Andrea Atzeni enjoyed the perfect send-off ahead of his imminent move to Hong Kong as he steered Lezoo to Listed success in the JenningsBet Hopeful Stakes at Newmarket.

The Classic-winning rider is signing off after a 16-year stint in the UK, having decided to switch to the Far East for an initial six-month period.

Ahead of the new season at Sha Tin kicking off on September 10, Atzeni made one final visit to the July Course for four rides, the last of which was Lezoo in the feature event of the afternoon.

Last season’s Cheveley Park Stakes heroine was the 7-4 favourite to complete an across-the-card treble on the day for trainer Ralph Beckett and part-owner Marc Chan following the earlier victories of Angel Bleu in the Celebration Mile at Goodwood and Kinross in the City of York Stakes on the Knavesmire.

Dropping in class after being well held in the 1000 Guineas and the Commonwealth Cup earlier this season, Lezoo showed her ability to beat the 2021 Sprint Cup winner Emaraaty Ana by a neck.

Atzeni, who flies to Hong Kong on Sunday, said: “I half expected it (the win) and that’s why I’m not surprised, but when I picked up the ride on this filly I said to my agent ‘I’m happy to leave after that as otherwise I’m only going to get upset so I might as well leave on a high’.

“It is a big move, and it is hitting me more now, not so much in a shock way as I’m really excited and looking forward to it.

“It is a contract for six months, but it could be for six years.”

Of Lezoo, he added: “I thought she had a very good chance. She is obviously getting a bit of weight off the older horses. It looked like the perfect race on perfect ground.

“That big heavy shower we had made the ground very loose, which she probably didn’t appreciate as much as she would quick ground as she was wheel-spinning a little bit.

“She got the job done and it was great to get her head in front again.”

Tom Ward will step Woodhay Wonder back up in grade following her 14-1 success in the £100,000 Tattersalls Somerville Auction Stakes under PJ McDonald.

Third in the Duchess of Cambridge Stakes over the course and distance on her latest outing, the daughter of Tamayuz went a couple of places better with a half-length verdict over Geologist.

Ward said: “She was still quite green in that race (Duchess of Cambridge Stakes) and the small field didn’t quite suit her. Today has helped with the big field and with there being plenty of pace.

“She has always shown a lot at home, but she has never really been in a position where she has had a truly-run race and today was the first time you got a chance to see what she is really all about.

“She has got Group Two black type and I’m hoping she will win a Listed or a Group Three at some stage.

“The Dick Poole at Salisbury in two weeks, if it doesn’t come too soon, we could look at, but there are plenty of races at the end of the season for her.”

Inquisitively struck on her his first start for Kevin Philippart de Foy when taking the Julia Graves Roses Stakes at York.

The two-year-old was previously trained by Ollie Sangster but changed hands earlier in the term after a promising third-placed finish behind leading juvenile sprinter Big Evs in the Windsor Castle at Royal Ascot.

Now running in the silks of Wee Sean Gan, the bay started at 6-1 for the Listed event but blazed to a comprehensive victory under William Buick as he came home two lengths ahead of 9-4 favourite Purosangue.

Hong Kong is the base of the horse’s new owners and he looks set to head there at the conclusion of his two-year-old campaign, but there will be more racing in the west before he makes that move.

“I am delighted with him, he showed good form at Ascot in the Windsor Castle,” Philippart de Foy said.

“He has got loads of speed and on quick ground I thought if he got the rail he’d be very difficult to pass.

“He’s a talented horse and I’m thrilled with him.

“His owners are based in Hong Kong so it is likely he will go there for his three-year-old career, but before then he could go to Doncaster, France and maybe even America.”

Paddington is set to head straight to Qipco Champions Day after suffering his first defeat of the season at York on Wednesday.

Aidan O’Brien’s colt has enjoyed a fantastic campaign, winning his first six starts including Group One victories in the Irish 2,000 Guineas, the St James’s Palace, the Coral-Eclipse and the Sussex Stakes.

He was a warm order to secure a fifth top-level win in the space of three months in the Juddmonte International, but was beaten into third place by Mostahdaf, after which his trainer blamed himself for going to the well once too often.

Speaking at the Curragh on Saturday, O’Brien reported his star three-year-old to be none the worse and he will now enjoy some well deserved downtime before being prepared for the autumn.

“Paddington is good, he’s fine. In all fairness to him he’s answered every call and even at York he answered it,” said the Ballydoyle handler.

“He’ll have a little break now and we might look at going back to Ascot with him. We’ll give him a little chance and he’ll come back like a new horse.

“We’ve fairly put it up to him for a baby three-year-old. Frankie (Dettori, rider of Mostahdaf) knew he was going to get him on his knees because he was after getting beat twice by him by following him.”

Paddington is entered in the Qipco Champion Stakes and Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot on October 21, with O’Brien hinting a return to a mile for the latter contest could be the favoured option.

He added: “Either the Champion or the mile, whatever the lads decide. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the mile as he has loads of speed.

“He gets a mile and a quarter, but it might be just class that makes him get it.

“He could be a miler, only that I’ve been stretching him and he wasn’t getting a choice. At his best he might be a miler, but it will depend on what the lads decide to do.”

England’s dismal build-up to the World Cup reached its lowest ebb as they collapsed to their first defeat to a current tier-two nation by losing 30-22 to Fiji at Twickenham.

Jonny May raced over to seize an early lead but what followed will have shaken head coach Steve Borthwick as England were outplayed by a side they had dispatched in all seven previous meetings.

Waisea Nayacalevu and Vinaya Habosi touched down to propel Fiji in front and, although tries by Marcus Smith and Joe Marchant hinted that a seismic upset might be avoided, the Islanders had other ideas.

The leaky home defence cracked one final time in the 73rd minute, with Simione Kuruvoli delivering the decisive blow to wrap up a historic victory that will create shockwaves ahead of the World Cup.

Wales and Australia will be eyeing their clashes with their Pool D rivals nervously having seen what what unfolded in front of a disappointing crowd of 56,854 at Twickenham.

It was England’s fifth defeat in six matches and was a dismal World Cup send-off that adds to the tension surrounding their pivotal opening game against Argentina on September 9.

No-one will have felt the disappointment more than captain Courtney Lawes, who was making his 100th appearance on a day that is expected to see England drop beneath Fiji in the global rankings.

Steve Borthwick had said the listlessness seen in previous three warm-up matches was a result of being in the midst of a conditioning block and that they would benefit when the load was reduced.

The pressure continues to mount on England head coach Steve Borthwick (David Davies/PA)As they made the brightest start of their four warm-up games, they certainly looked like a side with fresh purpose – Manu Tuilagi making early dents, George Ford fizzing a pass to Ollie Lawrence and May supplying the determined kick-chase that had been missing in Dublin.

May quickly decorated his international comeback with a first try since November 2021 in the left corner after Alex Mitchell and Ford found the veteran Gloucester wing with sharp distribution from a scrum.

It was the first try scored by an England back in 261 minutes and it began to look like Borthwick’s team were emerging from their long spell of underachievement.

But the rest of the first-half belonged to Fiji and once their first attack had unfolded amid a downpour, Caleb Muntz landed a penalty.

The heavy rain had stopped and, while handling was still treacherous, the well-organised Islanders continued to probe for openings that almost produced a dynamic try for Nayacalevu that was ruled out for a marginal forward pass.

Under-pressure England wrestled back the ball and were only denied in the right corner by a try-saving tackle on Max Malins that took place in the moments after prop Eroni Mawi committed a yellow card breakdown offence.

With Mawi still in the sin-bin, Fiji ran in their first try with a little help from weak tackles by May and Freddie Steward on Selestino Ravutaumada that enabled Nayacalevu to cross at the end of a slickly-orchestrated attack.

A brief England assault followed but once this subsided they paid the price for Ben Earl switching off around the ruck to allowed Habosi to dart clear and race over the line.

Smith touched down a Ford chip as tension mounted at Twickenham but with Muntz landing another penalty they still trailed, although there was evidence they had found a second wind.

That was confirmed when Joe Marchant capitalised on the space down the right but when Danny Care dropped the restart they were back under the cosh and the ruthless Fijians pounced through Kuruvoli to claim a famous win.

Frankie Dettori’s nationwide last hurrah has at times left one wondering why he is retiring at all, and the veteran rider was probably asking himself the same question after another stellar day on the Knavesmire.

Riding at his final Ebor meeting, the Italian’s logical likely winner was the Ralph Beckett-trained Kinross, a hugely consistent gelding Dettori has previously described as his ‘cash machine’ as he wins valuable prizes with such regularity.

The cash machine was in good working order as Kinross paid out once again in the Sky Bet City of York Stakes, winning by three quarters of a length in front of an appreciative Yorkshire crowd.

The dust had barely settled on that success when Dettori was then given the leg up on Willie Mullins’ Absurde in the meeting’s namesake race, the Sky Bet Ebor Handicap.

The dual-purpose gelding was a 7-1 shot having been trounced by stablemate Vauban at Royal Ascot, though his chances looked to diminish when he was drawn widest of all in stall 24 and they shrunk even more when Dettori was forced to lead the troublesome five-year-old to post.

Mullins certainly seemed to have lowered his expectations and had told Dettori to do as he pleased, and under that freedom he produced a ride not dissimilar to last year’s winning effort aboard Trawlerman.

The duo raced wide in the early stages and avoided the bulk of the field until the turn away from the stalls, travelling along in the slipstream of Real Dream and eventually slotting in among the leading handful.

There they remained until the home straight and when the race switched from the middle side to the stands’ side rail, Dettori gained and regained the lead several times in the final few furlongs as his mount locked horns with Live Your Dream and 5-2 favourite Sweet William.

In the final strides the race took on the film-script quality that has repeatedly appeared throughout Dettori’s final season and an Ebor triumph was added to a 2023 haul that so far includes the 2000 Guineas, the Oaks, the Gold Cup at Ascot and the Juddmonte International – a list of prizes any rider at their peak would be proud of.

Dettori revelled in the atmosphere as he collected he trophy, posing for selfies and reflecting on his final Ebor experience.

He said: “This morning I woke up, I felt a little bit sad. I was a bit sentimental, I can’t explain, and I thought ‘god, if I can ride one more winner at the Ebor that would be great,” the jockey said.

“Kinross would be my banker because he doesn’t know how to run a bad race and I was drawn 24 on Willie Mullins’ horse, I thought that was asking the impossible.

“I pulled it off! Full credit to the horse and the trainer. It just worked out, what can I say?”

Though there is sentimentality surrounding Dettori’s route to retirement, he approaches the increase in attention with a degree of humour too, especially regarding Absurde’s obstinacy ahead of the Ebor.

He said: “I didn’t think I would be winning it when I had to lead him to the start. Somebody said ‘get on him’, I said ‘don’t be stupid, I’m knackered!’.

Burton and Bolton had to settle for a point apiece as goals from Mark Helm and Dion Charles cancelled each other out in a 1-1 draw at the Pirelli Stadium.

Helm put Burton ahead soon after half-time before Bolton, looking to get back to winning ways after their 4-0 home defeat to Wigan last time out, equalised through Charles just before the hour.

Albion had the clearest opening of the first half when winger Bobby Kamwa took advantage of some poor Bolton defending to run through and round goalkeeper Nathan Baxter only for his effort to hit the post.

Kamwa also fired wide from the edge of the box as Wanderers made a nervy start but the visitors grew into the game and both Randell Williams and Charles forced good saves from Max Crocombe in the Brewers goal.

The second half could not have started any better for Burton with Helm firing home a minute after the break when the Wanderers defence failed to deal with Kamwa’s cross.

However, Bolton were level just before the hour when Charles pounced on indecisive Burton defending on the edge of the box to score.

Crocombe made an outstanding save to deny former Burton striker Victor Adeboyejo as Bolton pushed for all three points but neither side could find a winner in a pulsating encounter.

Summer signing Duane Holmes scored the winner as Preston came from behind to beat Swansea 2-1.

North End, who have now won their last three Championship games having drawn their opener, are enjoying their best start to a campaign for 15 years.

The Swans, meanwhile, are still looking for their first win of the season under new boss Michael Duff.

The visitors started brightly at Deepdale and threatened first when Liam Cullen – in for big-money departure Joel Piroe – lashed in a shot which took a deflection before flying just over the crossbar.

At the other end, Brad Potts dragged a smart pass into the path of Ryan Ledson but he clipped an effort narrowly over the top.

Both sides probed for an opening, with the Swans again going close when Cullen curled inches off target after being neatly teed up by Josh Key.

Preston came back with a great chance of their own as Holmes pulled a terrific pass back for the onrushing Mads Frokjaer, only for the Danish midfielder to scoop a disappointing shot off target from 10 yards.

Andrew Hughes fired wide from distance for Preston, while an unmarked Frokjaer’s effort from the edge of the Swans’ box was woefully high.

The Swans punished wasteful North End with a terrific strike after 33 minutes. Charlie Patino crossed in superbly for the onrushing Harrison Ashby and he buried an angled volley from eight yards.

Preston striker Will Keane almost produced an instant reply, but his snapshot was superbly kept out by keeper Carl Rushworth.

The Swans carved out the first chance of the second period as skipper Matt Grimes found space on the edge of the North End box, eventually firing a foot wide and into the side-netting.

With the visitors taking control as the hour mark approached, they almost bagged a second goal. Key curled in an effort which flicked off defender Jordan Storey before drifting just over the crossbar.

Preston finally gained some rhythm and Frokjaer turned neatly before a crisp 20-yard drive only just cleared the crossbar.

North End then evened it up in the 67th minute when Hughes rose highest to flick home a measured cross from skipper Alan Browne.

Twelve minutes later the tie was turned on its head when Holmes sidefooted home clinically as he charged in to meet Frokjaer’s low cross for what turned out to be the decisive goal.

Adam Armstrong continued his impressive start to the season as unbeaten Southampton beat Queens Park Rangers 2-1 at St Mary’s.

Striker Armstrong fired in his fourth goal of the campaign to hide the gap left by absent Che Adams.

Earlier, Samuel Edozie’s first professional goal and Jack Colback’s long-range daisy-cutter cancelled each other out within three first-half minutes.

Samuel Amo-Ameyaw was handed his first start for Saints – in lieu of Adams, who has been the subject of transfer rumours – and was bidding to be the fourth youngest goalscorer in the club’s history.

The 17-year-old’s first involvement saw him stand up a cross for Carlos Alcaraz – who nodded tamely at Asmir Begovic.

Southampton dominated the first half an hour but, while QPR were restricted to their own half, they stopped Saints from creating heaps of chances.

The only effort of note saw Edozie skilfully leave Paul Smyth on his back down the left flank before feeding Armstrong, whose shot was deflected behind.

Saints picked their way through the regimented defence in the 30th minute. Ryan Manning squirted a perfect through ball for Edozie to cut onto his right foot and smash through Begovic.

It was winger Edozie’s first goal on his 28th senior appearance.

Two minutes and 29 seconds later QPR were back level when Colback’s 20-yard hit and hope went in off the post.

Colback was making his first start since arriving from Nottingham Forest and his goal was the R’s first shot of the match.

The visitors ended the first half the stronger and carried that into the second period.

The lively Ilias Chair shrugged off tackles to skip inside but was denied by Gavin Bazunu, with Sinclair Armstrong offside when he poked in the rebound.

Sinclair Armstrong hit a low shot at the keeper, before Chair was thwarted by Bazunu again three minutes after the interval.

Smyth smashed into the side netting and hit the bar as QPR pushed to take the lead, but it was Saints who would grab the third goal of the game in the 64th minute – their first shot for over half an hour.

Debutant Ryan Fraser and Sekou Mara’s introductions allowed Adam Armstrong a freer role and he made the most of it when Manning slid a ball to him.

Armstrong initially mis-controlled the pass but he adjusted to the bobble to fire across Begovic for his fourth goal of the campaign.

Substitute Rayan Kolli had a chance for a stoppage-time equaliser but took a touch and lost his balance when one-on-one to leave QPR with three defeats from four league matches.

Kerr McInroy scored twice as Partick Thistle secured a first win of the season with a 3-1 victory at home to Queen’s Park.

Partick scored twice in four first-half minutes to seemingly put them in control.

McInroy opened the scoring after 26 minutes from a Steven Lawless pass and Brian Graham doubled their advantage on the half-hour, with Lawless again the provider.

But the goal glut continued as Queen’s Park pulled one back 60 seconds later through Ruari Paton’s shot.

Thistle restored their two-goal cushion in the 57th minute when McInroy collected the ball and lifted a neat finish over the goalkeeper for his second of the game to secure the points.

Raith Rovers condemned Dunfermline to their first cinch Championship defeat of the season after a 1-0 victory in the Fife derby at East End Park.

Dunfermline went close to opening the scoring in the 12th minute when Lewis McCann tested visiting goalkeeper Kevin Dabrowski before Aaron Comrie hit a post with the rebound. From the resulting corner, Ewan Otoo flashed an effort wide.

Raith took the lead in the 36th minute when Sam Stanton glanced home Callum Smith’s cross for his first goal of the season.

Stanton almost doubled his and Raith’s tally seven minutes after the break but he was denied by a smart save by Dunfermline goalkeeper Harrison Sharp.

Otoo fired a late effort over the crossbar for Dunfermline as Ian Murray’s side held on for three points to remain unbeaten and climb up to third in the table.

Two penalties and a deflected strike earned Lincoln a commanding 3-0 win over 10-man Blackpool at the LNER Stadium and moved them up to second in Sky Bet League One.

Daniel Mandroui opened the scoring from the spot inside seven minutes after Ben House was brought down in the Blackpool area.

Goalkeeper Lukas Jensen saved from Seasiders debutant Jordan Rhodes when he was through one-on-one and as the rebound fell to CJ Hamilton, the winger could only volley over with the goal gaping.

Five minutes before the break, Ethan Erhahon doubled his side’s advantage. He travelled to the edge of the visitors box and saw his shot flick off Marvin Ekpiteta’s legs before nestling into the far corner.

Oliver Norburn was given his marching orders with 17 minutes to play after fouling House in front of an open goal.

Substitute Teddy Bishop slammed home the resulting penalty to seal the points and extend the Imps’ unbeaten run to four, with Blackpool winless in the league since opening day.

Barnsley picked up a first victory since the opening day of the season with a clinical performance away at Wigan.

After a competitive start, the hosts were dealt a huge blow when Charlie Hughes was shown red on 21 minutes.

The 19-year-old was adjudged to have fouled Barnsley frontman Devante Cole, who was bearing down on goal.

And it did not take long for the visitors to take advantage, with Cole latching onto Barry Cotter’s cross from the right to tuck home on 26 minutes.

Wigan had strong shouts for a penalty four minutes after the restart, when Stephen Humphrys was brought down in the area.

But Barnsley should have doubled their lead 20 minutes from time, when new signing John McAtee missed an open goal after a mistake from keeper Sam Tickle before striking the post soon after.

It took a huge save from Liam Roberts to deny Callum Lang an equaliser 11 minutes from the end but McAtee made the result safe when tucking home in added time.

Ten-man Airdrie held on to claim their second successive Scottish Championship win as they recorded a 2-1 victory over Inverness.

The hosts took an early lead following some good work from Lewis McGregor down the right as Caley defender Cameron Harper turned the ball into his own net.

Calum Gallagher doubled Airdrie’s lead just after the hour mark – with another helping hand from hard-working McGregor – as he picked out the bottom corner for his fourth goal from the last three games.

The Diamonds were reduced to 10 men five minutes after the break as Adam Frizzell was shown a second yellow card for a late challenge on Keith Bray, following his first-half caution for an off-the-ball trip.

Inverness made their pressure count and Nathan Shaw pulled one back from close range with 20 minutes remaining but the home side held on for maximum points as the visitors slipped to the bottom of the table.