Nottingham Forest moved into second as Doncaster were beaten 1-0 by Carlisle.
Carlisle defeat Doncaster, Forest up to second
Nottingham Forest moved into second as Doncaster were beaten 1-0 by Carlisle.
Swansea continued their relentless march towards the League One title on Friday night, so the action centred around the chasing pack.
Forest came out on top against Leyton Orient to climb above Doncaster on goal difference, while Carlisle are just one point further back.
In the battle to avoid relegation, Gillingham and Crewe are locked together on points, goal difference and goals scored in 20th and 21st place.
Port Vale remain bottom after being beaten convincingly by Millwall.
Max Gradel fired The Cherries ahead at Dean Court with a penalty after 17 minutes and Marvyn Bartley doubled their advantage on 39 minutes. David Bird pulled one back for Cheltenham on the stroke of half-time and Stephen Brooker then grabbed an equaliser one minute from time to leave Bournemouth 12 points adrift of safety.
Brighton and Oldham, both in mid-table but with games in hand on most of their rivals and still in contention for the play-offs, could not be separated in a tight first half. However, Glenn Murray pounced in the 61st minute to put the home side in charge and The Latics could not respond.
Tranmere, looking to extend their unbeaten run to eight games, were reduced to ten men when Steven Jennings was sent off in the 44th minute. Bristol Rovers could not take advantage of their numerical advantage as Antony Kay gave Tranmere the lead after 74 minutes, but Craig Disley levelled with just nine minutes remaining.
Carlisle kept up their superb home form with a hard-fought victory over fellow high-flyers Doncaster. Danny Graham put Carlisle ahead on 40 minutes and John Ward's side stayed solid at the back to cling on for all three points. They are now just one point behind Doncaster in third.
Gillingham claimed their first win in eight games as Adam Miller struck with a penalty in the 88th minute. Gillingham will now be looking to push on and climb clear of trouble, while Huddersfield remain in trouble.
Leeds remain without a win under Gary McAllister after another disappointing showing at Elland Road, but they were able to salvage a late draw through Tresor Kandol's header on 86 minutes. Nicky Maynard scored for struggling Crewe two minutes into the second half.
Forest have struggled on the road in recent weeks but they boosted their promotion hopes with a battling win against Orient. Junior Agogo provided the goal with a fine finish from the edge of the box to leave Orient just outside the play-offs.
Port Vale failed to win for the eighth game in succession as they were comfortably beaten by Millwall. Lewis Grabben set The Lions on their way with a goal on 18 minutes and Marc Laird then found the target just before half-time. David Martin got in on the act in the 68th minute.
Lee Holmes was the hero with two goals for Walsall as they tightened their grip on a play-off place with another impressive victory on their travels. Holmes opened the scoring on 11 minutes and completed his brace in the 57th minute. Alex Nicholls piled more misery on Swindon with a third in stoppage time.
Lee Barnard broke the deadlock for The Shrimpers in the 20th minute and Peter Clarke made it 2-0 on 34 minutes. Mark Gower's goal on 64 minutes killed off any chance of a Yeovil comeback and Southend cruised through the rest of the second half to climb one place to seventh.
