Will Lankshear scored a second-half double on his debut as Middlesbrough fought back to kick off their Championship campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 victory, ending promoted Lincoln’s remarkable nine-month unbeaten run.
The Imps – playing their first second-tier match in 65 years – made a strong start and opened the scoring in the 12th minute through Adam Reach. But the former Tottenham forward Lankshear marked his first league appearance since his move to the Riverside by equalising just after the hour and then stabbing in a stoppage-time winner.
It was a devastating end for Lincoln as a run of 29 games undefeated in all competitions since early December was brought to a halt in their first league match since their new joint head coach partnership of Chris Cohen and Tom Shaw stepped up to take over after the departure of Michael Skubala to Bristol City in May.
Philippe Clement was left feeling extremely hard done by after watching his Norwich side lose 2-1 at home to West Brom. Clement felt his side should have won the game comfortably with the number of chances they created – and also felt Aune Heggebø’s opener, which came against the run of play, should have been ruled out for handball.
“It was clearly with the arm that the player scores – we could see that from where we were watching, 50 yards away,” he said. “It was the decisive moment in the game and should have been spotted. There are four officials and one of them should have seen it. Maybe the referee didn’t have the best view – but the linesman on our side needs to see that. Missing game-changing moments like this shouldn’t happen – it has cost us at least two, maybe three points.”
Norwich were on the front foot for most of the game but could not find a way past a resolute defence, and were made to pay for failing to take their chances as Albion scored two late goals to make it a dream start to the new season.
The visitors went in front on 75 minutes when Callum Styles played in Jimmy-Jay Morgan, whose cross was bundled over the line by Heggebø. With three minutes remaining, Morgan made it two with his third goal since joining the Baggies in the summer, racing clear and working his way into the box before blasting the ball home. Mathias Kvistgaarden nodded home a loose ball as the game entered added time.
Ilias Chair scored twice as QPR came from behind to beat Portsmouth 3-1 and claim their first win at Fratton Park in 26 years. Pompey dominated the opening half an hour and took the lead through Terry Devlin’s long-range screamer. But Rangers scored three times in 15 minutes before half-time.
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League One: Lowe penalty gives Wednesday winning start
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Jamal Lowe converted a second-half penalty as Sheffield Wednesday made a winning start in League One following relegation with a 2-1 victory at Leyton Orient. The Owls, under new ownership since succumbing to the earliest relegation in English Football League history in February, went ahead through Callum Slattery’s debut goal before Joseph Olowu levelled before the break. But Lowe picked himself up after being fouled in the area by James Morris to fire home from the spot in the 66th minute.
Former Premier League champions Leicester were denied victory at Notts County in their first match since relegation as they were held 1-1. Conor Grant’s late strike cancelled out Jayden Joseph’s second-half opener for Leicester and salvaged a deserved point for the home side.
Ciaron Brown’s stoppage-time equaliser rescued another relegated side, Oxford, earning them a 2-2 draw at newly-promoted MK Dons. Charlie Goode and Aaron Collins gave the Dons a 2-1 half-time lead after Mark Harris had fired the U’s in front before Brown turned home a cross in the fifth minute of added time.
Substitute Gideon Kodua scrambled a stoppage-time winner to seal Luton a 4-3 win at Reading, for whom Jack Marriott scored a first-half hat-trick. Huddersfield’s summer signing Derensili Sanches Fernandes struck twice as they beat AFC Wimbledon 3-0 at home despite the first-half dismissal of Bali Mumba.
Victor Adeboyejo fired a second-half winner as Bromley won 1-0 at Barnsley for their first-ever win in the third tier following promotion.
Cambridge United held off a fightback to beat Wigan 3-2 on the U’s return to League One.
Goals from Kell Watts, Louis Appere and Isaac Heath put the hosts in control but Wigan made a game of it in the last 20 minutes when Sonny Perkins and Akeel Higgins set up a nervy finish.
Blackpool and Wycombe shared the points in an opening day 1-1 draw.
The visitors led for long periods at Bloomfield Road, following an early opener from Fred Onyedinma. This was cancelled out by substitute Finley Munroe, who made an instant impact following his loan move from Middlesbrough last week.
Bradford made a winning start with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Peterborough, who finished with 10 men after David Okagbue’s red card.
Second-half goals from Macaulay Gillesphey and Nick Powell were enough for last season’s play-off semi-finalists to secure three points.
Stockport eased to a sparkling 3-1 win at Plymouth as Jack Diamond scored their opener, helped set up a second for Kyle Wootton and a third for Ryan Glover before Xavier Amaechi gave Argyle a late consolation.
Mansfield made a winning start with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Doncaster.
Rhys Oates swept home the opener but Rovers levelled four minutes after the break when through Jack Senior before Mansfield deservedly won it in the 74th minute with a free-kick from Louis Reed.
Olly Sanderson bundled home in stoppage time to snatch Stevenage a point in a 1-1 draw at Burton. The former Fulham youngster came off the bench to cancel out Jack Armer’s second-half strike for the Brewers.
Josh Coburn scored twice as Millwall kicked off their campaign with a comfortable 2-0 win over 10-man Bristol City at Ashton Gate. The home side went a man down after 36 minutes when midfielder Adam Randell was shown a second yellow card for a foul to prevent a counterattack.
Five minutes later, Coburn converted a low Ryan Leonard cross from the right with a near-post volley. Coburn then doubled the advantage after 50 minutes, taking advantage of poor defending to score unchallenged with a downward header from 10 yards.
The result meant that Skubala’s reign as City manager has begun with two home defeats, after the shock Carabao Cup exit at the hands of League Two Walsall, and without his side scoring a goal.
Steven Schumacher celebrated Bolton’s first Championship win for seven years after surviving a late scare against Preston. Sam Dalby and Thierry Gale put Bolton in command with first-half goals, but the Preston substitute Jusef Erabi ensured a nervy ending by pulling a goal back in the 86th minute. Liam Lindsay passed up a chance to equalise, heading over in added time, to leave Schumacher a relieved man.
“That’s what this division is all about,” he said. “From being in control of the game we’re happy they missed a sitter at the end not to take away our three points. It’s going to be an exciting ride so strap in.”
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Tyreece Campbell’s impressive start to the new season continued as his 80th-minute goal earned Charlton a 2-1 victory over Derby at The Valley. It capped off a week to forget for the Rams after the takeover by the Saudi government official Turki Alalshikh collapsed on Monday.
Sammie Szmodics, who scored in the EFL Cup loss to Lincoln, put Derby into a lead at the halfway point. But Lloyd Jones, who signed a new two-year contract on Friday, headed the Addicks level before Campbell produced an excellent finish to seal maximum points for the home side.
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League Two: York return with victory
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York debutant Harry Boyes bagged a brace to mark the club’s EFL return after a 10-year absence with a thrilling 3-2 home triumph over Bristol Rovers.
Boyes – a summer signing from Southend – netted the first EFL goals of his career and was joined on the Minstermen scoresheet by Alex Newby.
Clinton Mola had given Steve Evans’ visitors a first-half lead and substitute Tommy Leigh later levelled from the penalty spot, but Boyes had the last say.
Newport and new manager Hayden Mullins enjoyed a dream start to their League Two campaign with a 3-0 home win over newly-promoted Rochdale.
First-half goals from summer signings Kyle Cameron and Shaquille Gwengwe put the Exiles in charge at a sun-baked Rodney Parade.
Calum Kavanagh’s second-half double gave Oldham a 2-0 home win against relegated Port Vale.
Kavanagh, who scored twice in 10 games last season after arriving from Bradford in January, struck twice in the space of 15 minutes to earn the Latics an opening-day victory.
Charlie Caton scored twice but Accrington had to settle for a point in a 2-2 draw with Colchester.
Colchester who broke the deadlock after 24 minutes when Ellis Iandolo headed home. Stanley levelled five minutes later when Shaun Whalley’s cross was headed into the far corner by Caton. The Reds took the lead in the first minute of added time at the end of the first half as Caton in the box and he fired home.
Colchester equalised on the hour when Rob Hunt’s high cross dipped straight into the top corner of the net.
Goals from Oisin Gallagher, Charlie Lakin and Kabongo Tshimanga earned Barnet a 3-1 opening-day win over Salford.
The trio struck to put the Bees in full control before Adebola Oluwo’s last-minute consolation.
A debut strike from Leicester loanee Jake Evans sealed a 2-1 home win for Cheltenham over Rotherham.
The Robins led through Charlie McCann’s first-half strike before Jili Buyabu levelled for the Millers in the 62nd minute. But Evans, who turns 18 on Friday, went on from the bench and sealed the points for Steve Cotterill’s side.
Veteran striker Ched Evans scored the only goal of the game, finding the net against one of his former clubs to give Fleetwood an opening day 1-0 victory at Chesterfield.
Josh March headed the winner in the fifth minute of stoppage time as 10-man Crewe got the better of nine-man Crawley at the Broadfield Stadium.
Late goals from Isaac Moore, James Connolly and Aaron Pressley did the damage as Walsall secured a fine 3-0 away win over Gillingham.
Grimsby got off to a winning start at the expense of newly-relegated Exeter with a tightly-contested 1-0 triumph at Blundell Park.
Harvey Rodgers gave the hosts the lead 36 minutes in as he got on the end of a corner from Charles Vernam, with the linesman calling it over the line before it was cleared.
Tranmere completed a 2-0 victory over Shrewsbury. Jordan Davies’ first league goal for the club and a Charlie Whitaker wonder strike secured the points in an entertaining opening-day clash at Prenton Park.
Northampton and Swindon played out a goalless draw at Sixfields.
Charlton’s manager, Nathan Jones, said later that he was hoping to secure Campbell on a new contract. His current deal expires next summer. “TC gets in those positions all the time and one-v-one he is a threat. We just want the outcomes from him. We are in really advanced negotiations with him. We’re hoping we can get that done.”
Adam Idah snatched the winner with his first touch as Swansea battled back from a goal down to beat Stoke 2-1. The Republic of Ireland international had been on the pitch for barely 60 seconds when he scored in the 66th minute as the Swans claimed their first win at Stoke for more than five years. Eric Bocat had fired Stoke into a 10th-minute lead and Joseph Opoku hit a 23rd-minute equaliser for the Swans, powering in with a sweet right-foot shot after some poor defending.
Sheffield United and Birmingham made an underwhelming start to the season in a goalless draw at Bramall Lane. Both sides have ambitions of mounting promotion challenges but there was not too much to get excited about.
The only action of note in the opening half came just before the half-hour. The Blades went first as Patrick Bamford hooked Femi Seriki’s deflected cross just wide. Birmingham responded straight away and Alex Cochrane’s cross was perfect for Paik Seung-ho but the South Korean could not get enough on his header.
Birmingham had a big moment in the 58th minute when Carlos Vicente was played through on goal but his attempted pass was cut out by Japhet Tanganga when the better option was to shoot. The visitors produced the first shot on target in the 62nd minute when Jay Stansfield’s low show was kept out by Michael Cooper.