Former Barnsley boss is favourite for Championship job as ex-Portsmouth defender tipped for League One mangerial vacancy

Pompey fans were treated to an excellent weekend of football as they picked up a hard fought 1-0 victory over the league’s bottom club Carlisle United in their longest away trip of the season. Paddy Lane was the hero of the afternoon after he slotted home the second-half winner after an excellent surging run and incisive throughball from team-mate Abu Kamara.

Pompey fans were left on cloud-nine after the game when they saw the outcomes of the other League One fixtures as the likes of Derby, Bolton, Peterborough and Stevenage all failed to pick up three points. In fact Portsmouth and Barnsley were the only teams inside the top 10 places to pick up all three points in a crucial weekend for John Mousinho’s men.

The league leaders return to action tomorrow night with a home clash against strugglers Cambridge United. Ahead of the fixture we have rounded up all of the main headlines involving the third tier of English football.

Former Barnsley boss tipped for move to struggling Championship club

Former Barnsley manager Michael Duff is the bookmakers' favourite to take over the reins at Championship strugglers and Yorkshire rivals Huddersfield Town.

The Northern Irishman is credited with leading Cheltenham Town to a League Two title in 2021 and also oversaw the club’s first ever Football League finish the following season as the Robins survived in 15th place. Duff went on to lead Barnsley to the League One play-off final in his first year in charge of the club (2022-23) before departing to take on the job at Championship side Swansea City.

The 46-year-old struggled in South Wales and was only able to win six of his 21 games in charge before parting ways with the club in December. However, he is expected to make a quick return to Championship football with strugglers Huddersfield and is the heavy favourite to take on the job at the John Smith’s stadium, according to the bookmakers

Ex-Huddersfield Town and Sheffield Wednesday boss ‘expected’ to make swift return to management

Former Sheffield Wednesday boss Darren Moore has been linked with a swift return to management with Port Vale - just weeks after his departure from Huddersfield Town. According to Alan Nixon, League One strugglers Port Vale are eyeing Moore as a replacement for Andy Crosby, who was sacked by the club last week after a run of just one win in eight games. 

Former Pompey defender Moore kicked off his managerial career as interim boss at West Brom in 2018 and was credited with the club’s upturn in performances despite relegation from the Premier League. He was sacked with just 10 games remaining the following season, with the Baggies in a play-off position.

The former Jamaican international went on to manage Doncaster Rovers for a two-year period and narrowly missed out on the League One play-offs. 

He later inherited a Sheffield Wednesday team deep in a relegation battle but was unable to turn the tide. He went on to restore the club’s status in the Championship with promotion through the play-offs last season before leaving due to disagreements with the owner.

Moore’s last managerial role was his least successful and he managed just three wins in 23 matches with Huddersfield this season before departing in January. If he is to join Port Vale then he would inherit a team in the relegation places with 31 points, although they have two games in hand over Charlton Athletic in 20th with the two sides on the same number of points.