Birmingham City and Bradford City have secured spots in the semi-finals of the EFL Trophy with hard-fought 1-0 victories in their respective away fixtures.
Birmingham City, two-time winners of the competition (1990-91 and 1994-95), triumphed over Stevenage at the Lamex Stadium.
Despite dominating the match, they were repeatedly thwarted by goalkeeper Taye Ashby-Hammond’s stellar saves.
However, Jay Stansfield broke the deadlock seven minutes from time, capitalizing on Marc Leonard’s precise through-ball.
The victory extends Birmingham’s remarkable unbeaten streak to 18 matches across all competitions.
Bradford City edged past League One side Rotherham United, winners of the 2021-22 edition, at the AESSEAL New York Stadium.
The decisive moment came just before the hour mark when Reece James fouled Brad Halliday, leading to a penalty. Richard Smallwood confidently converted, smashing the ball into the roof of the net.
In other EFL Trophy action, Wrexham cruised to a commanding 4-1 win against Port Vale in a rearranged last-16 clash.
The victory sets up a quarter-final showdown with Bolton Wanderers. Meanwhile, Peterborough United will host Cheltenham Town in the remaining quarter-final fixture on Wednesday.