PREVIEW: Cheltenham Town v Wanderers

In-form Wanderers make their final away trip of the season to face Cheltenham at the Jonny-Rocks Stadium.

The two clubs came up together from League Two last season with Town eyeing their best ever League finish this time around.

Seventeenth place in the third tier in 2006/07 remains the Robins highest League standing and Michael Duff’s side are currently 14th in the table.

Wanderers are 12 points are better off and could guarantee a top-10 finish with a third straight win.

Manager’s quotes:

Ian Evatt: “We want to finish strongly. Losing only three games in more or less half a season is positive.

“That’s promotion form and we want to continue that.

“I think they (Cheltenham) have had a really good season as well.

“With the financial constraints Michael (Duff) works under he’s done really well.

“They’re well coached and well organised, so it will be a really challenging game.”

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Cheltenham manager Michael Duff: “I think they are unbeaten in six and have had three defeats since January so they're a big team in this league.

“It’s a very good squad. Last year they had an average start but the reason they got promoted was because of their recruitment in January and they went on an unbelievable run.

“If the season had been any longer they'd have probably gone onto win the league.

“That's resources, good players, and a manager who has got a way of playing and the players have bought into it.

“It is the last home game, so you want to put on a performance, but it's going to be difficult because we are playing a good team.”

Team news:

Wanderers will have Kyle Dempsey back from a three-game injury absence.

Kyle Dempsey applause.jpg

The midfielder is set to start on the bench after recovering from a hamstring injury.

Ricardo Almeida Santos, Kieran Lee and Lloyd Isgrove will miss the remainder of the season.

Cheltenham are without the injured duo of midfielder Matty Blair and defender Ben Williams.

Form guide:

Wanderers are finishing with a flourish and are currently on a six-match unbeaten run.

That includes back-to-back wins over the Easter weekend and an impressive record of just three league defeats since mid-January.

Only two clubs – MK Dons and Sheffield Wednesday – have taken more points than Wanderers over the last 20 games with the Whites two points off the top of the form table for that period.

Cheltenham have won just one of their last six games.

However, the Robins are unbeaten in their last four home games with three wins and a draw and have lost only once at the Jonny-Rocks Stadium in 2022.

Last meeting:

Wanderers 2-2 Cheltenham Town | 27 November, 2021

Wanderers twice hit back to extend their unbeaten home run to five games.

The injury-hit Whites were down to their last 12 fit senior players and twice trailed to goals from Town top scorer Alfie May.

But winger Xav Amaechi marked an impressive first Wanderers’ start with an equaliser as he turned in Kieran Lee’s cross.

And after May had restored the Robins’ lead in first-half stoppage time, Elias Kachunga’s superb strike with nearly an hour gone earned Ian Evatt’s men a deserved point.

Wanderers: Wanderers: Dixon; Gordon (Baptiste 84), Almeida Santos, Aimson, John; Johnston; Amaechi (Delfouneso 70), Lee, Thomason, Kachunga; Doyle. Substitutes: Gilks, Baptiste, Tweedley, Conway, Henry, Pettifer.

Officials:

Referee: Neil Hair

Assistant referees: Kevin Howick and Grant Taylor

Fourth official: Gareth Viccars

Kick-off:

Saturday 3pm

Read Time: 3 mins