There were plenty of surprises packed into a busy round one of the League Cup on Tuesday evening, with eight Championship sides crashing out, whilst eight League Two sides progressed.
Big boys bow out
With 20 Championship sides in the first round, there were plenty of upsets possible, especially with 14 of them facing clubs from the fourth tier. The biggest surprise of the round though was undoubtedly Brentford's exit, as they lost 4-0 to League Two's Oxford United, going 3-0 down after just 12 minutes as the U's ran riot, Kemar Roofe's strike the pick of the lot as he found the back of the net with a 40 yard lob.
Blackburn Rovers were another second tier side to be eliminated, League One outfit Shrewsbury Town, promoted to the division just this year, defeating them 2-1 with Tyrone Barnett's 31st minute strike the difference between the two. Nottingham Forest bowed out in the most dramatic fashion, Tom Bradshaw bagging his hat-trick from the spot in the fourth minute of stoppage time to give Walsall a 4-3 victory, whilst Burnley lost 1-0 to third tier side Port Vale, Byron Moore scoring in the 82nd minute.
Huddersfield Town were another team who fell victim to an upset as they lost 2-1 to Notts County, the Magpies, relegated to League Two last season, hanging on in the second half despite being reduced to 10 men with 20 minutes to play, whilst Bolton Wanderers were knocked out by Burton Albion after Matthew Palmer's effort deflected in with three minutes remaining.
The seventh Championship side to be eliminated in 90 minutes were Bristol City, the newly-promoted side crashing out against Luton Town of the fourth tier, who were 3-1 winners at home, with Jack Marriott bagging a brace in the process.
League Two put on a show
As well as Oxford and Notts County making it through to round two, three other League Two outfits made it through in 90 minutes on Tuesday evening, with Hartlepool United, who came so close to relegation from the Football League last year, one of these three, as they defeated third tier Fleetwood Town 1-0 at Highbury. Billy Payntner scored the decisive goal, the summer signing following up his strike in the league against Morecambe at the weekend with another crucial finish in the cup.
Northampton Town were another impressive performer as they put three past Blackpool, who are on a downward spiral with off-the-pitch issues translating to poor form on it after their relegation to League One last season. Three goals in nine first half minutes gave the Cobblers victory at home to the Seasiders; Chris Hackett, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Sam Hoskins all on the scoresheet to send their side through.
Swindon Town also crashed out thanks to a fourth tier opponent, with Exeter City beating them 2-1 at the County Ground, the same place where the Robins came back from 1-0 down at the weekend to win 4-1. The couldn't repeat these heroics this time though, with the second half producing just one goal for them this time, as opposed to the four on Saturday.
The majority keep their cool
Still, despite the upsets, most of the higher ranked sides were comprehensive on Tuesday evening, with the majority of the favourites making it to round two.
Championship outfit Birmingham City defeated Bristol Rovers 2-1 on the road, with all three goals coming within the space of 11 second half minutes and Andrew Shinnie's decisive strike proving to be the final one of the game, as Cardiff City beat AFC Wimbledon 1-0 and Charlton Athletic comfortably overcame League Two's Dagenham and Redbridge 4-1.
Elsewhere, Ipswich Town were 2-1 winners at home to Stevenage, newly-promoted Milton Keynes Dons defeated Leyton Orient by the same scoreline whilst Rotherham United and Brighton and Hove Albion also won narrowly, with 1-0 scorelines coming from their games against Cambridge United and Southend United respectively.
Other victorious second tier sides were Sheffield Wednesday, who beat Mansfield Town 4-1; Wolverhampton Wanderers, who overcame Newport County 2-1; Fulham, who won 1-0 away to Wycombe Wanderers; and Queens Park Rangers, who put three past Yeovil Town without reply.
Plenty of League One representatives kept their composure too in round one, with three overcoming lower league opposition to make it through. Sheffield United needed a 93rd minute strike from Neil Collins to beat Morecambe, Peterborough United comfortably saw off Crawley Town with a 2-0 win, whilst Gillingham were 2-1 victors away to Plymouth Argyle.
There was one all third tier clash decided in 90 minutes as well as recently-relegated Wigan Athletic hosted newly-promoted Bury, but it was the latter who progressed, Leon Clarke's late penalty giving them a 2-1 win.
Extra time needed for some
Carlisle United required extra time to beat Chesterfield, the League Two outfit producing another of many upsets in the added 30 minutes, after the game ended 1-1 after normal time. The Spirites' goal-scorer Emmanuel Dieseruvwe was sent off just a minute into the added period, which allowed their opponents to go on and net two goals and secure a 3-1 win.
Reading avoided a surprise exit thanks to Chris Gunter's 115th minute strike, which was the only goal in 120 minutes as they ran out 1-0 winners away to Colchester United, however, extra time could not stop Millwall from falling victim to Barnet's determination, the newly-promoted League Two side winning 2-1 thanks to Andy Yiadom's 102nd minute effort after their opponents came back from a goal down in the 90 minutes.
Penalties needed for others
Of the seven games that went to extra time, four of these went to penalties, with another shock on the cards as York City beat Bradford City 4-2 after the game finished 2-2 in normal time, with the added 30 minutes failing to produce a goal.
In another all League One tie, Rochdale beat Coventry City 5-3 on penalties after their game finished 1-1, whilst Hull City avoided a major upset by beating Accrington Stanley 4-3 via spot-kicks, the actual match ending 2-2.
Scunthorpe United's clash with Barnsley, both of the third tier, was the final game to end, with the latter winning 7-6 after a prolonged shootout, the game ending 1-1 in 90 minutes, both goals coming from the spot as well.
Four games remaining
A further four round one ties will be played this week, with Crewe Alexandra welcoming Preston North End, Middlesbrough travelling to Oldham Athletic and Portsmouth hosting Derby County tomorrow evening, with all three games kicking off at 19:45BST.
The final match of the round is the most enticing of them all as Doncaster Rovers welcome Leeds United to the Keepmoat on Thursday at 19:45BST for what promises to be a fierce Yorkshire derby.