Hatters performing up to the Hylt again
DANNY HYLTON’S 12th league goal of the season sent table-toppers Luton on their way to a 2-1 win at Crewe.
Luke Berry’s strike followed the effort from Hylton (below) as the Hatters went nine away matches unbeaten in the league for the first time since 1981.
But Notts County remain right on their heels after a dramatic afternoon.
An 89th-minute strike by Sanmi Odelusi looked to have rescued a draw for Colchester, following Shola Ameobi’s first-half penalty.
But Ryan Yates headed an added-time winner for County to keep them level on points with the leaders.
Accrington remain third but are now just a point ahead of Exeter after a 2-0 defeat to the Grecians, Hiram Boateng scored in first-half stoppage time and Pierce Sweeney fired in an 86th-minute penalty.
Wycombe climbed into the play-off places with a 2-1 home win over Yeovil.
All the goals came in the final eight minutes of the first half with Eberechi Eze and Joe Jacobson, from the spot, putting the hosts in front before Francois Zoko scored. Marc McNulty equalised for Coventry with Crawley. Mansfield were twice behind to arch-rivals Chesterfield but battled back for a 2-2 draw with the division’s bottom club.
Swindon slipped out of the play-off places after Ben Tozer’s late header handed Newport a 1-0 win. Barnet lost 2-0 at home to Grimsby. Jamille Matt and Sam Jones scored for the visitors while the Bees had Dwight Pascal sent off. Port Vale are just a point above the bottom two after a
3-1 defeat at Lincoln. Matt Green, Michael Bostwick and Luke Waterfall were on the scoresheet. Danny Pugh had equalised for Vale just before half-time.
Morecambe came from behind to draw 1-1 at Carlisle – and would have won had Adam Campbell not blazed a late penalty over. Kelvin Etuhu and Garry Thompson scored the goals.
Christian Doidge scored again for Forest Green but Cheltenham hit back through Mohamed Eisa to draw 1-1. Cambridge beat Stevenage 1-0 thanks to Uche Ikpeazu’s
88th-minute header. DERBY boss Gary Rowett described Matej Vydra as the best number 10 in the Championship after the Czech forward’s hat-trick.
Vydra took his league tally for the season to 11 as he sandwiched a second-half penalty with two well-taken finishes and his treble helped lift Derby back into the play-off positions.
Rowett said: “When he gets the ball at his feet and travels, he’s a terrific player. He can score with his left foot or his right foot and he can also head the ball as well. I think he’s the best number 10 in the league.
“He’s had a couple of loan moves that didn’t really work, so I think he needs to feel that he’s valued at the heart of things. He’s got everything
LEEDS edged an ugly Yorkshire derby to ease the pressure on boss Thomas Christiansen.
The Dane’s position had come under scrutiny after a run of eight defeats in 10 games – including a 4-1 hammering at Wolves in midweek – and a visit to Oakwell, where United had won just once in 20 years, would not have been the most appealing prospect.
But they put on a display for their boss and first-half goals from Samuel
Saiz and Ezgjan Alioski wrapped up a convincing three points which puts them back on the tail of the play-off pack.
“For me it is another three points, for the players it is important to build on the confidence,” Christiansen (above) said.
“The team is back, we are hoping results will improve now. I am very pleased for the players to take three points.
“That was our mission, to come here and try and take the three points back with us, we did the good performance and really, apart from maybe being a bit more physical when he’s defending. But if he had those attributes too, he’d be a £40million or £50million player and be playing in the Premier League.”
The striker was too hot for Boro to handle and his treble saw an in-form Derby rise to sixth spot after a run of six wins in their last eight games.
Middlesbrough suffered an afternoon to forget, with Daniel Ayala’s second-half dismissal for a this is was what we needed to try and be positive going forward.
“We made a good start because we did the things we had to do. We had to equalise their intensity and then our quality came through. “The two goals were very important, to go to half-time with the score like that.” Barnsley, who had scored 17 goals in Leeds’ last six visits down the M1, were not at the races and failed to register a shot on target until the 77th minute.
That record at Oakwell might have had Leeds fearing the worst but there were no demons on show as it was the visitors who began with intent, with Alioski fizzing an effort just wide of the post after a loose ball had fallen to him 18 yards out.
A large melee upped the ante second yellow card summing up their struggles. Martin Braithwaite drilled a long-range free-kick narrowly over the bar before the hosts almost claimed the lead through the in-form Britt Assombalonga.
The ex-Nottingham Forest man already boasts
11 goals for the season and he almost added a
12th when he stabbed in a shot after Ayala flicked on Cyrus Christie’s long throw, only for Scott Carson to make a superb point-blank save.
The Rams had barely figured as an attacking threat to that point but Rowett’s side took the lead with their first meaningful move.
It was a well-worked goal with Vydra drifting into the area and playing a slick one-two with former