Brighton should have been awarded a penalty in their 1-0 loss at home to Arsenal on 4 March, the Premier League’s Key Match Incidents (KMI) Panel has said.

The Seagulls were trailing to Bukayo Saka’s ninth-minute goal when they pushed forward in the third minute of first-half stoppage time.

After a cross was delivered from the left, Brighton midfielder Mats Wieffer tried to run into the box towards the flight of the ball but was hauled to the ground by Gabriel Martinelli.

Referee Chris Kavanagh allowed play to continue and it was cleared by the video assistant referee (VAR), Michael Salisbury.

Fabian Hurzeler complained to fourth official David Webb and the Brighton boss ended up exchanging words with Mikel Arteta on the touchline.

The Premier League Match Centre wrote on X that the VAR “deemed there was no clear and obvious error”.

But the KMI Panel voted 4:1 that a spot-kick should have been awarded on the field, and 3:2 that it was a missed VAR intervention.

The ruling said: “Martinelli is not looking at the ball, holds Weiffer into the area and prevents the Brighton player from challenging for the ball.”

It is the second time this season Arsenal have escaped a VAR penalty in an away game they have won 1-0.

In December, Everton should have been awarded a penalty for William Saliba’s challenge on Thierno Barry. The VAR was Michael Salisbury for that match, too.

There have now been 18 VAR errors logged this season, matching the total for the entire 2024-25 campaign.

From this same gameweek, Leeds United should have been given a penalty in their 1-0 loss at home to Sunderland for Luke O’Nien’s holding offence on Pascal Struijk.

The Gunners have had no VAR mistakes against them.

No one was seriously injured during the incident.

A crash which started a car fire and left the vehicle on its side saw emergency services called on Saturday, March 14. Cambridgeshire Police were called at around 2pm to a crash on Broadway in Bourn.

The vehicle that had crashed had set on fire. Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue also attended.

A crew from Cambridge along with a south roaming fire engine were called but no firefighting action was required. No one was seriously injured during the incident.

A Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue spokesperson said: “This was a road traffic collision on Broadway in Bourn on Saturday 14th. A crew from Cambridge along with the south roaming fire engine attended however no firefighting action was required.

“The crews made the area safe and returned to their stations by 3.30pm.”

A spokesperson for Cambridgeshire Police said: “We were called at about 2pm to Broadway in Bourn with reports of a single vehicle collision which resulted in the car being on fire. No serious injuries.”

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Arsenal starlet Max Dowman became the Premier League’s youngest-ever goal scorer in a 2-0 win over Everton at the weekend

Mikel Arteta can draw lessons from Arsene Wenger’s mistakes in managing a developing Theo Walcott as he guides Max Dowman at Arsenal. The 16-year-old became the Premier League’s youngest-ever goalscorer at the weekend.

The Gunners’ Hale End academy seems to have unearthed another talent in Dowman, who made his first-team debut in 2025 and caught the eye earlier this month in an FA Cup fixture against Mansfield Town.

Arteta demonstrated confidence in the youngster on Saturday and introduced him as Arsenal chased the game versus Everton. Dowman didn’t let him down, with his 89th-minute delivery causing havoc and resulting in Viktor Gyokeres’ breakthrough. The icing on the cake arrived in stoppage time when he etched his name into the record books as the top flight’s youngest scorer.

An unavoidable excitement now envelops Dowman in circumstances reminiscent of Walcott’s breakthrough in 2006. Walcott earned a call-up to the England squad for that year’s World Cup following his displays, though Arteta can take lessons from this episode and keep Dowman grounded.

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Having only joined Arsenal in January 2006, a teenage Walcott, aged 17, was selected in Sven-Goran Eriksson’s Three Lions squad for the World Cup in Germany that summer after demonstrating tremendous potential.

Walcott didn’t get a chance to play but has since confessed that the call-up was a blunder and he was swamped by attention. Speaking on The Overlap in 2023, he admitted: “Honestly, as a 17-year-old going to the World Cup for me, I should never have gone, I’ve said this.

“Essentially, you try telling a 17-year-old to go and say they’re not going to the World Cup for England, I wasn’t going to do that. I hadn’t asked for it but the manager saw something in me and in the end I didn’t play.”

When questioned if England or Wenger should have done more to protect him at such a tender age, Walcott responded: “Probably both I’d say, because I’d already played up an age for England, so I was already in the books of ‘Keep an eye on this kid,’ I suppose.

“I probably could’ve been protected in that sense. I knew Sven was coming into training and I didn’t think anything of it. Obviously, you’ve got Ashley [Cole] and Sol [Campbell].

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“Then I remember Arsene saying, ‘He’s going to watch you’ and I’m like ok, alright, just thinking for the future type of thing. Then suddenly, that happened, and my whole life changed.”

Following the 2-0 victory over Everton on Saturday, Arteta was asked if Dowman could make a last-minute entry into Thomas Tuchel’s squad for this year’s World Cup. His simple response was: “I don’t know. I haven’t heard that. But let’s go game by game, please.”

Evidently, Wenger’s inability to shield Walcott during his teenage years was a mistake. Arteta can heed this warning and has already begun to prevent a similar problem with Dowman by discouraging any England talk, which, it seems, would be the correct course of action.

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It announced on Tuesday when changes would be taking effect

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has today confirmed when new rules will be introduced for car driving test bookings, which it said would make the system fairer and give learners control of their booking. From May 12, 2026, only learner drivers will be able to book or change a car driving test, while from June 9, 2026, location limitations will apply when moving a booked test.

This follows DVSA’s announcement that from March 31, 2026, the number of changes a learner driver is allowed to make to a car driving test booking will be cut to two, reduced from six. The upcoming changes, which follow a nationwide consultation on improving the booking rules, are part of a crackdown on third-party services abusing the test booking system.

They aim to reduce the reselling of driving tests and will create a level playing field for learner drivers, giving them more control over their learning to drive journey.

Roads and Buses Minister, Simon Lightwood, said: “Learning to drive is hard enough without an unfair booking system. Learners deserve clear, honest access to tests – not being ripped off by third-party sites.

“These changes put learners back in control, stop the system being gamed, and help make sure tests go to those who really need them. I welcome DVSA’s action to make things fairer and support learners on their journey to becoming safe, confident drivers.”

Beverley Warmington, DVSA’s new chief executive, said: “We have listened to learners, driving instructors and voices from across the driver training industry on how to make the booking rules fairer. Our priority is to stop learners being exploited by third parties and put them in control of booking their driving test. The changes announced today will help us achieve that goal and build on the more than 149,000 additional tests delivered between April 2025 and February 2026.”

Driving test booking changes from May 2026

From May 12, 2026, third parties will not be able to book or change practical car driving tests for learner drivers. This includes unofficial test booking and cancellation finder services and driving instructors.

Learners who can’t book a test on GOV.UK and need additional support will still be able to book a test by calling DVSA’s customer service centre. DVSA said it would also introduce terms and conditions for public bookings and introduce a declaration that all car learner drivers must accept before they can complete or change their test booking.

This aims to allow DVSA to take action against those who knowingly break the rules, including where third parties book a driving test on behalf of a learner. Additionally, from June 9, 2026, learners will be able to move their driving test only to the three nearest driving test centres.

It said that introducing a location restriction “will help deter bookings at locations where the learner doesn’t intend to take their test. This will give a clearer view on which areas have the highest demand, allowing DVSA to better manage and focus driving examiner resources”.

It added: “Introducing these changes will disrupt cancellation finding services and make it fairer for learner drivers when searching for and booking their test. When the new rules come in, learners should only ever pay the actual fee DVSA charges – £62 on weekdays and £75 on evenings, weekends and bank holidays – giving them greater control and confidence when booking a driving test.”

Driving instructors and driving schools will still be able to work with their learner drivers to agree when they are test-ready and offer advice and support throughout their learning and booking journey, including via the DVSA Ready to Pass? campaign. They will also be able to set times they’re available to take pupils to their test, preventing learners from booking tests at times that don’t work for their instructors.

Why the driving test changes are being made

The changes follow a consultation on improving driving test booking rules, which ran from May 28 to July 23, 2025 and received more than 100,000 responses. DVSA said that 70.7 per cent of respondents to the consultation agreed or strongly agreed with the idea of limiting bookings to learner drivers only. It added that 42.5 per cent agreed or strongly agreed to restricting the number of swaps or changes an individual could make to their test.

The consultation looked at the ways DVSA could improve the rules for booking driving tests. Of the 93,421 responses we analysed, 72 per cent of respondents were learner drivers. 7.7 per cent of respondents were parents or guardians who booked a test for a learner and 9.9 per cent of respondents were an ADI or trainee driving instructor.

Respondents were asked for their views on two main areas where DVSA could change the driving test booking system. These involved who could book and manage driving tests and how driving test changes could be managed.

The full outcome to the consultation on improving car driving test booking rules can be found here: Improving car driving test booking rules: response to consultation – GOV.UK

Further guidance on changes to the driving test booking rules can be found here: Changes to driving test booking rules in 2026 – GOV.UK

Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar has launched a scathing attack on Sunrisers Leeds for signing Pakistani spinner Abrar Ahmed, claiming the move “indirectly contributes to the deaths of Indian soldiers and civilians”.

The Indian-owned franchise’s £190,000 acquisition of Ahmed for The Hundred had initially appeared to allay fears of a ‘shadow ban’ on Pakistani players from Indian Premier League (IPL) affiliated teams. However, the decision has ignited significant controversy.

Gavaskar, a celebrated figure in Indian cricket, including a 1983 World Cup winner and the first player to reach 10,000 Test runs, delivered a withering critique in his column for the Indian newspaper Mid-Day.

“The furore created by the acquisition of a Pakistani player by the Indian owner of a franchise in The Hundred is hardly surprising,” Gavaskar wrote.

He highlighted the long-standing exclusion of Pakistani players from the IPL since 2009 due to geopolitical tensions.

Gavaskar argued that payments to Pakistani players, through income tax, could ultimately fund arms purchases by their government.

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“Although belated, the realisation that the fees that they pay to a Pakistani player, who then pays income tax to his government which buys arms and weapons, indirectly contributes to the deaths of Indian soldiers and civilians is making Indian entities refrain from even considering having Pakistani artistes and sportspersons,” he stated.

He further stressed the responsibility of the owner: “Whether it is an Indian entity or an overseas subsidiary of the entity that is making the payment, if the owner is Indian then he or she is contributing to the Indian casualties. It’s as simple as that.”

Questioning the priorities, Gavaskar added: “Surely the owner should have had an understanding of the situation and discouraged the purchase. Is winning a tournament in a format that no other country plays in much more important than Indian lives?”

He concluded with a call for reversal: “There’s still time to undo the wrong and hopefully wiser counsels will prevail.”

Sunrisers Leeds, owned by Sun Group – which also controls IPL side Sunrisers Hyderabad – faced significant online backlash following the signing, leading to the suspension of their X account on the night of the auction.

Despite the controversy, men’s head coach Daniel Vettori had previously insisted he had received “no orders to avoid signing certain individuals”.

The Press Association has contacted Sunrisers Leeds for comment.

Mark Broadhurst, 27, was arrested in September 2024 and was charged with having an explosive substance and possession of a firearm without a licence after two homes in Chesterfield and Bolsover, Derbyshire, were searched.

The defendant, from Chesterfield, appeared at the Old Bailey on Friday via a videolink to deny having various quantities of low explosive black powder, sulphur powder and an “improvised homemade cannon” on or before September 25.

But he admitted having a firearm illegally on the same date.

He previously gave his address as Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire.

A two-week trial has been set at Sheffield Crown Court for June 29.

Broadhurst, who was suspended by the British Army, was granted continued conditional bail.

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The residents were in the house at the time of the shooting

Residents of a house in Newry have been ‘left badly shaken’ after a report that shots had been fired through a window of a property, PSNI say.

At around 9.15pm on Monday evening, March 16, it was reported that two shots had been fired through a window in the Damolly Village in Newry.

Detective Inspector Handley added: “The residents, who were in the house at the time, were uninjured however have been left badly shaken by the ordeal.

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“Enquiries are ongoing and I am appealing to anyone who may have witnessed anyone suspicious or any suspicious vehicles in the area, or to anyone with CCTV, door-bell or other footage that could assist with the investigation, to contact detectives on 101 quoting 1817 16//03/26.”

Alternatively, information can also be provided online via http://www.psni.police.uk/makeareport/ or Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org

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Joe Cole has revealed his prediction for the Carabao Cup final between Premier League title rivals Arsenal and Manchester City.

The first piece of silverware of the season will be won on Sunday when Mikel Arteta and Pep Guardiola’s sides meet at Wembley.

Arsenal beat London rivals Chelsea 4-2 on aggregate to reach the final, while Man City overcame Carabao Cup holders Newcastle United in the semis.

Sunday’s showpiece event is particularly intriguing as it involved the two teams going for this season’s Premier League title.

Arsenal, who last won the Premier League in 2004, have opened up a nine-point lead over Manchester City, who have won six titles over the past decade.

It has been suggested that the winner of the Carabao Cup final will have renewed momentum ahead of the title run-in and Cole ‘fancies’ Arsenal to beat Man City to both trophies.

‘I’m not working on the Carabao Cup final but I’m going as a fan which I actually haven’t done for a long time,’ Cole said on The Dressing Room podcast.

‘I fancy Arsenal, I think Arsenal beat them. Having watched Man City live, I fancy Arsenal – but it’s a great game for the neutral.

‘I’ll make another prediction, I think there will be a bit of needle and a little bit of nastiness on the benches. There’s a lot of tension building at this point in the season so look out for that.’

Turning his attentions to the Premier League title race, Cole added: ‘I was doing the West Ham-Man City game and we’re in the tunnel, the City players are behind me and Arsenal just scored.

‘I’ve been in that situation when you’re waiting on a result and it does deflate you. I just can’t see Arsenal dropping that many points now.

‘If Man City win their game in hand it will be six points, then if City beat Arsenal it will be three points.

‘But City have got to beat Arsenal and I can’t see that. Do you know what I mean?’

While Cole is backing Arsenal to secure their first major trophy since 2020, Wayne Bridge and Carlton Cole both expect Man City to triumph at Wembley.

‘I think Man City win it,’ ex-West Ham striker Cole said. ‘They know it’s time, if they lose this I think they lose all hope of winning the league.

‘So they’re going to have to put this one to bed. I’m going with Man City.’

Bridge added: ‘I’m going to go with Man City.

‘We know it’s kind of almost over with the league but them getting a win here puts a bit more pressure on Arsenal. I’m living in hope.’

Before attentions turn fully to this weekend’s Carabao Cup final, Arsenal and Manchester City are in Champions League action, facing Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid respectively.

The Gunners drew 1-1 in Germany last week while Man City were thumped 3-0 in Spain ahead of the decisive second legs in England.

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