After losing their 19-game unbeaten streak to promotion rivals Wrexham, Mansfield Town is determined to bounce back this Saturday. They host the league rivals at the One Call Stadium for a live, televised evening kickoff in the FA Cup first round (7.45).
Tuesday’s 1-0 Carabao Cup fourth-round loss to Port Vale marked Stags’ first taste of defeat.
When combined with the victory in the final game of the previous season, it meant they had at least tied the club record of 20 games without a loss.
A month ago, Wrexham and the Stags drew 0-0 at the One Call. Since then, they have gone undefeated, and they are currently one spot and one point ahead of Mansfield, who still have a game to play.
Manager Nigel Clough stated, “I am anticipating a fantastic match between two of the top sides in League Two. After the full seven days, or whatever, Wrexham will be well rested, and I’m sure they’ll have enjoyed the effort we put in on Tuesday evening. We will give it our best shot and prepare for it because it would be nice for us to win two games in a row. Hopefully, the players will be motivated by the significance of the Saturday night game after Tuesday. If you can make it through a few rounds, the FA Cup can offer that, and we would like to continue playing if at all possible.
It’s one of those situations where you wish you had chosen a home opponent who was roughly four leagues lower than you. Though it is what it is, it would be a marginally easier draw than one of the top teams. Let’s not empty both cups now that we have empty one. The league is still our top priority, but we still have the EFL Trophy on Tuesday. Lucas Akins, a striker for the Stags, was sidelined on Tuesday due to an injury.
However, two Stags who were recovering from injuries—left back Stephen McLaughlin and striker Rhys Oates—did make appearances off the bench during the Vale match.
“Having Rhys Oates return is crucial when a player with Lucas Akins’ calibre and impact leaves the team. Tuesday night, he was only able to do so for about thirty minutes, according to Clough. However, we were happy to have him involved again because you could immediately see the threat he poses. On Tuesday, Oatesy came just inches short of giving us an equaliser. He was just trying to dink it over the goalie, but he touched it too far—by half a yard.
However, we have occasionally missed that threat, so perhaps he can continue to be healthy for the upcoming few months. Stephen McLaughlin is just getting back to full strength, and they play in the EFL Trophy against Everton U21 next Tuesday. However, it’s wonderful that they are back involved. Now, if we can, we’d like to go for another cup run,” he said. As we have been doing for the past 19 games across all competitions, it is challenging to challenge on all fronts, and we are immensely proud of that.
Since the FA Cup and the EFL Trophy are the only two left, we will now try our hand at them.
“We will rest players when necessary and play them when we feel it’s necessary.
Given the significance of the FA Cup first round match, a clear week would be ideal. Though we didn’t get that, maybe having these players return will give us a few more options. The atmosphere was fantastic under the lights as we played Port Vale, and the crowd rallied behind us in the second half. That will be necessary once more on Saturday night. The general public can purchase tickets for the game at www.stagstickets.co.uk, by calling 01623 482482, or in person at the One Call Stadium ticket office.
