Sports
How one Ipswich backpass caused two of the craziest minutes in the Premier League this season
Just when you think you’ve seen everything that football has to offer, along come Ipswich Town.
Amid another morale-sapping defeat that all but sealed their relegation from the Premier League, Ipswich, with a little help from their opponents, Wolverhampton Wanderers, served up the maddest two minutes of Premier League action you are likely to see this season.
A backpass, a mistake, a save, a free kick, a melee on the goal line, a thudding shot and a point-blank block… there was nothing technically proficient about any of it, but it was memorable. Are you not entertained?
For the uninitiated, this was all about the backpass law, introduced to football in 1992 with the aim of making the game less dull. In the main it has been a huge success, and it certainly was at Portman Road on Saturday.
The rule prevents goalkeepers from handling the ball if it has been passed back to them intentionally by a team-mate and it was conceived to stop teams wasting time, as they often did in the 1980s by passing the ball repeatedly back to their goalkeeper.
It has made goalkeepers learn to play with their feet and usually only comes into play when a goalkeeper loses concentration and picks up a ball after forgetting where it has come from.
Alan Shearer scored for England when Georgia were punished in 1997, Cristiano Ronaldo did so for Manchester United against Aston Villa in 2009 and Bayern Munich even sealed a Bundesliga title in 2001 after Hamburg were punished for one.
But Saturday was very different, a whole lot more entertaining and fairly comical — not least because it threw up a situation that clearly neither team could have prepared for.
In the 36th minute and with Ipswich 1-0 ahead in a game they effectively had to win to keep alive a chance of avoiding relegation, the Republic of Ireland international Dara O’Shea rolled a routine backpass towards his goalkeeper and former West Bromwich Albion colleague Alex Palmer — the fact two former employees of their bitterest local rivals conspired to almost hand them a goal would not have been lost on many Wolves fans.
It was so routine, in fact, that Palmer forgot to do part one — controlling the ball — before turning to part two — deciding what to do with it.
Palmer literally took his eye off the ball, allowed it to roll under his foot and glorious chaos ensued.
The Ipswich goalkeeper did the only thing he could do and scrambled back into his goal, diving and just about clawing the ball away before it crossed the line for the most embarrassing of own goals.
It was touch and go, but Palmer saved his own blushes.
But using his hands forced referee Peter Bankes to award a foul.
Had an outfield player used his hands to claw the ball off the line, it would have meant a penalty and a red card for denying a goalscoring opportunity.
But the backpass law makes an exception for goalkeepers, so Palmer got away with an indirect free kick a few yards out.
An indirect free kick means that two players must touch the ball before a goal is scored — the player taking the first touch cannot shoot directly from the free kick. If the player taking the indirect free kick were to score with the first touch, a goal kick would be awarded to the defending team.
The players on the defending team must be at least 10 yards from where the free kick is being taken, unless they are on their own goal line and between the goalposts.
In the meticulous world of modern Premier League football, coaches prepare teams for almost every eventuality but this was one that was hard to envisage.
So Ipswich resorted to putting every one of their 11 players on the goal line — like a scene from Braveheart.
As for Wolves, in the absence of any cleverly thought-out short free-kick routine, they simply rolled it to their biggest, most powerful centre-back and asked him to whack it as hard as he could.
Emmanuel Agbadou made a firm enough contact but the free kick was so close that Sam Morsy — born and raised in Wolverhampton but now captaining a club 170 miles away — had time to charge out of Ipswich’s defensive army and charge it down with his shin.
The ball ballooned up and away to safety to complete one of the season’s most bizarre passages of play.
So Ipswich got away with a comical error but it was not enough to save them as Wolves fought back in the second half to win 2-1 through Pablo Sarabia and Jorgen Strand Larsen.
Ipswich fans will remember the game for another late giveaway that virtually confirmed their return to the Championship.
The rest of football will remember it for two minutes of craziness.
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The Las Vegas Raiders and the Baltimore Ravens made a blockbuster trade ahead of the start of NFL free agency.
Las Vegas is trading five-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens, per multiple reports.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) against the Arizona Cardinals during a preseason NFL game at State Farm Stadium on Aug. 23, 2025. (Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images)
The Raiders will receive two first-round picks from the Ravens, including the No. 14 overall pick in next month’s NFL draft, one report said.
The 28-year-old Crosby had 10 sacks last season and has reached double digits four times in his seven seasons.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle Jonah Laulu (96) and defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) celebrate during the second half of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans in Houston, Texas, on Dec. 21, 2025. (Ashley Landis/AP Photo)
The Raiders last appeared in the playoffs back in 2021 but have gone 7-27 over the past two seasons. They have the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft, which is expected to land them Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
The Ravens, meanwhile, are entering a new era, after firing longtime head coach John Harbaugh and replacing him with former Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter.
Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders sniffs smelling salts during an NFL game between the Las Vegas Raiders and Denver Broncos at Empower Field At Mile High on November 20, 2022 in Denver, Colorado. (Michael Owens/Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Two top City Section baseball teams, El Camino Real and San Fernando, faced off Friday in a pitcher’s duel that went eight innings.
Senior Ray Pelayo of San Fernando kept throwing strikes, keeping El Camino Real off balance for 7⅔ scoreless innings with eight strikeouts and one walk. But then came a balk that scored the winning run in El Camino Real’s 1-0 victory.
Hudson December threw six scoreless innings for El Camino Real and Andrew Katzman struck out three in two scoreless innings.
South Torrance 4, El Segundo 3: In a battle of unbeaten Pioneer League teams, South Torrance (6-0) received a walk-off single from Owen Rhodes in the bottom of the seventh. El Segundo tied it 3-3 in the top of the seventh on a two-out, three-run home run by Chase Mattoon. Issac Orozco struck out nine in five innings and also homered for the Spartans.
Crespi 3, Saugus 2: Justin Kim had two RBIs for the Celts.
Sylmar 7, Legacy 1: Rickee Luevano threw a two-hitter with nine strikeouts.
Sierra Canyon 12, West Ranch 1: Isaias Tirado hit a three-run home run and four pitchers combined to give up five hits.
Mater Dei 15, Rockwall-Heath (Texas) 1: Ezekiel Lara had three hits and five RBIs in Texas. Earlier, the Monarchs gave up seven runs in the third inning of an 8-1 loss to Rockwall-Heath.
St. John Bosco 1, Gahr 0: Star closer Jack Champlin got a strikeout to end the game, finishing two shutout innings of relief. Champlin drove in the game’s only run with an RBI double in the sixth inning. Julian Garcia struck out six with no walks in five innings for St. John Bosco.
San Juan Hills 11, Cypress 0: Garrett Gandolfo threw five scoreless innings with seven strikeouts and Clay Riggs contributed three RBIs for San Juan Hills.
Santa Margarita 1, Damien 0: Warren Gravely IV had the only RBI in the Eagles’ win. Tyler Unter struck out six in five shutout innings.
Garfield 9, Cleveland 7: Omar Martinez had three hits and Victor Alvarez drove in three runs for Garfield. Joshua Pearlstein finished with three hits for Cleveland.
Palos Verdes 8, West Torrance 0: Kai Van Scoyoc struck out nine in five innings and Asher Friedman had a home run and a double for Palos Verdes.
Valencia 12, Chatsworth 0: An eight-run second inning helped lead the Vikings to a five-inning win.
Bishop Amat 13, Gardena Serra 2: Joaquin Ortiz finished with three hits and four RBIs.
Corona Centennial 19, Eastvale Roosevelt 3: Devin Bishop and Emiliano Castaneda each hit home runs for Centennial.
Servite 6, Anaheim Canyon 1: Mickey Cabral went three for four and Cole Grothues struck out three in 2⅓ innings of scoreless relief.
Corona Santiago 5, Crean Lutheran 4: Jonathan Thorton delivered three hits and two RBIs for the Sharks.
Fullerton 1, Chaparral 0: Garrett Wrightman threw four innings of scoreless relief and Caleb Brown had an RBI double in the third inning for Fullerton.
Edison 11, Tesoro 7: Ben Wilson hit a grand slam and finished with five RBIs for Edison.
El Dorado 10, Granada Hills 4: Lorenzo Favela hit a three-run home run to lead El Dorado.
Ayala 7, San Dimas 1: Caleb Trugman struck out nine with zero walks in a complete game.
Loyola 14, Venice 1: Wyatt Clougherty had three hits and Luca Marucci contributed three RBIs for Loyola.
Softball
Norco 5, Torrance 0: Coral Williams struck out 10 in six innings. Leighton Gray and Rae Logue hit home runs.
Garden Grove Pacifica 4, Anaheim Canyon 2: Natalia Amezquita had a two-run single for Pacifica.
Orange Lutheran 7, Perry 1: Mia Scott had four RBIs for the Lancers.
Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 15, Culver City 0: Ellayne Tellez-Perez had three hits and five RBIs.
Sports
Chargers’ Justin Herbert gushes over Madison Beer in heartfelt birthday tribute: ‘Changed my life forever’
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert gushed over 27-year-old singer Madison Beer in a heartfelt birthday tribute on social media, offering fans a rare glimpse into the couple’s relationship.
The two-time Pro Bowl quarterback, who normally shies away from the public eye, posted a series of photos to his Instagram Stories on Thursday.
Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers warms up prior to a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at SoFi Stadium on Dec. 8, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images)
“Happy birthday to my favorite person of all time,” Herbert wrote in a post that showed the couple on the sidelines of one of his NFL games. “I love you so much. You’ve changed my life forever.”
In another photo appearing to show the couple out to dinner, Herbert wrote, “I am the luckiest guy alive…”
Herbert, who turns 28 later this month, shared another photo of the “Make You Mine” artist petting goats and captioned the photo, “My goats.”
The couple was first linked together in August when they were spotted together on the set of one of Beer’s music videos in Los Angeles. Herbert and Beer were photographed in October on the sidelines of a Chargers game at SoFi Stadium, seemingly confirming the dating rumors.
Quarterback Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers and singer Madison Beer attend an NBA game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 24, 2025. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
The same month, Herbert went viral after blocking a rogue basketball from hitting Beer when the two sat courtside at a Los Angeles Lakers game.
Herbert signed a five-year, $262.5 million extension with the Chargers in July 2023. Despite proving himself to be one of the elite young quarterbacks in the NFL, Los Angeles’ offensive struggles have seen the team fall short in back-to-back playoff appearances.
Quarterback Justin Herbert (10) of the Los Angeles Chargers blocks a basketball from hitting Madison Beer as they attend a basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 24, 2025. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
The team’s offensive coordinator, Greg Roman, was fired in January and replaced with former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, who is regarded as one of the top offensive minds in football.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Related Article
Where to watch Iowa State basketball today vs Arizona State, time, TV
Storm causes power outages in Kansas City metro
Kentucky bill would change how alcohol, cannabis beverages are taxed
Louisiana State Police provide update on officer-involved shooting in Gonzales
Cooper Flagg was asked if he wants to be a Celtic one day. Here’s what the Maine native said.
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
Man convicted of Iran-backed Trump assassination plot compared his plan to Butler shooting: FBI
‘Everyone loves Bukele,’ El Salvador’s VP Ulloa defends crackdown
Family, former presidents and a Hall of Famer give Rev. Jesse Jackson a final sendoff
Biden praises Rev. Jesse Jackson’s accomplishments during his funeral service
Appeals court declares DC ban on certain gun magazines unconstitutional
-
World1 week agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Wisconsin5 days agoSetting sail on iceboats across a frozen lake in Wisconsin
-
Massachusetts4 days agoMassachusetts man awaits word from family in Iran after attacks
-
Massachusetts1 week agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Maryland6 days agoAM showers Sunday in Maryland
-
Florida6 days agoFlorida man rescued after being stuck in shoulder-deep mud for days
-
Denver, CO1 week ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Oregon1 week ago2026 OSAA Oregon Wrestling State Championship Results And Brackets – FloWrestling