League One (England)

And it was a player who was effectively snubbed by Appleton during his Imps tenure who did most to spoil his night, Hakeeb Adelakun scoring twice with Sean Roughan also on target as City fought back from going behind early to an Alfie May goal to win their second game in succession under interim boss Tom Shaw.

“We were short tonight on everything we’ve been good at,” said Appleton.

“We just didn’t give ourselves a chance, there wasn’t enough duels where we came out on top. Against a physical side like Lincoln, there’s only one scenario that’s going to happen when it’s like that.

“We were not brave enough in the second period of the first half and we were wasting so many goal kicks that were just going to their centre-halves and coming straight back.

“There were a lot of errors in short spells, which created a lot of momentum for Lincoln. It was just one of those nights when we were not aggressive enough, not positive enough.

“There have been lots of lessons learned. Nights like these stop lots of people getting carried away.”

Charlton took a 10th-minute lead when Tyreece Campbell raced on to a through-ball down the left and crossed for the diving May to bundle in from close range.

The Imps were level just after the half-hour mark when Lasse Sorensen fed Jack Burroughs and his cross reached Adelakun, who controlled expertly before swivelling and smashing the ball past Ashley Maynard-Brewer.

Sorensen then delivered a pinpoint cross to Adelakun to stab the ball home from close range and put Lincoln ahead after 57 minutes.

Roughan sealed the win 20 minutes later, the Irish defender firing home after finding himself through on goal.

“We’ve given the players a lot of information in the past week – we have tried to affect their confidence and mindset,” said Shaw, who has now guided the Imps to within two points of the play-off zone. “I thought the players executed the gameplay phenomenally well.

“It was a very pleasing night. The players went to the edge on Saturday and the challenge was can you do it again, physically and mentally? I think we went even more, to be honest. The physical output was outrageous.

“We asked them, ‘can you take the roof off this place?’ And I think some of the stuff, with and without the ball, gave the supporters something to get behind.”

On two-goal hero Adelakun, he added: “He is a great bloke and is full of class. I thought he was sparkling and caused real problems. He was brilliant tonight.”

The Addicks took the lead in the 27th minute after Miles Leaburn scored his first league goal of the season.

The teenager drilled across keeper Max Stryjek after excellent approach play by Tyreece Campbell.

Chairboys striker Sam Vokes headed a Luke Leahy free-kick against the crossbar just before the interval.

Wycombe made it 1-1 after 54 minutes as West Ham loanee Freddie Potts volleyed home his first senior goal from the edge of the box after Garath McCleary’s corner was only partially cleared.

Two Charlton substitutes combined to restore the hosts’ lead. Slobodan Tedic did not connect cleanly with Tennai Watson’s cross but it curled past Stryjek just two minutes after the on-loan Manchester City frontman had been introduced to the action.

Corey Blackett-Taylor, a livewire menace throughout, settled the contest in stoppage time, cutting in from the right of the penalty area before clinically finishing.

The pair go head-to-head at Wembley on Monday when the two South Yorkshire rivals clash in the third tier’s winner-takes-all season finale.

Barnsley edged past Bolton 1-0 on aggregate in their semi-final, while Wednesday overcame the biggest first-leg deficit in play-off history before beating Peterborough on penalties.

Moore silenced the Owls fans who had called for him to be sacked after his side’s 4-0 first-leg defeat appeared to have left them dead and buried and Duff paid tribute to his rival manager.

Duff said: “Darren deserves loads of credit because one thing he’s done the whole season, when weirdly there’s been a bit of noise about him when they got 96 points this season, is keep his counsel because he’s a good fella.

“First and foremost, he’s a good fella. He’s obviously a football man, he’s been around it a long, long time.

“I don’t know what he’s like as a manager in terms of day-to-day stuff, but you take people as you find them and we’ve beaten them twice and he’s been humble, he’s taken it.

“He says ‘fair play to you’ and shakes your hand. No excuses afterwards that some managers come out with. He said ‘better team won’ and I think that goes a long way just as a human being.”

Barnsley completed the league double over the Owls this season for the first time since 2009, winning 2-0 at Hillsborough in September and 4-2 at Oakwell in March.

But they finished 10 points adrift of their local rivals in the table, with the Owls’ 96-point tally more than any other side not to finish in the top two of any league in English football’s history.

That did not stop the vitriol that came Moore’s way after his side’s 4-0 semi-final first-leg defeat at Peterborough.

Some fans called for his head before the return leg, while Wednesday were forced to issue a statement condemning a racist message directed at Moore on social media.

“It shows you the emotional state people can get into,” Duff said. “Darren’s a good manager, full stop.

“Was he a terrible manager when they got beaten 4-0? No. And he’s become an even better manager now because of the belief he gave them.

“Things he said in interviews and in the dressing room, things he showed the players. Good management. He managed to get the best out of it.”

Barnsley finished fourth in the table, one place below Wednesday, and their 86-point haul would have been enough for automatic promotion in three of the last 10 seasons.

Wednesday will start as the bookmakers’ favourites for Monday’s Wembley showdown against their local rivals after overturning a 4-0 first-leg deficit in their thrilling semi-final win against Peterborough.

Barnsley finished fourth in the table, 10 points behind Wednesday, but backed up their 2-0 league win at Hillsborough in September with a 4-2 victory over the Owls at Oakwell in March.

Duff, who took over last summer following the club’s relegation from the Championship, said: “I bet if you look at the odds we’ll be the underdogs. It’s not me trying to create a narrative of my own, they are the facts.

“They finished on 96 points, God knows how many goals they scored, loads of clean sheets, 23-game unbeaten run and they were 4-0 down after the (semi-final) first leg.

“But they’re in a one-off game with us now and the positive is that we know we can hurt them.

“We think we know what we’re going to get and hopefully someone can step up and be the hero.”

Barnsley’s first league double over their South Yorkshire rivals in March also halted the Owls’ club record 23-game unbeaten run.

But Duff, who will choose his starting line-up from a fully-fit squad, said that would have little bearing on Monday’s winner-takes-all encounter.

“Other than the fact that we know we can beat them,” Duff said. “You can dress it up which ever way you want. They’re older, much more experienced.

“Their players will have thousands more league appearances than we have and that might help them. It might not.

“Our youth and naivety might help us. We won’t know until the game pans out, but we know we can hurt them.

“We also know they’re a huge club with big players, and big players, a lot of the time, step up in big moments.

“So we’ll enjoy the day as much as we can, but we’re not going to Wembley for a day out, we’re going there to win.”

Duff acknowledged significant local bragging rights were at stake for both clubs’ fans, but does not feel that will be such a big factor for the players.

“There’s no point hiding away from it,” the former Cheltenham boss added. “But we’re not going to drum it up into something it isn’t.

“It’s a game of football. It’s 22 lads running around, there will be three blokes in black annoying everybody, probably, the pitch will be green and there will be white lines.

“Obviously the local derby element adds just a little bit of spice to what already will be a brilliant game.”

The Tykes will face their South Yorkshire neighbours for a place in the Championship on May 29 after overcoming Bolton in their semi-final.

Having drawn the first leg 1-1, Barnsley secured a 2-1 aggregate victory thanks to a narrow win at Oakwell on Friday, Liam Kitching netting the only goal of the game in the 24th minute when he powered home a header from Luca Connell’s superb cross.

Duff hailed his side’s performance and reflected on how far they had come since he was appointed head coach last June, saying: “It was a tight game over the two legs. We knew that they’d have more of the ball than us but that didn’t bother us.

“I think my oldest player is 27 so the one thing we have is energy. When we bring an intensity and quality to it, then we’re a really hard team to beat.

“When we walked into the football club, there was a real disconnect in terms of a boardroom reshuffle, new staff and 26 players in and out, I think it was.

“There was a sort of apathy in terms of ‘Well, you’ve sold all the best players, this year’s pointless. We might as well not turn up this year’.

“We had a few bumps along the way. We had a month without scoring a goal in October, so they’d been written off really early, this group of players. Post-Christmas, it’s been building and building.”

Looking ahead to the final against Wednesday, Duff said: “They’re a very good team. They’ve not had many losses, but they’ve had two, which have been against us, so we know we can hurt them.

“I’m looking forward to it. It’ll be a brilliant occasion but we’re not going there for a day out. We are in it to win it now.”

Bolton manager Ian Evatt rued his side’s lack of cutting edge as they failed to make the most of the possession they enjoyed against Barnsley.

However, he immediately set his sights on returning “bigger, better and stronger” next season with the goal of securing an automatic promotion place.

He said: “The biggest disappointment for me is the outcome, really. We controlled the game tonight.

“I think we started the better team and quietened the crowd – everything we spoke about doing. Really, the goal came out of the blue. It’s definitely not a foul.

“It kind of rocked us a little bit and it took us a while to find our stride again. That came at the start of the second half. Again, we had control and we were dominating the ball, but we just didn’t penetrate enough, and we lacked a cutting edge.

“I think really that’s the story of our season. If you look at our defensive record, it’s up there with Ipswich, but we just haven’t scored enough goals.

“There’s significant progression and significant improvement. The board have been outstanding with their support for me and that will continue next season.

“People are going to expect us to be in those top two positions next season and I don’t see why we can’t be. We have to work really, really hard to leave no stone unturned and come back bigger, better and stronger.”

The Reds had just crashed into the third tier after winning only six Sky Bet Championship matches, but now stand on the brink of an immediate return.

They face local rivals Sheffield Wednesday in Monday’s League One play-off final, 11 months after Duff left Cheltenham to try and turn Barnsley’s fortunes around.

Disillusioned fans had lost count of the players who either departed or arrived at Oakwell following relegation and despite three defeats in their first five league games this season, Duff never had any regrets.

He said: “No because I back myself no matter what. I didn’t win a game for 10 games at Cheltenham and I didn’t doubt myself at that point.

“I learnt a lot, but I didn’t doubt myself. So a bit older, a bit wiser, a bit greyer, a lot fatter, but when I did my first interviews here and people asked where did I think we would finish, I never said anything.

“It wasn’t me being evasive, I just thought ‘we’ll see’. But I know I work hard, I believe in what I do and obviously now we’re in a shoot-out to get promoted.”

Duff led Cheltenham to League Two promotion and then 15th in League One, their highest English Football League finish, before replacing Poya Asbaghi in June to become Barnsley’s sixth manager in less than three years.

After an indifferent start, former Burnley defender Duff moulded a new-look team into automatic promotion contenders.

Barnsley halted Wednesday’s 23-game unbeaten league run in a thrilling 4-2 win at Oakwell in March to extend their own unbeaten streak to 12 matches.

That run included 10 wins and catapulted them into top-two contention, but Duff still publicly refused to set his side any targets.

“I think talk is cheap,” he said. “You can talk and talk about philosophy and all that sort of stuff. It’s nonsense in my opinion.

“It’s about can you get a group to work hard and stick together and find a way of playing and that’s what we’ve done as the season has gone on and we’ve proved to be good at it.”

Duff, whose side’s automatic promotion hopes were dashed in late April when they lost at home to Ipswich, said the players’ belief has grown steadily throughout the season.

“You get the players to set their own target, but how much they believed it I don’t know because sometimes they pay lip service,” he added.

“We’d just been relegated, what is the target? Is it the play-offs? The players almost feel they have to say, ‘yeah, we’ve got to get in the play-offs’, but I don’t know how much they believed it.

“But once you start working day-to-day with them, you break it down. The first 10 games we set a target of 16 points, because generally 1.6 points per game gets you in the play-offs.

“That was the group’s first target, to break it down. It’s those day-to-day, week-to-week habits.

“We’ve got to the point now where the players can look back and say, ‘we didn’t need to say that, but now we do believe’.

“Now, can they have that belief one more time?”

Barnsley face derby rivals Sheffield Wednesday in the Sky Bet League One play-off final on Monday and with local bragging rights also on the line emotions will run high.

Duff referenced former Tottenham midfielder Gascoigne and his ill-fated role in the 1991 FA Cup final against Nottingham Forest when discussing how he hopes his players will handle the occasion.

Gascoigne flew into a reckless early tackle on Forest defender Gary Charles and ruptured the cruciate ligament in his right knee. He was carried off the field on a stretcher and missed all of the following season.

Duff said: “Paul Gascoigne is a perfect example, for anyone who’s old enough, in 1991 when he did his cruciate.

“He came out like a headless chicken because he was so emotional and in such a wild state, it ultimately did him damage and that’s what we don’t want.”

Duff, twice a Wembley winner as a player, with Cheltenham (1998) and Burnley (2009), said he will not be delivering any Churchillian speeches just before kick-off.

“Absolutely not,” he said. “The format will be the same. If the players need motivating when they’re at Wembley, in a play-off final, in a local derby, they’re in the wrong job.

“We’re just trying to keep it as normal as possible. You almost want to try and calm them down at that point, so they don’t play like headless chickens.

“Stick to the process, with what you’ve done all season, what’s got you into this position – intensity, quality, youthfulness, a structure and being able to hurt teams in different ways. There’ll be no big speeches.

“There’s a saying ‘success leaves clues’, well the clues are what you’ve been doing all season. Can you do it one more time? Hopefully, and with a little bit of luck, we win the game.”

Barnsley, transformed under former Cheltenham boss Duff since his appointment in June last year, stand on the brink of an immediate return to the Championship following relegation.

They were still challenging for automatic promotion until a 3-0 home defeat to Ipswich at the end of April but Duff is not ready to reflect on his first season in charge.

“Looking back on the season will happen on Tuesday,” he added. “There’s no point saying ‘well if we lose it’s been a good season’. We’re in a shoot-out now, the focus is on the game.

“At the end of the season we’ll take stock and reflect on how we can be better, whether we win or lose.

“The plan has already started anyway, whether we win or lose, so I don’t want us to take our eyes off the prize.

“Has it been a positive season? Yes, I think so. But we can really cap it off now and that’s the focus.”

The U’s had been frustrated until the 69th minute, when the captain picked the ball up just inside the opposition half and proceeded beyond five challenges before firing past Marko Marosi for a remarkable solo effort.

Morrison’s last goal for the club had come on January 23 2007.

The home side missed a number of chances in a goalless first half. James Brophy was denied by an excellent Tom Flanagan block, before Morrison fired wide when well placed following Ryan Bennett’s knockdown.

Seven minutes before half-time Liam Bennett released Fejiri Okenabirhie on the right and the forward squared the ball to Jack Lankester, who crashed his effort onto the crossbar.

Morrison’s moment of magic looked to have won the game, only for Shrewsbury to snatch a point two minutes from the end.

The hosts could not clear from within their area, and Taylor Perry slammed an equaliser past Jack Stevens.

Ben House, Luton loanee Joe Taylor and Teddy Bishop grabbed the goals as the Imps secured a fifth straight win and stretched their unbeaten run to 15 games.

But Wright made some crucial saves after number one Lukas Jensen went down with back spasms in the warm-up.

Lincoln are above Oxford on goal difference in the play-off race, and Skubala said: “I’m really pleased.

“We had to dig in, we had to scrap and fight. They’re playing for their lives and you know it’s going to be tough.

“We know it’s going to be scrappy and messy but we had to get through it with our mentality and that’s what we’ve done.

“Lukas has done something to his back. We’re not sure what it is so we’re going to have to get it scanned. He really was struggling.

“But Jordan came in and made a couple of great saves.

“Jordan’s been fantastic. He knows he’s sitting and waiting, but he’s had to win us the game really. He’s a good keeper. I’m happy if we have to play him.

“I said it in the dressing room that we’re going to need everybody at some stage. It’s got to that stage of the season where players are tired and bodies are creaking a little bit.

“If we’re going to do it then we’ll need people to step up.”

Carlisle boss Paul Simpson was left deflated after the drop in standard after Good Friday’s victory over Peterborough.

Sam Lavelle scored a late goal but it proved in vain as League One’s bottom club lost a 13th game in their last 16.

“It was hugely disappointing,” Simpson said. “It was such a contrast with how we went about it Friday at Peterborough.

“You can’t go into any game of football like we did in the first half. It was like there was no desire to compete against a side who are playing with real momentum, real confidence.

“The first goal is a really poor one to give away. It’s simple, technical things. We cannot misplace five-yard passes.

“The second goal is an absolute calamity. How that can happen and how we can concede from a counter-attack from our own corner.

“It knocked the stuffing out of the players, knocked the stuffing out of the crowd. They were great with us until the second goal and they lost their enthusiasm after that.

“It’s infuriating after Friday because I’m the one who gets the blame for it.

“The whole group, we didn’t have enough running forward.

“We didn’t do enough to threaten their defenders or their keeper who has come in because the first-choice got injured in the warm-up.”

Skubala’s side are unbeaten in three matches following an impressive success at the Abbey Stadium on Tuesday night.

Daniel Mandroiu’s penalty and Dylan Duffy’s effort had the Imps in control at the break before Jack Vale completed the scoring late on.

Meanwhile Cambridge have lost three matches in succession, conceding 10 times in that run.

“It was a good performance,” said Skubala afterwards. “We dug deep, I thought we sustained and dominated throughout which was really pleasing. To a man, there were some really good performances out there tonight.

“We talked throughout the week about how do we get in the box, how do we finish our attacks. The first goal was a really good goal, we worked it round the pitch and kept possession in their half.

“It’s important to come to these places and be able to hurt teams, not just come here and sit back. We knew we’d have to defend but then we had an out ball with Dylan Duffy and I thought he was really good tonight.

“I was pushing the lads at the end because I still believe in behaviours and I still believe in driving them hard. It was really good to see them still driving and pushing after the two weeks we’ve had and the back-to-back games.”

Mark Bonner was frustrated by Cambridge’s recent points return, but felt his side were capable of turning things around.

“It’s really obvious that we want to win more games, score more goals and concede less so it’s all a concern, but nothing that can’t be fixed I don’t think, if everybody shows up, rolls their sleeves up and has a little bit of a belief in themselves that they can do it,” said Bonner.

“Off the back of the international break we wanted to come in and get two really good performances or two really good results and try and take three or four points from these two games.

“To take none, we’re really disappointed because it’s been a bad few days for us.

“We’ve got to be better than that because when you play against these good sides you’ve got to get on top or chase when you get your chances.

“We’re definitely a few wins short of where we should be, but probably only a couple.

“We have to, on one hand remember who we are – playing at this level’s tough for us – and on the other hand do better than we’ve done if we want to make sure that we are a team that’s having a more comfortable season than we’re currently having.”

Barry Cotter and John McAtee both scored in the second half to cancel out Danny Mandroiu’s penalty early on, but Eyoma struck in the 88th minute – his first goal of the season – when a corner caused mayhem in the Barnsley area.

It ensured Skubala avoided defeat in his first home game in charge, having won one and lost one on the road since being appointed earlier this month.

“We’ve got an honest group,” he said. “I think they’re a hard-working group and I think they’re really good in those [difficult] periods.

“They stuck with it, they stuck together and then let’s just keep hold of the ball a little bit better in moments, but I was really pleased with the mentality.”

Skubala saved specific praise for Eyoma, but felt it was a good all-round team performance.

“I thought he (Eyoma) was really solid again today at the back and he’s got on the scoresheet with that goal,” he added.

“I think Danny Mandroiu was good today. I thought a couple of other lads performed really well.

“Jovon (Makama) gave us a really good 60 minutes for his start up there. So yeah I think there were some really positive performances there.

“One thing, maybe we could just have looked after the ball a little bit better.”

Barnsley boss Neill Collins believes his side’s performance was worthy of a win and that they were hard done by with the late equaliser.

“I think we should be celebrating three points based on our performance,” he said.

“To give away a penalty after a really strong start was disappointing, but then after that I thought we controlled the majority of the game.

“It really came to a crescendo when we got the equaliser and then we went ahead.

“So to lose a goal off a set piece is very disappointing, especially when the set piece should never have been in the first place.

“Their player’s headed the ball over the bar and the referee’s decided to give them a corner.

“We need to be better in those moments, but it’s hard to be too critical of our players.”

Captain Jordan Williams’ clumsy challenge on Jack Burroughs gave Mandroiu the opportunity to open the scoring from the penalty spot and Collins would like to see those sort of errors avoided.

“I think the performance was good – it’s just trying to iron out a couple of the details,” he added.

“If we can stop giving penalties away, it’d be a good start.”

Reeco Hackett grabbed the winner early in the second half but Lincoln had already seen Alex Mitchell sent off for two quick yellow cards midway through the first half.

“We knew it was going to be a battle, coming here, it’s a tough place to come to get a point, let alone three,” said Skubala as Lincoln ended Burton’s four-game unbeaten home run.

“The last few games against Burton they have turned us over, but I am just so proud of every single player, to play so long with 10 men and still not be passive and go after the game.”

Skubala, speaking about Mitchell’s first yellow card for a foul on Kyle Hudlin, added: “I have never seen two players go up for a header and one of them get booked for it.

“The second one is a yellow card, and we know he shouldn’t have pulled him back but it set a standard in the game where lots of yellows need to be given out.”

Victory was Lincoln’s first since the end of November and ended a nine-game winless run in Sky Bet League One with Skubala having full faith in his side throughout.

“I think we are a good team and sometimes it is about following a good process,” he said. “We knew the win would come and we have been competitive in all the games and now we just need to kick on and if we take today’s mentality with 10 men forwards, we will do OK.”

Burton boss Martin Paterson was left hugely disappointed by his side’s below-par performance.

“No excuses,” he said. “Collectively, for everyone involved it is a down day. Everything was off. I don’t look to blame anyone else but ourselves.

“They had 10 men for 60 minutes. I get sometimes that might be difficult, but we didn’t create enough moments, not enough creativity on the ball.

“I am not happy. We were poor and that is a massive opportunity missed. They started the game better than us. We reacted after 10, 15 minutes and got a foothold in the game.

“From the sending off they took over, let’s not lie about it. We were not good enough and it galvanised them.

“It looked so far away from what we are, in terms of the non-negotiables, ill-disciplined and unorganised. I threw on as many attackers as I could to create moments. I thought we would get one and get back into the game.”

Mitch Pinnock and Sam Hoskins were on target in the first half at Sixfields and the former struck again late on as the Cobblers moved 12th in League One.

Both goalkeepers were tested early on as Jay Lynch saved from Hoskins before Max Thompson kept out Fleetwood’s Jack Marriott.

Lynch used his body well to block Pinnock’s shot and Hoskins fired into the side-netting before two quickfire goals put Northampton in the driving seat.

Pinnock broke the deadlock after 27 minutes when he controlled Marc Leonard’s pass and drilled into the bottom corner and Hoskins made no mistake from 12 yards after Shaun McWilliams was tripped in the box four minutes later.

Lynch denied Hoskins a third goal before half-time and he was also at full stretch to keep out McWilliams at the start of the second half.

Fleetwood rarely threatened in the second half and their misery was compounded in stoppage time thanks to a rasping finish from Pinnock.

Jackson’s assistant Robbie Stockdale and technical insights analyst Aaron Dagger are also leaving the club.

An MK Dons statement read: “The club would like to thank Mark, Robbie and Aaron for their efforts during their time at Stadium MK.

“Everyone at MK Dons wishes them every success in the future.”

Former Leeds coach Jackson, 45, took charge in December with MK Dons 22nd in League One and three points from safety.

Jackson won only six of his 25 games in charge and MK Dons were relegated after Monday’s goalless draw at Burton.

The hosts made a lightning start and got two goals in the first 25 minutes courtesy of Michael Smith penalty and Lee Gregory.

Reece James made it three and pulled the hosts to within one of Peterborough’s aggregate lead with 20 minutes to go, and they sent the game to extra time with the last kick of normal time when Liam Palmer nudged home from close range.

A Gregory own goal gave Peterborough the initiative once again in the tie but Wednesday remarkably equalised once again through Callum Paterson, taking the game to penalties – The Owls’ date at Wembley was booked when Jack Hunt converted with the last spot kick after Dan Butler hit the crossbar with the only miss of the shootout.

Moore insists the comeback victory will go down as the best in his managerial career but wants to go one step further by achieving promotion.

He said: “For me, it’s my best moment in terms of management.

“To witness it and for it to come here, I couldn’t have wished for it to be at a better a place, under the lights here at Hillsborough.

“Tonight will be special, but as I keep saying to them, we have got another game to go. We enjoy tonight and then focus on the Wembley game now.

“We had a rallying call to get the fans to come out and be in full voice and they were tonight. When the boys were cramping up tonight, the fans kept them going. The boys showed great character.”

Moore explained how his team went to the “hurt locker” to get the result as several players received treatment for muscle injuries and thought his side took the penalties well, when the pressure was on.

He said: “They’ve gone to hurt locker tonight, the boys.

“They had to go to the hurt locker to get this one done tonight, it wasn’t going to take anything less than that to get the job done.

“We worked on them (penalties) in training. We were ready for it and I was super confident with every single one of them.

“Credit to the boys in terms of how they went about it, Peterborough have pushed us all the way and for us to win the game it had to come down to a moment like that.”

Peterborough boss Darren Ferguson defended that his team selection went unchanged after their 4-0 win in the first leg at the Weston Homes Stadium.

He said: “I cannot be criticised for picking the same team that have won two games like that.

“In terms of team selection, we wanted the quality on the ball. But when you make decisions like we did and give them momentum, it can be hard to get it back and I’ve seen far better teams than us lose it psychologically.

“I thought we’d just done enough but unfortunately the added time and last kick of the ball has put it into extra-time.”

Ferguson dismissed questions on whether he will be in the Peterborough dugout next season after he returned to the club in January.

He continued: “Tonight is not the night for that question.

“How can I answer that? There has been no talks, no offer to stay. I was brought in to do a job and the chat will take place after this season has finished.”

Sam Hoskins, Louis Appere and Mitch Pinnock all scored to earn the Cobblers a first home victory since August and handed the Royals a fifth straight away league defeat.

The Cobblers made all of the early running and deservedly went ahead after 10 minutes when Appere slipped in Hoskins and his shot from a tight angle squirmed through David Button.

Appere headed over and Shaun McWilliams scuffed wide before Reading gained a foothold and they were only denied an equaliser by goalkeeper Lee Burge’s quick reactions as he saved from Caylan Vickers.

Northampton went straight up the other end and doubled their lead through Appere, who finished off Kieron Bowie’s terrific work eight minutes before half-time.

Burge was at full stretch to keep out Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan but Reading dominated possession in the second half and they were back in the game with 24 minutes to play when Dom Ballard found the net from Harvey Knibbs’ lay-off.

The visitors could not find a leveller despite heavy pressure in the remaining time, however, and Northampton’s win was wrapped up in stoppage time thanks to Pinnock’s first-time finish.

Despite the result it was a lively game at The Valley, with Daniel Kanu and Callum Lang each striking the woodwork in the early stages.

As the second half progressed, the visitors gradually began to establish their dominance and were denied an 88th-minute winner when Macaulay Gillesphey pulled off an excellent last-ditch challenge on Myles Peart-Harris.

“They are a good side,” said the Charlton manager. “They’re top of the league, they’re scoring at will against most sides. So for us to put in that level of performance, keep a clean sheet…shows we’ve taken a step in the right direction.”

This result was the second of two impressive draws for the Addicks following last week’s 3-3 draw at Bolton.

“We went toe-to-toe with Bolton, we went toe-to-toe with these today. I saw lots of what I wanted to see from my team.

“We’ve gone three unbeaten now – yes, they are draws and we want to win games – but there’s a foundation being laid and it’s just constant work.”

After a tough game, Jones believed it was Portsmouth who were happier with the result.

“We showed we’re an aggressive team and got right after them. They’ll be getting on the bus and they’ll be delighted with the point.

“It’s a good point for them because the other two (sides in the top three) lost. They were in a proper game today, and that’s all we can ask.

“I thought today we were more than valid for our point.”

Portsmouth boss John Mousinho was of a similar opinion.

“We really dug in today,” he said. “We weren’t quite at our best, but I think the most important thing was to not lose the game.

“I’ve been in that situation so many times where you’re not playing particularly well but end up losing the game to a set piece, to a throw in.

“I think (the result) says that the lads mean business this year and they know obviously it is the business end of the season with only 11 games for us to go.

“It’s never easy coming away to Charlton. I think they are a side that are in a false league position. I can’t see them staying down there for long.”

Despite stretching their lead over their rivals, Mousinho said the result was frustrating for his players.

“They are still disappointed with the point and that’s the way I like them to be,” he said. “Obviously a point with the other results is good, but if we’d have taken all three it would have been even better.”

The winger was a constant threat and scored the opening goal before Conor Washington secured the Rams’ second home league win of the season late on.

Derby pushed Exeter back from the first whistle but despite getting dangerous crosses into the box, could not put the ball away.

Exeter were starting to come into the game when Derby finally finished a slick three-man move, with Mendez-Laing firing home Max Bird’s pass from 12 yards in the 30th minute.

Derby should have had more to show for a dominant first-half display and although Exeter had hardly threatened, they needed a second goal.

Martyn Waghorn and Louie Sibley had shots blocked before Mendez-Laing was flagged offside when he headed in at the back post.

But Derby made the game safe in the 79th minute when Washington cut in from the left and drove a low shot inside the near post.

The attacker whipped in a cross which Jack Hunt turned into his own net and then scored a dramatic late winner after former Derby striker Chris Martin had equalised.

Rovers came into the game unbeaten in six matches in all competitions and denied the hosts any clear chances in a scrappy opening 30 minutes.

Joe Wildsmith rescued Derby in the 45th minute when he touched a 20-yard shot from Grant Ward against his right post.

County needed some inspiration and Mendez-Laing delivered in the 66th minute when he surged past Josh Grant and drove in a low cross which Jack Hunt could only divert into his own net.

But Rovers levelled in the 87th minute when Martin headed in an Antony Evans free-kick only for Mendez-Laing to win it three minutes later.

Tyrese Fornah’s cut back from the right found Mendez-Laing, who fired home a low shot from the centre of the box past Matthew Cox.

Rhodes, who had missed two previous opportunities in a stirring second-half fightback by the Tangerines, glanced home a header in the second minute of stoppage time from James Husband’s headed cross.

Jamaica international Greg Leigh had scored his fifth goal of the season to put a dominant Oxford in front in the 36th minute but Blackpool responded well after the break and finished very strongly.

Critchley said: “A point was the very least we deserved from the game after that second half.

“I just don’t think we were close enough in the first half. We allowed a good team with good players to control the game.

“They didn’t really have a good chance except for their goal – they didn’t really get to our goal – but we were just a little bit passive, a bit too far off.

“The goal epitomised the first half for us – we didn’t get close enough to stop the cross and we switched off and didn’t defend the ball into the box well enough. That’s the reason we were 1-0 down.

“In the second half we came out with a lot more aggression to take the game to Oxford and we stopped them from building up and controlling the game, and we pushed them right back.

“Then we were the dominant team and we created a number of chances.

“If we had scored with maybe 10 minutes to go we could have gone on and won the game possibly.

“We could easily have thought it was not going to be our day, but this team never give up.

“It was the first time we have come from behind this season to take something – that’s really important – and that second half is exactly how I want a Blackpool team to play – dominating the ball and possession… sometimes you have to go sideways and backwards to then go forward.

“I felt we had them, the substitutes made a difference. Oxford are at home in great form and not many teams could have come here and done what we’ve done to them today.

“Jordan is actually disappointed coming off the pitch. He said, ‘I could have had two or three goals really’, but it was a great goal, and a brilliant header from Hubby across the box, and Jordan does what he does, he gets across his man and glances it in from the six-yard box.”

Blackpool’s equaliser denied the U’s what would have been a sixth straight league win, but they stay second in the table, behind Portsmouth.

Oxford head coach Liam Manning said: “The lads are obviously disappointed because of the timing of when the goal was conceded.

“But I was delighted with the football we played and our play in possession in the first half, and the goal was outstanding.

“Yes, we have to manage the game better and you do that by getting out wide to stop them getting crosses in – but it takes a lot of running.

“The bigger picture to me, though, is that the first half showed the huge progress we have made. There was some terrific football from us.

“We had a certain structure out of possession today that was different to us in possession and I think the players did that well.

“The goal we scored had some great moments of interplay in the build-up, and the finish was a moment of real quality from Greg.

“What we have to remember is that it was a major transition with the players in the team in the summer.

“The most pleasing thing to me was that the first half showed the progress we have made with the players taking on board what we’re trying to do – because to do that in possession takes a long time normally.”