Finn Azaz opened the scoring as Southampton threw down their Championship play-off credentials with a 5-0 thrashing of QPR.
The Republic of Ireland international got the bulldozing under way before Kuryu Matsuki notched either side of half-time to fire Saints up to seventh and to a seventh league match without defeat.
Leo Scienza and James Bree's stunner added gloss and left QPR seven points adrift of the top six to dent their hopes of reaching the Premier League.
Saints opened the scoring with the first shot of the match in the 10th minute, as Azaz went from goal-maker to goal scorer.
He had registered an assist on each of his last three appearances against QPR, for Middlesbrough and Southampton, but on this occasion he bent brilliantly into the bottom corner.
The forward received the ball from compatriot Ryan Manning 25 yards from goal before taking a couple of touches and then firing home just his second goal in 16 outings.
Wrexham continued their push for a fourth successive promotion as they held on for a hard-fought 2-1 win over Portsmouth.
The Red Dragons looked on course for a comfortable victory as Sam Smith and Max Cleworth headed home in the first half at Stok Cae Ras.
Pompey pulled a goal back through Zak Swanson as they rallied in the second half but, despite applying considerable pressure, were unable to find an equaliser.
Michael O'Neill suffered his first defeat as Blackburn manager as Emil Riis Jakobsen helped fire Bristol City to a 2-1 win at Ewood Park.
The Northern Ireland boss won the first two matches of his Championship job-share, against QPR and Preston, and was tracking for a third when Yuki Ohashi put Rovers in front early on.
But Riis almost single-handedly flipped the momentum as he ran the first half, netting the equaliser and setting up a 31st-minute winner for former Burnley man Scott Twine.
Relegation-battling Rovers rallied hard in the second period but were unable to convert a handful of good chances, including Radek Vitek’s save off Moussa Baradji with the last kick of the match.
Middlesbrough slipped to a third straight league match without a win after drawing 1-1 with Leicester at the Riverside.
In his second game in charge of the struggling Foxes, Gary Rowett's side took the lead when Caleb Okoli nodded home from a free-kick, but the hosts levelled on the stroke of half-time through Riley McGree.
A draw means second-placed Boro stay two points behind leaders Coventry, who are in action on Wednesday night, while relegation-threatened Leicester claim back-to-back league draws.
Hull consolidated their place in the play-offs with a 4-2 win at home to Derby in a game in which two Irish internationals scored.
Second-half goals from John Egan and Lewis Koumas earned the Tigers three important points after they had lost their last two league games.
Hull took the lead after nine minutes when Callum Elder scored an own goal against his former side.
Craig Forsyth equalised seven minutes later for Derby, only for Oli McBurnie to score his 13th goal of the campaign after another Elder gaffe.
Sammie Szmodics restored parity for the Rams three minutes before the break, before Egan and Koumas consigned John Eustace's men to back-to-back defeats, with the Cork man swivelling and finishing like an instinctive poacher.
Charlton heaped more pressure on West Brom head coach Eric Ramsay after hitting back to draw 1-1 at The Hawthorns.
George Campbell ended Albion's 405-minute wait for a goal by heading his side in front in the third minute of time added on before half-time.
But Lyndon Dykes rescued a point for the Addicks in the 70th minute to leave Ramsay without a win in his eight league games in charge.
Albion wasted numerous opportunities to add to their tally before and after conceding.
Ipswich boosted their automatic promotion hopes with a 2-0 win at Watford, thanks to goals from Sindre Walle Egeli and substitute George Hirst.
Kieran McKenna's visitors moved up to third by getting the better of Ed Still’s play-off hopefuls, who saw Tom Ince’s late penalty saved by Town goalkeeper Christian Walton.
Liam Cullen rescued Swansea with a stoppage-time equaliser as their Snoop Dogg party ended in a 1-1 draw with Preston.
Daniel Jebbison ended an 11-game scoring drought in the first half to give Preston a deserved lead.
But Cullen headed home in the fifth and final minute of added time for Swansea's co-owner Snoop Dogg, to celebrate right at the death.
Preston are five points off the final play-off places, while Swansea are three points further back after extending their unbeaten home run to nine games.
