Norwich 1 Wigan 1
Norwich’s frustrating start to the Sky Bet Championship campaign continued as they were forced to settle for a point from a 1-1 draw with newly-promoted Wigan.
Still trying to get a dismal Premier League campaign out of their systems and smarting from an opening-day defeat at Cardiff, the Canaries dominated for long periods in the Carrow Road sunshine but were unable to make their superiority count.
The visitors took the lead against the run of play in the first half when they capitalised on a mistake from Ben Gibson, with James McClean providing the finish.
No work phone? Companies that tell staff to bring their own could be walking into danger
‘Writing a Christmas card list makes you think about who you value. It’s a very mindful exercise’
The secret loves of property writers: Our top 10 favourite homes of 2024
Sally Rooney: When are we going to have the courage to stop the climate crisis?
Max Aarons’ well-taken goal levelled things up just past the hour mark, but a plucky Wigan side then kept them at bay to register a second successive draw since coming up.
Swansea 0 Blackburn 3
Blackburn got an immediate return from their new Irish signing Sam Szmodics as he opened his account on his debut to set up a 3-0 win over Swansea at the Swansea.com Stadium.
Ryan Hedges headed straight towards the Swansea goal before squaring to Szmodics, who made no mistake from the edge of the area as he picked his spot in the right corner of Andy Fisher’s home goal.
Ben Brereton Diaz outmuscled Joel Latibeaudiere as he raced on to another great ball into space by Hedges and ran 20 metres before chipping over the advancing Fisher for a second goal just before the hour mark.
The final nail in the Swansea coffin was hammered home by Rovers skipper Lewis Travis as the visitors flooded forward in the 84th minute after once again stealing possession.
Reading 2 Cardiff 1
Goals from Ireland’s Shane Long and Tom Ince saw Reading come from behind to claim a 2-1 victory at Cardiff.
Ireland’s Callum O’Dowda gave the home side the lead early on with a well-directed header but Long, making his first Royals start for 11 years, equalised from the penalty spot before the break.
Tom Ince, son of Reading manager Paul, made it 2-1 in the 63rd minute with a rasping effort from distance, and Cardiff were unable to mount a comeback.
QPR 3 Middlesbrough 2
QPR held off a Middlesbrough fightback to win 3-2 and give Michael Beale his first victory as boss.
Chris Willock, on his return from injury, netted a brilliant opener before goals from Ireland’s Jimmy Dunne and Lyndon Dykes put Rangers in control.
Matt Crooks scored shortly before the interval and Marcus Forss’ goal — his first for Boro — 11 minutes into the second half increased the visitors’ hopes of pulling off a comeback.
But they were unable to find an equaliser and ended the match with 10 men after Ireland’s Darragh Lenihan was red-carded in injury time for bringing down Macauley Bonne, who would have been through on goal.
Preston 0 Hull 0
Preston’s frustrating start to the season continued as they failed to score for the second successive game as Ryan Lowe’s side were held to a drab 0-0 draw by Hull at Deepdale.
The Lilywhites were unable to find a goal away at local rivals Wigan on the opening weekend and Lowe’s side again struggled to produce a killer touch on their first home outing of the campaign.
Ireland’s Troy Parrott was the bright spark for Preston as his cushioned pass was almost steered home by strike partner Emil Riis Jakobsen, before his dangerous whipped cross was superbly cleared away by the Hull back line.
Preston stayed on the front foot in the closing stages, as Hull dug in deep for a draw, with Parrott again at the heart of it for the home side, but his dink over Ingram was desperately hacked away off the line by the retreating Greaves on 85 minutes.
Sheffield United 2 Millwall 0
Sheffield United cruised past Millwall to pick up their first points of the new season with a convincing 2-0 win at Bramall Lane.
First-half goals from Iliman Ndiaye and Sander Berge sealed victory for Paul Heckingbottom’s men, who could have a third goal before the break only for Oliver Norwood to see his penalty saved.
The result sees the Blades bounce back from their opening-day loss to Watford, while Millwall tasted defeat for the first time this campaign.
Bristol City 2 Sunderland 3
Everton loanee Ellis Simms marked his debut with two goals as Sunderland gained their first three-point haul since returning to the Championship with a 3-2 win at Bristol City.
The striker netted inside four minutes, firing low past Dan Bentley from 20 yards after Ross Stewart had won a tackle on the edge of the box.
City were level in the 10th minute, Andreas Weimann collecting a Zak Vyner pass inside the area and making space to turn and shoot home from a central position.
The hosts went in front six minutes after the break when Chris Martin bundled in a Weimann cross from the right.
However, Simms was on target again two minutes later, shooting low through Bentley’s legs from 10 yards, before Stewart headed the winner from Alex Pritchard’s 72nd minute cross to leave the home side with no points to show for their first two matches.
Stoke 2 Blackpool 0
Stoke’s home Championship campaign began with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Blackpool.
The Potters, who sat bottom after a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Millwall on the opening weekend of the season, took control of the fixture after the half-hour mark.
Arsenal loanee Harry Clarke nodded in on his home debut to give the hosts the lead and a Jacob Brown strike in the second half tightened their grip on the tie.
Burnley 1 Luton Town 1
Josh Brownhill’s goal rescued Vincent Kompany’s Burnley a point in a 1-1 home draw with Luton, who raced into an early lead through Dan Potts.
The Hatters - who reached the Championship play-offs last season - took the lead through defender Potts after the Clarets were unable to clear a corner.
Home fans had to wait until after the break for the equaliser as midfielder Brownhill beat keeper Ethan Horvath with a low shot from outside the box.
