By LAWRENCE BOOTH, CRICKET CORRESPONDENT

Published: 20:38 BST, 25 September 2026 | Updated: 23:03 BST, 25 September 2026

For those of us who supported Manchester City long before they were accused of financial skulduggery, it has been a strange few years.

City were completely inoffensive back then – the comedy club who once kept the ball near the corner flag because they had been (wrongly) told a draw would spare them relegation. 

For years, the fans survived on scraps. The near miss in the 1981 FA Cup final, when they were robbed by a freakish Tommy Hutchison own goal. The Full Members’ Cup final of 1986, when they lost 5-4 to Chelsea. The mad play-off comeback against Gillingham.

But when the money poured in from Abu Dhabi, there arose a strange conundrum. Did I prefer the old days, when City were popular but useless? Or was it all about winning, no matter the cost? The answer was not always straightforward. 

Advertisement

Now that they’ve been found guilty of all but one of the 115 charges, at least we finally have a bit of clarity, grim though it looks. 

My greatest fear has always been that they would be retrospectively stripped of titles, like Russian athletes at the Olympics. 

Man City’s 115 charges saga has left LAWRENCE BOOTH yearning for the comedy club days

Advertisement

The idea Sergio Aguero’s last-gasp title winning goal against QPR in 2012 might now be null and void is hard to stomatch

Financial penalties, points deductions, even relegation – I could live with all that. But the idea that the last-ditch winner against QPR in 2011-12 might now be null and void is hard to stomach: Aguerooooo…oh! 

Other fans, who have continually protested their indifference to a ‘small club’ like City, will still say their achievements deserve an asterisk. That’s how fandom operates. No matter the lawyers eventually conclude – needless to say, City will appeal – the court of public opinion made up its mind long ago.

I get the sentiment. I didn’t like the fact that City were attracting censure, not affection. I hated the thought that their trophies were regarded as ill-gotten gains. But try as I might, I couldn’t cut the umbilical cord. It’s not terribly logical, but that’s how fandom operates too.

Advertisement

I was also suspicious of the notion that money automatically means success. Manchester United are proof that life isn’t always so simple. Money helps, sure. But it has to be spent wisely: Sergio Aguero, Kevin de Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Ederson, even Manuel Akanji – was anyone else trying to buy these guys?

Oddly, I found last season quite relaxing, what with Arsenal finally getting over the line. Sorry if it sounds arrogant, but winning the league was no longer the thrill it was when Aguero did his thing. 

Life felt a bit more normal again: a draw was not a disaster, and City’s defending was occasionally comical, just like the old times. Who knows: perhaps, one day, people will even learn to love us again, though I accept that is more likely if we’re banished to the Enterprise Rent-A-Car National League first. 

It wasn’t that I didn’t care about, or had forgotten, them – there was just no need to call. They knew where I was, and that I was safe. I knew where they were and that they were well. So, apart from a very occasional call – maybe twice over the 12 weeks – there was no contact. It was the same for my flatmates, who also rarely called home.

When we did ring, we hated having to queue at the little phone booth under the stairs in our hall of residence. The sole payphone was always busy, usually with someone on a lengthy call to a boyfriend or girlfriend back home, trying to convince them that they were miserable and missing them, before heading to the pub with their new set of mates.

So, unless you could be bothered to find and use a payphone in town – and let’s not forget how payphones gobbled up your change – calls to family were few and far between.

Did this lack of contact do us any harm? Did it upset our parents? Of course not. Those were the days pre-mobile phone, when students carving out new lives many miles from home really were independent.

Not so now. Technology may have moved on, but it has made young people far more dependent on their parents.

Today’s young students find it difficult to fully fly the nest – sending 528 text messages a year to Mum and Dad, asking for help.

Grown-up children turn to their parents for everything, from cooking queries, such as how to boil an egg, to money issues, flat sharing problems and applying for part-time work, according to a study commissioned by Costa Coffee.

They even contact their parents to ask about where to find the electricity meter and stopcock in a house, and how to book an Uber. So clingy are some students that 61 per cent of parents feel as though they haven’t left home.

Money issues are another subject about which students contact their parents. Picture: Pixabay

Students starting out this month at universities across the UK are, by all accounts, among the brightest members of society, so how come they need help with what are fairly basic aspects of life?

Some of the blame has to be levelled at the advancements in technology. As I said previously, the only way we could contact our parents was by payphone, which was a hassle. Nowadays, with mobile phones – which parents are most likely paying for – children can call Mum and Dad anytime, or send a quick message on WhatsApp.

It’s a great shame. It’s hugely beneficial for young people to work problems out for themselves. It’s what people refer to as lessons in life. In fact, lessons in life would be a great GSCE subject. Areas covered could include managing finances – budgeting for the weekly shop and bills, plus information about rent, mortgages, Council Tax, credit cards and income tax. In other words, the cost of living.

A module on practical skills would be hugely useful, covering such things as cooking and using a washing machine, and DIY skills like putting up a shelf and changing a lightbulb.

Then there’s those general administrative skills that we all need to master – mobile phone contracts, meter readings and how to write a formal email. All of this would help towards carving out an independent life. Aside from that, today’s students have got Google and YouTube offering advice on everything.

As a student living 250 miles from home, I loved forging a life for myself. It wasn’t always easy, but we students were all in the same boat and, between us, we worked stuff out. My husband went to boarding school, so was already accustomed to long periods of no contact with his parents.

I am pleased to say that, despite having mobile phones, neither of my daughters sent frequent SOS messages when they left home.

We are, of course, always there if they need us; keeping in touch is important, but kids need to grow up and negotiate the trials and tribulations of the real world. They will be stronger for it.

A Belfast man beat the heavy pregnant mother of his children to death with implements, including a ‘Dad’ water bottle bought as a Father’s Day gift, a court heard today (Friday).

Details of the murder of Donaghadee mother-of-two Sarah Montgomery were aired at Belfast Crown Court where it emerged that as a result of the fatal attack, her 32-week old unborn son Liam did not survive.

The much-loved 27-year old was murdered in her Elmfield Walk home on June 27, 2025 in what a prosecuting barrister described as a “cold-blooded, sustained and murderous attack” which lasted around 19 minutes.

Ms Montgomery sustained at least 59 sites of injury and was left to die in her blood-splattered flat by her murderer Zak Hughes (29) who also took her mobile phone and house keys.

With their two young daughters in his jeep, the personal trainer then changed his clothes and dumped the murder weapons in a bin in Belfast.

As Ms Montgomery’s loved ones sat in the public gallery, Crown barrister Geraldine McCullough KC described what happened in June 2025 as “one of the worst cases of domestic violence in recent times.”

Outlining the Crown’s case to Lady Justice McBride, the prosecutor said Ms Montgomery and Hughes both attended Glastry Secondary School and had been in a relationship from second year.

After Ms Montgomery became pregnant with their first child, their relationship faltered and following this, it continued on an on/off basis.

When Ms Montgomery told Hughes of her second pregnancy, Hughes initially denied he was the father until a DNA test proved he was.

At the time of Ms Montgomery’s death, Hughes lived at Ardglen Place in Belfast with his fiancée who was also heavily pregnant with his child.

Ms McCullough said Hughes had “obviously been involved in sexual relationships with both woman simultaneously.”

Both of Ms Montgomery’s parents are deceased and she last spoke to her grandfather on Friday June 27 when she told him her eldest daughter was unwell and not going to school that day.

When her grandfather spoke to Ms Montgomery later that day, she told him her daughter was waiting for her Daddy to collect her for the weekend.

This routine of Hughes collecting his two daughters on a Friday and leaving then back home on a Sunday was normal.

The Crown barrister said that on Saturday June 28, friends and relatives of Ms Montgomery’s tried to contact her by phone but got no response.

Her grandfather went to the flat and, using his own key as the door was locked, he discovered his granddaughter cold and lying on her side covered in blood.

She was lying partially in the living room and partially in the hall and a broken brush was under her body.

There was blood throughout the flat and after another relative arrived an ambulance was called.

A call handler instructed that CPR should be started but this was to no avail – and when the ambulance arrived Ms Montgomery was pronounced dead at 2.48pm.

Ms McCullough that when the PSNI arrived, it was clear “there had been an attempt to clean up the scene.”

A post-mortem conducted on June 29 concluded that Ms Montgomery’s death was due to a head injury consistent with blunt force trauma.

It was concluded that Ms Montgomery was subjected to a sustained blunt force trauma assault involving the minimum of 59 applications.

It was also determined that baby Liam died as a result of oxygen deprivation caused by his mother’s death.

Setting out the relevant background leading to the murder, Ms McCullough said that around the end of May 2025 Ms Montgomery found out Hughes’s fiancée was pregnant.

As she question him about this over the coming weeks, Hughes denied the pregnancy and said his fiancée was ‘just fat.’

Due to her suspicions, Ms Montgomery started recording her conversations with Hughes.

He initially told Ms Montgomery his fiancée was not pregnant ‘any more’ then on June 13 he falsely claimed his fiancée has lost the baby in a traffic accident.

On June 15 Ms Montgomery sent Hughes a photo of a blue water bottle bearing the word ‘Dad’ which was a Father’s Day gift from their daughters.

Ms McCullough said: “This bottle was used as a murder weapon and was later discovered by police amongst items he had discarded.”

On June 20 Hughes told Ms Montgomery he was ending his relationship with his fiancée and that he wanted to sort things out with her and be able to see his daughters.

Ms Montgomery remained suspicious and after calling Hughes’s mother, it was confirmed his fiancée was pregnant.

Just before 9am on June 27 Ms Montgomery sent Hughes a message informing him she knew his fiancée was still pregnant, to which he replied ‘we need to talk about this and not over the phone.’

Ms Montgomery’s friends knew that Hughes was due to call to her house that day and the last contact any of them had with her was at 1.33pm on June 27.

Messages sent from one friend later that day and evening went unanswered which prompted the friend to call at her flat the following afternoon but there was no response when she knocked at the door.

When she called back later that day, she encountered the Emergency Services at the flat.

An investigation was launched and CCTV footage was obtained from a neighbouring flat.

This showed Hughes entering Ms Montgomery’s flat at 1.33pm and their eldest daughter exiting the flat at 1.37pm then sitting in Hughes car alone for around 30 minutes.

The CCTV also picked up Hughes leaving the flat at 2.07 carrying a Smyths Toys bag. After this, he picked up his youngest daughter from school and left Donaghadee.

Other evidence examined by police was a recording Ms Montgomery made when Hughes was in her flat.

On the recording, they discussed the fiancée’s pregnancy with Hughes saying he lied to her as he was worried he wouldn’t see the girls again.

At the end of the recording, Sarah is heard saying ‘Jesus’ then screaming ‘Zak’ several times.

The sounds of striking can be heard and the final 24 seconds of the clip is the sound of Ms Montgomery screaming.

After the fatal beating, Hughes stopped at Ards Shopping Centre where he bought a change of clothes in Primark

He also took her phone which he dumped in bushes at B&Q at Holywood Exchange alongside a lanyard with two house keys which bore Ms Montgomery’s blood.

Hughes also dumped the blood-stained dented water bottle and a wooden brush shaft which police believe were the murder weapons.

At 6.17pm, Hughes sent a message to Ms Montgomery’s phone about their daughter being sick.

This, Ms McCullough said, was sent “knowing that Sarah was dead or dying at the time.”

He then sent a picture to her phone at 7.20pm of him and the two girls.

The following day, Hughes and his two daughters attended a baby shower for his pregnant fiancée’s baby.

Hughes was arrested at 9.50pm on Saturday June 28 at a relative’s address in Ballyhalbert where injuries to his right hand were noted.

He gave an initial account of Friday June 27 when he claimed he went to the flat to collect his daughter and was there for between five to ten minutes before leaving.

During a further interview on July 1, Hughes admitted killing Ms Montgomery.

In a statement he said that after talking about the pregnancy, she pushed him and told him he would not see the girls again and he hit her with his water bottle.

This, Ms McCullough said, was a lie given what was picked up in the recording.

Hughes also told police “I didn’t mean to kill her.”

Concluding the Crown’s case, Ms McCullough said: “This brutal murder of an innocent, vulnerable, heavily pregnant single mother was the senseless result of the defendant’s failure to be a normal decent human being.”

She added that Hughes “cheated on women, lied to Ms Montgomery and when confronted was “too weak to admit his wrongdoings.

“After he savagely beat and murdered Sarah Montgomery, while she screamed out to him for mercy, he left her and their unborn child dead or dying in her flat.

“This cold-blooded, sustained, murderous attack, which included beating and beating for about 19 minutes … carried out for so little reason, must be viewed as one of the worst cases of domestic violence in recent years.”

Defence barrister Charles MacCreanor KC then addressed Lady Justice McBride and said nothing he said “could take away from the fact this is a horrific case” which caused a “high level of harm.”

Mr MacCreanor pointed out a lack of planning and pre-meditation compared to other cases including the death of pregnant Lurgan woman Natalie McNally.

He added that Hughes’s guilty plea to charges of murder and causing the destruction of her unborn child proved he had “faced up” and “accepted full responsibility” at an early stage.

After listening to submissions from both the Crown and defence, the senior judge said she wanted time to reflect on what she had heard.

She re-listed the case for review next Friday when it is hoped that a date will be set for the Tariff hearing.

This hearing will determine how long Hughes will spend in prison before he is considered eligible for release.

At the conclusion of today’s hearing, Hughes was returned to custody ahead of the Tariff hearing.

For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter.

Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen’s divorce in 2022 shocked America. The greatest quarterback in history and the woman who was once the world’s highest-paid model were a fairytale match made real.

Now, after years of extensive research speaking to friends, eyewitnesses and teammates, bestselling author Lars Anderson’s new book Brady: An American Story and the Price of Greatness reveals how it all went so terribly wrong.

Tom Brady longed to stay connected to his old life, to keep feeling that high-voltage climax of competition he’d been chasing since he was a teenager.

But he was also tormented by the mounting feeling that it was almost immoral to keep playing because the job essentially rendered him an absent father and husband for half the year.

His brain dictated one course of action. His gut chartered another – a problem similar to trying to walk in opposite directions at once.

‘It’s not always what I want,’ he said in January 2022. ‘It’s what we want as a family. And I’m gonna spend a lot of time with them and figure out in the future what’s next.’

In particular, Brady felt that his Victoria’s Secret model wife Gisele Bundchen ‘deserved’ more of his time as a husband and a father.

Brady’s unrelenting desire to continue playing football had placed enormous strain on the marriage. At first, she tried to gently nudge him into retirement.

In 2017, minutes after Brady had just masterminded the greatest comeback in NFL history to win his sixth Super Bowl, Gisele and their two children ran onto the field to celebrate.

But the first words Gisele said to her husband of eight years had nothing to do with the game and everything to do with the future: Would now be the perfect time to retire?

Brady didn’t know what to say. He hugged his wife and acted as if he hadn’t heard the question.

When Brady first met Gisele, whose net worth was close to $400 million and had graced more magazine covers than anybody on earth, he said he was only planning to play in the NFL for 10 more years

As his wife’s career faded into the background and her yearning for him to be at home with their family grew, Brady built a dynasty with Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots

Later that night in Houston, as the team celebrated, Gisele pressed her husband a second time. Brady was unresponsive.

After a third attempt, he finally answered. ‘Too bad, babe,’ he said. ‘I’m having too much fun right now.’

Weeks later, the couple and their children went on vacation with Jay Feely, a former teammate of Brady’s with the Michigan Wolverines.

Gisele asked Feely to do what she could not: persuade her husband. Gisele pressured Feely to frame retirement as Brady’s final and most important act of leadership – one for his family.

‘She was dead serious, too,’ Feely later said.

‘Play as long as you want,’ he told Brady.

Brady winked at his buddy.

Gisele went for a more direct approach in 2018, days after Brady and the New England Patriots had suffered a gut-wrenching Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Gisele wrote her husband a letter – serious, handwritten. She explained that their marriage wasn’t working. She needed more of him, more of his time, more of his attention, more of his heart.

She needed him to be present when he was at home, not responding to text messages on his constantly buzzing cell phone or replaying a game in his mind.

She needed more help with the kids. She needed the chance to sleep in just a few days a week. She needed more time for her own career.

Gisele ran onto the field to celebrate with Brady after he had just completed the greatest comeback in NFL history, only to immediately question him on a potential retirement

Brady and Gisele have son Benjamin (left) and daughter Vivian (right). But she also helped raise Jack (center), the son Brady shares with actress Bridget Moynahan: pictured in 2021

Advertisement

‘People need to understand that Gisele was a bigger international star than Tom,’ said a former Brady teammate. ‘She was getting tired of living on Tom’s schedule and being somewhat in his shadow during football season. She has a lot of pride, too. And, I mean, how many times did you see Tom supporting her career? There clearly were imbalances there.’

The couple went to marriage counselling, but Brady eventually filed the heartfelt letter in a drawer.

He’d pull it out on contemplative nights and reread every word, wanting to be reminded that he needed to tend to his marriage with the same tenacity he tended to his job.

In early 2020, the family relocated from to Florida when Brady signed for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

‘Think about being married to Tom,’ said one of Brady’s friends, a former NFL player. ‘The guy gets up at the crack of dawn, thinks all day about a game that is foreign to his wife, comes home and is in bed each night by nine. He can’t really eat out or go out without causing a scene. Everything he puts in his mouth tastes like s***. The whole lifestyle had to be getting tiresome for Gisele.’

BRADY: AN AMERICAN STORY AND THE PRICE OF GREATNESS 

Lars Anderson’s new Brady biography is released on Tuesday September 29 and is available to purchase HERE

Advertisement

<!- – ad: https://mads.dailymail.co.uk/v8/de/sport/nfl/article/other/mpu_factbox.html?id=mpu_factbox_1 – ->

Worried that enrolling their young children at a new school would be ‘too much change,’ Gisele committed to homeschooling Benny and Vivian in Tampa. ‘We were only going to stay for a year,’ she said.

One year turned to two.

And so it was that, in January 2022, America’s most famous quarterback found himself weighing the case of Brady vs. Brady – the sportsman vs. the family man.

He deliberated for nine days. It was close to a hung jury; Brady leaned 55 percent one way, 45 percent the other.

But on February 1, he announced the verdict: At the age of 44 and after 22 years in professional football, his NFL career was over.

That decision lasted just 40 days.

On March 13, Brady announced he would return for a 23rd season, his sights set on an eighth Super Bowl win.

‘I’ve realized my place is still on the field and not in the stands. That time will come. But it’s not now,’ he said.

At first, Gisele made the right noises, expressing public support for her husband’s decision to play on.

‘I don’t think relationships just happen. It’s never the fairytale people want to believe it is,’ she said that summer.

‘When you love someone, you don’t put them in a jail and say, “You have to live this life.” You set them free to be who they are.’

But when Brady walked into One Buc Place in July for the start of training camp, the sight of him – gaunt and cadaverous – was that of a man worn thin, reduced to bone and sorrow.

Brady and Gisele looked smitten on vacation in 2022, just weeks before he announced his un-retirement

Gisele paid an emotional tribute to Brady after he announced his retirement for the first time. She also initially supported his decision to return publicly but things quickly turned sour

Advertisement

Nearly everyone in the building worried he was ill, maybe even battling a serious disease. His teammates estimated he’d lost close to 20 pounds, and the vibrancy of his spirit had dimmed like a candle running low on wax.

‘For Tom to lose that much weight, on his frame, it was a lot,’ said his former Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians. ‘It was very clear that the reason for the weight loss was the stress from the personal issues he was dealing with.’

‘His cheekbones had freaking cheekbones,’ said another coach. ‘With all respect, he looked like a cancer patient with really good hair. He just seemed miserable, not even close to the Tom we all loved. He was so stressed.’

In truth, Gisele had been so upset at Brady’s U-turn that she had flown off to Costa Rica.

Brady wound up taking Benny and Vivian, then 12 and 9, to their first day of class at a new private school in Florida.

During practice on July 28, center Ryan Jensen, one of Brady’s closest friends and his biggest defender on the field, collided with another player.

Crashing to the ground, Jensen screamed ‘F***!’ and clutched his left knee. Practice stopped. Brady lifted off his helmet and ran to Jensen.

Kneeling by his side and knowing the meaning of that scream – torn ligaments, fractured bones – he watched as the medical staff tended to his friend. Getting visibly upset, Brady stood and walked away.

He wandered around the eerily quiet field, hands on his hips. ‘It was pretty clear he was asking himself, “Why the f*** did I come back?”‘ said one Buccaneers staffer.

‘I think that’s when he realized he’d made a horrible decision. He didn’t come back and risk adding more troubles to his marriage to get the s*** kicked out of him!’

In late August, for the first time in his career, Brady asked his head coach if he could take an extended leave from camp.

He said he’d come back; he just didn’t know when.

Things had got so bad that he and Gisele now required a serious discussion in a remote location.

There was a noticeable change in Brady when he walked into One Buc Place in the summer of 2022 for training camp

Brady had lost so much weight that his Buccaneers coaches and teammates thought he looked like a cancer patient

‘I’ve got to take care of some personal things,’ Brady told coach Clyde Christensen with a lifeless stare.

Christensen later speculated that Brady may have been experiencing a form of serious psychological shock.

Something had blindsided him – something very bad and something that had completely devitalized him.

Brady’s absence from camp was excused, but only a few at One Buc Place knew he was traveling to a private resort in the Bahamas to make one final, desperate attempt to keep his family together.

With just six months left in his football career, the bond he and Gisele had was flickering out like a match in a strong gust of wind, the fragile illusion of forever now fast fading.

‘Tom didn’t know what the heck was going on,’ said an assistant coach. ‘And we didn’t know if he was ever coming back.’

When he returned to Tampa after 11 days away, his spirit seemed more broken than before.

It was evident that a scarring incident had transpired.

The frantic, nearly two-week effort to rescue his marriage had failed. Those close to Brady feared the countdown to divorce was on.

But Brady remained utterly captivated by Gisele, still lost in the enchantment of her.

‘Tom was an empty shell of who he was when he got back,’ Christensen said. ‘There was no joy. Everything was hard work.’

‘Everything was going good between Tom and Gisele,’ one eyewitness close to Brady said. ‘Tom was FaceTiming with Gisele during the day between meetings, just checking in to see if she needed anything. These were normal conversations, and she seemed happy.

‘Then one day, Gisele, who is really into astrology, basically looked into the stars and told Tom, “We’re not compatible.” And just like that, she was done.

‘But what triggered that? Was it the years of feeling like she wasn’t his top priority? That he kept playing when she’d asked him to step away? Maybe.

‘Or was there a particular spiritual adviser telling her, “Hey, this relationship is bad for you. Get out of it now. Even the stars are telling you that.” One thing is certain: In no way, shape or form was this a normal marital breakdown.’

Brady and Gisele announced their divorce on October 28, 2022, after 13 years of marriage.

In February 2025, Gisele gave birth to her third child, her first with boyfriend Joaquim Valente, her former jiu-jitsu instructor.

According to one of Brady’s friends, he was absolutely ‘stung’ that she had become pregnant just two years after divorce.

In February 2025, Gisele gave birth to her third child, her first with boyfriend Joaquim Valente, her former jiu-jitsu instructor

According to one of Brady’s friends, he was absolutely ‘stung’ that she had become pregnant just two years after divorce

Just over a month after the birth, Brady shared a photo of himself on Instagram – his preferred form of mass (and often cryptic) communication.

In the color photograph, Brady’s right arm is extended and a ball has spiraled out of his hand. He is silhouetted by the sunset’s golden glow.

Underneath, Brady wrote: ‘True Love.’

To those who knew him well, there was no ambiguity. As one friend described it, that was ‘the softest middle finger.’

PART TWO COMING NEXT WEEK: The shocking sex incident that left Brady’s college teammates questioning everything…

Adapted from Brady: An American Story and the Price of Greatness by Lars Anderson. Copyright © and reprinted by permission of Celadon Books. 

Rui Pinto, the whistleblower from Football Leaks, has taken to X with his reaction to the City verdict.

He said: “A historic decision for English football, and one that comes to crown the work I carried out through Football Leaks.

“Today, we all know that, through structural manipulation and financial manoeuvring, Manchester City did not merely circumvent the rules, they turned them into a mere formality, challenging any attempt to preserve the integrity of the competition.

“That meticulously orchestrated fraud will finally be subject to punishment, and the impact will not merely be turbulent, but truly devastating for the Cityzens. Ironically, I cannot help but remember Pep Guardiola’s words at his first press conference as City manager: ‘Fasten your seat belts’.”

The Dragons get their season underway on Friday evening with a trip to Italy.

Filo Tiatia’s side take on Benetton at Stadio Monigo, with the Men of Gwent coming up against a familiar face. Former Wales fly-half Rhys Patchell is the new attack coach at the Italian side, having been part of the Dragons’ coaching team last season.

Having shown signs of improvement last season, the Dragons have set a target of reaching the play-offs this season.

The match kicks off at 7.45pm, with Premier Sport broadcasting the curtain-raiser.

Or you can follow the match in the live blog below.

Benetton: Matt Gallagher; Ignacio Mendy, Francois Carlo Mey, Paolo Odogwu, Onisi Ratave; Jacob Umaga, Andy Uren; Matias Medrano, Bautista Bernasconi, Simone Ferrari, Mattia Midena, Federico Ruzza, Giulio Marini, Manuel Zuliani, Sebastian Negri (c).

Replacements: Nicholas Gasperini, Ivan Nemer, Marcos Gallorini, Piero Gritti, Antony-Italo Miranda, Siua Maile, Louis Werchon, Jean Smith.

Dragons RFC: Huw Anderson; Rio Dyer, Fine Inisi, Aneurin Owen (cc), Anzelo Tuitavuki; Tinus de Beer, Rhodri Williams; Rodrigo Martinez, Oli Burrows, Chris Coleman, Barny Langton-Cryer, Seb Davies, Ryan Woodman, Thomas Young (cc), Evan Minto

Replacements: Elliot Dee, Wyn Jones, Robert Hunt, Shane Lewis-Hughes, Harry Beddall, Che Hope, Jac Lloyd, Fetuli Paea

Live updates below:

Johannes Radebe has revealed he ‘has a few notes’ about his Strictly Come Dancing co-hosts Emma Willis and Josh Widdicombe’s dancing skills, after they made their debut as presenters on Saturday.

The revamped line-up failed to deliver the ratings boost BBC bosses had hoped for, while fans questioned the ‘awkward’ three-presenter format.

Ahead of the first live show on Saturday, Johannes offered his advice for the new professional dancers, and joked he had some thoughts on Emma and Josh’s dancing.

He said: ‘Dancing was the easy bit! That’s my natural habitat. Give me choreography, a pair of heels and some sequins and I know exactly what to do.

‘Emma and Josh, on the other hand… I may have had a few notes! Although I tried very hard not to become that professional dancer who is giving everybody corrections when nobody has asked.

‘I think my main advice was just to enjoy it and commit. On Strictly, you cannot do anything by halves. 

The revamped line-up failed to deliver the ratings boost BBC bosses had hoped for, while fans questioned the ‘awkward’ three-presenter format

‘If you’re going to dance, DANCE. And if you’re going to wear the sequins, wear all of them!’

He added: ‘Emma is such a formidable broadcaster. She has this incredible ability to make everything look effortless, while being incredibly precise and prepared. 

‘And Joshy is just brilliantly funny, he has this wonderful ability to find the joke without forcing it.

‘For me, it’s been about finding our rhythm as a trio. I’m learning so much from both of them, and I think we bring very different energies to the show. That’s what makes it exciting.’

Johannes then shared his advice for the new professional dancers that have joined the show, adding: ‘Enjoy every second of it. Seriously.

‘It’s easy when you’re new to think you have to prove yourself immediately, but you don’t. Be curious, work hard, listen, ask questions and find your own identity.

‘And remember that being a Strictly Professional is about so much more than being a brilliant dancer. You’re a teacher, a performer, a storyteller, and a partner.

‘Most importantly, protect the joy. This is a very special place to work.’

Ahead of the first live show on Saturday, Johannes offered his advice for the new professional dancers, and joked he had some thoughts on Emma and Josh’s dancing 

On Saturday the celebrity couples will take to the Strictly dancefloor for the first time in a live show, with each receiving a score out of 40 from the judges

The professional dancers will also perform a spell-binding group routine, which was pre-recorded earlier this summer

Advertisement

This year’s Strictly pairings were revealed last week in a hilarious new format, and they will make their dancefloor debut this weekend

On Saturday the celebrity couples will take to the Strictly dancefloor for the first time in a live show, with each receiving a score out of 40 from the judges.

This year has been a new era for the ballroom show, with the introduction of its new hosts and a pivot to TikTok content in a bid to draw in younger viewers.

The BBC have already announced a new show, Strictly: Lights Up, which will air on BBC iPlayer every Sunday night after the results show has finished.

It will be hosted by TikTok comedian Abi Clarke, 30, and presenter Tyler West, 30, who competed on the show back in 2022. 

Abi is thought to appeal to a younger audience after she achieved fame through her viral comedy sketches on TikTok.

The spin-off will see the pair get the immediate reactions from the night’s eliminated couple, their dance off opponents and interview the judges, new hosts, other Strictly stars and studio guests. 

The new spin-offs are part of a huge shake-up for the series. After a massive bloodbath of seasoned pros, five new professional dancers have been introduced. 

Bosses have also pivoted to sign stars that will help bring the show into the social media age.

On Saturday, the pre-recorded launch show peaked at 5.8million viewers, according to overnight figures, up slightly on last year’s peak of 5.6million. 

However, the episode averaged at 5.3million viewers, down from 5.4million a year ago. 

While the peak figure represents a small rise on last year, it remains well below the figures recorded before the programme was hit by a series of controversies.

This includes allegations about the treatment of celebrity contestants and the culture behind the scenes, leading to the departure of professional dancers Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Di Prima and prompting the BBC to introduce tougher welfare measures.

Prior to the string of scandals, the Strictly launch peaked at 6.7 million viewers and averaged 6.3 million in 2023.

Bosses will have hoped that a fresh format and new hosting line-up could tempt lapsed viewers back to the BBC One favourite. However, the overnight figures suggest the changes have yet to produce a significant ratings resurgence.

Pre-recorded last week, the episode opened with a dance number from the professionals, including the five new dancers, as well as the judges and the new hosts.

The 15 nervous celebrities also found out who they will be dancing with for, potentially, 13 weeks as they vie for the Glitterball trophy.

The trio have taken over from Tess Daly and Claudia, who left the BBC show at the end of the 2025 series.

Crews were called to a house in Leigh

A man and two dogs were pulled out of a burning house by firefighters.

Crews were called out to a house on Rossall Crescent in Leigh earlier today (September 25). Images from the scene show a huge blaze, with smoke billowing out of the property.

Firefighters used a ladder to gain access to the first floor to drag out the man and the two dogs. The man was taken to hospital for further treatment.

Click here to get the biggest stories straight to your inbox in our Daily Newsletter

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said that crews were on the scene for about three hours, after initially arriving at 3pm.

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said: “At around 3pm this afternoon (Friday, 25th September), firefighters were called to reports of a fire at a domestic property on Rossall Crescent in Leigh.

“Four fire engines from Hindley, Leigh, Atherton and Farnworth fire stations, along with the Technical Rescue Unit from Leigh fire station quickly arrived at the scene, where the first floor of the property was well alight.

“Firefighters rescued one man and two dogs from a first-floor window using a ladder. The casualty was assessed by firefighters before being handed into the care of North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) and taken to hospital.

“Crews wearing breathing apparatus used two hose reels, positive pressure ventilation and other specialist equipment to extinguish the fire, and carried out safety checks to the neighbouring houses.

“Firefighters were at the scene for around three hours.”

One team will lose their undefeated record in Páirc Esler this evening and one team’s aspirations of lifting the Frank O’Hare Cup in a fortnight will remain alive as Carryduff take on Clonduff for a place in the Down SFC final.

The south Belfast men have never won a senior crown having lost out to perennial champions Kilcoo in the 2020 and 2025 deciders.

On both occasions, Carryduff will feel like they didn’t do themselves justice.

Yet, they recorded a statement win over the Magpies in Round Two before defeating Saul in the quarter-finals.

Clonduff won the last of their nine county title back in 2000 and were last in the Down SFC final 10 years when they too lost to Kilcoo.

The Yellas claimed a facile 12-point win over Burren in round two and had 15 points to spare over Mayobridge last time out.

Clonduff bowed out at this stage in the competition last season, suffering a one-point loss to Kilcoo, but Gearoid Adams’s side have been the in-form team in this year’s renewal so far.

The holders will take on Burren in the second semi-final on Sunday evening in Newry.

We’ll have all the latest team news ahead of throw-in at 7.30pm.

Family and friends of one of Britain’s greatest living explorers, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, have called for an investigation into his care arrangements after allegations he has been illegally placed in a series of care homes under a fake name by his wife.

Those close to the 82-year-old want the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) to establish whether his wife Louise Millington-Cotes, 59, is correctly discharging her duties as his legal guardian.

John Simpson, the veteran BBC foreign correspondent and friend of Sir Ranulph, has joined the calls for transparency. In a post on X he wrote: “Horrified to hear what’s happened to my good friend Ran Fiennes.

“I’d like to tell the relevant authorities everything I know about the way he’s been treated. He’s the world’s bravest man, and he’s vulnerable. We must know what’s happening to him.”

Alexander Millington-Cotes, Sir Ranulph’s stepson and Mrs Millington-Cotes’s estranged son, told The Telegraph he called the OPG and spoke to their safeguarding team, but had “heard nothing back so far”.

It comes after a watchdog concluded the retired explorer, who has not been seen in public in two years, has been “unlawfully deprived of his liberty”, according to The Telegraph.

It has been claimed that his wife put extreme conditions on how he is looked after, and not allowed him to see friends or family.

A care home owner in Wales, where Sir Ranulph had been placed for seven weeks this year, spoke to the newspaper, saying they had reported several concerns about Sir Ranulph’s wellbeing to the authorities, including the police.

They reportedly approached the OPG to raise concerns about his wife’s medical arrangements for him, as well as a “do not resuscitate” document that she had provided.

The care home owner also raised concerns with the Care Inspectorate of Wales, which declared Sir Ranulph was being unlawfully kept in care homes and unable to consent to his care or treatment.

In an email seen by the newspaper, the care inspectorate wrote: “Currently [Sir Ranulph] is being deprived of his liberty unlawfully as there is no authorised deprivation in place which reflects the current residence and restrictions in place.

“[Sir Ranulph] is under continuous supervision and control, is not free to leave and is not able to consent to care, treatment and accommodation.

“As such, the provider is required to make an urgent and standard application under the deprivation of liberty safeguards as soon as practicable.”

The care home owner said Mrs Millington-Cotes provided a private carer, gave staff at the home strict instructions on his day-to-day activities and provided all of his medication, rather than registering him with a local GP.

Mrs Millington-Cotes was told by the owner that she must ensure that a deprivation of liberty safeguards (DoLS) order was in place as his legal guardian, but failed to ever provide one.

The owner emailed her to express the urgency of the situation, which led to “a falling out with her because she didn’t want us to apply for a DoLS”.

Sir Ranulph had reportedly spent time in a care home in London, before being moved to a facility in Wales, and then to one in Cheshire.

The Telegraph reported last week that Sir Ranulph’s visitors were made to sign non-disclosure agreements by his wife if they wanted to visit him at the care home in London.

Sir Ranulph’s stepson Alexander Millington-Cotes visited the care home in Cheshire last week and was told by staff his stepfather was not there. He is now crowdfunding a legal challenge to his mother’s lasting power of attorney.

An OPG spokesperson said: “A Lasting Power of Attorney is an important way to ensure that certain decisions about care and finances are made by someone you trust if you lack the capacity to make them yourself. We cannot comment on individual cases.”

The Care Inspectorate have been approached for comment. The Independent was unable to contact Mrs Millington-Cotes.