Promotion-hunting Peterborough United will welcome relegation-threatened Carlisle United at the Weston Homes Stadium on Friday afternoon in League One.
The hosts are fourth ahead of this game but hold games in hand on those around them, while the visitors are rock bottom of the table by 10 points.
Match preview
© Reuters
Peterborough have enjoyed yet another fantastic season in League One as they hunt to gain promotion back into the EFL Championship, following their relegation from England's second division in 2021-22.
Having finished sixth last season, the Posh earned themselves a place in the playoffs, where the first leg of their semi-final against Sheffield Wednesday went perfectly to plan, running out 4-0 winners.
However, Darren Ferguson's men were on the losing side of one of the greatest comebacks in English football playoff history as the Owls came from four goals behind to win 5-1 in the second leg, eventually beating the Posh 5-3 on penalties and going on to win in the final to earn promotion.
That demoralising defeat could have affected Peterborough's season this time around, but Ferguson has been able to rally his men, and they now find themselves in a potential position to finish in the top two spots come the end of the season and gain automatic promotion.
They come into this game against Carlisle trailing second-placed Derby County by seven points, but they hold the advantage of two games in hand which would see them close the gap to just a single point.
Ferguson's side could have been in an even better position had they not had a torrid run of results in the early parts of February that saw his team lose four consecutive games, Peterborough's longest losing streak since a five-game run that spanned across November and December 2022 under the management of previous head coach Grant McCann.
The Posh were able to recover well from this stumble though, embarking on a run of six wins before being narrowly beaten 1-0 by league-leading Portsmouth a fortnight ago.
Their two games in hand see them face relegation-battling Cheltenham Town and Port Vale, while they are also still to play 23rd-placed Fleetwood Town following this game against bottom-placed Carlisle, leaving them with a fantastic chance of gaining maximum points against the relegation-threatened sides and moving into those automatic promotion positions.
As for Carlisle, they have had an awful first season back in League One after being promoted out of League Two thanks to a playoff final penalty victory over Stockport County.
Paul Simpson's team have found themselves around the relegation zone for the entirety of the season and come into this game having occupied the bottom position since matchday 28.
The Cumbrians have managed to take just seven points from their 15 games played since the turn of the year, which has left them 15 points behind 20th-placed Cambridge United and seemingly destined to return to League Two.
The new American owners of the club have remained loyal to the man who guided Carlisle out of League Two for the first time since plying their trade in League One back in 2013-14, but it is yet to be seen whether Simpson will remain in charge at the end of a season in which his side currently have just five wins from 39 games.
Team News
Peterborough remain without the services of three players as Will Blackmore, Jeando Fuchs and Jacob Wakeling continue their spell on the sidelines.
Midfielder Hector Kyprianou will also miss out for the Posh as he serves his second of a two-game suspension following his 10th red card of the season against Stevenage.
Jed Steer was brought in on a free transfer in January and has now started all of the previous eight games, so he is likely to keep his position for this game against Carlisle.
As for the visitors, they are likely to line up with the same side that earned their first point in nearly a month in their previous outing against Stevenage.
Josh Vela is expected to miss the remainder of the 2023-24 season after sustaining a knee injury against Reading.
Carlisle will be boosted with the return of one player though, as Sean Grehan will provide another defensive option following his return from international duty.
Peterborough United possible starting lineup:
Steer; Katongo, Knight, Edwards, Burrows; De Havilland, Collins; Poku, Randall, Mason-Clark; Mothersille
Carlisle United possible starting lineup:
Lewis; Barclay, Lavelle, Mellish; Ellis, McGeouch, Neal, Charters, Armer; Armstrong, Butterworth
We say: Peterborough United 2-0 Carlisle United
Peterborough come into this game with almost triple the points that Carlisle have picked up this season and will be strong favourites to take all three points from the match as they continue their push for the automatic promotion places.
While Carlisle were able to gain a point from the reverse fixture of this tie thanks to a 96th-minute equaliser from Jordan Gibson, they have failed to win on Peterborough's home soil since the 1999-2000 season, losing four out of five meetings since then.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ellis Stevens
