Bradford City will be in confident mood going into their game against inconsistent Barrow this weekend.

The Bantams have found form again and won 2-0 on Tuesday night at home to Tranmere Rovers courtesy of goals by attacking midfielder Jamie Walker and striker Andy Cook. Speaking after that win, boss Mark Hughes said he was ‘delighted’ with the victory and he will be looking to see his side pick up another three points on Saturday. The Yorkshire club are now unbeaten in their last five games and have lost just once in their last eight. They have now risen up to 8th in the League Two table and could head back into the play-offs with another win if other results go their way which is a great incentive.

On the selection front, Crystal Palace loan winger Scott Banks has been left out of the last couple of games which shows Bradford’s strength in depth with other options like Alex Gilliead, Abo Eisa and Thierry Nevers preferred in the squad in his position. Bradford are in a good position to get promoted this season and 19-goal striker Andy Cook has been on fire this term and will cause problems for his former club.

Barrow have slipped down to 14th in the table after such a promising first-half of the campaign and are seeing their hopes of promotion slip away fast. They lost 1-0 away at Doncaster Rovers last time out and only mustered two shots on target which shows they are struggling to create chances right now. Their manager Pete Wild said his side need to ‘stop the rot’ but they are finding things tough at the moment and will be there for the taking for Bradford. The Bluebirds are winless in their last six league outings and have only won once in their last 12.

Scoring goals has been a problem over recent weeks and they haven’t managed to find the net at all in four of their last six matches which suggests they are seriously lacking that cutting edge in attacking areas. Barrow don’t have any fresh injury concerns to deal with but their small squad size meant they could only name six substitutes against Doncaster. They are punching above their weight in the fourth tier and that is starting to catch up with them now as the season goes on and they face a battle to turn their fortunes around with some tough fixtures coming up.

Tranmere Rovers have been very hit and miss this season as they prepare to take on a resurgent Mansfield Town.

The hosts go into the clash on the back of a 2-0 away loss at Bradford City and they didn’t even have a shot on target. Play-offs are starting to slip away as they drop down to 12th in the table, seven points off the top seven. After their defeat at Valley Parade, boss Micky Mellon said the performance was a bit of a ‘horror show’ for his side and they have another tough game coming up next.

On the selection front, defender Tom Davies picked up his fifth yellow card of the campaign so will now serve a one-game suspension which is a blow and leaves the team short of options at the back with Jordan Turnbull also a doubt after sitting out against Bradford, with Kyle Jameson coming into the starting XI for him. Tranmere have been inconsistent over recent weeks and have won just once in their last four outings. In addition, the same trend has been reflected over the past month or so too with just two victories in their last eight games which has significantly dented their promotion hopes. With their problems in terms of their lack of options at the back, this game looks more favourable to the visitors.

Mansfield lost their first two games of 2023 against Walsall and Barrow but have since been on an impressive run of form which has seen them rise into automatic promotion contention. They are unbeaten in their last five games, scoring 12 along the way, and are now only three points behind 3rd place Carlisle United after they thrashed the Cumbrian outfit 4-0 away last time out. Ollie Clarke, Alfie Kilgour, Lucas Akins and Elliott Hewitt were all on the scoresheet at Brunton Park before half-time and manager Nigel Clough said his side were ‘magnificent’ and that they had ‘good’ preparation beforehand.

Midfielder Clarke came off at half-time with a calf injury and will be a doubt ahead of Saturday. However, that isn’t too much of an issue with players like Stephen Quinn, Hiram Boateng and John-Joe O’Toole in his position. Mansfield will be confident mood after their last win and should have enough quality to get at least a draw at Prenton Park, if not another three points as their fans dream of League One.

Leyton Orient are heading full throttle towards promotion from League Two as they take on a Crawley Town side battling against relegation.

The O’s are 10 points clear at the top of the table ahead of 2nd place Stevenage after their 2-1 home win over Rochdale on Tuesday evening courtesy of goals by striker Ruel Sotiriou and midfielder Idris El Mizouni. Speaking afterwards, boss Richie Wellens said his side were ‘outstanding’ at times and he will be looking to see the same again against Crawley this weekend.

Attacker Paul Smyth is still yet to make his return from injury but his teammates aren’t missing him too much with other options like Theo Archibald, Charlie Kelman and Aaron Drinan all having great seasons in attacking areas. The London club lost a couple of games at the end of January against Stevenage and Tranmere Rovers but have since bounced back by having a brilliant February so far and are unbeaten in their last four games, winning three of them. Leyton Orient’s success this term has been built on solid foundations and they have the best defensive record in the division having let in just 19 goals in this campaign. They have an ability to grind out results and should do the same on Saturday.

Crawley are nervously looking over their shoulder towards the relegation zone and are now only above the bottom two on goal difference. The Red Devils took the lead last time out away at Stockport County after midfielder Jack Powell’s early goal but ended up losing 2-1. Their manager Scott Lindsay said his players conceded two ‘bad goals’ and their defensive problems came back to haunt them against at Edgeley Park.

They have no fresh injury concerns but have let experienced centre-back Tony Craig leave the club on loan for Dorking Wanderers which leaves them slightly short of options at the back, with Dion Conroy and Ludwig Francillette the usual partnership in the heart of defence. Crawley have won just once in their last eight games and there is no doubt that they are at serious risk of slipping into the National League. Their WAGMI United ownership spent a lot of money last summer but the recruitment has proved to be poor and Lindsay, who joined from Swindon Town earlier last month, has only won one in his first four matches as another likely loss beckons at Brisbane Road against the table toppers.

Sutton United are in for a tricky test on Saturday as they take on a Doncaster Rovers side who have turned a corner over recent times.

The U’s won 2-1 on Tuesday night against Swindon Town at home thanks to two late goals by striker Lee Angol and midfielder Alistair Smith but they went into that one on the back of two games without a win. Speaking afterwards, their boss Matt Gray said it was ‘disappointing’ to see his side concede and he will be under no illusion that Doncaster will be tougher opponents than the Robins.

The London club will be without midfielder Craig Eastmond which is a blow as he serves the second game of his suspension after he was sent off against Hartlepool United last weekend, with Harry Beautyman likely to slot in again but they will miss that experience in the middle of the park. Sutton are 10th in the table but face a battle to get into the play-offs due to the form of the teams in and around them. They have won two in their last six games which isn’t quite good enough if they are to make a push for the top seven between now and the end of the campaign. The U’s aren’t a bad team and cause problems for their opponents but they may struggle this weekend based on who they have to play against.

Doncaster have started to pick up results and will fancy their chances of a late promotion push. The Yorkshire outfit have taken a while to get going this term following their relegation from League One but are finding their feet at last at the right time of the season. They won 1-0 at home to Barrow last time out courtesy of defender James Maxwell’s first-half strike and they are now only two points off the play-offs. Their manager Danny Schofield endured a tough start to life at the Eco-Power Stadium but the former Huddersfield Town man seems to be getting the best out of his players now and said after their latest victory that his side were ‘fantastic’ again.

He has received a huge boost on the injury front recently following the return of Leicester City loan man Ben Nelson and he has formed a solid partnership at the back alongside Joseph Olowu. Doncaster have won their last three games on the spin now without conceding a goal, having seen off Tranmere Rovers and Swindon Town before their latest win over Barrow. They will be in good spirits ahead of their trip down south and will be confident of getting at least a draw to close the gap on those above them in the table.