Millwall moved back to second in the Championship as they were held to a goalless draw at lowly West Bromwich Albion.
The Lions moved one point ahead of Ipswich Town, who have three games in hand, and Middlesbrough in the race for automatic promotion before both play on Saturday.
Josh Coburn volleyed wide and Mihailo Ivanovic hit the crossbar as the away side came closest in the first half.
The Baggies did not have a shot on target until the 82nd minute, when Millwall goalkeeper Anthony Patterson diverted Jayson Molumby’s shot wide from point-blank range.
But it was the hosts who ended the game the stronger as they extended their unbeaten run under James Morrison to seven matches.
Millwall showed early on their threat on the break as Thierno Ballo went close after being played through by Ivanovic.
Coburn should have given the visitors the lead on 17 minutes when he met Ballo’s brilliant cross on the volley but put it wide of Max O’Leary’s post.
With the game being played in the middle of the park and no shots on target from either side, Ivanovic sparked Millwall into life with a curling shot from distance that came crashing down off the crossbar, with Camiel Neghli drawing a good stop from O’Leary soon after.
The Baggies improved after the break with Daryl Dike heading over and Molumby sending an effort wide from distance.
Having had nothing to do all game, Patterson produced a brilliant save to deny Molumby late on when the ball landed at the feet of the Albion midfielder in the box – with Patterson making himself big to block the ball behind for a corner.
Ousmane Diakite headed narrowly wide from the set piece that followed and neither side could find a way through in the eight minutes of added time to settle a battling draw.
The result moves Albion five points clear of the relegation zone before the rest of the weekend’s fixtures.
Millwall go second in the table but could lose ground in the automatic promotion race after dropping two points at The Hawthorns
Despite moving back up into the automatic promotion spots, Alex Neil’s side will feel they have failed to apply more pressure to Ipswich and Middlesbrough.
The Tractor Boys have a huge game against East Anglia rivals Norwich City on Saturday at 12:30 BST but would move above Millwall by taking a point.
One week ago Millwall were celebrating a big win away at Middlesbrough on Good Friday but have since picked up one point from two games.
Coburn, who scored twice against his old side Boro, undoubtedly had the best chance in the first half and having scored seven goals in his previous seven games would have expected to score.
But the 23-year-old got his volley all wrong at the near post, when a header possibly would have been the better option.
Aside from Neghli’s shot that looked to be going wide and a couple of simple stops down the middle of the goal, O’Leary was largely untested.
Boro face struggling Portsmouth at the Riverside on Saturday and Millwall could find themselves in fourth place and two points adrift of the Reds and Ipswich in less than 24 hours.
West Bromwich Albion have picked up 11 points since James Morrison was named interim boss
While it might be two points missed for Millwall, it is another one gained for West Bromwich Albion in their fight to avoid the drop.
Since Morrison lost his first game in charge at Oxford United at the end of February, the Baggies have picked up 11 points.
The draw takes them to 46 for the season, five ahead of Leicester City in 22nd, and they might have had more.
It took a phenomenal save from Patterson to deny Molumby from opening the scoring with less than 10 minutes remaining.
Two more wins from their remaining games against Preston (away), Watford (home), Ipswich (away) and Sheffield Wednesday (home) should be enough to comfortably see them over the line and secure their Championship status for next season.
West Bromwich Albion interim boss James Morrison told BBC Radio WM:
“They had the better of the first 30 minutes. We needed to sort a couple of bits out at half-time and then I thought [in the] second half we were the stronger team, had the bigger chances and kept them away from our goal.
“I felt we were just a final pass away tonight – the right shot, choosing the right pass.
“The big moment, the goalkeeper’s [Anthony Patterson] made a great save so I think overall it’s probably a fair result.”
‘If you can’t win, don’t lose it’ – Millwall reaction
Millwall boss Alex Neil told BBC Radio London:
“I thought first half we had the better of the game, in terms of clear-cut chances we should score at least one. Josh Coburn’s chance is the best of the game.
“We struggled to keep the ball at the top end of the pitch the last 20 or 30 minutes of the game and couldn’t muster enough opportunities to win it. I thought if we were going to win it, it would be in the first half if we got the first goal.
“Like I said to the lads afterwards, if you can’t win it, just make sure you don’t lose it.”-BBC
