In-form Stags hit the road for the first time in six games as they take on league leaders Forest Green Rovers

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League Two’s in-form team goes head-to-head with the table-toppers as Mansfield Town travel to the New Lawn in search of a seventh consecutive league victory.

Nigel Clough’s Stags have been in tremendous form and the fixture against the Rovers away from home will prove as a real test of the amber and blues’ promotion credentials.

The Nottinghamshire club have gone from the relegation zone all the way up to the play-offs in the space of 10 games, with a win lifting them to within a point of the automatic promotion places, if Sutton United do not record a win in their midweek game against Colchester United.

The Stags took on Walsall in their previous league encounter last weekend, and even though they were slow out of their blocks in the first half, a change in tactics and a substitution saw Mansfield take another vital victory.

As Ollie Clarke was replaced by Harry Charsley after the half-time interval, the midfielder did not have the best of starts to the second half by giving away a cheap free-kick which eventually amounted to nothing for the Saddlers.

However as the minutes ticked by, Stags’ number seven got into the game even more and broke the deadlock just before the hour-mark.

Elliott Hewitt’s long throw-in was flicked on by Oli Hawkins, and after the ball bobbled inside the Walsall penalty box, Charsley latched onto it to give Mansfield a 1-0 lead.

The 25-year-old doubled his account for the afternoon in the dying embers of the game after some brilliant build-up play between himself and Jordan Bowery.

Back and forth, the duo made their way into the Walsall half before Bowery slipped in Charsley who smashed his effort past Carl Rushworth.

Another valuable three points and a clean sheet saw the Stags move into the play-off places for the first time since August. They also carried on their incredible home league form by recording their seventh consecutive win at the One Call Stadium.

Forest Green, who are seven points clear at the top of League Two, have had a barnstorming season so far. Only losing twice and being the league’s top scorers has been a perfect recipe for the Gloucestershire club’s success in the 2021/22 campaign.

Their form in the last five games is nowhere near as good as Mansfield’s but it is still solid with two wins and three draws.

In their previous league outing, the Rovers travelled to the Sixfields to take on fellow promotion chasers, Northampton Town.

Similar to the Mansfield v Walsall game, it took until the second half for the deadlock to be broken amidst some controversy.

Nicky Cadden’s corner found Mathew Stevens who nodded the ball goalwards and ran away celebrating as it looked to have crossed the line which the referee Marc Edwards confirmed.

The Northampton players were furious with the decision as they were certain the ball did not fully cross the line but the goal was given and Forest Green took a 1-0 lead with 20 minutes to go.

With the final throw of the dice, Shaun Mcwilliams passed the ball to Mitch Pinnock whose shot from outside the box found the bottom corner and rescued a well-deserved point for the Cobblers against the league leaders.

Mansfield and Forest Green have faced each other 10 times in total since their first meeting in the FA Cup back in 2009. Both sides have recorded three wins each with the other four contests ending in draws.

The most recent game between the two teams saw a goalless draw at the One Call Stadium in March last year, but in one of Clough’s very first matches as Mansfield Town boss, the amber and blues recorded a 2-1 win in Gloucestershire.

As the in-form Stags prepare to take on the league-leading Rovers, this game will certainly decide who is more prepared to dig deep in order to come out with a victory.

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