At the end of an action-packed matchday, I will be giving my opinion on who I believe gets into the Team Of The Day from League One and League Two combined.
This week’s Team Of The Day will only be based on the last round of games, so there will be a couple of difficult decisions to make.
Another action-packed game day came with some excellent performances, some not so excellent performances, and some shock results.
Sheffield Wednesday’s fine run of form took them to the top of League One after title rival Plymouth failed to pick up three points against Fleetwood.
Down at the bottom of League One, Accrington’s win took them out of the bottom four as MK Dons, Forest Green, and Morecambe all failed to pick up any points. Cambridge’s narrow but important win against Oxford took them within 1 point of safety.
In League Two, Leyton Orient extended the gap at the top of the league to 13 points, although Stevenage does have three games in hand. Stevenage are yet to win a game since beating top of the league Leyton Orient, which was five games ago.
The automatic promotion race in League Two is very much an open race, with only 10 points separating second-place Stevenage and ninth-place Sutton United.
At the bottom of League Two, Rochdale find themselves six points adrift of safety after being beaten at home by relegation rivals Gillingham. The Gills find themselves in fine form after picking up 16 points in the last seven games.
Hartlepool’s inspired comeback late on against Wimbledon leaves them one point clear of the relegation zone and one point ahead of Crawley Town, who have failed to register a win since the impressive 3-2 win against Salford back at the end of January.
Stockport looks like a team that only know how to win at the moment, picking up four wins on the bounce and finding themselves sitting pretty in 6th.
Goalkeeper – Lukas Jensen (Accrington Stanley)
Accrington Stanley recorded their first win in five league games against play-off-chasing Shrewsbury.
Both teams’ form in previous weeks gave the expectation that Shrewsbury were going to carry on their fine form.
However, Lukas Jensen had something to say about that, making two big saves, claiming deliveries, and keeping a clean sheet, which helped Accrington towards the three points.
Defender – Joe Ward (Peterborough)
Peterborough earned a well-deserved victory against Morecambe at the weekend after back-to-back defeats in the league.
Joe Ward has had an excellent individual season, and after a few games without a goal contribution, he found himself back among it yesterday, scoring Peterborough’s second and his 4th of the season.
Having also had an impressive performance defensively, he’s earned his spot on this week’s team.
Defender – Chris Hussey (Stockport)
Stockport carried on their fine run of form after an impressive victory against second-place Stevenage.
The veteran defender, who made his back in 2007, showcased his leadership qualities and his ability and was the main man at the back.
He was a brick wall at the back and didn’t give the Stevenage strikers a second without stepping in. He also managed 89% passing accuracy, which shows he was more than happy to play the ball too.
Defender – Coby Rowe (Sutton United)
Sutton United carried on their fine form and play-off pressure after a well-deserved 2-0 win over Doncaster Rovers.
Coby Rowe scored his first goal of the season and was immense at the back, keeping Doncaster’s forward line quiet all afternoon.
Defender – Leif Davis (Ipswich)
Ipswich had failed to win in their last three league games prior to this fixture, they ended this poor run with a 4-0 demolition job over Forest Green Rovers.
Leif Davis got his 8th assist of the season and could have had his third goal after his half-volley struck the crossbar late on.
He was solid defensively, keeping a clean sheet, and his impressive all-around performance gets him into this weekend’s team.
Midfielder – Adam Phillips (Barnsley)
Barnsley continued their fine run of form after dismantling 19th-place Cheltenham.
Adam Phillips made it two goals in his last two games after an outstanding free kick beat Cheltenham goalkeeper Luke Southwood.
Adam also managed to get his fourth assist of the season after unselfishly squaring the ball to James Norwood.
Midfielder – Kazeem Olaigbe (Harrogate)
It was a frustrating afternoon for Harrogate after finding themselves two goals ahead only to concede two goals in the last 10 minutes and only get a point.
The on-loan Southampton man was impressive as he picked up a goal and an assist. A very impressive flick found Muldoon for the opener, and then his impressive shot was lashed past the goalkeeper for his first Harrogate goal.
Midfielder – Conor Hourihane (Derby)
Derby beat Charlton by two goals to nil after being frustrated to earn just a point against Lincoln City in the week.
With an assist, the most touches on the pitch and the control he had in the midfield were significant to Derby County’s win getting him in the team this weekend.
Midfielder – Dan Kemp (Hartlepool)
It looked like Hartlepool was going to fall to defeat at the hands of Wimbledon when they went 2-0 down. However, Dan Kemp and Hartlepool showed real courage as they earned a point.
Kemp scored a superb free kick to get Hartlepool back into the game with 20 minutes to play, and then with the game’s final action he headed in an excellent ball from David Ferguson to make it 2-2.
Attacker – Conor Chaplin (Ipswich)
Ipswich had not won in their last 3 games prior to this weekend, and Chaplin had not scored in the last 3 games. That was to change after the 4-0 victory over Forest Green.
Chaplin was back amongst the goals scoring 2 and taking him to joint second top scorer in League One this season just 2 behind Jonson Clarke-Harris.
Attacker – Michael Smith (Sheffield Wednesday)
Sheffield Wednesday came back to win 5-2 and take the league run to an impressive 19 games unbeaten.
Michael Smith scored his 10th and 11th league goal this season as he converted from the spot and then his deflected effort looped over a helpless Jamie Cumming in the MK Dons goal.
