Burton and Leyton Orient ground out a goalless draw in the first ever meeting between the two sides.

Separated only by goal difference in the League One table at the start of the game, it came as no surprise that it was a tight contest.

Albion looked to make a quick start with Josh Walker testing Sol Brynn in the visitors’ goal in the opening minutes.

Joe Powell, who scored a screamer in the victory over Bristol Rovers last weekend, almost added to his collection with a curling right-footed effort that went inches wide.

Ruel Sotiriou got in behind the Burton defence as half-time approached but a poor touch allowed Burton keeper Max Crocombe to come out and smother the danger.

Brewers midfiedler Mark Helm fired straight at Brynn as the second half saw the game spark into life and Jordan Brown looked to give the Os a lift with a rising drive that cleared Crocombe’s crossbar.

Burton skipper Deji Oshilaja spurned the best chance of the game, blazing over from 10 yards in the closing stages, although Sotiriou almost nicked the points for the visitors with a rising stoppage-time drive that Crocombe clawed away.

Sky League One leaders Portsmouth extended their unbeaten run with a hard-earned 3-2 victory at struggling Reading.

Lewis Wing and Charlie Savage had given Reading a shock lead with two goals in the space of four minutes midway through the first half.

Tino Anjorin, on loan from Chelsea, reduced the deficit before top-scorer Colby Bishop levelled things up at 2-2 in the ninth minute of first-half stoppage time.

Terry Devlin then struck home what proved to be the winner just before the hour.

Portsmouth went into the game having not lost in the league since mid-March last season, while the relegation-threatened Royals saw around 2,000 supporters stage a pre-match protest march against Chinese owner Dai Yongge.

The protests from the “Sell Before We Dai” group carried on when the game was briefly delayed twice during the opening stages after tennis balls were thrown on to the pitch – prompting an announcement the match would be abandoned if it continued.

Reading had stunned the visitors with goals in the 23rd and 27th minute through crisp finishes from first Wing and then Savage.

But Anjorin tucked home a cross from Paddy Lane soon after and, in the stoppage time added on for the protests, Bishop knocked in his ninth league goal of the season.

Pompey grew frustrated early in the second period, with head coach John Mousinho receiving a yellow card for his comments before Devlin eased his worries with a clinical strike after Bishop’s clever nod-down at the far post.

Goals in either half from Stephen Humphrys and Callum Lang gave Wigan a third 2-0 win in the space of a week as 10-man Shrewsbury were seen off in comfortable fashion at the DW Stadium.

The visitors had been on the back foot for the entire game after seeing former Wigan centre-back Chey Dunkley – facing his old club for the first time since leaving in the summer of 2020 – sent off inside four minutes for hauling down Thelo Aasgaard on the edge of the box.

After that, it was only ever a question of when and not if Wigan would break through.

It was Humphrys who opened the scoring after 35 minutes when he was given too much time and space 20 yards from goal.

After Shrews defender Mal Branning hit his own post, Humphrys inexplicably headed wide just after the hour mark from a yard out, before Jordan Jones cut inside and smacked a shot against the Shrewsbury crossbar.

But the respite was only temporary as Lang nodded home fellow substitute Callum McManaman’s cross in the 66th minute – less than 60 seconds after both men had entered the fray.

Peterborough survived a Blackpool comeback to win 4-2 during an exciting Bloomfield Road encounter.

Kwame Poku put Posh ahead when he fired home Ephron Mason-Clark’s cross, but they missed the chance to double the lead when Mason-Clark saw his penalty saved by Dan Grimshaw after being brought down by Matt Pennington.

Blackpool’s task became harder when Olly Casey was dismissed early in the second half for bundling over Ricky-Jade Jones and the visitors added insult to injury when Harrison Burrows netted the resulting free-kick.

Nicholas Bilokapic denied Sonny Carey twice in quick succession as Blackpool sought a response, but Poku slipped in Jones before the hour for Peterborough’s third to seemingly put the game to bed.

But the hosts scored twice in the space of four minutes through Kenny Dougall’s header and Carey, who was first to the rebound when Bilokapic parried James Husband’s shot to set up a grandstand finish.

Posh held firm, however, and Mason-Clark put the result beyond doubt in stoppage time with a close-range finish to lift his side to fourth.

Corey O’Keefe salvaged a late point for Barnsley after they came from behind twice to draw 2-2 against Fleetwood.

Junior Quitirna scored either side of Devante Cole’s first leveller before O’Keefe’s last-gasp effort to earn a share of the spoils.

The visitors broke the deadlock in the third minute when Jack Marriott broke forward down the left, crossing to Quitirna who fired past of Ben Killip.

Barnsley were awarded a spot-kick four minutes later when Cole was brought down by Fleetwood goalkeeper Jay Lynch.

Cole himself stepped up and saw his penalty saved, but reacted quickly to score the rebound.

Lee Johnson’s side regained the lead in the 34th minute when Quitirna placed a 25-yard free-kick into the top-left corner.

Herbie Kane almost pulled his side level two minutes before the break. Receiving from Nicky Cadden, the midfielder struck the woodwork from the edge of the box as he aimed for the top-right corner.

Barnsley pushed for an equaliser and their pressure paid off two minutes from time when Kane’s cross found O’Keefe to head beyond Lynch.

Cambridge ended an eight-game winless run in League One with a 1-0 victory over nine-man Carlisle 1-0 at the Abbey Stadium.

After an uneventful first half, the Us went on to dominate the second and their pressure paid off 17 minutes from time when Liam Bennett’s cross was headed home by George Thomas, eight minutes after his arrival as a substitute.

The away side missed a big chance to take the lead inside the first two minutes when Jack Armer pulled the ball back to Danny Butterworth, who could only shoot wide of the far post.

Cambridge’s pressure built after the break, with Carlisle goalkeeper Tomas Holy getting down well to push James Brophy’s effort wide at his near post in the  69th minute.

Moments after that he was a spectator as Bennett tried his luck from distance, his shot curling narrowly off target, before Thomas opened the scoring.

Carlisle’s afternoon got worse seven minutes from the end when Armer was dismissed for collecting his second yellow card, before Alfie McCalmont also saw red in added time for a dangerous high tackle on Paul Digby.

Bolton chalked up a third straight away win in League One as they defeated Charlton 2-0 at The Valley.

Ian Evatt’s side took the lead in the 16th minute through a fine curling effort by Randell Williams from the edge of the penalty area, his left-footed strike clipped in off the inside of the left post.

Bolton made it 2-0 eight minutes later. Dion Charles lashed in from close range from Josh Dacres-Cogley’s pass for his 10th goal of the campaign.

Charlton struggled to create chances until late in the first half, when Alfie May volleyed wide after he met a Scott Fraser corner.

The Addicks improved after the restart but needed goalkeeper Ashley Maynard-Brewer to be alert to deny Charles after the Bolton striker was set up by Victor Adeboyejo on the hour mark.

May smashed over after the ball was laid into his path by substitute Miles Leaburn.

Williams had two late attempts to add to his tally but sent one narrowly wide of the far upright and then could not keep his second strike down.

Life without sacked manager Joey Barton got off to a flying start for Bristol Rovers as Antony Evans’ penalty ultimately secured a 2-1 win over Northampton at the Memorial Stadium.

Chris Martin put Rovers in control after 10 minutes with his second goal in two games, beating Lee Burge with the help of a post with a clever close-range back-heeled finish following Aaron Collins’ cut-back.

It was the perfect opening for interim boss Andy Mangan, but Northampton almost equalised soon after with Brentford loanee Matt Cox’s fine save denying Sam Sherring after he broke clear.

Rovers dominated possession and Evans doubled the lead on the half-hour, calmly beating Burge from the penalty spot after the former Sunderland goalkeeper felled Collins.

The hosts looked on course for a comfortable victory, but Emmanuel Monthe halved the lead after 57 minutes when he nodded in Mitchell Pinnock’s free-kick.

Veteran striker Martin looked to have restored the two-goal cushion when he finished Collins’ low cross, but celebrations were cut short by an offside flag before the home defence stood firm in a tense finale.

Exeter ended a run of six straight defeats with a 1-1 draw against Lincoln courtesy of Ryan Trevitt’s late equaliser at St James Park.

Exeter looked nervous early in the game and on 20 minutes, their failure to clear a long throw cost them as Will Aimson’s missed header allowed Paudie O’Connor to cross and Alistair Smith fired into the roof of the net from 10 yards.

Exeter responded with their best chances coming on the stroke of half-time when Demetri Mitchell slipped the ball through to Admiral Muskwe, who fired wide with only Lukas Jensen to beat, and then James Scott missed a glorious chance when he misconnected with a deep cross and Jensen saved his header.

Exeter were much-improved after the break, although Sean Roughan smashed the ball against the crossbar when he should have scored from a Lincoln counter-attack.

But Exeter’s pressure finally told with a deserved equaliser in the 81st minute when Mitchell picked out Trevitt and the Brentford loanee headed in from eight yards.

Mitchell then missed a great chance as he shot wide after being played in on goal, but despite plenty of late pressure Exeter could not get the winning goal that they deserved on the balance of play.

Cameron Brannagan converted from the spot six minutes into stoppage time to salvage a 2-2 draw for promotion-chasing Oxford against local rivals Wycombe at the Kassam Stadium – in a dramatic match featuring three second-half penalties.

Sub Brannagan put away his spot-kick after Luke Leahy tripped Mark Harris just inside the area.

Furious Oxford boss Liam Manning had earlier been shown a red card by referee Sebastian Stockbridge after Wanderers came from behind to lead thanks to two contested spot kicks.

Ruben Rodrigues fired the U’s in front in the 25th minute with a volleyed first-time finish from Marcus McGuane’s cutback.

Wycombe levelled 11 minutes into the second half with Leahy converting from the spot, burying his left-footed kick into the bottom right corner after McGuane slipped inside the box and his hand knocked the ball.

Wanderers turned the game on its head when Brandon Hanlan drew a foul from keeper James Beadle on 81 minutes and Leahy stepped up to convert his second penalty in almost the same place.

But Oxford were not to be denied as Brannagan made no mistake deep into stoppage time.

Cheltenham manager Darrell Clarke made a winning return to former club Port Vale as his team moved off the bottom of League One with a 2-1 victory.

A brace from captain Sean Long secured the Robins just their second victory of the season and extended the Valiants’ winless league run to eight matches.

After a cagey opening 20 minutes, Cheltenham began to apply some pressure and Vale goalkeeper Connor Ripley was forced into making a good save from Rob Street’s attempt.

But it was the hosts who went ahead in the 32nd minute, when Tottenham loanee Alfie Devine found the net with an acrobatic effort after skipper Nathan Smith guided a header from a corner to the back post.

Their lead lasted only 10 minutes though, with Long blasting home after latching onto a loose ball in the penalty area.

Elliot Bonds nearly put Cheltenham in front within moments of the second half starting, but his dipping long-range shot hit the crossbar.

The visitors kept patiently probing and got their reward in the 66th minute as Long’s deflected effort looped over Ripley and into the net.

The home side never really looked like scoring an equaliser and were booed off at full-time while Clarke, who was sacked by Vale in April and appointed Cheltenham boss in September, came away delighted.

Jordan Roberts’ first-half strike and a late goal from Kane Hemmings sealed a 3-1 victory for Stevenage over Derby.

Boro’s first victory in four games lifted them up to sixth in the Sky Bet League One table, but a second straight away defeat for the Rams saw some of their fans call for the removal of manager Paul Warne.

Stevenage went ahead in the 32nd minute when a 25-yard free-kick was teed up for Roberts, whose thumping effort flashed past Derby keeper Joe Wildsmith.

Derby responded six minutes later when Nathaniel Mendez-Laing made the most being left unattended at the near post to slot in an equaliser.

Boro, though, restored their lead with the final kick of the first half when Alex MacDonald’s free-kick flew past Wildsmith despite the Rams goalkeeper getting a touch.

A notable victory for the hosts was then secured with six minutes remaining when Luther James-Wildin’s low ball across allowed Hemmings to notch his first goal for Stevenage from close range.

Reading manager Ruben Selles believes he can turn around his team’s desperate League One fortunes after the 2-1 defeat at home to fellow strugglers Fleetwood – their fifth loss in six matches.

Bosun Lawal gave Town the lead with a low drive after only 65 seconds but the hosts equalised 11 minutes after the break through Dom Ballard.

Charlie Savage almost put Reading 2-1 in front when his rasping effort cannoned off a post but Fleetwood skipper Josh Vela struck in the second minute of stoppage time to secure victory.

Selles said: “Can I turn this around? Of course. I am confident I can do this.

“At the end of the day some of the situations are about putting the ball in the net.

“We have been talking and talking about this. We just have to be more ruthless. It’s all about us being together and making it better.

“It’s about everything. It’s about the structure when we want the ball, it’s about what kind of passing we want to do and when to do it.

“We understood the game in the way we had planned but then we were weak in our approach and we conceded a very early goal. This is a situation we need to solve.

“We got back in the game and their keeper [Jay Lynch] made a couple of saves. But we scored the equaliser and we could have scored a second goal.

“Then that [Vela’s goal] happened at the end, something that has happened to us before.

“The whole situation in the first 30 minutes put the pressure on us and we did not react in the proper way.”

Fleetwood claimed their third win in five league matches.

Manager Lee Johnson said: “It was a great goal from Bosun, I would have liked to have scored that myself.

“I’m sure it was his first goal and I’m so pleased for him because what a fantastic lad he is.

“I think the three points were deserved because we should have been out of sight at half-time, two or three up.

“You could see the relief at the end when Josh scored, with the subs running up the touchline. I liked that.

“That’s why we are in the game – for the fans travelling down here – and that’s why we are up all hours every day to try to find solutions.

“We are a good side with good players and the lads need to believe that.

“I thought it was a really good game, a good advert for League One, and it didn’t look like a relegation dogfight.”

Ian Evatt commended Bolton’s exceptional mindset as they ran away 4-2 winners over Wycombe in a dramatic finish at Adams Park.

Brentford loanee Paris Maghoma scored his first for the club before George Thomason doubled Bolton’s lead in the first half.

Wycombe pulled a goal back in the second half through a Luke Leahy wonder strike and David Wheeler equalised for the home side with less than 10 minutes remaining.

But Bolton dug deep to claim a 4-2 win – the club’s first-ever victory at Wycombe – through an Eoin Toal header and substitute Aaron Morley’s penalty in the dying minutes.

“We were excellent in the first half in the way that we played as we had a lot of bravery at times,” Evatt said.

“You don’t come here and expect to have it your own way for 90 minutes.

“They scored an outstanding goal just after half-time and in football, momentum is everything.

“We were sticking with it and even when we weren’t at our best at times, we got through it.

“We limited them with the chances they had so when they scored from the set-play to equalise, it would have been easy for the lads to duck away and feel sorry for ourselves.

“But we have developed a mindset where we keep believing, and the two lads that came off the bench had a serious impact in the way that we won, as one was scored from a corner, and the other was from the penalty.

“We got in behind them which caused that and, overall, I’m delighted for all my players as we knew we had a bad record coming here.”

Wycombe boss Matt Bloomfield rued a ‘sucker-punch’ finish to the clash.

“We’re disappointed for the way the first half went but when we got the first goal from Luke, and what a goal it was, we were right back in it,” he said.

“We were in the ascendancy, we were in their half and we were good value for a point.

“We’re bitterly disappointed not to get anything from the game.

“We got them pressed and were able to play the way we wanted to play as we created shots, had attacks and tested their keeper but it wasn’t to be this evening.

“Bolton’s third goal came so soon after we equalised so it could be a mentality thing. It happened so quickly.

“The crowd were brilliant when we got it back to 2-2 as they were right behind us, so at the point, the boys were looking to find the winner but unfortunately, we were sucker-punched on two occasions.”

Northampton boss Jon Brady admitted he was gutted to concede so late in Tuesday’s 2-2 draw with Leyton Orient.

The Cobblers turned the contest around after Rob Hunt’s early goal as Sam Hoskins scored twice in four second-half minutes, but Kieron Bowie then saw red for an apparent headbutt.

Orient utterly dominated the final half-hour but they were made to wait until the 96th minute to snatch a point through Shaq Forde.

“It’s hard to really comprehend,” admitted Brady. “I felt we got ourselves in a good position with 11 players out there.

“We stepped on the gas in the second half and turned it around and find ourselves 2-1 and from there I thought we would go on and win the game and maybe score more goals.

“Even in the first half, I felt we were the team having all of the entries into the final third. Yes, they had a few moments and there was a 10-minute period where they had a spell.

“It’s a disappointing goal to concede but then after that we were in the ascendancy and we pointed out a few technical things that we needed to improve at half-time and we did that.

“It made a big difference and Sam gets his goals, but the sending-off changes the dynamic of the game.

“I didn’t see the incident because I was trying to organise our back line but all I heard was the linesman say there was a coming together and they were sending Kieron off. I’ll have to watch it back.”

Orient dominated the shot count but manager Richie Wellens admitted they ultimately paid the price for a ‘wacky’ five-minute spell.

“We started really poorly and for six or seven minutes we couldn’t get out,” said Wellens. “We gave too many set-pieces away but I thought we dominated the next 25 minutes.

“We scored a great team goal and we were on top and I’d be surprised if their goalkeeper wasn’t man of the match, but we have a mad five minutes.

“Players make mistakes and you have to ride with it but Northampton’s first goal comes from our corner and then it’s a horrible deflection past our goalkeeper.

“We then give away a stupid penalty and within four minutes the game has turned around, but when they went down to 10 men, we totally dominated the game.

“Our decision-making needs to be better in terms of our final pass and our movement. I’m really disappointed because I felt we deserved to win the game but a wacky five minutes has cost us.

“We need to score more goals if we want to get to where we want to be.”