Jay DeMerit's Watford fought back at Colchester to go clear at the top of the Championship, while Zak Whitbread hit a stunning winner for Millwall at Leyton Orient.

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HORNETS RALLY ON THE ROAD
Jay DeMerit went the distance as Watford squeezed past tenacious Colchester 3-2 at Layer Road.

The visitors found themselves 2-0 down within half an hour through a pair of set pieces, Clive Platt and Matthew Connolly both forcing home corners.

There followed a spirited Hornets fightback as Marlon King produced an outstanding individual effort before John-Joe O'Toole's header completed a two-goal salvo just three minutes before halftime to send the teams in level.

The second half was a tight affair and it fell to Tamás Priskin, dashing onto Tommy Smith's excellent cross, to separate the two sides with a firm header in the 64th minute.

The victory cements a four-point lead at the top of the Championship for a team who have stuttered of late. Aidy Boothroyd's boys get another chance to confirm their top dog status when they visit Stoke on Sunday.

Scoring
COL - Clive Platt 6 7'
COL - Matthew Connolly 2 28'
WAT - Marlon King 10 (Tommy Smith) 40'
WAT - John-Joe O'Toole 2 (Tommy Smith) 42'
WAT - Tamás Priskin 1 (Tommy Smith) 64'

Line-ups
WAT - Mart Poom (Richard Lee 35'); Lloyd Doyley, Danny Shittu, Jay DeMerit, Jordan Stewart, Tommy Smith, John-Joe O'Toole, Lee Williamson, Jobi McAnuff (Damien Francis 84'), Tamás Priskin (Darius Henderson 72'), Marlon King

COL - Dean Gerken; Karl Duguid, Matthew Connolly (Pat Baldwin 90'), Adam Virgo, George Elokobi, Mark Yeates, Johnnie Jackson, Muzzy Izzet (Luke Guttridge 83'), Kevin McLeod (Teddy Sheringham 62'), Kevin Lisbie, Clive Platt

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WHITBREAD CRACKER LIFTS MILLWALL
Millwall pulled off a shock decision over second place Leyton Orient to register their first away win of the season.

It took just nine minutes for Zak Whitbread to put the visitors ahead, capitalizing on hesitant defending to finish from the edge of the box after a free kick.

Whitbread came close to notching a second as Millwall continued to enjoy the lions' share of possession, with Orient uncharacteristically failing to get out of second gear.

The win gives Millwall a four-point buffer between themselves and the drop zone ahead of Saturday's trip to Luton.

Scoring
MW - Zak Whitbread 1 (Ali Fuseini) 9'

Line-ups
MW - Lenny Pidgeley; Danny Senda (Zoumana Bakayogo 82'), Paul Robinson, Zak Whitbread, Marcus Bignot, Neil Harris (Jay Simpson 67'), Ali Fuseini, Brian Hodge, Ahmet Brkovic (Barron 71'), Gary Alexander, Will Hoskins

LO - Glenn Morris; Stephen Purches, Alton Thelwell, Tamika Mkandawire, Charlie Daniels, Andy Barcham, Paul Terry, Adam Chambers, Jason Demetriou (Efe Echanomi 72'), Wayne Gray, Adam Boyd

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DONS DULL THE DAGGERS
Jemal Johnson made it through 66 minutes of a game that keeps MK Dons at the top of League Two.

The match was a hectic tussle throughout, with Dagenham notching a couple of decent early chances before Drissa Diallo popped up on the end of a Dean Lewington cross to make it 1-0 to Paul Ince's men.

The hosts fought hard to claw their way back, with Jon Nurse rattling the crossbar before Lloyd Dyer squandered an opportunity to kill the game from the penalty spot, hitting the post.

The Dons now lead second place Darlington by two points going into Saturday's clash with Accrington Stanley.

Scoring
MKD - Drissa Diallo 1 (Dean Lewington) 24'

MKD - Willy Gueret; Jude Stirling, Drissa Diallo, Sean O'Hanlon, Dean Lewington, Mark Wright (Jordan Hadfield 89'), Colin Cameron, Alan Navarro, Lloyd Dyer, Aaron Wilbraham (Drewe Broughton 46'), Jemal Johnson (Leon Knight 66')

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ON THE SIDELINE
Due to a bum knee, Frank Simek didn't dress for Sheffield Wednesday's scrappy 0-0 draw with Southampton.