Championship round-up

Lovenkrands: Magpies double

Click below for individual match reports and stats:
Blackpool 1 Ipswich 0
Bristol City 2 Doncaster 5
Cardiff 1 Middlesbrough 0
Crystal Palace 1 Sheff Utd 0
Derby 2 Watford 0
Newcastle 6 Barnsley 1
Nottm Forest 1 Swansea 0
Peterborough 0 Coventry 1
Plymouth 1 Preston 1
QPR 3 West Brom 1
Sheff Wed 2 Leicester 0

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Teams

• Barnsley
• Blackpool

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  • Bristol City
  • Cardiff City
  • Coventry City
  • Crystal Palace
  • Derby County
  • Doncaster
  • Ipswich Town
  • Leicester City
  • Middlesbrough
  • Newcastle United
  • Nottingham Forest
  • Peterborough United
  • Plymouth Argyle
  • Preston North End
  • Queens Park Rangers
  • Sheffield United
  • Sheffield Wednesday
  • Swansea City
  • Watford
  • West Bromwich Albion

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Newcastle moved eight points clear at the top of the Championship as Neil Warnock's QPR defeated West Brom and Nottingham Forest left it late to beat Swansea.

Doncaster produced the most eye-catching result of the day with a 5-2 success at Bristol City, while Cardiff consolidated their play-off place with victory over Middlesbrough.

Newcastle continued their march towards an instant return to the Premier League with a 6-1 romp against 10-man Barnsley, who had goalkeeper Luke Steele dismissed before the break.

Peter Lovenkrands picked himself up to score the resulting penalty before adding a second after the interval, with Danny Guthrie hitting two more and Jonas Gutierrez also on target along with Kevin Nolan.

Nottingham Forest extended their record City Ground winning run to 10 games but left it awfully late to see off Swansea as Luke Chambers scored at the death to lift Billy Davies' men back into second.

Neil Warnock enjoyed a successful start to his career as QPR manager with an impressive 3-1 victory at home to West Brom, with goals in the first 18 minutes from Jay Simpson and Matthew Connolly setting the Rs on their way.

Warnock's replacement at Crystal Palace, Paul Hart, also had a debut to remember as his relegation-threatened side saw off inconsistent Sheffield United 1-0 at Selhurst Park with Alan Lee finding the net.

Nigel Pearson did not have a happy return to Hillsborough as Leicester were put to the sword as Sheffield Wednesday snapped their three-game losing streak with a 2-0 success courtesy of Leon Clarke's brace.

Rovers romp

Five-star Doncaster hammered hapless Bristol City at Ashton Gate with Billy Sharp and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas bagging a brace apiece in a six-goal first half. The Robins' Bradley Orr scored three times, but his final effort went into his own net.

Cardiff consolidated their position in sixth with a 1-0 home triumph against play-off chasing Middlesbrough as Jay Bothroyd's third-minute goal proved decisive.

Peterborough were pushed another step closer to an immediate return to League One as Coventry continued their play-off push thanks to on-loan striker Jon Stead's solitary first-half effort.

Stead's parent club Ipswich remain in relegation danger after their 1-0 defeat at Blackpool, with Jason Euell scoring the only goal of the game for Ian Holloway's top-six hopefuls in the 54th minute.

Plymouth are now seven points from safety following their 1-1 Home Park draw with Preston North End, where Sean St Ledger's opener was cancelled out by Damien Johnson's second-half penalty.

Derby moved above Watford in the bottom half of the table as goals in either half from Michael Tonge and Chris Porter claimed all three points for the Rams.