REPUBLIC OF IRELAND U21 international Sinclair Armstrong scored his first senior goal for Queen’s Park Rangers in their 2-1 English Championship win away to Cardiff City this afternoon.
The 20-year-old Dubliner, who earned his first cap for Jim Crawford’s U21s side earlier this year, also brilliantly teed up QPR’s second goal for Kenneth Paal before Ike Ugbo replied for the hosts with 11 minutes of normal time remaining.
Victory in the Welsh capital moves QPR up to 16th in the table following their 4-0 opening-day defeat to Watford at Vicarage Road last weekend.
— OJ (@OJClxy) August 12, 2023
— OJ (@OJClxy) August 12, 2023
Elsewhere in the Championship, Aaron Connolly pounced just six minutes after his introduction for hat-trick hero Ozan Tufan as he netted the fourth goal in Hull’s 4-2 home victory over newly promoted Sheffield Wednesday at MKM Stadium.
Making a second debut for Hull following his permanent signing from Premier League Brighton earlier this summer, the 23-year-old Galway man capitalised on a mix-up in the Owls’ defence and rolled the ball into the empty net to seal all three points for the hosts, who led 3-1 prior to his 85th-minute conversion.
Connolly’s fellow senior Republic of Ireland international Will Keane scored one and assisted another as Preston overcame Sunderland 2-1 at Deepdale.
Keane, 30, fortuitously opened the scoring for the home side on 25 minutes before Jack Clarke levelled proceedings for Sunderland from the spot. On the hour mark, however, the striker teed up his fellow new arrival Mads Fokjaer-Jensen for what transpired to be the winner as Ryan Lowe’s side moved to eighth with a first win of the new campaign.
One-time Republic of Ireland call-up Sammie Szmodics, who qualifies through his late grandmother from Co. Longford, went from zero to hero for Blackburn as they salvaged a 2-2 draw away to Rotherham.
Szmodics hit the post with a first-half penalty and was also culpable for Hakeem Odoffin’s opener for the hosts — but with Rovers 2-0 down, Szmodics struck twice in the space of four minutes for Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side who secured a point.
In League One, former Bohemians and Shamrock Rovers star Danny Mandriou laid on two goals and scored the third in Lincoln City’s 3-0 home win over Wycombe, for whom Crystal Palace loanee Killian Phillips made his debut off the bench.
Derby County captain Conor Hourihane and 13-cap Ireland international James Collins were both on target in The Rams’ 3-0 win away to Burton Albion.
James McClean made his first appearance for Hollywood-backed Wrexham in League Two, starting in their 1-1 draw away to Wimbledon.
