The first game of a potentially pivotal Easter weekend double-header sees County travel to relegation strugglers Forest Green Rovers on Good Friday, looking to build on last week’s thrashing of MK Dons.
Promotion rivals MK came to Edgeley Park last weekend knowing a win would take them into the top three at County’s expense, but instead Dave Challinor’s side turned on the style and blew the Dons away either side of half-time – a 5-0 win moving us four points clear of them with two games in hand.
That victory also saw us cut the gap to league leaders Mansfield Town back to just two points, after the Stags were held 1-1 at home by Colchester United. We still hold a game in hand on Nigel Clough’s side too, meaning the League Two title is in County’s hands with eight games remaining.
There’s a huge game happening elsewhere in League Two on Friday, as Mansfield travel to 3rd place Wrexham in a game shown live on Sky Sports, meaning a County win at the New Lawn Stadium would see us take advantage of at least one of our closest rivals dropping points. Meanwhile, MK Dons will look to bounce back at home to Walsall, 5th place Crewe Alexandra travel to Gillingham and Barrow will look to continue their recent revival at home to Grimsby Town.
Opponents Forest Green come into this game on the back of a 2-0 defeat away at Doncaster Rovers last weekend, a result that saw them slip to the bottom of League Two following Sutton’s win over Accrington elsewhere. They sit one point adrift of safety with seven games remaining, as they bid to avoid a second successive relegation.
Since we last met:
Even as far back as October, the reverse fixture at Edgeley Park gave the impression of two teams heading in the opposite direction this season.
For County, it was a fifth straight win in League Two to lift us up to fourth in the table, sealed by first-half goals from Tanto Olaofe and Antoni Sarcevic. For Rovers, however, it was a fifth straight defeat, and a loss that saw them slide into the relegation zone having picked up just seven points from their opening 11 games.
That run became six the following weekend against Accrington, and even convincing home wins against Colchester United and Crawley Town did little to arrest a steep decline that has carried over from their relegation campaign.
For a side that won the League Two title in style under Rob Edwards in 2022, 2023 proved a miserable year for Forest Green and their supporters. After finishing rock bottom of League One last season, they won just four of their opening 20 League Two games under new manager David Horseman – ultimately leading to the sacking of the former Southampton academy coach, with his side five points adrift of safety.
Former Watford striker Troy Deeney, signed as a player earlier in the season, was then placed in charge for what proved to be a disastrous 29-day spell. The 35-year-old won none of his six games in charge, departing with the team rooted to the bottom of the Football League.
With a return to non-league a real possibility, the club have since turned to the experience of former Bristol City and Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cotterill in a bid to rescue their season.
A failure to win any of his first three games in charge left the side with just four wins from 30 games in the league this season, but Cotterill has certainly started to have an impact since then. His team have picked up another four wins from their last nine games, as well as claiming a credible point against Wrexham, to put themselves back in the mix for survival.
Right now it looks like a three-way battle between them, Sutton United and Colchester United in the bid to avoid the drop, with all three starting to pick up points in recent months under new managers. Just one point separates the three, although Forest Green have played two games more than Colchester.
Back-to-back defeats have come at the wrong time for Cotterill’s men, particularly a 1-0 defeat at home to Sutton two weeks ago. They will be hoping for a reaction back at home on Good Friday, but will know they are up against it as they prepare to face all of the top five in League Two over their next five games.
Match Stats:
- This will be just the sixth competitive meeting between the two sides, and only the second in the EFL. Both teams have won two of the previous five encounters, but we are yet to win at the New Lawn Stadium.
- Paddy Madden’s next appearance will be his 150th for Stockport County. The Irishman scored his 58th goal for the club last time out, making him the 13th highest scorer in the club’s history.
- County have now scored 75 goals in League Two this season, already our best goalscoring season in the EFL since the 1992/93, when we scored 81 under Danny Bergara.
Watch the manager’s pre-match interview here:
