Championship round-up: Barnsley stay bottom after goalless draw with Wigan who face 12 point-penalty

A stalemate at Oakwell kept Barnsley at the foot of the Championship table on paper and Wigan effectively bottom once their 12-point penalty is applied.

The Tykes could not capitalise on a second-half red card for Wigan’s Danny Fox in a goalless draw which was of little use to either side after Luton’s 2-0 win at Huddersfield on Friday night kept up the pressure in the Championship relegation battle.

A point each leaves Barnsley three points adrift of safety and Wigan effectively one point worse off, although they have appealed against the points deduction which is to be imposed at the end of the season after they entered administration on July 1.

Wigan’s push for a winner  was made tougher following the second-half red card to Daniel Fox

Both teams could be set for the drop once Wigan’s 12-point penalty is applied to the standings

Ryan Leonard’s second-minute stunner sealed Sky Bet Championship play-off hopefuls Millwall a narrow victory at beleaguered Hull.

Grant McCann’s Tigers have endured a torrid 2020, with a play-off push replaced by a relegation battle after star men Jarrod Bowen and Kamil Grosicki were allowed to leave in January.

Hull have managed just one win since New Year’s Day and on Saturday they failed to capitalise on their relegation rivals’ poor results, with Leonard’s 30-yard strike just 75 seconds into proceedings sealing a 1-0 win for Millwall.

Millwall took a huge win in their push for the play-offs thanks to a Ryan Leonard goal

Keane Lewis-Potter of Hull looks dejected as his side remained in the bottom three with defeat

Nahki Wells scored his 20th goal of the season to keep Bristol City on the fringes of the Sky Bet Championship play-off race and leave Middlesbrough scrapping for dear life.

Wells helped himself to a double either side of Jamie Paterson’s fine finish as the visitors, under the guidance of caretaker manager Dean Holden, cruised to a 3-1 victory at the Riverside Stadium and secured back-to-back wins for the first time since February.

On an afternoon when the Teessiders paid tribute to former manager Jack Charlton before kick-off, they huffed and puffed and were unable to find the cutting edge they needed to repeat their midweek success at Millwall until Britt Assombalonga’s late consolation strike, and they remain perilously close to the bottom three.

Nakhi Wells scored his 20th goal of the season as Bristol City kept their play-off hopes alive

Jayden Stockley cancelled out a Lewis Grabban penalty as play-off chasers Preston and Nottingham Forest fought out a tense 1-1 draw in the Sky Bet Championship.

Grabban struck after just five minutes of what became a tight battle at Deepdale once Stockley had levelled just 10 minutes later.

Preston had the better chances as they pushed for a second-half winner but Patrick Bauer, Stockley and Tom Barkhuizen all had efforts blocked by Forest bodies.

The result left Preston two points outside the play-off positions, having missed a chance to draw back level with sixth-placed Cardiff. With three games remaining, however, they still have a chance.

Fifth-placed Forest had arrived hoping to shore up their play-off position with a victory but, after long spells under pressure, they settled for a point.

Nottingham Forest were held to a 1-1 draw in a hard fought contest away against Preston

Sheffield Wednesday took advantage of QPR’s post-lockdown blues by cruising to a 3-0 victory at Loftus Road.

Goals from Dominic Iorfa, Josh Windass and Jacob Murphy secured a much-needed second win since the restart for Garry Monk’s side.

The problems have been piling up for Monk, whose team had taken just 13 points out of a possible 57 since Christmas to fall from third into the bottom half.

Ordinarily they would have no fears of relegation, but a potential points deduction hanging over the club if they are found guilty of an English Football League misconduct charge means they might need all the points they can get.

Rangers will be grateful for the pre-lockdown form which took them to the 50-point mark, as they have now lost five of their six matches since the resumption.

Sheffield Wednesday romped to a 3-0 victory over QPR with Josh Windass among the scorers