Two sides with a play-off finish on their mind go head to head on Easter Monday in the National League as Altrincham welcomes Oldham to the J Davidson Stadium.
Phil Parkinson’s Altrincham side have surprised a large number of people this season and have far exceeded pre-season expectations as they find themselves sat in fifth place in the National League table.
In their three seasons since promotion, Alty managed a 14th place sandwiched in between two 17th-place finishes and that is exactly why it is a surprise to see them challenging for the playoffs.
Alty have seen a plethora of goals scored across their 42 league fixtures this season and are the third-highest goal scorers in the league. They have seen an incredible total of 139 goals netted across those games for a season-wide average of 3.31 goals per game. The hosts have a very solid home record in the National League this season, picking up a respectable 40 points from a possible 63.
March has not been a favourable month at all for Micky Mellon’s Oldham side as the Latics went six games and the whole month without picking up a victory.
That poor run of form has seen Oldham drop to four points adrift of the play-off places and they will know that an excellent run of form is needed between now and the end of the season for them to stand a chance of ending up in the top 7.
The Latics were expected to bounce straight back up to League Two last season but they finished in a disappointing 12th place and this season's campaign has been yet another disappointment for the Oldham faithful. Overall, in the league, Oldham have seen 113 goals scored across 41 games for a total season-wide average of 2.76. Mellon’s side have performed well on the road this season, picking up the third most points in the league away from home with 34 points from a possible 60.
These two sides have met four times in all competitions in recent times and the results have been identical. Both sides have won a game each 1-0 and have drawn the other two 2-2. Oldham’s win came in the FA Cup final qualifying round thus meaning that Altrincham are unbeaten in the league against Monday’s opponents which is likely to give them plenty of confidence heading into the crunch clash on Monday.
It is no secret that Altrincham will have an incredibly tough task on their hands if they are to keep hold of star man Chris Conn-Clarke. The 22-year-old has been the key creator for his side this season, netting 22 goals across 42 National League fixtures and there have already been rumours of football league clubs sniffing around for his signature.
Veteran striker James Norwood made the very surprising step down from League One Barnsley when he signed for the Latics in the summer and he has been the star man for his side this season, netting 17 goals in the National League.
Over 2.5 goals - @ 1.850
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