Football League: Broom helps sweep Plymouth to top of League One
Plymouth moved top of League One after edging past Burton. Ryan Lowe’s men sit above Wycombe on goal difference thanks to their 2-1 win at Home Park and the matches involving Sunderland and Wigan being postponed.
Conor Grant opened the scoring after 15 minutes to put the hosts in charge and Ryan Broom swept in his side’s second just before half-time. Lucas Akins pulled a goal back for the visitors but they could not find a leveller and sit 10th.
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Wycombe breezed past Gillingham 2-0, having in effect sealed victory inside the first seven minutes. Garath McCleary and Brandon Hanlan scored early, with Hanlan also hitting the post in the second half, as Gareth Ainsworth’s side made it seven straight home league wins. Vadaine Oliver missed a first-half penalty for Gillingham, who sit two points above the bottom four. Wycombe are a point ahead of third-placed Wigan having played a game more.
Lee Gregory’s second-half winner gave Sheffield Wednesday a 1-0 victory over Bolton. The striker finished off Jack Hunt’s low cross at Hillsborough to leave the Owls a point adrift of the top six.
Ipswich climbed to 14th after a 2-1 win over fellow strugglers Shrewsbury. Conor Chaplin’s 23rd-minute opener put the hosts ahead only for Shaun Whalley’s fine 20-yard drive to level five minutes later. Paul Cook’s side restored their lead to win it after 54 minutes when the QPR loanee Macauley Bonne headed in his eighth goal in seven games.
In League Two, Harrogate scored five first-half goals as they romped to a 6-1 victory against Scunthorpe and moved to second in the table. Ryan Fallowfield’s header came back off the crossbar and the ball fell kindly for Jack Muldoon to fire home in the eighth minute. They doubled their advantage through Alex Pattison’s fine finish from Muldoon’s defence-splitting pass. The rampant home side added a third shortly afterwards through Jack Diamond and it was four on the half-hour as he broke quickly and played the ball across for Pattison to sweep home.
Jack Diamond scores Harrogate’s third goal on their way to a 6-1 win over Scunthorpe. Photograph: Richard Sellers/PA
Muldoon’s second goal of the game made it 5-0 in the second minute of first-half stoppage time and after Harry Davis scored a consolation for Scunthorpe, Lewis Thompson was sent off for a second bookable offence as he conceded a penalty. Danilo Orsi completed a thumping victory from the spot.
Swindon beat the league leaders, Forest Green, 2-0 thanks to second-half goals from Harry McKirdy and Tyreece Simpson. They opened the scoring after 55 minutes when McKirdy volleyed in from a Ben Gladwin cross and it was 2-0 with nine minutes to go when a through-ball from McKirdy was converted by Ipswich loanee Simpson.
The Swindon goalkeeper Lewis Ward fouled Josh March to concede a stoppage-time penalty but made amends as he saved March’s spot-kick.
Sutton edged a seven-goal thriller at home against Port Vale. Nathan Smith headed in the opener for the visitors from Jamie Proctor’s pinpoint cross and then found the bottom corner with a smart finish.
Sutton were back in it after 36 minutes when Rob Milsom’s strike deflected in and it was all square in the 69th minute when Ben Garrity headed into his own net. Vale were back in front after 78 minutes when Tom Conlon drilled a shot into the bottom corner, but Sutton levelled once again through Will Randall’s header before snatching the points with a scrappy winner in stoppage time from Coby Rowe.
Barrow and Leyton Orient played out a 1-1 draw as Robbie Gotts’s opener for the home side was cancelled out by Omar Beckles’s close-range finish.
Walsall left it late to sink Salford 2-1 as Conor Wilkinson grabbed the winning goal in the fifth minute of stoppage time. A superb solo effort from Kieran Phillips had put the Saddlers ahead after just 29 seconds but Salford equalised through Ashley Eastham’s header from a corner.
Bristol Rovers eased the pressure on boss Joey Barton with a 3-0 win over Carlisle, with Antony Evans, Sam Nicholson and Harvey Saunders scoring, while Hartlepool came from behind to beat Northampton 2-1.
Sam Hoskins volleyed in the opener for Northampton, but David Ferguson’s quick response and a neat volley from Luke Molyneux secured the points in the 83rd minute.
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Kwesi Appiah’s fourth goal of the season earned Crawley a 1-0 win at Rochdale, while Elliott List scored twice to earn Stevenage a point in a 2-2 draw against Exeter. Sam Nombe and Matt Jay had twice given Exeter the lead. Mansfield v Oldham and Newport v Bradford both ended goalless.