West Brom were brought crashing back down to earth as they suffered their first defeat of the season in the Coca-Cola Championship.
Only a week after crushing Middlesbrough 5-0 at the Riverside, the Baggies were beaten 1-0 by Crystal Palace at the Hawthorns as 19-year-old Alassane N'Diaye scored his first goal for the club.
As for Middlesbrough, they suffered further agony, drawing 2-2 with Coventry at the Ricoh Arena, where Leon Best grabbed a 95th-minute equaliser.
Gareth Southgate's side had led 2-0 at the interval with goals from on-loan Sean St Ledger and Rhys Williams, only for the Sky Blues to salvage a point through Clinton Morrison and Best's late finish.
Preston have leapfrogged Boro into third as they ended Leicester's 28-match unbeaten record at the Walkers Stadium with a 2-1 victory.
Neil Mellor scored just prior to the break, with Richard Chaplow adding a second in the 66th minute, leaving Bruno Berner's 90th-minute effort as nothing more than a consolation.
Blackpool are now riding high in fifth after they added to rock-bottom Peterborough's woes with a 2-0 win at Bloomfield Road, where Jason Euell and Hameur Bouazza were on target inside the opening 11 minutes.
Copyright (c) PA Sport 2009, All Rights Reserved.
