Championship round-up
Derby County have been relegated from the Championship after a 1-0 defeat at QPR on Easter Monday was coupled with Reading’s remarkable comeback from 4-1 down to draw 4-4 with Swansea. Read on ...
Derby go down: The Rams are relegated to the third tier for the first time since 1985-86 following their 1-0 defeat at the hands of QPR. It was an outstanding effort from Wayne Rooney and his players after the club was docked 21 points and lost several key players in January but they’ve come up a little short.
Above them in the table, Millwall’s win over Hull City means they are level on points with Sheffield United but just outside the play-off places. If Nottingham Forest lose against West Brom tonight, Fulham will be promoted, while Bournemouth boosted their hopes of automatic promotion with their win over Coventry City.
Premier League: Some news from the top flight, whose players have the day off after their weekend exertions.
Championship: Derby County are relegated but Barnsley, beneath them in the table having played one game fewer, are not mathematically down but need a miracle. They’re 11 points behind fourth from bottom Reading with just 12 to play for. Peterborough also live to fight another day – they’re seven points behind Reading, have a vastly inferior goal difference and both sides have just three games left.
League Two full-times
- Carlisle United 1-0 Mansfield Town
- Colchester United 3-0 Bradford City
- Crawley Town 1-0 Walsall
- Forest Green 2-0 Oldham Athletic
- Northampton Town 3-0 Harrogate
- Port Vale 1-3 Bristol Rovers
- Rochdale 2-1 Hartlepool United
- Salford City 2-2 Barrow
- Scunthorpe United 1-1 Stevenage
- Sutton United 1-0 Newport County
- Swindon Town 1-2 Leyton Orient
- Tranmere Rovers 1-0 Exeter City
- View the League Two table
League One full-times
- AFC Wimbledon 1-1 Wycombe Wanderers
- Bolton Wanderers 3-1 Accrington Stanley
- Gillingham 0-0 Fleetwood Town
- Lincoln City 3-0 Cheltenham Town
- Morecambe 1-1 Portsmouth
- Plymouth Argyle 0-0 Sunderland
- Shrewsbury Town 3-3 Doncaster Rovers
- View the League One table
Championship full-times
- Middlebrough 0-2 Huddersfield
- Barnsley 0-2 Peterborough
- Blackburn Rovers 0-1 Stoke City
- Blackpool 6-1 Birmingham City
- Cardiff City 0-1 Luton Town
- Coventry City 0-3 Bournemouth
- Millwall 2-1 Hull City
- QPR 1-0 Derby County
- Reading 4-4 Swansea City
- Bristol City v Sheffield United (5.30pm)
- Nottingham Forest v West Brom (8pm)
- View the Championship table
Derby County are relegated
Championship: Reading’s astonishing comeback against Swansea City and Derby County’s defeat at the hands of QPR means the team from Pride Park will be in League One next season, despite their heroic effort to stay up under Wayne Rooney following combined points deductions of 21 points.
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Championship: Tom McIntyre scores an equaliser for Reading against Swansea City. It’s 4-4 at the Madejski Stadium and as things stand Derby County, who trail QPR and have just had Tom Lawrence sent off, are going down.
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League One: Jon Dadi Bodvarsson scores his second of the day to give Bolton a 3-1 lead over Accrington Stanley. At the Mazuma Stadium, Jonah Ayunga has tapped home from one yard to make it Morecambe 1-1 Portsmouth.
Championship: Callum Connolly makes it Blackpool 6-1 Birmingham in a game where at least two goals seem to have been scored without my knowledge.
League Two: Ian Henderson equalises for Salford against Barrow. It’s 2-2 as the game goes into added time.
Championship: Derby County trail QPR by a Luke Amos goal scored in the 88th minute. Tom Eaves scores for Hull City at the Den, where his side trail Millwall 2-1.
League Two: Aaron Holloway puts Barrow 2-0 up against Salford, while Tranmere have doubled their lead to 2-0 against Exeter City.
Summary
League One: Wycombe equalise against AFC Wimjbledon in a game that neither side wants to draw. Adebayo Akinfenwa does the honours against his former side.
Updated
League One: Gillingham’s Charlie Kelman and Fleetwood’s Paddy Lane have both been sent off for violently lunging two-footed into each other as they contested a 50-50 ball. Lane came out worse from the incident and is being stetchered off.
League One: Doncaster pull another goal back against Shrewsbury through Reo Griffiths. They trail 3-2 but need to win.
League Two: Table-toppers Forest Green lead relegation strugglers Oldham 2-0 and the side from the north-west have just blazed a penalty over the bar.
Championship: A towering header from Frankie Kent at a corner makes it Barnsley 0-2 Peterborough. At Oakwell, Harry Cornick scores what could be a very important goal for Luton Town, getting on the end of a Robert Snodgrass cross from the left to score with a fine header.
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League Two: Harry Bunn makes it 1-1 in already relegated Scunthorpe’s game against Stevenage. At the Jobserve Community Stadium, Freddie Sears makes it Colchester 3-0 Bradford.
League One: Jon Dadi Bodvarsson gives Bolton the lead by the odd goal of three in their game against Accrington.
Championship: A goalmouth scramble ends with Lucas Joao bundling the ball home to pull another goal back for Reading in their game against Swansea City. The Swans lead 4-3 at the Madejski. If Reading can score two more and win, Barnsley and Peterborough will be relegated.
League Two: Isaac Hutchinson puts Crawley one up against Walsall, while Josh Gordon has equalised with a glancing header from a John Rooney free-kick for Barrow against Salford. It’s 1-1 at the Peninsula Stadium.
League Two: Northampton Town now lead Rochdale by three goals to nil, with Sam Hoskins scoring their second in the past four minutes.
League Two: Louis Appere makes it Northampton Town 2-0 Harrogate, while Rochdale’s Jimmy Keohane has made it all square in his side’s game against Hartlepool. It’s 1-1 at the Crown Oil Arena.
Championship: Ivan Sunjic pulls one back for Birmingham, who continue to trail Blackpool 4-1 at Bloomfield Road.
League Two: Ten-man Leyton Orient double their lead against Swindon Town. Omar Beckles scores his second of the afternoon to make it 2-0 at the County Ground.
League One: Doncaster pull a goal back at Shrewsbury but still trail 3-1 in a game they have to win to give themselves any small chance of staying up.
Championship: Michael Obafemi spanks the ball home to score Swansea’s fourth of the afternoon. They lead Reading 4-1 at the Madejski.
Championship: Millwall score their second to go two up against Hull City and keep their play-off hopes alive and kicking. Tom Bradshaw gets their second.
Championship: It’s Coventry City 0-3 Bournemouth at the Ricoh Arena, where Dominic Solanke has boosted his side’s hopes of automatic promotion with his second of the afternoon. Meanwhile at Bloomfield Road, Jake Beesley scores his second of the match to make it Blackpool 4-0 Birmingham City.
Updated
League One: Accrington equalise against Bolton with Jay Rich-Baghuelou making it one goal apiece at the Universirty of Bolton Stadium.
League Two: Already relegated Scunthorpe trail Stevenage 1-0 with Jamie Reid scoring for the visitors.
Championship: Millwall go ahead against Hull City at the Den, with Scott Malone scoring with a complete fluke from just outside the visitors’ penalty area. An attempted clearance seemed to hit his shin and the ball rolled inexorably into the Hull City goal.
Championship: No early goals to report in the second half of any second tier games.
League One: No early goals to report in the second half of any third tier games.
League Two: No early goals to report in the second half of any fourth tier games.
Championship half-times
- Middlebrough 0-2 Huddersfield (FT)
- Barnsley 0-1 Peterborough
- Blackburn Rovers 0-1 Stoke City
- Blackpool 3-0 Birmingham City
- Cardiff City 0-0 Luton Town
- Coventry City 0-2 Bournemouth
- Millwall 0-0 Hull City
- QPR 0-0 Derby County
- Reading 1-3 Swansea City
- Bristol City v Sheffield United (5.30pm)
- Nottingham Forest v West Brom (8pm)
League One half-times
- AFC Wimbledon 1-0 Wycombe Wanderers
- Bolton Wanderers 1-0 Accrington Stanley
- Gillingham 0-0 Fleetwood Town
- Lincoln City 3-0 Cheltenham Town
- Morecambe 0-1 Portsmouth
- Plymouth Argyle 0-0 Sunderland
- Shrewsbury Town 3-0 Doncaster Rovers
League Two half-times
- Carlisle United 0-0 Mansfield Town
- Colchester United 2-0 Bradford City
- Crawley Town 0-0 Walsall
- Forest Green 2-0 Oldham Athletic
- Northampton Town 1-0 Harrogate
- Port Vale 1-2 Bristol Rovers
- Rochdale 0-1 Hartlepool United
- Salford City 1-0 Barrow
- Scunthorpe United 0-0 Stevenage
- Sutton United 1-0 Newport County
- Swindon Town 0-1 Leyton Orient
- Tranmere Rovers 1-0 Exeter City
Championship: Dominic Solanke makes it 2-0 for Bournemouth at Coventry City on the stroke of half-time. Meanwhile at the Madejski Stadium, Swansea’s Michael Obafemi is brought down in the penalty area and Joel Piroe scores his second of the game from the spot. It’s 3-1 to Swansea City.
Updated
League One: Oladapo Afolayan puts Bolton Wanderers ahead against Accrington.
League One: To the Mazuma Stadium, where Portsmouth lead Morecambe 1-0 through Sean Raggett.
League One: Shrewsbury Town pile the hurt on doomed Doncaster, going 3-0 up through Shaun Whalley.
Championship: Kenny Dougall skims home a header from the edge of the six-yard box as Blackpool go 3-0 up against Birmingham City from a corner.
League Two: Jamille Matt makes it Forest Green 2-0 Oldham, converting with a header from a splendid Nicky Cadden cross.
League One: The Fat Lady is clearing her throat at New Meadow, where Shrewsbury have just hammered another nail into Doncaster Rovers’ relegation coffin. The Shrews lead 2-0 and Ryan Bowman has got their second.
League Two: Leyton Orient lead 1-0 at Swindon but have lost Hector Kyprianou to a red card for his second bookable offence. Meanwhile in Colchester, Brendan Sarpong-Wiredu has doubled the home side’s lead against Bradford City. It’s 2-0 at the Jobserve Community Stadium.
League Two: Leading Oldham 1-0, league leaders Forest Green get the ball in the net from a corner but it’s ruled out for a foul on Oldham goalkeeper Daniel Rogers as he came to claim the inswinger.
Championship: Jack Marriott roofs the ball for Peterborough United, giving them the edge in their relegation ding-dong against Barnsley after 25 minutes.
League One: AFC Wimbledon, who have not won a game since the beginning of December, have taken the lead against Wycombe Wanderers. Jack Rudoni has nodded them in front with a fine header.
League Two: Salford lead Barrow 1-0 courtesy of a low Ryan Watson drive from just outside the penalty area that was helped along by a big deflection.
League Two latest
- Carlisle United 0-0 Mansfield Town
- Colchester United 0-0 Bradford City
- Crawley Town 0-0 Walsall
- Forest Green 1-0 Oldham Athletic
- Northampton Town 0-0 Harrogate
- Port Vale 1-1 Bristol Rovers
- Rochdale 0-1 Hartlepool United
- Salford City 0-0 Barrow
- Scunthorpe United 0-0 Stevenage
- Sutton United 0-0 Newport County
- Swindon Town 0-1 Leyton Orient
- Tranmere Rovers 0-0 Exeter City
League One: Daniel Udoh scores to give Shrewsbury a one-goal lead over Doncaster Rovers, who will be relegated if they lose and might still go down if they fail to win.
League One: Lincoln City stretch their lead to 3-0 against Cheltenham Town, who are looking increasingly unlikely to prevail in their 1,000th EFL game. Anthony Scully scored the Imps’ second, while Morgan Whittaker got their third.
League One: Lincoln City double their lead against Cheltenham Town, who are looking increasingly unlikely to prevail in their 1,000th EFL game.
Updated
Championship: CJ Hamilton cuts inside from the right and rifles a low drive into the far corner to put Blackpool 2-0 up against Birmingham City.
Championship: Jamal Lowe scores with a brilliant header off the bar to put Bournemouth one up at Coventry City. Meanwhile at the Madejski Stadium, Swansea have come from a goal down to lead Reading. Joel Piroe has put them ahead with by the odd goal of three with a long range diagonal effort into the corner.
League One: Lincoln City lead Cheltenham Town courtesy of Morgan Whittaker’s opener.
League Two: Table-toppers Forest Green have gone one up against beleagured Oldham Athletic, who are staring into the abyss of League One. Regan Hendry scored the opener at the New Lawn Stadium.
Championship: Hannes Wolf has equalised for Swansea City against Reading at the Madejski Stadium.
Championship: The goals are flying in early doors. Lucas Joao has fired Reading ahead against Swansea City from the penalty spot. Jake Beesley took just three minutes to give Blackpool an early lead against Birmingham City, poking home a cross from six yards out. Jacob Brown has fired Stoke City ahead at Blackburn.
Our three o’clock kick-offs are under way: In the big relegation scrap at the bottom of the Championship, Barnsley have roared out of the traps and hit the Peterborough United cross-bar.
Match report: Middlesbrough 0-2 Huddersfield Town
Championship: Jordan Rhodes, the former Middlesbrough striker, returned to the Riverside to help Huddersfield to a 2-0 win that keeps their hopes of a top-two finish alive.
Moving the Goalposts
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Full time: Middlesbrough 0-2 Huddersfield Town
Championship: Huddersfield’s remarkable season continues with a win over Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium. Naby Sarr and Jordan Rhodes got the goals for Carlos Corberon’s side, who were well worth their win. They’re third in the table, a point behind Bournemouth, who have played three games fewer. Middlesbrough are eighth in the table.
The Guardian Football Weekly podcast
Max Rushden was on hosting duties, while myself, Jonathan Wilson, Ed Aarons and Ewan Murray all forgot to wish him a happy birthday in an accidental snub – it was very early in the morning – that has since been pointed out on the Whatsapp group.
We did remember to pick through the bones of the weekend’s Premier League, FA Cup, Women’s FA Cup and Scottish Cup action, while wondering if Newcastle striker Chris Wood is still Burnley’s designated penalty-taker.
You can listen by clicking on the link below and if you’re not already a subscriber, sign up for free in all the usual places.
Championship: Josh Koroma has just missed a glorious opportunity to extend Huddersfield’s lead against Middlesbrough, seeing his weak shot blocked in the six-yard box. It remains 2-0 at the Riverside with 18 minutes left.
Goal! Middlesbrough 0-2 Huddersfield Town (Rhodes 60)
Championship: Huddersfield Town have just doubled their lead at the Riverside, having caught Middlesbrough with a lightning fast counter-attack that was finished off with a left-footed strike from Jordan Rhodes. Middlesbrough had been looking dangerous in this second half but that goal could knock the stuffing out of them.
Championship: Middlesbrough and Huddersfield Town got the afternoon’s action under way at the Riverside, where it’s half-time and the visitors have just gone ahead courtesy of a Naby Sarr header from a free-kick. Earlier in the game there was a major talking point.
Under pressure from a marker, Middlesbrough defender Sol Bamba hoisted a backpass up in the air towards his goalkeeper Luke Daniels, who was forced to leap and catch the ball to prevent it from sailing over his head and into the goal.
Huddersfield’s players felt that Daniels should have been sent off for preventing as clear a “goalscoring opportunity” as you’ll ever see, but he was only booked and Huddersfield had to settle for an indirect free-kick in the penalty area.
Subsequent investigations have revealed the referee’s decision to have been correct, if massively unfair on Huddersfield. It was a technical foul and it seems a goalkeeper cannot be sent off for handling the ball inside his own penalty area. But there is no doubt that if Daniels had not illegally caught Bamba’s back-pass, the ball would have ended up in the goal and Huddersfield would have been one up.
Updated
League Two
Forest Green will be promoted if they beat Oldham Athletic, Mansfield lose against Carlisle, and Northampton and Bristol Rovers drop points. In second place, Exeter City can’t be promoted today but can confirm a place in the play-offs at least.
Towards the bottom of the table, Scunthorpe are already relegated and while former Premier League side Oldham are in the gravest danger of joining them, their relegation can’t be rubberstamped today.
Today’s League Two fixtures
- Carlisle United v Mansfield Town
- Colchester United v Bradford City
- Crawley Town v Walsall
- Forest Green v Oldham Athletic
- Northampton Town v Harrogate
- Port Vale v Bristol Rovers
- Rochdale v Hartlepool United
- Salford City v Barrow
- Scunthorpe United v Stevenage
- Sutton United v Newport County
- Swindon Town v Leyton Orient
- Tranmere Rovers v Exeter City
- View the League Two table
League One
Wigan Athletic lead League One but defeat at the hands of Cambridge United on Friday mean their promotion was put on ice. If they beat Ipswich today and MK Dons lose against Oxford United, then the Latics will go up.
Rock bottom of League One, Crewe Alexandra are already down. Doncaster Rovers will join them in League Two next saeason if they lose at Shrewsbury. A draw might not be enough to keep their survivial hopes alive, depending on the outcome of GIllingham’s game against Fleetwood.
League One fixtures
- AFC Wimbledon v Wycombe Wanderers
- Bolton Wanderers v Accrington Stanley
- Gillingham v Fleetwood Town
- Lincoln City v Cheltenham Town
- Morecambe v Portsmouth
- Plymouth Argyle v Sunderland
- Shrewsbury Town v Doncaster Rovers
- View the League One table
Championship
Fulham lead the way at the top of the Championship, with a nine-point cushion between themselves and second-placed Bournemouth. They will be promoted without playing today if Nottingham Forest lose against West Brom tonight.
Huddersfield, Luton Town, Forest and Sheffield United occupy the remaining top-six spots, but behind them Middlesbrough, Blackburn Rovers, Coventry, Millwall will all fancy their chances of making the play-offs.
Nearer the bottom of the table, Barnsley entertain Peterborough this afternoon and either or both sides could find themselves relegated by the time the final whistle is blown at Oakwell. Above them, Derby County need a win against QPR to keep their faint hopes of survivial alive and will hope Swansea can beat Reading, the only other side in any danger of going down.
Today’s Championship fixtures
- Middlebrough v Huddersfield (12.30pm)
- Barnsley v Peterborough
- Blackburn Rovers v Stoke City
- Blackpool v Birmingham City
- Cardiff City v Luton Town
- Coventry City Bournemouth
- Millwall v Hull City
- QPR v Derby County
- Reading v Swansea City
- Bristol City v Sheffield United (5.30pm)
- Nottingham Forest v West Brom (8pm)
- View the Championship table
Easter Monday clockwatch ...
We’ve a big day of English Football League action ahead of us that could end in promotion or relegation for several teams across the divisions.
Still in the hunt for automatic promotion from the Championship, Huddersfield Town travel to Middlesbrough for this afternoon’s ealy kick-off. Their hosts, managed by Chris Wilder, currently sit one place and two points outside the play-off spots.
We’ll bring you news of all the goals as they go in across the Championship and beyond, as well as any other talking points that arise as the afternoon unfolds.
