It’s the big one…

The Second Tier World Cup. We’ve won the Third Tier and Fourth Tier equivalents in ludicrously dominant fashion. The depth of our professional game is simply too vast, and the blend of guile, style and steel included in my squads simply too much for les adversaires.

We’re favourites here, too. Did you know that Opta’s League Ranking has the Championship as the ninth-strongest division in World Football? That suggests that, were this a World Cup including squads from the top 32 (or 48) leagues in the world, we’d be ninth-favourites, roughly equivalent to Belgium in this year’s FIFA World Cup.

On this measure, our stiffest competition is likely to come from the 2.Bundesliga in Germany (19th in Opta’s ranking), the Spanish Segunda Division (24th), France’s Ligue 2 (36th) and Italy’s Serie B (37th).

My squad selector rules: Three goalkeepers are compulsory. The rest is up to me, except for one strict rule: I can only select one player per club. The goal is to select a squad that provides a realistic tactical blend – a team that could actually make sense on the pitch, rather than just looking good on Fantasy EFL.

GOALKEEPERS

Viktor Johansson (Stoke), Daniel Iversen (Preston), Pierce Charles (Sheffield Wednesday)

For the third year in a row, Viktor Johansson is my #1. His season-ending shoulder injury around the New Year cut short another dominant shot-stopping season. His save percentage of 76.1% is third in the division, and he may well be Sweden’s #1 at the World Cup if he recovers soon.

He also happens to play for a perennially underperforming team that gives him plenty of opportunities to show off his skills, while his team-mates tend to underwhelm. Daniel Iversen will be a noble deputy as long as there’s no Sweden v Denmark beef between them, while 20-year-old Pierce Charles already has 10 IRL international caps for Northern Ireland and has an incredibly exciting future.

CENTRE-BACKS

Christoph Klarer (Birmingham), Lloyd Jones (Charlton), Dom Hyam (Wrexham), Matt Clarke (Derby)

What a wonderful quartet of nightclub bouncers. “Sorry, mate, you can’t come in.” You wouldn’t question it – you’d just get the hell out of there.

Now, I’m not the greatest CB scout on earth, so I can’t pretend I have a hugely clear idea of the hierarchy here (that’s what my assistant manager Steve Bould is for). But I’m sure as hell happy with this lot defending my penalty box with their lives.

My gut instinct is that I’d like Christoph Klarer to start at RCB, and alongside him I don’t mind too much. Is it fair to say that, as well as being the only left-footed option, Matt Clarke is the most comfortable on the ball of the other three? I think so.

Either way, Dom Hyam has been one of the Championship’s most consistent CBs for years now, and Lloyd Jones has stepped up to the level brilliantly.

FULL-BACKS / WING-BACKS

Milan van Ewijk (Coventry), Ryan Alebiosu (Blackburn), Leif Davis (Ipswich), Jack Currie (Oxford)

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Championship

⚽ SCORES

✍️ BIG STORIES

Sam Parry

Here endeth the relegation battle. Veni, veni, veni; nunc descendo. Don’t stick that in a Latin translator.

When it came, the end for Oxford was taken out of their hands by events at The Valley, whose ‘Shadow of Death’ I’ll come to. At 3pm, the Yellows bottled a bit of lightning in beating bottom-three bedfellows Sheffield Wednesday 4-1.

The highlights were two very different and utterly brilliant Will Lankshear strikes. Obviously, those didn’t gloss over the lowlight. As George Elek put it, relegation for newly promoted sides in this league is often gravitational. As Thom Yorke put it, gravity always wins.

Right, what’s still alive?

Charlton confirmed Oxford’s relegation in the lunchtime kick-off, beating Hull 2-1 to dent the Tigers’ top-six chances at the same time. Another pair of brilliant goals did the damage, sandwiching a John Egan header. Charlie Kelman stepped inside and bent one top-right with just enough whip; Jayden Fevrier did similar from the other side, chopping, moving central, and fizzing a shot low into the corner.

Penny for the thoughts of Sergej Jakirović, watching in the stands. Hull are out of the play-off places with one game to play. Luckily for him, Wrexham lost 3-1 to CHAMPIONSHIP CHAMPIONS Coventry on Sunday, meaning 6th and 7th are level on points and the goal difference is actually a touch tighter than it was.

Less lucky for Hull was Derby’s result.

If I told you that QPR were the better side for 70 minutes – 2-1 to the good and dominating the data (2.30 xG to 0.18, 21 shots to 5, 10 on target to 1) – you might agree that Derby’s late turnaround was a touch fortunate. But a set-piece header changed the tone, and Jaydon Banel delivered a 88th-minute winner: flip-flap, cut-in, bend, goal. Special talent. Big win. Huge final day for all three. Derby play Sheffield United (H), Wrexham play Middlesbrough (A) and Hull play Norwich (H).

From play-offs to automatics, and Hull to Hellberg.

Middlesbrough beat Watford 5-1. Does the scoreline flatter Boro, Watford having had good chances at 0-0 and 1-0? Probs not. But they were unusually ruthless, scoring through a Morgan Whittaker free-kick, David Strelec sliding in, Whittaker tapping in, Conway converting a penalty and then Conway again finishing a flowing counter. Kim Hellberg’s side were so clinical it was painful, not just for the Hornets but for the fans of a previously profligate Boro. They must’ve been thinking, “What if?”

What if Boro had picked up a couple more results over the past few weeks? They might be in 2nd place with a cushion, because those around them lost ground without losing.

That started with Millwall on Friday night, as they drew 1-1 with Leicester. Alex Neil’s team had the better of it and can probably count themselves unfortunate to run into long-term Foxes absentee Harry Souttar, who returned from injury for his first appearance in more than a year, scored, and stuck his head on everything.

A late Macaulay Langstaff leveller gave the Lions a share of the points and kept them in touching distance of 2nd place, because Ipswich v West Brom ended 0-0. That leaves Southampton, who almost-nearly-but-didn’t-quite shock Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final, leading briefly late on before losing 2-1.

Finally, I’ve got to end on the lone Championship hat-trick. Adrian Segečić scored all three for Pompey as they beat Stoke 3-1. It wasn’t perfect but what I’ll call the Ned Flanders variety: left foot, left foot, left foot. That’s seven goal contributions for the Australian Croatian in his last five appearances.

📊 STATS

🔢 Championship Numberwang Streaks — Saints are unbeaten in 17, Derby haven’t drawn in 16, West Brom are unbeaten in 10, Millwall haven’t lost away in 9, Stoke haven’t won away in 8, and Sheffield Wednesday have broken all kinds of records.

🛑 Charlton’s Valley of Life — Charlton Athletic ended a run of four straight home defeats with victory over Hull City, securing Championship survival.

🏟️ Blades blip — Sheffield United have lost 10 home games – only the second time they’ve hit double figures outside the top flight. In total this season, they’ve lost two more games than Oxford and four more games than Leicester, who’ve both been relegated.

🎯 Lankshear lands — Will Lankshear scored his first career brace, taking him to 11 league goals for Oxford United.

📺 HIGHLIGHTS

1. Flip-flap fantasique from Derby’s Jaydon Banel

2. Not so mellow Yellow – a thunderstrike from Will Lankshear

3. Cometh the hour, Kelman the… Kel… man? What a hit!

🧮 LEAGUE TABLE

League One

⚽ SCORES

✍️ BIG STORIES

Huw Davies

THE PLAY-OFF RACE

Top-six mainstays Bradford and Bolton drew 1-1, with great finishes by Kayden Jackson and Johnny Kenny easing each side’s nerves. Bradford do still need to avoid defeat to Exeter; remarkably, only Bolton are assured of their play-off place as we enter the final week, although it’s likely that Stockport will pick up the point they need against Port Vale on Tuesday.

They picked up three against Peterborough, as Louie Barry reminded everyone of his quality. His hat-trick in the 3-1 victory doesn’t tell the full story, but our Stats section below gives a little more. Posh had led through a fine three-man move involving Harley Mills (20), Bolu Shofowoke (17) and Harry Leonard (22), so the future seems bright, as it often does at London Road. The present is a little more worrying: they’re not safe yet, though goal difference is heavily in their favour.

Luton and Plymouth beat Barnsley and Port Vale, Argyle doing so despite Conor Hazard’s red card for handling outside the box, after Bim Pepple and Lorent Tolaj had combined nicely for 1-0 – and that was just the first five minutes. Pepple’s second goal, to win the game, required strength, composure and a precise, sweetly-struck finish. He produced all three. He wasn’t far off joining the day’s array of hat-trick scorers, either, with a powerful shot from the edge of the box.

And so, Stevenage had a rough day. A 1-1 draw at Doncaster, coupled with those 2-1 wins for Luton and Argyle, deflated their cushion from three points to one, with goal difference against them. They host Wigan on Saturday and only a victory will do, because Argyle are likely to beat Northampton (sorry, Cobblers). After good work by Hakeeb Adelakun, Billy ‘still’ Sharp cancelled out a superb goal by relative whippersnapper Matt Phillips. Donny hit the post, had a penalty shout denied and forced a goal-line save in the 98th minute, so Stevenage cling to 6th… for now?

THE RELEGATION CRAWL

Peterborough and Leyton Orient are learning that nobody’s safe if they take two points from six games (Posh) or one from a run of five (Orient). The latter lost 1-0 to Blackpool – who rubber-stamped their own safety and have jumped from 20th to 13th in the space of a fortnight – which means last year’s play-off finalists must beat Burton Albion on final day to guarantee survival. Richie Wellens, banned again, could only watch from the East Stand’s roof as Dale Taylor’s penalty hit the post, rebounded off his goalkeeper’s boot and bobbled in.

Yet it could’ve been worse for the O’s. Exeter would have dumped them into the relegation zone with a win at Burton, and indeed they led for half of the match thanks to Ilmari Niskanen’s 16th goal contribution of the season (most of them from wing-back until his recent shuffle forward). But Burton equalised, having already forced Jack Bycroft into an excellent double save. Exeter may have asked them for a favour at full-time, because in order to stay up, the Grecians now have to beat Bradford while hoping the Brewers deny Orient.

It meant Burton had a good weekend, as they celebrated survival with long-overdue relief. And Wimbledon had a GREAT weekend, securing another year in League One just when things looked as dark as they had all season, following one point from their previous nine games. After Wigan took 16 shots without once hitting the target, Antwoine Hackford stole across Morgan Fox to score in the 90th minute. Job done.

RUNNING CLEAR

Any Other Business? Just some funny business. Mansfield won 4-1 at Huddersfield, scoring four goals from three shots on target, while fun in the sun was top of the agenda at the top of the table.

While Cardiff dismantled Northampton 5-1, a 100-point Lincoln reached their century with a classic knock. Their 4-3 win over Wycombe featured a brilliant goal by Jack Moylan, a brace for Reeco Hackett and a comedy fourth from a big hoick upfield. Mike Duff said afterwards that he’d told his Wycombe players they had “wasted 10 and a half months of their lives”, which sounds harsh after a second half away at the league leaders in which Wycombe had 21 shots, eight on target, with four big chances, but maybe he was talking about a different 10 and a half months of their lives. Don’t tell Mike Duff about your gap year.

Let’s not undersell Lincoln’s relentlessness. They haven’t just kept their foot on the gas; they’ve pushed the accelerator pedal through the floor, forcing everyone else – even Cardiff – to eat their dust. Observe their position approaching this season’s halfway point, and compare it to their lead over the rest of the top half today.

📊 STATS

🌟 Louie Louie… Louie — As well as scoring three goals, Louie Barry had 10 shots against Posh – 9 of them from inside the box – and created 4 chances, while making 10 tackles, interceptions or ball recoveries, two of which (both on David Okagbue) resulted in goalscoring opportunities for Stockport. He played 73 minutes in all.

💨 Pepple dash — With 14, Plymouth Argyle’s Aribim Pepple leads all players in England’s top four tiers for goals scored in 2026.

🍊 Binary Blackpool — Five of the Seasiders’ last six matches have finished 1-0 (four in their favour and one in losing to fellow binary boys Stevenage).

📉 Cobblers collapse — Northampton Town have suffered 27 defeats, equalling their worst-ever EFL season tally.

🟥 Ready steady chaos — Plymouth Argyle became the first English league side since 2016 to score and see red inside the first five minutes of a match.

⏳ Good things come to those who wait — Antwoine Hackford’s survival-sealing goal in the 90th minute against Wigan was the latest that Wimbledon have scored a winner in a league game since Ronan Curtis in March 2024 against MK Dons – a fixture that’s back on the League One card next season.

📺 HIGHLIGHTS

1. Moylan, muy bueno

2. A Phillips fillip for Stevenage

3. Stephen Regan Hendry finds the corner pocket

4. And you’re going to hear me roar

🧮 LEAGUE TABLE

League Two

⚽ SCORES

✍️ BIG STORIES

Matt Watts

“So, let me get this straight. We’re 45 games into a 46-game season and we still don’t know who is going to win the league, who is going to claim the third automatic promotion spot, who is going to claim the last two play-off berths and who is going to fill the two relegation places?”

Welcome to League Two, my friends.

MK Dons secured promotion with a 3-0 win at home to Tranmere. More than that, they went top of the league, thanks to Bromley’s 2-0 defeat at Salford. The Ravens had been No.1 in the League Two charts since 29th December, but now they’re playing catch-up. Paul Warne is yet to win a league title as a player or as a manager, despite several promotions, but a win at Fleetwood on Saturday would change that.

Salford’s Thursday-night victory moved them up to 3rd, only for Cambridge to reclaim the final automatic promotion spot by beating Barrow 3-0. James Gibbons scored the pick of the goals for the U’s, who kept their 19th clean sheet of the season – the most in League Two. Notts County ensured it’ll be a three-way fight for 3rd on final day, as Nick Tsaroulla’s goal steered them to victory over Colchester.

A Jaze Kabia-inspired Grimsby shot up to 6th with a 4-0 victory over Ian Holloway’s Swindon, who slipped out of the top seven altogether after Chesterfield’s 2-0 win at home to Crewe. Kabia’s first EFL hat-trick took him to 18 league goals for the season, second only to Aaron Drinan (22) in the Golden Boot stakes. Grimsby go to Tranmere next weekend, while Swindon host Chesterfield. Tasty.

That fixture means that Barnet can’t finish in the top seven, despite being only three points behind Chesterfield. Nevertheless, Dean Brennan’s side put on a clinic in their 6-2 victory over Gillingham. Callum Stead became the first player to score five goals in an EFL game since Jordan Rhodes in 2012.

With 19 points taken from the last 21 available, the Bees will no doubt be ones to watch next season – as will Bristol Rovers. The Gas beat Cheltenham 4-0 for an eighth win in a row, which is the longest winning run in the EFL this season. As a man of his word, Steve Evans spent the final 10 minutes of the game in the Thatchers End, in amongst the Gasheads. Ellis Harrison’s hat-trick was a good enough excuse.

In the battle to stay up, Newport won a five-goal thriller against Oldham thanks to Bobby Kamwa’s winner in the 19th minute of stoppage time. Kamwa was the hero when he scored a beauty to put the Exiles 1-0 up, the villain when he missed a penalty in the 105th minute, then the hero once again.

Elsewhere, Crawley came from behind three times in their 3-3 draw with Accrington and Harrogate made it back-to-back victories by winning 2-0 at Walsall. It. Is. Tight.

Finally, congratulations to York, who scored an equaliser in the 103rd minute against their title rivals Rochdale to seal a return to the EFL after a decade away.

What a day!

📊 STATS

🤯 Steady on — Callum Stead scored five goals for Barnet, the first player to do so in the EFL since 2012 and the first in the top four tiers since Sergio Aguero in 2015; Stead’s hat-trick inside 16 minutes is the fastest on EFL record (i.e. since 2004/05).

🔥 Unstoppable Gas — Bristol Rovers have won eight straight league games – just the second such run in their Football League history.

🎩 Kabia magic — Jaze Kabia scored Grimsby’s first Football League hat-trick since 2020, and the second perfect hat-trick in League Two this season.

📺 HIGHLIGHTS

1. Bowling, Shane. Warne celebrates promotion at Stadium MK.

2. He’s under there somewhere: Steve Evans in the Thatchers End!

3. Welcome to the world of ‘why not?’ A stunning last minute-equaliser from Shrewsbury’s Ismeal Kabia

🧮 LEAGUE TABLE

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A couple of titles clinched, a couple more relegations confirmed and so many massive results up and down the EFL…

It’s the Season Finale of Under The Lights. From the balmy summer evenings in August, to the cold, wet nights in December, to the tension-filled evenings in April, we’ve been with you every step of the way. Now it’s time for penultimate weekend, final day and, of course, the Play-Offs!

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Welcome to Under The Spotlight, a written spin-off to our Under The Lights podcast, helmed by Matt Watts. This column is all about investigating the topics and themes of individuals and teams that shine bright in the EFL.

South London has long been recognised as a hotbed of footballing talent, but its teams haven’t performed as well as its individuals – until now, perhaps.

Last season, Crystal Palace smashed the glass ceiling, winning their first piece of major silverware. Charlton and AFC Wimbledon were also victorious at Wembley. This season, Palace are in the last four of a European competition. Millwall could also make history by winning promotion to the Premier League for the first time.

And then there’s Bromley.

South London’s newest EFL club secured their second promotion in three seasons on Saturday thanks to Notts County’s defeat to Barnet. It took the Ravens 132 years to reach the Football League – and 134 years to reach the third tier.

After finishing 11th in the maiden EFL campaign (and expressing disappointment that it wasn’t higher), Andy Woodman’s side have become the first team to be promoted in League Two this season. But how has the team with the fourth-longest pre-season odds for promotion, and one of the smallest budgets at the level, left their wealthier and/or more established counterparts trailing in their wake?

Fortress Hayes Lane

With one home game remaining, Bromley are the only team in the top six tiers of English football not to have lost a home league game this season (W13 D9). In fact, their last league defeat at Hayes Lane was 3-2 to Karl Robinson’s Salford in March 2025.

The Ravens scored two or more goals in their first 14 home games this season and they’ve only blanked in front of their home fans twice since. Their home form in 25/26 is in stark contrast to last season, when they had the 15th-best home record in League Two. Have they changed their approach at home? The honest answer is… no. They’re largely doing what they did before – they’re just doing it better.

Michael Cheek (and Nicke Kabamba)

It’s hard to talk or write about Bromley without talking or writing about Michael Cheek. Like Bromley, Cheek had never played in the EFL until the start of last season but, also like Bromley, the non-league goalscoring sensation has taken to life in the EFL like a duck to water. After scoring 25 goals in 2024/25, winning the Golden Boot, Cheek scored 16 goals in 35 games this time around before injury curtailed his season.

The 34-year-old is one of the best strikers at the level – but his deputy, Nicke Kabamba, is undoubtedly the best deputy at the level. The former Barnet man has scored 13 goals in 44 games, but he has started only 17 of those matches and played just 1,939 minutes (compared to Cheek’s 2,901). Batman is good, but Robin is pretty useful as well.

Set piece again olé, olé

Like Lincoln in League One, Bromley have a direct style of play and they’re incredibly effective from set pieces.

After scoring 33 goals from set pieces last season, Andy Woodman’s side have managed 29 this season, which is a tally matched only by Michael Skubala’s Imps across all four divisions. It’s long been accepted that 2025/26 is the season of set pieces, so it won’t surprise you to know that Coventry’s 26 set-piece goals are the most in the Championship. There’s definitely a trend here (get yourselves together, Arsenal!).

Not only do Bromley possess players with outstanding delivery, but they also have the likes of Cheek, Kyle Cameron, Zech Medley and the giant figure of Omar Sowunmi to attack said deliveries. Are the Ravens actually unkind? I don’t know them personally, but they’ve got some big, strong boys in their ranks, so if you turn up at Hayes Lane and you aren’t up for a battle, then you will get turned over.

Recruitment

Bromley generally target younger players who can play in a couple of positions. Not only have they built a squad full of players who suit their style of play, but it’s notable just how many of their players come from London / the South East of England.

The joined-up, long-term thinking behind Bromley’s recruitment was epitomised by the signing of Marcus Ifill in February last year, after he had impresed for Brighton in PL2. With Danny Imray excelling on the right-hand side of their defence, Bromley didn’t necessarily need a player of Ifill’s profile at the time; however, Imray was only at Hayes Lane on loan, so Ifill was given time to bed in before becoming a first-team regular this season.

Of course, when it comes to recruitment strategies, there should always be room for the odd exception to the rule (take note, Chelsea), and in terms of his age, Mitch Pinnock is an exception. The 31-year-old joined Bromley on a free transfer last summer, having briefly played for the club in non-league more than a decade ago. Known as ‘The Postman’ due to his exceptional delivery, he has been the perfect fit for Bromley. Who better to load the bullets — from open play, dead ball and throw-ins — for Cheek, Kabamba and Sowunmi? Having contributed 34 league assists in four seasons with Northampton, Pinnock has registered nine assists in the league for Bromley.

Andy Woodman

The joined-up, long-term thinking demonstrated in Bromley’s recruitment runs throughout the club. Andy Woodman is currently the fifth-longest serving manager in the top four tiers of English football, behind Simon Weaver, Pep Guardiola, Mikel Arteta and Nigel Clough.

Woodman was appointed in March 2021 after leaving his role as Arsenal’s Head of Goalkeeping. The former shot-stopper led Bromley into the play-offs in 20/21, before winning the FA Trophy in his first full season in charge and then winning promotion to the EFL in 23/24. Seven of Bromley’s starters in the National League Play-Off Final victory over Solihull Moors two years ago have featured for the Ravens this season.

In terms of the running of the club, it would be remiss of me not to mention the owner and chairman, Robin Stanton-Gleaves, a local man who – while being incredibly ambitious – prioritises long-term progression and growing the infrastructure of the club, as opposed to throwing money at individual players. Bromley are a community club and the key figures at the club are determined to take that community with them on their incredible journey up the Football League.

With wages and other costs set to soar, can little old Bromley really compete in League One? Ultimately, time will tell, but if anyone can, Bromley can.

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming, again, to get all giddy and that about the EFL’s midweek action, again. Not The Top Tables will be back on Friday; for now, let’s look at the real Championship table, shall we? Because there’s a full slate in the second tier, and it’s a big one.

In the States, an election year features ‘Super Tuesday’ around February or March, when we get a very clear idea who’ll be each party’s presidential nominee. In the Championship this season, Super Tuesday is today, April 21st*, and it could reveal plenty about what comes next.

*All right, yes, four of these games are on Wednesday.

With only two matchdays to play after this one, some teams simply cannot afford to slip up. So, fire up Sky Sports News, Sky Sports+ or your illegal fire stick and get ready for…

Championship

Huw Davies

Oxford v Wrexham

Jeopardy rating: gulp

This is effectively a must-win for both sides, so at least one of them is going to be disappointed.

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*We noticed that…

Our tables didn’t work on some devices last week. We’ve corrected that now, and they should be working for everyone now. They’re exciting tables to look at, too!

Championship

⚽ SCORES

✍️ BIG STORIES

Huw Davies

On Friday night, the Championship wrote the final chapter in a 25-year EFL story, before letting Leagues One and Two dictate the drama on Saturday.

Coventry City were relegated from the Premier League in 2001, after so many narrow escapes (including nine final-day survivals in their 34 consecutive top-flight seasons) that The Telegraph wrote, “There was a suspicion that it was written in the Premier League rules that Coventry could never be relegated”. In 2012 they fell into League One; in 2017, into League Two. But within a decade of that nadir – a period that took in two seasons playing in Birmingham, amazing progress under Mark Robins, back-to-back shootout defeats at Wembley and Frank Lampard more than justifying his surprise appointment – Coventry are back into the Premier League.

It was a 1-1 draw at Blackburn wot won it. Various qualities have driven Cov’s title-winning season – Carl Rushworth looking every inch a Premier League goalkeeper, attackers hitting form at different times, a supporting cast stepping up – but a defining asset in the first half of the campaign was set-piece goals, so it was fitting that they returned to finish the job. As a wide free-kick was swung into the box in search of a promotion-winning equaliser, Bobby Thomas rose highest, and Coventry rise with him.

In their endeavours to join them, Ipswich and Middlesbrough played out a ding-dong Desmond on Sunday. After each side scored a beauty in a first half Ipswich dominated, Boro retook the lead and looked like throwing their hat of cats into a massive ring of pigeons. At that moment, a single point separated four teams between 2nd and 5th. But Adilson Malanda impeded George Hirst and Jack Clarke tucked home the penalty, so Ipswich are back in the top two with a game in hand.

Elsewhere in the promotion battle, Millwall, Wrexham and Derby all won to nil, against QPR, Stoke and Oxford respectively, but Hull were denied by a brilliant Tomoki Iwata equaliser for Birmingham. Cameron Archer’s 90th-minute strike against Swansea gave Southampton an eighth consecutive win in all competitions. Having taken 42 points from the last 48 available (W13 D3 L0), Saints are just one point off the automatics. Surely they couldn’t…

In the race to avoid relegation, Portsmouth beat Leicester 1-0 despite losing two players to injury in the first 15 minutes. They’re safe, thanks to three consecutive wins, but for Leicester this was yet another dire performance devoid of pride and purpose. They threatened only from throws and corners before Ibane Bowat bundled in a set piece; you could say, ‘Live by the sword, die by the sword’, but set pieces aren’t bringing Leicester much life, either. Rowett has picked up nine points from his 11 games while blunting the attack, failing to inspire his players and giving 16-year-old livewire Jeremy Monga just half an hour of football across 10 matches. Bleak.

If Leicester have it all to do, Oxford have it… most to do? There was some to-do when Yunus Konak turned this golden opportunity to equalise against Derby…

…into this desperate slash at goal:

Konak missed, Jeon Jin-woo went spare at his Yellows team-mate, and Derby held on to their 1-0 lead.

West Bromwich Albion made it eight games unbeaten with a 2-0 win at Preston that lifts them five points clear of the dropzone… for now. A potential two-point deduction looms with quiet menace. More happily, Daryl Dike scored his first goal since the final day of last season (his third in three years). Fingers crossed that his injury nightmare may finally be ending, because he has been in every WBA matchday squad for the past six months.

Blackburn played well in their 1-1 draw with Coventry and Charlton, well, played in their 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday. The Owls are now three unbeaten, and it’s a sad state of affairs when that is a noteworthy statistic.

Finally, some fun in the sun. Norwich came from behind to beat Bristol City 4-2 thanks to a prime poacher’s performance from Mohamed Touré: four shots, three goals, two passes attempted, one pass completed. Son of Lineker?

Touré’s first goal – after Bristol City had one strangely disallowed – came at the precise moment that the Sun emerged from behind a cloud. That’s just clumsy scriptwriting. His third wasn’t even a shot, as the ball just ricocheted in off his hand.

Son of Maradona, then.

📊 STATS

🔵 Pompey rolling — Portsmouth have won three straight league games at the most critical time, and it’s just the second time they’ve managed that feat since their return to the Championship in 2024.

🦁 Millwall mark — Millwall’s 76 points is their third-highest ever second-tier tally; the other records to beat are 82 in 1987/88 and 77 in 2001/02.

🌟 Touré takeover — Since February, Mohamed Touré has 10 goal involvements for Norwich City, more than any other Championship player.

🎯 Windass run — Josh Windass has scored in four of his last five for Wrexham; his 13 goals are his best return since 2015–16.

👟 Marching in - Southampton have averaged 2.625 ppg over the past 16 matches – more than a third of the campaign.

🦉 Owls are not what they seem - Sheffield Wednesday had their joint-highest possession share of the season against Charlton (67%), despite trailing for only 27 minutes of the game.

🦊 A sheep in fox’s clothing - For the first time this season, Leicester would be in the Championship relegation zone even if they hadn’t received a six-point deduction.

📺 HIGHLIGHTS

1. Nothing banal about Jaydon Banel’s winner for Derby.

2. Bamford bags a backheelish brace.

3. What a goal from Tomoki Iwata for Blues.

🧮 LEAGUE TABLE

League One

⚽ SCORES

✍️ BIG STORIES

Matt Watts

Spare a thought for Reading fans. In the last fortnight, two sides have won promotion at the Select Car Leasing Stadium – and neither of them have been Reading. Cardiff followed in Lincoln’s footsteps by beating the Royals and celebrating promotion in Berkshire. Purple Turtle, anyone? Fittingly, two of the three Cardiff goals were scored by two of their eight players on show aged 23 or younger; the pick of the goals, however, was the clincher scored by Perry Ng.

For much of the afternoon, it looked like the Bluebirds might have to wait a little longer to get a (P) by their name, because Stockport were 2-0 up and then 3-2 up at Exeter.

Then, something quite incredible happened.

After Pierce Sweeney had been denied by Corey Addai from the previous corner, Exeter goalkeeper Jack Bycroft headed home a 96th-minute equaliser to send St James Park into raptures and seal Cardiff’s promotion. Bycroft won’t have to buy a pint in the Welsh capital for the rest of his days.

As for Exeter, Bycroft’s impression of a Geordie No.9 who used to light up a stadium with a very similar name moved them a point closer to the teams who currently find themselves above the dotted line with two games remaining.

AFC Wimbledon are now only two points ahead of the Grecians after they fell to a sixth successive defeat – this time, to play-off chasers Plymouth. Leyton Orient are three points ahead of Exeter after they lost 2-0 at home to recently-relegated Rotherham. A point further clear, you’ll find Peterborough and Burton, who drew 1-1 on Sunday. It’s been a disappointing few days for Posh, who lost 3-1 at home to Port Vale on Thursday night thanks to two breathtaking free-kicks from Ethon Archer.

It was another good weekend for Blackpool, who picked up their fourth win in their last five games (and their first away win since before Christmas) by beating Wycombe 1-0 at Adams Park, thanks to Luke Leahy’s own goal – and on his 600th career appearance, too.

Back at the top, Lincoln’s wait for the title goes on – but so does their unbeaten run. The Imps are now 26 league games undefeated, after Rob Street’s late equaliser in their 2-2 draw with Stevenage. Michael Skubala’s side will be promoted with a point at Doncaster on Tuesday. Stevenage are now only two points clear of Argyle and three points clear of Luton, who came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Mansfield.

With Stevenage, Argyle and Luton all having three games to play, Huddersfield’s play-off dream effectively died after they let a 3-1 lead slip in their 3-3 draw with Bolton. Ibrahim Cissoko’s stunning left-footed strike in the 11th minute of stoppage time leaves the Terriers four points behind Stevenage. Quite remarkably, there have been seven goals in the 90th minute or later in Huddersfield’s last five games and they’ve conceded late equalisers in their last three.

Finally, Barnsley announced that Conor Hourihane would be leaving the club at the end of the season in a statement released at 9:30 am on Saturday morning. Despite Vimal Yoganathan’s eighth-minute red card, the Tykes drew 2-2 with Bradford thanks to Leo Farrell’s 96th-minute equaliser.

📊 STATS

🌊 Seasiders surge — Blackpool have won five of their last seven to steer clear of the relegation storm; it’s as many as in their previous 18 combined.

🔄 Hatters fightback — Luton Town have avoided defeat from 2+ goals down three times, the joint-most in League One.

🧤 Keeper chaos — Exeter City’s Jack Bycroft is the first goalkeeper to score in a League One match since Iain Turner for Preston against Notts County in August 2011.

⏰ Cozier clutch — Amario Cozier-Duberry has six goal involvements after the 90th minute for Bolton Wanderers, creating more added-time drama than any other player.

📺 HIGHLIGHTS

1. BYCROFT! Jack’s 96th-minute equaliser that was celebrated in Devon, Reading and Cardiff.

2. A Perry Ng strike from range that was celebrated in Reading and Cardiff.

3. Ibrahim is HIM – Cissoko with the latest late goal to haunt Huddersfield.

🧮 LEAGUE TABLE

League Two

⚽ SCORES

✍️ BIG STORIES

Sam Parry

Choose your own adventure: Ali and I were at Hayes Lane on Thursday night to watch a) Bromley clinch promotion, b) Cambridge spoil the party and insert themselves into the title conversation, or c) Kelland Watts doing this…

It was c) on the night during a 0-0 draw, but Andy Woodman’s Ravens will now be leaving the League Two tower after Notts County lost on Saturday. The collective noun for Ravens? An “unkindness”. No such malevolence here.

Bromley have ensnared teams week in and week out. They squash play into the central third, choke the life out of opponents, swing in crosses, fire in corners and fling in throw-ins. They score first. Often – 27 times in 44 games. They are giants. They are set-piece empresarios. They are, quite simply, a League One team for the first time ever. What a story. What a club.

The permutations that sealed the deal? Let’s keep this chronological.

Two teams without any real incentive to win football matches made a big impact at both ends of League Two in the early kick-offs on Saturday.

“Pump three, please.”

Fine at the petrol station. Less so at 14:30 on a Saturday afternoon at Holker Street, where a Walsall side with zip to play for did exactly that to Barrow. One small crumb of comfort was the consolation goal to make it 1-3, which could really matter.

At the same time, Accrington drew 2-2 with Swindon after taking the lead inside 30 seconds and then equalising in the 91st minute – two crash-bangs that walloped Swindon’s automatic hopes. By five o’clock, it called into question their grip on the play-offs.

Right, take a breath.

Hold it.

And consider that a couple of hours later, at 16:34, I sent this message into the Weekend Notes group chat, imagining – pah! – that I was onto a quiet one.

Tranmere had equalised against a Bristol Rovers side that had won seven on the spin, but then Yusuf Akhamrich, who looks a bit too good, jinked and found the bottom corner. Crawley and Shrewsbury remained 0-0. Poor old Newport conceded in the 82nd minute and fell to defeat against Cheltenham despite a good performance and winning the somewhat hollow shot battle 17-8.

That left Harrogate with an opportunity to get another opportunity to save their season. The clock read 90’+9 when they took it, as 21-year-old Jacob Slater, on loan from Brighton, flicked out a boot to meet a mini post-corner melée. Results could hardly have gone better for Simon Weaver’s side. They have a chance.

But that still leaves the top, which was also bloody turvy.

MK Dons won 3-1 against Crewe to edge very close to automatic promotion. Then it was one for sorrow and two for Kabongo Tshimanga as Notts County lost 2-1 to Barnet. It leaves the Magpies with work to do to secure a top-three finish, while the Bees remain just outside the play-off hive.

Salford climbed into 4th with an impressive 2-1 win away at an Oldham side who had looked like mounting a real play-off push. Speaking of the play-offs and pushes: Grimsby were pushy. Mariners stuck their fingers into the Gills, poking at wounds about as fresh as, I don’t know, the 8th of November (see stats). Anyway, Grimsby battered them 4-1 (cue goal difference klaxon) to set up a mouthwatering game-in-hand clash with Cambridge on Tuesday.

And it’s all the more enticing because Chesterfield, a goal down to Fleetwood and playing with 10 men, equalised in the 89th minute.

Breathless stuff all round.

📊 STATS

📉 Ainsworth it? — After taking 25 points from their first 15 games (1.66 PPG), Gillingham were four points off top spot on 8 November. Gareth Ainsworth’s side have managed the same total across their next 29 since then (0.86 PPG).

⏱️ Start to finish — Accrington Stanley scored in the first minute and after the 90th in their draw with Swindon Town; only the second such instance in the EFL this season, after Grimsby Town v Newport County in August.

🔥 Signing of the season? — Jaze Kabia has 15 league goals in his first League Two season for Grimsby Town – if he adds one more to the tally, he’ll equal his record haul of 16 from last season for Truro in the National League South.

⚽ Tshimanga streak — Kabongo Tshimanga has 7 goals in his last 6 games for Barnet and now has three braces in 2026, more than across his previous nine years combined.

📺 HIGHLIGHTS

1. Harrogate leave it late to keep the Football League dream alive.

2. Josh Hawkes with a sweet lob using the outside of his boot.

3. Backheel for Kabongo: Tshimanga at the double

🧮 LEAGUE TABLE

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Thanks for reading!

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Words: Sam Parry

Not The Top 20

It doesn’t get enough coverage, does it? Well, today we’re rectifying the chronic lack of coverage for the statistically best sides in the EFL with 6 fun tables. The first three rank the top 20 of 72 teams over the season by xG, xGA, and xG share. The second three do exactly the same, but over the last 10 games.

Oh, and there’s a bottom twenty for those of you predisposed to schadenfreude.

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⚖️ Top 20 — xG Share (Season Overall)

1. Coventry (Championship, 1st) — 63.3%

2. Ipswich (Championship, 2nd) — 63.1%

3. Middlesbrough (Championship, 5th) — 61.9%

4. Bolton Wanderers (League One, 3rd) — 61.9%

5. MK Dons (League Two, 2nd) — 61.4%

6. Grimsby Town (League Two, 8th) — 60.2%

7. Cambridge United (League Two, 3rd) — 59.8%

8. Lincoln City (League One, 1st) — 58.6%

9. Notts County (League Two, 4th) — 57.9%

10. Southampton (Championship, 4th) — 57.8%

11. Barnet (League Two, 9th) — 57.8%

12. Bradford City (League One, 4th) — 57.0%

13. Birmingham City (Championship, 15th) — 56.8%

14. Huddersfield Town (League One, 8th) — 56.8%

15. Colchester United (League Two, 12th) — 56.8%

16. Cardiff City (League One, 2nd) — 56.6%

17. Sheffield United (Championship, 17th) — 56.0%

18. Stockport County (League One, 5th) — 55.4%

19. Oldham Athletic (League Two, 11th) — 55.2%

20. Doncaster Rovers (League One, 15th) — 55.0%

⚽ Top 20 — Expected Goals per 90 (Season Overall)

1. Coventry (Championship, 1st) — 1.89

2. Ipswich (Championship, 2nd) — 1.69

3. Southampton (Championship, 4th) — 1.68

4. MK Dons (League Two, 2nd) — 1.62

5. Grimsby Town (League Two, 8th) — 1.58

6. Cardiff City (League One, 2nd) — 1.58

7. Plymouth Argyle (League One, 9th) — 1.58

8. Sheffield United (Championship, 17th) — 1.57

9. Bolton Wanderers (League One, 3rd) — 1.55

10. Barnet (League Two, 9th) — 1.53

11. Middlesbrough (Championship, 5th) — 1.49

12. Bromley (League Two, 1st) — 1.46

13. Lincoln City (League One, 1st) — 1.45

14. Colchester United (League Two, 12th) — 1.45

15. Salford City (League Two, 6th) — 1.45

16. Peterborough United (League One, 16th) — 1.44

17. Oldham Athletic (League Two, 11th) — 1.43

18. Luton Town (League One, 7th) — 1.43

19. Huddersfield Town (League One, 8th) — 1.42

20. Stockport County (League One, 5th) — 1.42

🛡️ Top 20 — Expected Goals Against per 90 (Season Overall)

1. Cambridge United (League Two, 3rd) — 0.87

2. Middlesbrough (Championship, 5th) — 0.92

3. Bolton Wanderers (League One, 3rd) — 0.95

4. Ipswich Town (Championship, 2nd) — 0.99

5. Notts County (League Two, 4th) — 0.99

6. Bradford City (League One, 4th) — 1.01

7. MK Dons (League Two, 2nd) — 1.02

8. Lincoln City (League One, 1st) — 1.03

9. Birmingham City (Championship, 15th) — 1.03

10. Stevenage (League One, 6th) — 1.03

11. Grimsby Town (League Two, 8th) — 1.04

12. West Bromwich Albion (Championship, 21st) — 1.04

13. Huddersfield Town (League One, 8th) — 1.08

14. Coventry City (Championship, 1st) — 1.10

15. Colchester United (League Two, 12th) — 1.10

16. Walsall (League Two, 13th) — 1.11

17. Barnet (League Two, 9th) — 1.12

18. Wycombe Wanderers (League One, 11th) — 1.13

19. Stockport County (League One, 5th) — 1.14

20. Doncaster Rovers (League One, 15th) — 1.14

10 Game Form

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You told us two very clear and helpful things in our recent survey:

#1 “The podcasts aren’t easy for everyone to access.” We haven’t shouted nearly loudly enough about the fact that you can add pods to your preferred feeds, so:

👉 Add our podcasts to Spotify or Apple

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🎙 DAG is coming back. Not quite yet… but soon. In the meantime, allow Matt and Ali to catch you up on a ‘sneaky midweeky’ in the EFL!

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1. Is Chesterfield v Grimsby the biggest game of the night?

It’s what I’d be watching on my phone were I sitting on the bench at Anfield, avoiding eye-contact with the gaffer as he looks to bring me on against PSG. Just look at this:

There’s a case to be made that this season’s League Two play-offs race has been of a higher standard than ever before. If we take each team’s current PPG and extrapolate it across 46 games, 11 teams would pass the 70-point mark. Across the last 20 years, that average is between six and seven (no, I’m not doing the hands thing). Three teams finished 2nd with the points tally currently projected for Swindon and Salford, whose playoff berths look a little vulnerable.

In Chesterfield and Grimsby, we have two clubs who each had sights on being the sheriff of this here town but now know that the top seven may not be big enough for the both of them. Although they’re both firing, too many points have been dropped on the road to this showdown.

The Spireites have home advantage. Grimsby have an extra fixture in their back pocket. This duel won’t end either’s season, but the loser will leave it with a painful exit wound.

2. Can Saints leapfrog Boro?

On 9th February, Middlesbrough beat Sheffield United to go 18 points clear of Southampton. They probably didn’t even notice. Why would they? The important thing was that the 2-1 win at Bramall Lane sent Boro top of the table, two points clear of Coventry and seven clear of Ipswich, who’d played one fewer fixture. Meanwhile, Saints were 14th, which in itself represented a huge improvement as a result of taking 10 points from their previous four matches.

Barely two months later, a win for Tonda Eckert’s side will send them above Middlesbrough on goal difference, with Boro falling out of the top four for the first time since opening day (having only just fallen out of the top three for the first time since opening day). You’d have to say it seems likely. Visitors Blackburn are unbeaten in five and keeping things tight at the back, but Southampton go into this on the back of WDWWWDWWDWWWWW, which isn’t so much a form line as a URL.

3. Will Rotherham be the first team relegated from League One, despite being 22nd?

This quirk is brought to you by Games In Hand™, for all of your obfuscation needs. Does your league table look too clear and easy to read? Don’t you wish you could muddy the waters a bit? Then you need Games In Hand™, and if you don’t believe us, believe our customers (“Ideal for postponing the inevitable” – Port Vale; “A total pain in the arse” – Ipswich Town).

In League One, only five of the 24 teams have played their 43 designated fixtures to date. Most have played 41 or 42. A few have played 40. Vale have played 39. It’s confusing, it’s annoying, and this season it’s going to last until the final week.

Rotherham will have their relegation to League Two mathematically confirmed tonight if they lose at Wigan, whatever happens elsewhere. Yet they’ll still be 22nd, unless Port Vale jump two places by beating Barnsley.

Northampton are all but down, needing to win their remaining five matches while Leyton Orient or Wimbledon lose all four of theirs – and they’d need a favourable goal difference swing even then – but that won’t be confirmed until tomorrow, if at all, when the Cobblers face Luton. Vale’s fate could be sealed tomorrow, depending on certain results. But Rotherham would be the first, should they hit a Brick (Community Stadium).

4. How many teams are actually in this League One mess?

The key protagonists of the League One relegation battle aren’t playing this midweek, but their spectre looms like Banquo’s ghost. It’s all about Exeter, as any driver of a holidaying family on the M5 will spend half an hour telling himself after missing the Taunton Deane Services turnoff.

Exeter do not have a fixture. However, Barnsley and Wigan host two of the doomed bottom three, while Leyton Orient and Mansfield face each other. Those four should be safe, and in the case of Barnsley, Mansfield and Wigan they are sort of safe… but there’s that ghost again, shaking its gory locks at them.

Exeter could conceivably take six or more points from their three remaining fixtures against an injury-ravaged Stockport (Kyle Wootton played in defence at Wembley on Sunday), an inconsistent Burton Albion and a travel-sick Bradford who’ll be resting legs for the play-offs. There’s still work for these teams to do, even if it’s just rubber-stamping their sign-up form for the 2026/27 League One campaign.

There’s definitely work for Orient to do. Their remaining fixtures are relatively friendly – Rotherham, Blackpool, Burton – but three points against Mansfield would immediately send them four or five places up the table. No time like the present.

5. Can Barrow put their Football League destiny in their own hands?

Beating Oldham won’t be easy, not least as being four points off the League Two play-off places means Oldham have it all to gain and nothing to lose, but Barrow have improved. Four fixtures against some of the league’s best teams have brought them a win over Bromley, a draw with MK Dons and only narrow defeats to Chesterfield and Barnet.

Even a point against the Latics could potentially make a big difference. Barrow host Newport on final day, so bringing themselves to within three points of County with a draw tonight would put things within their control, as long as they match their results before then.

6. What will cause Portsmouth v Ipswich to be postponed this time?

When this fixture was originally called off, it was the first time in 13 years that a match at Fratton Park had been postponed because of the weather. A month later, it was rearranged a second time. So, after excessive frost in January and excess rain in February, what’s it to be this time? High winds? Solar eclipse? A plague of locusts?

Ipswich just want the damned thing played – win it and they’re five points clear of 3rd with another game in hand. Portsmouth host Leicester this weekend, so a point or three here would ease the pressure on that game a touch.

7. Why are ColU and Accy meeting on the beach?

This match was also meant to happen in January, when supposed relegation candidates Accrington already had double the points of the bottom two. In fact, they had just sold star centre-back Benn Ward, in an act of sublime self-confidence in their own survival.

Accy were first to the beach. Colchester arrived later and in a very different mood, brought low by dwindling play-off aspirations.

Danny Cowley’s side are 6th for expected goal difference and have looked better than their league position (13th) for most of the season. With young talent, though, comes youthful unpredictability: Kyreece Lisbie, Samson Tovide and loanee Micah Mbick are all aged 19 to 22 and have a combined 32 goal contributions, but they can’t turn it on every week.

Both sides, then, have hopeful eyes on 2026/27 – and in ColU’s case, possibly with new owners.

8. Are Stevenage the real deal?

If so, playing away at Bolton provides a great chance to prove it. All season, people have assumed Stevenage are going to drop out of the promotion race, but they just ain’t – in fact, eight wins from their last 12 suggests they’re motoring towards the finish line (if the finish line had an extra bit of racetrack afterwards for the play-offs).

In contrast, Bolton have won only four of their last 12, continuing their season-long theme of drawing too many games. Automatic promotion is long gone. There’s still time for them to warm up ahead of the post-season but yet another draw here, or even a defeat, would twist the knife; after all, they could face Stevenage again in the play-offs.

At least Bolton’s play-off place is secure, though… right?

9. Does anyone outside Cheltenham and Gillingham care about Cheltenham v Gillingham?

I’m fascinated as to whether this tie will have a single viewer among neutrals watching Sky Sports+. The simple facts are these: Cheltenham could climb from 19th to 18th with a win. Gillingham could climb from 17th to 16th with a win.

JEOPARDY.

10. Does anyone inside Cheltenham and Gillingham care about Cheltenham v Gillingham?

The continuation of Cheltenham’s EFL status – though inevitable for months – was mathematically confirmed at the weekend, and Steve Cotterill’s tears showed how much staying up meant to him and everyone associated with the Robins. Professional pride notwithstanding, the job is done, and they’d probably be fine with the season ending now.

Gillingham would definitely be fine with the season ending now, because the longer it goes on, the further they slide. This is the lowest they’ve been in the table all season and the vibe around the place is grim. When even Gareth Ainsworth can’t inject positivity into a club, it’s time for everybody to have a few months off in order to recharge, recalibrate and reconcile themselves with the fact that they’ll probably feel the same way this time next year.

11. Will Cardiff be promoted tonight?

No… but they could be promoted tomorrow. It’s true that a win at Huddersfield tonight would put the Bluebirds 13 points clear of third-placed Bradford with only four games to play, but Stockport are a few points back with two matches in hand.

However, if that win transpires and then Dave Challinor’s cheeky chappies fail to beat Wimbledon at Plough Lane on Wednesday, Cardiff will be promoted in their dressing gowns and slippers. “Hello, room service? Bottle of bubbly, please…”

12. Is there somewhere I can listen to a podcast recapping these games on Thursday?

On Thursday, Under The Lights, our podcast for paid subscribers, will bring more Monday Pod-style analysis to one of the last remaining midweek slates of the 2025/26 season.

If you didn’t know already, you can add Substack podcasts to your preferred feed. Just follow the instructions contained below:

See you then!

Order! Order!

A point of order, that is, on the order of our weekly offering. We’ve made a few small tweaks to our Weekend Notes formation. You’ll notice that scores, write-ups, stats, highlights and NEW league tables all fall under their specific league. Hope you like it!

Championship

⚽ SCORES

✍️ BIG STORIES

Sam Parry

If Coventry scored against Sheffield Wednesday, promotion would be done, fini, kaput. Instead they became the fourth side to fail to net against the Owls this season, but we’ll still give them a full-throated, maths-caveated CONGRATULATIONS. Thanks to results elsewhere, the Sky Blues are heading for the stratosphere.

Middlesbrough continued to confound the stats but perhaps not the home fans’ expectations, losing 1-0 in the 97th minute. Connor Chaplin’s effort was the second shot on target for Portsmouth against Boro this season. They scored from both and have taken maximum points in both games.

With Millwall drawing 0-0 against West Bromwich Albion on Friday night, the equation to stop Cov now relies on total failure from Frank Lampard’s side, plus perfect success from Alex Neil’s, including an inconceivable goal difference swing. The next question, though: are Ipswich all but over the line, too?

The East Anglian derby turned early and twisted late, hinging on ropey refereeing decisions that mostly swung in Ipswich’s favour as they beat Norwich 2-0. Now, “ref chat” isn’t my bag. But eeeesh.

Inside 10 minutes, Jack Taylor nicked the ball from Anis Ben Slimane in the Norwich box. He then went down with a grimace that belied the amount of contact with Ben Slimane’s boot. The ref succumbed to the advice of his assistant, and Jaden Philogene converted the spotkick for 1-0. Then, as a stop-start first half came to a close, Ipswich struck again when a long throw found George Hirst.

Villain of the day Marcelino Núñez came on in the second half, was booked, then somehow escaped two more yellow-worthy challenges before being subbed off again. On 74 minutes, Leif Davis picked up a yellow and should have received a second for either a) handling the ball intentionally or b) kicking it away afterwards.

Whilst Norwich had every right to feel aggrieved about the officiating, they offered little in response, instead spamming crosses towards a settled defence and playing down the sides, which Kieran McKenna’s side duly encouraged. When the referee called time with five bookings apiece, it closed out a derby result that will feel all the sweeter, or all the more bitter, due to the man in the middle.

Ipswich take not only the bragging rights but a firm grip on automatic promotion. The points are on the board and the Tractor Boys simply have more road to run on.

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
1   Coventry       42  +42  85   🟡 🟡 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟢
2   Ipswich        40  +31  75   🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🟡 🟡
-----------------------------------------------
3   Millwall       42  +9   73   🟡 🔴 🟢 🟡 🔴 🟢
4   Middlesbrough  42  +20  72   🔴 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟡 🔴

Elsewhere, Oliver McBurnie put Hull ahead against his former club, Sheffield United. In the second half, John Lundstram received a yellow also against his former club (there were eight cards after an hour). Then another. And a red. But Blades were awarded a very fortuitous penalty, which Gustavo Hamer tucked away, and Danny Ings wrapped up a comeback by scoring his first Blades goal with his second touch off the bench.

With Southampton coming from behind to beat Derby 2-1, it was left to Wrexham (7th) to make ground on Hull by beating Birmingham on Sunday. Instead, they shrunk and suffered a 2-0 loss, and the play-off gap suddenly widened. Not all gloom for Hull, then.

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
5   Southampton    41  +20  69   🟢 🟢 🟢 🟢 🟢 🟡
6   Hull           42  +4   68   🔴 🟡 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢
-----------------------------------------------
7   Wrexham        42  +3   64   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢
8   Derby          42  +8   63   🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴
9   Norwich        42  +5   58   🔴 🟢 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢

That leaves the relegation spots.

Leicester lost 1-0 to Swansea thanks to an attacking set-piece which, to bastardise Edmund Blackadder, was as uncunning as a fox who’s just been appointed Professor of Uncunning at Oxford Brookes. They’re in huge trouble. Since appointing Gary Rowett, they have the poorest PPG record of anyone bar Sheffield Wednesday.

Oxford beat Watford 2-0 with a performance founded on tantalising dead-ball threat – they racked up 1.68 xG from set-pieces. It was just 0.20 from open play and much of that down to Mark Harris, who flew forward and sealed the points on 90’+2. After each goal, their fans must’ve checked the live table to find the dotted line pillow-like beneath them. But… there’s always a but.

But then came the twist. Portsmouth’s winner against Middlesbrough at the Riverside arrived late. Very late. The Yellows were not out of the relegation zone after all. Horrible for them. Horrible for Boro. Huge for Pompey.

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
19  Blackburn      42  -12  48   🟡 🟡 🟢 🟡 🟢 🔴
20  West Brom      42  -14  46   🟡 🟡 🟡 🟢 🟢 🟡
21  Portsmouth     41  -16  45   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🔴 🔴
-----------------------------------------------
22  Oxford         42  -13  44   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟢
23  Leicester      42  -10  41   🔴 🟡 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟢
24  Sheff Wed      42  -57  -4   🟡 🟡 🔴 🔴 🔴 🟡

📊 STATS

⏳ Barren Boro — Middlesbrough are winless in six league games (D3 L3), their longest such streak since September 2023.

🔥 Soaring Saints — Southampton have won five straight league games for the first time since 2011. Since Tonda Eckert took charge, they have more Championship wins (17) and points (57) than any other team.

🌗 Two halves — Charlton have scored in both halves of a Championship match only once this season.

🔄 Preston persistence — Only three clubs have gained more points from losing positions than Preston (18), who came from 1-0 down to beat Charlton 2-1.

💪 McBurnie is McBack — Oli McBurnie has 14 Championship goals this season, his best return since hitting 22 for Swansea in 2018/19.

🎦 HIGHLIGHTS

#1 — Outfoxed: kamikaze set-piece leaves Leicester languinshing.

#2 — Mark Harris goes full roadrunner to seal Oxford’s win.

#3 — Jack Taylor wins the BAFTA as Ipswich ‘earn’ a penalty.

🪜 LEAGUE TABLE

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
1   Coventry       42  +42  85   🟡 🟡 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟢
2   Ipswich        40  +31  75   🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🟡 🟡
-----------------------------------------------
3   Millwall       42  +9   73   🟡 🔴 🟢 🟡 🔴 🟢
4   Middlesbrough  42  +20  72   🔴 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟡 🔴
5   Southampton    41  +20  69   🟢 🟢 🟢 🟢 🟢 🟡
6   Hull           42  +4   68   🔴 🟡 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢
-----------------------------------------------
7   Wrexham        42  +3   64   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢
8   Derby          42  +8   63   🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴
9   Norwich        42  +5   58   🔴 🟢 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢
10  Bristol City   42  +1   58   🟡 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟡 🔴
11  QPR            42  -5   58   🟡 🟡 🟢 🟢 🟢 🔴
12  Watford        42  +1   57   🔴 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴
13  Preston        42  -3   57   🟢 🟡 🟡 🟢 🔴 🔴
14  Swansea        42  -4   57   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🔴 🟢
15  Birmingham     42  -1   56   🟢 🔴 🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢
16  Stoke          42  +3   55   🟡 🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟡
17  Sheff Utd      42  0    54   🟢 🔴 🟡 🔴 🟡 🔴
18  Charlton       42  -12  49   🔴 🟡 🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢
19  Blackburn      42  -12  48   🟡 🟡 🟢 🟡 🟢 🔴
20  West Brom      42  -14  46   🟡 🟡 🟡 🟢 🟢 🟡
21  Portsmouth     41  -16  45   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🔴 🔴
-----------------------------------------------
22  Oxford         42  -13  44   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟢
23  Leicester      42  -10  41   🔴 🟡 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟢
24  Sheff Wed      42  -57  -4   🟡 🟡 🔴 🔴 🔴 🟡

League One

⚽ SCORES

✍️ BIG STORIES

Matt Watts

What becomes of the team promoted in early April with five games remaining? Well, it was business as usual for Lincoln, who beat Leyton Orient 2-1. Jack Moylan underlined his credentials by scoring the goal of the game and becoming the first Imp to score 10 goals in League One this season. Lincoln need a maximum of four points from their final four games to win the title and seven points to reach 100.

Since beating Cardiff and claiming top spot on 7th March, Lincoln have taken 19 points from the 21 available. Cardiff had picked up just five points from the 15 available to them – until they beat Bolton 2-0 in the Welsh capital. An Omari Kellyman header and a counter-attack coolly finished off by Chris Willock swiftly took the game away from the visitors at the start of the second half. The Bluebirds are now 10 points clear of 3rd and could be promoted this midweek; they’ve stumbled, but didn’t fall.

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
1   Lincoln        42  +43  93   🟢 🟢 🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢
2   Cardiff        41  +34  81   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟢 🟡
-----------------------------------------------
3   Bradford       42  +6   71   🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟡 🔴
4   Bolton         42  +15  70   🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟡 🟡

Cardiff’s position was strengthened by Bradford’s defeat at home to Stevenage. In true Stevenage fashion, it was 1-0. Also in true Stevenage fashion, Dan Kemp rifled in after a long throw wasn’t cleared by the Bantams’ defence. Defeat for Reading and six goals split evenly by Huddersfield and Wycombe made it a perfect day for Stevenage, who have kept four clean sheets in a row.

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
5   Stockport      40  +9   67   🟡 🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🔴
6   Stevenage      41  +5   67   🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢
-----------------------------------------------
7   Plymouth       42  +8   63   🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🟡
8   Huddersfield   42  +9   62   🟡 🟢 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟡
9   Reading        43  +7   62   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢
10  Luton          41  +7   61   🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🟢 🟡
11  Wycombe        43  +12  60   🟡 🔴 🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢

Plymouth Argyle bounced back twice to draw 2-2 with Exeter in the Devon derby. The game sprang into life when a moment of quality from Reece Cole gave the Grecians the lead at the start of the second half, but Matt Taylor’s side struggled to deal with Argyle’s set-piece threat, conceding from a corner and a wide free-kick.

The long and the short of it is: while avoiding defeat to their local rivals, both sides have hurt each other. Exeter have dented Argyle’s play-off aspirations, while Argyle have put another nail in Exeter’s coffin – especially after results elsewhere, later that afternoon.

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
15  Wigan          42  -10  52   🟢 🟢 🟡 🔴 🟢 🟡
16  Peterborough   41  +2   51   🔴 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴
17  Burton Alb     43  -10  51   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟢 🔴
18  Blackpool      43  -14  51   🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢
19  L Orient       42  -9   50   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟡 🟢 🟢
20  Wimbledon      42  -14  50   🔴 🔴 🔴 🔴 🟡 🔴
-----------------------------------------------
21  Exeter         43  -8   47   🟡 🟢 🔴 🟡 🔴 🔴

Blackpool, Burton, Wigan and Doncaster all won, to leave Exeter floundering and AFC Wimbledon and Leyton Orient stewing. Ian Evatt’s Seasiders beat Peterborough 3-1 to secure their fourth successive home win and leave Posh looking after their shoulders; Gary Bowyer’s Brewers edged past Wimbledon thanks to Kyran Lofthouse’s back-post header after an Alex Hartridge long throw; Gary Caldwell’s Latics made it back-to-back league wins for the first time this season by beating Mansfield 2-1; and Grant McCann’s Donny saw off Reading thanks to yet another vital intervention from Captain Fantastic Owen Bailey.

Finally, congratulations to Luton, who came from behind to beat Stockport 3-1 in the… <frantically racks brain>… VERTU Trophy Final at Wembley. Kyle Wootton played half an hour of it at centre-back due to injuries, so that’s fun for the neutrals, if not for Stockport’s promotion hopes.

📊 STATS

🥇 First-class Donny — Only Lincoln (31) have scored first more times this season than Doncaster Rovers (24).

🏟️ Imps fortress — Lincoln have won six consecutive EFL home games for the first time since 1982; their 17 home wins this season are the most across the top four tiers.

🌟 Taylor-made brace — Dale Taylor (22y 120d) is Blackpool’s youngest home league brace scorer since 2021.

🎯 Bradshaw back — Tom Bradshaw scored his first league brace since April 2023, having netted just twice in his previous 50 games.

🧤 Boro shut up shop — Stevenage have kept four straight clean sheets and became just the second away side to win to nil at Bradford since last season.

🔄 Latics last to double — Wigan became the final League One side to win back-to-back games this season.

🎦 HIGHLIGHTS

#1 — Jack Moylan with a bit of Championship quality in Lincoln’s victory over Leyton Orient.

#2 — Touch and finish - some superb work from Brandon Khela in Peterborough’s defeat at Blackpool.

#3 — Has he got the Nahk back? Wells wins the Vertu Trophy for Luton.

🪜 LEAGUE TABLE

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
1   Lincoln        42  +43  93   🟢 🟢 🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢
2   Cardiff        41  +34  81   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟢 🟡
-----------------------------------------------
3   Bradford       42  +6   71   🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟡 🔴
4   Bolton         42  +15  70   🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟡 🟡
5   Stockport      40  +9   67   🟡 🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🔴
6   Stevenage      41  +5   67   🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢
-----------------------------------------------
7   Plymouth       42  +8   63   🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🟡
8   Huddersfield   42  +9   62   🟡 🟢 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟡
9   Reading        43  +7   62   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢
10  Luton          41  +7   61   🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🟢 🟡
11  Wycombe        43  +12  60   🟡 🔴 🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢
12  Barnsley       40  -2   54   🟢 🔴 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟡
13  Mansfield Tn   40  +7   53   🔴 🟡 🟢 🟢 🟡 🟡
14  Doncaster      42  -21  53   🟢 🔴 🔴 🟢 🟢 🟡
15  Wigan          42  -10  52   🟢 🟢 🟡 🔴 🟢 🟡
16  Peterborough   41  +2   51   🔴 🟡 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴
17  Burton Alb     43  -10  51   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟢 🔴
18  Blackpool      43  -14  51   🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢
19  L Orient       42  -9   50   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟡 🟢 🟢
20  Wimbledon      42  -14  50   🔴 🔴 🔴 🔴 🟡 🔴
-----------------------------------------------
21  Exeter         43  -8   47   🟡 🟢 🔴 🟡 🔴 🔴
22  Rotherham      41  -26  37   🔴 🔴 🟡 🔴 🔴 🟡
23  Northampton    41  -26  35   🔴 🔴 🔴 🔴 🔴 🔴
24  Port Vale      39  -24  34   🟢 🔴 🔴 🟢 🔴 🟡

League Two

⚽ SCORES

✍️ BIG STORIES

Huw Davies

Bromley would have won promotion with victory at MK Dons. They started the game by kicking for touch, rugby-style, and it did go out on the full – so, really, MK should’ve been given the option of a scrum. They took the line-out throw-in instead and scored 11 seconds later. There you have it: Milton Keynes Dons, guardian angel for the purists.

Perhaps not, because they did let their visitors have 59% possession. Still, their early dominance did enough damage to restrict a resurgent Bromley to a consolation goal in the second half; Craig MacGillivray’s saves kept it to 2-1 while MK – who had Jon Mellish sent off on 67’ – didn’t take a single shot. Paul Warne’s side close the gap to four points with three to play, but is it too little, too late?

Hot on MK’s heels are Cambridge. They took Notts County’s place in the top three by demolishing them 4-0, despite goalkeeper Jake Eastwood being sent off in the first half for a semi-automated handball outside the box. Admittedly, Cambridge were 3-0 up by then. All three goals looked similar (set piece, bouncing ball, confusion punished), but James Gibbons’ finish for the third was a lovely little larrup. He later scored again, and again from a set piece. Notts hit the bar but didn’t force EFL debutant Ben Hughes into a single save across 50 minutes.

That’s the top four – time for a whistle-stop tour of the other 20 teams.

Swindon were outplayed by Colchester on Friday night after James Ball dropped a bollock and got himself sent off within half an hour. Salford joined them and Notts County in suffering an autos-chasing setback, drawing 0-0 at home to a purposeless Gillingham side. Rosaire Longelo hit the visitors’ crossbar with a gorgeous effort and Dan Udoh’s offside goal was a very close call.

In the world’s best race for 7th place, Grimsby cut the gap to Chesterfield, who gave Tranmere their second point in 11 games. If anyone deserved to win, it was Tranmere, but they didn’t – and haven’t for two whole months now. Grimsby beat Crewe 3-2, leapfrogging them into 8th. Their first goal was a physics lesson. Q: How does one anticipate spin on a bouncing ball? A: Not like this.

After Kieran Green made it 2-0, Andy Cook doubled his tally to double his tally of braces since joining Grimsby on loan. Good signing. Crewe’s late rally didn’t rescue a point but did take the game to five goals from five shots on target.

While Barnet beat Barrow 3-2 (more on that later), Walsall’s play-off dream died and Oldham’s was kneecapped. The latter, or Latics, lost 1-0 to a classic Big Will Boyle Header for Shrewsbury. Walsall, hosting Cheltenham, were unlucky not to be leading at half-time. Then they lost 4-0, with Harry Ashfield and Isaac Hutchinson scoring respectively neat and tidy goals before George Miller deepened the wound and Josh Martin rubbed salt into it.

It’s Cheltenham’s biggest league win since March 2022 and their biggest away win since promotion from non-league a decade ago. Safety confirmed; that’ll do, Steve Cotterill, that’ll do.

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
1   Bromley        43  +25  83   🔴 🟢 🟡 🔴 🟢 🟢
2   MK Dons        43  +36  79   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🔴 🟢
3   Cambridge Utd  42  +31  77   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟢 🟡
-----------------------------------------------
4   Notts          43  +22  76   🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢
5   Swindon        43  +16  74   🔴 🟢 🟡 🟡 🟢 🟢
6   Salford        43  +7   74   🟡 🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟢
7   Chesterfield   42  +11  69   🟡 🟢 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟢
-----------------------------------------------
8   Grimsby        41  +17  68   🟢 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴
9   Barnet         43  +11  67   🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🟢 🟡
10  Crewe          43  +10  66   🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🟡
11  Oldham         42  +16  65   🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢
12  Walsall        43  +2   62   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟡 🟢 🟡
13  Colchester     42  +11  60   🟢 🟢 🔴 🟡 🔴 🔴

Meanwhile, at the bottom…

18  Shrewsbury     43  -26  47   🟢 🔴 🟢 🔴 🔴 🔴
19  Cheltenham     41  -19  46   🟢 🟡 🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢
20  Tranmere       42  -23  37   🟡 🔴 🔴 🔴 🔴 🟡
21  Crawley        43  -24  37   🔴 🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟡
22  Newport        43  -30  37   🟢 🔴 🔴 🟢 🔴 🔴
-----------------------------------------------
23  Barrow         42  -28  33   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🔴
24  Harrogate      43  -31  33   🔴 🔴 🟢 🔴 🔴 🟢

Newport beating Harrogate 2-1 was huge. Huge. They didn’t turn up for their relegation six-pointer against Crawley the previous week but this was different – actual goalscoring chances, actually being put away, and with some composure by Nathaniel Opoku. Harrogate’s George Evans picked his spot just as precisely for 1-1, but Ellis Taylor couldn’t do the same, and Joe Thomas won it for County.

Barrow, like Harrogate, are four points adrift now. It was another fighting display from Sam Foley’s players/team-mates, who led through a fine Josh Gordon strike. Barnet scored twice but Wyll Stanway made an excellent save, Rekeem Harper went on a slalom to equalise and, and, and… Callum Stead stooped with his head, Barnet winning 3-2.

Finally, Crawley lost a pulsating affair 3-1 to Bristol Rovers. After Tom Lockyer’s red card at 2-1, Harry McKirdy so nearly equalised with one of Town’s 23 shots, but their late charge only led to a late heartbreakaway for the Gas. As with Barrow: positives without the points.

That’s the story at the top and the bottom. Oh, and somewhere in the middle, Fleetwood scored a stoppage-time winner at Accrington.

📊 STATS

🔥 Gas fire — Bristol Rovers have won six consecutive league games for the first time since 2016.

🎯 Robins repeat — Cheltenham have completed the league double over Walsall in three of the last four seasons, with today’s 4-0 their biggest win.

⚡ Lightning start — Nathaniel Mendez-Laing scored after 35 seconds for MK Dons; League Two has now had nine goals in the opening minute, more than the Championship and League One combined.

🎩 Cook cooking — Grimsby’s Andy Cook registered 3+ goal involvements for the first time since December 2023.

📉 Robins ain’t singing early — The last time Swindon scored before the 45th minute was on 7th February, 14 games ago. (They have scored 2 first-half goals since in that time, but both were in time added on).

🎦 HIGHLIGHTS

#1 — Rekeem Harper wheels it solo for Barrow.

#2 — Ifill with a towering inferno of a strike for Bromley.

#3 — Call and response for Cheltenham stunner.

🪜 LEAGUE TABLE

Pos Team           Pl  GD   Pts  Last 6
1   Bromley        43  +25  83   🔴 🟢 🟡 🔴 🟢 🟢
2   MK Dons        43  +36  79   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🔴 🟢
3   Cambridge Utd  42  +31  77   🟢 🟡 🟡 🔴 🟢 🟡
-----------------------------------------------
4   Notts          43  +22  76   🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢
5   Swindon        43  +16  74   🔴 🟢 🟡 🟡 🟢 🟢
6   Salford        43  +7   74   🟡 🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟢
7   Chesterfield   42  +11  69   🟡 🟢 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟢
-----------------------------------------------
8   Grimsby        41  +17  68   🟢 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴
9   Barnet         43  +11  67   🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢 🟢 🟡
10  Crewe          43  +10  66   🔴 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢 🟡
11  Oldham         42  +16  65   🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🟢 🟢
12  Walsall        43  +2   62   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟡 🟢 🟡
13  Colchester     42  +11  60   🟢 🟢 🔴 🟡 🔴 🔴
14  Fleetwood      43  -1   58   🟢 🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴
15  Bristol Rov    43  -14  55   🟢 🟢 🟢 🟢 🟢 🟢
16  Accrington     42  -7   51   🔴 🔴 🟢 🔴 🔴 🔴
17  Gillingham     42  -12  50   🟡 🟢 🟡 🔴 🔴 🔴
18  Shrewsbury     43  -26  47   🟢 🔴 🟢 🔴 🔴 🔴
19  Cheltenham     41  -19  46   🟢 🟡 🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢
20  Tranmere       42  -23  37   🟡 🔴 🔴 🔴 🔴 🟡
21  Crawley        43  -24  37   🔴 🔴 🟢 🟢 🔴 🟡
22  Newport        43  -30  37   🟢 🔴 🔴 🟢 🔴 🔴
-----------------------------------------------
23  Barrow         42  -28  33   🔴 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔴 🔴
24  Harrogate      43  -31  33   🔴 🔴 🟢 🔴 🔴 🟢

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Thanks for reading!

Well, hello.

Our xG form guides for the EFL have been updated 👇

Words: Sam Parry

The top lines from today’s update reflect how, at a time when the only thing that matters is points, EFL teams are finding ever more intriguing ways to collect, or drop them.

Championship

#1 Poor Old Boro

If you’re going through Hellberg, keep going.

That would seem sensible advice given the ridiculous numbers Boro are posting right now. Their xGD over the last 5 games is a whopping 1.68 per 90, their xG is over 2.50, their xGA under 1.00 and their results? Considering their dominance in games, that’s the maddest of the lot: 3 points (D3 L2).

To understand that underperformance, we need to break the surface. Boro took 126 shots in those five games, 48 of them (~39%) were blocked, ~25% came from outside the box, ~20% were on target, and 4 (or 1 in 31 shots) were goals.

The tip of—or perhaps for—the Hellberg? His side might benefit from a touch more patience in front of goal. To put it in cricketing terms, it feels like they’re suffering a bit of scoreboard pressure and, maybe, trying too hard to force the issue.

#2 Relegation battlers look good in the 5-game tables

Oh, hello there, West Brom, Leicester and Oxford.

Yes, the teams in 23rd, 22nd and 20th have put in a decent shift over their clutch of fixtures. Points-wise, Foxes have 6 from 5, Yellows have 6 from 5, Baggies have 9 from 5. And clearly West Brom are the standout over the longer term.

What’s interesting is that these 5 games represent a clear spike for both Leicester (a big improvement in their xGA) and Oxford (a big improvement in their xG). They’ll need to sustain something like this over the final five games. And blow me down, what an opportunity for both to make ground this weekend: West Brom (20th) play Millwall (4th) and Portsmouth (21st) play Boro (3rd).

League One

#3 You climbed on the ladder, and you know how it feels…

#4 Play-off contenders

It would be an understatement to suggest there are plenty of permutations left in the League One play-off race. Suffice it to say that one of five teams could be in 6th come the end of the weekend (and one of them is Stockport, who could drop a place with a GD swing, and one of them isn’t Luton, who are competing in the Hatters Derby at Wembley in Sunday’s Football League Trophy Final).

The teams I’d like to flag today for all the wrong reasons are Reading and Huddersfield, who, over 5- and 10-game form guides, are floating around the 45% mark for xG share. Over 10, the Royals are travelling at 1.50 PPG and the Terriers at 1.20 PPG. Both look vulnerable in the hunt for the 6th.

On the other side of that coin are Stevenage and Argyle. The form teams after Lincoln per points and underlying numbers. The former has more road to run on, but the way is cobbled with Bolton, Bradford and Lincoln back-to-back-to-back. The latter has less road but a smoother path, although a Devon derby this weekend could be a bump.

If neither travel well, who’s to say Luton, with 13 points from their last 5 games (W4 D1) won’t provide a late dash.

League Two

#5 Is the League Two leaders’ lead too big?

The Ravens haven’t left the tower just yet. One last flap (by which I mean a win) and the Woodman wings should carry Bromley into League One. As Champions? Probs.

It’s funny that they’ve found themselves in the most commanding position of the season off the back of their most difficult spell. With Michael Cheek out injured and their attacking game not quite so sparkling, Bromley’s defence has kept them in games, and then they’ve found just enough to win. Let the record show that despite a declining share of xG, Andy Woodman’s side have INCREASED THE GAP on 2nd, 3rd, and 4th over the last ten, going at a rate of 1.90 PPG. Mark of Champions?

The 7-point lead is surely too big to catch. But with MK Dons, Cambridge and Salford back-to-back-to-back, the fixtures are configured in such a way that this could get interesting.

#6 Tranmere are like Owls

And finally, the Owls serve as an example of what happens when a team is so significantly short of quality that they genuinely cannot compete to stay in the division. One metric that captures Wednesday’s on-pitch issues is xG share, which has dipped below 30% all season.

We’re now at a stage where Tranmere in League Two are playing at a level that reflects a side that simply cannot compete at that level. Let’s face it. That’s been going on longer than the 10-game window in our form tables - they’re averaging 0.50 PPG over their last 20 games. If the slide continues, do they already have enough points on the board? It’s going to be very, very tight.

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I really do take these far too seriously…

… but from what I can tell, you guys enjoy this series. So let’s go again. League One Squad Selector.

Three goalkeepers are compulsory. The rest is up to me, except for one strict rule: I can only select one player per club. The goal is to select a squad that provides a realistic tactical blend – a team that could actually make sense on the pitch, rather than just looking good on Fantasy EFL.

All this to compete in a fictional tournament: the Third Tier World Cup. Our main competition, per Opta’s League Rankings, comes from:

• Spain’s Primera División RFEF

• The German 3. Liga

• The French Championnat National

Good on the Germans for being the only ones not trying to hide the fact that this is the third tier, by the way. “League One”. “Primera”. “Championnat”. Who are you kidding?

GOALKEEPERS

Liam Roberts (Mansfield), Cameron Dawson (Rotherham), Joe Gauci (Port Vale)

I’d like to be candid with you. This isn’t the strongest part of the squad. The League One goalkeeping cohort strikes me as solid, not spectacular this season.

Thankfully, Liam Roberts is excellent and - per Fbref - has the highest save % in the league. He’s faced EIGHT penalties, saving one, which is a small concern for any shootouts. It does mean that his save % for non-penalty shots on target is 95 saves from 122, a very healthy 77.8%. Cameron Dawson and Joe Gauci’s shot-stopping numbers are decent enough, even if their teams have had poor seasons. But please don’t get injured, Liam.

CENTRE-BACKS

Charlie Goode (Stevenage), Fraser Horsfall (Blackpool), Murray Wallace (Huddersfield), Aden Baldwin (Bradford)

Read more

Let’s start with the one that you really shouldn’t have missed…

Read more

Hope you’ve all had a cracking Easter. We are doing something a little different with Weekend Notes given the tightly-packed slate.

Huw Davies (Championship), Sam Parry (League One) and Ali Maxwell (League Two) will pick the standout fixtures from each league, with a bit of context after Friday’s games.

Before we get into that, a quick word on the first team outside of the Premier League’s top five to beat Arsenal this season. Southampton were not lucky in their 2-1 FA Cup victory. Shea Charles’ late goal secured a semi-final at Wembley, and Tonda Eckert’s side bloody deserved it.

As Nas almost put it: “EFL represent, represent.”

Championship

Huw Davies

It’s a cracking line-up in the battle for automatic promotion.

Sorry to bring rugby into the conversation, but one great bit of sporting scheduling is the final day of the Six Nations. Rather than teams all playing simultaneously, as they would on the final day of a league season or group stage in football (which is certainly fairer), the three matches are played back-to-back-to-back. The result is much drama as each contender sees what their rivals have done and then tries to outdo them.

On Easter Monday we have:

• 1pm: Millwall v Norwich

• 3pm: Ipswich v Birmingham

• 5.30pm: Swansea v Middlesbrough

Yes, please.

Millwall host Norwich on Cloud 9, having come from behind on Good Friday to beat Middlesbrough and climb into 2nd. In a frankly sensational game, Boro had the better of the first half and Millwall had the better of the second, as was the case in their recent 1-1 draw with Ipswich… but this time they went one better, and won.

Boro had won the early intensity battle, personified by Luke Ayling’s huge tackle on a breaking Josh Coburn and Kim Hellberg’s even huger celebration of it. Dael Fry scored a minute later. In the second half, Millwall woke from their enforced daze and equalised through Coburn, who then curled a late winner past/under Sol Brynn’s despairing hand - a brace for the ex-Boro boy.

The stats will show Boro had three times as many touches in the opposition box (66-21), three times as many shots (32-11) and more than three times the xG (3.35 to 0.86), but, like horny dinosaurs on a hidden island, Millwall find a way.

Hellberg’s men have a chance to put things right against Swansea on Monday, though the Swans are on a high from their resurrection at Bramall Lane, where they drew 3-3 having trailed 3-1. Before that, a well-rested Ipswich face an out-of-sorts Birmingham.

All of the bottom six are playing each other.

Leicester must avoid a banana skin at Hillsborough, having failed to turn their dominance into three points in a 2-2 draw with Preston. First, Portsmouth v Oxford is the televised 12.30pm kick-off, and it could hardly be any bigger. Both drew 1-1 on Friday, Oxford proving wasteful against Hull while Portsmouth grabbed a useful point at Carrow Road thanks to Norwich’s Pelle Matsson scoring at both ends (well, the same end in different halves).

Those two will be glad that Blackburn and West Bromwich Albion are playing each other, because each of them are in decent form (Albion, DDWWD; Rovers, DLWDW) but one or both will have to drop points, such is the nature of things.

Blackburn were deserving 1-0 winners away to Birmingham on Friday. The Baggies, though, led a 2-0 lead slip as Wrexham cancelled out their pair of set-piece goals with a pair of very slick moves. In the final few minutes, Arthur Okonkwo made a superb save from point-blank range to keep it at 2-2 and Kieffer Moore felt he should’ve had a penalty for this unsubtle push by Nat Phillips.

There’s the small matter of Wrexham v Southampton going head-to-head in a direct shootout for 6th place.

Pure Hollywood.

League One

Sam Parry

Lincoln were big winners. We’ll get to them.

But first, the biggest losers in League One? The play-off hopefuls outside the play-offs. Stevenage (D), Wycombe (L) and Plymouth Argyle (L) all lost ground when playing against the teams in 22nd, 3rd and 5th.

3rd vs 5th, eh…?

Bolton (3rd) vs Stockport (5th)

Have Dave Challinor’s Stockport side finally clicked?

It’s not just three wins on the spin. The style of Stockport’s victories changes the tone. What has changed? Ben Osborn at left back in a 4-2-3-1 is a small shift away from the 3-4-3 that has defined most of the campaign. They were excellent in their 3-0 thumping of Wycombe, a side with real play-off ambitions themselves.

Tomorrow, a win against Bolton would put both sides on 69 points and all but lock in a play-off spot.

Bolton, though, are building something of their own.

They beat a resurgent Argyle side on Friday despite playing the entire second half with 10 men after John McAtee’s red card. OK, it helped that they were gifted a penalty. And it helped that, after Ronan Curtis equalised for Argyle, Sam Dalby bundled in a winner that looked a simple claim for the keeper. Not exactly pretty, but a super backs-to-walls success. Not many teams beat this version of Argyle. Former manager Steven Schumacher seems to have the knack – he’s P4 W4 against them.

All of that sets up a proper play-off game. Bit of local edge. And if Cardiff wobble, both will dream of keeping the Bluebirds honest.

Reading (6th) vs Lincoln (1st)

Royals vs Imps. 6th vs 1st. This is Game of Thrones stuff.

Lincoln need a single point to make it official. In truth, Ryan Oné’s 88th-minute winner on Good Friday has all but settled promotion, although the pesky maths says otherwise.

But Reading won’t roll out the red carpet. They have already fended off Huddersfield over the Easter Weekend (1-1) to hold onto the final play-off position (62pts). Lewis Wing scored from the spot to register a double-double for the season: 10 goals and 11 assists. Wing reached the milestone about 10 minutes after Stoke’s Sorba Thomas became the first in the EFL to do it in 2025/26. He’s a player capable of shifting a game on his own, even if the task is of another magnitude now. Should they lose, there are battalions ready to go over the top:

“Chaos”, as Game of Thrones’ Petyr Baelish put it, “is a ladder”:

• AFC Wimbledon vs Luton (11th/58pts)

• Barnsley vs Plymouth Argyle (9th/59pts)

• Leyton Orient vs Huddersfield (10th/58pts)

• Stevenage (7th/61pts) vs Blackpool

• and…

Wycombe (8th/59pts) vs Bradford (4th)

Bradford’s 1–0 victory over Northampton on Good Friday came on home turf. At Valley Parade, they’ve been formidable, racking up points at 2.40 per game. On the road, however, it’s a very different story: 20 games have yielded just 20 points (W5, D5, L5). A real case of chalk and cheese.

Wycombe, meanwhile, have a chance to close the gap on the play-off places. With a win, and results elsewhere going in their favour, they could even climb into 6th. Of course, that’s all hypothetical. But we like hypotheticals, so here’s a biggie…

If Bradford were to slip up, would there be enough games left for Graham Alexander to start feeling uneasy about their top-six position? By full-time tomorrow, their cushion to 7th could stretch to as much as 10 points or shrink to just four.

Exeter (21st) vs Doncaster (17th)

Down at the bottom…

The doors of the last chance saloon are open for Exeter, and by Monday evening, we’ll know if they’ve swung back in their face.

After losing to Blackpool on Friday, the Grecians would find themselves in desperate trouble with another defeat. They could end the weekend anywhere between a 0-, 1-, 2-, 3-, 4-, 5-, or 6-point gap to safety.

It will be a maximum of 4 points if they can overcome Donny. But given Exeter haven’t won in 15, you’d think Grant McCann’s side will be hungry to secure their own survival and wind down into the final 5 games.

Northampton (23rd) vs Wigan (20th)

Finally, a word on Wigan, who didn’t even need to win to come out of Friday as one of the biggest winners at the bottom. After drawing with Leyton Orient, they watched on as Rotherham drew, Northampton lost, Exeter lost and Burton drew.

Sometimes survival is about standing still. Swap “survival” for “relegation”, and you could level that accusation at the Cobblers. They’ve amassed 6 points from a possible 45 and have only the faintest of survival chances: win every game. Simple, eh?

League Two

Ali Maxwell

The top five winners of Good Friday in League Two? Salford, Chesterfield, Oldham, Crawley and Harrogate. Each are mentioned in this breakdown of Monday’s four most impactful fixtures…

Oldham (8th) vs MK Dons (2nd)

I would absolutely hate to be playing against Oldham right now. Seven weeks ago, the Latics were in 16th place with eight league wins all season. Since then, it’s 9 wins in 11 games, conceding only 4 goals and picking up six points more than the next best team in that same timeframe: Bristol Rovers. After last gasp defeat to Crewe the previous weekend, Micky Mellon’s side bounced back fruitfully to dispose of Colchester in Essex on Good Friday – Jamie Robson playing the role of vicar, delivering graceful crosses onto grateful foreheads. 3-1, thanks for coming. One point off the play-offs. Next?

Next is MK Dons. One of the most expensively assembled League Two teams ever, they spent the start of 2026 bulldozing everything in their path – 33 points from 13 games, leaders Bromley in their sights. Then they lost to Barnet. Then Salford. Then, on Good Friday, they drew 0-0 at home to Barrow in frustrating fashion: one off the post, one off the line, two brilliant saves, no goals. One point from three games. Time for MK to flex their squad depth muscles and stop the wobble.

Best for them not to worry, for now, about Bromley. The league leaders did the sort of thing that champions do: a 101st-minute equaliser against Barnet, scored by academy striker George Evans with just his 11th touch as a Bromley player. Machedaaaaaa, anyone?! A hugely significant goal that maintains their five-point lead at the top. They play Shrewsbury on Tuesday.

More pressingly for Milton Keynes, three teams are just two points behind…

Crewe (9th) vs Salford (5th)

One of them is Salford City, the only top seven team to win on Good Friday, and in bonkers circumstances. 0-0 when the board went up for stoppage time, 2-1 at full time, six minutes later. Three set-piece goals, ending with a second straight winner scored by Matt Butcher. Magpies to the slaughter, despite the best efforts of James Belshaw. Now, this piece is more narrative-driven than tactical, but I notice that Karl Robinson appeared to switch to a back four here, and late-season tactical tweaks are always intriguing to me.

Over the last 6 games, Salford have picked up four more points than anyone else in the automatic promotion picture, and are now level with Cambridge and Notts County in third place, with a vastly inferior goal difference.

But this game is not just about them. After winning back-to-back against Shrewsbury and Oldham, Crewe Alex moved into 7th and appeared to be banishing the ghosts of recent springs.

But on Friday, they lost 0-2 against an Accrington side winless in eight, taking just four shots total in the game. Blimey. Lee Bell’s side won at Salford on opening day, and realistically need a result here – they’ve played a game less than Chesterfield and Oldham, who jumped above them on Friday, and two more than Grimsby, one point back…

Crawley (20th) vs Grimsby (10th)

… a Grimsby side that were on the wrong end of Good Friday’s biggest shock result: a 1-3 defeat to Harrogate. It was, you have to say, “one of them”.

One of them where Harrogate scored with their first two shots of the first half, a beauty from Tobias Brenan and Jack Evans’ powerful drive which the generally-excellent Jackson Smith couldn’t keep out. And yet, after Kieran Green pulled one back on 39’, Andy Cook had the chance to equalise before half-time from the spot. Get back to the dressing room at 2-2, and pull away in the second half.

It was one of them.

One where Cook’s penalty was saved by Henry Gray. Where the stuffing was knocked out of the Mariners. And where, after some huffing and puffing early in the second half, Bryn Morris thumped home another perfect strike from range. Harrogate used up half a season’s worth of top-notch finishing to log a huge three points in their bid for survival.

Grimsby, who do seem to suffer badly from 'one-of-them-itis’ have work to do to reignite the play-off tilt, still with a game or two in hand over most. They travel to Sussex to face Colin Kazim Richards’ in-form Crawley Town! A second straight 2-0 win for them, this time in a relegation six-pointer at Rodney Parade — Harry McKirdy at the double, celebrating with a panache that reflects Kazim Richards’ own positive, confident energy since his appointment. What a difference two weeks make. After Tranmere’s defeat to Shrewsbury, Crawley are now out the bottom four.

Barrow (23rd) vs Chesterfield (7th)

The impressiveness of Crawley’s six points against Gillingham and Newport is surely matched by Barrow collecting four points from games against the league’s top two: Bromley and MK Dons. Barrow ticked all the boxes for a gritty away clean sheet: dogged defensive shape, make blocks — 9 of Milton Keynes’ 16 shots to be precise, including an amazing goal-line clearance from Angus MacDonald — and mix in some quality Wyll Stanway saves. One point off safety and seemingly buoyed by Sam Foley’s leadership, they have a home game on Monday against Chesterfield.

Paul Cook’s side were, along with Oldham, the big winners of Good Friday in the play-off picture, with a 1-0 win at home to Cheltenham. Mr Reliable (or should that be Mr Versatile?) Liam Mandeville sent across a peach of a ball for Will Dickson to finish. Like Matt Butcher, that was his second straight match-winning goal. If a 1-0 scoreline makes it sound like a tight one, here’s an extra piece of detail: Chesterfield also hit the woodwork four times.

This is only the third time Chesterfield have won back-to-back league games all season. Can they find that elusive consistency just when they need it? Or will it be ‘Holy moley, Sam Foley’ in the midst of 30mph winds on the peninsula?

Whatever happens, the fourth tier is providing top tier drama, and we can’t wait. Full recap on Not The Top 20 Podcast on Tuesday at 4:30pm, on podcast platforms and on YouTube.

Thanks for reading!

Words: Huw Davies & Sam Parry

SP: This article is about the delectable treats on offer in the EFL today. Huw and I will be ranking the fixtures, from 10 down to 1, using only our strongly-held beliefs and loosely-gathered witticisms.

Now, we agreed on a single rule before settling into this: we are allow just one bit of wordplay per entry. We wrote each them down, counted them up, and decided if any deserved to stay.

No pun in ten did.

HERE WE GO!

#10. West Brom vs Wrexham

SP: How does a relegation fight end? Slowly, then all at once. How do play-off hopes slip away? Same.

This sits at #10 because both teams will still be in their respective dogfight no matter what happens. But it took the place of Nathan Jones vs Roy Hodgson in our list because a win for either WBA or Wrexham – which, in every example I can think of, would necessitate a loss for the other – would be pretty significant for both.

Wrexham could be 5th come the final whistle, depending on the outcome of Fixture #6. Southampton being busy in the FA Cup helps.

The absent Saints do have a role here, because they face Wrexham on Easter Monday, so if West Brom crack the Wrexham shell today, Phil Parkinson’s side could instead be six points off the top six.

And the Baggies just might do that. Things are suddenly chocolate-sweet under James Morrison. They’re not melting under the heat. In fact, over their last five games, they have an xG share above 70%, which shows not just a big shift in their game-by-game dominance but also the 8 points to prove it (W2 D2 L1).

WBA may be in a false position. Who knows? They could chip away at the narrative that Wrexham are play-off bound.

#9. Huddersfield vs Reading

HD: Are either of Huddersfield or Reading play-off bound? It surely can’t be both, which makes a defeat here doubly damaging for the vanquished.

A lot has changed since the pair met in the second week of the season, with Huddersfield prevailing at the Madejski. Lee Grant had made a bright start to management, Noel Hunt was in the middle of kicking off 2025/26 with three straight league defeats, and players in the two starting XIs included Herbie Kane (now at Plymouth), Ben Wiles (now at MK Dons) and Michael Stickland (now at Farnborough).

Today, it’s Reading who occupy a top-six spot. It feels temporary, however, as the chasing pack’s games in hand – two for Stevenage; one for Argyle, Huddersfield and Luton – hang over the Royals like the sword of Damocles.

A win at the John Smith’s Accu might persuade Reading’s doubters, including those in the fanbase, that Leam Richardson really can deliver an unexpected promotion. Despite their own up-and-down form, however, Huddersfield haven’t lost a home game since mid-October, when Bolton scored twice in stoppage time to win 2-1.

Wycombe have entered the chat to give the Terriers an understanding hug.

#8. Barnet vs Bromley

SP: What begins with B, ends in Y, and matters this weekend?

It ain’t the bloody bunny.

If 12th vs 1st in the fourth tier seems an odd pick, take a closer look. Barnet just beat MK Dons (2nd) and Cambridge (3rd at the time) back to back. They’re one win and a helpful set of other results away from what could resemble a perfectly timed play-off push. Lose, however, and Dean Brennan might be busily (he does nothing idly) browsing SkyScanner over his Sunday roast.

Bromley slipped up against Barrow last time out, but bouncing back here would mean they tick off one more game, take one more step towards the title, and provide one more reason for everyone else to stop dreaming. But let’s be honest, and I say this as someone who has spent a fair bit of time watching Bromley this season: it’ll be much more fun if they lose.

Why? Because if MK Dons do the sensible thing and beat… Barrow, and if – spoiler alert – Fixture #4 goes the way of Salford, then suddenly the whole thing gets denser than a Mini Egg. Picture the scene: 1st to 6th separated by just six points going into Bank Holiday Monday.

#7. Stockport vs Wycombe

HD: How about one point separating these two going into Bank Holiday Monday? That’ll be the case if Wycombe can go and win at Stockport.

Having two games in hand is a big factor, but fighting to preserve a play-off place isn’t what was expected of Stockport this season. They were averaging two points per game up to the start of November, all while looking a little less convincing than they had in previous campaigns. Since then, across more than half a season, they’ve looked distinctly unpromotion-y.

County have improved since losing three consecutive league fixtures a month or so ago – but with caveats. Beating Northampton 2-1 at home doesn’t prove much. They needed a slice of Oli Norwood magic to avoid defeat at Luton. Last week’s 3-0 win over Wimbledon was a far more encouraging result, albeit aided by Corey Addai making a couple of big saves while the game was alive; Wimbledon had more big chances overall.

So, are Stockport back or not? They have the players and manager capable of going on a tear, roaring into 3rd or 4th place and then righting last year’s wrongs in the play-offs. To do that, they’ll need to beat teams of Wycombe’s quality, because Mike Duff’s side are knocking on the door of No.6 and asking if it’s on the market.

P.S. It’s actually a delicious double header of double headers for this pair over the Bank Holiday weekend. Stockport (5th) face Wycombe (8th) and Bolton (3rd), while Wycombe face Stockport and Bradford (4th). That’s tastier than Easter egg chocolate… though almost anything is.

#6. Oxford vs Hull

SP: Oxford vs Hull represents a nerve-wracking game of skill. I was going to call it ‘the first domino in the Good Friday slate’, but time, space and Fixture #1 render the metaphor useless. Instead, let’s call it the Kerplunk game.

Pull one, erm… stick(?) and the marbles could fall. The range of positions these clubs could occupy at full-time is 23rd, 22nd, 21st, 6th, 5th, 4th (with a fair swing in goal difference) and 3rd (with a miraculous swing in goal difference). In other words: in the relegation zone or out of it, and on the cusp of the automatic places or on the brink of dropping out of the play-offs. And that range of possibilities could grow again by Monday.

It’s finely poised, then. Oxford are the bookies’ favourites despite being second-bottom. Hull, having been nailed to the xG cross all season (so, more of a +G cross), are probably playing their best football without quite getting the rub of the green. The form of both is intriguingly similar:

• Hull City (Last 10): W4 D1 L5 | GF 14 GA 17 | Pts 13

• Oxford United (Last 10): W3 D3 L4 | GF 9 GA 13 | Pts 12

This one picks itself because, although the game might not leap out, the permutations do: every result matters at both ends of the Championship.

#5. Blackpool vs Exeter

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Welcome to Under The Spotlight, a written spin-off to our Under The Lights podcast, helmed by Matt Watts. This column is all about investigating the topics and themes of individuals and teams that shine bright in the EFL.

“Started from the bottom, now we’re here.”

Calm down, Drake. Plymouth Argyle didn’t start from the bottom – but that’s exactly where they found themselves on 8th November.

Following their relegation from the Championship, the departure of Miron Muslić to Schalke and a summer of significant squad churn, Argyle took just 13 points from their first 15 league games under Tom Cleverley. Being beaten at home by Bradford on 6th December took the Pilgrims to 12 defeats from 18 in the league. They were, in the simplest of terms, losing twice as often as they weren’t.

However, the turnaround from that point on has been remarkable. Since that Saturday in the lead-up to Christmas, Argyle have won 13 of their next 21 league matches. In fact, only League One leaders Lincoln have picked up more points (40) than their 33 since the turn of the year.

What’s more, Argyle’s position as “the second-best team in League One right now”, in the words of Ali Maxwell, is backed up further by our own five-game and 10-game xG ratio tables.

Having taken 13 points from the last 15 available, the Pilgrims are now only two points behind 6th-placed Reading, with a game in hand. On Good Friday, they welcome Steven Schumacher’s Bolton Wanderers to Home Park. Schumacher oversaw Argyle’s promotion to the Championship in 2023, when they won an epic title race by amassing 101 points to finish three clear of Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich Town. While the title and automatic promotion are both out of reach this season, promotion through the play-offs is unexpectedly back on the cards.

So: how have Tom Cleverley and his team turned their season around?

Home form

Home Park is often a fortress for Plymouth. It’s a long old trip for the vast majority of their opponents, and the Green Army know how to get behind their team. Across the previous two seasons, 19 of Argyle’s 24 wins in the Championship came at Home Park, and the last time they were in League One, they won 20 of their 23 league fixtures there. However, the class of 25/26 have found home wins much harder to come by. Argyle have only the 15th-best home record in League One this season.

Tom Cleverley’s side do seem to have re-cracked the code recently, though: they’ve won their last four home games, spanking then-leaders Cardiff City 5-2, coming from behind against Doncaster Rovers, then beating two promotion rivals – Stevenage and Huddersfield Town – in the space of five days. That should bode well for their hosting of 3rd-placed Bolton this week…

Defensive stability

Only Lincoln (74) and Cardiff (73) have scored more goals than Argyle (60), but only eight teams have conceded more than their 54. Nevertheless, their defence has improved as the season has gone on. Tom Cleverley’s side shipped 32 goals in their first 18 games, more than any other team in League One, but they’ve conceded just 22 goals in their last 21, keeping 16 ‘zeroes and ones’.

After a host of individual errors and quite a lot of chopping and changing at the start of the season, in personnel and formation alike, Cleverley seems to have settled on a back four of Joe Edwards, Mathias Ross, Alex Mitchell and Jack MacKenzie, with Conor Hazard in goal.

Varied goal threat

Finding the back of the net hasn’t really been a problem, even when they were struggling earlier in the season, but Argyle’s goal output has improved and, crucially, they have become less reliant on Lorent Tolaj.

Before Christmas, Argyle scored 26 goals in 21 league games. Tolaj was responsible for 38% of them, and Owen Oseni and Bradley Ibrahim responsible for another 10%. Since Christmas, though, Argyle have scored 34 goals in 18 league games despite Tolaj missing 10 of those games through injury. His team have had to find goals from elsewhere – and that’s what they’ve done. Canadian forward Bim Pepple had one league goal before Christmas and he now has 13; Caleb Watts has returned from injury to rediscover his scoring touch; and, crucially, Argyle have managed to score 11 goals from defenders or defensively-minded midfielders.

Set pieces

It’s the season of set pieces, and the nationwide trend has made its way down to Devon. No team in League One has scored more goals from set plays than Plymouth and those imperious Imps, Lincoln (25 apiece). Only lowly Northampton have scored a higher percentage of their goals from dead-ball situations: 57.58%, with Argyle on 41.67%.

In recent months, Argyle’s goal threat from corners and free-kicks has been unlocked by the January addition of Ronan Curtis (and, to a lesser extent, Herbie Kane). Centre-backs Mathias Ross and Alex Mitchell have scored six goals between them in the league this season, with all six coming since January and from set pieces.

At the other end, Argyle’s record of 10 goals conceded from set pieces is bettered only by Mansfield, Bolton and Wycombe.

Going back-to-back-to-back

Prior to the 1-0 win at Wycombe on 9th December, Argyle had won back-to-back league games only once in 2025/26. Victory at Adams Park was the first of three in a row. Tom Cleverley’s charges pulled off that hat-trick in December, and January, and February, before winning four of their five league games in March.

Managers often talk about the importance of recording back-to-back wins, but if you can reel off three wins on the spin on a regular basis, then you’re going to climb the league table pretty quickly.

Tom Cleverley

There’s no getting away from it. Whether we like it or not, the majority of dramatic mid-season turnarounds are usually the result of a change in the dugout. While many would have opted to sack Cleverley in October or November, Argyle backed their young head coach and, at present, they’re reaping the rewards of their patience. Would a new head coach have reversed their fortunes to the same extent? Possibly, possibly not. But is their 36-year-old head coach, in just his second managerial role, a better head coach now than when Argyle hired him last summer? Definitely.

Simon Hallett & Co. could have replaced Cleverley with former Pilgrims boss Derek Adams. Instead, they brought him in as Director of Football, to offer Cleverley more support. After a difficult couple of years since the departure of Steven Schumacher, and a summer of significant change following their relegation from the Championship, Argyle needed some stability.

Those decisions taken in the autumn are bearing fruit in the spring.

Short and sweet, but this is it.

Ali and George go through their EFL Good Month, Bad Month picks for April, including the final day of the season (which sneaks into May).

These are the teams that will step up, and those that will wither.

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Well, hello.

Our xG form guides for the EFL have been updated 👇

Words: Sam Parry

“Look fourth!”

Someone important said it in a Psalm. And I don’t know about you, but with leagues like these, I’m inclined to follow the instructions. Where else would you look, but the fourth tier?

Here’s a league where every top-half club except Bromley is, at most, three points away from an entirely different situation – automatics to play-offs, play-offs to automatics, play-offs to nada, and nada to play-offs.

It deserves some special treatment. So, using the same hulking spreadsheet as The Pinsticker’s Guide to the League Two Run-in, I have placed the latest xG figures, PPG form and remaining fixtures into the hopper and cranked the handle. Here is what the machine has spat out, ordered by final predicted position and presented with a bit of context.

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🔗 League Two

Bromley

• PPG: 1.98
• Fixtures: 6 (3H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.52
• Points projection: 90.4
• Position: 1st (-)

In a league more finely poised than a hot iron skating over very thin ice, our model reckons that the team who won’t budge is Bromley. That makes a lot of sense: they have the points on the board.

They did, however, just lose to Barrow. Their 10-game xG ratio paints a picture of incredibly even games. Andy Woodman’s side have won their share of those over the course of the season, but they are somewhat clinging to top spot rather than sprinting for the finish line.

MK Dons

• PPG: 1.85
• Fixtures: 6 (3H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.44
• Points projection: 85.1
• Position: 2nd (-)

MK vs Bromley, 11th April.

There’s a huge fixture to come; one that suggests there are still chances to make big inroads in the title race. The spreadsheet gives MK the best chance of doing that. They have the best xG ratio in the league over the last 10 games (68.8%) and the second-most points (20), after Oldham (25).

Cambridge

• PPG: 1.85
• Fixtures: 7 (4H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.59
• Points projection: 84.8
• Position: 3rd (+1)

Three little words: “Game In Hand”. And a few more: “Including one against Bromley”.

Cambridge (4th) have the best expected goals against (xGA) figure in the league, as one of only two teams averaging less than 1.00 xGA per game. Give it a name: DE-fence. That’s what their promotion credentials are founded upon, and that’s why their game in hand matters: the spreadsheet reckons they’re more likely than not to take points from it, despite the fact that the run-in is pretty tough.

Their list of fixtures goes like this: 5th, 18th, 3rd, 1st, 8th, 23rd. It’s very hard to tell who has what in their hands.

Notts County

• PPG: 1.83
• Fixtures: 6 (3H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.53
• Points projection: 83.2
• Position: 4th (-1)

The other team averaging less than 1.00 xGA per game are the Magpies. Their issue, per the spreadsheet model, is four little words: “No games in hand”.

That said, there are plenty of reasons to back them to hold on to a top-3 position. Only MK Dons and Oldham can beat their PPG of 1.90 over the last 10 games. Alassana Jatta is in fine form, and then there’s the little matter of a game away to Cambridge on the 11th of April – yep, the same day as MK Dons v Bromley. Mouthwatering.

Salford

• PPG: 1.75
• Fixtures: 6 (3H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.53
• Points projection: 80.1
• Position: 5th (+1)

While the spreadsheet doesn’t predict a flying finish for Salford, there’s plenty to say in mitigation. And when I say mitigation, I mean for the spreadsheet, which cannot predict hot and cold streaks.

Are Salford cooking? They just beat MK Dons.

Are they cooked? They recently lost to Cambridge.

Will they be cooking? They face 3rd and 7th in back-to-back games.

Will they be cooked? I repeat: They face 3rd and 7th in back-to-back games.

Karl Robinson’s side is chock-full of quality, no doubt. They also have a negative xG share over the last 5 fixtures (49%) and only a shade of positive over 10 (51%). It’s extremely difficult to gauge their level over the run-in. The formula, though, has them moving forwards rather than back – just not all the way.

Swindon

• PPG: 1.75
• Fixtures: 6 (3H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.65
• Points projection: 79.6
• Position: 6th (-1)

A faller – and might it get worse?

Swindon’s position is rather like Bromley’s, but minus 9 points. Their PPG over the last 10 is 1.50, which is a mid-table range in League Two. They are tripping over the line, not sprinting towards it.

Given they are 7 points clear of 7th place, Swindon should have the points on the board to clear the dotted line designating the play-off places. What lies beneath, however, are a clutch of serious teams, some with a serious number of games in hand.

Most notably…

Grimsby

• PPG: 1.63
• Fixtures: 8 (3H / 5A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.39
• Points projection: 75.0
• Position: 7th (+1)

Some teams have closer to 10% of a season left to play. Grimsby have closer to 20%, albeit skewing heavily away from home. The model has them jumping into the final play-off spot, and no doubt that comes down to their game(s) in hand on opponents – one over some, two over others.

Not only that, though: Dave Artell’s side have consistently posted outstanding xG numbers. If it wasn’t for a rough patch around Christmas, Grimsby might be troubling the top spots, not just the play-offs.

Oldham

• PPG: 1.56
• Fixtures: 7 (3H / 4A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.27
• Points projection: 73.6
• Position: 8th (+2)

Just missing out, but not by much, are Oldham.

They are flying. They have a game in hand on most. They have picked up 25 points from a possible 30. They have the second-best xG share over the last 10 games (64.1%). They have one of the easiest run-ins. They are talking me into the idea that they are going to beat the model and make it into the play-offs.

A word of caution? Micky Mellon’s side probably can’t maintain a 2.50 PPG record over their last 7. It would mean dropping points in only one match. But if they did…

Chesterfield

• PPG: 1.59
• Fixtures: 7 (4H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.26
• Points projection: 73.5
• Position: 9th (=)

With only Grimsby and Crewe to play from the top 7, Chesterfield have the easiest run-in on paper. It’s not enough, per the spreadsheet, to claw their way into a top-7 spot. But there are plenty of positive signs about the Spireites.

They top the xG charts over 10 games (1.93), and those games have averaged an xG total of 3.04. If a Swindon or a Salford were to hit a fence in the closing straight, Chesterfield could be right amongst it. They’ll need to clock something like 2.00 PPG over their last 7, though.

Crewe

• PPG: 1.58
• Fixtures: 6 (3H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.59
• Points projection: 73.0
• Position: 10th (-3)

They keep defying the odds. They keep defying what is good and holy. Our spreadsheet has them as the biggest fallers, and their last game, a 2-1 win over Oldham, explains it in a nutshell — it took two out-of-the-box worldies to win.

But win they did. So, why is the model marking them down? Let me explain with a quiz. Below is the xG ratio over 5-, 10-, and Season-Long time frames for the teams ranked 7th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, and 24th in the table. They are not listed in position order. Tell me: which one is Crewe?*

Barnet

• PPG: 1.50
• Fixtures: 6 (3H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.28
• Points projection: 69.3
• Position: 11th (+1)

Sweet, fair Barnet.

Rising but not quite enough. Short on games, short on time, but not short on quality, Dean Brennan’s side look likely to fall into the category of the “What If?” season. They have been comfortably within the best teams per the xG tables all season long… until recently. Ouch.

🔵 Walsall

• PPG: 1.53
• Fixtures: 6 (3H / 3A)
• Remaining opponents PPG: 1.27
• Points projection: 69.1
• Position: 12th (-1)

And finally, Walsall.

Never write them off.

*Crewe are in the middle of that table.

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League One

Huw Davies

League One featured five matches and zero goals for the away teams, prompting hundreds of travelling supporters to question why they do this.

Burton Albion fans would’ve been happy to see no goals at all, because CJ Hamilton’s stoppage-time winner for Blackpool had huge significance. At 0-0, Blackpool were in the relegation zone. The 1-0 final score moved them up and out and to within a point of their opponents, who seem unable to pull themselves fully clear. Gary Bowyer’s Brewers took just a single shot against his old side on the windy Lancashire coast.

Replacing Blackpool in the bottom four was Exeter, who’ll be visiting them on Good Friday. Tantalising! A goalless draw with Leyton Orient put an end to their run of five straight defeats, which followed a point at home to Burton on the day of Matt Taylor’s reappointment, but draws aren’t enough for the Grecians, winless since January.

This was a lively 0-0, at least, featuring Jayden Wareham hitting the post with a header by leaping about 18 feet. There’s flea DNA in that boy. Orient’s Dom Ballard missed the game’s best chance, however.

Further up the table, Stockport beat Wimbledon 3-0. Goalscorer Adama Sidibeh had to be replaced during the first half by Kyle Wootton, who scored himself – just 20 seconds after Corey Addai had denied Junior Nkeng at the other end. Addai, arguably man of the match, also saved superbly from Ryan Johnson and smartly from Zack Nelson, before Oli Norwood wrapped up the points by wrapping his left foot around a bouncing ball.

Oddly, these two teams will meet again at Plough Lane in a couple of weeks. That’ll be the true test for Stockport, who’ve taken 22 points from their last 8 home games but just one from their last five on the road. Eek.

Reading v Wigan also finished 3-0, thanks to Will Aimson’s day from hell.

Having been bodied by Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan for Reading’s first goal, Aimson started and finished the move for their second by misplacing his defensive header and then (after some great work by Kamari Doyle) flat-footedly turning Charlie Savage’s cross into his own net. Nor did the Wigan defender cover himself in glory for the third goal, Ehibhatiomhan’s second, but then neither did his team-mates. For an encore, Aimson obstructed Reading’s goalkeeper from an offside position so Caylan Vickers’ strike was disallowed.

What a day. Daniel Kyerewaa, care to rub it in?

Wycombe beat Port Vale 4-0, although Mike Duff wasn’t especially happy with their performance. Vale did hit the post at 1-0, after Cauley Woodrow had punished a defensive mix-up to score in his 400th career appearance, and there was a hint of fortune in three of Wycombe’s goals taking deflections and the other, from Fred Onyedinma, possibly being offside. No need to be churlish, though: they fully deserved three points and now have the joint-best goal difference outside the top two, which could prove useful…

League Two

Matt Watts

The greatest fourth tier in the world returned to its unpredictable best. Only four top-half teams won while three of the bottom four claimed maximum points.

In terms of unpredictability, very little can trump the 24th-placed team beating the league leaders to end their 21-match unbeaten run. But that’s exactly what happened as Barrow came from behind to beat Bromley 2-1.

A stunning Ashley Charles free-kick put the Ravens in front, but second-half strikes from Josh Gordon and Danny Rose gave Sam Foley’s side a deserved victory. After their 5-0 humiliation at the hands of Grimsby last weekend, this was a statement win for Barrow, whose last four wins have each come under four different managers.

Bromley’s slip-up wasn’t capitalised upon by MK Dons, who followed a 3-1 defeat at home to Barnet with a 1-0 defeat at Salford. Matt Butcher’s rising strike in the 66th minute proved to be the difference. Of course, this victory will have been extra sweet for Karl Robinson, who managed MK for over six years, but it was also the Ammies’ fifth win in six and it moves them to within three points of the automatic promotion places. To make matters worse for MK, Luke Offord picked up a red card for kicking the ball into Fabio Borini’s midriff.

If you thought that Bromley’s and MK Dons’ slip-ups would be capitalised upon by Cambridge, then you would be mistaken.

The U’s nine-match unbeaten run came to an end as they lost 1-0 to play-off chasers Barnet. It’s two in two now for centre-back Danny Collinge, who finished like a seasoned striker. After wins against MK and Cambridge, Barnet are only three points off the play-off pace, but there is a fair amount of traffic between them and the top seven. Cambridge will hope to bounce back on Good Friday when they face Swindon, who drew 1-1 with Fleetwood.

All of that meant Notts County won the weekend by beating Harrogate 2-0 in the early kick-off. A brace from Alassana Jatta and a clean sheet for James Belshaw on his return to North Yorkshire was the perfect response for Notts, after their humbling at Oldham during the week. This was a damaging defeat for Harrogate, who returned to the bottom of the pyramid following Barrow’s victory over Bromley.

With neither Grimsby nor Chesterfield in action, the victor of Crewe v Oldham knew they would end the day in 7th. It was a ding-dong battle at the Mornflake… and the home side came out on top. Kane Drummond gave Oldham the lead, before Reece Hutchinson’s pile-driver on the run levelled it up four minutes later, and with stoppage time ticking away, Matúš Holíček’s fizzing half-volley made it 2-1 Crewe. Cue pandemonium, in the stands and on the pitch. Oldham’s five-match winning run (and 10-match unbeaten run) is over, but they’re still only two points behind Crewe with a game in hand.

At the bottom, it was a bad day for Harrogate – and Tranmere – as Barrow, Newport and Crawley all won. A bit of magic from Bobby Kamwa lit up a game otherwise bereft of quality as Newport beat Shrewsbury 1-0. The 26-year-old cut inside onto his right foot and curled a dipping effort past the helpless Matthew Cox. Kamwa has shown in the past that he is more than capable of producing moments like this – he just doesn’t do it very often.

Finally, Crawley ended their 10-match winless run by beating Gillingham 2-0. It was a game that neither side really deserved to win, until the 91st minute when Crawley substitute Taylor Richards made half a yard for himself and found the bottom corner from the edge of the box. Tobi Adeyemo added the second a couple of minutes later to seal the points for the Red Devils.

Colin Kazim-Richards may have seemed a leftfield pick to replace Scott Lindsey, but after one game in management, his win percentage is approximately 28% better than that of Pep Guardiola.

🎦 Our Top 5 clips from the EFL weekend

1. Reading goalkeeper Joel Pereira brings out the Zidane roulette.

2. Reece Hutchinson fires a laser-guided missile for Crewe…

3. …before Matúš Holíček generates some generational last-gasp limbs.

4. Matt Butcher goes full Pat Butcher: “What a slapper!”

5. Lights, Kamwa, Action! Bobby K wins it with a stunner for Newport

📊 Your Monday morning cheat sheet

📈 Royal Record — Only Lincoln City (40) and Plymouth Argyle (33) have earned more League One points in 2026 than Reading (32).

🔄 Barrow bounce — Barrow ended an eight-game winless run, coming from behind to secure just their second win in 16 league games in 2026.

🔥 Gas fired up — Bristol Rovers have won five of their last six league games, as many as in their previous 26 combined.

⚽ Jatta surge puts him among giants — Alassana Jatta has scored 34 league goals across the last two seasons for Notts County; only Erling Haaland (44) and Michael Cheek (41) have more in the top four tiers.

🛣️ County cruising — Notts County are now unbeaten in their last eight Saturday away games (W7 D1), conceding just four goals.

🏠 Salford streaking — Salford have won four consecutive home league games, their best home run since 2024, while their 22 wins equal their best-ever EFL season tally.

📉 Exeter slump — Exeter City are winless in 14 league games (D7 L7), one of the longest runs in their Football League history.

🌊 Woodrow wave — Cauley Woodrow has 8 goal involvements since the start of February (5G 3A) for Wycombe Wanderers.

⬆️ Wootton you just know it — Kyle Wootton has 19 league goals for Stockport County this season, equalling his previous two campaigns combined.

League One

Blackpool 1-0 Burton Albion
Exeter 0-0 Leyton Orient
Reading 3-0 Wigan
Stockport 3-0 AFC Wimbledon
Wycombe 4-0 Port Vale

League Two

Barnet 1-0 Cambridge
Barrow 2-1 Bromley
Bristol Rovers 2-0 Accrington
Colchester 1-1 Walsall
Crawley 2-0 Gillingham
Crewe 2-1 Oldham
Harrogate 0-2 Notts County
Newport 1-0 Shrewsbury
Salford 1-0 MK Dons
Swindon 1-1 Fleetwood

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