Oliver Norwood’s goal at the death rescued a point for Sheffield United in a dramatic 3-3 draw with Blackpool, which ended with four red cards and a mass brawl.
The hosts had looked comfortable following goals from James McAtee and Iliman Ndiaye, but Jerry Yates struck twice to make it all-square at the break and Kenny Dougall made it 3-2 to Blackpool early in the second half.
Blackpool were reduced to nine men in the closing stages with Marvin Ekpiteta and Dominic Thompson both sent off and, soon after Rhian Brewster missed an 88th-minute penalty, Norwood equalised deep into time added on. A brawl after the final whistle ended with red cards for Wes Foderingham and Shayne Lavery.
Sheffield United manager Paul Heckingbottom played down the post-match incident, saying: “Lavery has come and grabbed Wes to keep him out of the way and as Wes has spun, they’ve both grappled each other and just fallen over.
“They didn’t seem to think anything had happened but obviously the referee has seen two lads on the floor and he’s thinking that they’re fighting. We’ll have to have a look and see what we do about it.”
Jay Rodriguez struck twice as Burnley beat 10-man Swansea 4-0 to replace Sheffield United at the top of the Championship table. The Swans’ run of four-straight wins was brought to an end by goals from Vitinho, Rodriguez and Anass Zaroury, and their misery was completed by a straight red card for top scorer Joel Piroe for violent conduct with 15 minutes left.
Managerless West Brom defeated Reading 2-0 to end their eight-match run without a league victory. Under the interim guidance of Richard Beale after Steve Bruce was sacked on Monday, Albion went in front in the 25th minute through a close-range effort from Matt Phillips. The visitors secured the points in the 72nd minute with a goal from Taylor Gardner-Hickman.
Middlesbrough dropped into the relegation zone as their problems mounted with a 2-1 home defeat by Blackburn. Rovers returned to winning ways thanks to an early own goal from Darragh Lenihan and a superb long-range finish from Sam Gallagher. Duncan Watmore gave Middlesbrough hope when he pulled a goal back on the stroke of half-time, but, with interim manager Leo Percovich watching on from the technical area, the hosts were unable to avoid a second successive defeat.
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League One roundup: Plymouth extend lead at top
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Plymouth remained top of the table after a thoroughly professional display saw them brush aside a struggling MK Dons side 4-1.
The visitors scored the opener less than 10 minutes into the game, Morgan Whittaker latching onto Matt Butcher’s through ball and, though his tame shot was straight at Jamie Cumming, the MK Dons goalkeeper could not hold onto it as it spilled over the line.
The lead was doubled on 25 minutes, Niall Ennis finishing off a neat move that involved some slick, quick passing from Finn Azaz and Whittaker.
Argyle increased their advantage further eight minutes before half-time, Azaz picking up a loose ball from the home defenders before lashing home from 12 yards out. Will Grigg got the home side back into the game four minutes after the restart, firing home past Michael Cooper after picking the ball up on the edge of the visitors’ area.
A three-goal lead was restored 10 minutes later, Azaz again latching onto a loose ball before curling past Cumming in the MK Dons goal.
Lowly Lincoln stunned Ipswich with a 1-0 victory and inflicted the first home league defeat of the season on the Tractor Boys.
The only goal of the game came in the 24th minute from Ben House following a corner. The ball initially hit the head of Regan Poole and went up in the air only to drop down for the City man to score.
Oxford turned in a superb display as they ran out emphatic 4-2 winners at Exeter.
Cameron Brannagan, Sam Long and a double from Kyle Joseph put the visitors in complete control inside an hour at St James Park and Exeter could only respond though consolation goals from Jevani Brown and Sonny Cox.
A second-half comeback from Port Vale saw them snatch a point in a 2-2 draw with Forest Green.
Two first-half headed goals from Myles Peart-Harris and Baily Cargill, both via free-kicks, left Vale dumbfounded after they had controlled possession. Mipo Odubeko pulled one back after the break before Ellis Harrison’s late penalty secured a point.
Lee Gregory scored twice in Sheffield Wednesday’s 2-0 win at Cambridge. Derby defeated Accrington 3-0 with Stanley missing two penalties, Shrewsbury edged past Fleetwood 1-0 and Wycombe saw off Peterborough 3-1. Bristol Rovers scored four in the first half but none in the second as they down Cheltenham 4-1.
There was a 1-1 draw between Burton and Morecambe, while Bolton and Barnsley ended goalless.
Norwich missed a chance to go top, losing 2-1 at Watford. The hosts took the lead through Imran Louza, five minutes after he had missed a penalty. Keinan Davis made it two before Josh Sargent pulled one back before the break.
Elliot Embleton and Dennis Cirkin led a second-half Sunderland comeback to secure a first win in five games for Tony Mowbray’s side with a 2-1 victory over Wigan. Charlie Wyke had continued his fine return to football with a second goal in as many weeks at his former ground, but a formation change from Mowbray at the interval turned the tide of the contest definitively.
Two expertly taken goals from Will Smallbone and Tyrese Campbell inside eight second-half minutes propelled Stoke to a wholly deserved 2-0 win at Preston. Stoke’s win meant a successful first return to Deepdale for the former Preston manager Alex Neil, who has revived hopes of a promotion challenge after taking charge of the Potters in August.
Midfielder Smallbone, on loan from Southampton, sparked joyous scenes among more than 3,000 travelling fans behind Freddie Woodman’s goal when he stroked Stoke in front after 58 minutes and Campbell was equally clinical in the 66th.
Luton ended their long wait for a victory over QPR as they halted the visitors’ five-game unbeaten run with a 3-1 win at Kenilworth Road. They had not won any of their six meetings since returning to the Championship, with their last league success coming in January 2006.
Luton took the lead on 19 minutes through Elijah Adebayo, then, with 13 minutes to play, made it two via a Jimmy Dunne own goal. In added time another own goal, this one from Ethan Horvath, made it 2-1, but there was still time for Luton to find a third through Luke Freeman.
Matt Taylor earned his first win as Rotherham manager as they edged out Huddersfield 2-1. The result ensured Rotherham’s strong home form continued and put a seven-point buffer between the two sides as Taylor looks to put his stamp on the squad built over six years under predecessor Paul Warne.
The hosts took a 25th-minute lead via a clinical curler from Conor Washington. Huddersfield levelled four minutes later as Danny Ward struck through a host of bodies at the near post. The winner came on the hour from substitute Georgie Kelly.
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League Two roundup: Stevenage stay top despite Gills draw
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Stevenage maintained their two-point lead at the top despite being held 1-1 at Gillingham. Steve Evans’ side were denied a fifth straight league win as Elkan Baggott’s first-half header for Gillingham cancelled out Danny Rose’s opener.
The point was enough to keep Stevenage clear of Leyton Orient and Northampton, who drew 0-0 at the Breyer Group Stadium.
Orient defender Daniel Happe’s first-half header hit the crossbar, while Northampton played most of the second half with 10 men after midfielder Ben Fox was shown a straight red card.
Mansfield extended their unbeaten home league run this season to six matches as substitute Will Swan’s late header sealed a 2-1 win against Walsall. The promotion-chasing Stags had been pegged back by Liam Bennett before the interval after George Lapslie had given them the lead.
Andy Cook’s 13th goal of the season in all competitions sealed Bradford a 1-0 win at fellow promotion hopefuls Salford, who struck the crossbar through Callum Hendry’s first-half effort. Jack Stretton fired a second-half double as Carlisle extended their unbeaten league run to nine matches with a 3-0 home win against Doncaster. Callum Guy gave Carlisle a first-half lead and Derby loanee Stretton fired his first goals for the Cumbrians.
Grimsby climbed up to 10th after their 3-1 win at 10-man Stockport.
Harry Clifton and Gavan Holohan struck in the space of six first-half minutes for the Mariners and although Paddy Madden reduced the deficit, Alex Hunt’s stoppage-time effort sealed all three points. Stockport midfielder Callum Camps received a straight red card for a reckless high tackle.
Rochdale made it three wins from four as goals in either half from Liam Kelly and Scott Quigley secured them a 2-1 home victory against Barrow. Niall Canavan headed a late consolation for the visitors.
Harrogate ended their eight-game winless league run by beating Hartlepool 2-1 at the EnviroVent Stadium. Alex Pattison and Jack Muldoon gave Harrogate a 2-0 half-time lead before Josh Umerah’s late reply.
Tyrese Shade’s solitary second-half goal clinched Swindon a 1-0 home win against Colchester and Sutton won by the same score at AFC Wimbledon thanks to Craig Eastmond’s close-range finish.
Managerless Newport slipped to a sixth defeat in eight league games, losing 2-1 at Crawley, who climbed off the foot of the table. James Tilley and Ashley Nadesan’s header gave Crawley a two-goal lead and despite Nathan Moriah-Welsh’s reply for Newport, the home side held on.
Zian Flemming hit a 76th-minute winner to give Millwall a 2-1 victory over Bristol City at Ashton Gate. The visitors took a 44th-minute lead when Tom Bradshaw’s diving header was well saved by Max O’Leary, only for the striker to get up and shoot home from the rebound.
City responded on 71 minutes when substitute Cameron Pring’s low cross from the left was turned into his own net by Millwall skipper Shaun Hutchinson as he stretched to intercept. But an error from O’Leary, failing to collect the ball when advancing towards the edge on to claim a high ball, allowed Flemming to slot into an unguarded net from 15 yards. The City keeper saved an injury-time penalty from substitute Benek Afobe after a foul by Alex Scott on George Saville, but it counted for nothing.
Coventry ended a run of nine away defeats with only their second win thanks to a first-half goal from Viktor Gyokeres at Cardiff. The 1-0 win moved Mark Robins’ side closer to their relegation rivals with games in hand due to the problems they had at the start of the season in using the Coventry Building Society Arena.