Tue 16th & Wed 17th March 2021

[FGR Stroud]

Seven mid-week games with only three teams in promotion zone playing: Cheltenham, Newport & Tranmere.

Cheltenham, at home to a bottom club, should extend their lead to 4 points at top of table.

Although Newport & Tranmere are playing away they both have games against teams currently out of form: Port Vale & Grimsby.

Scunthorpe v Oldham is game where, on paper, the teams are evenly matched and are going through a dip in form although relatively safe from relegation.

So my take is:
Wins - Cheltenham, Newport, Salford, Tranmere
Home draws: Crawley, Mansfield, Scunthorpe

 

[kieran_vale]

Will have to see what sort of team we name after a couple picked up injuries on Saturday. We’re not playing terribly at the moment and with a bit more luck could have had 4 points rather than just the one from the last two games. At least defensively we look solid now and that’s always something can work with.

Newport are clearly decent opposition but I think this is the game we get the first win of DC’s time in charge. Will say 1-0 to Vale.

 

[Shrimper92]

Lets go Cheltenham, Newport and Tranmere

 

[valefan16]

As Kieran says we’ve been playing ok in general terms, sorted the defensive issues in the main but haven’t taken chances or lacked that quality in the final third.

We’ve had a few games Cambridge, Salford, Bolton where we’ve given away the odd chance and either a worldie, a scuffed shot or the Salford one where we should shoot and score and concede 10 second later! So we are just falling the wrong side of games where we’ve deserved something, hopefully law of averages will see one finally go our way.

We should of hit Oldham for 4 or 5 so it’s clear the problems we’ve now got are finishing chances.

Yesterday for example Conlon has a chance to fire home hits it at the defender and deflects for a corner, then a short corner where Bolton switched off and Joyce gets the ball in the box with yards of space and fires at Gilkes when he should pick out the far top corner... just need something to go for us and bring confidence back up top really.

I expected us to win this in February but they’ve improved again now so tough but hopeful of a tight win to set up a humdinger at Colchester at the weekend.

 

[Andy Proctor]

We have nobody to play left back on Tuesday as crookes montano and fitzpatrick are all injured so all you need do is attack down that side and the goals will come. As soon as Newport score we will lose. 1 nil Newport will be my bet for this match.

 

[BarraMatt]

A point would be a good one.

 

[valefan16]

We have nobody to play left back on Tuesday as crookes montano and fitzpatrick are all injured so all you need do is attack down that side and the goals will come. As soon as Newport score we will lose. 1 nil Newport will be my bet for this match.

Reckon Monty will be back personally. Although could 3-5-2 with Hurst

 

[hellogregory]

Despite yesterday’s win, we’re still a shadow of the team that beat Mansfield in December. The players that were playing well back then simply aren’t at the moment. We looked rock solid defensively back then, but now look vulnerable and are regularly conceding 4 or 5 clear goal scoring chances per game.

Can’t see anything other than a home win. Our away form has been below average all season, it’s been diabolical since the turn of the year. Mansfield have been winning at home, against stronger opponents than us.
We’d need a terrible Mansfield performance plus a lot of luck to even pick up a point here i think.

Mansfield Town 2-0 Carlisle United

 

[Gladders]

how are 17th in the form table? how shite are those other 7 clubs to be below us?

 

[shoddycollins]

Despite yesterday’s win, we’re still a shadow of the team that beat Mansfield in December. The players that were playing well back then simply aren’t at the moment. We looked rock solid defensively back then, but now look vulnerable and are regularly conceding 4 or 5 clear goal scoring chances per game.

Can’t see anything other than a home win. Our away form has been below average all season, it’s been diabolical since the turn of the year. Mansfield have been winning at home, against stronger opponents than us.
We’d need a terrible Mansfield performance plus a lot of luck to even pick up a point here i think.

Mansfield Town 2-0 Carlisle United

to be fair Mansfield have been losing to teams at about our level. They can only beat promotion chasing teams.

 

[chipmunx]

with the results for the last week and a bit this has become a free hit for us - even a 3 or 4 goal defeat wouldn't matter at all - but i fancy us to give Cheltenham a really hard game. Even us getting a point would demoralise Southend and Grimsby fans even further. I'm expecting Tranmere to beat Grimsby on Wednesday - but think it will be a harder match for them than the walk in the park that was Southend away last week.
Should the unthinkable happen and we win - then i hope the guy who streams himself watching Walsall matches (Walsall FC TV) is doing a special one for the match - the reactions when we scored on Friday were brilliant.

 

[stevowanderer]

Lets go Cheltenham, Newport and Tranmere

Lets go complete opposite of that haha

 

[Laker]

Looking for some dropped points for two or three sides towards the top on Tuesday, nice to have a pressure free midweek for a change!

 

[Casey]

Crawley normally do well against the good sides and crap against the bad (not a hard and fast rule but you know...).

Walsall are having a tough time. We are getting good results.

Walsall to win...can't do it. 3-1 to Crawley.

Casey

 

[Si Robin]

We've struggled against the strugglers, and put our worst performance of the season in at Barrow.

We should win, we really could do with winning to open a gap, but if we do I think we'll make bloody hard work of it.

 

[GTFCfish]

For any gamblers out there Tranmere at 10/11 is like printing your own money, lump on.
We will battle hard again like we’ve been doing recently but Tranmere will come out on top by a goal or two.
I do think that we will nick a goal but I think it will end up 1-2 or 1-3.

 

[Boz]

It looks like we've come out of the Pizza Cup unscathed on the injury front and Otis Khan's early return compensates for Lee O'Connor missing the final due to an unspecified injury. Rovers haven't totally solved the lack of fit striker issue in Vaughan's absence and it will be interesting if Keith Hill continues with Paul Lewis up front or tries someone else there. Expecting Grimsby to make more of a fight of it than Southend and there's always the danger of a deflected effort off Stephan Payne's arse, but we really do need to take all points here before a tricky home game vExeter.

 

[masi51]

Done a treble Cheltenham,Salford and Tranmere pays 5.63

 

[pontoonlew]

First time all season I’m considering not watching, Hurst has (predictably) finally sapped the fucking life out of me.

Anybody know if there’s a manager out there who may better 1 win in 12? According to our fan base, there isn’t one.

 

[valefan16]

First time all season I’m considering not watching, Hurst has (predictably) finally sapped the fucking life out of me.

Anybody know if there’s a manager out there who may better 1 win in 12? According to our fan base, there isn’t one.

Clarke i theory has only won 1 (ironically against us!) since December (ironically when he beat us also!)

 

[RLC]

There is sometimes a hangover after a Wembley defeat, but I don't think that will be the case for us on Wednesday given how well we played against Sunderland. Confidence should still be high. This is effectively our game in hand and is a must win if we are to stay on course for the top three.

I have got a funny feeling the much improved Barrow might get something at Cheltenham tomorrow. If they don't, an eight point gap to first place is pretty big at this stage of the season. I would not completely rule out Vale against Newport either.

 

[Gladders]

you could go on three week binge and still beat us so no excuses really.

 

[Huntsman94]

As RLC mentioned, you’d hope that there is no Wembley hangover given how well we played. We’ve been better away from home so you’d think this would be the ideal fixture to have in order to bounce back. I don’t think it will be as easy as the Grimsby fans are making out however.

Win Wednesday and we’re back to one point behind FGR and Cambridge and would keep us up to speed with Cheltenham who are looking to kick on now. FGR play Cambridge on the weekend as well so 6 points from the next two games would see us occupy one of the top 3 places come 5pm Saturday!

 

[longmover]

Tuesday night has a CTFC midweek horror show written all over it

 

[Casey]

Tuesday night has a CTFC midweek horror show written all over it

Don't say that.

Casey

 

[Reremnart]

There is sometimes a hangover after a Wembley defeat, but I don't think that will be the case for us on Wednesday given how well we played against Sunderland. Confidence should still be high. This is effectively our game in hand and is a must win if we are to stay on course for the top three.

I have got a funny feeling the much improved Barrow might get something at Cheltenham tomorrow. If they don't, an eight point gap to first place is pretty big at this stage of the season. I would not completely rule out Vale against Newport either.

Surely that depends on how many penos and sendings off Newport manage to cheat their way to. If Vale manage to keep eleven men on the pitch and don`t tackle anybody in the penalty area they might do ok.

 

[masi51]

Surely that depends on how many penos and sendings off Newport manage to cheat their way to. If Vale manage to keep eleven men on the pitch and don`t tackle anybody in the penalty area they might do ok.

I wonder how many games the opposition have finished with 10 men this season against Tranmere????

 

[Conker]

Despite yesterday’s win, we’re still a shadow of the team that beat Mansfield in December. The players that were playing well back then simply aren’t at the moment. We looked rock solid defensively back then, but now look vulnerable and are regularly conceding 4 or 5 clear goal scoring chances per game.

Can’t see anything other than a home win. Our away form has been below average all season, it’s been diabolical since the turn of the year. Mansfield have been winning at home, against stronger opponents than us.
We’d need a terrible Mansfield performance plus a lot of luck to even pick up a point here i think.

Mansfield Town 2-0 Carlisle United

Honestly, going off prior Mansfield performances and results predicting anything is foolish, we self-destruct against Barrow then beat Cheltenham comfortably, we are one of the most inconsistent squads in the division.We have a poor defence and attack but our midfield is usually decent but Maris, Lapslie and Clarke could be out which would leave us with a poor midfield aswell. No result would surprise me.

Clough finally sorta admitted what we know post-match Crawley, he was asked if these inconsistencies can be solved, he replied that with these set of players he’s not so sure.

We have a good spine, but our squad is small and we have too many players with loads of individual mistakes in them, without the depth to replace. Good news is our budget is at the smallest for 5 years, comfortably.

 

[Roger Stone]

Surely that depends on how many penos and sendings off Newport manage to cheat their way to. If Vale manage to keep eleven men on the pitch and don`t tackle anybody in the penalty area they might do ok.

Only Lincoln with 13 pens have won more than our 10 pens this season in the top 4 divisions. Good going eh?

 

[valefan16]

Surely that depends on how many penos and sendings off Newport manage to cheat their way to. If Vale manage to keep eleven men on the pitch and don`t tackle anybody in the penalty area they might do ok.

Positive is opposition have only been in our box about 4 times the last 3 home games! So hopefully defend them high up !