Stephen McLaughlin: Fantastic free-kick rescues a point for the Stags against Carlisle United

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The midfielder struck a fantastic low free-kick which caught Carlisle goalkeeper Magnus Norman off guard as the amber and blues were able to get a point from a frustrating match.

Mansfield Town wasted too many goalscoring chances and were simply not alert enough when it came to Offrande Zanzala’s opener in the 66th minute.

Stephen McLaughlin stepped up to take the free-kick and adventurously went for the open side with his low and accurate shot ending up in the bottom right corner of Norman’s goal.

Playing in a 4-3-1-2 or even sometimes dropping to a 4-1-2-1-2, Nigel Clough deployed the Irishman in the role that would usually be filled by the energetic and hard-working George Maris.

That strike for the 30-year-old was his first goal in League Two and he will be happy that he is finally off the mark and contributing to the cause with a vital effort.

Too many times the Stags would unleash tame attempts or even miss clear cut opportunities that could have been scored.

Jamie Reid, Jason Law, Mal Benning, Jordan Bowery and Harry Charsley all had fantastic opportunities to grab a goal but wasted their chances as Mansfield Town lacked the real cutting edge in the match.

Back to McLaughlin’s performance and it was probably one of his best in an amber and blue shirt as he worked as a real sweeper in front of the back-line, and looked composed in what he did.

His versatility is also something that Clough has made the best of as he has deployed the Irishman more or less everywhere.

From full-back to midfield, to even the front-line, the ex-Southend man has really stepped up his game in the more defensive midfielder role which will give the Mansfield manager a real headache when Maris returns alongside George Lapslie, on who to place in the midfield trio.

Making two headed clearances and being a composed and vocal figure on the pitch, McLaughlin helps the team a lot with his instructions, especially to the players ahead of him.

He would regularly bellow instructions at the two strikers, Reid and Bowery, to get them to carry on the press and to force the Carlisle players into a mistake.

The Irishman would regularly shout “We need you Jordan, we need you” or “Press Reid, you’ve got this.” Instructions given not just by the manager but from surrounding players are so useful and everyone used those to effect.

McLaughlin may not be getting all the plaudits as he did for Southend in 2017/18 where he scored six goals and grabbed 16 assists, but what the versatile player brings is hard work, commitment and composure.

Clough will definitely be looking to use the experience of the 30-year-old and he spoke about the free-kick style the midfielder used in his post-match interview.

“We talked [with McLaughlin] about not going over the wall sometimes and going for the open side, hit the target, and that’s what he’s done. He said it’s about the fifth or sixth [free-kick] he’s scored like that.”

Now the Stags look ahead to Saturday as they stay at the One Call Stadium and welcome Grimsby Town in what is a must-win for the amber and blues.

With only two months left of the League Two season, Clough and his men will hope to keep their place in the league and end this campaign on a positive note heading into the summer transfer window, and the new 2021/22 season.

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