League Two’s highest scoring teams face off in crucial promotion clash at The Abbey

Although Cambridge United and Exeter City are the tied highest scoring teams in League Two, they’re separated by eight places in the table.

The U’s secured a 1-1 draw away at Tranmere on Easter Monday, a result that extends their lead on fourth place Bolton to seven points. All the teams around them have a game in hand, but Mark Bonner’s side have firmly cemented their position as one of the promotion favourites ahead of the final six games.

Their upcoming opponents, Exeter, have matched the league leaders’ tally of 60 goals in the league this season. The Grecians’ league position, is considerably worse, and they currently find themselves three points outside of the playoff places. A poor run of form has seen Matt Taylor’s side win just one of their last five league games, suffering defeats against the likes of Oldham and Port Vale in the process.

To keep any hopes of a playoff place alive, Exeter need to secure a consistent run of wins in their final eight games of the season. The Grecians are lucky enough to play three of the current bottom four in League Two, including two games against struggling Barrow. However, a clash at the Abbey against the league leaders is a much harder prospect.

Cambridge’s point at Prenton Park means that they’ve won four of their last five league games. Bonner’s decision to change from a flat 4-4-2 to a diamond formation ended a poor run of results, while regular defeats for those in the chasing pack saw them extend the gap between themselves and the playoff places.

Of course, Bonner’s side haven’t confirmed promotion just yet. They have one of the hardest run-ins of any sides in the top seven, but only have six games left to play. The U’s need a maximum of 85 points to secure promotion to League One, but it will likely be much less given the poor form of the teams around them.

The absolute maximum points tally for the third-highest finisher without Cambridge is now 85 points.

That’s Cheltenham, Morecambe and Tranmere winning every game they have left.

14 points from the last six mathematically guarantees promotion. We won’t need that many. #CamUTD pic.twitter.com/JRbWZA71q1

— Chris Williams (@chrwil82) April 5, 2021

However, Cambridge can’t look past their upcoming clash against the Grecians, especially considering that they lost in the reverse fixture at St James Park back in October. They were, in fact, the first side to inflict a league defeat on the U’s this season, with Matt Jay and Joel Randall both on the scoresheet in a convincing 2-0 victory.

Randall will not feature at The Abbey, having missed Exeter’s last four league games due to a hamstring injury Jay, on the other hand, has recently picked up the Sky Bet Player of the Month award for his performances in March, and will likely be fit to face the U’s alongside captain Jake Taylor, although both are slight doubts.

Randell Williams should be ready to start his first league game since Boxing Day, having made cameo appearances off the bench in his last three games.

The 24-year-old came on at half-time against Mansfield on Easter Monday, but was unable to help his side break the deadlock as they slumped to a 0-0 draw. Nonetheless, his pace and skill on the right flank will likely provide a huge boost to an Exeter side that have struggled for goals recently.

Many expect Wes Hoolahan to return to Cambridge’s starting lineup, with the Norwich City legend benched for the draw at Tranmere. His introduction with just over 10 minutes to play gave the U’s a huge injection of creativity and energy, but not enough to find a winner against the Super White Army.

While Exeter will need to focus on reinvigorating their attacking play, they’ll also need to pay close attention to Paul Mullin. League Two’s top scorer came up with the equaliser on Monday afternoon, scoring his 28th goal of the season. He’ll be looking to increase his tally before the end of the season, especially after the club named The Abbey’s South Stand after him until the end of the season.

The Grecians remain heavy underdogs to leave Cambridgeshire with a result, but the return of Randell Williams coupled with their previous result against the U’s will give them confidence that they can return to their goalscoring form. But this is a different Cambridge side to the one that they faced back in December, and Mark Bonner’s side have their eyes firmly set on securing a top three finish.

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