Championship
• After spending much of last season in the nether regions of the Championship, Reading’s superb start to this term continued with a fine 2-0 win over Middlesbrough, in the top-of-the-table clash at the Madejski Stadium. Danny Williams headed home a Hal Robson-Kanu cross in the first half to give the Royals the lead, before a late penalty by Nick Blackman sealed the victory, and closed the gap between Reading in third and second-placed Boro to two points.
• As a result of that defeat for Middlesbrough, Brighton extended their lead at the top of the table, even though they could only draw 1-1 at home to Cardiff. Joe Mason gave the Welsh side the lead in the fifth minute, but were pegged back just before time through a Dale Stephens strike. Chris Hughton’s side are the only unbeaten team in the Football League.
• The most eventful game of the day came at Loftus Road, where QPR and Bolton shared seven goals. Bolton were 2-0 up by the 11th minute through Gary Madine and Liam Feeney, before Jay Emmanuel-Thomas pulled one back. Leroy Fer levelled things just before the break, then Tjaronn Chery gave QPR the lead just after the hour mark, but Wellington Silva looked to have salvaged a point with an equaliser in the 85th minute. However, in the fourth minute of injury-time, Emmanuel-Thomas popped back up to curl a last-gasp winner into the bottom corner, for 4-3 victory.
• Birmingham’s unlikely start to the campaign continued with their 2-0 win at Leeds, while Derby are showing signs of picking up some form after a slow start to the season, their 2-0 win over Brentford - for whom Lee Carsley took charge of a game for the first time - being their second win in a row. Hull maintained their place in the top six with a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest, while Wolves recorded a convincing 3-0 victory at home to Huddersfield Town.
• At the bottom of the table, Bristol City were denied their first win since August and a chance to lift themselves off the foot of the table when an injury-time equaliser by Dan Powell earned a 1-1 draw for MK Dons at Ashton Gate. Preston are also ensconced in the bottom three after they went down 3-1 at Sheffield Wednesday. Blackburn’s recovery continued after a brace from Jordan Rhodes gave them a 2-0 victory over Ipswich.
League One
• Burton Albion remain at the top of League One after they beat Southend 1-0 at the Pirelli Stadium. They had to rely on a Luke Prosser own goal to take the victory, but they’re now three points ahead of Walsall in second, who could only draw 0-0 at Wigan. Bury moved up to third place after claiming their sixth victory in a row, a Leon Clarke goal enough to take a 1-0 victory from their trip to Colchester. They leap over Gillingham, who drew 3-3 with Oldham, with all six goals remarkably coming by the 57th minute.
• The most remarkable encounter of the day came at London Road, where Peterborough beat Millwall 5-3. Posh were 2-0 up by the 19th minute, had been pegged back to 2-2 in the tenth minute of the second half, before goals from Chris Forrester, Conor Washington and Jon Taylor sealed Graham Westley’s second win in three games since being appointed.
• Blackpool secured a rare victory at the foot of the table, beating Swindon 1-0 at Bloomfield Road. Bottom club Crewe suffered another defeat, this time going down 2-1 at home to Chesterfield, while second-bottom Fleetwood also lost, this time 1-0 at Scunthorpe. Doncaster secured their first league win since August, as they beat Yorkshire rivals Barnsley 2-1 at home.
League Two
• Plymouth Argyle climbed atop League Two as they grabbed a late winner to beat Crawley 2-1. Reuben Reid gave the Pilgrims the lead, only for Roarie Deacon to equalise in the 85th minute, before Hiram Boateng notched the winner four minutes later. They move ahead of Wycombe, who were beaten 3-2 by Northampton at Adams Park.
• Leyton Orient managed their first win in five to move back into the automatic promotion places, beating Notts County 3-1 and moving ahead of Portsmouth, who could only draw 0-0 at home to Yeovil. Mansfield were one of two 4-3 away victors, beating Dagenham & Redbridge and coming back from 3-1 behind. The others were Bristol Rovers, securing their own seven-goal thriller victory at Morecambe.
• Newport couldn’t lift themselves off the bottom of the table and claim just their second win of the season, but they did manage a 1-1 draw at home to Exeter. Stevenage suffered their fourth defeat in a row, losing 1-0 at Carlisle, while Luton secured their fourth win in a row, thrashing Hartlepool 4-1.
