CHAMPIONSHIP
• Tammy Abraham scored again, to the surprise of nobody. The Chelsea striker, on loan at Bristol City, moved into double figures by kick-starting their 4-0 rout of Fulham. Luke Freeman, Bobby Reid and Aden Flint followed up with goals of their own but Abraham remains the division’s outstanding player of the season so far. He also scored the winner at Craven Cottage in their midweek EFL Cup meeting. “We have energy, pace and quality in the group and we’re starting to understand each other’s games,” said Lee Johnson, the City manager and a boyhood Fulham fan.
• QPR drew 1-1 with Birmingham, but the must noteworthy thing to take from Loftus Road was that the hosts are yet to score from open play this season. All 11 have come from corners, free-kicks or penalties. Still, at least they are finding the net.
• Derby, the lowest scoring team in the country, struck only their third of the season to lead Blackburn. Four minutes later, Nigel Pearson’s team were 2-1 down. “We are where we are,” Pearson said afterwards, which is 22nd in the table, above just Rotherham and Wigan, both of whom lost to Cardiff and Preston (on Friday) respectively.
•Norwich did not face too must resistance against Burton, winning 3-1 to top the table. Huddersfield are immediately below after losing 1-0 at Reading. Jaap Stam’s team are now fifth.
LEAGUE ONE
• The pick of League One’s schedule came at The Den, where Rochdale took an early lead, fell behind within nine minutes but ended up winning 3-2 thanks to an injury time penalty from Ian Henderson. That win moved them out of the relegation places and saw Millwall drop into the bottom half, though the whole table remains tightly packed.
• Their 31-game unbeaten run ended last weekend and, like buses, they suffered a second consecutive loss in the EFL Cup midweek, but Northampton were comfortable throughout against Southend, winning 4-0 to move into fifth. Milton Keynes Dons were the other convincing winners, putting four past Fleetwood.
• Scunthorpe remain top, though, despite being held to a 2-2 draw against Sheffield United. The Blades were down to 10 men but rescued a point thanks to Billy Sharp’s 85th-minute penalty.
• There were four other draws in the division but Coventry remain winless, their latest loss coming 2-1 at Gillingham.
LEAGUE TWO
• Cambridge had been the only other team in the land yet to celebrate victory before the afternoon’s action. And they were a goal down at Newport inside 10 minutes but second half efforts from Uche Ikpeazu and Luke Berry ensured a happy trip back from Rodney Parade.
• At the top, a tasty south coast battle between Plymouth and Portsmouth, who met in a dramatic play-off last season, is developing. Argyle sit first despite dropping two points at home to Hartlepool, two points clear of Pompey, courtesy of a 5-1 battering of Barnet at Fratton Park.
• Three sides are locked on 16 points after Luton jumped above Doncaster thanks to a 3-1 win and Crewe came from behind to finish level with Blackpool.
