield hub•ICC

Reflecting the array of different regulations in place across the country, not all states will have things as easy as others. Victoria’s squad is currently in hotel quarantine at Adelaide’s Playford hotel, with training restricted to groups of four transported under guard to the nets. By contrast, South Australia have the benefits of home comforts, while the New South Wales squad departed earlier than originally scheduled on Thursday in advance of a slight rise in Covid 19 cases in the state: the better to make the trip before the state border has a chance to be closed again.Each match will be live streamed with sufficient quality to also be made available through CA’s digital streaming partner Kayo, owned by Foxtel. Still more promising is the prospect that, unlike those pessimistic May forecasts, the Shield may end up being played to a more complete duration than it was last season, when the final round and the final were both cancelled to hand the trophy to New South Wales.”Anything is possible, but we’re planning on the back end of the domestic summer to be complete,” Ginn said. “We’re optimistic that the borders will keep improving. We have planned in the rounds we’re going to play, not only in Shield but also the one-day cup and the WNCL as well.”We can’t do a whole lot about Covid-19, so if things get dramatically worse, that’ll be the thing that jeopardises that opportunity. Running to the end of April is an adaptation we’ve created already, so conversations about what that has to be like if we get further restrictions, we’ll do, but we have to be optimistic that things will improve.”All parties concerned, whether they be CA, the states, the players or support staff, are ardently hoping that the hubs required for the first four rounds and potentially the BBL will not be necessary for the back end of the season. But given the wide spectrum of possible scenarios that the Shield has been subjected to over the past few months, all are wary of further change.”When you look at the entire season, there’s a lot of hub time that could be experienced by players, coaches and staff, so that’s not our preferred scenario,” Ginn said. “We are prepared for it if it has to happen.”We’re planning for the back end of the season to be much more free in terms of border restrictions, and much more like a normal domestic competition – in a Covid-19 environment so we’ll still be staying as safe as we can – but the main thing is we’ll keep assessing that as we get closer to the BBL period. Fingers crossed we’re running things much more in line with what we do traditionally, but we do have flexibility.”

25-year-old Taylor rejected an improved deal at Grace Road

George Dobell15-Sep-2020Tom Taylor is set to join Northamptonshire after rejecting a new contract at Leicestershire.Taylor, the 25-year-old allrounder, is out of contract at the end of the season. While Leicestershire are understood to have pushed their budget as far as they could in a bid to keep him, he has opted to move to the third Midlands county of his career. Taylor started out at Derbyshire and moved to Leicestershire ahead of the 2018 season.It is understood that several other counties – including Warwickshire – have expressed a passing interest in Taylor over recent months, but Northants have won the race for his signature.The move is a blow to Leicestershire. While they have become accustomed to losing players to more affluent rivals – notably Nottinghamshire – to lose out to another club with a limited budget is a setback.But Northamptonshire were promoted to Division One of the County Championship at the end of 2019 – Leicestershire were bottom of Division Two – and are currently second in the Central Group in the Vitality Blast. Leicestershire are third in the North Group.Leicestershire’s disappointment is increased as they feel they had nursed Taylor through a couple of serious back injuries and considered him a central figure in their team redevelopment. They have already announced they will not be selecting him in the remaining Vitality Blast matches as they look to provide opportunities to other players instead.

County’s new blood makes inroads into Derbyshire’s batting at Aigburth

Paul Edwards07-Sep-2020

George Balderson claims another wicket•Getty Images

Liverpool’s pavilion might have been designed to host cricket in the Covidian age. For one thing it is huge. The three-storey pile was one of the largest in England when the ground was opened in 1881 and even now it could be mistaken for a venerable county headquarters. Certainly it was a splendid location for scenes in . During this game Lancashire have been allotted the enormous dressing rooms on the third floor while Derbyshire have the use of the squash changing rooms at ground level plus The Century Pavilion, which is normally used for hospitality, and a small tent on the boundary. The umpires have their own facilities so there is no need for either teams or officials to come into contact beyond the boundary.But after yesterday morning’s play Derbyshire probably appreciated the chance to have time to themselves. A score of 17 for 4 hardly creates the ideal atmosphere for small talk over the melon and couscous. Billy Godleman’s men probably preferred to take tea alone, too, given that by the second interval they had subsided to 71 for 7 against a Lancashire attack four of whose five members had not played any first-class cricket before the Bob Willis Trophy began.Facing a deficit of 138 and with only three wickets in hand, it was easy to see how Lancashire might build a position of Vizigothic dominance by the close. Too easy, perhaps. There has been a healthy helping of Peak District grit about Derbyshire’s cricket this season and this was apparent again in a gloomy and glorious evening session during which Harvey Hosein and Mattie McKiernan added most of the 59 runs in their unbroken eighth-wicket partnership. It may not be enough to save Derbyshire from defeat in this match, much less give them a hope of the victory they need to qualify for the Bob Willis Trophy final. But it was fine cricket and all it needed to make it perfect was the appreciation of supporters who knew good stuff when they saw it.Qualification for the final at Lord’s final must wait for the third or fourth day of this game when the results of the games at Chelmsford and Worcester are known. To judge from various discussions everything seems to depend on a range of factors, which may include the Doppler Effect, the Turkish bank rate, the Brexit withdrawal deal, Jurgen Klopp’s inside-leg measurement, the average temperature in the Atacama Desert, the mating pattern of Mexican spiders, Priti Patel’s IQ and the length of time it takes to cook a cheese soufflé in the Hindu Kush. At some stage we will add the points up and see who’s got the most.None of it troubles Lancashire’s coaches. Their side’s chance of reaching the final has long since disappeared and they are enjoying the sight of a fine crop of young cricketers making the most of their opportunities. And no one did this with greater relish during this heavily clouded Monday on Merseyside than Danny Lamb and George Balderson, both of whom took three wickets.In the second over of Derbyshire innings, Lamb pitched one on off stump and the left-handed Luis Reece edged a catch to George Lavelle, thereby becoming the keeper’s maiden first-class victim. In Lamb’s next over Godleman departed in like fashion except that his snick was taken by Keaton Jennings at first slip. Three balls later Leus du Plooy played across a very full inswinger to give Steve O’Shaughnessy another easy decision. And just before the persistent rain showers prompted a two-hour lunch break Wayne Madsen played outside a straight ball from Balderson and was leg before to one of Lancashire’s most promising cricketers.On the resumption Matt Critchley and Fynn Hudson-Prentice attempted to rescue the innings. It was not a foolish quest; Derbyshire’s short season has contained many wonders. But having helped Hudson-Prentice add 27 for the fifth wicket Critchley fell, and was nearly felled, when he ducked into a full toss from George Burrows and was leg before wicket for 14 when patently playing no shot.Some thought the ball might have been missing off stump but their number did not include Graham Lloyd. And there was no doubt about the slip catches taken by Tom Hartley and Jennings which subsequently removed both Hudson-Prentice and Anuj Dal off the bowling off Balderson. Hartley’s low catch was particularly fine and there is currently scarcely a session that passes without him or Balderson showing something which proclaims their professional pedigree. Lancashire will not win the Bob Willis Trophy but this has been a valuable season for the club. It is good news in these febrile times.

واصل الدولي المصري عمر مرموش لاعب آينتراخت فرانكفورت، التألق مع فريقه أمام بايرن ميونخ، في المباراة التي أقيمت بينهما اليوم الأحد، ضمن منافسات بطولة الدوري الألماني.

وتواجه بايرن ميونخ مع آينتراخت فرانكفورت، في إطار منافسات الجولة السادسة من عمر مواجهات بطولة الدوري الألماني “البوندسليجا”.

وتعادل فريق آينتراخت فرانكفورت أمام بايرن ميونخ، بنتيجة 3-3، ليظل عند النقطة 13 محتلًا المركز الثالث في ترتيب الدوري الألماني.

بينما فريق بايرن ميونخ، يتصدر ترتيب الدوري الألماني برصيد 14 نقطة، من الفوز في 4 مباريات والتعادل في مواجهتين.

مرموش لعب أساسيًا في المباراة حتي نهايته، حصل على تقييم 8.9 وهو الأعلى بين لاعبي الفريقين، بحسب شبكة “سوفا سكور”.

عمر مرموش استطاع أن يسجل هدف فريقه الأول أمام بايرن ميونخ في الدقيقة 23، من انطلاقه في ظهر دفاع الفريق البافاري، انفرد بمرمى الحارس مانويل نوير. هدف عمر مرموش الأول أمام بايرن ميونخ

وفي الدقيقة 35، ساهم عمر مرموش في تقديم تمريرة حاسمة لزميله هوجو إيكيتيكي ليسجل هدف آينتراخت فرانكفورت الثاني في اللقاء. هدف فرانكفورت الثاني في مرمي بايرن ميونخ أسيست عمر مرموش

وعاد مرموش من جديد في الدقائق الأخيرة من عمر اللقاء، وسجل هدف تعادل قاتل لفريقه، لتصبح النتيجة 3-3، بعدما سدد كرة متقنة من داخل منطقة الجزاء، بعدما وصلته تمريرة رائعة من زميله إيريك جونيور دينا. هدف عمر مرموش الثاني أمام بايرن ميونخ

وصل عمر مرموش بعد هدفي اليوم، إلى الهدف الثامن له، ليعزز صدارته في ترتيب هدافي الدوري الألماني، ويبتعد عن هاري كين مهاجم بايرن ميونخ بـ3 أهداف.

طالع.. فيديو | في الوقت القاتل.. عمر مرموش يُسجل هدف تعادل فرانكفورت أمام بايرن ميونخ مهارة رائعة من عمر مرموش في مباراة فرانكفورت وبايرن ميونخ

وكان لـ عمر مرموش تسديدتين على المرمى، كما نجح في مراوغتين من أصل 3، وقدم تمريرات صحيحة بنسبة 78%، ولمس الكرة 31 مرة.

وفاز مرموش في الالتحامات الأرضية مع المنافس، 7 مرات من أصل 12، وفقد الاستحواذ 11 مرة. ملخص لمسات عمر مرموش في مباراة آينتراخت فرانكفورت وبايرن ميونخ 

MatériaMais Notícias

da esport bet： A Ponte Preta inicia, nesta quinta-feira, a disputa do Campeonato Brasileiro de Aspirantes. A Macaca visita o Avaí, às 15h, na Ressacada, com um time composto em sua maioria por jogadores do sub-20 e alguns atletas que estavam treinando com o time principal e “desceram” para a disputa da competição. O zagueiro Douglas, que deve ser titular, falou da preparação.

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– Viemos trabalhando forte nas últimas semanas e estamos preparados para a competição. O time está entrosado, a gente se conhece bem e vamos fazer o nosso melhor. Estamos focados e com muita vontade de jogar e mostrar nosso futebol – afirmou Douglas.

O zagueiro, de apenas 16 anos, é uma das promessas da base da Ponte Preta que passou por um período de treinamentos com o time principal. Durante o Campeonato Paulista, Douglas foi levado para o elenco profissional e observado pela comissão técnica. Agora, de volta para a base, quer mostrar serviço para retornar de vez para o time principal.

– Foi uma experiência muito boa. Poder treinar com os jogadores do grupo principal, conviver com jogadores mais experientes… Isso ajuda muito no nosso desenvolvimento. Agora vou trabalhar pra ajudar o time sub-20, pra gente fazer uma boa campanha no Aspirantes, e quem sabe, voltar pro elenco principal – disse o zagueiro.

A Ponte Preta está no grupo A do Brasileiro de Aspirantes, com Ceará, Corinthians, Cuiabá, Figueirense, Grêmio, Juventude e Vitória. Na primeira fase da competição, os time enfrentam os adversários do outro grupo. Além do Avaí, a Macaca vai enfrentar Bahia, Coritiba, CRB, Fluminense, Fortaleza, Red Bull Bragantino e Santos.

Lionel Messi-less Inter Miami held a 2-0 lead but couldn't hold on as the Crew rallied to win 3-2

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Inter Miami crash out of 2024 Leagues CupMessi did not play, still recovering from injuryColumbus Crew advance to quarterfinalsUSA Today ImagesTELL ME MORE

Inter Miami were stunned by a relentless Columbus Crew side in a 3-2 come-from-behind win to book a ticket to the Leagues Cup semifinals.

It's another gutsy win for Columbus that has come to define the Wilfried Nancy era as manager.

Despite missing Lionel Messi, who is still recovering from an ankle injury sustained during the Copa America, Miami dominated the opening 63 minutes of the match. The opened the scoring just 10 minutes into the contest as Paraguayan winger Matias Rojas bagged his fourth goal of the tournament. After a slow end to the first half, Tata Martino's side doubled its lead midway through the second half through Diego Gomez in the 63rd minute.

Then, the tides turned.

The Crew scored twice in the following seven minutes to level the match, with Christian Ramirez banging a header home in the 67th minute and Diego Rossi thumping home another goal in the 69th minute to draw level.

With momentum on their side, Rossi added a second and Columbus' third in the 81st minute to complete their sensational comeback.

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The Crew and Miami clashed in the middle of June that saw the Herons earn three points in a narrow 2-1 victory at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Goals from Ian Fray and Leonardo Campana saw them over the line.

This time around, though, the Crew got the best of their Eastern Conference counterparts.

THE MVP

Diego Rossi:

Rossi came alive in the second half with the introduction of striker Christian Ramirez at halftime. The former U.S. international allowed the Columbus winger to stretch the width of the pitch, and with it, came goals.

Rossi bagged the second and third for the Crew, both incredibly clinical finishes. The Uruguayan attacker was absolutely sensational over the final 45 minutes, and changed the course of the match with his threat in and around the box.

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USA Today ImagesTHE BIG LOSER

Martino:

' manager's choices throughout the second half with substitutions were baffling. After the Crew earned a goal back, he brought on Julian Gressel, but they conceded again just minutes later and no changes followed.

After Columbus' third, Ian Fray, Benjamin Cremaschi and Leo Campana were introduced, but the changes were far too late. It was incredibly poor second half management from the Argentine manager.

He had a two-goal advantage, but failed to adjust to the tempo of the match, and as a result, they crashed out.

Top-scoring for his team and claiming a wicket with his fourth ball, young import makes impressive start

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Jul-2020Curtis Campher marked his senior international debut with an accomplished all-round performance that would have allowed even a far more seasoned campaigner to hold his head high.Top-scoring as Ireland’s last man standing with an unbeaten 59 then claiming a wicket with just his fourth ball in ODIs, 21-year-old Campher would not change much – except the result and perhaps adding the noise of a crowd.”I loved it,” Campher told Sky Sports after England comfortably won the first of three ODIs behind closed doors at the Ageas Bowl on Thursday. “You can’t ask for a better debut in my eyes. Maybe one or two things could have gone differently but, for me, really it was just taking the moment.”All the guys spoke to me, and just said, ‘just enjoy your debut and relish the challenge’.”ALSO READ: Willey enjoys five-star return after ‘rollercoaster’ England rideCampher’s only previous List A game was for Ireland Wolves against Namibia in February but captain Andy Balibirnie was comfortable throwing him into the action after he had impressed in the nets. His 59 not out was the second-highest by an Irish ODI debutant, behind the man leading the opposition, Eoin Morgan.”I thought it was very impressive for a guy who’s not even played a game in Ireland yet to come in as a 21-year-old and put in a performance like that,” Balbirnie said. “It was sort of an old-school knock, but it was exactly what we needed – we needed someone to occupy the crease and adapt to conditions, which as top-five batters we weren’t able to do.”It was as good a debut as I’ve seen in an Irish shirt in the last number of years, and it’s a huge positive to take. He’s only 21 and hopefully he can get better from today.”While the flag Campher was flying was perhaps not the one he had originally envisaged, having switched allegience from South Africa – whom he represented at Under-19 level – on the basis of his mother’s Irish passport, he has slotted into his new team comfortably.”It’s been the easiest thing to walk into this environment and everyone’s been welcoming and just been so good to me,” Campher added. “Having the backing of all the players, the captain and all the support staff has just been a dream really.”Campher came in with Ireland in dire trouble at 28 for 5 and saw off David Willey’s hat-trick ball. He shared a 51-run stand with 134-match veteran Kevin O’Brien and managed to pull Ireland up to a more respectable 172 with a patient innings lasting 118 balls and the best part of three hours before he ran out of partners.Curtis Campher celebrates reaching fifty•Getty Images

“It was a bit weird facing guys with no crowd,” Campher said. “I just tried to stay focused for as long periods as possible. Kev was just amazing to me, mentoring me and taking me through it.”It’s been an amazing journey so far and hopefully it’s the start of something good.”Ireland’s task of defending a relatively modest target against the world champion side, albeit with a few new faces on board, hit a snag early when Barry McCarthy limped off with a knee injury just five balls into England’s innings.But they managed to make inroads thanks to Craig Young and Andy McBrine as England’s top order of Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow and James Vince fell cheaply.England promoted Tom Banton and Sam Billings up the order and it was Campher who struck to remove No. 4 Banton, not for the first time.In a youth ODI for South Africa U19s in 2018, Campher dismissed Banton lbw for 9. During their latest encounter, Banton wafted at a short ball and top-edged to Lorcan Tucker behind the stumps for 11 – but Campher played down the symmetry.”I think sometimes it’s just how it goes to be honest,” he said. “Just happy to to be doing something for for the side and contributing.”It was good to get a bowl. I didn’t think it would be that soon. Sadly Baz got injured but for me it’s just keeping it simple and trying to restrict. Happy to do a job for the captain today.”

Arsenal head into their crunch clash with Manchester City on Easter Day sat top of the Premier League.

A win for Liverpool a few hours before may well bump them down but the fact remains, this is a pretty good time to be a fan of the Gunners.

They have recovered from a mini-slump around the New Year period to crash home a bucket load of goals in their pursuit of domestic and continental glory.

Mikel Arteta and Edu have also concluded some important business behind the scenes over that time, tying down defenders Takehiro Tomiyasu and Ben White to new contracts.

White now sits on a pretty pay packet of a reported £150k-per-week, extending his stay in north London until 2028 at the least.

That said, PR surrounding White hasn't all been positive over the last fortnight with his unwillingness to play for England being revealed by Gareth Southgate.

Ben White's situation with England

To date, White has only earned four caps for the England national team but it doesn't appear as though he'll be adding to that total anytime soon.

The right-back was part of the squad for the last Euros and was also part of the World Cup squad in Qatar, a richly deserved call-up for his progression with Arsenal.

Sadly, the 26-year-old didn't feature in either tournament and as has been well documented now, left the World Cup early.

The reason? Well, an alleged altercation of sorts with one of Southgate's coaches, Steve Holland.

The Athletic believe that Holland wasn't a great fan of White's attitude, with the coach reportedly calling the defender out for not taking things seriously enough. Southgate denies any disagreement staunchly, but it's led to the £50m man making himself unavailable for his national team.

That said, speaking in his pre-international break press conference, the England boss is still open to a return to the setup for the Arsenal star.

He commented: "On form, I can't sit here and say [White] doesn't deserve to be in. John McDermott [technical director] had a call from Edu last week to say Ben didn't want to be considered for England squads at this time.

"That's a great shame, he's a player I really like, he's a player we took to the Euros when he was at Brighton, to the World Cup. I spoke to him post-Qatar, because I wanted to pick him. There was clearly reticence from his side, I don't know fully why that is."

The reaction has been quite something with some in the footballing sphere criticising the defender. However, some, like Lee Dixon have shown a little more understanding of the situation.

What Lee Dixon has said about Ben White

Speaking to Football FanCast on behalf of BetVictor Casino Dixon wasn't too critical of White's decision.

The well-known pundit said: "He might be sitting there in 15 – 20 years time and going 'oh, I wish I would have played for England' but that’s up to him.

"I’ve gone on record before as saying if he doesn't play, we don't know the full reasons and we might never know the full reasons, that’s up to him. If he doesn't want to play. Okay, fine. Well, thanks for trying. Who's next? That's exactly where I sit with it."

The former Arsenal man followed that up by suggesting the pressure of playing for your country could have been a further reason behind White's decision, using his own playing career as an example.

Like Arsenal's current number 4, Dixon never appeared at a major tournament for England, having made the first of his 22 caps in April 1990. He endured a period of international exile between 1994 and 1999 when he made his final outing for England in a 2-0 defeat against France.

Detailing that experience, the 60-year-old warned White that the pressure may well be even greater if and when he does play for the Three Lions again: "When I came back to play for England when I was in my late 30s and I got called back by Howard Wilkinson the pressure that I was under then after seven years out was huge. I didn't enjoy it. I played one game and I really didn't enjoy it.

"I was at a time in my career – he’s not at that – he’s a lot younger and it's different, but I can relate to it if it is a pressure thing. I felt that when I first played for England it’s a different pressure because you want to play and I would always want to play for England, but he doesn't so fine. There's the line, thanks a lot, shake his hand and get on with it."

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