In a week which has seen marches across the globe following Donald Trump’s inauguration as President of the United States, the EFL had its own protests.
Scores of Nottingham Forest fans were the latest band of supporters to protest against their owners, while one of the best home records in the league was blown away in spectacular style.
Add to that another tough day for one of the league’s newest managers and an emotional send-off to one of their best, here are five stories from the Championship, League One and Two you might have missed.
‘Fawaz out’
Nottingham Forest fans are not happy.
Going into Saturday’s game with Bristol City, the two-time European champions had taken just two points from a possible 24, sacked boss Philippe Montanier and sold their captain Henri Lansbury to Championship rivals Aston Villa.
Forest fans are less than enamoured with owner Fawaz Al Hasawi – and that anger got even greater when a proposed takeover by a US-based consortium fell through last week.
Cue large protests at the City Ground calling for Al Hasawi to sell his stake in the club that the Kuwaiti-based businessman has owned since the summer of 2012.
Former striker Stan Collymore put down his headphones and headed to meet with the owners before the game in a bid to try to help the club out of its current malaise.
And while the protesters did not get what they wanted off the field, they managed to get a bit of solace on it, as they beat Bristol City 1-0 – to consign the Robins to an eighth-straight loss.
Gianfranco gets the blues
Talking about eight-game records, Birmingham City boss Gianfranco Zola has one he needs to get rid of.
Having been brought in after Gary Rowett – who had led them to nine wins and just five losses in 21 games this season – was surprisingly sacked, it seems the stardust that was expected from the diminutive Italian has yet to find its way to St Andrew’s.
City’s 1-1 draw with relegation-threatened Blackburn Rovers – a side that had won just once in the league since the end of November – was Zola’s eighth game without a win in eight games in charge.
The Blues have dropped form one place away from the play-offs to having five teams between them and the top six. No doubt the club’s new Chinese owners will be wanting an improvement fast.
Fortress Spotland is breached in a big way
They say there’s no such thing as a guaranteed winner, but Rochdale at home has been as nailed on as you can get this season.
Going into Saturday’s game against Oxford United, Dale had won their past 10 in League One at Spotland, conceding just four goals and rattling in 25.
So cue a 4-0 drubbing. Yes, Keith Hill’s men conceded as many goals in 55 minutes as they had done in more than 900 as Rochdale dropped from fourth to sixth in League One.
Relegation fodder to play-off contenders in two months
So while Rochdale might be busting coupons up and down the country, those who have been backing Exeter City lately have been laughing all the way to the bank.
An injury-plagued start to the season saw the Grecians bottom of League Two just two months ago.
It got so bad that the club’s fans, who own the club, ordered that boss Paul Tisdale be served notice on his contract in order to renegotiate a new one.
Well, it seems to have had the desired effect as the 3-0 win over play-off rivals Colchester United was their seventh victory in a nine-match unbeaten run, scoring 20 goals and conceding just two in that time.
It’s lifted them to ninth in the table, just one point off a play-off place.
If that form goes on Tisdale might well want to renegotiate – perhaps he might even feel he deserves a pay rise…..
Graham Taylor – gone but not forgotten
Finally, Aston Villa played their first league game at Villa Park since the death of former manager Graham Taylor.
The ex-England boss, who passed away last week at the age of 72, led Villa to second in the old First Division before going on to take over from Bobby Robson as national coach in 1990.
A minute’s applause preceded Villa’s 2-2 draw with Preston North End to celebrate the life of the man who led Villa back to the top flight in 1988 before ending runners-up to Liverpool two years later.
