Reading and Middlesbrough are midweek winners

09 March 2012 09:07
With the top two, Southampton and West Ham, both being held at home it was Reading and Middlesbrough who took advantage by winning their games to edge closer to the top.

Reading really are the team to watch. Tuesday's home win against Portsmouth was their seventh successive win and it is clear where their strength lies. They've scored just ten goals in those seven wins but conceded only one, that last Saturday when Andy Keogh gave Millwall the lead against them. They've kept a total of 17 clean sheets this season and that's a figure matched just by Hull.

Tuesday's win takes them within two points of West Ham who grabbed a late Ricardo Vaz Te equaliser at home to Watford, and a further point behind Southampton who were the victims of a late equaliser at home to Ipswich.

Middlesbrough are fourth with Blackpool and Birmingham the other teams in the play off positions right now, but it's tight with three teams, Brighton, Cardiff and Hull all within one good result of a place in the top six.

Down at the bottom of the league we have a new bottom club and that's Portsmouth.  Besides not having two pennies to rub together the South coast club have now won just two points in their last seven games. Add that to the ten point deduction for going into administration and it's dumped them right where they belong at the bottom of the league.

They dropped that further place because Doncaster won at Nottingham Forest in a game that would have seen the home side get some considerable breathing space had they won it. Donny, along with Coventry, are now three points clear of Portsmouth who will probably get out of trouble given the way some are bending over backwards to help them again, this time the Football League by allowing them to receive payments.

We didn't play in midweek and it has almost gone unnoticed that we've dropped back into the bottom half of the table courtesy of Crystal Palace, our opponents tomorrow, drawing at Coventry.

Maybe it was the excitement of the FA Youth Cup win at Fulham, but it was only this morning when I checked the league tables that I spotted us in 13th place, the first time we've been in the bottom half since mid-December after the defeat to Portsmouth.

We're back in action this weekend, and there's a full programme. Those fixtures are below along with the midweek results and stats, the leading goalscorers, each club's disciplinary record and the highest and lowest attendances.

The Midweek Results Tuesday 6th March Bristol City 3 Leicester City 2 Nottingham Forest 1 Doncaster Rovers 2 Coventry City 1 Crystal Palace 1 Peterborough United 0 Millwall 3 Derby County 2 Blackpool 1 Reading 1 Portsmouth 0 Hull City 0 Leeds United 0 Soouthampton 1 Ipswich Town 1 Middlesbrough 2 Barnsley 0   Wednesday 7th March Brighton & Hove Albion 2 Cardiff City 2 West Ham United 1 Watford 1

 

The Midweek Stats Biggest Win

Millwall3-0 v Peterborough United (away)

Total Goals Scored 27 (14 home - 13 away)

Player Scoring Most Goals

2 - Steven Davies (Derby County) Highest Attendance 31,674 - West Ham United v Watford Lowest Attendance 6,392 - Peterborough United v Millwall Total Yellow Cards 27 Total Red Cards 0 Most Cards in a Game Coventry City v Crystal Palace (4Y) Ref: Mark BrownBrighton & Hove Albion v Cardiff City (4Y) Ref: Oliver Langford

 

Leading Goalscorers (League Only) 21 Rickie Lambert (Southampton) - includes 7 penalties 15 Ross McCormack (Leeds United) 14 Jay Rodriguez (Burnley) - includes 2 penalties 13 Michael Chopra (Ipswich Town)Darius Henderson (Millwall) - includes 2 penaltiesDavid Nugent (Leicester City) 12

Ricardo Vaz Te (West Ham United) - (10 with Barnsley)

11

Craig Davies (Barnsley) - includes 1 penaltyMarvin Emnes (Middlesbrough)Matty Fryatt (Hull City) - includes 1 penaltyKevin Phillips (Blackpool)Billy Sharp (Southampton) - includes 1 penalty - (10 with Doncaster Rovers)Robert Snodgrass (Leeds United) - includes 1 penalty

10 Charlie Austin (Burnley)Guly Do Prado (Southampton)Lukas Jutkiewicz (Middllesbrough) - includes 1 penalty - (9 with Coventry City)Marlon King (Birmingham City) - includes 2 penaltiesPete Whittingham (Cardiff City) - includes 3 penaltiesChris Wood (Bristol City) - (9 with Birmingham City) 9 Keith Andrews (Ipswich Town)Ashley Barnes (Brighton & Hove Albion) includes 3 penaltiesCarlton Cole (West Ham United)Robert Koren (Hull City)Craig Mackail-Smith (Brighton & Hove Albion)Nicky Maynard (West Ham United) - (9 with Bristol City)Scott McDonald (Middlesbrough)Kenny Miller (Cardiff City)

 

Hat Tricks  Date Player & Game 20/08/11 3: Lee Tomlin - PETERBOROUGH UNITED v Ipswich Town 10/09/11 3: Rickie Lambert - SOUTHAMPTON v Nottingham Forest 11/09/11 3: Chris Wood - BIRMINGHAM CITY v Millwall 12/10/11 3: Darius Henderson - Leicester City v MILLWALL 02/11/11 3: Jonjo Shelvey - Leeds United v BLACKPOOL 19/11/11 3: Rickie Lambert - SOUTHAMPTON v Brighton & Hove Albion 26/12/11 3: Matthew Phillips - Barnsley v BLACKPOOL 31/12/11 3: Ricardo Vaz Te - BARNSLEY v Leeds United 21/01/12 3: Darius Henderson - Barnsley v MILLWALL 31/01/12 4: Nikola Zigic - Leeds United v BIRMINGHAM CITY 26/02/12 3: Rickie Lambert - Watford v SOUTHAMPTON

 

Disciplinary Record (League and Cup) Club Y R Y R Club Y R Y R   League   Total   League  Total  Barnsley 45 1 48 1 Ipswich Town 46 4 47 4 Birmingham City 45 1 50 1 Leeds United 55 5 61 5 Blackpool 43 1 46 2 Leicester City 49 8 57 8 Brighton and Hove Albion 76 6 90 6 Middlesbrough 61 6 64 6 Bristol City 64 4 66 4 Millwall 59 2 66 2 Burnley 48 2 56 2 Nottingham Forest 44 3 49 3 Cardiff City 41 0 57 0 Peterborough United 41 2 44 2 Coventry City 44 2 46 2 Portsmouth 57 4 64 4 Crystal Palace 43 1 47 2 Reading 47 0 50 0 Derby County 45 1 45 1 Southampton 44 4 47 4 Doncaster Rovers 54 2 56 2 Watford 48 2 50 2 Hull City 53 1 57 1 West Ham United 53 6 56 7

 

Highest and Lowest Attendances Highest Lowest Att Fixture Att Fixture 34,936 West Ham United v Coventry City (02/01) 6,351 Peterborough United v Cardiff City (18/10) 34,900 West Ham United v Crystal Palace (25/02) 6,392 Peterborough United v Millwall (07/03) 34,749 West Ham United v Barnsley (17/12) 7,004 Peterborough United v Bristol City (18/02) 33,465 West Ham United v Portsmouth (10/09) 7,555 Peterborough United v Portsmouth (28/01) 33,010 Derby County v Southampton (15/10) 7,650 Doncaster Rovers v Watford (26/11) 33,010 Derby County v Leeds United (26/12) 7,778 Doncaster Rovers v Bristol City (27/08) 32,875 West Ham United v Southampton (14/02) 7,901 Peterborough United v Burnley (17/09) 32,150 Southampton v West Ham United (18/10) 7,928 Peterborough United v Ipswich Town (20/08) 31,812 Southampton v Brighton & Hove Albion (19/11) 8,062 Peterborough United v Coventry City (17/12) 31,718 West Ham United v Nottingham Forest (21/01) 8,319 Doncaster Rovers v Blackpool (14/02)

 

The Next Fixtures Saturday 10th March Brighton & Hove Albion v Portsmouth Nottingham Forest v Millwall Bristol City v Cardiff City (17:20) Peterborough United v Blackpool Burnley v Crystal Palace Reading v Leicester City Coventry City v Birmingham City (12:30) Southampton v Barnsley Derby County v Watford West Ham United v Doncaster Rovers Hull City v Ipswich Town   Sunday 11th March Middlesbrough v Leeds United (12:15)  

Source: FOOTYMAD