It was a day of mixed emotions in the Championship on Sunday (Pictures: Getty)

Newcastle were crowned champions on a dramatic final day in the Championship, while Blackburn Rovers became the first former Premier League champion to be relegated to the third tier.

A last-minute equaliser for Aston Villa denied Brighton the chance to claim the title as Rafa Benitez’s team finished the season a point better off, though the real drama came at the opposite end of the table.

Three teams were in danger of the drop at the start of the day, Blackburn, who won the Premier League title back in 1995, Nottingham Forest and Birmingham.

Early goals from Blackburn briefly took them out of the drop zone, while a 16th-minute strike from Che Adams gave Birmingham an early lead away to Bristol City.

Newcastle’s players celebrate winning the Championship title with a pile up… (Picture: Getty)
Newcastle’s players celebrate winning the Championship title with a pile up… (Picture: Getty)
… while Anthony Knockaert and the Brighton players looked inconsolable at full-time (Picture: Getty)
… while Anthony Knockaert and the Brighton players looked inconsolable at full-time (Picture: Getty)

The onus was therefore on Forest to respond, and they did that just before half-time thanks to Britt Assombalonga’s penalty. With all three teams leading, it was Blackburn who dropped back into the relegation place at the break.

In the second halves, Nottingham raced into a commanding lead thanks to Chris Cohen and a second Assombalonga strike, while Birmingham stubbornly held on.

Harry Redknapp was brought in to save Birmingham, and got six out of a possible nine points (Picture: Getty)
Harry Redknapp was brought in to save Birmingham, and got six out of a possible nine points (Picture: Getty)
Nottingham Forest’s fans invaded the pitch at full-time after their players had ensured their survival (Picture: Getty)

Blackburn needed a Bristol equaliser or a goal fest themselves, but as Harry Redknapp’s side clung onto the win, and with Rovers unable to claw back Forest’s goal difference advantage, it was Blackburn who were relegated to League One.

Brighton, meanwhile, looked destined to secure the Championship title but were denied by a late equaliser from Jack Grealish, who struck in the 89th minute despite Villa being down to 10 men.

Elsewhere, the order of the Play-Off places was also established, with Fulham and Reading, who both won on the final day, and Sheffield Wednesday and Huddersfield, who both lost, the two semi-final matchups.