Farrend Rawson: The centre-back nets his first goal for the club as the Stags continue to stake their claim for an automatic promotion place

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On a Friday night under the floodlights at the One Call Stadium, Mansfield Town were able to set record after record with a 2-1 victory over fellow promotion candidates, Exeter City.

Farrend Rawson, who stepped into the squad after both Oli Hawkins and John-Joe O’Toole received suspensions, has done an immense job to show his manager Nigel Clough that he should be starting every game.

The defender has slotted straight into the backline and has shown his capabilities in the air, on the deck and under pressure.

Stags’ number six did not shy away from the challenge as Exeter City forwards, Kieran Phillips and Josh Coley, closed him down and tried to force him into a mistake.

However, the 25-year-old was not fazed by this and continued to play his game, linking up with centre-back partner Elliott Hewitt in pushing the Stags forward.

The last time the Nottingham-born defender scored a goal came against his current club whilst playing for Forest Green Rovers.

Rawson scored twice as the Rovers emerged 4-3 victors in an incredible game at the One Call Stadium back in January 2020.

With that being said, the central defender was able to get on the scoresheet for the first time in over two years and score his first goal for the Stags.

As the Stags continued to look for the breakthrough, the ball was played out to the unmarked Matty Longstaff who crossed the ball into the box. Rhys Oates then instinctively flicked the ball into the path of Rawson who tapped it in from close range.

The defender highlighted in his post-match press conference that the goal ‘was a weird one’ and dedicated it to his daughter that turns two on Monday.

“It was a weird one, a bit of a blur,” he said.

“It was one of those ones, I just tapped it in, didn’t even know how I ended up there.

“It was amazing striker movement [made] to lose my man,” he said humorously.

“[The] most important thing [was that] the ball hit the back of the net. The goal was coming. I think we built the momentum.

“It’s my little girl’s second birthday on Monday so that was for her.”

Nevertheless, the amber and blues held their 1-0 lead at the half-time interval and were made to work hard in the second half but pushed on and got a second.

In the 67th minute, Stephen McLaughlin picked out Jordan Bowery in the box, but with nowhere to go, the striker passed the ball back to the left-back. Stags’ captain on the night then found the unmarked Longstaff who pounced on the opportunity to score his second goal in as many games.

It also goes without saying that Nathan Bishop was immense against the Grecians, denying the visitors on numerous occasions.

Stags’ number one made a brilliant double save, one with his hands and one with his feet, to deny Coley which was probably the pick of the bunch.

To say that Exeter had 10 shots on target, they rarely threatened the Mansfield goal. The visitors had a couple of decent chances and could have scored at least twice with a mixture of fortune and clinical finishing.

Phillips had the first good chance for the Devon outfit in the 17th minute when he combined well with Coley but Bishop was alert to the danger and made the save.

Jake Caprice was a constant danger for the Grecians as he used his pace to get past the much-slower Lucas Akins, however, the versatile player did very well to keep the wing-back quiet and nullified the threat.

Exeter’s next brilliant chance came in the second minute of added time. Following a cross into the area from Josh Key, chaos in the Stags’ penalty area ensued as substitute Sam Nombe lobbed the ball over Bishop. The ball hit the inside of the post and somehow stayed out of the back of the net as Stags’ number one jumped on it and clutched it tightly to his chest.

The visitors were able to get their goal with the last kick of the game as Key looked to test Bishop from range. The goalkeeper palmed the ball into the path of Matt Jay who thumped it in from close range. However, the Grecians did not have enough time to build on that and recorded a loss against a fellow promotion contender.

For the Stags, this win puts them in a fantastic position as their unbeaten run continues. They now face Tranmere Rovers at Prenton Park next Friday with automatic promotion in sight.

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