The star of the show for Wolves was top scorer Michael Kightly who struck either side of half-time to seal his side's seventh home win of the season.

Kightly opened the scoring after latching onto a Graham Alexander cross to tap home from close range on the half-hour mark.

The England Under-21 forward then sealed the win after a delightful one-two with Sylvain Ebanks-Blake with 16 minutes left.

Birmingham lost ground on the league leaders after they could only manage a 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.

Forest found themselves behind on 13 minutes when James McFadden tapped home from close range after a Liam Ridgewell free-kick.

Forest battled back to earn a deserved point through James Perch who struck after a Wes Morgan flick on seven minutes into the second half.

QPR caretaker-manager Gareth Ainsworth led his side to a 1-0 victory over Cardiff in an ill-tempered match at Loftus Road.

Ainsworth had to wait until the 79th minute to see his side score when Gavin Mahon headed home a Peter Ramage cross to break the deadlock.

The visitors ended the match with nine men after Miguel Comminges and Darren Purse both saw red.

Reading are now just one point behind Birmingham after they cruised to a 3-0 win over Derby at the Madejski Stadium.

League top scorer Kevin Doyle struck twice in seven second-half minutes to seal all three points for Steve Coppell's men after Noel Hunt opened the scoring after 20 minutes.

James Beattie bagged a brace as Sheffield United beat Barnsley 2-1 in the South Yorkshire derby at Oakwell.

The former Everton man gave United the lead after 20 minutes before securing the win with five minutes left from the spot.

Barnsley hit back through Kayode Odejayi while Ugo Ehiogu and Anderson De Silva were sent off on 28 minutes after an off the ball incident.

Leon Clarke gave Sheffield Wednesday a 1-0 win over rock-bottom Doncaster in the other South Yorkshire derby of the day at Hillsborough.

The striker headed home his second goal in two matches after latching on to a Etienne Esajas cross just before half-time.

Emile Mpenza's last-gasp goal denied under-fire Charlton boss Alan Pardew his first win in six as they drew 2-2 with Plymouth at Home Park.

Mathias Doumbe put Plymouth ahead before Kelly Youga and Andy Gray put Charlton on the verge of victory before substitute Mpenza stole a point for the hosts.

Neil Mellor struck late to grab a point for Preston as they drew 2-2 with Norwich at Carrow Road.

Chris Brown had put Preston ahead early on then Norwich hit back through John Kennedy and Leroy Lita but Mellor's 18-yard strike levelled the scores with 10 minutes left.

Goals from Clint Hill and Ben Watson gave Crystal Palace a 2-0 win over Coventry at the Ricoh Arena while David Norris scored the only goal of the game at Bloomfield Road where Ipswich beat Blackpool 1-0.

In the evening kick-off, Bristol City earned a 1-0 win at Southampton thanks to Lee Johnson's second-half goal.

Johnson's smart 18-yard finish after 51 minutes proved enough for Gary Johnson's side - who also saw Michael McIndoe miss a 19th-minute penalty - to take all three points.

The defeat leaves Southampton just a point above the relegation zone and without a home win since September. City move up into ninth.