Preston assistant Stuart McCall believes referee Thomas Bramall was suckered into giving Hull the first of two penalties, paving the way for the Tigers’ 2-1 victory.McCall conducted post-match media duties for North End after manager Paul Heckingbottom was given a red card following the conclusion of the Sky Bet Championship clash for remonstrating with Bramall.Lewis Gibson put the Lilywhi...Full Story »

Michael Carrick defiantly insisted Middlesbrough still have an “unbelievable chance” to reach the Sky Bet Championship play-offs following a deflating 2-1 defeat away to Sheffield Wednesday.Boro blew the chance to climb to sixth – above Coventry on goal difference – after squandering an early lead and missing a penalty at Hillsborough.Tommy Conway’s spot-kick was sa...Full Story »

Crawley boss Scott Lindsey basked in the glow of a crucial home victory after his side keep alive their hopes of avoiding relegation with a 3-1 success over Exeter.Two goals  from Rushian Hepburn-Murphy and another by Panutche Camara gave the Red Devils a 3-0 lead after only 24 minutes.Midfielder Caleb Watts replied within a minute, but Exeter never looked like mounting a comeback before Ed...Full Story »

Aaron Ramsey refused to write off Cardiff’s survival chances after a 1-1 home draw with Oxford left them in serious danger of relegation from the Sky Bet Championship.Cardiff are 23rd and three points from safety with two games to play after an afternoon when their position worsened as four clubs around them – Plymouth, Luton, Derby and Hull – all won.“We have got to win ...Full Story »

Paul Warne heaped praise on keeper Craig MacGillivray after securing his first win since becoming MK Dons manager.Warne, who arrived at Stadium MK last week, watched Scott Hogan capitalise on an error by former Dons loanee Filip Marschall for the only goal of the game at Crewe.The new boss was impressed with his players’ efforts in his second game in charge and he was particularly pleased ...Full Story »

Rotherham manager Matt Hamshaw admitted he had ‘learned a real lot’ about how next season will look after the 1-0 League One defeat at Wigan.James Carragher’s 36th-minute header from Owen Dale’s corner was the difference between the two sides as Wigan claimed the win they needed to mathematically secure their third-tier status.The Millers were already safe from the drop b...Full Story »

Luton boss Matt Bloomfield was proud of his side’s second-half display as they remained in the fight for Championship survival by beating Bristol City 3-1.With the scores goalless at the break, it looked like being another frustrating afternoon for the hosts at Kenilworth Road before Thelo Aasgaard fired them in front on 49 minutes.George Tanner levelled brilliantly three minutes later but...Full Story »

Alan Sheehan insisted it was “not a given” he would become Swansea boss on a permanent basis despite leading them to five consecutive Sky Bet Championship victories.The Swans edged a 2-1 win at QPR and have now won seven and lost just two of their 11 matches since Sheehan took caretaker charge following the sacking of Luke Williams in February.It would also have been five clean sheet...Full Story »

Stockport manager Dave Challinor praised his players’ character after they bounced back from a goal down to beat Huddersfield 2-1 and seal their place in the League One play-offs.The visitors took the lead through Josh Koroma but County levelled through Fraser Horsfall, and then won the game late on through Ollie Norwood’s penalty.Challinor saw his side clinch victory when it could h...Full Story »

Plymouth boss Miron Muslic remains positive his Championship basement side can avoid the drop after they boosted their hopes with an impressive 3-1 home win over sixth-placed Coventry.Goals from Mustpha Bundu and Ryan Hardie shortly before half-time put the hosts in the driving seat and, although Haji Wright pulled a goal back just before the interval, Bundu’s second of the afternoon 20 mi...Full Story »

Barnsley head coach Conor Hourihane was disappointed not to beat Peterborough but pleased to pick up his first point since taking up the position after the battling 1-1 draw at Oakwell.Ricky-Jade Jones gave the visitors the lead before Jonathan Russell levelled. The result secured Peterborough’s Sky Bet League One status, while the Tykes remain in 12th place.Hourihane said afterwards: &ldq...Full Story »

Port Vale boss Darren Moore praised his promotion-chasing side for coming from two goals down to salvage a “vital point” against Grimsby.Danny Rose’s brace, which included a penalty, had the visitors two up, but Lorent Toll pulled one back before Jesse Debrah scored a dramatic equaliser five minutes into added time at Vale Park.The draw left Vale second, a point behind leaders ...Full Story »

Simon Weaver was “ecstatic” and felt that Harrogate “fully deserved” their 3-1 League Two comeback victory over Fleetwood which secured their Football League status for another season.The Sulphurites recovered from falling a goal down early in the second half to take all three points from Easter Monday’s fixture at Wetherby Road, with that result moving them nine po...Full Story »

Portsmouth boss John Mousinho said he would allow himself a celebratory beer after a 1-0 win at home to 10-man Watford secured their Championship status.Colby Bishop scored his 11th goal of the season to guarantee survival in the second tier with two games to spare.Mousinho said: “I will definitely have a beer tonight, 100 per cent. I think it’s a brilliant achievement.“I don&r...Full Story »

Tony Mowbray felt West Brom “lacked a bit of courage on the ball” as their play-off hopes were all-but ended by a 3-1 home defeat to relegation-threatened Derby.The visitors twice punished the Baggies from set-piece situations when Ebou Adams and Jerry Yates struck from corners in the first half.Adam Armstrong’s goal halved the deficit and made for a nervy final 20 minutes unti...Full Story »

Leeds boss Daniel Farke saluted four-goal Joel Piroe after his side thrashed Stoke 6-0 at Elland Road to stand on the brink of Premier League promotion.Piroe fired Leeds’ fastest-ever league hat-trick with strikes in the sixth, eighth and 20th minutes and added his fourth before half-time after Junior Firpo had put Farke’s side 4-0 up in 26 minutes.Willy Gnonto headed Leeds’ si...Full Story »

Carlisle head coach Mark Hughes promised his team were “still fighting” after securing a late point in a 1-1 draw at fellow strugglers Accrington.Callum Whelan rifled home a superb strike in the second minute of stoppage time to cancel out Sonny Aljofree’s 70th-minute opener for Stanley. The visitors also hit the woodwork through Georgie Kelly.The result left the 23rd-placed Cu...Full Story »

Bolton boss Steven Schumacher admitted “it’s a bigger job than I expected” after seeing his side’s League One play-off hopes crash and burn in a 4-2 defeat at Lincoln.The Trotters had fought back from two goals down to level by the break, through Jay Matete and Alex Murphy, after Erik Ring and James Collins, with a penalty, had put City 2-0 up after 17 minutes.But a secon...Full Story »

Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson wants his players to “block out everything” surrounding promotion talk and concentrate on what they need to do after the 2-1 win over Blackpool in Sky Bet League One.James McClean and Ollie Rathbone scored midway through the second half to give the Red Dragons all three points on the seaside, despite a late Rob Apter consolation.Parkinson also praised h...Full Story »

Birmingham head coach Chris Davies reflected on two moments of quality in three first-half minutes following his side’s 2-1 win at Burton.Blues chose the perfect time to seize the advantage, with Alfons Sampsted firing in a deflected first followed by a cool finish from Jay Stansfield to end the opening 45 minutes perfectly for the visitors.“That was definitely the case. It was a goo...Full Story »