Gills extend lead, York also win

Gillingham beat Rotherham 1-0 to extend their lead over Port Vale at the top of League Two, while York beat Plymouth at the bottom.

Gillingham increased their lead at the top of npower League Two to eight points with a 1-0 win over Rotherham. Deon Burton's 22nd-minute goal was the only difference between the two sides as Gillingham moved closer to automatic promotion after second-placed Port Vale dropped points at Chesterfield and Northampton were beaten by Cheltenham. Vale, however, will be thankful to have taken any points away from Chesterfield as Tom Pope conjured a late equaliser to claim a 2-2 draw. Vale had taken the lead through Darren Purse in the fifth minute but Chesterfield hit back twice thanks to a double from Marc Richards who seemed to relish playing against his former club. The final word fell to Pope five minutes before the final whistle, as he scored his 31st goal of the season to salvage a point. Steve Elliott's first-half effort was enough for Cheltenham to beat Northampton 1-0, leaving the victors level on points with the third-placed side having played one additional game. Burton missed the chance to move into third place when James Beattie scored a last minute equaliser for Accrington as the sides played out a hard-fought 3-3 draw. Accrington took and early lead through Will Hatfield before Matthew Paterson cancelled it out before half-time. The home side again took the lead after the break though Padraig Amond but it only lasted for six minutes as again Burton levelled, this time thanks to Zander Diamond. Jacques Maghoma's 35-yard free-kick edged Burton ahead for the first time in the game in the 73rd minute and they looked on course to win, but Beattie had the final word with an equaliser in the third minute of stoppage time. At the other end of the table, York sealed a much-needed 2-0 win over Plymouth to move just one point away from safety. The victory was York's first in 17 games and manager Nigel Worthington's maiden win, with Ashley Chambers firing their first before Richard Cresswell added the second within half an hour on his return to the club he left 14 years ago. York are now just one point behind Plymouth, who are just above the relegation zone, with four games remaining. Bottom side Aldershot also secured a valuable 3-2 win over 10-man Oxford thanks to substitute Jeff Goulding, who scored a late winner. Aldershot had squandered a two-goal lead, given to them by Paul McCallum's early strike and Craig Reid's penalty just after half-time. Scott Davis' free-kick and Jon-Paul Pitman's strike looked to have ruined the Shots' day, but after Michael Raynes' second yellow card Goulding hit an 87th-minute winner. Bradford kept their play-off hopes alive at the expense of struggling Torquay as they won 3-1. On-loan Notts County midfielder Joss Labadie put Torquay in front in the third minute but Rory McArdle and Garry Thompson soon put Bradford ahead, with James Hanson netting the third just after the break to seal the win. The win means Bradford are five points adrift of the play-off places but have games in hand, while Torquay are just one point clear of the relegation zone. Two late goals for Rochdale spoiled promotion hunting Exeter's day as they lost 2-1 at home. Jamie Cureton gave Exeter the lead in first-half injury-time and the game looked to be heading for a home win before Ian Henderson's 87th-minute equaliser and Bobby Grant's injury-time winner earned a win for Rochdale. Meanwhile, Bristol Rovers beat Dagenham and Redbridge 4-2. John-Joe O'Toole and Oumare Tounkara gave Rovers a 2-0 lead within six minutes, with Danny Woodards adding the third midway through the first half. Ben Strevens pulled one back for Dag and Red before the break before Tounkara scored again in the 70th minute. Jake Reed's close range strike three minutes for the home side kept the game alive but it was the last score of the eventful match. Elsewhere, Stuart Lewis's second-half goal saw Wycombe beat Morecambe 1-0 while Keanu Marsh-Brown's late score was enough for Barnet to beat fellow strugglers Wimbledon 1-0.