Two sides in contrasting form go head-to-head in round 44 of League One as Stockport County and Huddersfield Town go head to head at Edgeley Park on Monday.
While the Hatters will be looking to make it four home wins on the spin and move within touching distance of the automatic promotion places, Jon Worthington's men set out to end their run of three consecutive defeats.
Match preview
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Stockport County maintained their fine run of results at the business end of the season as they fought back from behind to salvage a 1-1 draw against Peterborough United when the two sides met at the weekend.
In a thrilling contest at the Weston Homes Stadium, 22-year-old forward Ricky-Jade Jones netted on the stroke of half time to put the hosts in front but Jack Diamond restored parity in the first minute of stoppage time to force a share of the spoils.
With that result, Stockport have now gone five back-to-back games without defeat, having picked up four wins from their previous four matches while scoring 10 goals and conceding twice since a 1-0 loss against Wrexham on March 22.
David Challinor's men have picked up 78 points from their 43 League One matches so far to sit fifth in the standings, six points adrift of second-placed Wycombe Wanderers in the second automatic promotion spot heading into the final four matches.
Key to Stockport's solid form at the business end of the season has been their dominance on home turf, where they are unbeaten in each of their last eight matches, picking up 22 points from a possible 24 since January's 2-1 loss against Mansfield Town.
Huddersfield Town's hopes of securing a top-six finish suffered a fresh blow on Friday as they fell to a 2-1 defeat against Cambridge United when the two sides squared off at the John Smith's Stadium.
Following a goalless first half, Cambridge drew first blood in the 69th minute courtesy of James Brophy, and after Josh Koroma restored parity in the 89th minute, 29-year-old forward Sullay KaiKai struck in the second minute of stoppage time to hand the visitors a dramatic victory.
Worthington's men have now suffered three back-to-back defeats, conceding six goals and scoring once, and have lost four of their most recent five outings — with a 2-1 home victory over Mansfield Town on April 5 being the exception.
This poor run of form has put the Terriers' dream of securing a playoff spot under threat as they have dropped into ninth place in the League One standings with 64 points from their 43 games, five points off the top-six places heading into the final four games.
While Huddersfield Town will be looking to bounce back and kick-start a fine run of form in the season's run-in, recent results on the road offer little optimism as they have lost each of their last four away matches, conceding nine goals and failing to find the back of the net since a 2-1 win at Stevenage on March 1.
Team News
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Stockport will head into Monday's game without the services of Ben Hinchliffe, who has missed each of the last 11 games while defender Macauley Southam-Hales is also recuperating from an injury.
Fellow defender Ryan Rydel has been out of action since coming off injured against Bolton Wanderers on March 15 while the midfield duo of Callum Camps and Lewis Bate continue their spells on the sideline.
As for Huddersfield, Worthington will be unable to name the trio of Rhys Healey, Daniel Ward and defender Nigel Lonwijk, who have been ruled out for the remainder of the season through injuries.
Veteran defender Tom Lees has been out of action since coming off injured against Shrewsbury Town in February and will play no part in this weekend's clash while Chris Maxwell and Tom Iorpenda continue their spells on the sidelines.
Stockport County possible starting lineup:
Addai; Hills, Horsfall, Pye; Bailey, Collar, Norwood, Diamond, Touray; Wootton, Olaofe
Huddersfield Town possible starting lineup:
Nicholls; Kasumu, Balker, Pearson, Ruffels; Wiles, Hogg; Marshall, Evans, Roosken; Charles
We say: Stockport County 2-1 Huddersfield Town
Given the stakes for Stockport and Huddersfield, we expect both sides to go all out at Edgeley Park as they look to secure maximum points. Challinor's men have made their home turf a fortress in recent weeks and we are backing them to come away with all three points.
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Joshua Ojele
