Separated by just three points in the League One standings, mid-table foes Lincoln City and Exeter City square off at the LNER Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Michael Skubala's side were held to a 1-1 draw by Charlton Athletic last time out, while their visitors were no match for Derby County, suffering a 3-0 reverse to the Rams.
Match preview
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Extending their unbeaten run in the third tier to a respectable six matches, Lincoln City were Charlton's opponents for Nathan Jones's first home game in charge of the Addicks on Tuesday, where a Reeco Hackett drive saw the Imps enter half time a goal to the good at The Valley.
However, with 17 minutes of normal time remaining, Freddie Ladapo's fine strike into the far corner stole a point for the former Premier League outfit, thus denying Lincoln a third win on the trot following consecutive beatings of Burton Albion and Fleetwood Town.
Both sides had opportunities to snatch all three points towards the end of the midweek battle, leaving Lincoln boss Skubala to profess that a point on the road was a fair result, one which moved the Imps onto 42 points from their 32 fixtures in the 2023-24 League One season.
Eleventh place in the division belongs to the hosts on account of their six-game unbeaten streak, and with 13 points separating Lincoln from the playoff zone and 11 between the Imps and the relegation spots, consolidating their mid-table ranking will ostensibly be the overriding goal between now and May.
During Lincoln's last 540 minutes of League One football, Skubala's unit have only shipped a mere three goals - one of which came during their 2-1 beating of Fleetwood last weekend, which ended the Imps' miserable eight-game stretch without a win at the LNER Stadium.
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Upcoming opponents Exeter have already achieved back-to-back wins in the third tier twice in 2024, sinking Peterborough United and Wigan Athletic to warm up for the visit of Derby in perfect fashion, but they would come out second best while butting heads with the Rams.
Max Bird, Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Tom Barkhuizen all found a way past Gary Caldwell's backline in a routine three-goal success for the title challengers, leaving the Exeter boss to lament the "bad goals" his side gave away in front of the St James Park faithful on Tuesday night.
By virtue of their 16th loss of the campaign, Saturday's visitors languish in an unlucky 13th place in the League One table and are within touching distance of hosts Lincoln, although they have played a game more and will surely remain below the Imps even with maximum points on Saturday.
Exeter's mid-table ranking is remarkable when taking into account their shocking -21 goal difference - only basement side Carlisle United boast a worse record in League One - as the Grecians have only made the net bulge 25 times in the current campaign, although 15 of those strikes have come on the road.
Playing away from home does not faze Exeter, who have sunk Bristol Rovers, Wigan and Barnsley in their last three games on their travels, and a 1-1 draw with Lincoln at St James Park in October extended their unbeaten run versus the Imps to a respectable four matches.
Team News
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Lincoln were without the services of Charlton loanee Conor McGrandles - who could not face his parent club - for the trip to The Valley, but the 28-year-old Scotsman will be back to reprise his role in midfield against Exeter.
Centre-back Lewis Montsma is still confined to the infirmary due to a cruciate ligament injury, though, and fellow defender Adam Jackson was not involved against Charlton after coming off in the win over Fleetwood with a facial injury, suspected to be a broken nose.
Jackson's availability for Saturday's showdown remains clouded in uncertainty, but Lincoln will definitely cope without Coventry City loanee Jack Burroughs, who is facing a few weeks out with an ankle problem.
With regards to Exeter, Demetri Mitchell is also targeting a pre-season comeback from his own ACL issue, while Caleb Watts, Jack Fitzwater, Harry Kite and Kyle Taylor are also taking up beds in the infirmary.
Ben Purrington and Millenic Alli are believed to be the closest to making first-team returns, but having not made the cut for Tuesday's game, a question mark is still hanging over the head of both players.
Lincoln City possible starting lineup:
Jensen; Sorensen, O'Connor, Mitchell, Roughan; McGrandles, Erhahon, Bishop, Hackett; Taylor, House
Exeter City possible starting lineup:
Sinisalo; Sweeney, Jules, Diabate; Niskanen, Carroll, Woods, Harper; Harris, Aitchison; Eisa
We say: Lincoln City 1-1 Exeter City
A Lincoln unit renowned for keeping things tight at the back will welcome the visit of one of League One's least prolific attacking contingents, although Exeter have often found their best shooting boots away from home rather than at St James Park.
Three of the last four meetings between the two sides have ended in a 1-1 draw, and a contest as close as the table would suggest should also unfold on Saturday, where another low-scoring stalemate is not beyond the realm of possibility.
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Ben Knapton
