Substitute Omari Hutchinson rescued a late point as Ipswich equalised twice to record a 2-2 Championship draw at home to West Brom.
The result dented Town’s bid to climb back into the automatic promotion spots as their recent run has seen just one win from their last nine in the league.
The Baggies – who were depleted from a series of injuries along with Semi Ajayi and Grady Diangana on international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations – opened the scoring through Tom Fellows in the first half, with Nathan Broadhead replying for Ipswich just after the start of the second.
But a wonderful strike by John Swift from nearly 30 yards was cancelled out by Hutchinson in the third minute of second-half stoppage-time when he fired home through a crowd of players in the dying moments.
The visitors were dominating proceedings in the opening few minutes and Jed Wallace’s teasing low cross just evaded the stretching Brandon Thomas-Asante on the edge of the six-yard box.
Andreas Weimann was found in space on the edge of the area following a corner by Jed Wallace but his shot sailed over the crossbar.
Albion took a well-deserved lead in the 18th minute through Fellows following a counter attack. He was found out on the left by Weimann and Fellows outmuscled Luke Woolfenden, cut inside and fired a shot past Town goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
Ipswich had a wonderful chance to equalise five minutes later when a cross from Broadhead found Bournemouth loanee Kieffer Moore, who laid the ball off for Conor Chaplin, but he could only lift it over the crossbar.
With time running out in the first half, Harry Clarke’s thunderous effort from 20 yards was tipped over by visiting goalkeeper Alex Palmer.
The Tractor Boys struck back straight from the restart following a deep throw-in by Clarke. The ball was deflected off George Edmundson’s head into the path of Broadhead, who volleyed past Palmer to make it 1-1.
A rasping shot from Sam Morsy from fully 30 yards out went sailing over the bar and – moments later – West Brom had the ball in the net from a throw-in but Weimann was booked for putting it past Hladky’s outstretched hand.
Chaplin stung the hands of Palmer following a great move involving Broadhead, Morsy, Clarke and Wes Burns, with the latter cutting the ball back to the striker as the hosts started to dominate proceedings.
Substitute Swift scored for West Brom with a stunning shot from nearly 30 yards out in the 76th minute after Edmundson’s pass out from defence was intercepted and he picked out the bottom left-hand corner of the net.
But Hutchinson levelled matters in stoppage time – after Morsy’s shot was blocked – as he fired home to clinch a point.
Ipswich came close to gaining maximum points during a frenetic eight minutes of added-on time when Albion goalkeeper Palmer blocked a shot from Ali Al-Hamadi from point-blank range.
Huddersfield all but relegated from Championship while League Two play-off spots decided
Huddersfield Town saw their relegation from the Championship all but confirmed after a 1-1 draw with fellow strugglers Birmingham City on Saturday.
The Terriers avoided a defeat that would have seen them relegated on Saturday, but even a win on the final day over promotion hopefuls Ipswich Town will not be enough unless they overcome a huge goal difference of 15 goals with Plymouth Argyle.
Birmingham remain in the other relegation place and now must beat Norwich City to stand a chance of staying up with Sheffield Wednesday, Plymouth and Blackburn Rovers also still in danger.
At the other end of the table, the Canaries dropped points in a 2-2 draw with Swansea City, leaving the door open for Hull City, who face Ipswich Town later today.
Sporting CP boss Amorim apologises for holding West Ham talks
Sporting CP coach Ruben Amorim has publicly apologised for holding talks with West Ham, who view the 39-year-old as a contender to replace David Moyes at the end of the season.
This week, widespread reports said Amorim had travelled to London for talks with the West Ham hierarchy, as they weigh up their options ahead of Moyes' contract expiring in June.
Moyes delivered the Europa Conference League trophy to the London Stadium last season but has long struggled to win over sections of the Hammers' fanbase, and a poor run of form has seen their hopes of European qualification fade in recent weeks.
Amorim, who led Sporting to the Primeira Liga crown in 2020-21 and looks likely to oversee another title triumph this term, has also been linked with Chelsea and Liverpool in the past.
He was roundly criticised for making the trip to London while still under contract, and on Saturday he admitted the visit was a mistake.
"So, let's get the elephant out of the room and I'll talk about it once," Amorim said in a press conference to preview Sunday's trip to Porto.
"The first thing is to say that the club was aware of my trip. It's important and changes the context.
"Then, let's talk about the 'cloak of secrecy' that surrounded the trip... I 'secretly' parked the car outside, secretly walked past 15 people and took photographs, then got on a plane behind the club's back.
"It didn't happen in secret or without permission. Obviously my trip was a mistake, the timing was completely wrong, it didn't seem right at the time.
"It was wrong, especially when I'm so demanding with my players and always the first to say that each one's actions can overpower the team. I have removed players from the squad for much less.
"It was my mistake, I have to accept it and live with it. It didn't seem so bad at the time but thinking about it later, it's very clear.
"Now it's time to move on. I apologise to the Sporting fans, the staff and, mainly, to my players for the mistake I made."
Wilder laments "complete lack of leadership" as Blades' relegation confirmed
Chris Wilder feels his Sheffield United side's "complete lack of leadership" has been a key factor in their relegation from the Premier League.
The Blades will be playing Championship football next term after a dismal one-season return to the Premier League in which they have won just three of their 35 league outings.
Sheffield United's 25th league defeat of the season confirmed their relegation as they were hammered 5-1 away at Newcastle United on Saturday despite Anel Ahmedhodzic putting them in front at St James' Park.
A drubbing ensued after Alexander Isak's leveller, and the final whistle condemned the Blades to the second tier with three games to spare.
In Wilder's view, the club needs to rectify a lack of on-field guidance if the Blades are to bounce straight back up, embodied by the tough outing at St James' Park.
Wilder told the BBC's Match of the Day. "There are plenty of games where we have been put to bed early but today we should have been 3-0 up at half-time. I'm scratching my head that it was 1-1.
"Newcastle up their game and get a head of steam. Then our old mistakes start to fall in and goals go from two to three to four to five pretty quickly.
"There's a reason why that happens. It's an incredibly young side and there is a complete lack of leadership out there. I thought at times I was going to have a heart attack in terms of trying to get the messages on."
Wilder acknowledged there could be tough times ahead for the club, though he hopes he retains the trust of the fans having been brought in for his second spell as Blades manager midway through the season following the sacking of Paul Heckingbottom.
"It's going to be a tough summer for everybody," Wilder continued. "We have not been good enough. The league has been too powerful for us right the way through the season.
"Sheffield United is a really good football club. I think everyone understands that but it's been a really poor season.
"I've still got another year left of my contract. I'd like to think that the supporters can trust me. I'm enthusiastic and committed along with my coaching staff to get it right. We know exactly what direction we need to go, what the culture is going to look like, what pre-season is going to look like."
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