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League One
Stockport v Leyton Orient: Dave Challinor’s Stockport finished third, making them favourites to secure promotion, and they have the momentum to back it up. County have won seven of their past eight, drawing the other. They possess an impressive mix of talented youngsters and old heads, including the 34-year-old midfielder Ollie Norwood, who has come to the fore in recent months.
Nine points separated the two clubs but they scored the same number of goals, while Orient conceded six more. Orient will be boosted by a 4-1 win at Edgeley Park in September but at the start of February County inflicted Orient’s only defeat in a nine-game league run at Brisbane Road. It was feared the loss of Louie Barry in January would end Stockport’s promotion hopes but it has galvanised the squad, with Isaac Olaofe and Kyle Wootton leading the charge.
Considering Orient started with four straight league defeats – not their worst run this season – it is impressive they are here. They are a pragmatic side and are in cracking form with six wins on the trot, guided by a fine trio of loanees in the goalkeeper Josh Keeley, forward Jamie Donley and the league’s top scorer, Charlie Kelman.
Leyton Orient v Stockport, Sat 12.30pm; Stockport v Leyton Orient, Weds 8pm
Wycombe v Charlton: Wycombe’s leading marksman, Richard Kone, has 18 goals but is without one in eight games for a team who lost their head coach Matt Bloomfield to Luton mid-season. Bloomfield’s replacement, Mike Dodds, arrived with the side second, five points clear of Wrexham, who overtook them and opened an eight-point gap by the end thanks to a collective and individual drop-off in form at Adams Park.
Wycombe have won seven of 18 matches under Dodds, ending with three straight defeats against the three other playoff clubs by an aggregate score of 8-1. Kone was rested for the final-day loss against Stockport after fitness concerns, and the experienced striker Sam Vokes and Josh Scowen will miss the playoffs through injury.
Charlton have lost one in eight and their striker Matt Godden has eight goals in 10 matches. Form and confidence play a huge part in playoffs and Charlton possess a fine coach in Nathan Jones, who has steadied things since his appointment in February 2024 and is helping them thrive under new ownership. There may not be frills in the team but they are resilient and have peaked at the right time to give them confidence going into the tie against a team who finished a point worse off.
Wycombe v Charlton, Sun 6.30pm; Charlton v Wycombe, Thurs 8pm
League Two
Notts County v AFC Wimbledon: The division’s playoffs contain three out-of-form sides, making it an intriguing shootout. County have strikers in David McGoldrick and Alassana Jatta who made it into the division’s team of the season and have 38 goals between them, giving them plenty of firepower to battle against the team with the best defensive record in the fourth tier. Wimbledon’s success is built on defence, their 35 goals conceded in 46 games being 10 fewer than any other club.
Johnnie Jackson’s side secured a first win in five on the final day and Notts have won one in six, losing four, which may make it a nervous two legs. The Dons’ robust nature could give them an edge against a team who like to have possession but have been struggling to create in recent games. Notts scraped through the league game at Meadow Lane 1-0 and Wimbledon won the most recent fixture between the two at Plough Lane, limiting Stuart Maynard’s team to one shot on target as they ran out 2-0 victors. It feels as if it will be a tight tie.
after newsletter promotion
Notts County v AFC Wimbledon, Sat 8pm; AFC Wimbledon v Notts County, Fri 8pm
Chesterfield v Walsall: The league table is lying and Chesterfield are favourites for this one after the teams had opposing fortunes in the second half of the season. Walsall were 30 seconds from automatic promotion until Antoni Sarcevic’s 96th-minute winner for Bradford to usurp them but it was a failure months in the making. Although they beat Crewe last weekend, that was only a third win since mid-January.
One reason was the loss of Nathan Lowe to his parent club Stoke and the manager, Mat Sadler, failed to arrest the slide as Walsall slipped to fourth. After 25 games, Walsall were running away with the league, 23 points above Chesterfield, who were mid-table, but Paul Cook’s side are the division’s only promotion hopefuls who could claim to be in form, having lost once in 13 matches to finish seventh. With the line led by the former Walsall striker Will Grigg, who scored in each of the final three games, and John Fleck at the heart of midfield, there is plenty of experience to get them through difficult situations.
Chesterfield v Walsall, Sun 3.30pm; Walsall v Chesterfield, Sat 12.30pm
