Relegation-battling Crawley Town will aim to move closer to safety on Tuesday night when they take on middling Stevenage at The People's Pension Stadium in League One.
The hosts are 23rd in the table with just 24 points from 28 matches, while the visitors are 12th in the standings with 40 points from their 28 league fixtures.
Match preview
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Crawley Town earned promotion from League Two by winning the playoffs in 2023-24, securing their return to the third division for the first time since 2014-15.
However, the Red Devils have struggled to make their mark in League One, currently sitting 23rd in the table with just 24 points from 28 matches, after six wins, six draws and 16 defeats.
That leaves Crawley trailing safety by a significant six points over halfway into the season, though the Red Devils do have the advantage of at least one game in hand on those around them.
A victory on Tuesday night could see the hosts move to 21st in the standings and just three points behind 20th-placed Peterborough United in safety, but the hosts will be the underdogs heading into the game.
Crawley have not only got the worst record of any side in League One when playing at home, taking 12 points from 12 home fixtures, but also trail their visitors by 16 points.
Stevenage secured their promotion from League Two with a second-placed finish in 2022-23, and they made much more of an impact in the third tier in their first season compared to the hosts.
The Boro were involved in a battle for the playoff places last term, eventually finishing in ninth with 71 points from their 46 outings, leaving them just five points behind sixth-placed Barnsley.
Despite sitting 12th in League One heading into this game, Stevenage are once again in the fight to place inside the top six this term, currently trailing sixth-placed Charlton Athletic by seven points.
Alex Revell's side also boast at least one game in hand over nine of the 11 teams above them in the league, giving them plenty of opportunity to move closer to the playoffs if they can secure victories in those matches.
Stevenage are not only favourites in this match due to their league ranking, but the Boro also hold a strong record against Crawley, having won four and drawn two of the last six meetings.
Team News
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The hosts are likely to remain without Joy Mukena, Josh Flint and Toby Mullarkey due to injury issues, while Panutche Camara is unlikely to feature after coming off with an injury in their last outing.
Rory Feely is also unavailable for Crawley Town after being sent off in the defeat to Bolton, receiving two yellow cards in the space of five minutes.
Elsewhere, despite suffering a late collapse to squander a 3-2 lead in the 84th minute and lose 4-3 to Bolton last time out, Rob Elliot may be encouraged by the performance and could name a similar lineup.
As for the visitors, Kane Smith and Luther Wildin are likely to continue on the sidelines due to ongoing injury issues, meaning Nick Freeman is expected to start at right back.
Stevenage's top scorer, Daniel Kemp, has scored four goals in his last five league appearances, and he is likely to start behind Louis Appere in attack.
Crawley Town possible starting lineup:
Cox; Radcliffe, Conroy, Barker; Forster, Doyle, Ibrahim, Quitirna, Swan; John-Jules; Hepburn-Murphy
Stevenage possible starting lineup:
Mahoney; Freeman, Goode, Piergianni, Freestone; Phillips, King; Roberts, Kemp, Reid; Appere
We say: Crawley Town 0-2 Stevenage
Crawley Town are the worst-performing side in the league when playing at home this term, and with Stevenage's recent strong record against the Red Devils, we believe the visitors will win this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ellis Stevens
