Top-of-the-table Forest Green Rovers return to League Two action for the first time in three weeks when they welcome Stevenage to The New Lawn on New Year's Day.
The hosts have seen their last four fixtures postponed due to COVID-19, whilst the visitors drew at Swindon Town in midweek after seeing just one of their recent fixtures affected by the recent virus outbreaks.
Match preview
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Despite having played at least a game less than most of the division, Saturday's hosts Forest Green remain clear at the summit of the fourth tier heading into their meeting with Stevenage.
With four points between themselves and their closest chasers Northampton Town, as well as eight points separating the Green Devils from Sutton United outside of the automatic promotion places, Rob Edwards's side appear to be nailed on for an incredible rise to League One in the new year should they pick up from where they left off three weeks ago.
The crazy 5-5 draw at bottom-of-the-table Oldham Athletic back on December 11 was their last outing, and was a poor result considering the troubles of their opponents, as well as the fact that Edwards's men were holding a 4-1 lead shortly after half time.
Jamille Matt and Mathew Stevens both netted braces after Jack Aitchison had initially equalised in the first half during a remarkable League Two fixture, but Forest Green failed to see out the rest of the game comfortably in a disappointing collapse.
However, despite the disappointment, the result did extend their unbeaten streak to nine matches, and with six victories during that spell, the hosts will be confident of achieving another three points on Saturday should they be able to replicate their strong form prior to the COVID-19 outbreaks.
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Meanwhile, Stevenage head to The New Lawn on New Year's Day having returned to action with a goalless draw at Swindon on Wednesday evening.
The postponement of their clash with Crawley Town on Boxing Day was their only fixture that has fallen due to COVID over the last few weeks, and whilst the rest of League Two have seen multiple games cancelled, Stevenage have failed to climb the table in the meantime.
Defeats to Salford City and Carlisle United before the draw with Swindon mean it is now seven games without a win across all competitions for Paul Tisdale's side, of which the last six have been Tisdale's first matches in charge of the Boro.
With a tough trip to the league leaders awaiting him on Saturday, the former Exeter City boss will not be expected to register his first win at The New Lawn, but he will be looking for an improvement in performances nonetheless.
Following just one goal being scored in his tenure so far as well, nerves will soon begin creeping in should Tisdale fail to lift spirits at the beginning of the new year, with just one point separating his side from Scunthorpe United in the relegation places as things stand.
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Team News
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Forest Green will be without at least three unnamed players on Saturday, with the trio having tested positive for COVID-19 in the build up to the clash with Stevenage.
With no fresh injury concerns though, Edwards will be glad to have a near fully-fit squad to choose from in their return to action.
As for the visitors, new signing Christy Pym will be unable to play in this one, with his loan deal from Peterborough United only taking effect from January 3.
Charlie Carter returned from a four-month absence by making a late substitute appearance at Swindon in midweek, but he will have to settle for a place on the bench once more.
However, Jake Taylor was substituted just after the hour mark due to injury, so his fitness will need to be assessed ahead of the trip.
Forest Green Rovers possible starting lineup:
McGee; Bernard, Moore-Taylor, Cargill; Wilson, Stevenson, Hendry, Cadden; Aitchison; Matt, Stevens
Stevenage possible starting lineup:
Smith; James-Wildin, Cuthbert, Prosser, Coker; Read, Lines, Reeves; Norris, List, Andrade
We say: Forest Green Rovers 2-0 Stevenage
It is difficult to see anything other than a home win for Forest Green on Saturday due to their dominance of League Two so far this campaign.
Stevenage remain in trouble despite the recent appointment of their new manager, and unless their hosts struggle on their return to action for the first time in three weeks, it is difficult to see the visitors picking up anything here.
Top tip
Matthew Tranter
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 Forest Green Rovers win with a probability of 57.66%. A draw had a probability of 23.5% and a win for Stevenage had a probability of 18.82%.
The most likely scoreline for a Forest Green Rovers win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.67%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (11.01%) and 2-1 (9.7%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.15%), while for a Stevenage win it was 0-1 (6.42%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with an 11% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole correctly predicted a 2-0 win for Forest Green Rovers in this match and our data analysis correctly predicted the win for Forest Green Rovers.
