RAVEL MORRISON SCORED his first league goals in England for nearly eight years to give Derby a 2-0 victory over relegation rivals Barnsley.
The former Manchester United attacking midfielder struck twice to end a drought that stretched back to April 2014 as Derby halted a run of three defeats.
Morrison also hit the bar in one of his best displays in a Rams shirt, while Barnsley created little after Carlton Morris was denied by Ryan Allsop in the first half.
Barnsley exchanged places in the bottom three with Derby, who closed the gap on fourth-bottom Reading to five points in the Sky Bet Championship.
Derby were boosted by the return of skipper Tom Lawrence after a three-match ban and he set up an early chance that should have seen his side take the lead.
Lawrence’s eighth-minute free-kick bounced off a Barnsley defender and fell to Luke Plange just outside the six-yard box but he dragged his shot wide of the far post.
Derby went close again when the ball was crossed in from the right and Morrison’s back-post header was blocked by a green shirt.
But the goal Derby deserved for a strong start arrived in the 22nd minute when Lawrence played in Plange, who set up Morrison to dink the ball over Brad Collins from eight yards.
Barnsley came close to equalising four minutes later when Morris got behind Derby’s defence on the right but Allsop saved at his near post.
Morrison produced another moment of quality in the 32nd minute with a shot from the edge of the box that beat Collins but clipped the top of the crossbar.
His next attempt sailed high into the crowd but it had been a good half for Morrison and Derby.
The visitors conceded again two minutes after the restart when a mistake allowed Lawrence to go through on the right and, after his shot came back off the bar, Morrison slammed in the rebound.
Barnsley were making too many mistakes and almost went further behind when Mads Andersen’s loose pass set up Malcolm Ebiowei who curled a shot just wide.
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Morris won a free-kick just outside the area and, although he beat the wall, it was too close to Allsop who tipped the ball behind for a corner which was easily dealt with.
Barnsley won another free-kick in a dangerous area in the 79th minute but could not make it count as Amine Bassi sent an effort wide which summed up their afternoon.
Republic of Ireland striker Michael Obafemi will be hopeful of earning his second international cap later this month after playing a starring role in Swansea’s 3-1 home win over Coventry.
Obafemi netted coolly on either side of half-time and provided an assist for Jamie Paterson’s opener as Swansea climbed to 16th.
Obafemi’s goals on 40 and 47 minutes sealed what transpired to be a comfortable win for the hosts, who have as many as three games in hand over their Championship rivals.
It was the first time Swansea had managed back-to-back wins in the league since beating Coventry in November.
Swansea manager Russell Martin had said after the midweek victory against West Brom that he was keen to make Cyrus Christie’s loan deal from Fulham permanent.
And it was the in-form Christie who caused the visitors plenty of early trouble on the right, to the extent that Jake Bidwell was forced to pick up an early booking.
However it was from the left-hand side that Swansea created the game’s opening goal inside 12 minutes.
Korey Smith combined with Paterson in midfield before racing clear. His pass into the box was played first time by Obafemi and into the path of Paterson, who steadied himself before firing past Simon Moore.
Swansea doubled their lead five minutes before half-time and again it was all too simple.
No one put in a challenge on Flynn Downes, who made easy yards from halfway before splitting the Coventry defenders with one pass.
Obafemi had too much pace for either McFadzean or Michael Rose before stepping past Moore and tucking the ball into the corner.
Swansea wasted no time in extending their lead after the break.
Captain Matty Grimes stole possession from Ben Sheaf and swiftly released Obafemi.
The former Southampton striker held his nerve to calmly claim his second less than two minutes into the second half.
In League One, meanwhile, Will Keane scored the winner as promotion-chasing Wigan beat AFC Wimbledon 1-0. The Republic of Ireland striker has scored 18 goals for the Latics this season, 17 of them in the league.
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Ravel Morrison inspires huge win for Rooney's Derby, while Ireland's Obafemi stars for Swans
RAVEL MORRISON SCORED his first league goals in England for nearly eight years to give Derby a 2-0 victory over relegation rivals Barnsley.
The former Manchester United attacking midfielder struck twice to end a drought that stretched back to April 2014 as Derby halted a run of three defeats.
Morrison also hit the bar in one of his best displays in a Rams shirt, while Barnsley created little after Carlton Morris was denied by Ryan Allsop in the first half.
Barnsley exchanged places in the bottom three with Derby, who closed the gap on fourth-bottom Reading to five points in the Sky Bet Championship.
Derby were boosted by the return of skipper Tom Lawrence after a three-match ban and he set up an early chance that should have seen his side take the lead.
Lawrence’s eighth-minute free-kick bounced off a Barnsley defender and fell to Luke Plange just outside the six-yard box but he dragged his shot wide of the far post.
Derby went close again when the ball was crossed in from the right and Morrison’s back-post header was blocked by a green shirt.
But the goal Derby deserved for a strong start arrived in the 22nd minute when Lawrence played in Plange, who set up Morrison to dink the ball over Brad Collins from eight yards.
Barnsley came close to equalising four minutes later when Morris got behind Derby’s defence on the right but Allsop saved at his near post.
Morrison produced another moment of quality in the 32nd minute with a shot from the edge of the box that beat Collins but clipped the top of the crossbar.
His next attempt sailed high into the crowd but it had been a good half for Morrison and Derby.
The visitors conceded again two minutes after the restart when a mistake allowed Lawrence to go through on the right and, after his shot came back off the bar, Morrison slammed in the rebound.
Barnsley were making too many mistakes and almost went further behind when Mads Andersen’s loose pass set up Malcolm Ebiowei who curled a shot just wide.
Morris won a free-kick just outside the area and, although he beat the wall, it was too close to Allsop who tipped the ball behind for a corner which was easily dealt with.
Barnsley won another free-kick in a dangerous area in the 79th minute but could not make it count as Amine Bassi sent an effort wide which summed up their afternoon.
Republic of Ireland striker Michael Obafemi will be hopeful of earning his second international cap later this month after playing a starring role in Swansea’s 3-1 home win over Coventry.
Obafemi netted coolly on either side of half-time and provided an assist for Jamie Paterson’s opener as Swansea climbed to 16th.
Obafemi’s goals on 40 and 47 minutes sealed what transpired to be a comfortable win for the hosts, who have as many as three games in hand over their Championship rivals.
It was the first time Swansea had managed back-to-back wins in the league since beating Coventry in November.
Swansea manager Russell Martin had said after the midweek victory against West Brom that he was keen to make Cyrus Christie’s loan deal from Fulham permanent.
And it was the in-form Christie who caused the visitors plenty of early trouble on the right, to the extent that Jake Bidwell was forced to pick up an early booking.
However it was from the left-hand side that Swansea created the game’s opening goal inside 12 minutes.
Korey Smith combined with Paterson in midfield before racing clear. His pass into the box was played first time by Obafemi and into the path of Paterson, who steadied himself before firing past Simon Moore.
Swansea doubled their lead five minutes before half-time and again it was all too simple.
No one put in a challenge on Flynn Downes, who made easy yards from halfway before splitting the Coventry defenders with one pass.
Obafemi had too much pace for either McFadzean or Michael Rose before stepping past Moore and tucking the ball into the corner.
Swansea wasted no time in extending their lead after the break.
Captain Matty Grimes stole possession from Ben Sheaf and swiftly released Obafemi.
The former Southampton striker held his nerve to calmly claim his second less than two minutes into the second half.
In League One, meanwhile, Will Keane scored the winner as promotion-chasing Wigan beat AFC Wimbledon 1-0. The Republic of Ireland striker has scored 18 goals for the Latics this season, 17 of them in the league.
Championship results
Fulham 2 Blackburn 0
Bristol City 1 Birmingham 2
Derby 2 Barnsley 0
Hull 0 West Brom 2
Middlesbrough 2 Luton 1
Preston 2 Bournemouth 1
QPR 1 Cardiff 2
Reading 0 Millwall 1
Stoke 0 Blackpool 1
Swansea 3 Coventry 1
Played Friday
Huddersfield 3 Peterborough 0
Sheffield United 1 Nottingham Forest 1
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Championship