Brighton stayed top of the table after an emphatic 4-0 away win against hapless Charlton Athletic. Spaniard Inigo Calderon got the ball rolling when he smashed home from six yards after a well placed cross from Gary Dickers. The second came midway through the second half when Glen Murray took full advantage of a comedy of defensive errors, before rounding the keeper and coolly slotting the ball past two static defenders on the line.
After his cracking goal last week Kazenga LuaLua was eager to prove it wasn’t a one-off. From a similar distance to his ferocious free-kick against Bournemouth, Lualua repeated the feat with another impressive goal from a free-kick to add to his rapidly growing collection. The unmarked Matt Sparrow completed the rout in stoppage time to give Brighton their biggest away win in over a decade.
It was goals galore at the Greyhound Stadium as Peterborough edged a thrilling encounter 5-4, despite a stirring comeback by Swindon. Posh raced into an early three goal lead courtesy of two goals from Craig Mackail-Smith and one from Lee Frecklington. Swindon responded brilliantly with three goals of their own, with David Ball notching two and then Matt Ritchie remarkably drawing them level at the stroke of half-time.
George Boyd put Peterborough back in front on the hour mark but Swindon recovered once again and equalised through a Charlie Austin penalty. After a frantic finale the game was eventually settled by an own goal, as Swindon defender Kevin Amankwaah heartbreakingly put the ball in his own net.
In the battle of the young-gun managers Ed Howe came out on top as his Bournemouth side beat MK Dons 3-2. MK Dons took the lead just before the break when Shaun O’Hanlon rose highest to head home from a corner. Second half goals from Danny Hollands, Anton Robinson and Marc Pugh put the home side 3-1 up, before Peter Leven scored a late consolation penalty for the MK Dons.
Bournemouth have turned Dean Court into a real fortress, with this latest victory their fifth in just six home games this season. If they can replicate their home form on the road they’ll surely be real title contenders come the end of the season.
Huddersfield simultaneously ended their recent poor run of form and Southampton’s five match unbeaten run with a dominant 2-0 win at the Galpharm Stadium. Huddersfield were in control from start to finish, with Anthony Pilkington opening the scoring after just six minutes when he reacted well to a rebound off the bar. This lead was doubled on the stroke of half-time when Gudjonssonn thundered the ball past Kelvin Davis to cap a solid display for the Terriers.
Nigel Adkins will be terribly disappointed as Saints were a shadow of the side that won so convincingly against Bournemouth and Tranmere in recent weeks. The Saints stay mid-table while Huddersfield move up to 5th.
Newly promoted Exeter City kept themselves on the cusp of the play-offs after an impressive victory over highflying Carlisle. Richard Logan opened the scoring with a clinical finish into the bottom left-hand corner before finding himself through on goal once again just a few minutes later, where he cleverly turned a defender and thumped the ball past goalkeeper Adam Collin. Carlisle’s Matty Robson scored a fantastic freekick with twenty minutes to go, but it wasn’t enough as Exeter held on.
Tranmere replaced Brentford at the foot of the table after slumping to another lacklustre defeat. Brentford went ahead when Kevin O’Connor converted a penalty after Aaron Cresswell handled inside the area. O’Connor scored from another set piece in the second half with a cracking 35-yard free-kick. Marcus Bean scored late on to condemn Tranmere to a woeful home defeat.
Rochdale lost their third consecutive game as Jeff Hughes and Chris Lines scored for Bristol Rovers. A Hughes penalty gave Bristol the lead seconds before the half-time whistle. Chris Lines' then scored a right-foot curler with ten minutes remaining to give his side the three points, with a late own-goal from Rochdale’s Byron Anthony proving too little too late.
Leyton Orient’s Jonathan Tehoue scored a last minute winner to put an end to Hartlepool’s two-match winning run. Tehoue came of the bench to belt home a corner after a mix up in Hartlepool’s defence.
Sheffield Wednesday once again ignored their off-field problems, recording their third win on the trot. Jermaine Johnson and Tommy Miller scored after the break to see off a below par Yeovil.
Plymouth continued their erratic run, losing 2-0 away to Notts County. Some poor defending allowed Craig Westcarr to score the opener. Plymouth’s defensive problems had clearly not improved in the second half as John Spicer slotted home in the 50th minute to confirm the win.
Elsewhere Dagenham & Redbridge drew 1-1 with Walsall after Martin Devaney cancelled out a Darren Currie opener. While Oldham Athletic and Colchester United played out a 0-0 draw at Boundary Park.