Notts County attempt to bounce back from Saturday’s disappointing 3-1 defeat at Aldershot Town when they face relegated Dover Athletic at Meadow Lane on Bank Holiday Monday (3pm kick-off).
It will be the second time in a week the teams have met, with the visitors hoping to avenge Tuesday’s 3-0 loss to Notts at the Crabble Athletic Ground.
Goals from Ed Francis, Cal Roberts and Ruben Rodrigues secured the points for Notts as Andy Hessenthaler’s men failed to register a shot on target, and the bottom club slumped to a fourth successive National League defeat on Saturday when they were beaten 1-0 at home by Altrincham.
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The match provides the perfect opportunity for Ian Burchnall’s Magpies to right the wrongs of Saturday, when they deserved nothing from an error-strewn performance. The winning form of Halifax Town and Solihull Moors means achieving third place, and a home play-off semi-final, looks beyond reach, so Notts must now look to retain their current fifth place until the end of the season, which would give them a home quarter-final play-off tie.
That they did not tumble further down the table on Saturday was due to inconsistent Chesterfield losing 4-2 at Bromley and Grimsby having to come from 2-0 down to snatch a point at Barnet. All three clubs are tied on 73 points, with Notts fifth due to a narrowly superior goal difference, but the trio’s poor weekend allowed resurgent Dagenham & Redbridge to move to within four points, and the Daggers have a better goal difference.
Boreham Wood, who have a game in hand on all the clubs above them, could also be a threat following their surprise victory at league leaders Stockport on Saturday evening.
The key for Notts is that their destiny is in their own hands and they will be desperate to not only secure three points, but also seriously enhance their goal difference against a Dover side who manager Hessenthaler admits can’t wait for a dismal season to end.
Dover, who have won only twice in the league all season, were seemingly doomed to relegation from the start after being handed a 12-point deduction for failing to fulfil their fixtures during last term’s pandemic-hit campaign, a serious blow which proved fatal to their chances of survival.
Notts’ head coach Burchnall made four changes to the side which won at the Crabble for Saturday’s trip to Aldershot, and he seems certain to shuffle his pack again on Monday.
Dion Kelly-Evans was handed a rare start at right wing-back but his sending off late in the game should mean a speedy return to action for Jayden Richardson, a move which Burchnall would probably have made anyway given the Nottingham Forest loanee’s excellent link-up play with Cal Roberts in attack.
Alex Lacey started at centre back at Dover before being substituted in the second half. He was not in the match-day squad on Saturday, but with Burchnall critical of his side’s ponderous build-up play, Lacey’s passing skills could earn him a recall, assuming he is fit.
Ed Francis moved to centre back when Connell Rawlinson was substituted in the second half at Aldershot but he is likely to return to central midfield alongside Matty Palmer, with Zac Brunt’s place under pressure from the likes of Jim O’Brien and Frank Vincent after an ineffectual display at the EBB Stadium.
Top scorer Kyle Wootton missed the recent Dover match with a back injury but came on as a second-half substitute at Aldershot and, bar any unfavourable reaction, should return to spearhead the attack. With Roberts and Ruben Rodrigues Notts’ next best scorers, Aaron Nemane could be the one to miss out despite being one of Notts’ better performers on Saturday.
Dover will be without defender Myles Judd, who was handed a two-game ban after being sent off against Notts last week.
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