Loan Watch: Ballard makes Reading debut
Almost the full contingent of Southampton’s loan players were back in action after the international break as Dom Ballard made his League One debut for Reading. This and more in the latest Loan Watch…
Fresh from scoring his first goal for England’s Under-19s on international duty, Ballard was handed his Reading debut from the start in the Royals’ 2-1 win over Bolton on Saturday.
The striker played 56 minutes and was a threat going forward as he found his feet in the third tier of English football.
Elsewhere in League One, Ryan Finnigan made his first league start for Shrewsbury Town in his second appearance for the club as the midfielder played 82 minutes in a defeat to Bristol Rovers.
Down a division in League Two, Lewis Payne had a standout afternoon in his first start for Newport County in their 1-1 draw with Barrow.
Payne assisted Shane McLoughlin’s spectacular opening goal in the first half, with Newport only conceding after Saints’ loanee full-back was substituted shortly after the hour mark.
Outside of the EFL, Jack Bycroft played another full 90 minutes for Aldershot Town in the National League as they drew 1-1 with early playoff-chasers Gateshead.
There was a break from league action for Saints’ sixth-tier loanees as they entered the Emirates FA Cup second round qualifying.
Ollie Wright played 90 minutes as Bath City came back from two goals down to knock out Larkhall Athletic and set up a trip to Weymouth in the next qualifying round.
Saints’ goalkeeper also made a young supporters’ day as he handed his match-winning gloves over at full-time.
Luke Pearce was introduced as a late sub in Torquay United’s 3-0 win over Wimborne Town that saw the Gulls safely advance to face Hungerford Town, whilst Matt Carson played the full game as Braintree drew 1-1 with Canvey Island with a replay required to separate the sides.
Midfielder Josh Squires was also a late substitute as Salisbury breezed past Mousehole AFC with a 5-0 win that set up a home tie against Slough Town.
Meanwhile, in the Southern League South, Under-18s defender Tyler Edmondson featured for the final 20 minutes in Sholing’s defeat to Basingstoke Town.
Outside of England, striker Paul Onuachu scored on his debut for Turkish Süper Lig side Trabzonspor with a 29th minute header in their 3-0 win over Beşiktaş, before being withdrawn through injury early into the second half.
Armel Bella-Kotchap also had a winning debut as he played just over an hour and kept a clean sheet in PSV’s 4-0 triumph over NEC Nijmegen in the Eredivisie.
In France’s Ligue 1, Romain Perraud was a 79th minute substitute to help see out Nice’s 3-2 victory over PSG that moved Les Aiglons into third place in the table.
Finally, Mateusz Lis made another appearance in between the sticks for Göztepe in their 1-1 draw with Bandirmaspor in the TFF First League.
Main Image: JasonPix
