Beard Counts Blessings

Liverpool manager Matt Beard reflects on retaining the Super League title in extraordinary circumstances, saying the luck that had run against his side all season swung in their favour at the best possible moment. He describes going into the campaign with key players injured and seven unavailable at one stage, while insisting his team stayed mathematically in touch throughout. Hope had all but gone in the penultimate match at Arsenal until Gemma Davison equalised deep in injury time, a goal he celebrated by nearly pulling a hamstring on the touchline. On the final day, with his own game finished first, the wait for the other results felt like hours, and watching the end of the Chelsea match on the ground’s screens produced disbelief as much as delight.