On Saturday, Accrington Stanley will finish their first campaign back in League Two when they welcome Tranmere Rovers to Wham Stadium on matchday 46.
The 'Owd Reds are 18th in the table following a 4-2 defeat versus Stockport County, putting them three points below the Rovers, who held onto a 3-2 victory over Wimbledon in their previous encounter.
Match preview
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The return to League Two for Accrington Stanley has been littered with inconsistencies, claiming one domestic triumph in their previous eight outings.
A defeat on the final matchday of the campaign would equal their longest losing run in the competition this season (four), suffering six defeats in their 10 matches played under John Doolan.
Throughout the campaign, they have looked poor defensively, conceding 70 goals in this competition, just seven fewer than they had given up in League One last season while allowing three or more goals in 11 domestic encounters over this campaign.
Since the beginning of 2024, Accrington have only claimed two victories at home in this competition, with just two points from their previous five league fixtures at the Crown Ground, also known as Wham Stadium.
All but one of their domestic triumphs this season have occurred when they have drawn first blood, the only exception being one of their earlier matches this month when Accrington scored three unanswered goals to defeat Newport County 3-1.
Saturday will only be their fourth meeting with Tranmere in League Two, and the 'Owd Reds have only triumphed on one of those occasions, the last time they hosted them in this competition back in September 2014 (3-2).
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If only Tranmere Rovers had started the 2023-24 league campaign as well as they are performing now, this team may have much more to play for than pride this weekend.
Losing seven of their first eight matches in League Two this season put them in early relegation danger, but to their credit, they have come on strong of late, with at least a point in three of their previous four fixtures.
Nigel Adkins has seen a noticeable improvement in their form away from home, claiming a point or more in three of their previous four league matches as the visitors while collecting three away victories in 2024, one more than they had in their opening 13 encounters this season.
With a victory on Saturday, Tranmere will best their points total from the previous campaign (58), though they can end no better than 15th, marking the first time they finish in the bottom half of the table since being relegated into League Two in 2019-20.
Their transitional game has been sharp throughout this month, often utilising their speedy wingers to create scoring opportunities, netting in every one of their domestic affairs in April.
While they have never beaten Accrington Stanley away from home in League Two, they have defeated them in four of their last five visits to Wham Stadium, including a thrilling come-from-behind victory in the opening round of the EFL Cup last season, erasing a 2-0 deficit to force penalties before advancing from that encounter 14-13 in a shootout.
Team News
Accrington were once again without Korede Adedoyin last weekend, and the Nigerian is unlikely to see the field on Saturday as he continues to recover from a knock.
From matchday 44 to 45 they made one change to their starting 11, inserting Alex Henderson into the fold versus Stockport, with Matt Lowe beginning on the bench, while Dan Martin was the only new substitute who did not see the field versus Mansfield Town, replacing Liam Coyle at the start of the second half.
Shaun Whalley notched his seventh of the campaign in their previous encounter, temporarily putting his side on level terms with the league leaders, while Jack Nolan put home his team-leading 15th of the campaign.
Jordan Turnbull is out for the remainder of the campaign for Tranmere Rovers, having recently undergone surgery on his shoulder, while Brad Walker sat out of their encounter with Wimbledon because of an ankle injury.
Kieron Morris, Tom Davies, Connor Wood and Joe Yarney were all assessed ahead of their match against Wimbledon with injuries, but neither were cleared to play.
Harvey Saunders netted his third of the League Two campaign last weekend, while Rob Apter and Connor Jennings remain tied for the team lead in goals, each scoring their 12th of the season.
Accrington Stanley possible starting lineup:
Vitek; O'Brien, Hills, Gubbins, Shipley; B. Woods, Coyle; Nolan, Pritchard, Whalley; Lowe
Tranmere Rovers possible starting lineup:
McGee; O'Connor, Hockenhull, Belehouan, J. Norris; Apter, Hendry, Hawkes, Saunders; Jennings, Dennis
We say: Accrington Stanley 2-2 Tranmere Rovers
The energy of the home crowd may give Accrington a boost, but the momentum that Tranmere have recently built up, along with their newfound attacking quality, has us believing they will earn a result on Saturday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
