Mansfield Town look to regain composure as they face Carlisle United

Mansfield Town look to regain confidence after the defeat mid-week against Oldham as they look to get a good result against Carlisle.

The Stags will be looking to make it two home wins on the bounce this weekend after a 3-0 win against Bradford City at One Call Stadium last Saturday. They will also be looking to wipe Tuesday night’s disappointing defeat away at Oldham from the memory.

Saturday’s visitors secured a fantastic result on Tuesday evening, as a Nathan Thomas hat-trick helped them towards a 4-1 victory away at Forest Green Rovers.

Team news

The Stags will be without Kellan Gordon for the match as the defender continues his recovery from a back injury.

Wing-back Hayden White and forward Jordan Graham will continue to be assessed ahead of the game.

Stags’ boss Graham Coughlan has provided his post-match assessment on this evening’s disappointing 3-1 defeat away at Oldham Athletic.

“We didn’t turn up,” he said. “We were second-best all night and the scoreline suggests that. I think it’s fair to say that’s the worst performance we’ve had since I’ve been here.

“Performances have been good and off the back of Saturday I was hoping for more. You could physically see we were low on energy – we had no legs and couldn’t press.

“We used a lot of energy on Saturday and maybe tonight was a bridge too far. It’s one of those nights we’ll have to lick our wounds and congratulate Oldham. We’ll have to lift ourselves and go again on Saturday.”

A ruthless attacking streak and a solid defensive display combined to bring United’s best performance of the season so far at the New Lawn on Tuesday and boss Chris Beech spoke about the importance of how the new arrivals have gelled quickly within the squad to the improved displays which led to back-to-back league victories for the first time in over a year this week.

“It’s about everybody working hard and, in terms of the new players, it’s strategic recruitment,” he explained. “It’s not just recruiting because people are available, or for the sake of it.

“I want players here who represent us in the right way and we’re seeing that more and more as we go on. Obviously new additions mean selection considerations, but I want that. I want players to have to earn the right to start, not just expect it.

“We’re happy, but I still want one or two more. That’s why we’ve got to have your eyes and ears close to the ground, because these things change often, but I can assure you we’ve been working heavily on recruitment.”

Head-to-head

Last time the clubs facedveach other was at Brunton Park in August 2019. Two first-half goals from Danny Rose and Nicky Maynard guided the amber and blue towards a comfortable 2-0 victory.