Donny go joint-top, Gills stay unbeaten and Grimsby stun MK Dons – plus winning goals for Wellens' son and Mellon's son
Join 10,000 EFL fans for the biggest and best weekend recap this side of the top 20.
League One
Matt Watts
It was a reduced docket in League One, but there was no shortage of goals or drama.
Doncaster beat Bradford 3-1 to move level on points with league leaders Cardiff. Will Swann levelled after Luke Molyneux had given Donny the lead; however, poor defending from the Bantams allowed the hosts to take a two-goal lead before half-time. Pecked by the chickens? Not today! In fact, it was Donny’s Billy Sharp who was doing the chicken dance in front of the travelling fans. And why not? Doncaster have won five in a row in all competitions, while inflicting a first defeat of the season on their fellow promotees.
Lee Grant’s Huddersfield are only a point off the pace after beating basement boys Peterborough 3-2. There was a goal off Jimmy-Jay Morgan’s backside, a first in Huddersfield colours for loanee Will Alves, an excellent strike from Herbie Kane and a shocking miss from Joe Taylor, who also proved to be the match-winner.
Like Posh, Port Vale remain winless after suffering a 3-2 loss. Charlie Wellens’ 95th-minute strike finished off a sweeping counter-attack, snatching victory for Leyton Orient. Wellens, you say? That’s right: Charlie Wellens, son of Orient boss Richie Wellens. In the words of Spike from the Tom & Jerry cartoons: “That’s my boy!” There were more positives for Vale – namely a debut goal and assist for Devante Cole – and yet they somehow have only two points from seven games.
Plymouth Argyle’s 4-2 triumph at home to Stockport featured more goals still. In fact, it featured an own goal, a stunning strike (see 5iveLights, below), a soft penalty and so much more besides, but ultimately it ended with three valuable points for Tom Cleverley’s Argyle. That’s back-to-back wins at Home Park for them, and one win in five league fixtures for Stockport. Flamethrowers at the ready!
After a run of four consecutive 1-1 draws, Bolton got back to winning ways with a 3-0 victory over nine-man Wimbledon. Wanderers were already a goal to the good when Marcus Browne was sent off for a horrible challenge on Max Conway. Amario Cozier-Duberry continues to be a problem for League One defences: the Brighton loanee’s well-taken effort was the meat in the middle of a Mason Burstow and Joel Randall goal sandwich.
Finally, Mike Dodds breathed a sigh of relief as Wycombe picked up their first league win of the season. The Chairboys beat Nigel Clough’s Mansfield 2-0 thanks to a first-half dink from Sam Bell and a second-half penalty from Cauley Woodrow. A win, a clean sheet and two debutants amongst the goals? Lovely jubbly!
League Two
Matt Watts
Leaders Gillingham extended their unbeaten run under Gareth Ainsworth by coming from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Bromley. A Josh Andrews header just before the hour mark and a controversial late penalty won by Garath McCleary and tucked away by Max Clark cancelled out first-half strikes from Nicke Kabamba and the irrepressible Michael Cheek.
Gills are joined on 15 points by Swindon and Walsall, who extended their winning runs in all competitions to four games by beating Barrow and Chesterfield respectively. Grimsby are up to 4th after scoring three in the first half-hour against a previously watertight MK Dons. The Mariners completely dominated proceedings in the first half, with 70% possession, 12 shots (8 on target) taken and zero shots on target faced. Despite being reduced to 10 on 36 minutes, Paul Warne’s side fought back after the break and scored twice – but it wasn’t enough.
In the lunchtime kick-off, Bristol Rovers secured their third league win in a row by beating Newport 3-2 in the South Wales sunshine. All five goals came in the second half, with Rovers taking a 3-0 lead through a Luke Thomas brace and an Ellis Harrison header (plus some questionable keeping from Nik Tzanev), before County gave them a late scare. After a slow start to the season, the Gas finally have some air in their tyres.
It was a day of firsts towards the bottom of League Two as Oldham, Crawley, Shrewsbury and Cheltenham all picked up their first league wins of the season (and, for Oldham and Crawley, the first in any competition). Another son helped out his dad as Michael Mellon got the winner for Micky Mellon’s Latics away at Cambridge, while an excellent Reece Brown strike gave Crawley all three points at Harrogate. Despite falling behind early on, Shrewsbury came storming back to beat Barnet 3-1. And Isaac Hutchinson introduced himself to the Cheltenham faithful with a stunning free-kick less than two minutes into his debut against Accrington.
Alarm bells will be ringing for Accy, who are now the only winless side in the fourth tier, in addition to being bottom of the league. When you’ve trailed since the 2nd minute, having just one shot on target (and none in the second half) isn’t a good look.
🎦 Our Top 5 clips from the EFL weekend
Well, Well, Well: Wellens Jnr wins it late for Orient.
Twisting my… Mellon Jnr hits the leveller for Oldham.
Watt the?! Caleb Watts' laser gets the alt angle treatment.
Terriers get the love bug as Herbie Kane hits a screamer.
And finally, two goalkeeper assists in League One, as Sam Tickle and Luca Ashby-Hammond pass the assignment with straight A’s.
📊 Your Monday morning cheat sheet
⚽️ Milestone man — Lincoln City’s James Collins hit his 200th and 201st EFL goals, joining Billy Sharp and Jordan Rhodes in the 200+ club.
📊 Reduced Slate Goal glut — The 8 games this weekend in the third tier produced 15% of all League One goals this season so far (30 of 200).
🧤 Veteran in net — Tranmere’s Joe Murphy (44) became the oldest EFL player since Barry Richardson in 2016….
🎯 Shot storm — …’Twas a tough day for Murphy, though, as Salford unleashed 27 efforts in their 3-1 win – their second-highest League Two shots tally ever.
📉 Plummeting Posh — Peterborough are the 7th side since 2004 to earn one point or fewer from their first 7 League One games (though only four of the other six ended up relegated, despite the third tier’s unusually large dropzone).
🥅 MK hit a leak — MK Dons shipped as many goals in the first 30 mins against Grimsby as they have in all of their 10 previous league games under Paul Warne.
🦢 Swan flying — Will Swan is the first Bradford player since Nahki Wells in 2013 to net in four consecutive league matches.
🔥 Sharp streak — Doncaster’s Billy Sharp has now scored in nine straight league games against Bradford, notching 10+ goals against them and Blackpool.
⚡️ Marching on — Crewe’s Josh March has delivered a goal or an assist in each of his last seven games.
💥 Ooh, Ahhgyle — Plymouth fired in three goals from outside the box vs Stockport; it’s the first time that’s happened since 2022.
Sky Bet League One
Bolton 3-0 AFC Wimbledon
Doncaster 3-1 Bradford
Huddersfield 3-2 Peterborough
Lincoln 2-2 Wigan
Plymouth 4-2 Stockport
Port Vale 2-3 Leyton Orient
Rotherham 1-0 Exeter
Wycombe 2-0 Mansfield
Sky Bet League Two
Barnet 1-3 Shrewsbury
Barrow 1-3 Swindon
Bromley 2-2 Gillingham
Cambridge 0-1 Oldham
Cheltenham 1-0 Accrington
Colchester 1-1 Crewe
Harrogate 0-1 Crawley
MK Dons 2-3 Grimsby
Newport 2-3 Bristol Rovers
Notts County 1-0 Fleetwood
Salford 3-1 Tranmere
Walsall 1-0 Chesterfield
▶️ NTT20 EFL Fantasy League — Join Now
Top 5 Scorers (Total)
Top 5 Scorers (Gameweek)
NTT20 League leaderboard:
Thanks for reading!
Elsewhere on NTT20.COM
🚨 Features: Weekend Notes | 25/26 Transfer Window | Season Previews
🖋️ Writers: Ali Maxwell | George Elek | Huw Davies | Sam Parry | Guests
🎙️ Podcasts: Under The Lights | Dear Ali & George…