League One Preview: Week Two

There were some shocks on the opening day of the League One season, and the first round of the Capital One Cup has split up gameweek one and two of the new season. We return to league action on Saturday, and here is your Week Two preview. All games kick-off at 15:00 on Saturday unless stated.

 

Port Vale v Gillingham
Toppling Burnley on Tuesday in the Capital One Cup will give Port Vale confidence going into this one as they face red-hot Gillingham, who also enjoyed League Cup success over League Two Plymouth on Tuesday. The Gills top the table after the first round of games following their 4-0 thrashing of promotion favourites Sheffield United last Saturday, whilst Port Vale are still searching for their first goal in the league after playing out a goalless draw with Crewe last week.

 

Bury v Swindon
Swindon recorded a 4-1 win over Bradford last week, courtesy of Nathan Byrne turning the game on its head with a sixteen minute hat-trick in the second half before Jon Obika secured the three points. Bury knocked out Wigan in midweek, whilst Swindon lost out to Exeter. Bury are looking for their first win of the season following their opening day draw with Doncaster.

 

Sheffield United v Chesterfield
The Blades came out battered and bruised last week as they were pummelled by Gillingham on the opening day. However, Nigel Adkins’ side bounced back with a Capital One Cup victory away at Morecambe, and will be looking to start a winning streak when Chesterfield visit Brammel Lane on Saturday. The Spirites started the season off with a home win over Barnsley, and find themselves 4th in the table after the 3-1 win.

 

Millwall v Coventry
The Lions started their campaign in League One off with an away win at Shrewsbury, but suffered defeat on Tuesday when League Two Barnet visited The Den, and knocked Millwall out after extra-time. Coventry also started the league campaign off with a win against relegated Wigan, and they face another side relegated last season from the Championship in Millwall.

Blackpool v Rochdale
Despite drawing 2-2 away at Colchester last week, Blackpool fans didn’t have much to cheer about in midweek as they lost 3-0 away at Northampton in the Capital One Cup, and they will be keen on bouncing back this weekend when they face Rochdale. The visitors progressed to the second round of the League Cup after knocking out Coventry on penalties, building on their home win against Peterborough last week.

 

Barnsley v Burton
Jimmy Floyd Hasslebaink and his men began life in League One with a 2-1 home win over Scunthorpe, and have backed this up with a 1-0 away win in the Capital One Cup against Bolton, proving that they will be no pushovers not just in this coming game, but others too. Barnsley suffered opening day heartache as they made the trip to Chesterfield and lost 3-1, but their dramatic 7-6 win on penalties against Scunthorpe will give them confidence coming into this second round of fixtures.

 

Peterborough v Colchester
Both of these sides will be looking for their first win of the season in League One after Rochdale ensured they got off to a winning start against Peterborough, and relegated Blackpool held Colchester to a 2-2 draw. However, the hosts picked up a win in midweek, beating Crawley at home, whilst Colchester were knocked out by Reading.

 

Oldham v Fleetwood
Both teams started the new campaign off with a 1-1 draw, Oldham sharing the points away at Walsall, and Fleetwood welcoming newly-promoted Southend to Highbury in their opener. Both sides also suffered the same fate in the League Cup, Oldham losing out to Middlesbrough, and Fleetwood crashing out at home to Hartlepool. Subsequently, the two teams are both looking for their first win of the new season.

Southend v Walsall
Walsall and Southend go head-to-head after both drawing with the teams above, and are both looking for the sweet taste of victory for the first time this season in the league. Walsall will be the more confident coming into this clash after beating Nottingham Forest 4-3, whereas Southend were knocked out by Brighton.

 

Scunthorpe v Crewe
As I have already mentioned, Scunthorpe lost out in a dramatic penalty shootout in the League Cup to Barnsley, and will be eager to bounce back with a win here, their first of the season following their opening day defeat at the hands of Burton. Crewe were involved in the only goalless draw of the opening day against Port Vale, and will be seeking their first goal in the league this term.

 

Bradford v Shrewsbury
The Bantams still haven’t won a game this season in all competitions, albeit they are only two games into their campaign. York City knocked Bradford out of the League Cup on penalties, so they are still looking for their first win. Shrewsbury lost last week against relegated Millwall, but responded well with a 2-1 win over Blackburn in midweek.

 

Wigan v Doncaster (Sunday 16th August: 12:30)
Life in League One didn’t start ideally for Wigan last week as they fell to a defeat at Coventry, who ran out 2-0 winners on the day. Doncaster also failed to pick up an opening day win as they played out a 1-1 draw with Bury. Wigan also failed to beat Bury as they lost 2-1 to the newly-promoted side in midweek. Gary Caldwell will be keen to avoid making it three defeats on the bounce in all competitions for The Latics.