Championship roundup: Saints win as Leicester and Ipswich both drop points
Newcastle-born striker Adam Armstrong helped extend Sunderland’s losing run to six matches as Southampton’s 4-2 victory breathed new life into their promotion push.
Watford sack manager Valérien Ismaël following home defeat by Coventry
Read more
Armstrong, who played 21 times for the Magpies after coming through their youth set-up, converted a first-half penalty after Stuart Armstrong had already poked Saints ahead. Romaine Mundle and Jobe Bellingham pulled it back to 2-2 but Joe Rothwell’s quick-fire double off the bench - both with heavy input from Adam Armstrong - maintained interim Sunderland manager Mike Dodds’ blank record since taking over from Michael Beale.
Leaders Leicester dropped points against play-off chasing Hull, needing Jamie Vardy’s double to earn a 2-2 draw. Enzo Maresca’s men had to work hard against the Tigers and fell behind when Fabio Carvalho, who had earlier missed from the penalty spot, scored after 16 minutes. But Leicester showed plenty of resolve and equalised through Vardy’s contentious penalty after 31 minutes. Hull again nudged in front when Annas Zaroury let fly from the edge of the penalty box on 61 minutes, but Vardy scored a trademark second just two minutes later to secure the Foxes an important point.
Quick Guide
League One: Derby replace Bolton in second
Show
Ipswich failed to reclaim second place as Cardiff struck twice in stoppage time for a remarkable 2-1 victory. Kieffer Moore seemed to have returned to haunt his former club 11 minutes from time and put Ipswich on the edge of collecting three precious points in the Welsh capital. But Ryan Wintle punished slack marking in the fifth minute of stoppage time as Ipswich failed to deal with Rubin Colwill’s cross and Callum O’Dowda’s knockdown. And that was not the end of the drama as five minutes later, and with virtually the last kick of the match, Perry Ng hooked the ball towards the far post at a chaotic corner and O’Dowda volleyed home.
Norwich put their play-off bid back on track after a midweek defeat as they hammered bottom side Rotherham 5-0 at Carrow Road. The hosts recorded their biggest win of the season, with four of the goals coming in a one-sided first half. Gabriel Sara led the way with two to reach double figures for the season while Jacob Sorensen, Borja Sainz and the prolific Josh Sargent were also on target.For Rotherham it was a ninth straight defeat, and their second 5-0 loss in a row. There is now every chance their relegation will be confirmed before the end of the month.
Haji Wright scores from the penalty spot for Coventry at Vicarage Road. Photograph: Kieran Cleeves/PA
Haji Wright scored twice as Coventry came from behind to beat Watford 2-1 at Vicarage Road – a result which prompted the home side to sack manager Valérien Ismaël. US international Wright converted a 40th-minute penalty to cancel out Ryan Porteous’ headed opener and then struck a composed 72nd-minute winner from the edge of the area. Watford have now won just one of their past 10 league games and are in danger of being sucked into the increasingly-congested relegation battle.
Luke McNally’s late deflected goal earned Stoke a vital victory at Preston, moving them out of the relegation zone. The on-loan Burnley defender’s goal settled a tight game, which had looked set to finish 1-1 after an own goal from Andrew Hughes and Preston substitute Milutin Osmajic’s equaliser four minutes later.
Sign up to Football Daily
Free daily newsletter
Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football
Enter your email address
Sign up
Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Quick Guide
League Two: Stags stay top, FGR earn vital win
Show
Second-half goals from Emmanuel Latte Lath and Marcus Forss gave Middlesbrough a 2-0 victory at Loftus Road and ended QPR’s recent resurgence. Latte Lath broke the deadlock on 64 minutes as Rangers were unable to clear a free-kick, and Forss doubled the lead 12 minutes later following a counter-attack after Rangers’ Chris Willock appeared to have been fouled near the edge of the Boro penalty area. The defeat means QPR, who were unbeaten in their previous four matches, sit just one point above the relegation zone.
Morgan Whittaker’s 19th goal of the season gave Plymouth a valuable 1-1 draw at 10-man Blackburn. The struggling duo both went into this game knowing they could be in the bottom three by the end of the day and the early signs were good for Rovers, who led through Sammie Szmodics’ 27th goal of the season. But Plymouth’s chances improved when Kyle McFadzean was sent off early in the second half and they rescued a point their performance deserved when Whittaker slammed home at the far post in the 74th minute.
Japhet Tanganga headed in a 90th-minute winner as Millwall snatched a vital 1-0 victory over fellow strugglers Birmingham. The Lions have won three of their four games since Neil Harris returned to the club for a second spell as manager, although they had to withstand some heavy pressure from the Blues in the second half at The Den.
Pos Team P GD Pts
1 Leicester 37 41 82
2 Leeds 37 40 79
3 Ipswich 37 25 78
4 Southampton 36 26 73
5 West Brom 36 18 60
6 Norwich 37 12 58
7 Hull 37 7 58
8 Coventry 37 16 57
9 Preston North End 36 -6 53
10 Cardiff 37 -6 53
11 Middlesbrough 36 0 50
12 Sunderland 37 3 47
13 Watford 37 1 45
14 Bristol City 36 -2 44
15 Swansea 36 -11 43
16 Millwall 37 -12 43
17 Plymouth 37 -7 41
18 Blackburn 37 -13 41
19 Stoke 37 -15 41
20 QPR 37 -14 39
21 Birmingham 36 -15 39
22 Huddersfield 36 -16 38
23 Sheff Wed 37 -25 38
24 Rotherham 37 -47 19