Mansfield Town vs Northampton Town Match Analysis and Prediction

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Northampton Town head into the first leg of their League Two playoff semi-final with Mansfield Town looking to bounce back frm the disappointment of missing out on automatic promotion.

Nigel Clough and his Mansfield know that wins from their final two fixtures would have been enough for automatic promotion, and now he is aware that he has work to do in the build-up to keep his squad on track for a return to the third tier.

Although neither of their games against Salford City and champions Forest Green Rovers could be claiming to be easy, the Stags held second-half leads in each contest.

A run of defeats before the final few fixtures is what ultimately proved pivotal, which means that eight points from their concluding four matches was not enough.

On the positive, Clough will be glad of his team’s efforts in the final third after witnessing them score at least two goals in six of their final seven matches.

Heading into the final day of the campaign, the odds were stacked in Northampton’s favour when it came to finishing in the top three, there needing to be a five-goal swing in terms of goal difference for Bristol Rovers to claim the final automatic spot.

When Northampton scored three times in the opening 21 minutes against Barrow, the job seemed done, but as goals dried up for the Cobblers, Bristol Rovers scored against Scuntorpe United.

Barrow’s goal proved decisive, a 3-1 win for Northampton not being enough as Rovers put seven past the bottom-placed team, and it leaves Jon Brady and his side having to contend with the playoffs.

With three defeats having come from five games during March and April, the Cobblers cannot feel too hard done-by, although they ended the campaign with 14 points from their final six matches.

Mansfield Town vs Northampton Town head to head

The two teams have previously met on 32 occasions in all competitions, where Mansfield have claimed 13 victories while Northampton have won 10, and they have drawn in nine. Mansfield have scored 39 goals and conceded 36. In their last five meetings, Mansfield have won twice, Northampton once with two draws.

Northampton Town 1-1 Mansfield Town 13/04/19

Mansfield Town 1-1 Northampton Town 21/12/19

Northampton Town 1-2 Mansfield Town 07/03/22

Northampton Town 2-0 Mansfield Town 16/10/21

Mansfield Town 1-0 Northampton Town 02/04/22

Mansfield Town latest home form

Mansfield have recently been on a good run of form at home, having been unbeaten in their four most recent matches. Their last home defeat came on April 15 when they lost 3-2 to Sutton United in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 15 goals and conceded six.

Mansfield Town 2-3 Sutton United 15/04/22

Mansfield Town 2-0 Crawley Town 23/04/22

Mansfield Town 2-0 Stevenage 26/04/22

Mansfield Town 7-1 Newark FC 27/04/22

Mansfield Town 2-2 Forest Green Rovers 07/05/22

Mansfield Town latest away form

Mansfield have recently failed to keep a good run of form on the road, having won just one of their five most recent matches. They managed to defeat Scunthorpe United 4-0 on April 9 in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored six goals and conceded five.

Forest Green Rovers 1-0 Mansfield Town 05/04/22

Scunthorpe United 0-4 Mansfield Town 09/04/22

Carlisle United 1-0 Mansfield Town 18/04/22

Salford City 2-2 Mansfield Town 02/05/22

Carlton Town 1-0 Mansfield Town 04/05/22

Northampton Town latest home form

Northampton have recently been on a good run of form at home, having been unbeaten in their four most recent matches. Their last home defeat came 1-0 against Bristol Rovers on March 19 in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored six goals and conceded just two.

Northampton Town 0-1 Bristol Rovers 19/03/22

Northampton Town 2-0 Hartlepool United 26/03/22

Northampton Town 0-0 Bradford City 09/04/22

Northampton Town 3-0 Harrogate Town 18/04/22

Northampton Town 1-1 Exeter City 30/04/22

Northampton Town latest away form

Northampton have recently been on a good run of form on the road, having won each of their three most recent matches. Their last away defeat came 1-0 against Mansfield Town on April 2 in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 11 goals and conceded five.

Stevenage 1-2 Northampton Town 15/03/22

Mansfield Town 1-0 Northampton Town 02/04/22

Oldham Athletic 0-2 Northampton Town 15/04/22

Leyton Orient 2-4 Northampton Town 23/04/22

Barrow 1-3 Northampton Town 07/05/22

Mansfield Town news

Clough could stick with the XI which claimed a 2-2 draw at home to Forest Green on the final day of the campaign.

However, Elliott Hewitt is an option at right-back ahead of James Perch, while Jamie Murphy is expected to retain his spot behind the front two ahead of George Lapslie.

Northampton Town news

Northampton will be forced into at least one alteration after goalkeeper Liam Roberts, an ever-present this season was sent off in the final minutes at Barrow, with Jon Maxted deputising between the sticks.

Brady could retain the same XI for this contest after Northampton extended their unbeaten streak to six games.

Prediction and Odds

This fixture has all the makings of a tough contest, with Mansfield looking to get back to winning ways while Northampton aim to extend their unbeaten streak.

However, despite the hosts having failed to win either of their last two fixtures, we feel that they will be able to claim a victory.

Odds: 1 2.15 X 2.05 2 2.62