Championship round-up

Wolves can taste Premier League football after they beat Derby on a day when Sheffield United and 10-man Birmingham both drew.

 

 

Andy Keogh scored twice as Wolves came from behind to beat Derby and keep their title charge on track.

The league leaders made a dream start as Keogh tapped home from close range after just seven minutes following impressive work out wide from center back Christophe Berra, but the hosts were level after half an hour as Polish midfielder Przemyslaw Kazmierczak expertly curled home a free kick from the edge of the box.

Derby bossed the game from then on and took a deserved lead in the 54th minute as Kris Commons’ corner attracted everyone to the near post, except for Mile Sterjovski who arrived unmarked at the back stick and nonchalantly side-footed the ball home on the full.

But Wolves refused to throw in the towel and were rewarded in the 73rd minute as Matt Jarvis fired home from close range after Robbie Savage failed to clear. The winner arrived four minutes from time as sub Marlon Harewood drove into the box before crossing for Keogh to head home unmarked at the back post.

 

 

Barnsley will be looking anxiously over their shoulders after a catalog of missed opportunities and a disastrous first half saw them finish empty-handed.

After just one minute and 15 seconds Anderson De Silva was penalized for a foul on Jordi Gomez. From the resulting free kick Ashley Williams reacted quickest to put Swansea in front.

And before the break things got even worse for Barnsley. After soaking up pressure – Barnsley were left stunned as Gomes scored with a soft strike from the edge of the penalty box past Heinz Muller.

Barnsley boss Simon Davey looked disgruntled in the second half as his side shipped a third goal to Jason Scotland, prompting fans to call for his head.

Daniel Bogdanovic reduced the arrears late on for Barnsley but it proved too little, too late.

 

 

Birmingham suffered a promotion setback as in-form Plymouth continued their recent good run of form by taking a surprise point at St Andrews.

The Blues were left with a mountain to climb after just 23 minutes as goalkeeper Maik Taylor was needlessly red-carded for a collision with Jamie Mackie.

The first job for substitute goalkeeper Colin Doyle was picking the ball out of the back of the net as Paul Gallagher scored his sixth goal in his last nine games from the spot.

Six minutes later it got even worse for Birmingham as influential defender Liam Ridgewell was stretchered off with what appeared to be a serious knee injury.

Ridgewell’s replacement, Franck Queudrue, came to his side’s rescue after the break – scoring from a David Murphy cross.

Plymouth thought they’d nicked it in the final seconds but Ashley Barnes saw his effort ruled out for offside.

 

 

Reading, who suffered a weekend loss against fellow high-flyers Sheffield United, threw away a two-goal lead against strugglers

Blackpool as The Royals' winless run continued.

Steve Coppell’s men raced into a two-goal lead and the game looked dead and buried but Reading needlessly let Blackpool back into the game before the break.

Noel Hunt – restored to the starting XI – opened the scoring after 10 minutes.

Jem Karacan doubled Reading’s lead with his first league goal for the club, reacting quickest to Stephen Hunt’s effort that had been diverted onto the crossbar.

But against the run of play Charlie Adam and Keith Southern combined for the latter to reduce the deficit, before former Birmingham striker DJ Campbell did his former club a huge favor after the break by equalizing on 65 minutes.

 

 

Bristol City wasted a whole host of chances as they failed to bounce back from their shock weekend loss at struggling Nottingham Forest thanks to a late strike from one-time Barcelona hitman Giovani Dos Santos.

Bristol City boss Gary Johnson was forced to reshuffle his ranks after the ninth-minute withdrawal of goalkeeper Adrian Basso, who had to be replaced by Stephen Henderson.

After a dour first half, Marvin Elliott grabbed the opener from close range, firing home into the bottom right corner after Michael McIndoe had supplied the ammunition from midfield.

It should have been two for Bristol City in the dying minutes but former Everton goalkeeper Richard Wright saved brilliantly from McIndoe and Ivan Sproule.

But Dos Santos held his nerve in second-half stoppage time from the penalty spot after former Bolton midfielder Ivan Campo had been unfairly challenged.

 

 

Ross McCormack scored two last-gasp goals as the 23-goal Cardiff top-scorer continued his scoring form in a dramatic late win against Burnley.

Burnley started like an express train in this play-off battle, with Chris Eagles, Robbie Blake and Clarke Carlisle all going close early on.

Any thoughts of Burnley suffering burnout in the Championship run-in, after already playing 56 games this season, were dismissed at Ninian Park.

Cardiff should have gone ahead just before the interval but Ross McCormack and Michael Chopra were both denied.

After the break Cardiff came to life – McCormack won a big flick-on to allow former Arsenal youngster Jay Bothroyd to score on 73 minutes.

Blake equalized on 84 minutes but straight from the kick-off the prolific McCormack put Cardiff back in front, before adding a second late on.

 

 

Charlton, who have won just once in their last nine games, survive to live another day in the Championship after results at Norwich and Nottingham Forest went their way.

Jonjo Shelvey could have put Charlton ahead on the hour but Coventry defender Daniel Fox got back at him to make a tackle.

It was backs to the wall for Charlton after the break as Coventry continued to throw the kitchen sink at the Championship basement-boys.

Substitute Ashley Cain and Michael Doyle were both cruelly denied as Charlton put bodies on the line.

Cain should have sealed a win for Coventry late on but he fired wide, while Nicky Bailey saw his goalbound strike hit the post for Charlton.

 

 

Managerless QPR came from two goals down to beat Sheffield Wednesday with Damion Stewart grabbing the winner three minutes from time.

The hosts bossed the opening exchanges but found themselves a goal down in the 35th minute as a corner from Etienne Esajas was misjudged by Gavin Mahon who glanced the ball into his own net.

QPR fell further behind in the 53rd minute as Stewart brought down Leon Clarke in the box and Marcus Tudgay coolly dispatched the penalty for his 14th of the campaign before Rowan Vine gave the home side hope with a tap-in just after the hour.

The game was turned on its head in the 73rd minute as Lee Cook’s inswinging left-foot cross was met by a diving header from Mahon at the back post and the comeback was complete late on when Cook produced another telling cross with Stewart the beneficiary on this occasion.

 

 

Preston remain in the play-off hunt after recovering from Saturday’s surprise loss against Blackpool to comfortably see off Doncaster.

Preston were in desperate need of all three points and they went ahead in the 26th minute as Chris Brown rose highest to head home a Ross Wallace cross for his fourth of the season.

Moments earlier Doncaster had threatened to derail Preston’s slim play-off hopes but Dean Shiels’ header struck the upright with Andy Lonergan stranded.

The visitors made the points safe in the 72nd minute as Jon Parkin found Neil Mellor in space and the former Liverpool striker calmly slotted the ball in to the bottom left-hand corner.

 

 

Norwich picked up a massive three points in their bid to beat the drop after completely outplaying Watford from start to finish.

Bryan Gunn’s side flew out of the traps and got their reward when Watford’s Danny Rose – under pressure from Irish frontman David Mooney – looped his attempted clearance over the head of keeper Scott Loach.

The home side continued to dominate in the second half and were agonizingly close to extending their lead shortly after the hour but Sammy Clingan’s volley flew inches wide of the upright while Alan Gow saw a header cleared off the line by Watford striker Tommy Smith.

Norwich eventually got the second goal their dominance deserved as Gary Doherty headed home a Clingan free kick at the second attempt, after his initial header had hit the bar.

 

 

Sheffield United missed a golden opportunity to enhance their promotion hopes after failing to beat a Nottingham Forest side that had ten men for all but 15 minutes of the game.

The first-half talking point came in the 15th minute as referee Mike Jones produced a straight red for Nottingham Forest’s Kelvin Wilson for an off-the-ball altercation with Sheffield United’s Greg Halford.

Despite the setback it was Forest who created the better openings in the remainder of the first half with Dexter Blackstock heading straight at Paddy Kenny after Luke Chambers had picked him out in the area.

The Blades controlled the game after the break but struggled to create any clear-cut opportunities with Halford’s free kick comfortably saved by Paul Smith and Arturo Lupoli’s late solo effort flying inches wide.

 

 

Southampton kept their survival hopes alive with a narrow win over Crystal Palace courtesy of a wonder strike from David McGoldrick.

The Saints dominated the opening half and should have gone ahead when Bradley Wright-Phillips broke the offside trap, but Palace defender Clint Hill – who had donned the gloves in place of Julian Speroni, who was off the field receiving treatment – saved his effort.

Wright-Phillips had a chance to make amends late on in the half but this time Speroni, who had returned after receiving stitches in his head, turned his goal-bound effort around the post.

The home side continued their dominance after the break and took the lead in style with 66 minutes on the clock as Lloyd James teed up David McGoldrick and the youngster let fly from the edge of the area to score.