Mansfield Town start their last eight games of the season at the top of the league, five of which are at home, hosting a struggling Colchester United side that sit just above the drop zone in 22nd place and level on points with Forest Green in 23rd but having played 2 games fewer.
The Yellows have been imperious so far this season and are now leading the chasing pack with a 5-point gap back to MK Dons in fourth. Having only recorded six defeats, Nigel Clough’s men are in a great position: “I think that it could be really important that we’ve got five out of eight, and if we win the win the majority of our home games, then we’re nearly there.”
However, Clough is very aware of the opponent’s “threat”. “We’ve seen them very recently a couple of times, and they’ve been very unlucky to not come away with three points.” The U’s are now managed by the Cowley brothers, known for their excellent time with Lincoln, in which they oversaw them to win promotion to League One back in 2019.
“They’re going to be a threat. They’re a big team, and they’ll put the ball into our box, which we’ll have to deal with.” This robust approach has seen the visitors record a solitary defeat in their last five games, which came while away at high-flying Barrow. Moreover, Mansfield’s record is not too impressive against them, having picked up only four wins in their last 14 encounters and having drawn earlier in the season, salvaging a point in the very last minute due to Davis Keillor-Dunn’s late strike.
Despite this, Colchester have recorded just four clean sheets this season, and up against a rampant Stags attack that have scored 18 goals in their last four home matches, the odds are not in their favour.
It’s all set up to be an entertaining contest, with the result carrying heavy importance at both ends of the league table, with Clough not fixating on it being the early kick-off- “Just need to get on with it and put another performance in.”
Super Mansfield 