Lincoln City round out their Easter weekend at Brunton Park as they make the trip north to face Carlisle United, on Monday, April 1.
The Imps have been flying under Michael Skubala of late and are now unbeaten in their last 14, meaning they’re the division’s form side.
A 90th minute Jovon Makama winner on Good Friday was enough to beat Leyton Orient 1-0, and move into the play-off places with just six games remaining.
Michael Skubala previewed the SkyBet League One game after Friday’s win, saying: “If you don’t bring your 100% to every game at this level, you can get hurt. We have to be on it at Carlisle, there’s no point putting in a hard shift like this and then not being on it.”
Opposition: Carlisle United
Carlisle have had a pretty disastrous return to League One this campaign.
They sit 24th in the table having won just six times from their 40 games thus far. It would be fair to say they are well on their way back to SkyBet League Two next season.
This game could be the one which seals their feat, if they were to face defeat and Burton Albion beat Barnsley at the Pirelli Stadium.
However, the Cumbrians have had a small resurgence of late, drawing 2-2 with play-off chasing Stevenage, before an 1-3 victory away at Peterborough United through a Jon Mellish hat-trick.
Manager Paul Simpson has admitted he is now planning more for next season with his team selections, and it seems to be working so far.
Team News:
With this game coming just 72 hours on from their Good Friday victory, Michael Skubala may make some changes to freshen his eleven.
Danny Mandroiu received treatment in the first-half against Orient, but continued for most of the game.
Ethan Erhahon is available for selection after serving a one match ban following his red card in the 5-0 win over Bristol Rovers.
Outside of that the likes of Ethan Hamilton, Conor McGrandles, Lewis Montsoma and Tyler Walker all remain unavailable.
For Carlisle, Taylor Charters was forced off with a hamstring injury against Peterborough so it is unlikely he will feature opposite the Imps. Josh Vela is also not fit as he is expected to miss the rest of the season with a knee injury.
Head-to-Head:
It is a fixture that we have not seen much of in recent years, with the only league meeting since 2019 being the 1-1 draw at The LNER Stadium in September. An Ethan Hamilton equaliser earned City a point that day.
That was under the tenure of Mark Kennedy which seems a long time ago now as the end of the League One season approaches.
Overall, it’s a fixture that Lincoln have slightly edged over the years, winning nine of their 25 meetings compared to Carlisle’s six.
Played for Both:
The most notable name to have played for both sides is Dean Walling, who made 236 in Cumbria and was part of their Third Division winning team in 1995. The centre-back made the move to Lincolnshire in 1997, making 38 appearances for The Imps.
Crystal Palace striker Luke Plange spent part of last season on loan at the LNER Stadium, before spending the first half of this campaign with Carlisle.
Jack Diamond also had a successful spell on loan in Lincoln last season, scoring eight goals in 36 games. However, he is yet to get himself on the scoresheet in the North West, since joining Carlisle in January.