Harrogate Town v Leyton Orient

Harrogate Town and Leyton Orient lock horns at the unusual time of 7pm on Tuesday night. 

The hosts go into the game in a poor run of form and don’t really have anything to play for between now and the end of the season as they sit comfortably in mid-table in 16th position. Simon Weaver’s side haven’t won since their impressive 3-1 win against Bradford City on 22nd February in a run of six matches now. Nevertheless, they managed to salvage a late draw in their game against Walsall on Saturday with Middlesbrough loanee Callum Kavanagh slotting home a penalty in the 94th minute. Their boss said that they “deserved” the point in the end but his side are struggling for wins at the moment, whereas their opponents this week Leyton Orient actually need to pick up a win to boost their survival hopes. The Sulphurites’ small squad is being tested to the maximum as the fixtures come thick and fast and they could only name six substitutes out of a possible seven on the bench against Walsall. Harrogate will welcome back top scorer Luke Armstrong back from suspension for the visit of the O’s after he sat out of the Walsall clash. He was replaced up front by Mark Beck, who hasn’t found the net yet this season so they will pose more of an attacking threat now. However, Armstrong himself has only scored once in six games and is in a bit of a dry patch at the moment. 

Leyton Orient have a spring in their step under new boss Richie Wellens, who they chose to bring in after sacking Kenny Jackett last month. He won his first home game at the helm last time out against Rochdale 3-1 thanks to goals from Paul Smyth, Ruel Sotiriou and Harry Smith and their manager said it was an “important win”. The London side are unbeaten in their last five matches now and have risen up to 18th position, nine points above the relegation zone with 10 games left to play of the campaign. Defender George Ray picked up a hamstring injury against Forest Green Rovers last week and sat out of the squad against the Dale. He was replaced in the heart of defence by youngster Shadrach Ogie who proved he is an adequate replacement despite being just 20-years-old. Midfielder Darren Pratley made his return to the squad on Saturday as well after missing a couple of games with an injury and came on in the second-half for Harry Kyprianou. Having him back is a big boost and he injects useful experience into their ranks having played 604 games in his career to date. 

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Rochdale v Mansfield Town

Mansfield Town saw their home game over the weekend against Stevenage postponed due to Covid cases in the away camp. 

The Stags have lost their last two games in the league to Tranmere Rovers and Port Vale respectively and will be eager to put things right away at Rochdale this week. Speaking after their loss against the Valiants last time out, their boss, Nigel Clough, says they need to “bounce back”. Their back-to-back defeats and their day off on Saturday has seen them slip out of the play-offs in League Two and they are now five points off the top seven but have four games in hand which if they win would see them rise back into the promotion picture. Mansfield’s loss against Tranmere on 11th March was their first loss of 2022 and ended a streak of 16 unbeaten matches in a run spanning back to 23rd November. They will be keen to recapture that form between now and the end of the campaign with 12 games left. Newcastle United loan man Matty Longstaff has been a hit since making the move in January and has scored three goals in five games. He has been out with a hamstring injury but the fact the Stevenage game was cancelled gives him more chance to recover for Tuesday night. The experienced Ollie Clarke stepped in for him in their last game meaning Clough has two reliable options to choose from either way. 

Rochdale aren’t safe just yet and may be nervously looking over their shoulder towards the bottom two after their 3-1 defeat to Leyton Orient on Saturday. Their manager, Robbie Stockdale, said his side were “not good enough” and they are now winless in their last five outings. The North West outfit are also not having the best of times on home soil recently and have only won once in their last six at Spotland which will give their opponents confidence they can go there and get a result. Rochdale decided to sell their top scorer Jake Beesley and key midfielder Aaron Morley in the last transfer window to Blackpool and Bolton Wanderers respectively and that has come back to haunt them during the second-half of this campaign. They were replaced by the likes Tahvon Campbell, Luke Charman and James Ball but they have struggled to live up to their predecessors’ form, with the team picking up just one victory since the turn of the year. 

Port Vale v Exeter City 

Both Port Vale and Exeter City have their sights set on promotion to League One this season as they prepare to lock horns at Vale Park. 

The hosts have lost just once in their last 13 games and picked up an impressive 2-1 win away at Bradford City last time out thanks to goals from Ben Garrity and James Wilson. Their assistant manager, Andy Crosby, said after the game at Valley Parade that the mentality at the football club is “amazing” as they chase down a place in the play-offs. The Valiants are currently 8th in the table and are outside the top seven behind Swindon Town by a single point with two games in hand which they will be keen to capitalise on. Many thought they would fall away following the injury their key man Tom Conlon picked up to force him out of action on a long-term basis. However, fellow midfielder Garrity has stepped up to the plate in his teammates’ absence and has had an impressive season by scoring 11 goals in all competitions from the middle of the park. Their striking partnership of Wilson and Jamie Proctor has caused problems to League Two defences this term and they have fired a combined 14 goals in the league. Young pair Ryan Edmondson and Kian Harrett, who are on loan from Leeds United and Huddersfield Town respectively, provide useful competition and depth up top as the fixtures come thick and fast. 

Exeter are hoping that this is the year that they finally gain promotion after a few near misses over recent years. The Grecians are 2nd in the league behind table toppers Forest Green Rovers and are inside the top three by a single point with two games in hand on joint-4th place Bristol Rovers and Tranmere Rovers. The Grecians won 2-0 away at Oldham Athletic last time courtesy of goals from Kyle Taylor and Jevani Brown. Their boss, Matt Taylor, said he felt ”comfortable” in the second-half after his side scored and you can see why too with his side losing just once in their last 14 games. The win at Boundary Park may have come at a cost though with Taylor going off injured with a knee injury but Exeter have a ready-made replacement in Josh Coley ready to step up if his teammate is out of action for a long time now. Nigel Atangana will also miss the game against Port Vale through suspension after picking up a red card against the Latics. The Grecians won’t be too disheartened and have the depth in their squad to keep the heat on Forest Green at the summit.

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