Former world eventing champion Ros Canter is within touching distance of a first Badminton Horse Trials title after she conquered punishing cross-country conditions to take pole position.

Lincolnshire-based Canter flourished with Lordships Graffalo – Badminton runners-up behind Laura Collett last year – on a day when many combinations floundered.

Double Olympic medallist Tom McEwen described the stamina-sapping going as “horrific”, and none of the starters threatened to jump clear inside the optimum time.

Canter collected 11.6 time penalties for an overnight score of 33.7, putting her nine penalties clear of Irish challenger Austin O’Connor and Colorado Blue, with McEwen’s Olympic team gold medal-winning colleague Oliver Townend third aboard Ballaghmor Class on 45.9.

Canter, who won the world crown in North Carolina five years ago, can afford to have two fences down in Monday’s showjumping finale and still land the £105,000 top prize.

Thirty combinations completed the cross-country test, with almost half the field either being eliminated or deciding to retire.

“It felt hard work in terms of galloping,” 37-year-old Canter said.

“He had to dig deep, but he is so honest and is a fantastic jumper. He is economical with his jumping, and you can’t get much better.

“A horse like him should be celebrated – I have not sat on anything like him before. Tomorrow is another day, but whatever happens, he is a star.”

O’Connor rocketed 32 places up the leaderboard after dressage, adding just 10.8 penalties to his score in pursuit of a crown that has not been won by an Irish rider since Major Eddie Boylan in 1965.

Cork-born O’Connor, who is based in Oxfordshire, said: “The horse was amazing. He is the real deal.

“It was the hardest he has had to try in a five-star event, but he is full of class. I’ve got a great team at home and they have kept him very fit.

“He is one of the best horses in the world, and I am a lot older than I look! I have ridden a lot of cross-country courses in the wet before.”

McEwen, meanwhile, lies fifth on Toledo De Kerser, just behind world number one Tim Price, with Gemma Stevens in sixth and Canter holding seventh spot aboard her second ride Pencos Crown Jewel.

Lewis Hamilton has been warned by former rival Felipe Massa that it will be a gamble to leave Mercedes.

Hamilton’s contract with the Silver Arrows is up for renewal at the end of the year.

It is expected that the 38-year-old will extend his stay with the team which has carried him to six of his record-equalling seven world championships.

However, Mercedes’ indifferent start to the new campaign has led some to question as to whether Hamilton could shop around, with Ferrari a possible destination.

Speaking ahead of Sunday’s race at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium, team principal Toto Wolff described Hamilton’s unruly Mercedes as “a nasty piece of work”.

But Massa, who was at the Italian team for eight seasons and lost out to Hamilton by a single championship point in 2008, said: “Anything is possible, but I have doubts that it will happen.

“The relationship Lewis has with Mercedes is strong and to change that for Ferrari he would need to be sure what he is going to get.

“Ferrari have not proved they have the car to win the championship. Going there would be a bit of a gamble. If he cannot go to Red Bull, which is impossible with Max [Verstappen] there, I would stay at Mercedes.”

Hamilton will be 39 in January but the Briton appears determined to win a record eighth title.

In Miami, he even raised the prospect of racing into his fifties.

Massa, 42, who retired from the sport in 2017, said: “When I go to run I suffer more than when I was 30 or 25.

“The age will come to Lewis but he still has some years in front of him and you see what Fernando [Alonso, 41] is doing at Aston Martin. Lewis just doesn’t have the car, but maybe that will change.”

Mohamed Salah’s 100th goal at Anfield – among other achievements – grabbed the headlines but Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk believes goalkeeper Alisson Becker is more than worthy of similar recognition.

Salah’s solitary strike secured a sixth successive Premier League victory to maintain the Reds’ unlikely push for the Champions League but the 1-0 win was only possible because Alisson brought up a century of clean sheets in the game.

In a disappointing season Alisson has been the club’s most consistent player, even taking into account Salah reaching 30 goals for the campaign for the fourth time in six years.

Van Dijk, who has not been immune from the struggles which have affected the whole side, recognises that.

“He’s an example for a lot of players, especially goalkeepers. I’m very glad that he’s my goalkeeper and we have been very successful,” said the Netherlands captain.

“Obviously on the pitch his qualities are there for everyone to see – his contribution, the saves, the leadership, that’s all very important – but away from the pitch is just as important, the qualities he has.

“He is a big, big leader in the group and someone a lot of players look up to.

“Obviously this (100 clean sheets) is for him a big moment and hopefully there are many more to come.”

Liverpool, who are in talks with former Wolfsburg sporting director Jorg Schmadtke to replace the departing Julian Ward, recorded back-to-back Premier League clean sheets for the first time in two months – when they had three in a row – and only the fifth occasion in the whole campaign.

Much of that poor record has been down to how the team defends and not Alisson’s performances, which have been generally better than the rest of the squad overall.

Van Dijk accepts those failings but believes they have finally started to iron out their issues.

“He is the one who has the highest risk factor in the team as well, if he makes a mistake then it’s a goal,” he added.

“It’s the whole doing it together type of feeling that we feel we have. That’s the basis.

“He would probably say that without the boys in front of him and the midfielders and strikers doing their work, this (100 clean sheets) would not be possible. Everyone is part of it, but he should definitely be proud of it.

“The last couple of games, the commitment we have shown and the reaction when we lost the ball is very important.

“It’s important to get the ball back, win challenges, and while there’s still room for improvement, winning six games in a row is something that has been unheard of this season.

“But let’s just keep going and enjoy the moment and take it into next season.”

Van Dijk could not, however, fail to recognise the enduring excellence of Salah, who has drawn level with Steven Gerrard as the club’s joint-fifth all-time goalscorer on 186.

It is the Egypt international’s relentlessness which sets him apart from most of his contemporaries, having been available for a remarkable 97 per cent of all Premier League and Champions League matches since he joined the club in 2017.

“He is doing it consistently, even when we are struggling he has still found a way to be important for the team,” said the Dutchman.

“Being consistent every three or four days, obviously you can have games where you don’t score but you can reach that level, and also staying fit that’s the most difficult thing to do.

“People don’t really speak about those kind of things too much, but maybe we should. On top of that, his numbers speak for themselves. In the world we live in nowadays, maybe the respect comes after he has stopped playing.

“But I don’t think he cares about that anyway. He just wants to keep doing what he’s doing and be important for the club. That’s the main thing.”

Brentford’s bid for European football appears to be fading after just two wins in the last nine matches.

“You need to perform almost perfectly against these top-six sides,” said head coach Thomas Frank.

“We are definitely getting closer, we’ve shown that in the performances and the wins we’ve had so far this season, but you need to be almost perfect to get a point or to win and, unfortunately, we were not quite perfect, but we were close.”

Andy Murray claimed his first title since October 2019 with victory at the ATP Challenger event in Aix-en-Provence.

The Scot, playing with a metal hip, has not been in the winners’ circle since triumphing in Antwerp three and a half years ago and, although this is a second-tier tournament, he will take great pride in this confidence-boosting success ahead of the French Open.

Having breezed past lowly ranked French players on his run to the final, the standard was lifted and he came good, beating world number 17 Tommy Paul 2-6 6-1 6-2 to lift the title.

In doing so he ensures his return to the top 50 of the rankings and a first Challenger Tour level win for 18 years.

It looked like it might slip away after a poor start that saw him lose the first four games of the match to hand Paul, an Australian Open semi-finalist earlier this year, the advantage.

The 25-year-old American coasted to the first set, but that was as good as it got as Murray came to the fore.

He turned the tables by winning the first five games of the second set, including two breaks of serve, and soon levelled up.

Murray, eight days before his 36th birthday, broke in the opening game of the decider and did not look back as a second break consolidated his lead, allowing him to seal a memorable title.

The Scot only took a late wild card into the tournament following an early exit from the ATP Tour event in Madrid and will now decide whether to go Rome or rest and prepare for the French Open, which begins on May 22.

Kyogo Furuhashi grabbed his 30th goal of the season as Celtic clinched the cinch Premiership title with a 2-0 victory over 10-man Hearts.

Hearts caused Celtic problems until losing Alex Cochrane to a contentious VAR-assisted red card on the stroke of half-time after the defender was adjudged to have denied Daizen Maeda an obvious goalscoring opportunity.

Furuhashi netted from close range with the game’s first shot on target midway through the second half and substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu rounded off the win.

Celtic had gone into the weekend with a 13-point lead over Rangers, who kicked off against Aberdeen 45 minutes after the Tynecastle clash and the Hoops’ win ensured they retain the title with four games to spare.

Ange Postecoglou’s men can now focus on going for a record points total of 107, which they will achieve if they win their remaining matches, and also winning the treble, which they will secure if they beat Inverness in the Scottish Cup final.

They did not have it all their own way at Tynecastle though. Interim Hearts manager Steven Naismith had enjoyed a 6-1 win over Ross County in his first home match in charge and his team selection signified real attacking intent with attackers Barrie McKay, Yutaro Oda, Lawrence Shankland and Josh Ginnelly all retaining their places.

Celtic had Anthony Ralston and Yuki Kobayashi in for the injured Alistair Johnston and Cameron Carter-Vickers and the Japanese centre-back had some uncomfortable early moments as the home side pressed them high up the park.

The hosts enjoyed the territorial advantage in the opening 45 minutes with Kye Rowles coming closest with a volley that shaved the post and a header that landed on the roof of the net.

Hearts were not allowing Celtic to get into any passing rhythm and the visitors’ only moment of note had been a Greg Taylor header over the bar before the game changed in the 45th minute.

Ralston’s lofted pass down the right channel put Hearts on the back foot, Maeda ran across Cochrane and went down as his heels were clipped just outside the box.

Rowles was offering some cover and referee Nick Walsh initially showed the yellow card but he changed it to a red after being called to his monitor by video assistant Willie Collum, although the original decision did not appear to be a clear and obvious error.

Naismith brought on Stephen Kingsley for Oda before Carl Starfelt was denied by the offside flag from the resulting free-kick after knocking home Ralston’s header.

Celtic still found it difficult to break through the 10 men but the key moment fittingly involved three players who have been highly influential in their success this season.

Skipper Callum McGregor’s lofted pass found the run of Reo Hatate in behind the Hearts defence and he squared for Furuhashi to nudge home from close range at the near post.

The Japanese striker injured his shoulder in the process of scoring and was soon replaced by Oh.

The South Korean doubled Celtic’s advantage in the 80th minute with a neat finish following good work from fellow subs Sead Haksabanovic and Aaron Mooy.

Some of the 1,303 Celtic fans unveiled a banner which read ‘F*** the King, crown the champions” and they were soon celebrating their 11th title in 12 seasons.

Celtic have sealed their 11th title success in 12 years.

Ange Postecoglou’s side topped the table when they beat Aberdeen 2-0 on the opening weekend of the season in July and have never dropped down at any stage.

Here we look back at six key games in the title race.

Ross County 1 Celtic 3 (August 6)

Postecoglou’s side came through a difficult situation in their second game at a ground where Celtic have experienced some troubles in recent years.

Alex Iacovitti cancelled out Kyogo Furuhashi’s opener with County’s first effort on target in the 58th minute but Moritz Jenz headed a debut goal six minutes from time and Liel Abada curled home in stoppage time.

Postecoglou hailed his side’s “outstanding” response to County’s goal and added: “We stuck to our task, played our football, scored another good goal and even then there was no thought of stopping there, we got our third and I’m really pleased with every aspect of our game.”

Celtic 4 Rangers 0 (September 3)

The Bhoys moved five points clear with a convincing victory after sweeping their city rivals aside in the first half thanks to Abada’s double and a Jota goal. David Turnbull accepted a late gift to round off another thumping win six days after Celtic recorded a record 9-0 away win over Dundee United.

Postecoglou said: “The league table isn’t important right now. What’s important is how we play. If we continue to play like that, absolutely, we’re going to be hard to stop.”

St Johnstone 1 Celtic 2 (October 8)

Celtic looked set to drop points for the second successive away match following defeat by St Mirren, when St Johnstone defender Alex Mitchell scored a stoppage-time equaliser to wipe out a first-half own goal. But Giorgos Giakoumakis turned home Alexandro Bernabei’s cross in the fifth minute of time added on.

“You can win a game of football many ways but winning it this way also provides some confidence in the fact that we still have that character and resilience in the group,” Postecoglou said.

Aberdeen 0 Celtic 1 (December 17)

The long mid-season break threatened to disrupt the flow of every in-form team and Celtic faced a challenge in their first game back as then Aberdeen boss Jim Goodwin parked the bus at Pittodrie.

Celtic had 33 efforts at goal compared to Aberdeen’s two, both of which were off target, and enjoyed 80 per cent possession, but did not make it count until Callum McGregor netted from 20 yards in the 87th minute in his comeback from a knee injury.

Postecoglou said of his captain: “We did awfully well to cover his absence but it doesn’t take away from the fact he is a fantastic footballer and he makes our team even better.”

Rangers 2 Celtic 2 (January 2)

Celtic took a nine-point lead to Ibrox against a Rangers side who had won their first four matches under Michael Beale. Daizen Maeda gave Celtic an early lead but their dominance was affected by an injury to Greg Taylor and goals from Ryan Kent and James Tavernier turned the game on its head just after the break.

However, Furuhashi netted a poacher’s goal from 12 yards in the 87th minute to protect Celtic’s advantage at the top of the table.

Postecoglou said: “There isn’t anything like a lost cause. You go till the final whistle and nothing changes. For that to be effective, you have to do it on a weekly basis. And we do.”

Celtic 3 Rangers 2 (April 8)

Both teams kept on winning until their next meeting, which was do or die for Rangers. The visitors had an early Alfredo Morelos goal ruled out before a double from Furuhashi and another Jota goal saw Celtic open up a 12-point lead despite Tavernier’s double.

Postecoglou branded his Japanese striker a “winner” and added: “He wants that responsibility to rise to the occasion. He wants to be the person who delivers and he did it again today.”

Kyogo Furuhashi grabbed his 30th goal of the season as Celtic clinched the cinch Premiership title with a 2-0 victory over 10-man Hearts.

Hearts caused Celtic problems until losing Alex Cochrane to a contentious VAR-assisted red card on the stroke of half-time after the defender was adjudged to have denied Daizen Maeda an obvious goalscoring opportunity.

Furuhashi netted from close range with the game’s first shot on target midway through the second half and substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu rounded off the win.

Celtic had gone into the weekend with a 13-point lead over Rangers, who kicked off against Aberdeen 45 minutes after the Tynecastle clash and the Hoops’ win ensured they retain the title with four games to spare.

Ange Postecoglou’s men can now focus on going for a record points total of 107, which they will achieve if they win their remaining matches, and also winning the treble, which they will secure if they beat Inverness in the Scottish Cup final.

They did not have it all their own way at Tynecastle though. Interim Hearts manager Steven Naismith had enjoyed a 6-1 win over Ross County in his first home match in charge and his team selection signified real attacking intent with attackers Barrie McKay, Yutaro Oda, Lawrence Chankland and Josh Ginnelly all retaining their places.

Celtic had Anthony Ralston and Yuki Kobayashi in for the injured Alistair Johnston and Cameron Carter-Vickers and the Japanese centre-back had some uncomfortable early moments as the home side pressed them high up the park.

The hosts enjoyed the territorial advantage in the opening 45 minutes with Kye Rowles coming closest with a volley that shaved the post and a header that landed on the roof of the net.

Hearts were not allowing Celtic to get into any passing rhythm and the visitors’ only moment of note had been a Greg Taylor header over the bar before the game changed in the 45th minute.

Ralston’s lofted pass down the right channel put Hearts on the back foot, Maeda ran across Cochrane and went down as his heels were clipped just outside the box.

Rowles was offering some cover and referee Nick Walsh initially showed the yellow card but he changed it to a red after being called to his monitor by video assistant Willie Collum, although the original decision did not appear to be a clear and obvious error.

Naismith brought on Stephen Kingsley for Oda before Carl Starfelt was denied by the offside flag from the resulting free-kick after knocking home Ralston’s header.

Celtic still found it difficult to break through the 10 men but the key moment fittingly involved three players who have been highly influential in their success this season.

Skipper Callum McGregor’s lofted pass found the run of Reo Hatate in behind the Hearts defence and he squared for Furuhashi to nudge home from close range at the near post.

The Japanese striker injured his shoulder in the process of scoring and was soon replaced by Oh.

The South Korean doubled Celtic’s advantage in the 80th minute with a neat finish following good work from fellow subs Sead Haksabanovic and Aaron Mooy.

Some of the 1,303 Celtic fans unveiled a banner which read ‘F*** the King, crown the champions” and they were soon celebrating their 11th title in 12 seasons.

Burnley have rewarded manager Vincent Kompany with a new five-year deal.

The former Manchester City defender won promotion back to the Premier League in his first season in the dugout at Turf Moor, winning the Championship title in style.

He has been linked with a number of Premier League vacancies, including Chelsea and Tottenham, but has now committed his future to the Clarets until 2028.

The Belgian said: “Burnley and Turf Moor felt right pretty much from the start – so it also feels right to sign for the next five years.

“Together with the fans we have made Turf Moor a fortress again and continue to look forward to the future and the job of making Burnley better with every step.”

Kompany replaced Sean Dyche last summer following the club’s relegation to the Championship and has transformed their playing style, having cantered to the Championship title.

The Clarets can rack up 100 points – their highest ever tally in the club’s 140-year history – if they beat Cardiff in the final game of the season on Monday.

Chairman Alan Pace added: “We are ecstatic Vincent has signed a new deal.

“He is the perfect fit for how we all see Burnley Football Club moving forward.

“An extraordinary leader, setting ever higher standards and driving our club to the levels we all want to achieve.”

Peterborough boss Darren Ferguson praised his side’s first-half performance as they clinched the final Sky Bet League One play-off place with a 2-0 win at fourth-placed Barnsley.

Top scorer Jonson Clarke-Harris opened the scoring in the sixth minute, with Jack Taylor doubling the lead in the second half.

Peterborough will face Sheffield Wednesday – who beat Posh’s rivals Derby – in the play-off semi-finals, with Barnsley facing Bolton.

Ferguson said: “We got the result we needed and got a favour off Sheffield Wednesday, so it went exactly to plan.

“I thought we started the game ever so well, I’ve spoken all week about getting an early goal and making Derby nervous.

On his side’s second goal, Ferguson said: “The second goal was pivotal, obviously I’m aware Derby are losing I had to stick or twist to try and get a third.

“But in the end it didn’t matter because we managed to get the win.”

Wednesday led Derby at half-time and, asked whether that scoreline impacted his half-time team talk, Ferguson continued: “The main focus was on how we performed and making sure we did our bit.

“I did tell them Derby were getting beaten and were down to 10 men, I had to tell them because I didn’t want to be wasting an opportunity that was in front of us.”

Ferguson was asked whether past experience will help with the play-off games and responded: “It could do, I’m used to it. I enjoy these types of games and this time of the season, it’s very rare I don’t have much to play for whether it be promotion or relegation.”

Barnsley head coach Michael Duff said: “(I’m) a little bit frustrated, to be honest, we’ve been done by a set-play.

“It’s tough to replicate the intensity and concentration that’s needed to play in these types of games.

“Credit to Peterborough, they’re a good team. I’m frustrated about when the second goal came in, I think we went flat after that and never really looked like getting back into the game.

“The last two weeks have been tough, but we’ve had a brilliant season and now we need to tune in again.

Barry Cotter caught the eye for the hosts and Duff said: “He was one of the big ones today, I thought he was excellent.

“He’s got loads of physical attributes, sometimes he needs to simplify his game but I think we can coach him.

Captain Mads Andersen continues to be sidelined and Duff admitted: “It’s a concern, he’s still not training with the group.

“Hopefully he’ll be fine but our promotion hopes don’t depend on Mads Andersen.

Looking ahead to the upcoming double-header against Bolton, Duff added: “Tough games, but who are you going to pick that isn’t a tough game?

“The last couple of weeks have been tough but we can focus in now.”

Cambridge boss Mark Bonner described his side’s remarkable escape from relegation as a “brilliant achievement” and believes the U’s could be looking at a much brighter future.

United had looked destined for League Two as they sat seven points from safety with nine games remaining but they secured survival on a dramatic final day of the season.

A 2-0 success over Forest Green for Bonner’s side saw them climb out of the bottom four for the first time since January, with club stalwart Harrison Dunk and leading scorer Sam Smith netting in the first half.

News of MK Dons’ failure to win at Burton sparked wild celebrations at the Abbey Stadium, with Cambridge securing a third season in League One.

“We’re a club on the up,” said Bonner. “You look at the number of people here; four sides of the stadium full of Cambridge fans. What a day. I was a bit emotional first half.

“I said a few weeks back we’re going to need to finish as we started, or even maybe more to make sure that we got across the line. It seemed an improbable task at the time.

“Firstly we had to take it to the last week, then we were trying to take it to the last day, then we needed the football gods to shine on us.

“It’s a brilliant achievement for us to do it. Hopefully this gives us a chance of building and making sure that next year’s a stronger one.

“What a way to do it, last day of the season. It’s incredible really. It will be one that sticks in everyone’s mind at the end of a really brutal season.

“The season, the longer it went on, became one where we said we’re going to have to have a fight to stay in it. I’m absolutely thrilled that we have for everybody. I’d say it’s well deserved.”

Forest Green boss Duncan Ferguson felt weaknesses shown in Sunday’s game summed up his side’s season as they ended the campaign bottom of the table.

“We’ve had a problem with set-plays during the season, that did us for the first goal,” he said.

“It was an end-of-season game for us, really. Of course they were chasing something, but we were always in the game.

“We think we’ve had a genuine shout for a penalty at 2-0 down, so a couple of decisions never went for us, but we lacked a cutting edge.

“The final third really has been a problem most of the season. We’ve not scored enough goals and we can’t even defend the set0plays, so that’s a problem.

“I’m always gauging the players, always judging them every day in training to see if we’re going to be good enough for League Two, so we’re always assessing.

“It’s been a tough season, probably even since the January before that we’ve struggled to win games. We’ve lacked that real goalscorer who’s going to stick the ball in the net.”

An emotional Steve Cotterill revealed his disbelief after 10-man Shrewsbury ended their League One campaign with a 1-0 defeat at Lincoln.

Town dominated for over an hour but saw Luke Leahy and Rob Street hit the woodwork while Chey Dunkley and Jordan Shipley were denied by goalkeeper Carl Rushworth.

On-loan City midfielder Matty Virtue rammed home the only goal after 73 minutes, with only their second shot on target.

Max Sanders should have doubled the lead at the death but saw his penalty saved by Marko Marosi after Dunkley was sent off for upending Ben House in the box.

Cotterill fought back tears as he admitted how disappointed he was to head away from Sincil Bank pointless.

He said: “I can’t believe we have been beaten. I thought we were excellent. We were good value for the points, that’s it in a nutshell.

“Their keeper’s made some great saves, we’ve hit the bar twice and I just thought we were the better team by a mile.

“It is gut-wrenching because they have put in so much hard work. We wanted to finish in the top 10 and if we had won, which we should have done, it would least have put us up into 11th.

“It has, though, been real progression [this season] but it just doesn’t feel like it at the moment. I’m sad, I feel very sad.

“I am very proud of them. I am quite emotional – there has been so much adversity that we have had to fight through this season and we fought right up to the last minute.”

Lincoln’s win secured them 11th spot in the table, a position that delighted boss Mark Kennedy, who has just completed his first full season with the Imps.

He said: “It is beyond my wildest expectations. I’m not saying my expectations were low, it’s just that there were so many obstacles to overcome, so a huge thank you to the staff, the players, the board and the fans, who have been incredible. I just played a small part.”

Kennedy pointed to the introduction of Sanders midway through the second half as the turning point in the match, saying: “Max has been phenomenal this season.

“He has been a standout performer which says a lot as he hasn’t played a lot of football and he knows that. He completed changed the dynamics of the game.”

On match winner Virtue, he added: “I was quite frustrated with him early on as he was playing far too deep but he was much better in the second half and there was no surprise he got his goal.

“He has had an outstanding season and he is someone we are keen to get hold of.”

Jodi Jones fired in a late winner deep into extra-time as Notts County came from two goals down to go through to the National League play-off final with a 3-2 win over Boreham Wood.

The visitors took a shock lead in the 38th minute when George Broadbent latched onto a long ball and fired across for Femi Ilesanmi who turned home from close range.

Boreham Wood doubled their advantage on the stroke of half-time when Lee Ndlovu took advantage of some slack County possession and found himself one-on-one with Sam Slocombe before slotting home.

County pulled one back straight after the break after Aden Baldwin was left in acres of space 25 yards out, he let fly and fired past Joe McDonnell to make it 2-1.

The Magpies had a chance to equalise from the spot after Ruben Rodrigues was brought down inside the area. He stepped up but saw his penalty kick palmed away by McDonnell as Boreham Wood hung onto their lead.

But County’s relentless pressure finally paid off in the dying minutes of stoppage time when Jones’ cross was turned home by Baldwin for his second of the game to send the tie into extra-time.

As penalties were looming,  Jones let fly from long-range and although McDonnell got hands to it he could not keep it out and County had completed their comeback to book a place at Wembley.

Portsmouth boss John Mousinho is optimistic about next season after an entertaining 2-2 draw at home to Wycombe.

Pompey equalised twice, through Marlon Pack and Paddy Lane, with Garath McCleary and Lewis Wing –  with a long-range screamer – on target for the visitors in the final match of the 2022-23 Sky Bet League One campaign.

Mousinho said: “We could have scored more today. We had chance after chance after chance, but it just didn’t fall for us.

“Of the two conceded, the first one was sloppy, but the second was a wonder goal. One of those one-offs from about 50 yards.

“If today’s performance is anything to go by, then the future looks promising.

“Obviously the fans want us to shoot all the time but I felt that we did turn down a few opportunities to shoot in the first half.

“The way we build is excellent at times and I was absolutely thrilled with how we did that today.

“I think Paddy Lane has been excellent the last couple of games after a torrid six months. He’s looking good.”

Pompey were the dominant side in the first half, yet it was Wycombe who opened the scoring in the 31st minute.

A dreadful pass out from goalkeeper Josh Oluwayemi went straight to the feet of McCleary, who swept forward to power the ball under the goalkeeper’s body.

Pompey fought back and deservedly levelled in the 44th minute as a second corner in as many minutes saw a Michael Jacobs cross headed home by Pack at the back post.

The second half continued to entertain and in the 54th minute Wing hammered home from far out. However, Lane levelled 18 minutes later to ensure a point apiece.

Wycombe boss Matt Bloomfield is also looking forward to the next campaign.

He said: “We needed a good response to last week’s defeat (3-0 at home to Cheltenham) and I don’t think the players needed telling that. I’ve sensed in training that this sort of performance was possible today.

“There was anger in the team after last week, and with nearly a thousand supporters making the trip, they didn’t want to disappoint.

“We wanted to set the stall for next season, and I thought we did that. Three points would have been nice, but I thought a draw was fair overall.

“We could have had a winner at the end, and would question the offside decision, but that’s football.

“I thought we showed as an attacking threat overall. We certainly didn’t want to come here and play out a boring 90 minutes and a 0-0 before people go on their holidays.

“We’re excited about the future of this club. It’s a special place to be and I’m pleased to be here.”