Rovers return to The Mem this weekend to take on an in-form Mansfield side.

Rovers go into Saturday's clash at The Mem off the back of a 2-1 away defeat at the hands of Oldham Athletic. Sam Nicholson grabbed Rovers' only goal in the defeat which saw a run of six games unbeaten in the league come to an end in Greater Manchester. Next up for Rovers is the visit of Nigel Clough's Mansfield Town this weekend.

Manager's Preview

Opposition View

Mansfield Town was founded in 1897 as Mansfield Wesleyans, a name which they kept until 1906 when the Stags were renamed Mansfield Wesley before finally becoming Mansfield Town in 1910. The Yellows play their football at Field Mill, currently known as One Call Stadium for sponsorship reasons, and have played there since 1919.

Nigel Clough is the man in charge of The Stags. The former Nottingham Forest and Liverpool player took charge of Mansfield Town in November 2020 after departing Burton Albion for a second time. Clough led Burton to the Championship for the first time in their history in 2016 and the League Cup semi-final in 2019.

Form Guide

Mansfield currently occupies 5th place in the Sky Bet League Two table and have been on a superb run of form recently, winning five of their last six games in the league and taking a point off Harrogate Town in their only draw from their last six fixtures. Last time out, the Stags came away 2-1 winners at home against Colchester United. Before their draw against Harrogate Town, Clough's side had been on an eight-game winning streak in the league, with their only defeat coming at the hands of Middlesbrough in the FA Cup.

Mansfield have had plenty of players chipping in with the goals this season. Jordan Bowery and Rhys Oates currently lead the goalscoring charts for The Yellows with six goals apiece so far this season. Breathing down their necks is Oliver Hawkins who has found the back of the net on five occasions this season. Hawkins is statistically Mansfield best performing player this season, coming in with an overall Whoscored.com rating of 7.26 from his 26 Sky Bet League Two appearances so far this campaign.

Ref Watch

John Busby is the match official for Saturday's clash at The Mem. Throughout this season, Busby has taken charge of five Sky Bet League Two fixtures where he has handed out 16 yellow cards and one red card. Busby on average hands out 3.20 yellow cards per game in the Sky Bet League Two and also averages 23.80 fouls per game in the competition.

Betting Preview

EFL sponsors, Sky Bet have priced Rovers at 17/10 for the win on Saturday afternoon. Rovers can also be backed at 17/2 to win the game 2-1. On the goal-scorer markets, Sam Finley is priced at 14/1 to open the scoring at The Mem on Saturday. Harry Anderson can be backed at 5/1 to score at any time in the match.

To bet with Sky Bet please click HERE. Please bet responsibly.

How to Follow

Supporters based in the UK can purchase an audio match pass for £2.50. To find out more about iFollow, please click HERE.