Our final game of a truly unforgettable 2022 sees us travel to fellow promotion-chasers Walsall in League Two, as two of the division’s form teams go head to head.
County returned to action in style on Boxing Day with a comfortable 2-0 win over Crewe – a tenth victory in our last 14 games in all competitions – to move back into the top half of the table. We now sit just four points off Barrow in the final play-off spot and 12 off the automatic promotion places, with at least one game in hand on all of the sides in the top seven.
Another win on Thursday night would see us move above Walsall and into the top ten for the first time this season, and could see us end the night as high as 8th should other results go our way.
It won’t be easy against a Walsall side in a rich vein of form themselves right now. Boxing Day saw them come from behind to secure a dramatic 2-1 win away at high-flying Swindon Town, thanks to a 94th minute winner from Manny Monthé.
That result, their ninth win from 13 in all competitions, leaves them in 8th place, and they will be looking for three points that could lift them as high as 4th by the end of the night.
Since we last met:
County were left frustrated when these two sides met at Edgeley Park back in October, as a late header from Andy Williams cancelled out Paddy Madden’s first-half opener to give Walsall a share of the spoils, despite a dominant display from Dave Challinor’s side.
There have been plenty of parallels between the two sides since then. That result left Walsall without a win in 12 games in all competitions, floundering down in 17th with the pressure on after an underwhelming start to the season.
Much like County however, that game proved the catalyst for a remarkable turnaround in form. In the ten league games since that day, the Saddlers are one of only two sides to have collected more points than our 22, picking up 23 alongside league leaders Leyton Orient.
Northampton Town and Swindon are some of the notable scalps taken by Michael Flynn’s side in that time as they surged up the league table, with Mansfield the only side to have defeated them in that time.
The Midlands side have of also secured passage through to the third round of the FA Cup for the first time since 2019 following wins against Wycombe Wanderers and Carlisle United – they have of course been drawn to face County at Edgeley Park in the next round, in just over a week’s time.
Their form at the Poundland Bescot Stadium has been formidable in recent months too, with six straight wins at home in league and cup – leaving County with a daunting task if they are to end the calendar year with another away win.
One to watch:
On-loan Mansfield Town forward Danny Johnson has been the Saddlers’ main source of goals this season, with 13 in all competitions so far, but it was someone else who caught the eye when these two sides met in October.
Attacking midfielder Tom Knowles, a Summer signing from Yeovil Town, has enjoyed a good start to life in League Two – appearing in 19 of his side’s 21 league games so far, scoring three times and registering four assists.
His name may be recognisable to some County fans too – the 24-year-old was on the scoresheet for Yeovil in their 2-1 win against Dave Challinor’s side at Huish Park back in April.
Match Stats:
- The Bescot Stadium has not been a happy hunting ground for County in recent years – we have lost each of our last five visits, all without scoring a goal. Our last goal and win there came back in 1999, courtesy of two Tony Dinning strikes.
- County haven’t lost their final game of a calendar year since 2011, winning each of the last six. The last defeat came against Barrow on Boxing Day, in the National League.
- After scoring two goals in his first 19 appearances this season, Will Collar has now scored five in his last three.
