Notts County and Morecambe take to the pitch for the last time in 2023 when they square off at Meadow Lane in round 25 of League Two on Friday.
Both sides head into the game off the back of contrasting Boxing Day results, with the Magpies claiming a comfortable victory over Doncaster Rovers in front of their home supporters.
Match preview
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Notts County gave their fans a Boxing Day treat as they cruised to a 3-0 home victory over Doncaster in a superb all-round display on Tuesday.
After Joe Ironside failed to give the Rovers the lead from the penalty spot in the 26th minute, Daniel Crowley, Macaulay Langstaff and Aaron Nemane all found the back of the net to hand the hosts a comfortable victory.
This was a much-needed respite for Luke Williams's men, who had lost each of their four previous matches, a run which saw them crash out of the FA Cup courtesy of a 3-2 loss against Shrewsbury Town on December 1.
With that result, the Magpies have now picked up three wins in their last four matches at home, where they currently boast the division's third-best record, having racked up 27 points from 12 matches at Meadow Lane.
Notts County have picked up 12 wins from their 24 matches so far while losing nine and claiming three draws to collect 39 points and sit fifth in the League Two table, six points off the automatic promotion places.
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Morecambe, on the other hand, were left red-faced on Boxing Day as they played out a 2-2 draw with Bradford City after giving up a two-goal lead in the final half-hour of the game.
James Connolly and John Joshua Mokiernan scored inside the opening 18 minutes to put the Shrimps on their way at Valley Parade but Clarke Oduor and Brad Halliday scored second-half goals to force a share of the spoils.
This followed a 3-1 defeat at the hands of MK Dons on December 23 which saw their run of three consecutive matches without defeat across all competitions come to an end.
With Tuesday's result, Gerard Brannan's side have now failed to win seven of their last eight League Two games, losing five and conceding 18 goals since picking up four consecutive victories back in October.
While this poor run has seen Morecambe drop to 13th place in the league standings, victory on Friday could see them move within one point of the promotion playoffs places, a result which could prove vital in their push for promotion in the second half of the campaign.
However, recent results against Notts County offer little optimism as they have failed to get the better of the Nottingham outfit in their last five meetings, losing twice and claiming three draws since a 4-1 win in January 2017.
Team News
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Notts County will be without 28-year-old midfielder Matt Palmer, who has missed 11 consecutive matches since coming off injured in October's game against Wrexham.
He is joined in the club's injury table by English forward Cedwyn Scott, who continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering a severe injury back in August.
Geraldo Bajrami has been ruled out through injury since August's game against Lincoln City and the Albanian defender will also play no part in Friday's matchup.
As for Morecambe, Brannan will be unable to name first-choice goalkeeper Stuart Moore, who picked up an injury against Sutton United on October 21.
Former Manchester United man Donald Love has been sidelined since early November and the Scottish defender is set to sit out his 10th consecutive game.
Notts County possible starting lineup:
Stone; Brindley, Baldwin, Cameron; Crowley, Bostock, Austin, Jones; Nemane, McGoldrick, Langstaff
Morecambe possible starting lineup:
Smith; Tutonda, Bedeau, Connolly, Senior; King, Songo'o; Mayor, Mckiernan, Bloxham, Slew
We say: Notts County 2-1 Morecambe
Notts County picked up a late Christmas present against Doncaster and will head into Friday's game with renewed confidence. Williams's side take on a Morecambe side who have struggled to steady their ship in recent weeks and we fancy them to claim all three points in front of their home supporters.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joshua Ojele
