We're under way, the Owls in their traditional blue and white with the Sky Blues in what I can only call a 'hot salmon' colour away strip.

The visitors win a corner inside 20 seconds but Owls keeper Ethan Horvath is able to punch away from trouble under his own crossbar.

Away we go... who will be top, and who will be in the bottom three come 14:30 BST?

Only one way to find out...

What a lunchtime offering this is... two of the top three and all three of the teams in the relegation zone are in action.

Big names, big teams, and red-hot players, and they are all out of the tunnel and ready to entertain us.

Kick-off is moments away...

Fair to say Sky Blues supporters are brimming with confidence...

There are four changes from the Hull City side that drew 2-2 at Deepdale against Preston made by boss Sergej Jakirovic.

The Bosnian loses Kasey Palmer and Kyle Joseph from the matchday squad while Cody Drameh and Amir Hadziahmetovic dropping to the bench.

In their place Davi Akintola, Joe Gelhardt, Regan Slater and Darko Gyabi all get a place in the starting XI.

Chris Wilder makes two changes from the Blades side which went down 2-1 at Southampton in midweek with Tom Davies and Harrison Burrows dropping to the bench as Sam McCallum and Alex Matos step in.

Image source, Getty Images

Chris Wilder's fourth outing of his third coming as Blades manager sees him take his bottom-placed side up the road to 18th-placed Hull City, seeking a second win.

It has been a case of one step forward and two steps back for Wilder with one win in three and he will be hoping his beloved Blades can bounce back from a narrow defeat by Southampton on Tuesday.

The 2-1 defeat saw Wilder receive a red card for kicking a ball into the crowd in frustration at half-time but overall he will have been heartened by a display which did not scream relegation.

Hull City's season has been a mixed bag with two wins, three draws and three defeats with a 2-2 draw against Preston last time out.

Oli McBurnie, who spent five seasons at Bramall Lane (plenty of it under Wilder), scoring 29 goals in red and white, has been red hot for the Tigers bagging in his last four league games including a double strike against Preston.

Former Blades, now Hull players, John Lundstram and John Egan provide further reminders of happier times for Wilder as he plots a return to the sunlit uplands.

Image source, BBC Sport

Here are the starting line-ups for today's game.

Blackburn are unchanged from their midweek match against Swansea City while Stoke make five changes from their scoreless draw with Middlesbrough.

Junior Tchamadeu, Aaron Cresswell, Tomas Rigo, Million Manhoef and Divin Mubama come in for Mark Robins' side.

Image source, BBC Sport

Image source, Getty Images

Third-placed Stoke City will be looking to bounce back to winning ways today following a frustrating string of three Championship games without a victory.

The Potters travel to a Blackburn side who have only won twice so far this campaign with five defeats.

Valerien Ismael's side have dropped into the danger zone and will be eyeing a result at home today that could lift them out of the bottom three.

Stoke have lost just one of their past 10 trips to Ewood Park since 2009, keeping seven clean sheets during that time.

Blackburn boss Ismael won his first league game against Stoke in February 2021 when he was in charge of Barnsley, but is winless in four league matches against them since.

Image source, Opta

It's as you were for the Owls as Henrik Pedersen names the same XI which came so close to ending Birmingham's unbeaten home run on Tuesday night.

Frank Lampard has made two changes to the Sky Blues XI which won 4-0 at Millwall on Wednesday.

Josh Eccles (glute) and Viktor Torp (ankle) miss out after limping off at The Den with Jamie Allen and Ephron Mason-Clarke recalled, though Torp is fit enough for a place on the bench after training on Friday.

Image source, Opta

Image source, Rex Features

Coventry could go top of the Championship, for a few hours at least, with a win at second-bottom Sheffield Wednesday this lunchtime.

The unbeaten Sky Blues romped to a 4-0 win at Millwall on Wednesday night to go second, two points behind Middlesbrough, who visit Portsmouth later on this afternoon.

City's 22 goals scored in eight games, and +15 goal difference are by far the best in the division, and it's worth remembering they have played out two 0-0 draws in those games.

Wednesday were seconds away from an eye-catching win at Birmingham on Tuesday, which would have hauled them out of the relegation zone, only for a 99th-minute equaliser in a 2-2 draw to extend Blues' unbeaten home run to 29 matches.

The Owls have taken four points from their past two away games, but last Saturday's 1-1 draw against QPR was their first home point, and first home goal of the season, at Hillsborough after three straight defeats there.

It's worth marking your card that there are protests planned against owner Dejphon Chansiri today, after players and staff were not paid on time for the fifth month in the past seven, with the very sour prospect of an attempt to disrupt this match to draw attention to the club's plight.

It's never been easier to get in touch with us.

Thanks to some top work from people far cleverer than us, you can now give us your thoughts on today's action by clicking on the Get Involved button at the top of this page.

From bothered Blades to buoyant Boro backers and everything in between, we'd love to hear from you.

Image source, Opta/Rex Features

Feels like a big day, this.

The final instalment of a 'nine-point week', the kind of week which ultimately decides the outcome of a marathon like the Championship, and also the final action before the international break.

Here's the thing. Only one side has picked up six points from their games last weekend and in midweek, and that's Coventry.

We've seen draws galore... eight in the dozen midweek games and seven the previous weekend, which have left the door open for the unbeaten Sky Blues to close within two points of Middlesbrough, with the chance to go ahead this lunchtime at Sheffield Wednesday, if only for a few hours as Boro head to Portsmouth later.

At the other end, the Sheffield clubs will be desperate to get some positive momentum going, as United head to Hull City this lunchtime while Wednesday have a tall order on their hands, welcoming Frank Lampard's Coventry at the same time.

Image source, Rex Features

October is here. A month of tricks, treats, nerve-jangling fear and upsetting your neighbours.

Oh, and it's also Halloween soon, too.

This weekend's English Football League (EFL) programme is sure to have all of the above and more, with a tightly packed field in the top half of the Championship and featuring a couple of the marquee fixtures of the season.

Here are five things to look out for across a mouth-watering EFL weekend.

Image source, Rex Features

Birmingham City came from behind to claim a point at Wrexham and end their three-game losing run away from home in the Championship.

Wrexham owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney and Blues co-owner Tom Brady stayed away, as Storm Amy lashed Wales, but the Red Dragons were not put off as George Dobson netted his first home league goal for the club early on.

But Patrick Roberts responded with his first goal for Blues shortly after half-time to give the documentary makers of both clubs the potential for a show-stopping finale.

However, there was no dramatic winner as the points were shared by the two sides who gained automatic promotion from League One last season.

Friday

Wrexham 1-1 Birmingham

Saturday

Blackburn v Stoke (12:30 BST)

Hull City v Sheffield United (12:30 BST)

Sheffield Wednesday v Coventry (12:30 BST)

Bristol City v QPR

Derby v Southampton

Millwall v West Bromwich Albion

Portsmouth v Middlesbrough

Preston North End v Charlton

Swansea v Leicester

Watford v Oxford United

Sunday

Ipswich v Norwich (12:00 BST)

Image source, Rex Features

Afternoon all, welcome to October. Proper autumn, this.

Chilly and still very windy thanks to Storm Amy, definitely a sunglasses and bobble hat day in the EFL in the final round of games before one of those pesky international breaks.

The Championship weekend began with the appetiser of the 'Hollywood derby' last night and ends with the sweet treat of the East Anglian derby tomorrow afternoon, but the main course is 10 thumping good games this afternoon, with three of the best of all coming this lunchtime.

You lucky lot. Grab your drinks and snacks and settle in while we bring you up to speed.