After an important victory at the weekend, Carlisle United will look to give their survival hopes another boost on Tuesday, when they welcome Rochdale to Brunton Park.
The hosts climbed back out of the bottom two of the League Two table thanks to a win over Leyton Orient, while their visitors sit 16th after an upturn in form.
Match preview
After an impressive run of form between late November and January, in which they earned four victories and 14 points from a span of seven games, Carlisle may not have been overly concerned by the threat of relegation out of League Two.
However, a poor run followed, and the Blues would add just two points to their tally from the following seven games, quickly being dragged back into the scrap at the bottom of the table as a result.
Paul Simpson's side briefly dropped into the relegation zone last week, but they just as quickly leaped back out with a much-needed victory to stop the rot on Saturday, as Omari Patrick hit the only goal of the game inside the first five minutes of their trip to fellow strugglers Leyton Orient.
While that did see them move back above Oldham Athletic, Simpson's men will know they have far more work to do if they are to survive, given they only sit a point above the bottom two with Oldham boasting a game in hand and an impressive run of form.
In their bid to add a second straight victory, the Blues welcome a Rochdale side who also added three points to their account at the weekend.
Rochdale, themselves, sat uncomfortably close to the threat of relegation after 30 games of the season, as they sat on just 30 points, but Robbie Stockdale's side have hugely improved their position recently.
Following a narrow defeat away at league leaders Forest Green Rovers, the Lancashire outfit have not suffered another loss in their last four outings, firstly drawing with Harrogate Town and beating Scunthorpe United.
After making it three games unbeaten with a draw against Port Vale, the Dale added another notch to their wins column against Northampton Town at the weekend, with Tahvon Campbell netting the only goal of the game soon after half time.
As a result of their impressive upturn in form, Stockdale's men have now risen to 16th spot in England's fourth tier, and, with the chance to climb another place and further extend their eight-point lead over the relegation zone, they will go in search of a ninth league win of the campaign on Tuesday.
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Team News
With goalkeeper Magnus Norman remaining out injured for Carlisle, Mark Howard will continue to feature between the sticks on Tuesday.
Jordan Gibson and Omari Patrick are both key men in the attack, while experienced striker Kristian Dennis is also expected to feature from the outset.
Jon Mellish and Callum Guy have been relative mainstays in midfield, and the duo will again operate in the engine room at Brunton Park.
Following the departure of top scorer Jake Beesley to Blackpool in January, Rochdale have turned to Tahvon Campbell to lead their line, and he rewarded Stockdale by scoring the winning goal last time out.
He could again be flanked by Alex Newby and Matt Done, while Liam Kelly is also a key man in midfield, having contributed four goals and three assists in League Two this season.
Goalkeepers Joel Coleman and Jay Lynch have both been given opportunities throughout the season, but the latter appears to be more in favour recently, operating between the sticks in each of the Dale's last three league games.
Carlisle United possible starting lineup:
Howard; Riley, Feeney, Simeu, Armer; Gibson, Guy, Mellish, Devitt; Patrick, Dennis
Rochdale possible starting lineup:
Lynch; Taylor; O'Connell, Dorsett; Keohane, Ball, Kelly, Clark; Newby, Campbell, Done
We say: Carlisle United 1-2 Rochdale
Carlisle picked up a crucial win at the weekend and will feel refreshed and desperate to boost their survival bid, but they take on a Rochdale side in fine form and could fall just short.
The Dale have been particularly impressive recently, and we back them to leave Brunton Park with all three points, given the quality throughout their squad.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Rochdale win with a probability of 37.78%. A win for Carlisle United had a probability of 33.74% and a draw had a probability of 28.5%.
The most likely scoreline for a Rochdale win was 0-1 with a probability of 12.07%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (7.84%) and 0-2 (7.13%). The likeliest Carlisle United win was 1-0 (11.24%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.27%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with a 6.2% likelihood.
