QPR go romp-y on Pompey, Coventry pull clear, Burton beat Bradford, Orient win four in a row & Crawley sack Lindsey (at 11pm on Sunday)
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Championship
Huw Davies
The ribbons on the Championship trophy are sky blue. With seven matches left, Coventry City sit nine points ahead of Middlesbrough and 11 points ahead of Millwall and Ipswich, whose game in hand can do only so much.
Frank Lampard’s side extended their lead by winning in Swansea courtesy of a nightmare 10 minutes or so for the hosts, in which the match swung back and forth like a pendulum and every time it came Swansea’s way, it hit them in the balls. Brandon Thomas-Asante converted a penalty at one end and Gonçalo Franco… headed a great chance just wide. Matt Grimes scored against the club where he’d made 300-plus appearances and Melker Widell… hit the post. Tatsuhiro Sakamoto’s deflected effort quickly made it 3-0 to end the contest before half-time.
Cov kicked off knowing their three pursuers had all drawn. Ipswich and Millwall shared an entertaining 1-1, Ipswich winning the first half (Anthony Patterson making a tremendous save before letting Jack Clarke’s daisycutter skid past him) and Millwall the second (Camiel Neghli neatly setting up Josh Coburn before Mihailo Ivanovic’s shot hit the crossbar and bounced out off the goalkeeper). Middlesbrough dropped points in a winnable game for a third time running by drawing 0-0 at Ewood Park.
That was a big point for Blackburn, who unexpectedly got the jump on a few relegation rivals. Although Leicester earned a point and West Bromwich Albion three, the latter beating a toothless Bristol City 1-0 at Ashton Gate, Oxford lost and Portsmouth really lost.
QPR had six touches in the box against Portsmouth and took eight shots in total. Chronologically, they went:
GOAL
GOAL
GOAL
GOAL
SAVED
BLOCKED
SAVED
GOAL
GOAL
Clinical, that. Paul Smyth, Rayan Kolli and Richard Koné scored a brace apiece in the 6-1 rout. Just how sweetly does Kolli strike a ball, by the way? His right foot is a combination of paintbrush and sniper rifle.
In the play-off race, Wrexham faced a barrage of Sheffield United shots at Bramall Lane and went behind when Andre Brooks smartly followed up a rebound. However, Josh Windass equalised with his sixth shot – his team’s seventh – and Sam Smith, feeling left out, snatched a winner with a diving header straight out of the 1990s. Wrexham’s 2-1 victory keeps them level on points with sixth place, occupied by…
Southampton, who beat the aforementioned Oxford 2-0 with two superb goals – one, great team play, and the other all Shea Charles. The Northern Ireland international was so far out, and started his shot so far outside the post, that Oxford keeper Jamie Cumming took about 18 steps just trying to get across to it. Unstoppable. Another slick Saints move ended with Tom Fellows hitting the underside of the bar, while Will Lankshear missed an excellent Yellows chance that could’ve made things interesting.
Finally, Sass of the Day goes to John Eustace, who you may remember was fired by Birmingham City in October 2023 when they hired Wayne Rooney to deliver “no-fear football” and, as it turned out, relegation to League One. Smash cut to March 2026 and Eustace’s Derby have beaten an unusually cowed and cautious Birmingham side under Chris Davies, prompting Eustace to reflect: “We played no-fear football today.”
Touché/Touchy.
League One
Sam Parry
Only one team in the top seven tasted victory and there were no alarms and no surprises as the Imps rolled over Lee Clark’s Rotherham. Some surprise and much surprise respectively as Blackpool nabbed a point from Cardiff and Port Vale beat Bolton.
Lincoln (1st) 3-0 Rotherham (22nd)
Cardiff (2nd) 0-0 Blackpool (21st)
Port Vale (24th) 1-0 Bolton (3rd)
Bradford (4th) 1-2 Burton (18th)
Stockport (5th) 1-1 Luton (11th)
It was a funny ‘relegation-battlers-versus-top-four’ weekend in League One, and Burton Albion deserve a mention. The Brewers didn’t just cling onto their early lead against Bradford; they were arguably the better side. Tyrese Shade’s tidy finish made it 2-0 on 58 minutes and the Bantams struggled to conjure anything meaningful – just two shots inside the box after that, including a consolation goal coming in stoppage time, tells its own story. It’s huge for Burton’s survival hopes.
But let’s take a look at the chasing pack and two big fixtures.
Reading (6th) 0-1 Stevenage (8th)
Huddersfield (7th) 1-3 Plymouth (10th)
After a first half of few chances, Stevenage took over against Reading: 11 shots to zero in the second period and a deserved winner from substitute Dan Kemp. Alex Revell’s side jump back into the top six, taking the spot vacated by the Royals. That’s six wins from their last ten now – only two teams have more points in that time.
One of them is Plymouth Argyle, with 22 points from a possible 30. No team in the EFL is timing a play-off run better right now. Their opponents, Huddersfield, never looked sure-footed in this one, even after taking the lead through a neat Cameron Humphreys goal.
Lee Nicholls had kept Terriers ahead before going off with a head injury. Jak Alnwick came on and made two strong saves, but could do little about the equaliser early in the second half. Less so about what followed, as Bim Pepple’s penalty put Argyle ahead. Unfortunately, Alnwick won’t want to see the third again, as he palmed the ball straight into the path of Owen Oseni for 3-1.
As Argyle and Huddersfield swapped places, it told a broader story: one side in form despite a long injury list and a long journey from the relegation places, while the other are still searching for any real identity.
Down at the bottom, then…
Leyton Orient (16th) 2-0 Wycombe (9th)
Doncaster (17th) 1-0 Barnsley (12th)
Mansfield (15th) 4-1 Northampton (23rd)
Exeter (19th) 0-2 Wigan (20th)
Mansfield’s win over Northampton was not a huge surprise, but the margin (4-1) was huge. The Cobblers usually keep things tight, but this was their second heavy defeat in ten games, with just one win in that run. Now seven points from safety, the task looks too big for interim Colin Calderwood.
One man who has seized a big challenge is Richie Wellens. His Leyton Orient side’s 2-0 win over Wycombe came with a helping hand from a red card just ten minutes in. O’s capitalised nine minutes later and sealed the deal with a lovely Idris El Mizouni strike in added time in the second half. Four wins in a row, now. These little bursts of form are often what decide survival – suddenly Orient look okay.
And finally, Wigan 2-0 Exeter: huge for both and another example of trading places. Gary Caldwell might’ve been in the away dugout had things worked out differently. For his replacement at Exeter, Matt Taylor, this was a really tough watch in the first half as his side managed a single shot. After going 1-0 up, the Latics almost doubled their lead when 18-year-old Harrison Bettoni clipped the bar with a lob from distance.
In the second half, while still looking open at the back, Exeter made a better fist of things and forced saves from Sam Tickle in the Wigan goal. On another day, one of those might have gone in. But on this day, Wigan doubled their lead directly from a corner thanks to Fraser Murray.
It is looking bleak for Exeter now. Still, although no side has picked up fewer points – just four – over the last ten games, they do sit outside the drop zone and have their destiny in their own hands.
League Two
Matt Watts
“The Championship - the most unpredictable league in the world!”
Like Alan Davies on QI, it’s an obvious assumption to make, but it’s also incorrect. Only true EFL ultras know that League Two is, in fact, the most unpredictable league in the world. This weekend, however, was an exception to the rule with ten of the top half teams all winning.
Quite predictably, the only defeats for top-half teams came at the hands of other top-half teams. Barnet came from behind to beat MK Dons 3-1 in one of the day’s early kick-offs. The early-afternoon sun did for Ciaran Slicker, allowing Jon Mellish to tap in and give MK the lead, but a Danny Collinge header and second-half strikes from Kabongo Tshimanga and Idris Kanu saw Dean Brennan’s play-off chasers end a three-game winless run.
MK’s first defeat since New Year’s Day presented Bromley with the opportunity to extend their lead at the top to five points – one they duly took. Nicke Kabamba swivelled and rifled in from close range to give them a 1-0 victory over Colchester. This was an eventful one-niller with multiple rattles of the woodwork and 25 shots in the second half alone. Bromley have now won their last three games 1-0, they’ve set a new club record for league games unbeaten this season (21), and they still haven’t lost a home league game this season.
Salford were the only other top half side to lose. Like MK, their four-match winning run came to an abrupt halt on Saturday as they lost 1-0 to fellow promotion chasers Cambridge. James Gibbons’ second-half header proved to be the difference between the two sides, who are now separated by five points – and, crucially, Cambridge have a game in hand.
Notts County also have a game in hand over the rest of the top six. The Magpies made it nine goals scored in five days by putting five past Cheltenham at Meadow Lane. The pick of the goals were scored by Notts’ centre-mids: 31-year-old Matty Palmer (his first for three years) and 20-year-old Tom Iorpenda, who scored a phenomenal solo effort in the second half.
Swindon remain three points behind Cambridge and a point behind Notts after they left it late to beat struggling Tranmere 1-0 at Prenton Park. After some excellent work from Michael Olakigbe, the veteran Junior Hoilett finished from close range to score his first goal for the Robins and earn Ian Holloway’s side three vital points.
In terms of the race for the play-offs, the big winners (amongst all of the other winners) were Grimsby, who beat bottom club Barrow 5-0 to a) retain 7th spot and b) give their goal difference a real boost. The Mariners are level on points with Chesterfield, who beat Accrington 1-0, but Dave Artell’s side have a game in hand over the Spireites and the aforementioned superior goal difference.
Crewe got back to winning ways with a 4-0 victory at Shrewsbury, who have now lost three in a row after an excellent start to life under Gavin Cowan. Oldham beat Harrogate 1-0 to make it 22 points from the last 24 available. It’s yet another shutout for the Latics, who have kept seven clean sheets in their last eight games and 17 in the league this season – the most in the EFL.
Finally, Walsall recorded their first home win since Boxing Day, coming from behind to beat Newport 2-1. Alex Pattison’s low 97th-minute effort from the edge of the box was a dagger to the heart of Newport, but both the goal and the jubilant scenes that followed have the potential to be season-defining for the Saddlers.
Oh, and because one of the only two games we didn’t mention (Fleetwood 1-0 Crawley, Gillingham 1-2 Bristol Rovers) felt hard done by, Crawley Town took it upon themselves to sack Scott Lindsey with a CLUB STATMENT [sic] after the pubs shut on Sunday. That defeat to Fleetwood came on the one-year anniversary of his re-appointment by Crawley; a day later, he was gone, after they’d brought in three more of his 2023/24 promotion-winning players in January. Indecision, or pure panic? You decide.
🎦 Our Top 5 clips from the EFL weekend
Take a peek at this sneaky Ollie Norwood freekick.
Shea Charles gives it the treatment for Saints.
Like a homing device, Alex Pattison leaves it late for Saddlers.
It’s a thing of beauty from Tom Iorpenda for Notts County.
And the ever-fashionable Paul Smyth ties it up for QPR (plus a Dickie Koné bonus)
📊 Your Monday morning cheat sheet
🚫 Better the devil you don’t know? — Crawley Town have failed to score in six straight away Football League games for the first time.
📉 Bantams’ away blues — Bradford have lost nine of their last 11 away games; only Sheffield Wednesday have more away defeats in 2026.
⚓ Mariners moored — Grimsby Town are unbeaten in 10 home league games (W6 D4), their best run since 2006.
🧱 Latics locked in — Oldham Athletic have won four straight home league games without conceding, their best such run since 2016.
💥 Q P R U Serious? — Queens Park Rangers scored six in a league game for the first time since 2020 – more than in their previous five home matches combined.
🛡️ By Eckert — Southampton are unbeaten in 12 Championship games (W9 D3), their longest such run since 2023/24 under Russell Martin.
🏠 Rams rolling — Derby have won four straight home league games, as many as in their previous 19 combined.
🔄 Vale-iant effort — Port Vale secured their first home league win since New Year’s Day, and their first clean-sheet home win since April 2025.
SkyBet Championship
Blackburn 0-0 Middlesbrough
Bristol City 0-1 West Brom
Charlton 0-1 Norwich
Derby 1-0 Birmingham
Hull 3-1 Sheff Wed
Ipswich 1-1 Millwall
Preston 3-1 Stoke
QPR 6-1 Portsmouth
Sheff Utd 1-2 Wrexham
Southampton 2-0 Oxford
Swansea 0-3 Coventry
Watford 0-0 Leicester
Sky Bet League One
AFC Wimbledon 1-1 Peterborough
Barnsley 0-1 Doncaster
Burton Albion 2-1 Bradford
Cardiff 0-0 Blackpool
Leyton Orient 2-0 Wycombe
Lincoln City 3-0 Rotherham
Luton 1-1 Stockport
Mansfield 4-1 Northampton
Plymouth 3-1 Huddersfield
Port Vale 1-0 Bolton
Stevenage 1-0 Reading
Wigan 2-0 Exeter
Sky Bet League Two
Accrington 0-1 Chesterfield
Bromley 1-0 Colchester
Cambridge 1-0 Salford
Fleetwood 1-0 Crawley
Gillingham 1-2 Bristol Rovers
Grimsby 5-0 Barrow
MK Dons 1-3 Barnet
Notts County 5-2 Cheltenham
Oldham 1-0 Harrogate
Shrewsbury 0-4 Crewe
Tranmere 0-1 Swindon
Walsall 2-1 Newport
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'Unusually cowed and cautious Birmingham'. Not that unusual. One of the worst away records in the league and frequently cowed. Even the most loyal fans have turned and feels like the sub Rodgers possession style has well and truly found its ceiling. Main question is whether Davies will last the season.