- Gary Rowett’s Derby side are now 11 games unbeaten after defeating Brentford 3-0 at home. The last time the Rams went on such a run, Rowett was in the team which would go on to be promoted to the Premier League under Jim Smith in 1996. On this occasion they were helped by the early sending off of Sergio Canós for a bad tackle on Marcus Olsson. Derby took advantage as Tom Huddlestone and Cameron Jerome scored in quick succession around the half-hour mark. It was Huddlestone’s first goal for the club, 14 years, five months and 25 days after his debut. Matej Vydra added the third in the dying embers of the game.
- Birmingham moved away from the relegation zone by beating Sheffield Wednesday 3-1 at Hillsborough. Steve Cotterill’s team were out of sight before the break thanks to David Davis’s eighth minute opener and two Jota strikes. The Blues’ cause was helped by the dismissal of Marco Matias. Lucas João reduced the deficit but their fate was sealed when they were reduced to nine players as Daniel Pudil received a second yellow card with 22 minutes to go.
- There were red cards aplenty in the Championship, as 10-man Leeds were easily disposed off by Cardiff 4-1 at Elland Road. The Welsh team were responsible for all five goals as Callum Paterson, Junior Hoilett and Sean Morrison gave Cardiff a three-goal lead in a first half which also saw Gaetano Berardi commit two bookable offences before seeing the inevitable red. Defender Sol Bamba netted an own goal but the result was never in doubt and Anthony Pilkington completed the scoring.
- Fulham’s play-off push was further boosted by a routine 2-0 victory over Nottingham Forest. Lucas Piazon set Fulham on their way and Stefan Johansen confirmed the win late on to leave Slavisa Jokanovic’s men safely in fifth.
- Sunderland’s woes were added to by Ipswich leaving the Stadium of Light with the points as Joe Garner and an Adam Matthews own goal gave Mick McCarthy a 2-0 win on his return to Wearside.
- Five goals were exchanged as Aston Villa got the better of Burton in a 3-2 win. Scott Hogan, Albert Adomah and Jack Grealish were on the mark for Villa, while an Ahmed Elmohamady own goal and Liam Boyce effort gave Nigel Clough’s side hope but the result leaves them bottom.
- Reading’s underwhelming season continued as they were beaten 2-0 at home by Millwall. Norwich edged out Middlesbrough 1-0 as Tom Trybull netted the only goal of the game. Hull’s struggles continued as they lost 2-1 at Preston despite taking the lead, while QPR held on to see off Barnsley with a 1-0 win.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wolverhampton | 30 | 31 | 68 |
| 2 | Derby | 30 | 24 | 57 |
| 3 | Aston Villa | 30 | 19 | 56 |
| 4 | Cardiff | 29 | 18 | 54 |
| 5 | Fulham | 30 | 16 | 51 |
Championship results: Aston Villa 3-2 Burton Albion, Derby County 3-0 Brentford, Fulham 2-0 Nottingham Forest, Leeds United 1-4 Cardiff City, Norwich City 1-0 Middlesbrough, Preston North End 2-1 Hull City, QPR 1-0 Barnsley, Reading 0-2 Millwall, Sheffield Wednesday 1-3 Birmingham City, Sunderland 0-2 Ipswich Town. Friday: Bolton Wanderers 1-0 Bristol City.
League One
- Shrewsbury kept up the pressure on leaders Wigan thanks to a fine individual goal from Alex Rodman with two minutes to go at Bristol Rovers, which sealed a 2-1 win. The Latics followed up their FA Cup progression with Will Grigg and Nick Powell maintaining current form with a goal each as Gillingham lost 2-0 at the DW Stadium.
- There were 3-2 away wins for both Scunthorpe and Oxford. The former got the better of 10-man Fleetwood, while managerless Oxford needed an injury-time winner from Ryan Ledson to get the points at Charlton.
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Oldham’s battle against relegation was helped by defeating Bradford 2-1 at home. Full-back Cameron Dummigan scored a 25-yard stunner before Aaron Holloway double the lead. Richie Wellens’ team held firm after Jordon Gibson netted for the Bantams.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wigan | 28 | 42 | 63 |
| 2 | Shrewsbury | 29 | 18 | 61 |
| 3 | Blackburn | 30 | 25 | 59 |
| 4 | Scunthorpe | 31 | 13 | 54 |
| 5 | Rotherham | 30 | 14 | 50 |
League One results: Bristol Rovers 1-2 Shrewsbury Town, Bury 1-1 Blackpool, Charlton Athletic 2-3 Oxford United, Fleetwood Town 2-3 Scunthorpe United, Northampton Town 0-1 Rochdale, Oldham 2-1 Bradford City, Peterborough United 0-1 Southend United, Plymouth Argyle 2-0 Blackburn, Portsmouth 2- 2 Doncaster Rovers, Rotherham United 2-0 AFC Wimbledon, Walsall 1-0 MK Dons, Wigan 2-0 Gillingham.
League Two
- An impressive crowd of 17,274 at Meadow Lane witnessed Notts County thrash Crewe 4-1. Shaun Miller gave the visitors a surprise lead but Noor Husin and Mason Bennett scored wither side of two goals from Elliot Hewitt to ensure Kevin Nolan’s side stay third.
- Wycombe scored twice in injury-time despite being down to 10 men to defeat Carlisle United. Paris Cowan-Hall and Marcus Bean turned things around, with the latter netting a 96th-minute winner for Wycombe, who had Luke O’Nien who was sent off just after half-time.
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Luton are still eight points clear at the top as Harry Cornick’s strike was enough to beat Exeter City 1-0.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luton | 31 | 37 | 63 |
| 2 | Wycombe | 30 | 16 | 55 |
| 3 | Notts County | 30 | 19 | 54 |
| 4 | Mansfield | 30 | 13 | 53 |
| 5 | Accrington Stanley | 29 | 15 | 52 |
League Two results: Accrington Stanley 3-2 Stevenage, Chesterfield 1-2 Crawley Town, Colchester 2-0 Newport County, Forest Green 2-1 Coventry City, Grimsby 1-1 Cheltenham, Lincoln City 2-2 Swindon, Luton Town 1-0 Exeter City, Mansfield 3-1 Barnet, Notts County 4-1 Crewe, Port Vale 0-0 Morecambe, Wycombe Wanderers 4-3 Carlisle, Yeovil 2-0 Cambridge United.
