Dominic Solanke’s 19th goal of the season helped Bournemouth to cement their place at the top of the Championship table heading into 2022.
Solanke struck 22 minutes from time in a 3-0 win over 10-man Cardiff which left the club four points clear of second-placed Fulham, although having played two games more.
Ryan Christie had fired the leaders into a 25th-minute lead with the help of a deflection off defender Mark McGuinness, and the Bluebirds’ hopes of fighting their way back into the game were dealt a blow in first-half stoppage time when Leandro Bacuna was dismissed for a poor challenge on Philip Billing.
Solanke, who had set up Christie for the opening goal, extended the Cherries’ lead after Billing had cheekily backheeled him in on goal with 68 minutes gone, and it was 3-0 seven minutes from time when Jefferson Lerma’s close-range effort went in off keeper Alex Smithies.
Huddersfield held out under a remarkable storm of pressure to claim a 1-0 win at the City Ground that left Nottingham Forest kicking themselves in frustration. Steve Cooper’s side created chance after chance, either side of Duane Holmes’ 30th-minute strike for the visitors.
But goalkeeper Lee Nicholls made a string of saves and Forest spurned a host of opportunities as they somehow managed to emerge from a game they could easily have won by a comfortable margin, empty handed.
Yoann Barbet’s stoppage-time strike gave QPR a 2-1 win at Ashton Gate over a Bristol City team reduced to 10 men. The defender connected perfectly with a near-post header from a right-wing corner to send traveling fans behind the goal into ecstasy.
It was rough justice on City, who were depleted from the 56th minute when midfielder Andy King was shown a second yellow card for pulling back Stefan Johansen, having already been booked for dissent over a first-half penalty award.
The hosts had taken just three minutes to go in front, teenager Alex Scott firing home from inside the box. But Rangers hit back in first-half injury time when Cameron Pring brought down Luke Amos and Charlie Austin made no mistake in firing the resulting spot-kick past Max O’Leary.
Colin Kazim-Richards was Derby’s match-winner for a second successive game as he came off the bench to earn Wayne Rooney’s side a 2-1 Championship win at Stoke.
The 35-year-old slotted home an 84th-minute winner with his left foot, seven minutes after former Rams favourite Tom Ince looked to have rescued a point for the hosts, to earn Derby their third straight win.
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Kazim-Richards had also been the hero in Derby’s victory over high-flying West Brom three days ago. His third goal of the season which completed a league double over Stoke for the division’s bottom side came after he replaced first-half scorer Luke Plange.
Nineteen-year-old Plange, making only his third first-team start, fired County into a deserved 16th-minute lead with the second goal of his senior career. Victory marked the first time Derby had won three straight games since January and lifted them to within 11 points of safety.