Russell Martin slammed an unacceptable display after Swansea City let an early lead slip in a 3-1 defeat at Preston. Joel Piroe’s neat finish put Martin’s men ahead in the 19th minute but their advantage was quickly cancelled out by Liverpool loanee Sepp van den Berg. Emil Riis gave North End the lead in the dying seconds of the first half before Ben Whiteman’s 52nd-minute free-kick settled the outcome.

Mick McCarthy insists Kieffer Moore has not had his head turned by rumours of a move from Cardiff City. Moore has continued to be linked with a transfer to Wolves but with the window due to close on Tuesday night, manager MCarthy insists there has been no official interest in his Wales striker. McCarthy said: “I don’t think the talk about potential transfer moves is affecting him at all.

Exactly 40 years ago this weekend, Swansea City played their opening match of the 1981-82 season – their first in the top flight after decades in the lower divisions. The 5-1 victory over Leeds United was one of the greatest days in the club’s history and a young Owen Morgan was there to see it. On April 23, 1975, a triumphant Leeds United team celebrated on the pitch at a packed Nou Camp Stadium having booked their place in the European Cup final. Billy Bremner, Joe Jordan, Peter Lorimer and all had just drawn 1-1 with a Barcelona team boasting the likes of Dutch legends Johann Cruyff and Johan Neeskens in front of 110,000 fans.

By Paul Jones Wayne Hatswell insists Newport County will quickly put their heavy defeat to Southampton behind them, as they now aim to claim successive league away wins when they take on Salford on Saturday. The Exiles who lost 8-0 to a ruthless Southampton team, welcomed a full crowd back to Rodney Parade on Wednesday evening for the first time since the pandemic began. Hatswell will also take charge of the side on Saturday before Michael Flynn returns from his coronavirus isolation next week.

By Paul Jones  Swansea manager Russell Martin says Morgan Whittaker has “done himself the world of good” as he claimed a second-half hat-trick to propel the Swans to a 4-1 victory over Plymouth Argyle on Tuesday. Daniel Williams put the Swans ahead early on before Rhys Shirley equalised for the visitors, but three goals in the space of 12 minutes from Whittaker fired Swansea into the last 32 of the Carabao Cup. “He’s (Whittaker) playing in a role that’s a bit different for him, as a lot of the guys are,” explained Martin.

Mick McCarthy is fearful of a transfer “bombshell” dropping on Cardiff City in the last stages of the transfer window as the club tries to cling on to Kieffer Moore. Wales striker Moore has been linked with moves elsewhere throughout the summer with Wolves reported to be still considering a £7m bid But with only six days remaining until the window closes, Bluebirds manager McCarthy has warned that any sale of his prize asset would be a major blow if it left the club with insufficient time to find a suitable replacement for a player who scored 24 goals last season.

Gareth Bale has answered questions over his future with Wales by the strength of his comeback at Real Madrid, says Robert Page. Bale will lead Wales into World Cup action, charged by the “positive impact” on his Real return, according to his national manager. The striker was the subject of fierce retirement rumours ahead of Euro 2020 this summer but said after Wales’ round-of-16 defeat to Denmark that he would never end his international career as long as he is playing football.

Kyle Naughton and Ryan Bennett are both in line for their Swansea City comebacks on Tuesday night after recovering from coronavirus. The defenders have missed the three recent league matches against Sheffield United, Stoke City and Bristol City after contracting Covid-19, even though they were both fit to play in the season opener at Blackburn. They were part of a large number of players in the Football League and Premier League who tested positive after the season had started – sparking a debate about just how many players at top clubs had declined to be vaccinated.

By Tom Prosser  Cardiff City can’t stop scoring headers so far this season and they will be hoping the ariel threat of Aden Flint, Sean Morrison and Kieffer Moore will help them to victory over Premier League Brighton in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday. Incredibly, all eight of Cardiff’s league goals this season have been headers. This will not come as a surprise to the footballing community, as the Bluebirds top the most goals from set-piece’s leaderboard on an almost yearly basis.

By Tom Prosser Newport County coach Wayne Hatswell says the Exiles have a big week ahead of them as they look to get back to winning ways against Tranmere on Saturday before hosting Premier League Southampton in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday. The assistant manager is on stand by to take charge of the team this weekend as Michael Flynn is currently awaiting the results of a coronavirus test after having symptoms in the recent days.

By Tom Prosser Cardiff City manager Mick McCarthy is delighted with the character and team spirit his team have shown during his reign so far. The Bluebirds have only lost three of their 26 matches under McCarthy and they will be hoping to continue that run when they take on Millwall at the Cardiff City Stadium on Saturday. “It’s a real benefit knowing we’ve got resilience and that willingness to fight for each other, particularly in this division because it’s a tough old league,” explained McCarthy.

By Rob Cole Jamie Paterson is urging Swansea City fans to embrace the playing philosophy new manager Russell Martin is introducing at the club and to stay patient. Martin has been in Wales for less than a month and has already seen his team lose twice and draw once in the Championship. Tonight (Friday) they head across the Severn Bridge to face Paterson’s old club Bristol City. Paterson scored on his Swansea debut in a 2-1 defeat at Blackburn and then featured in the goalless draw at home to Sheffield United and the 3-1 midweek defeat to Stoke City at the Swansea.com Stadium.

Wales manager Robert Page has added former Rotherham and Scunthorpe boss Alan Knill to his coaching staff for the rest of their World Cup qualifying campaign. Knill, 56, replaces Arsenal coach Albert Stuivenberg on the backroom team after the Dutchman left the role following Euro 2020. Page said: “I am delighted that Alan is joining us for the remainder of the World Cup qualifying campaign.

Russell Martin has claimed the reason Swansea City’s players are not fit enough is because of their disrupted pre-season. The Swans head coach claimed a summer of upheaval is taking its toll as his team crashed to a 3-1 home defeat to Stoke City on Tuesday night. The protracted departure of Steve Cooper, the cancellation of pre-season fixtures due to Covid-19, and the unsuccessful pursuit of other candidates before the club turned to Martin all combined to leave the squad underprepared for the start of the Championship.

Mick McCarthy hailed Cardiff City saviour Aden Flint after the two-goal defender rescued a dramatic point with two towering headers in a 2-2 draw at Peterborough. The Bluebirds were staring at a first defeat of the campaign after conceding twice in three minutes early in the second half.They were still in shock from teenage talent Harrison Burrows’ 49th-minute opener when they were stung by a second Posh goal from Siriki Dembele following a clinical counter-attack.

New Swansea City signing Ethan Laird has paid tribute to Nicky Butt for his progress through the ranks at Old Trafford. Laird – who could make his Swansea debut at home to Stoke City on Tuesday night after joining on a season-long loan from Manchester United – says former United star Butt has been a key figure in his development. Butt left Old Trafford earlier this year after a shake-up in the club’s academy staff but not before he had helped the likes of Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood, Dean Henderson and Scott McTominay break into the first team during his nine-year stint as a coach.

Newport County manager Mike Flynn remained upbeat despite his team suffering a first defeat of the season at Mansfield on Saturday. The men from Rodney Parade had started the 2020-21 campaign with back-to-back 1-0 away wins, but a third straight trip on the road proved a step too far. Mansfield goals came from George Maris and Ollie Clarke either side of a Newport equaliser from Robbie Willmott with all three strikes coming in the first half.

By Paul Jones  Leandro Bacuna is delighted to see the Cardiff City fans back supporting their team and is hoping the Bluebirds can continue their unbeaten start to the season when they travel to Peterborough on Tuesday evening. “I don’t think playing without the fans is football,” explained Bacuna who arrived in South Wales from Reading in 2019. “It’s just a different vibe having the fans back, having the 12th man supporting you, it makes football.”

Swansea City new boy Flynn Downes reckons the pass masters will soon be back and it will be torture for the opposition. The club’s £1.5m signing from Ipswich believes new head coach Russell Martin can take the Swans back to the time when they used to kill teams through death by a thousand passes. It was only 609 passes in the 0-0 draw against Sheffield United on Saturday but Downes played for the Tractor Boys against Martin’s MK Dons last season and said: “It was the worst.

Despite a goalless draw against Sheffield United, Swansea City head coach Russell Martin thought “there were a lot of positives to take” from his first home match in charge. The former MK Dons chief has clearly already implemented his passing style on his new players, yet said that his side, “lacked the fitness to do it for 90 minutes.” He admitted there had been disruption to his side’s pre-season.