Championship Round-Up: Charlton Stay Perfect, Southampton Hit Five and Lincoln End a 65-Year Wait

Lincoln City last won a game in the second tier of English football in April 1961, when the maximum wage had only just been abolished. On Saturday they did it again, by a single Ben House goal at Bolton. It was that sort of round. Southampton, who started the season on minus four points, finally pushed their total into the black by putting five past Millwall. Norwich scored twice inside five minutes against a Burnley side whose recent record now reads one league win in 32 attempts. And at the top, quietly, Charlton Athletic won again, this time 1-0. Nine points from nine. Nobody else in the division can say that.

The shape of the round

Three games in is the point where a table stops being an alphabet and starts being an argument. Charlton lead it outright on nine points, with Wolves, Swansea and Queens Park Rangers unbeaten on seven. The relegated Premier League trio are having three different seasons: Wolves look sharp, West Ham are winless with two points, and Burnley have a single point and the grimmest longer-term numbers in the division. Southampton, meanwhile, have won twice and still sit 18th, because the EFL docked them four points before a ball was kicked. At the bottom, Preston and Stoke have lost all three. Twelve games, forty goals, and one red card all round, Josh Laurent's second yellow at Carrow Road. The division is starting to sort itself.

Friday: Wrexham 1-2 Birmingham City, settled at the corner flag

The round opened at the Racecourse Ground on Friday night, where 10,536 watched Birmingham win their first league game of the season with two set-piece headers from the same forehead. Phil Neumann nodded in from Alex Cochrane's corner on 13 minutes, and after Callum Doyle had equalised early in the second half from a sublime Lewis O'Brien cross, Neumann rose again on 63 to restore the lead from August Priske's delivery. Jay Stansfield somehow missed an open goal during Birmingham's dominant opening, which by full time nobody at the club minded. Chris Davies, who made six changes after a heavy EFL Cup defeat by Brentford in midweek, told Sky Sports his side "looked like a real team". Phil Parkinson called the two goals conceded "two of the softest goals we've conceded in all my time here, and that includes being in the National League". Wrexham have two points from three games, and their manager has some thinking to do before the window shuts.

Southampton 5-1 Millwall: into positive territory at last

Southampton began the campaign on minus four points, which is the sort of arithmetic that makes even a good side play with a hand on the banister. At St Mary's on Saturday they let go of the rail. Mark Sykes put Millwall ahead inside 15 minutes with a deflected strike that deceived Daniel Peretz, and from there the home side scored five without reply. Cyle Larin headed the equaliser from Ryan Manning's free-kick on 25 minutes, his third of the season, and Finn Azaz turned the game round before the break at the end of a mazy Leo Scienza run. Scienza converted a penalty on 55 after Jake Cooper fouled Azaz, Larin flicked the ball over his own head and lashed in a second just after the hour, and Tom Fellows completed the scoring four minutes from time with a shot that trickled over the line, the one scruffy goal of the five. Southampton's points total is finally positive: two points, 18th place, and a goal record of nine scored, four conceded that belongs to a team ten places higher. Tonda Eckert kept the lid on it: "Even after today there is a lot more to come." Alex Neil's reading of Millwall's first defeat was shorter still: "goals change games".

Norwich City 4-1 Burnley: five minutes that decided ninety

Norwich had lost their opening two league games. Burnley made them feel better about both inside five minutes. Anel Ahmedhodzic, on debut, tangled his feet over Jose Cordoba's pass down the channel and Mo Toure ran through to finish coolly with 90 seconds played; Andre Brooks, an £8m summer signing from Sheffield United, swept in Anthony Musaba's low cross for 2-0 on five. Toure hammered a third from a corner Kyle Walker failed to clear, and although Josh Laurent whipped in a lovely 20-yard reply for Burnley, Brooks improvised a backheeled fourth from Jack Stacey's cross and Laurent was sent off late for a second bookable offence, a pull on Anis Slimane. The context is the bleak part for the visitors. Since 1 November last year, Burnley have won one league game in 32 attempts, the fewest of any team ever-present in the top four tiers, and a midweek cup exit against League One Bradford City had already soured the mood. Nicky Hayen's verdict: "We're not clinical in both boxes and in the end that is the most important thing in football."

Bolton Wanderers 0-1 Lincoln City: a wait measured in generations

Numbers first, because they take some believing. Lincoln City had not won a match in the second tier of English football since April 1961, had not won an away game at that level since December 1960, and had not won at Bolton for 42 years. Ben House ended all three droughts at once on 66 minutes, finishing tidily after Callum Elder's long throw caused the sort of confusion long throws are designed to cause. Bolton will wonder how they lost it. Sam Dalby headed against the post from Samuel Iling-Junior's cross, Ethan Erhahon curled just wide, and George Wickens saved smartly from Lewis Brunt, all before half-time. Steven Schumacher said the only negative at the break "was that we were not ahead", and he was right, which is precisely the problem. Chris Cohen gave the credit to something older than tactics: "that was a result based on spirit". Lincoln, beaten in their first two league games, are 17th with three points. Bolton's unbeaten start is over.

Charlton Athletic 1-0 Preston North End: the quiet habit of winning

Charlton have now won three games at the start of a second-tier season for only the second time in their history, and they have done it without fuss: nine points, five goals scored, and an afternoon at The Valley in which Arthur Okonkwo was not required to make a save of note. Karlan Grant settled it on 56 minutes, making a yard for himself in the area and finishing tidily from Millenic Alli's cross, his first goal for the club since leaving for Huddersfield in January 2019. Preston arrived having lost both league games and been beaten 4-0 at home by Everton in the Carabao Cup, and Paul Heckingbottom, who has said he needs five signings before the window closes, gave debuts from the bench to Stanley Mills and Caleb Wiley, signed on Thursday and Friday. His side managed one shot on target. "That one hurts, I'll be honest," he said afterwards. Nathan Jones was having none of the table talk: "It's not so much about being top of the league, it's that we've got nine points from three games, and that's a big thing."

Wolves 4-1 Stoke City: two goals in three minutes turn Molineux

Stoke led inside two minutes when Sam Gallagher took a touch to his right and curled a 25-yard beauty past Jose Sa, and for a short while Molineux went quiet. Then Rodrigo Gomes scored twice in three minutes, both from rebounds after Viktor Johansson had saved, the first when Eric Bocat was caught in possession and Raul Jimenez's shot was parried, the second after young Mateus Mane forced his way down the left. Jimenez converted a disputed 55th-minute penalty, his second from the spot in successive home games, and Jordan James marked his home debut with a sweep from Fer Lopez's pass on 84. It was Wolves' first home league win since they beat Liverpool on 3 March, before relegation, and a first at Molineux for new head coach Cesar Peixoto. Mark Robins gave the honest version of Stoke's third straight league defeat: a "worldie" to start, then "we've been the authors of our own downfall for the second week running". Stoke are bottom, without a point.

The rest of Saturday

Middlesbrough 3-1 West Bromwich Albion

Will Lankshear now has six goals in five matches since arriving from Tottenham, and the first of his two here will be argued about in the Black Country for a while. Three minutes into the second half, Morgan Whittaker's curler came back off the post, bounced off grounded keeper Max O'Leary, and Lankshear, clearly offside, headed into an empty net. There is no VAR in the Championship. Jimmy-Jay Morgan headed a slick equaliser, his fourth in five games since joining from Chelsea, but Lankshear pounced on another rebound on 73 and Alfie Jones turned in Luke Ayling's shot late on. Albion's unbeaten start is gone, beaten by Boro for a sixth consecutive time. James Morrison did not hide his view of the opener: "The goals came too easily, even though they were offside. I think the linesman's got to do a better job." Kim Hellberg's summary of the second half: "We could have scored six."

Derby County 0-3 Swansea City

Some Derby supporters were still finding their seats when Joseph Opoku's shot deflected off two defenders and in, inside 90 seconds. Eom Ji-sung tapped in a second from a yard just before the break after Adam Idah's header was saved, and substitute Ronald drilled a third into the bottom corner in added time, laid on by debutant Stephen Eustaquio. Derby did not manage an effort on target and have conceded seven goals in three games. Swansea, unbeaten with seven points, are enjoying their best start to a Championship season since 2020/21. Derby head coach John Eustace took the blame personally: "I pick the team, I train the players, and it's probably been coming."

Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Queens Park Rangers

Ryoya Morishita's volley from the edge of the area, off Andri Gudjohnsen's flick, was the best strike Ewood Park will see for a while, and it bought Blackburn less than two minutes of the lead. Rumarn Burrell pulled back for Paul Smyth to level, and Jimmy Dunne headed the winner on 74 from Tariq Lamptey's cross, the former Brighton full-back having come on at half-time as he rebuilds his career after a knee injury wrecked his spell at Fiorentina. QPR are unbeaten, have won both away games, and their head coach Julien Stephan is already raising the bar: "If we want to be a top team, we have to finish games like this with three or four goals."

Bristol City 2-1 Portsmouth

Michael Skubala's start at Ashton Gate had been a cup defeat by League Two Walsall, a defeat by Millwall and a 95th-minute equaliser conceded against Birmingham. This was the corrective. Lorent Tolaj hooked in Jed Wallace's cross first-time on 31 minutes, the kind of finish that explains his 22 goals last season, and captain Jason Knight headed a second from Rio Cardines' corner. Portsmouth's reply was a Marezi penalty in the fifth added minute, too late to matter. John Mousinho called it "a really frustrating afternoon", which from the away dugout at 2-1 usually means the scoreline flattered nobody.

Cardiff City 2-2 Sheffield United

Three goals in the first seven minutes: Jack Moylan cut inside to beat Michael Cooper at his near post with 80 seconds gone, Tom Cannon levelled from the spot after Alex Robertson's pull, and Callum O'Hare swept United in front from Patrick Bamford's pass. Cian Ashford tidied up the chaos before half-time, sweeping in the rebound from Ollie Tanner's saved shot, and Perry Ng's late drive came back off the bar with the winner on it. Both clubs are unbeaten and winless, three draws apiece. Chris Wilder, with a possible 12-point deduction still hanging over Bramall Lane, was blunt: "I think we were fortunate at times today - they were the better team."

Watford 1-1 West Ham United

Amin Nabizada's goal deserved to win something: the Afghanistan forward cut in from the left on 19 minutes and curled into the top corner, his second of the season. West Ham's equaliser was a gift, Kevin Keben dribbling along the touchline towards his own goal and into trouble and Taty Castellanos poking the loose ball across goal to go in off Mattie Pollock. Pollock spent the second half repaying the accident, and his outstretched leg denied Manor Solomon one-on-one late on as West Ham pressed through Jarrod Bowen, Arne Engels and Joel Piroe without finding a winner. Watford have five points under new boss Alessio Dionisi. West Ham are still winless, and Nuno Espirito Santo is not dressing it up: "the message is simple, we have to go back to the Premier League".

What the third table says

Charlton on nine points are the only side with a perfect record, and behind them Wolves, Swansea and QPR sit unbeaten on seven. Middlesbrough, Millwall and West Brom follow together on six, with Birmingham a point further back. Southampton's position is the table's strangest sentence: two wins, nine goals scored, four conceded, 18th, because of a four-point deduction for breaches of EFL regulations. At the wrong end, Preston and Stoke are the only clubs still on zero, with Burnley and Derby a point better off and Wrexham and West Ham stuck on two.

There is no time to dwell on any of it, because most of the division goes again in midweek. Tuesday brings Birmingham against Southampton, West Ham against Wolves on transfer deadline day, Lincoln at home to Blackburn, Preston against Bristol City, Portsmouth against Derby, Stoke against Norwich and Swansea against Watford. Bolton also travel to Sheffield United in midweek. On Wednesday, Burnley host a Middlesbrough side scoring freely, Charlton take their perfect record to West Brom, and Wrexham visit Millwall. Three games is a start. By Thursday morning, four will look like a pattern, and some of these managers know exactly which side of it they need to be on.

Sources: BBC Sport, including BBC local radio interviews.