A return to France on Arc weekend and a trip to the Breeders’ Cup will come under consideration for Tiger Belle following her front-running success in the Prix d’Arenberg at ParisLongchamp.

The Ado McGuinness-trained filly was a 7-1 shot stepping up to Group Three level following a narrow Listed success at Naas and was smartly away in the hands of Cristian Demuro.

Karl Burke’s Dawn Charger finished with a flourish, but Tiger Belle saw her off by a neck, with Graceful Thunder the same distance further away in third for George Boughey.

McGuinness said of the winner: “She’s a very tough filly and I’ve said all along she’s very fast, one of the fastest fillies I’ve ever had.

“She’s improving with every run, she’s a lovely filly to have and I’m delighted for the guys that own her (Shamrock Thoroughbreds).”

The County Dublin-based handler confirmed Tiger Belle could carry new colours on her next start if a suitable offer arrives as he targets a potential step up to the highest level.

“No one rang us after she won in Naas, but she is for sale and hopefully someone might buy her now. We’d love to keep her, but the lads that own her are an investment syndicate and we have to sell to survive,” McGuinness added.

“We have plenty of options for her now. She could run at the Breeders’ Cup over five or we have the option of going for the Prix de l’Abbaye if we wanted.

“She obviously handles the track. I think the key to Longchamp is the draw, but her gate speed is very fast, she kills the race halfway through and they just struggle to catch her.”

Folarin Balogun has completed a permanent move to French club Monaco from Arsenal.

The PA news agency understands the deal for the 22-year-old United States forward is worth 40million euro (£34.3m) and also includes a sell-on clause of 17.5 per cent.

Monaco confirmed Balogun had signed a five-year contract until June 2028.

Balogun joined the Gunners aged 10 and developed through the club’s academy before signing a first professional contract in February 2019 and made his senior debut in the Europa League the following year.

In January 2022, Balogun joined Sky Bet Championship side Middlesbrough on loan and he spent last season in Ligue 1 at Reims, where he scored 21 goals.

A club statement from the Gunners read: “We thank Folarin for his contribution to Arsenal, through our Academy into the first team, and wish him the best of health and happiness in his new chapter at Monaco.”

Kevin Philippart De Foy has a French outing planned for the promising Shadwell filly Alshinfarah.

The two-year-old, who is owned and was bred by Sheikha Hissa’s thoroughbred operation, made a winning debut when taking a Doncaster maiden by half a length in July.

After that she headed to Haydock for a seven-furlong novice and won comfortably under a penalty when defeating William Haggas’ Remaadd by a length and a quarter.

That victory was then made to look even more impressive when the latter horse triumphed by a very taking four and a half lengths in a Goodwood maiden at the weekend.

Philippart De Foy now has a trip to France pencilled in for Alshinfarah, with the Prix d’Aumale at Longchamp the target should the ground be suitable.

The trainer said: “She is in very good form, William Haggas’ horse won at Goodwood and that was good to see.

“The filly is entered in France in the Prix d’Aumale at Longchamp next week, it’s a one-mile fillies’ Group Three.

“She is quite well related so the goal now is to try to get some black type.

“It seems to be a good place to go, it’s the right timing and as long as there is decent ground we will be aiming there.

“She is very straightforward, Jim (Crowley) was pleased with her. It was the first time he’d sat on her and she gave him a great feel, it would be great if she could step up again and try to do something nice in a better race.”

Alshinfarah’s victories mark the beginning of a relatively new relationship between Shadwell and the Newmarket-based trainer, who is understandably pleased to have provided the major owner with some success already.

He said: “It’s good to start on a positive note, we are lucky to have those colours on the yard this year and hopefully there is more success to come.”

Philippart De Foy has another nice prospect in Inquisitively, a two-year-old who won the Listed Julia Graves Roses Stakes at York on the final day of the Ebor meeting.

The colt has new Hong Kong-based owners and will ultimately head east, but before then he has engagements closer to home and could run at Town Moor later in the term.

The trainer said: “Inquisitively will be entered at Doncaster in two and a half weeks, and providing the ground doesn’t go soft he will run there in the Flying Childers.”

Conor Murray acknowledges Ireland’s record-breaking winning run and impressive achievements under Andy Farrell will count for very little at the Rugby World Cup.

Ireland travel to France as Six Nations Grand Slam champions and having topped the world rankings for more than a year on the back of their historic tour triumph in New Zealand.

Farrell’s men made it 13 consecutive victories with Saturday evening’s 17-13 success over Samoa in Bayonne – bettering the 12-game winning streak enjoyed under Joe Schmidt across 2017 and 2018.

Defeat in the first Test against the All Blacks in July 2022 was Ireland’s last loss and just one of two suffered in their previous 27 outings.

Scrum-half Murray is preparing for his fourth World Cup and knows the tournament is a “different animal”.

“We’re in a pretty good place, given where we have been over the last two years and what we have achieved,” he said.

“We never get carried away with ourselves. We know going into every game that we have to respect the opposition.

“It (form) going into a World Cup doesn’t count for much. You have to bring your best rugby when you get to the tournament, when the competition kicks off for real.

“But we know how good the team can be. We also know how hard we have to work to get to that level and be there every week.

“The summer series was good and people got hit outs and we feel match fit now, but it’s a different animal by the time the World Cup comes around.

“We know where we can go as a group, the confidence is really high.”

Murray claimed a crucial try as Ireland stuttered past Samoa on a soggy evening in south-west France, with the vast majority of a vocal sold-out crowd supporting their opponents.

The 34-year-old believes the experience will be beneficial moving forward, with hosts France a potential quarter-final opponent, if Ireland successfully negotiate a group containing reigning world champions South Africa, Scotland, Tonga and Romania.

“Along that road we’re going to have games when things don’t go perfectly and we have to find a way,” he said.

“The World Cup could be like that and probably will be like that, it won’t go perfectly.

“There’s going to be nights like this (Samoa), the atmosphere was really hostile, in a good way, but we’re going to have to deal with that kind of thing as well.

“We know how much pressure there’s going to be, how the atmospheres are going to be.”

Ireland received a timely reminder of the dangers of South Africa after their Pool B rivals emphatically dispatched New Zealand 35-7 on Friday evening.

Murray previously worked with Springboks head coach Jacques Nienaber and his assistant Felix Jones at Munster.

“We know what they’re like,” he said of South Africa.

“You could say New Zealand were poor but I thought South Africa put them under so much pressure it made them make mistakes.

“A lot of us have been coached by Jacques and Felix and we know what’s coming. Well, we think we know what’s coming, Jacques is always going to pull something out of nothing and something you didn’t expect.

“We’ve been watching South Africa and everyone else for a long time. I’m sure they will feel really good about where they’re at because that was a really good New Zealand side and they made them look not so good.”

USA, Jamaica, Japan advanced to the final of the 4x100m relay on Friday.

In a keenly contested semi-final heat, the USA team of Christian Coleman, Fred Kerley, Brendon Barnes and JT Smith, just managed to hold off the Jamaican quartet of Ackeem Blake, Oblique Seville, Ryeim Forde and Rohan Watson to win in a what was briefly a world-leading time 37.67.

It was a blanket finish that saw the Jamaicans close behind in 37.68 and the Japanese foursome of Ryuichiro Sakai, Hiroki Yanagita, Yuki Koike and Abdul Hakim Sani Brown, who were third in 37.71.

That world-leading time by the USA lasted mere minutes as Italy’s team of Roberto Rigali, Lamont Jacobs, Lorenzo Patta and Fillippo Tortu stormed to victory in the second heat in 37.65. South Africa’s team of Shaun Maswangnayi, Benjamin Richardson, Clarence Munyai, and Akani Simbine close behind in 37.72.

Great Britain was third in 38.01.

Brazil who ran 38.19 and France 37.98 are also through to the final.

Jamaica missed out on the cut for the final of the Mixed 4x400 metres relay, as they could only manage fifth in heat two of the event on Saturday's opening day of the ongoing World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

The Jamaican quartet of Demish Gaye, Natoya Goule-Toppin, Malik James-King and Stacey-Ann Williams, running in that order, struggled from the off and was at the back of the pack for the first two legs.

In fact, it was on the third leg that James King tried to force the initiative and gradually made progress, but faded in the latter stages, leaving Williams with much to do on anchor.

Despite facing an uphill task, Williams showed grit and determination to bring Jamaicans from eighth into fifth and ninth across the two heats in a season’s best 3:14.05.

They finished behind the Femke Bol led Dutch team, who won in 3:12.12, followed by France (3:12.25) and Czech Republic (3:12.52), with fourth-placed Germany taking one of the non-automatic qualifying spots.

United States with a World lead 3:10.41, Great Britain, with a national record 3:11.19, Belgium (3:11.81) and Ireland (3:13.90), are the other finalists.

You can catch live action of the 2023 World Athletic Championships by downloading the Sportsmax App.

Zander Fagerson admits he is “relieved” not to have had his World Cup dream dashed by suspension after going through an emotional “roller coaster” in the aftermath of his red card in Scotland’s recent home win over France.

There were fears the Glasgow prop might miss at least part of the upcoming showpiece in France after he was sent off for making contact with the head of Les Bleus hooker Pierre Bourgarit at the side of a ruck.

After an anxious few days for the 27-year-old, he learned last week that he would face a reduced two-game ban, ruling him out of last weekend’s rematch with the French in Saint Etienne and the home game against Georgia later this month before freeing him up to play in the World Cup opener against South Africa in Marseille.

“It’s been a bit of a roller coaster but I’m just relieved,” he told the PA news agency. “I’m remorseful for what happened, but it’s one of these things and you’ve got to move on from it and learn from your mistakes.”

Fagerson explained how the sight of his children helped him deal with the gloomy post-game realisation that his dismissal may have put his World Cup chances in jeopardy.

“I was pretty down afterwards but by my wife and kids were there (at Murrayfield) and my kids didn’t care about what had happened, they just wanted to see their dad,” he said.

“I was gutted but that helped put a smile back on my face. It (the incident) was done, I couldn’t do anything to change it, so I just had to go through the process and wait for the outcome.

“I’m gutted I got suspended, but I’m relieved I can play the first game. It’s done now, I’ve got to move on and learn from it.”

Fagerson insists it is not in his nature to go into any Test without full commitment, even if there is a risk his wholehearted playing style could cost him involvement in a career pinnacle.

“You can’t go into games at this stage worrying about injury or suspension, because you’re not focusing on the task at hand if you’re doing that,” he said.

“You can’t let that cross your mind. Any time I play for Scotland is a massive opportunity and I don’t take it for granted. I go into every game fully committed.”

With his suspension ruling him out of next week’s match at home to Georgia, Fagerson – who has played just 50 minutes of rugby this summer – must focus on ensuring he is in prime shape for the Springboks showdown three weeks on Sunday.

“Fingers crossed I get selected for the first game, that’s a massive goal for me and one I’m doing everything I can to make sure I’m in the best physical condition for,” he said.

Fagerson is heading to his second World Cup after being part of the squad that went to Japan four years ago, but this will be his first with his younger brother Matt, who has also been included in Gregor Townsend’s 33-man pool.

“Sadly Matt didn’t make it in 2019, but he was really excited for me and I was gutted for him, so to go out together this time will be really special,” said Fagerson. “It will be great for the family as well. Hopefully we can make some memories over there together.”

England hit back from a goal down to defeat Colombia and book an appetising World Cup semi-final showdown against co-hosts Australia next week.

The Matildas were earlier tested to their limit but they kept their bid for success on home soil alive following a nail-biting penalty shoot-out triumph over France.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look back on the day as the last four line-up was confirmed.

Lionesses roar

The absence of the suspended Lauren James might have come back to bite England, who fell behind after 44 minutes when Leicy Santos looped an effort over Mary Earps at a sold-out Stadium Australia in Sydney.

However, England capitalised on a major slice of fortune to equalise before half-time as Colombia goalkeeper Catalina Perez inexplicably failed to gather a loose ball and Lauren Hemp pounced to stab home six minutes into added-on time.

Georgia Stanway set up Alessia Russo’s low finish to hand the Lionesses the lead after 63 minutes and, while Colombia pushed forward against the European champions, an equaliser proved elusive.

Matildas squeak through

Both Australia and France had their opportunities over the regulation 90 minutes and additional half-hour but neither side was able to make the breakthrough in a goalless draw at Brisbane’s Lang Park.

The drama went up a few notches in an absorbing shootout, with Australia’s Mackenzie Arnold making four saves, including twice from Kenza Dali after being off her line before saving the retaken spot-kick.

Cortnee Vine then secured a 7-6 triumph – slotting home the winning penalty after France’s Vicki Becho saw her effort hit a post – as Australia moved into the World Cup semis for the first time.

Post of the dayQuote of the day

Hemp admitted on ITV that England’s exertions had taken its toll on the team.

What’s next?

Semi-final: Spain v Sweden, Auckland, Tuesday 10am

Semi-final: Australia v England, Sydney, Wednesday 11am

Sarina Wiegman admits she was unaware of just how big the rivalry is between England and Australia after Alessia Russo’s winner against Colombia sealed a 2-1 win and set up a World Cup semi-final with the co-hosts.

The Lionesses fell behind after 44 minutes of their last-eight contest in Sydney when Leicy Santos looped the ball over England keeper Mary Earps, but saw her effort cancelled out before the break when Lauren Hemp pounced on an error from Colombian keeper Catalina Perez in stoppage time.

Russo completed the comeback with a fine low finish from Georgia Stanway’s delivery, the 2-1 result enough to book England a third trip to a World Cup final four – an encounter that has already drawn comparisons to the Ashes.

Asked if she was aware of the perennial rivalry between the two countries, England’s Dutch boss replied: “I just think it is going to be really big, but I’ve had a couple of questions about that now so it’s probably going to be bigger than I imagined now.

“So I’ll talk to my players and staff and see what that rivalry is then. I think the Australians and English can get along really well, and we’ve had such a warm welcome here, we’ve really enjoyed our time here in Australia, and I actually really like the people here.

“But that doesn’t mean there’s no rivalry, so we’ll see that Wednesday.”

In April, Australia became the only side to have beaten England under Wiegman’s now nearly two-year tenure, when goals from Sam Kerr and Charlotte Grant fired the Matildas to a 2-0 victory at Brentford.

This has so far been a tournament of fine margins for the Lionesses, who outside of their 6-1 victory over China in the group stage have enjoyed dominant spells but never matches, and on Saturday night in Sydney were up against a Colombia side whose supporters turned the 75,000-plus seat Stadium Australia into an away contest for England.

Bethany England, who came on as a substitute for the third time this tournament, believes the raucous Colombia crowd is the perfect dress rehearsal for Wednesday’s semi-final against the co-hosts, who beat France 7-6 on penalties to advance to the final four for the first time.

Though that match took place in Brisbane, thousands of Matildas fans packed the parks outside Stadium Australia before England’s match, some even climbing trees to get a better view of their own quarter-final and the deciding shoot-out.

England said: “I think the atmosphere is going to be amazing. I thought the crowd tonight was incredible. Every time we touched the ball they were booing but I think you just relish it because these are the atmosphere you want from stadiums. 75,000 and the Australian fans are going to bring a nice big bit of noise through. It’s going to be interesting and entertaining for everyone.

“We’ve been in this situation where we’ve had a lot of noise. The Euros last year at Old Trafford, Wembley. It’s nothing these girls aren’t used to now. We are getting in more and more in the women’s game. Selling out, getting big crowds and not being able to think. So it’s just going to be an exciting game and a special one.”

England prop Ellis Genge believes the Rugby World Cup in France is a “wide open” tournament.

Only four countries – New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and England – have won the competition across its nine previous stagings.

But if the current world rankings prove an accurate guide, then a new name could be engraved on the trophy this time around with Ireland currently topping that list and France holding third place.

“Someone spoke to me recently and said about Ireland, South Africa and Eddie (Jones) going back to Australia,” England prop Genge said.

“They didn’t even mention New Zealand, so it shows where people’s heads are at. New Zealand are still one of the best teams in the world.

“You have seen the upsets we’ve had in recent years, and I think it is wide open.

“I think any good team is very, very good at what they do. There is no magic potion.

“You have to be very good at what you set out to do, and that is what all the best teams in history have done.

“I think the key factor is finding your identity and being really good at that. It is about hanging your hat on something.”

While Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa and Scotland all find themselves in the draw’s top half, England’s initial testing hurdles appear to be pool rivals Argentina – they meet in Marseille on September 9 – and potential quarter-final opponents Australia, Wales or Fiji if they reach the last-eight.

Genge is set to win his 50th cap at some point during England’s World Cup warm-up schedule.

Since the last tournament in Japan four years ago, when Genge made two appearances as a replacement, he has captained his country and established himself as England’s first-choice loosehead prop.

He is also among two World Cup vice-captains named by head coach Steve Borthwick, joining Courtney Lawes in understudying World Cup skipper Owen Farrell.

Asked how much he feels he has grown as a player since the last World Cup, Genge added: “I wouldn’t even pin it on growing as a player, to be honest. It’s more growing as a person.

“I’ve had two kids in that space of time. I’ve had some things go on with my family, so I moved back home (to Bristol).

“I am probably in a lot better spot psychologically, as opposed to looking at my performances on the pitch, which have obviously been bolstered by what has happened off it. They definitely coincide.

“It’s about that mentality of switching off, which I am quite good at, and then turning it back on when it counts.

“Switching off is very easy when you’ve got two young kids and a dog – a very big dog at that! That has really helped me as a person and the gym (Genge’s fitness business) is another avenue to take my mind off the game.

“Going into this World Cup, I am more of a senior player and I can’t wait to get involved. I really want to get going now.”

* Ellis Genge is a Dove Men+Care ambassador. For more rugby and stories of personal growth and selfcare, follow @DoveMenUK Twitter or @DoveMenCare Instagram

Ireland insist Jack Conan’s latest foot injury is “nothing like” the issue which ruined his last Rugby World Cup and are optimistic he will be fit to feature in France.

Andy Farrell’s squad are in Portugal for a week-long training camp but back-rower Conan stayed in Dublin to rehabilitate the problem he sustained in the first half of Saturday’s 33-17 warm-up victory over Italy.

The 31-year-old was pictured with his right foot in a protective boot after departing the Aviva Stadium pitch, sparking concerns he will endure further World Cup heartache, having prematurely left the 2019 tournament in Japan due to a stress fracture.

Ireland boss Farrell will not discover the full extent of the problem until next week but defence coach Simon Easterby says early signs are “positive”.

Asked if Leinster player Conan is in danger of missing the World Cup, Easterby, speaking from the Algarve, said: “No, genuinely not.

“Jack has in the past had troubles with his foot.

“But it’s nothing like it was back in 2019. He was pretty bullish around the injury.

“From everything that we’re hearing – we haven’t had full feedback yet – it’s a positive injury as a opposed to a really negative one.

“He’s stayed behind just to rehab and we hope to get more information on his injury next week.

“We’re still waiting on assessment and we decided that it would probably be best for him to stay back in Dublin.”

British and Irish Lion Conan spoke last week of having unfinished business at the World Cup due to his disappointment four years ago.

He came off the bench in Ireland’s opening win over Scotland in Yokohama but was then injured in training ahead of the shock defeat by hosts Japan, a match he had been due to start.

Farrell will his cut his current 42-man squad down to a final 33 on August 28 following further warm-up matches against England (August 19) and Samoa (August 26).

Ireland begin their World Cup campaign on September 9 against Romania in Bordeaux.

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend is braced for the possibility of losing Zander Fagerson for at least a portion of the World Cup after his red card in Saturday’s exhilarating 25-21 warm-up victory over France.

The Scots produced a magnificent second-half fightback to overturn a 21-3 deficit at the break and record a morale-boosting 25-21 victory despite having the Glasgow prop sent off following a high challenge on Les Bleus hooker Pierre Bourgarit in the 50th minute.

Fagerson was initially yellow carded before having his punishment upgraded to a red a few minutes later after a review via the newly-implemented bunker system.

With just two warm-up matches remaining – away to France and at home to Georgia – the Scots fear any suspension for Fagerson could carry over into the World Cup.

“Yes, of course there’s concern when someone picks up a red card,” said Townsend. “It’s a difficult one. The contact area is so fiercely competitive.

“France are a team that like to jackal and the hooker that Zander collided with is one of the best jackalers in world rugby.

“If it’s a timing issue or a height issue, yes, we have to make sure that we don’t get those head knocks, head collisions but there was no malice or foul play. It’s more from the rugby incident of mistiming on a ruck clear so we just have to hope that the judiciary see it the same as what we see.”

Fagerson was handed a four-game ban after being sent off following a similar incident against Wales in the 2021 Six Nations, but Townsend does not believe this offence was as severe.

“I’ve seen the incident again and he does adjust his feet,” said the head coach. “The one from the Wales game he comes in very quickly and at the time it was very understandable because someone else hadn’t gone to the ruck clearance so he knew if he didn’t come in quickly, Wyn Jones would have got the jackal.

“On this occasion he did adjust his feet so there’s nothing reckless in wasn’t as much speed, it wasn’t reckless, he just didn’t get underneath the French hooker’s chest area which can happen in all the 200 ruck clears there are in a game.

“What I hope for Zander and for us as a team is that they see there is nothing reckless in there, nothing was out of control, it’s just a timing issue that he couldn’t get underneath the jackaller.”

Townsend expects to find out Fagerson’s fate before their rematch against the French in Saint-Etienne next Saturday.

“Automatically any red card would go to a hearing and we’d expect that to be done by Tuesday or Wednesday,” he said. “It would affect our plans for next weekend and our World Cup squad is announced a week on Wednesday so we’ll need to know before then.”

Scotland lost another key man in the shape of Ben White, who limped off in the first half with an ankle injury, but Townsend is hopeful that it will not cause the scrum-half to miss the World Cup.

“He’s much more positive now,” said the head coach. “He got his foot trapped under him when they kicked through, he got high tackled and got his foot trapped under him.

“It was an area where he had an issue at the beginning of our World Cup camp but he’s been training fully now for the last six weeks and in initial testing (after the game) it seems OK.

“He’s off to hospital just to make sure there’s nothing in the scan so fingers crossed that he’s OK. It might be that he struggles to train this week but hopefully he’ll be available for the World Cup.”

Townsend was proud of the way his 14-man team recovered to win the second half 22-0 after being outclassed by a second-string French side in the first half.

“Even though these are not Six Nations or World Cup games, it is a Test match in front of almost 60,000 people, so we know our job is to win,” he said.

“And when you are defending your line at the end, thoughts go through your head about whether we are going to hold out for the win.

“It was such an encouraging second-half performance and victory that it would have been a big blow if we hadn’t got that win.

“We showed much more of who we are in that second half, both in attack and defence. To do it with one less player for the majority of the second half is going to be really positive for the players’ level of belief.”

Scotland overcame the loss of key duo Ben White and Zander Fagerson to stage a stirring second-half fightback and defeat France 24-21 in an exhilarating World Cup warm-up match at Murrayfield.

Les Bleus, who fielded a largely second-string side, looked on course for a comfortable victory as they eased into a 21-3 half-time lead.

But the Scots, despite having Fagerson red-carded early in the second half, roared back to record a morale-boosting win with tries from Darcy Graham, Pierre Schoeman and replacement Dave Cherry.

The shine was taken off the triumph, however, by the sight of scrum-half White limping off with a worrying-looking ankle injury just four weeks out from their World Cup opener against South Africa, while they will also face an anxious wait to learn the fate of prop Fagerson following his dismissal.

Scots head coach Gregor Townsend made 13 changes to the experimental team that defeated Italy a week previously, with most of his big-hitters restored.

Finn Russell was handed the captaincy for the first time in the absence of regular skipper Jamie Ritchie, who missed out with a minor calf injury which medical staff hope will subside in time for next weekend’s rematch between the teams in Saint-Etienne.

The French starting line-up featured three debutants in Paul Boudehent, Emilien Gailleton and Louis Bielle-Biarrey, with Antoine Dupont, Gael Fickou and Romain Ntamack among a raft of established players given the weekend off.

The team selections meant Scotland – despite being ranked three places beneath the French – went into the match as favourites with bookmakers.

The hosts got the scoreboard up and running in the fourth minute when Russell kicked a penalty between the posts.

However, Les Bleus seized the initiative in scintillating fashion in the 14th minute when Baptiste Couilloud was set free to bound over the line after a brilliant break-away down the right involving Bielle-Biarrey and Matthieu Jalibert. The latter made no mistake with the conversion.

The visitors remained in the ascendancy and stretched their advantage after 24 minutes when debutant Bielle-Biarrey found a gap on the left and darted majestically through it after being fed by Jalibert, who duly converted.

Scotland’s woes deepened when White was forced off with an injury after half an hour, replaced by George Horne.

The scrum-half looked dejected as he made his way off the pitch and punched the bench in frustration before having his ankle bandaged up by medics and limping down the tunnel.

The Scots thought they had reduced the deficit in the 33rd minute when Duhan Van Der Merwe found his way over the line, but play was pulled back for a French scrum following a forward pass.

A disastrous first half for the home side was compounded in the last action before the break when Cameron Woki picked the ball up at the back of a ruck and plunged over the line from close range. Jalibert again added the extras.

Scotland started the second period in brighter fashion, with Graham running on to a cross-field kick from Russell and just doing enough to plant the ball down under pressure from Ethan Dumortier. Following a TMO review to approve the score, Russell kicked the conversion.

Just as the hosts looked to be finding their way back into the match, though, they suffered another blow in the 50th minute when Fagerson was sin-binned for a high challenge on Pierre Bourgarit. Following a bunker review, the offence was subsequently upgraded to a red card.

However, the 14 men further reduced the French lead in the 54th minute as Pierre Schoeman bulldozed his way through to touch the ball down, with Russell converting.

The Scots were rampant and they thought they had got their noses in front when Blair Kinghorn bolted in behind the posts, but it was ruled out for a knock-on by Graham.

Remarkably, however, they did get themselves ahead in the 67th minute when substitute Cherry pushed his way over. This time Russell hit the post with his conversion attempt.

The captain was more accurate six minutes later as his penalty gave the Scots a four-point lead before they withstood some late French pressure to see out the win.

The Reggae Girlz remarkable and historic run on their second-consecutive Fifa Women’s World Cup appearance, may come as a surprise to many, but those close to the happenings believe it was always on the cards given the players and the coaching staff’s unflinching desire to succeed.

With another campaign being marred by talks of age-old issues of little or no practice games and inadequate preparation, as well as limited funding, ahead of the showpiece currently ongoing in Australia and New Zealand, the collective chorus is one of great optimism that the Reggae Girlz will now be taken seriously and will receive the necessary support and respect they deserve.

Former Head coach Hue Menzies, who was at the helm when the Reggae Girlz first qualified for the France 2019 World Cup, is among those singing praises about the current achievements. But he was also quick to point out that much more work needs to be done, as the country’s women’s football programme is still some ways off from its full potential.

The 43^rd-ranked Girlz, who on World Cup debut lost all three games to Brazil, Italy and Australia in 2019, have displayed marked improvements on this occasion in holding top-ranked France and Brazil to goalless stalemates and secure their first ever World Cup win in a 1-0 scoreline over Panama on their way to the knockout stages.

Menzies, believes these accomplishments was another show of the players' resilience and strength of character, as they were given very little chance against their more illustrious opponents.

"I believe this was another statement of the players' dedication and commitment and determination to make Jamaica proud. They have again commanded people's attention with this achievement but again, the programme requires more funding if they are to get much closer to these top teams.

"But I am so proud for what the programme continues to achieve, and all the credit must go to Cedella [Marley], who brought us all together with the vision to build this programme. I think we have earned some respect across the world after these performances, but the most important thing is that we earn the respect from our own people of Jamaica," Menzies told Sportsmax.tv in a recent interview.

“Culturally we don’t support female football or female sports on a whole. Corporate Jamaica has to understand how significant it would be for them to collaborate with the Girlz, they can create an impactful platform to help young females to dream big.

“Not only that, but brand recognition through these young ladies, will benefit for a lifetime. So, we have won this World Cup battle but have to keep going to win the war where the holistic development of the programme is concerned,” he added.

Reggae Girlz manager Crystal Walters, who is one of the youngest present at the global showpiece, echoed similar sentiments, as she noted that the hard work and sacrifice made by the players and backroom staff, will never truly be understood by those standing on the outside looking in.

“From the very start of this journey the ladies have been my first priority, watching them rewrite history each time they step on the field, and just being a part of this journey is truly an amazing feeling. what amazes me the most is how well this team stick together with so many distractions, but these ladies thrive on having their backs against the wall and are our living legends,” Walters said from the team’s base in Australia.

For Walters, the onus is now on the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), the Government and also corporate partners to ensure they build on the Girlz achievements going forward.

“Our focus as a nation needs to be redirected to our grassroots programme, providing proper sporting facilities, as well as adequate sponsorship. It takes a lot to care, but this team has gone beyond greatness, and we need to build on the history that these amazing ladies and staff have once again created.

“It is indeed a fresh testament of what the country can achieve with more substantial backing, as the Girlz accomplishments will provide opportunities and open many doors for these and our other players. It is football for all and we need to use this opportunity to ensure we keep developing,” Walters opined.

Andrew Price, who along with current Head coach Lorne Donaldson, were assistants to Menzies during the 2019 success, said the Girlz — backed by a committed and resolute coaching staff — again forged ahead despite the enormous disparity in rankings, history, funding and support when compared to opponents like France and Brazil.

In fact, even Italy, who the Girlz lost to in 2019, failed to progress from their group on this occasion.

“The performance in Australia has been phenomenal. The Girlz continue to secure historic achievements, almost proving that merely qualifying for their second-consecutive FIFA Women's World Cup wasn't enough.

“These Girlz like to dream big. They went to Australia with a plan and driven by the technical staff, they bought into the plan.  They believed that they had the mental capacity to traverse the group and they did because they believed in each other,” Price noted.

“I told people who would listen, that this team is four years older, four years wiser and the experience they got from 2019 would serve them well. They played each team on their merit and took one game at time. The focus was to get out of the group, and they have accomplished that by showing great fight resilience. Keep the fire burning Reggae Girlz,” the veteran tactician shared.

The Reggae Girlz will next face 25^th-ranked Colombia in Round of 16 action in Adelaide, on Tuesday and standout goalkeeper Rebecca Spencer declared that they are ready to once again prove their doubters wrong.

“We were hugely underestimated, obviously with the noise going on outside of us playing and the lack of matches that we had leading into the tournament, I don’t think anyone took us seriously,” the outspoken Spencer opined.

“But as a group, both players and staff, we know we are resilient we had a point to prove and for months we have been saying it, we are getting out of this group, and we have proven just that. I am just proud of everyone for sticking together and getting it done and now we want to keep going,” the Tottenham Hotspur shot-stopper stated.

Burgeoning Scotland scrum-half Ben White is determined to make a big impact in France for both club and country in the months ahead.

The 25-year-old is set to go to the upcoming World Cup as his nation’s first-choice number nine after starting each of the Six Nations matches earlier this year.

And following the global showpiece in France, he will join up with his new colleagues at Toulon after he signed for the Top 14 outfit last month following the recent financial demise of his previous club London Irish.

“It was a tough time and it’s very sad for a lot of the players and fans and people who have been at the club a long time,” said White, reflecting on his pre-World Cup change in circumstances at club level.

“I guess a lot of the players have been lucky but for the fans their club is gone so from that side of it, it’s very disappointing. But when one door closes, another one opens and to get the opportunity to go to Toulon is one I’ll be very grateful for.

“I want to hopefully have a good World Cup and a good run of games to go to Toulon and put my best foot forward and to play well for them.

“It’s kind of weird how it’s happened, to sign for a club and then not go there (immediately), but (Toulon director of rugby) Pierre Mignoni has messaged me a couple of times to check up on how things are going with me and it’s great to have that communication straight off the bat.

“I’ve been trying to do my French lessons in my downtime and it’s going ok. It’s an awesome opportunity and I’m really excited for it.

“The French absolutely love their rugby, the grounds will be absolutely rammed at the World Cup and the atmosphere they have at the stadiums is one of the things that drew me to Toulon. Getting the opportunity to play for Scotland out there, hopefully, will be amazing.”

White explained that he was always keen on the idea of playing abroad and he feels his move to France will bring out the best in him.

“The Top 14 is one of the best leagues in the world,” he said. “French nines over the years have been nines that have controlled the game and slightly different to England where the 10 would call a lot of things.

“In France, the nines call things and Pierre was a scrum-half so to have the opportunity to work with him was something that excited me. Having a fresh challenge abroad is going to be amazing for me.”

After being rested last weekend as an experimental Scotland side defeated Italy 25-13, White and the rest of Gregor Townsend’s big guns return to the starting XV for this Saturday’s World Cup warm-up match at home to France, just five weeks before the Scots’ first match at the tournament against holders South Africa in Marseille.

“It’s a really exciting period and if we can get a good result against France it gives you a lot of confidence going into the World Cup,” said White. “They’re a tough team with great players so it’s a really exciting challenge for us.

“I absolutely love every minute in a Scotland shirt. Running out at Murrayfield is probably one of the most special things I’ll ever do in my life so when you get the opportunity to do that, you want to make sure you play to the best of your ability.

“I’m very excited to be back doing it this weekend.”