Football League Review: Hull win to go top of Championship

Hull City are the new leaders of the Championship after Steve Bruce’s side won 2-0 at Blackburn Rovers to leapfrog Middlesbrough.

Abel Hernandez and Mohamed Diame were on target as the Tigers bounced back from their defeat to fellow promotion-chasers Burnley last weekend to go two points clear at the top of the table.

With Middlesbrough not in action until their trip to Leeds United on Monday, Burnley had the opportunity to climb into the top two but Sean Dyche’s side could only draw 0-0 at Reading.

The Championship’s top scorer Andre Gray had the chance to add to his 18 goals this season but saw his penalty saved by Ali Al-Habsi.

Brighton and Hove Albion closed the gap on second-placed Middlesbrough to a point with a 3-2 home win against Bolton Wanderers – Chris Hughton’s men’s fourth-successive league victory.

Sheffield Wednesday are also in fine form and they rose to fifth with a 4-0 thrashing of 10-man Brentford at Hillsborough to become the top scoring team in the Championship.

Paul Clement was sacked by Derby County this week but the wobbling Rams lost again under Clement’s replacement Darren Wassall, suffering a 1-0 home defeat to MK Dons to drop to sixth spot.

At the bottom, Charlton Athletic and Rotherham United remain in the relegation places after both sides recorded 0-0 draws at home to Cardiff City and Birmingham City respectively, while Bristol City’s 2-1 victory against Ipswich Town increased their safety cushion above the bottom three to five points.

Fulham also climbed away from the relegation zone with a 3-1 derby win at QPR in the day’s early kick-off, while Nottingham Forest’s 13-match unbeaten run came to an end with a 2-0 home loss to Huddersfield Town.

In League One, Gillingham climbed into the automatic promotion places with a 2-1 home win against Barnsley, with both Walsall and Wigan Athletic dropping points.

Coventry City thrashed Bury 6-0 and Bradford City won 4-0 at Peterborough United, after leaders Burton Albion beat Chesterfield 1-0 on Friday.

In League Two, Northampton Town tightened their grip on top spot with a 4-0 win at Leyton Orient, while second-placed Plymouth Argyle beat Mansfield Town 3-0 and Oxford United stayed third thanks to a 4-2 victory at Morecambe.

York City climbed off the bottom of the Football League with a 2-1 home win against Notts County, leaving Dagenham and Redbridge to prop up the division after they lost 2-0 at home to Barnet.