Mansfield Town’s Unbeaten Record Is Once Again At Stake As They Face The Tough Trip To Accrington Stanley
Nigel Clough’s Stags have the chance to extend their brilliant start to the League Two season, however, newly-relegated Accrington Stanley stand in the way between them and a seven-game unbeaten run in the league.
Both sides have started the season off in a strong manner, sitting inside the top eight of League Two after six games.
With a battle between early front-runners Notts County and MK Dons taking place at the weekend, the gap at the top of the table could be closed for the winner of this encounter between Stanley and the Stags.
Stanley’s Three-Game Unbeaten Run Comes To An End
In a game near the top of the table, Accrington travelled to Meadow Lane to face 2023 National League Play-Off winners Notts County.
The hosts took the lead in the seventh minute as Dan Crowley put Luke Williams’ side 1-0 up.
Three minutes before the half-hour mark, Josh Andrews fired the Stanley level as the game looked to be heading into an exciting second-half.
However, the visitors’ hopes of a good result were dashed as County’s marksman Macaulay Langstaff scored twice to hand the Magpies a 3-1 and to fire them to the top of the league.
The defeat saw Stanley drop out of the Play-Offs and behind their visitors this weekend, Mansfield Town, on goal difference.
Stags Continue Their Upward Trejectory With Positive Point
Last weekend’s fixture against Bradford City saw the amber and blues record their first goalless game of the season whilst picking up only their second clean sheet of the season.
In a tightly-contested affair at the One Call Stadium, both sides had their fair share of chances to score but none better than the Stags when Will Swan had the ball in the net, however, the goal was disallowed due to a foul in the build-up.
Davis Keillor-Dunn also had a glorious chance to put the amber and blues in front but a wonderful save from Bantams’ shot-stopper Harry Lewis denied the forward a wonderful goal.
However, the draw saw Mansfield keep their spot in the Play-Offs and continue their unbeaten start to the League Two campaign.
The point negatively impacted Bradford as they slipped down to 15th place, two points off the Play-Off places.
Form Guide
In the last five league matches, Accrington have recorded two wins, one draw and two losses, notching up a total of seven points from a possible 15 and sit 14th in the form table.
Meanwhile, Mansfield have earned two victories and three draws from their last five matches, amassing a total of nine points and have the joint-third-best form in the league.
Both sides have scored in four of their last five games with the Stags outscoring the Stanley nine to six.
However, both teams struggle to keep clean sheets with the hosts only keeping one clean sheet compared to the amber and blues’ two clean sheets this season.
Head-To-Head
The all-time League Two head-to-head favours Accrington Stanley massively heading into the clash at the Wham Stadium this weekend.
Since their first-ever League Two clash in September 2006, Accrington have won 10 of the 14 clashes with the other four games ending in draws.
Mansfield have only ever beaten the Stanley in cup competitions, beating the Lancashire-based club in the FA Cup in November 2006 and in the Carabao Cup in the last competitive meeting between the two sides in August 2018.
With a grand total of 44 goals scored in 14 League Two fixtures between the two sides, an average of over three goals per game, expect there to be a few goals flying in at the Wham Stadium in this exciting encounter.
After their last competitive fixture ended in a 6-1 win in the Stags’ favour, the amber and blues will look to find inspiration from that brilliant Carabao Cup victory to finally get their first EFL League Two win over Accrington Stanley.
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