Nigel Clough’s Mansfield Town Take On Colchester United As Unbeaten Record Is On The Line Once Again
Mansfield Town’s season so far can be described as one of resilience and unity as injuries have failed to slow down the amber and blue steam train.
On a nine-game unbeaten run in all competitions, Nigel Clough’s Stags look to stake a claim at taking the top spot at the end of matchday eight with Notts County facing the trip to Salford City and Gillingham hosting the tricky Morecambe.
Whilst Mansfield Town’s task won’t be easy, taking on Colchester United at the JobServe Community Stadium, the amber and blues will look to repeat their feat from last season which saw them miss out on the Play-Offs on goal difference despite a 2-0 win in May.
The U’s Get Back To Winning Ways
A narrow 1-0 loss at the hands of Walsall saw Colchester sit joint-second bottom in Sky Bet League Two with a game in hand on the teams above.
Ben Garner’s side needed to bounce back as they looked to stay out of relegation trouble for the second season running.
Last weekend, the U’s welcomed Tranmere Rovers to the JobServe Community Stadium as two struggling sides went toe-to-toe.
It was the hosts that took the lead in the 11th minute as Wales under-21 international Joe Taylor netted the opener, his fourth goal in six league appearances.
With 30 shots throughout the game, Colchester doubled their advantage late on as substitute Bradley Ihionvien earned the U’s a valuable 2-0 win in an early season six-pointer.
The Essex-based side moved three points clear of the relegation zone as they closed the gap on mid-table and moved up to 20th after the win.
Scotching Stags In Red Hot Form
On a baking hot day in Lancashire, Mansfield Town travelled to the Wham Stadium to take on newly-relegated Accrington Stanley.
As both sides created chances, it was the amber and blues that ran out 3-0 victors through brilliant strikes from Davis Keillor-Dunn, George Maris and Aaron Lewis.
The first goal of the game was scored by Keillor-Dunn who chested the ball following James Gale’s delivery and fired a wicked overhead kick into the top corner.
Stags’ advantage was doubled with a fine passing move which saw Keillor-Dunn turn into the supplier as he found Maris running into the box with the midfielder tapping the ball home.
Lewis ensured the three points for Mansfield Town as he fired a first-time volley into the back of the net following a poor clearance from Stanley goalkeeper Toby Savin.
The win propelled the Stags up to third and kept their unbeaten run going as Stanley dropped to the bottom half of the League Two table after back-to-back losses.
Form Guide
Heading into this weekend’s clash in Essex, both sides head into the game in winning form, having both won their games last time out.
The hosts have been able to pick up six points from their last five league matches with two wins and four losses.
Meanwhile, the Stags have also won twice from their last five games but three draws have seen the amber and blues pick up nine points from a possible 15.
Whilst league position may be in Mansfield Town’s favour, sitting third in the league, Colchester won’t go down without a fight as they aim to close the gap between themselves and mid-table.
Head-To-Head
The Us and the Stags have faced each other over 60 times in all competitions but have only played 13 times since the creation of EFL League Two.
Colchester have recorded three wins with the Stags taking the advantage with four victories and the other six games ending in draws.
34 goals has been scored in this fixture, an average of over 2.5 goals per game, showcasing the nature of this game being a high-scoring one.
Mansfield Town hold the upper hand in the last three games as they have won all of them and have scored six goals compared to Colchester’s two, winning the last three games by the margins of 2-1, 2-1, and 2-0.
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