Grant McCann’s return to London Road ended in defeat as Peterborough moved into the FA Cup third round with a 2-1 win against Doncaster after surviving a late fightback.

Harrison Burrows opened the scoring after just three minutes with an incredible piece of luck that saw his cross from the left sail over everyone and bounce into the top-right corner.

Kwame Poku and Ricky-Jade Jones both wasted great one-on-one opportunities to add to the lead in the first half but it was Ephron Mason-Clark, a McCann signing, that added the second after 53 minutes.

After picking up the ball on the right of the box, he cut inside and hit a brilliant curling effort right into the bottom corner.

The League Two side responded to the setback well and pulled a deserved goal back with 15 minutes to play when Mo Faal powered home a header from Joe Ironside’s cross.

Doncaster almost completed the comeback in stoppage time but Kyle Hurst’s volley crashed back off the post.

Gavin Sheehan was overcome with emotion as a stroke of good fortune allowed him to steer Datsalrightgino to a thrilling Coral Gold Cup triumph at Newbury.

The 31-year-old is no stranger to the big-race winners but was thrilled to partner Jamie Snowden’s improving seven-year-old to a brilliant local victory.

However, things could have been a lot different if Newcastle’s Fighting Fifth card had survived the piercing cold snap that has reared its head over the past seven days, with Sheehan booked to head to the north east to ride another of Snowden’s stars, You Wear It Well.

In the end, Newcastle’s misfortune was Sheehan’s gain as he deposed Tom Cannon aboard Datsalrighgino to add one of the season’s biggest races to his burgeoning CV.

“The plan was for Newcastle was to be off,” quipped Sheehan.

“It’s massive (for me). You go through these things in your head beforehand and how the race is going to work out or whatever and I thought, ‘I will nearly start crying if I win this race’.

“It means a lot, it means everything. It is a very, very hard race to win and with it being the local track and everything it’s great to have done it and I’m not crying now, but I would have been crying if Newcastle had been on and I had seen this lad go past the line!”

A product of Charlie Mann’s finishing school and champion conditional in his formative years, Sheehan shot to prominence when landing the Stayers’ Hurdle aboard Warren Greatrex’s Cole Harden in 2015.

In recent years he has made the switch across Lambourn to join Snowden, but has never left the training hub he has called home throughout his career and has now added a race all who reside there hold dear to his roll of honour.

“It’s very special and one of the big races of the year and one of the races you dream of (winning) and now I’ve done it,” added Sheehan.

“It was only the other day I was watching videos of horses who have won it in the past in the car with Jamie, the likes of Denman and looking at Ruby (Walsh) and how wide he went when he won and you are kind of working out how the race is going to be run.

“I had done my homework, but I had free rein of what to do and then when it pays off, well it’s freezing, but I’m sweating with adrenaline and everything has just come true.”

Datsalrightgino’s victory was also a vindication of Sheehan’s assertions that he was now ready for a step up in trip having rapidly enhanced his reputation with some fine performances during his novice chasing campaign.

“I did think this lad had a chance and all of a sudden the ground came up right for us thankfully,” the Irishman added.

“Everything worked out a treat and I kept on telling Jamie we would be better off up in trip.”

He went on: “He dosses through a race and at the end he comes good and I was praying that was going to happen today as he wasn’t going. I was jumping brilliant but was just behind the bridle. His jumping was just unreal.

“When I turned in I knew I had a great chance, but you don’t know because you are stepping up in trip and everything. The further he was going the more confident I was getting.

“I was getting there a bit early and I thought this is where he starts to excel and be at his best and I nursed him down to the second-last and kept his mind on the last. That was the only one where he put in a short one but he was quick away and I always knew I was going to win.”

Further luck has come to Sheehan’s door as he has linked up with Snowden at a time that big-race glory is no longer a rarity and having tasted Cheltenham Festival success together last year, the rider now dreams of more special days provided by his Lambourn ally.

“It is very special, Jamie is a great boss and a great friend,” said Sheehan.

“He has a great team and the people who ride them out day in and day out in this cold every day, it takes a lot.

“Jamie is very regimented and everyone knows their job and I imagine they will all head out tonight for a couple of drinks and celebrate it.

“It means a lot to Jamie and the team and for a yard that is growing and developing and seems to be getting better. Hopefully that will be great for me.”

Burnley ended their wait for a Premier League home win in style with a 5-0 rout of fellow strugglers Sheffield United, climbing off the foot of the table and piling pressure on Blades boss Paul Heckingbottom.

Jay Rodriguez needed just 15 seconds to head Vincent Kompany’s side in front and Jacob Bruun Larsen doubled the lead in the 28th minute, with United ending the first half a man down after Oli McBurnie collected two petulant yellow cards in quick succession.

More pain followed for United in the second half as Zeki Amdouni and Luca Koleosho scored two in the space of three minutes before Josh Brownhill added a fifth, giving Burnley their biggest ever Premier League win.

No English league club had ever opened a season with eight home defeats and Burnley could not afford to set that record against a United side who began the day one point better off, with these two starting the day first and second in terms of the worst starts to a Premier League season by promoted sides.

Both Burnley’s wins to date have come against teams promoted alongside them in the summer, but after encouraging displays against Crystal Palace and West Ham, three points offer tangible reward for improving performances.

For United it was another chastening day, the pain of defeat increased by the loss of McBurnie to a needless suspension. There was no sign of the sort of quality that will be needed to get them out of trouble.

Burnley scored the opener with a move straight from kick-off. James Trafford punted the ball forward, Amdouni shifted it to the left and Charlie Taylor whipped in a first-time cross for Rodriguez to head home.

It was the quickest Premier League goal of the season, and made Rodriguez the first player in the league’s history to score in the opening 15 seconds of two separate games, 10 years and one day after he pounced for Southampton against Chelsea.

Burnley doubled their lead when Bruun Larsen got in front of Luke Thomas to reach Dara O’Shea’s long ball, cutting in off the right before passing the ball under the despairing dive of Wes Foderingham.

United’s frustrations soon surfaced. McBurnie, back in the starting 11 after scoring the late consolation in last week’s home defeat to Bournemouth, was lucky to only see yellow for catching O’Shea with an elbow in the 36th minute, leaving Kompany livid on the sideline.

Moments later O’Shea caught McBurnie, who delivered enough theatrics to ensure his counterpart also saw yellow, and Kompany joined both players in the book for his remonstrations.

More was to follow and when McBurnie caught O’Shea with an arm once again in first-half stoppage time, he earned a second yellow card and a head start on the trudge to the dressing room.

Heckingbottom, already forced into one substitution due to an injury for George Baldock, made a triple change at the break as Benie Traore, James McAtee and William Osula came on for Thomas, John Fleck and Cameron Archer.

It meant only half United’s outfield players that started the match were still on for the start of the second half. But it did little to change United’s fortunes and the floodgates opened after the 73rd minute.

Burnley’s third came when United failed to clear a corner and Jordan Beyer headed the ball down for Amdouni to spring between Jack Robinson and Anel Ahmedhodzic before playing the ball beyond Foderingham.

Moments later Koleosho cracked a shot off the crossbar when Foderingham could only parry Amdouni’s shot, but the teenager was soon celebrating his first Premier League goal as he shrugged off a challenge and beat the goalkeeper at his near post.

Brownhill rifled in the fifth from the edge of the box with 10 minutes to go.

Adam Armstrong’s brace fired Southampton to a 2-0 victory over Cardiff and to Saints’ longest unbeaten run for 19 seasons.

Armstrong curled and headed in his 11th and 12th goals of the season to stay on the heels of Blackburn’s Sammie Szmodics in the race for the Sky Bet Championship’s Golden Boot.

Saints stay fourth but the 11 matches they are now without defeat has equalled the number they went unbeaten between December 1994 and February 1995 – though that run remarkably contained nine draws, in contrast to the eight wins in the current sequence.

The opener came in the 11th minute to complete a fine team move.

Saints had passed and moved their way down the left flank before Flynn Downes fired in to Carlos Alcaraz, who laid off to Adam Armstrong. The in-form hitman took a touch before bending into the top corner.

Four minutes later the same player doubled the hosts’ lead. This time it was Stuart Armstrong’s quick feet that earned space on the left side of the box before his cross deflected up off Dimitrios Goutas and onto Adam Armstrong’s head.

While chances did not come freely for Southampton, they kept the ball and toyed with the Bluebirds with incisive passes as freezing fog hovered over St Mary’s.

Adam Armstrong almost completed his hat-trick when Che Adams’ cross was pawed into him but his header lacked power and allowed Alex Runarsson to scramble back across his line to hold on.

Alcaraz headed over a Stuart Armstrong centre but the third goal should have gone to the visitors in first-half stoppage time. Perry Ng’s deflected ball into the box found Josh Bowler a couple of yards out and free at the back post, but he skied over the crossbar.

Cardiff had only been behind once before at the break this season, and continued their attempt to a comeback as Karlan Grant fired wide.

Che Adams replied in kind in his first start since October before substitute Joe Aribo squirted a shot against the base of the post.

Ryan Fraser had three good chances to put Saints clear but failed to put either on target before a third effort was deflected wide.

The hosts continued to slice through hapless Cardiff but Runarsson denied Adam Armstrong a third after a rasping drive.

Fraser continued to be frustrated in front of goal while Sekou Mara also had shots as Southampton could have justifiably won by a landslide.

Former Swansea boss Russell Martin continued his 100 per cent win record against Cardiff but saw their promotion position unmoved, with Leicester, Ipswich and Leeds also winning.

Wesley Hoedt’s stunning log-range winner maintained Watford’s promising run of form with a 2-1 victory at Hull.

The Hornets captain nicked possession off Liam Delap just inside Hull’s half before executing a perfect lob over Ryan Allsop after 74 minutes.

Hoedt ran the length of the pitch to celebrate with the away fans following a goal which evoked memories of David Beckham’s famous strike against Wimbledon.

Hull were left to reflect upon what might have been, however, after Jaden Philogene missed a penalty on the hour.

Liam Rosenior’s men had the better chances but Watford, who have lost just once in nine, arguably deserved at least a point on effort alone.

They also opened the scoring after eight minutes through Edo Kayembe.

Scott Twine equalised two minutes later during a breathless game which ebbed and flowed.

But no-one inside the MKM Stadium could possibly have anticipated Hoedt’s incredulous intervention in the second half.

The hosts had won their last three home games and, unsurprisingly, began brightly.

But Watford soon grew into the match – especially on Hull’s left flank, down which the visitors sensed a defensive weakness.

Ken Sema firstly had some joy when he slung over a ball that was not dealt with by Jean Michael Seri. Ismael Kone picked up the pieces but fired over the crossbar.

Having seemingly ignored the warning signs, Hull conceded in similar circumstances two minutes later.

Jamal Lewis this time crossed towards a central area, from where Kayembe swept home on his 50th appearance for Watford. Allsop was unsighted, but he might have done better as the ball was straight down the middle of the goal.

Hull’s response was swift and decisive. Delap’s lung-busting run from deep was stopped by Hoedt inside Watford’s penalty box but the rebound fell to an onrushing Twine, who skilfully arrowed the ball into the bottom-right corner.

Delap was also heavily involved after 22 minutes when a similar run led to Philogene receiving the ball on the left.

Philogene cut inside before arching a lovely goalbound hit that was well tipped over by Hamer.

Allsop bettered that save just before half-time when he showed smart awareness to scoop Kone’s precise curler around the right post.

By contrast to what preceded it, the opening to the second half was largely uneventful.

That was until Jake Livermore, who made 90 appearance for Hull between 2014-17, upended Jacob Greaves following Jason Lokilo’s corner.

It was a clear penalty, but Philogene’s spot-kick was weak and well saved by Hamer low to his right.

Delap came close soon afterwards, while Philogene nearly atoned for his miss when he screwed just wide.

Yet Watford remained a niggling threat on the break and left East Yorkshire with three points following Hoedt’s jaw-dropping winner.

Leeds maintained their unbeaten home Championship record this season with a pulsating 3-2 win over 10-man Middlesbrough which saw all of the goals scored in the first half.

Middlesbrough took the lead through an early strike by Emmanuel Latte Lath but Leeds responded to go ahead.

Dan James and Crysencio Summerville, two of the smallest players on the pitch, put Leeds in front with headers inside the first seven minutes.

The home fans had to wait until the 38th minute for a third which came via Joel Piroe’s penalty.

Boro had time to score a second before the break, with Latte Lath heading in from a corner, but the visitors had Anfernee Dijksteel sent off for a second yellow card just after the hour.

In a rapid start, the visitors took the lead as Alex Bangura sent Latte Lath down the left channel and he cut inside before firing in.

Leeds responded as James saw his chipped effort cleared off the line and Georginio Rutter had a shot blocked before Sam Byram’s deep cross from the left saw James rise above two defenders to nod home from close range.

Leeds were soon in front when a cross from the right by Archie Gray was headed in by Summerville with seven minutes on the clock.

Middlesbrough worked a neat move down the right but when Morgan Rogers laid the ball back, Latte Lath shot over.

Illan Meslier kept out Latte Lath’s shot with his legs after Dan Barlaser had opened up the Leeds defence with a pinpoint pass.

Boro suffered a blow after half an hour as experienced defender Paddy McNair had to be replaced by Matt Clarke and his first involvement was to give away a penalty.

A poor clearance by goalkeeper Seny Dieng was played to Rutter and as he tried to go around Clarke they both fell, with Clarke sticking out an arm to bring down the striker as he tried to regain his feet.

Piroe stepped up to score the penalty and give Leeds a two-goal cushion.

Boro grabbed their second with the last effort of the first half as Latte Lath rose above Byram to head in a Barlaser corner.

Ethan Ampadu’s pass sprung the offside trap and Rutter should have done better with a low shot which curled off target as Leeds started the second period well.

Middlesbrough were reduced to 10 men just after the hour as referee Darren England showed Dijksteel a second yellow card for a poor challenge on James.

Rutter’s low cross with 20 minutes left was cleared by Bangura as Leeds were kept out once more.

But Boro were denied an equaliser by a post as substitute Sammy Silvera’s shot came back off the woodwork with 15 minutes remaining.

Dieng’s double save kept out Patrick Bamford’s header and Piroe’s follow-up late on.

Jack Clarke’s penalty denied Joe Edwards his first home win as Millwall manager and rescued a 1-1 draw for Sunderland at The Den.

Kevin Nisbet gave the hosts a deserved lead after an energetic first half in South London.

However, Clarke equalised from the penalty spot with 12 minutes left, much to the delight of the travelling Sunderland supporters behind the goal.

Arsenal loanee Brooke Norton-Cuffy had the first shot on target of the match but his tame effort was straight down the throat of Anthony Patterson in the Sunderland goal.

The home fans were calling for a red card after a crunching challenge from Mason Burstow but the forward escaped with a booking.

Millwall won a corner a minute later but Jake Cooper could not get any power behind his header and Patterson caught it with ease.

The Lions were growing into the game and with 10 minutes left of the first half, Norton-Cuffy whipped a superb ball across goal.

Zian Flemming could not get on the end of it but it was a sign of what was to come.

Ryan Leonard fired a sensational long-range effort just wide of the bottom-left post and George Saville forced Patterson into action as the hosts continued to push for the opener.

It finally came on the stroke of half-time when Nisbet tapped the ball past Patterson after another fantastic delivery from Norton-Cuffy.

Sunderland won a free-kick four minutes after half-time but they could not get a touch on Adil Aouchiche’s solid delivery.

The ball eventually fell to Abdoullah Ba but his strike went well wide of Millwall’s goal.

It could have been 2-0 in the 57th minute when confusion in the Sunderland defence set Norton-Cuffy free down the right wing but he scuffed his cut-back and the attack petered out.

The Black Cats had an excellent chance to equalise after a dangerous run from Clarke but Bradley Dack stabbed the ball wide from close range.

Patterson produced a phenomenal save moments later to deny Tom Bradshaw, whose curling effort seemed destined for the bottom-right corner.

Clarke had come alive down the left wing and just as the game seemed to be slipping away from Sunderland, he won a penalty before coolly converting it to get his side back on level terms.

Bradshaw could have restored Millwall’s lead after being put through on goal but another top-quality stop from Patterson kept the score at 1-1.

He finally found the back of the net at the third time of asking but the forward was judged to have been offside and both sides had to settle for a point.

Danny Collinge’s 89th-minute header earned National League promotion hopefuls Barnet a 1-1 draw at League Two Newport in a tight FA Cup second-round tie.

A replay was the least the visitors deserved for an impressive display at Rodney Parade.

Wing-back Shane McLoughlin, who scored both goals in the Exiles’ first-round win over Oldham, looked like being the hero again for the Welsh side as he opened the scoring in the 44th minute.

McLoughlin, who now has five goals this season, was in the right place to tap in a cross from fellow defender James Clarke.

Barnet, just 12 places below their opponents in the pyramid, enjoyed plenty of possession and caused County problems with their set-pieces.

The home side went close just before the opening goal as Bryn Morris cracked a free-kick against the post and Will Evans headed inches wide.

Ryan Delaney denied Barnet’s Nicke Kabamba with a goal-line clearance after the break and goalkeeper Nick Townsend saved from the Bees striker late on, before Collinge’s late intervention secured the visitors a replay.

Jon Dadi Bodvarsson struck a first-half hat-trick as Bolton breezed into the third round of the FA Cup with a 5-1 win against Sky Bet League Two side Harrogate.

The Icelander last claimed the match ball for Reading in a 3-0 win against Stevenage five years ago and this time triggered a ruthless performance which took Bolton to a club record 104 goals for the calendar year.

Gethin Jones and Will Forrester conspired for Bodvarsson’s first in the ninth minutes, and his second was down to some unselfish work from Dan Nlundulu just after the half-hour mark.

The hat-trick goal was stabbed in from close range after goalkeeper Jonathan Mitchell failed to keep hold of Carlos Mendes Gomes’ stinging shot.

George Thomson ended Bolton’s seven-game streak of clean sheets with a curled 20-yard shot before the break but Nlundulu quickly ended any hopes of a comeback with two delightful finishes shortly after the restart.

Town keeper Mitchell denied Nlundulu and Kyle Dempsey before the end but it proved to be a most comfortable afternoon for the League One promotion chasers.

Des Buckingham enjoyed a first win as Oxford manager as the League One side reached the third round by beating League Two opponents Grimsby 2-0.

The Mariners were unable to repeat last season’s cup exploits when they became the first club in the competition’s history to knock out five teams from higher divisions on their way to the quarter-finals.

Marcus McGuane fired Oxford ahead in the 11th minute and Billy Bodin got the second 15 minutes from time.

Grimsby were the architects of their own downfall as Oxford’s opener came from their own corner. Josh Murphy raced 60 yards and although Harvey Cartwright parried his drive, McGuane followed up to score.

Otis Khan had two half-chances for Grimsby in the first half and with 20 minutes to go Donovan Wilson was denied by James Beadle’s low save.

Cartwright was much the busier, saving from Stan Mills, twice, and Ruben Rodrigues. The visiting keeper also saved superbly from Bodin and Tyler Goodrham’s drive.

But he could do nothing to stop Bodin nodding in Cameron Brannagan’s chipped cross in the 75th minute to seal Oxford’s progress.

Three goals in six first-half minutes set Cambridge on the way to a dominant 4-0 win over Fleetwood as they booked a place in the third round of the FA Cup.

The U’s, with Barry Corr in caretaker charge following the sacking of manager Mark Bonner on Wednesday, never looked back after Danny Andrew opened the scoring in the seventh minute.

Andrew curled in a free kick from 22 yards, awarded after Elias Kachunga had been fouled by Bosun Lawal.

Four minutes later Kachunga was on the scoresheet himself, netting from close range after Sullay Kaikai’s shot had hit the post.

In the 13th minute, Kaikai set up Fejiri Okenabirhie who ran clear and finished confidently.

Brendan Wiredu put Fleetwood’s best chance wide from close range before the U’s missed a penalty in the 29th minute. Gassan Ahadme’s tame effort from the spot was easily saved by Stephen McMullan after a foul on the lively Kaikai by Lawal.

Ahadme made amends in the second half, converting Paul Digby’s 83rd-minute cross to complete the scoring

Ronnie O’Sullivan says he is motivated by the opportunity to “ruin the careers” of his major rivals after he breezed into the ninth UK Championship final of his career with a 6-2 win over Hossein Vafaei in York.

Thirty years after he first won the title as a 17-year-old in 1993, O’Sullivan will face either Judd Trump or Ding Junhui on Sunday seeking to win a record-extending eighth crown and shut out one of the pair from building their own collection of silverware.

“I’m just hanging around so people don’t get as good as a career as me,” quipped O’Sullivan, who ruthlessly exploited a series of costly errors from his Iranian opponent to seal by far his most comfortable victory of a gruelling week.

“If I could stop (Mark) Selby winning a few, and Judd winning a few, and Ding and (Neil) Robertson winning a few – just ruin their careers a little bit – that would be great. Sometimes that’s just a nice motivation to play.”

O’Sullivan was hardly an underdog heading into his first meeting with Vafaei since their controversial Crucible clash in August, but the Iranian was certainly the man in form after rifling seven centuries across the tournament’s three previous rounds.

In contrast the 47-year-old O’Sullivan had laboured through consecutive final-frame deciders against Robert Milkins and Zhou Yuelong, often appearing wayward and unfocused for periods despite booking his place back in the last four.

While O’Sullivan looked more clear-headed throughout their quarter-final clash, his dominance was due in part to an underwhelming performance from Vafaei, for whom errors in five of the six frames won by his opponent served up a disappointingly one-sided encounter.

Vafaei ran aground on a break of 30 in the opener and O’Sullivan swept up with a break of 54 before a 113 in the second frame put him firmly in command.

Vafaei showed a glimmer of fight as his eighth century of the tournament started the charge back level, but O’Sullivan took an error-strewn fifth and restored his two-frame lead after Vafaei missed a shockingly easy red to the middle.

O’Sullivan jawed a shot to the same pocket in the next, but a missed black off its spot brought more pain for Vafaei and when he missed the same colour to the top pocket in the eighth frame, the Iranian’s hopes of reaching a first major career final were over.

“I feel as fresh as a daisy,” added a revitalised O’Sullivan afterwards. “These tournaments are not a problem. I can do it quite comfortably. I’m still happy to have got this far, it’s great and I have enjoyed my week.

Luis Enrique laughed off suggestions Paris St Germain lack a cutting edge ahead of a tricky Ligue 1 trip to stingy Le Havre.

PSG registered 31 shots during their midweek Champions League clash with Newcastle but required a controversial late penalty from Kylian Mbappe to salvage a 1-1 draw.

The reigning champions are the highest scorers in France’s top-flight, having recorded an impressive 34 goals in just 13 games.

Head coach Enrique called for perspective in the wake of a frustrating midweek meeting with the Magpies and insisted he would be more concerned if his team were not creating chances.

“This is very funny,” the Spaniard replied with a bemused expression when asked about a potential finishing problem among his squad at his pre-match press conference.

“A team that scores three goals per game (on average) and generates 10 clear chances in the Champions League against a team like Newcastle?

“If we have a finishing problem, what does that mean for everyone else?

“Football is a game of mistakes. I would be worried if we weren’t making goal-scoring chances.

“Sometimes we will score more than others, that is life. We can’t all be inspired every time. I’m not worried about that.

“Sometimes we missed good chances, that is how it is. But we need to be sensible here.”

PSG are on a run of six successive league wins following last Friday’s thumping 5-2 success over Monaco.

Meanwhile, Le Havre have registered four goalless draws in their last five outings but sit in the top half of the table following promotion last term.

Enrique believes the Newcastle game will serve as good preparation for breaking down stubborn opposition on Sunday afternoon in Normandy.

“Le Havre are a team that don’t concede many goals and don’t score many either,” he said.

“I think they’ll defend with a low block, so good movement will be necessary.

“We’ve seen, especially against Newcastle, that even when the opponent defends deep, we can still manage to create a lot of chances.

“Therefore, it will be important to be well-positioned, to move the ball well, and to get our shots on target. It’s going to be a difficult match.”

PSG remain without defender Marquinhos due to a torn hamstring.

Warren Zaire-Emery, Nuno Mendes and Presnel Kimpembe are also still sidelined, while goalkeeper Alexandre Letellier (groin) faces a fitness test.