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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 12 JUNE 2016 51 SUBSTITUTE Hal Robson-Kanu was the hero in Bordeaux as he latched on to a loose ball 10 min- utes from time and finished past Matus Kozacik in the Slovakia goal. Gareth Bale had earlier given Wales a 10th-minute lead with a trademark free-kick, the 20th goal for his country, but substitute On- drej Duda equalised just after the hour mark as Slovakia began to turn the screw. However, Robson-Kanu - a strik- er currently without a club - sup- plied a dramatic end to a game in which Wales had to defend for their lives at times and protect back-up goalkeeper Danny Ward. The Liverpool man was called in at the 11th hour after first-choice stopper Wayne Hennessey suf- fered a back spasm on the eve of the game. Wales supporters had arrived in their thousands at the Stade de Bordeaux to witness the end of a 58-year wait to see the nation play at a major tournament. Chris Coleman's side had failed to win any of their four friendlies since securing qualification, but Real Madrid forward Bale had not started any of those games and his presence in attack was a more than welcome sight. In a group which also features England and Russia, it was Slova- kia who almost scored from the game's first attack when Marek Hamsik dispossessed Bale and left several Wales defenders trailing in his wake. Hamsik had the goal at his mercy and drove his shot past Ward, but Ben Davies had managed to re- cover to produce a superb goal-line clearance. It was a huge let-off for Wales but they were ahead not long after when a foul by Patrik Hrosovsky on Jonathan Williams nearly 30 yards out gave them a free-kick. Bale lined up the kick and, al- though it was not in the corner of the goal, it still had too much pow- er and dip to beat the outstretched hand of Kozacik. The goal threw Slovakia out of their stride after such a promising start and Aaron Ramsey forced a straightforward save from Kozacik. Wales were protecting Ward well and Slovakia wasted their own free-kick opportunity when Juraj Kucka fired over from 30 yards. Martin Skrtel's uncompromising challenge on Williams left Wales claiming a penalty, but Norwegian referee Svein Oddvar Moen was not interested in the appeals and waved play on. Slovakia finished the opening half on top and they had the first chance of the second period when Robert Mak sprang the offside trap. Mak burst on to Vladimir Weiss' raking pass but was unable to control his shot. Bale almost scored a second two minutes later when he met Allen's cross and Kozacik had to scramble across his line to save by the post. But Slovakia were taking a grip of proceedings and a double substitu- tion paid off instantly. Mak broke between the lines and he slipped a pass to Duda, whose firm left-footed shot gave Ward no chance to make it 1-1. Ward was involved again when he had to beat away Kucka's powerful effort with James Chester on hand to clear the danger. Coleman responded with a dou- ble substitution of his own to stem the Slovakia flow, with Joe Ledley back five weeks after fracturing his leg and Robson-Kanu also sent on after injury. The switch almost worked im- mediately as Robson-Kanu swung over a cross for the unmarked Ramsey eight yards out. But the Arsenal midfielder got under the ball and sent his header over Kozacik's crossbar. Wales had altered the balance of play, though, and Ledley's pass al- lowed Ramsey to run at the heart of the Slovakia defence. Ramsey seemed to stumble but the ball broke to Robson-Kanu and, although his shot was scuffed, it found its way through the legs of Jan Durica and past Kozacik. Slovakia were not finished, though, and substitute Adam Nemec headed against the post four minutes from time. But Wales held on for a famous win which sees them take a huge stride towards the knock-out stages. Sport SPORTTODAY FOOTBALL - EURO 2016 Wales snatch late victory against Slovakia Hal Robson-Kanu scores Wales' winner against Slovakia Wales started their Euro 2016 campaign in style with a 2-1 victory over Slovakia in Bordeaux More trouble in Marseille AN England supporter was re- ported to be critically injured after the Mediterranean city descended into violent chaos hours before the team kicked off their Euro 2016 campaign against Russia. Fist fights and bottle throw- ing broke out between England fans and their Russian and French counterparts in Marseille's Old Port on Saturday afternoon. Broken glass lay strewn across the square and crunched underfoot as the police fired tear gas into the fans, causing them to run. Supporters were seen being beaten to the floor and repeatedly kicked in the head. One English fan was seen sat on the floor covered in blood with a bandage round his head, while another man was reportedly given CPR and taken to hospital after an apparent cardiac arrest. French paper L'Equipe reported that one England fan had to be resuscitated after being beaten by Russian hooligans and four others were also hurt. Police water cannons arrived to try to control the fighting as they struggled to hold back the different groups. Bloodied fans were seen fleeing the scene as missiles continued to be thrown. Some of the streets close to the port were left covered in streams of blood and broken glass. Eyewitnesses said a group of Rus- sian hooligans arrived before fight- ing began. Chairs from outside bars and cafes had been smashed apart and used as weapons. Some were cov- ered in blood. Car windscreens had also been smashed during the fighting and onlookers said the area looked "like a war zone". Hundreds of people were con- tained within the area by a long line of riot police who had formed a line, while some people were chanting "England" or "Russia". Tournament organiser UEFA firmly condemned the incidents in Marseille, with a statement read- ing: "People engaging in such vio- lent acts have no place in football." Today's Fixtures Turkey - Croatia 15:00 Poland - N. Ireland 18:00 Germany - Ukraine 21:00