After a quick turnaround from the weekend, there were more thrilling results across the EFL midweek. Below, we’ve rounded up some of the standout stories from the Sky Bet Championship, League One and League Two.
1. 16-year-old debuts
16-year-old Rochdale defender Luke Matheson made the headlines last season when at just 15 he came on as a substitute in an EFL Trophy game, before claiming the Man of the Match award. One year on and two days before receiving his GCSE results, on Tuesday night he was awarded his first EFL start for Rochdale as they took on Sunderland at the Crown Oil Arena. The young right back was up against Sunderland’s Aiden McGeady - full debuts don’t come much tougher, and despite a 2-1 loss, Matheson received praise from all areas of the ground for his performance in defence and handling of McGeady. One to watch for the future…
2. Leeds United and Swansea City go top
After Sheffield Wednesday's win on Tuesday night, Leeds United and Swansea City knew what they had to do to return back to the top to spots in the division. Marcelo Bielsa's men had to overcome Brentford and Steve Cooper had to steer his men to three points away to QPR. The Yorkshire outfit left it late to wrap up the three points with Arsneal loanee Eddie Nketiah tapping in on the 81st minute, meanwhile the Swans were clinical in a 3-1 win at Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.
3. A ten-year wait for a win…
Before Tuesday night Barnsley were unbeaten in the league at St Andrew’s since 2008, with Birmingham also losing both matches the last time they met in the 2017/18 season. Barnsley currently have the youngest squad in the Championship with an average age of 22 years and 310 days and Pep Clotet’s side were too much to handle as Lukas Jutkiewicz scored his fourth consecutive home goal for the Blues before Alvaro Gimenez sealed the three points. The win moved the Blues up to eighth in the table before Wednesday's fixtures.
4. 96th minute winners
Mansfield Town were looking to win three consecutive EFL matches against Leyton Orient for the first time since February 1938 and a Danny Rose brace almost made sure it happened before a spectacular second-half comeback, including a 96th minute winner from Jordan Maguire-Drew for the O’s secured three points on the road.
5. Three goals in 12 minutes for the Shrews
Substitute Daniel Udoh’s last-minute goal completed a spectacular come-from-behind win for Shrewsbury Town as they beat Accrington Stanley 3-2 after being 2-0 down. With 12 minutes to play, Sam Ricketts’ side looked down and out but character and determination played its part in a stunning comeback for the Shrews as they left Lancashire with all three points, lifting them to eighth in Sky Bet League One.