Elsewhere, there were more woes for Wayne Rooney's Birmingham and vital wins for Millwall and Sheffield Wednesday,
Catch up on Friday's action from the EFL Championship:
Southampton 2-1 Plymouth
Second-half goals from Carlos Alcaraz and Ché Adams fired Southampton to a hard-fought 2-1 Championship win over Plymouth as the Saints ended the calendar year with a victory for the first time since 2010.
Birmingham 0-0 Bristol City
Wayne Rooney's dismal reign as Birmingham City manager continued, following a goalless draw with Bristol City at St Andrew's. Another game without a victory leaves the Blues with only one win from their previous eight games.
Cardiff 0-2 Leicester
A James Justin stunner and a first half Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall strike were enough for Leicester City to claim all three points with a 2-0 win over Cardiff, extending their lead at the top of the Championship table to eight points heading into 2024.
Coventry 2-2 Swansea
Liam Cullen struck a 93rd-minute equaliser as Swansea came from behind to rescue a 2-2 draw at Coventry City - denying the Sky Blues a third successive win for the first time this season.
Huddersfield 1-2 Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough captain Jonny Howson was the hero as he made up for his missed penalty with a late winner against Huddersfield Town at the John Smith’s Stadium - the Teesiders’ second win here this season following August’s Carabao Cup success.
Hull 3-2 Blackburn
Hull City fought off a Blackburn Rovers comeback to win 3-2 at the MKM Stadium in the Championship, as the Tigers secured a first-ever league double over Rovers after 31 attempts.
Ipswich 0-0 QPR
Ipswich Town’s charge for back-to-back promotions lost yet more momentum this evening, as a 0-0 home draw against Queens Park Rangers – coupled with a Southampton victory elsewhere – saw their advantage over third place cut to just three points.
Millwall 1-0 Norwich
Millwall lifted themselves eight points above the Championship drop zone by extending their unbeaten streak to four league games with a narrow 1-0 victory over Norwich City, who in turn succumbed to a first defeat in nine H2Hs dating back to August 2017.
Preston 0-1 Sheffield Wednesday
Danny Röhl’s impressive start to life as Sheffield Wednesday manager continued with a 1-0 victory over Preston North End, stemming a run of four defeats from their last five matches against the Lancashire side.
Rotherham 1-1 Sunderland
Rotherham United and Sunderland shared the spoils in an entertaining 1-1 draw at the AESSEAL New York Stadium, as the hosts missed the opportunity to register back-to-back Championship wins for the first time since October 2022.
Watford 1-1 Stoke
Watford held Stoke City to a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Vicarage Road, despite playing for the majority of the second half with 10 men following the dismissal of Vakoun Bayo. The result extends the visitors’ poor H2H record to just one win from the last 11 meetings (D3, L7).
West Brom 1-0 Leeds
West Bromwich Albion consolidated their place in the Championship play-off places with a significant 1-0 victory over fellow promotion hopefuls Leeds, ending their six-game winless H2H run in the process.
