Barnsley vs Walsall – 10th vs 16th
Barnsley are looking for their fifth straight win in the league after they beat Coventry at home on Tuesday night. Since Danny Wilson was sacked, the Tykes have picked up 12 point out of 15 and are on the up under recently appointed boss, Lee Johnson. Walsall ended a run of 4 straight defeats with a 1-0 victory away at Yeovil on Tuesday night but haven’t won at Oakwell since 1971. Lee Johnson added forward Jabo Ibhere and Declan John to his squad before tomorrow’s encounter. Jordy Hiwula hit his 3rd goal for the Saddlers since his loan move from Man City and the spell has since been extended. While George Waring has scored in the Tykes last 2 victories.
- Barnsley have 5th best home record in division, 29 points from 17 games
- Taken 18 points from last 21 available at home
- Walsall lost 1 in 10 games picking up 6 wins and achieved 21 points from last 30 available on their travels
- Barnsley have won 8 of the last 15 meetings between the two sides
Prediction – Barnsley 2-0 Walsall
Coventry vs Port Vale – 20th vs 13th
Coventry entertain Port Vale on Saturday looking for a first win under new manager Tony Mowbray after being appointed in the week. The Sky Blues sit 1 point above the relegation zone and lost in midweek away at Barnsley. Mowbray will be looking to steer Coventry to a mid table finish but in a very congested league it will be tough. Port Vale suffered their first defeat in 4, away at Oldham on Tuesday night but only sit 4 points away from a play off place. With the Valiant’s picking up form, a run to challenge for a play off place is not out of the question. City triumphed over Vale 2-0 at Vale Park earlier in the season and Rob Page’s men will be looking for revenge
- Coventry 1 win in 9 in all competitions
- Drew 5 out of last 7 at home picking up just one win, last time out against promotion chasers MK Dons
- Vale won 3 out of last 4 and won their last 2 on their travels
- Mark Marshall has hit 3 goals in his last 5 games
- Coventry last beat Vale at home back in 1959, Vale unbeaten in 6 away at City
- Vale have only lost 1 of their last 11 meetings between the two sides picking up 6 wins
Prediction – Coventry 1-1 Vale
Crawley vs Bristol City – 23rd vs 1st
Crawley will be looking to move a step closer to safety with a win at home to table toppers Bristol City. Crawley’s form needs to pick up soon otherwise they could be cut a drift at the bottom of league 1. The Red Devils lost away at Bradford in midweek and will hoping to bounce back against City. City picked up their ninth away win of the season with a 3-1 victory at Leyton Orient on Tuesday and could add number 10 at the Checkatrade stadium tomorrow. City have a 10 point lead at the top of League 1 after Preston, MK Dons and Swindon dropped points on Tuesday, they can put even more space between them as Preston travel to MK Dons.
- Crawley have 1 defeat in 6 at home. They have beaten Swindon and Preston at home while drawing to MK Dons and Sheffield United
- 24 of their 34 points have been achieved at home
- Only picked up 8 points from 33 since the turn of the year
- City have only lost 3 away games all season and have the best away record in the league picking up 32 points on their travels already
- Wilbraham has netted 3 in 3 since returning from injury
Prediction – Crawley 0-2 Bristol City
Crewe vs Scunthorpe – 19th vs 17th
Crewe will be looking to bounce back from their heavy defeat away at Scunthorpe in midweek looking to add to the well earned point against Swindon last time out at home. Alex sit 4 points outside the relegation places but only 10 off the play offs in a very congested division. Scunthorpe are looking for the first win in 4 but fought back to earn a point at Fleetwood in midweek. The Iron have picked up exactly the same amount of points at home as away but will be hoping to add to that tally at Gresty Road.
- Crewe 1 defeat in 9 at home – drew with Swindon and Preston, beaten Bristol City
- Picked up 25 of their 39 points at home
- Scunthorpe 1 away defeat in 10, winning 5 and picking up 19 points from last 30 available on their travels
- Scunthorpe only sit 7 points off the play offs and 7 off the relegation zone
- Crewe won 3 out of last 4 meetings between sides but Scunthorpe won 2-1 earlier n the season at home
Prediction – Crewe 1-0 Scunthorpe
Gillingham vs Doncaster – 12th vs 6th
Gillingham are in search of their 7th win in 10 games as they welcome Doncaster to Priestfield. The Gills come off a brilliant win at Swindon in midweek and will hoping to sustain their performance to pick up 3 points against Paul Dickov’s men. Doncaster dropped two points at Preston after conceding a 90th minute equalizer which would have given them a cushion between themselves and the play off chasers. Donny will have to watch out for Cody McDonald who has netted 4 times in his last 6 appearances for the Gills.
- Gillingham suffered their first home defeat in 5 last Saturday after Barnsley won 1-0 at Priestfield
- Picked up 28 of their 45 points at home
- Only Preston (16) have picked up more points in the last 6 games than the Gills (13).
- Doncaster have the 4th best away record in the division, picking up 27 points on their travels including 7 wins
- They have 1 defeat in 11 on the road but have drew 3 of their last 5
Prediction – Gillingham 2-2 Doncaster
MK Dons vs Preston – 3rd vs 2nd
Two promotion contenders battle it out for the second promotion spot with Bristol City seemingly on route to the League 1 title. Karl Robinson’s men are looking to bounce back from 2 straight defeats to Coventry and Chesterfield if they want to achieve promotion to the Championship. Preston travel to Stadium MK having rescued a late point at home to Doncaster on Tuesday night with Jermaine Beckford netting a 90 minute leveller for his second in as many games. The sides drew in earlier in the season 1-1 at Deepdale and once again it should be a tight affair in the three horse race for 2nd spot.
- MK have 2nd best home record in the division, picking up 11 wins from 17 and only losing 3
- Have beaten Swindon and Sheffield United at home, drew with Bristol City
- 4 defeats in 6 games for MK Dons
- No team has picked up more points than Preston in last 6 games 16 from 18 – 5 wins and a draw
- Only Bristol City have a better away record than Preston who have picked up 29 points on their travels. Conceded only 13 goals on their travels, achieving 9 clean sheets
- 6 out of last 7 games between sides have been draws
Prediction – MK Dons 0-0 Preston
Peterborough vs Leyton Orient – 9th vs 21st
Posh are looking for a third straight win under caretaker boss David Robertson after victories at home to Bradford and away to Sheffield United. Peterborough feel the pressure has been lifted since Darren Ferguson’s departure and the team is beginning to play with more freedom. Orient have improved in recent weeks picking up 3 wins in their last 6 and come with confidence despite a 3-1 home defeat to Bristol City on Tuesday. Orient sit 1 point from safety going into tomorrow’s clash therefore a win could see them move outside the bottom 4.
- Posh picked up 9 points from last 15 at home
- Orient picked up 10 points from last 15 away from home
- 66% of Orient’s points have come away from home
- Orient win 4 of the last 8 meetings between the sides and are unbeaten in last 3 trips to London Road
Prediction – Peterborough 1-2 Leyton Orient
Rochdale vs Colchester – 15th vs 22nd
Dale are looking for back to back wins as the U’s visit Spotland on Saturday, Rochdale dispatched Crewe 4-0 in midweek and will be looking for more of the same against Colchester. Colchester are hoping to avenge the 4-1 defeat they suffered at the hands of Rochdale earlier in the season but are seeking their first win in 3 games. The U’s suffered a home defeat to Notts County in midweek but are needing wins as they find themselves two points from safety at the bottom of League 1. Ian Henderson will go into the game with confidence for Dale having netted 3 in his last 4.
- Rochdale won 4 of last 5 at home in all competitions
- Only won 2 of their last 6 games
- Colchester lost 5 of their last 7 games including 2 of their last 3 on their travels
- 20 of their 34 points have come away from home
Prediction – Rochdale 2-0 Colchester
Sheffield United vs Fleetwood – 5th vs 14th
Sheffield United play their 14th game since the 17th January as they welcome the Cod Army to Brammal Lane. The Blades who have been a good form since the turn of the year threw away a 1 goal lead at home to Peterborough in midweek as the Posh scored two late goals to nick the points. With MK Dons, Preston and Swindon stuttering above them, a run of wins could see the Blades join the trio to fight for the second automatic spot to the Championship. Fleetwood had to settle with a draw at home to Scunthorpe who twice fought back to earn a point. Nigel Clough added Steven Davis to his squad after he joined from Blackpool on Friday.
- Sheffield United won 4 of their last 7 but without a win in 2
- Scored in 11 of their last 12 games and conceding in their last 7
- Fleetwood have 2 wins in 7 and have lost to the top 4 all away from home this season
- They have lost 3 out of their last 4 on their travels
Prediction – Sheffield United 3-1 Fleetwood
Swindon vs Notts County – 4th vs 18th
Mark Cooper’s Swindon side are looking for only their 2nd win in 7 and first win in three games. They sit bottom of the form table having only picked up 4 points from the last 18 available losing their place in the top 2 places. After keeping pace with local rivals Bristol City for half the season, the Robins have faded in recent weeks and will have to battle it out with MK Dons and Preston for 2nd automatic spot. Swindon will hope to take advantage as MK and Preston battle it out on Saturday but face a side who picked up their first win in 4 on Tuesday. County won 1-0 at Colchester but could find Swindon in a bad mood after poor form recently.
- Swindon have 4th best home record in division winning 10, losing just 4
- But the Robins have lost 2 of their last 3 at the County Ground
- County have won 2 of their last 3 on their travels, both 1-0
- Collected 27 of their 41 points away from home and picked up 7 of their 11 league wins away from Meadow Lane
- County have only lost 2 of last 3 meetings between sides
Prediction – Swindon 3-0 Notts County
Yeovil vs Oldham – 24th vs 11th
Yeovil host Oldham as they are in dire need of points quick as the sit 6 points from safety at the bottom of league 1. Yeovil are without a win in 5, losing 1-0 at home to Walsall on Tuesday as the Midlands club condemmed them to their 8th home loss of the season. Oldham are still in search of a new manager after Lee Johnson left for Barnsley but picked up a win at Port Vale last time out as the Lactics sit 3 points outside the play offs. Oldham are looking to avenge the 4-1 hammering they sustained at home to the Glovers earlier in the season but goals could be few and far between this time at Huish Park.
- Yeovil only scored 10 home goals all season
- Oldham failed to score in 4 of last 8 matches and only scored 4 in that period
- Only Swindon (4 points) have a worst record in last 6 games than Yeovil (5 points)
- Oldham only lost 6 away this season but 3 of them defeats have come in their last 5 away trips
- Yeovil have lost once in 11 meetings between sides and have won 4 of the last 5 encounters
Prediction – Yeovil 0-1 Oldham
