Ipswich narrowed the gap on the Championship’s top two with an impressive 2-0 win at Coventry, ending the leaders’ unbeaten home record this season. Jack Clarke opened the scoring after 72 minutes and Wes Burns’ first goal since April 2024 doubled the visitors’ lead 11 minutes later.
Kieran McKenna thought his side fully deserved their victory. The Ipswich manager said: “In the first half there was a real confidence, a composure. We took the game on, controlled the game and had some really good chances.
“We knew at half-time that the whole game wouldn’t be like that against a team this strong with the home record they have. You’re not going to have a period of pressure and set plays, you’re going to have to stay strong and we managed to do that in the second half, and we got the goals clearly that the performance deserved.
“The boys knew what they needed to do and everyone was really happy when the first goal goes in and from there we were in a great spot.”
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Yang Min-hyeok scored a last-gasp winner to give Portsmouth a vital 2-1 win over Charlton and lift them out of the relegation zone. Harvey Knibbs headed in an equaliser in the last minute of additional time after Conor Shaughnessy had given Pompey the lead. But Portsmouth went straight up the other end and caused euphoria right around the ground as Tottenham loanee Yang struck a devastating blow to Nathan Jones’ side.
Sheffield United moved seven points clear of the relegation zone after claiming a 2-1 win away at Stoke. Second-half goals from Jairo Riedewald and Tom Cannon secured all three points for Chris Wilder’s side. Ben Wilmot halved the deficit with 25 minutes remaining but Stoke, who lost Ben Pearson to an 88th-minute red card, were unable to find an equaliser and have now failed to register a win in six out of their last seven matches.
A 90th-minute winner from the substitute Vivaldo Semedo earned in-form Watford a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Norwich at Carrow Road while Sheffield Wednesday‘s winless run stretched to 17 games with a goalless draw at Blackburn.
Wrexham moved to within four points of the playoff places with a 2-1 win over Preston. Nathan Broadhead (pictured) nodded them in front in the 28th minute before the substitute Ollie Rathbone doubled their lead 12 minutes from time, with Alfie Devine’s late consolation not enough to stop Phil Parkinson’s men making it back-to-back wins in the league for the first time this season.
Macaulay Langstaff’s first goal since the opening day of the season gave Millwall a 2-1 victory over Bristol City that moved them back into the playoff positions. Adam Randell cancelled out Camiel Neghli’s opening goal but Langstaff won it with nine minutes remaining.
Set-piece headers from the defenders George Campbell and Nat Phillips gave West Brom a welcome 2-1 home win over QPR. Ousmane Diakité’s 35th-minute own goal pegged West Brom back until Phillips restored their lead 10 minutes after the break.
Zan Vipotnik scored his 12th goal of the season for Swansea as they completed a double over managerless Oxford with a 1-0 win at the Kassam Stadium. The Slovenia international powerfully headed in Josh Tymon’s left-wing cross in the 14th minute.
Darko Gyabi’s clinical first-half strike enabled Hull to turn the tables with a 1-0 win over Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium – less than a month after being hammered 4-1 at Hull’s MKM Stadium.
Cameron Archer sealed a point in a 1-1 draw for Southampton after Phil Neumann’s header had looked to put Birmingham on course for a first win since 1 December. PA Media
The Tractor Boys had started the day 13 points behind Frank Lampard’s team and five behind second-placed Middlesbrough after a run of four away matches without a win.
It was the second time this month that Ipswich tasted victory over Coventry, after Kieran McKenna’s side enjoyed a 3-0 success at Portman Road on 6 December. Monday’s defeat ended a run of eight straight home wins for Coventry, who were handed their first loss at the CBS Arena this season – and only a third in the league this calendar year.
Ipswich dominated the first half, enjoying almost 70% possession against an uncharacteristically passive Coventry. McKenna made four changes to his side from the 0-0 draw with Millwall on Boxing Day as Jack Taylor, Sindre Walle Egeli and Clarke replaced Jens Cajuste, Kasey McAteer and Jaden Philogene.
Jacob Greaves replaced the ill Leif Davis at left-back, and it was his cross that created the first opening of the match when Iván Azón’s header was saved by Carl Rushworth.
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Yousef Salech’s 11th league goal of the season ensured Cardiff maintained their three-point lead at the top of League One as they completed the double over Stevenage with a 2-1 win in the Welsh capital. Phoenix Patterson gave Stevenage the lead with a superb strike from the edge of the area in the 57th minute but Callum Robinson levelled and Salech’s goal completed the turnaround.
Lincoln cemented their place in the automatic promotion places thanks to a wondergoal from Adam Reach in a 2-0 win at Barnsley. Reach’s thunderous volley from outside the area in the second half added to Tom Hamer’s early opener and ensured the hosts fell to a third straight defeat.
Managerless Port Vale slipped to a 1-0 defeat against high-flying Bradford at Valley Parade with Jenson Metcalfe’s second-half strike making it 12 games without a win for the Valiants.
Huddersfield made it three straight league victories for the first time since December last year and moved into the top six as Joe Low and Bojan Radulovic struck in a 2-0 victory over Northampton.
Stockport sealed a 4-2 win against lowly Doncaster as they strengthened their grip on a playoff spot.
Blackpool made it five league games unbeaten in a 4-0 victory over 10-man Rotherham at Bloomfield Road, with Josh Bowler, Danny Imray, Ashley Fletcher and Tom Bloxham getting on the scoresheet.
Elsewhere Luton swept aside Leyton Orient in a 3-0 win, Wimbledon lost 1-0 to Exeter, Mansfield edged out Bolton 1-0, Wigan triumphed 2-0 at Burton, Peterborough played out a 1-1 stalemate with Reading and Plymouth and Wycombe drew by the same scoreline. PA Media
Clarke then lashed an effort wide after latching on to a cross on the edge of the Coventry box. Azón was released by Greaves and the Spaniard was able to cut inside and curl a shot into the arms of Rushworth. Darnell Furlong’s cross was then met by Greaves, who saw his header held by Coventry’s keeper.
The on-loan Brighton man then made one of the saves of the season to deny Taylor. The 24-year-old sprawled to his right to keep out the midfielder’s well-struck effort, tipping on to the underside of the bar before Luke Woolfenden prodded the ball out for a corner.
The Sky Blues, who had managed just one effort in the first half through Ephron Mason-Clark’s header, started the second half on the front foot as Victor Torp’s shot was blocked by Greaves. Ipswich’s goalkeeper, Christian Walton, made his first save 10 minutes after the break when he pushed away Haji Wright’s deflected effort as the American went in search of his first goal since 4 October. Lampard was then left aghast when the referee Anthony Backhouse waved away appeals for a penalty after Wright and Furlong clashed on the edge of the box.
Rushworth had enjoyed a quiet start to the second period after his first-half heroics but was called upon once again as he pushed Azón’s goalbound shot out for a corner. The opener arrived on 72 minutes when Marcelino Núñez picked out Clarke and the winger had plenty of time to get his shot away, which looped up off the heel of Woolfenden and into the corner.
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Michael Cheek hit a superb hat-trick as Bromley outclassed struggling Crawley 3-1 to go top of League Two with a ninth win in 10 games.
Walsall were knocked off the top as Oldham snatched a 2-1 victory in the dying seconds, ending the hosts’ eight-match unbeaten run in the process. The visitors snatched victory in the last of the six minutes added on when a corner was headed in at the near post by the substitute Kian Harratt.
Second-half goals from Aaron Drinan and Filozofe Mabete sealed a 2-0 win for Swindon at Cheltenham.
Callum Paterson scored a second-half equaliser as MK Dons and Notts County played out a 1-1 draw at Stadium MK.
Salford and Fleetwood closed 2025 with a goalless draw at the Peninsula Stadium. It was a fair reflection of the match with neither team able to capitalise on their chances.
Harrogate slipped to bottom of the table after they extended their winless run to 13 games with a 1-0 loss at Accrington. Shaun Whalley struck from the penalty spot in the first half and Town were reduced to 10 men with Jacob Slater sent off after the break.
Goals in each half from Courtney Baker-Richardson and Sammy Braybrooke earned Newport a first home win in 289 days as they beat Crewe 2-0 to move off the bottom of the table.
Meanwhile Barrow beat Tranmere 3-1, Grimsby secured a 1-0 victory against Shrewsbury, Gillingham and Colchester drew 1-1, Cambridge triumphed 1-0 at Chesterfield and Barnet earned a 2-0 win at Bristol Rovers. PA Media
Ipswich doubled their lead through Burns, who was making his second appearance since suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury against Liverpool in January. Núñez was the creator once again as he laid into the path of the Wales international, who rolled his shot calmly into the corner in front of the travelling supporters. McKenna said of Burns’ goal: “Delighted for Wes, for his family, delighted for the staff, medical team who worked really hard with him, really nice for the supporters and for his teammates.”
Lampard conceded that his side “didn’t play as well as we normally do and we came up against a good team, a strong team in this league. They played well so sometimes you have to credit the opposition and I think we were off it a little bit in probably energy, in bravery to play like we normally do.”
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