Posh stun Cardiff; Palace held
A review of Saturday's action in the npower Championship, including a shock defeat for Cardiff against Peterborough.
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Peterborough produced the shock of the npower Championship season so far as they ended Cardiff's perfect home record with a 2-1 victory.
The table-topping Bluebirds had won their opening 10 league games in the Welsh capital but came unstuck against a Peterborough side bottom before kick-off.
Michael Bostwick put Posh ahead after 22 minutes with a superb long-range effort and on-loan Dagenham striker Dwight Gayle netted the second two minutes after the interval.
Rudy Gestede's late goal ensured a nervy finish for Darren Ferguson's team, but they held on for three crucial points.
| Position | Player | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cardiff | 44 |
| 2 | C Palace | 42 |
| 3 | Middlesbro' | 41 |
| 4 | Hull City | 41 |
| 5 | Leicester | 37 |
| 6 | Millwall | 36 |
| 7 | Watford | 34 |
| 8 | Brighton | 33 |
| 9 | N Forest | 33 |
| 10 | Derby | 33 |
| 11 | Blackpool | 32 |
| 12 | Leeds | 32 |
- last updated 15/12 19:26
Despite Cardiff's shock loss they stayed top of the division as closest rivals Crystal Palace drew 2-2 at Birmingham.
Prolific striker Glenn Murray fired Palace 2-0 ahead after an hour but they relinquished the advantage as substitute Nikola Zigic (66) and Papa Bouba Diop (82) scored.
Middlesbrough and Hull moved three points off the lead with 2-0 wins over Wolves and Huddersfield respectively.
Boro had to wait until late to breakdown a stubborn Wolves defence, with Martin Emnes netting an 89th-minute penalty after Karl Henry fouled Scott McDonald. The Australia striker then continued his recent scoring streak with his side's second in injury-time.
Hull won their lunchtime kick-off against Yorkshire rivals Huddersfield 2-0 thanks to goals from Robert Koren (eight) and David Meyler (90).
| Team | Score | Team |
|---|---|---|
| Barnsley | 0 - 1 | Sheff Wed |
| Burnley | 1 - 1 | Watford |
| Cardiff | 1 - 2 | Peterboro |
| Blackpool | 2 - 0 | Blackburn |
| Birmingham | 2 - 2 | C Palace |
| Middlesbro | 2 - 0 | Wolves |
| Millwall | 1 - 0 | Leicester |
| Bolton | 2 - 0 | Charlton |
| Bristol C | 0 - 2 | Derby |
| Brighton | 0 - 0 | N Forest |
| Leeds | 2 - 0 | Ipswich |
| Hull City | 2 - 0 | Huddersfld |
Hull's win was soured when Alex Bruce saw red during a scuffle after the whistle, although he appeared to be retaliating to an elbow from Alan Lee.
Chris Taylor scored the only goal of the game on 67 minutes as Millwall moved into the play-off places with a 1-0 home win over Leicester.
Watford dropped out of the top six as they drew 1-1 at Burnley. Nathaniel Chalobah's 11th-minute opener was cancelled out by the prolific Charlie Austin from the spot on 28 minutes.
Blackpool beat derby rivals Blackburn 2-0 with goals from Wes Thomas (22) and Kirk Broadfoot (81).
Leeds joined Blackpool in the top half as they won a third successive home league game 2-0 over Ipswich. On-loan winger Jerome Thomas (20) and Paul Green (68) were on target.
David Ngog scored twice in the final 16 minutes as Bolton grabbed a much-needed 2-0 win over Charlton while Derby claimed a 2-0 win at Bristol City.
Jeff Hendrick (34) and Craig Bryson (36) got the Rams' goals.
Brighton and Nottingham Forest played out a 0-0 draw at the Amex Stadium.
In the late kick-off Sheffield Wednesday earned local bragging rights with a 1-0 victory over Barnsley which eases the pressure on boss Dave Jones and piles it on counterpart Keith Hill.
The Owls had lost their previous seven games in the Championship which left the former Cardiff boss clinging on to his job, but Chris O'Grady's first-half goal earned the vital points and stopped the rot.
The goal was shrouded in controversy, though, as O'Grady tapped home after Barnsley goalkeeper Luke Steele had dropped the ball under the challenge of Gary Madine, with television replays showing a push.
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