Northampton Town will be hoping to bounce back from consecutive defeats in League One when they host Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.
The visitors, meanwhile, dropped outside of the automatic-promotion positions after drawing against Barnsley last weekend.
Match preview
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Having defied pre-season expectations following their promotion from the fourth tier last season to maintain a top-half position for the majority of the current campaign, Northampton were bound to hit a stickier patch of form at some point.
That has proven to be the case in recent outings, with the Cobblers losing 2-0 at home to Shrewsbury Town, before being thrashed 4-1 away to the league leaders Portsmouth last weekend.
John Brady's side were up against it when goals from Connor Ogilvie and Paddy Lane gave the hosts an early two-goal lead, although they were handed a lifeline when Tom McIntyre was shown a straight red card in the 54th minute. Yet Lane bagged his brace just four minutes later before Callum Lang sealed the hosts' victory, with Marc Leonard scoring a late consolation.
With the playoffs now realistically looking out of reach for Northampton, they can focus on securing a top-half finish in their first season back in League One since suffering relegation in 2020-21. While they will understandably head into Saturday's contest as underdogs, Brady and his players will fancy achieving an upset at Sixfields Stadium.
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Bolton, meanwhile, were leapfrogged by Derby County in the table last weekend, following their 1-1 draw at home against potential promotion rivals Barnsley.
Devante Cole had fired the visitors into the lead after just five minutes, before Zac Ashworth levelled the proceedings shortly after the hour mark. The Trotters dominated possession with 69% of the ball, but neither side could find a winning goal in the end.
Bolton's match against Cambridge United in midweek was abandoned due to a waterlogged pitch at the Abbey Stadium, denying Ian Evatt's side the opportunity to move back into the top two positions in League One. As a result, they still have two games in hand on Derby and Peterborough United, and three on the league leaders Portsmouth.
However, it is points on the board that matter most, meaning that Evatt and his players will know that they need to return to winning ways against Northampton on Saturday in order to maintain pressure on the sides above them at the summit.
Team News
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Brady could consider making some changes after seeing his side outplayed by Pompey in their heavy defeat last time out, with forwards Tyreece Simpson and Louis Appere both chomping at the bit to receive starting berths.
Appere could win that particular duel, with Kieron Bowie potentially dropping out of the hosts' attack as a result and Mitch Pinnock moving into a wider role, but Brady is unlikely to make too many other changes given his side's impressive season as a whole.
Bolton will remain without George Johnston, who is not expected to play again this season due to a serious knee injury. Randell Williams and Dan Nlundulu are also both out, while club captain Ricardo Santos was not involved against Barnsley or Cambridge and may have to sit out another match.
However, George Thomason is back from suspension, while Gethin Jones has returned from the Asia Cup after competing for Australia. Both players were named in the starting XI for the abandoned game against Cambridge, so they should start once again.
Northampton Town possible starting lineup:
Burge; Willis, Monthe, Guthrie; Lintott, Leonard, Hondermarck, Brough; Pinnock, Appere, Hoskins
Bolton Wanderers possible starting lineup:
Baxter; Jones, Toal, Taylor; Cogley, Ogbeta, Sheehan, Thomason, Morley; Charles, Adeboyejo
We say: Northampton Town 0-2 Bolton Wanderers
Northampton's form appears to have hit a road block, but Brady will not be too concerned considering that they are almost certainly safe from relegation, which would have been their primary aim following promotion from League Two last season.
Bolton, on the other hand, are aiming to be in the Championship later this year, but they are likely to require embarking on an impressive run at some point in order to achieve that. We can envisage them winning to nil on Saturday, with Evatt's side already winning six games on the road this season in this manner.
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Brett Curtis
