Chesterfield vs Walsall Prediction: 5/1 First Goalscorer Tip, Team News & More
The League Two playoffs continue on Sunday with Chesterfield taking on Walsall in the first leg of their semi-final tie at the SMH Group Stadium.
Live on Sky Sports Football at 3.30pm BST, the match pits seventh-placed Chesterfield against a Walsall side who finished fourth but led the way in League Two for most of the season.
Indeed, the Saddlers had established a 12-point lead at the top at one stage this season, only to blow it with a 13-game winless run.
They at least got back to winning ways against Crewe on the final day of the season but it was not enough and they must now go through the playoffs, starting with Sunday's visit to Chesterfield.
Chesterfield vs Walsall Prediction
Chesterfield vs Walsall Betting Tips
From a psychological perspective, it would be a remarkable effort from Walsall if they are able to go up via the playoffs this season.
Not long ago it would have been absurd to suggest Walsall would not gain promotion but after top scorer and loanee Nathan Lowe was recalled by parent club Stoke in January, they fell apart.
Before their scrappy 1-0 win over Crewe on the final day of the season, Walsall had gone 13 matches without a win in the fourth tier, dropping points against Carlisle, Barrow, Harrogate and Accrington.
Mat Sadler will now have a really hard time trying to motivate his players, who will surely be in low mood, especially as they thought they had done enough to secure a top-three berth on the final day, only for Bradford to leapfrog them with a 96th-minute winner in their game against Fleetwood.
Chesterfield have lost just three times at home in the league this season and finished the campaign with a six-game unbeaten run.
There is the chance that player of the season Armando Dobra could be involved in the playoffs in some capacity too, and if he returns for the first leg, that is even more reason to get behind a home win.
In the recent absence of Dobra, other players have had to step up to the mark for Chesterfield and one man who has been in good form is striker Will Grigg.
Grigg finished the regular season in League Two with 12 goals and has found the net in each of his team's last three contests.
He scored the only goal of the game against Accrington last time out and could again break the deadlock in this playoff first leg with Walsall struggling in the final third themselves.
Chesterfield vs Walsall Team News
Chesterfield should welcome back Jack Sparkes while key forward Dobra has been back in training after suffering from a groin problem, but Ollie Banks is sidelined.
Connor Barrett, meanwhile, should come back into the Walsall team after serving a suspension.
The lineups for Chesterfield vs Walsall will be displayed below approximately one hour before kick-off.
| # | Starting XI | Fouls | Goals | Shots | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | Ryan Thomas William Boot | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Lewis Gordon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Kyle John McFadzean | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | Ashley John Palmer | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Liam Mandeville | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Thomas Keith Naylor | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | John Alexander Fleck | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Jenson Metcalfe | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Ryan Paul Colclough | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | William Donald Grigg | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Michael Oluwakorede Olakigbe | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| # | Substitutes | Fouls | Goals | Shots | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Armando Dobra | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Dylan Duffy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Jamie Neil Grimes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | Michael Edward Jacobs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | Aribim Pepple | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Jack Sparkes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | Max Anthony Thompson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| # | Starting XI | Fouls | Goals | Shots | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tommy Simkin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | Taylor Ellis Allen | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Harry Williams | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | David Okagbue | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Liam Spencer Gordon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Ryan William Stirk | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | Alfie James Chang | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Nathan Asiimwe | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | Jamie Ryan Jellis | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | George Cardinal Joseph Hall | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | Jamille Antonio Matt | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| # | Substitutes | Fouls | Goals | Shots | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 37 | Albert Danquah Adomah | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Levi Amantchi | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | Brandon Comley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Donervon Joseph Daniels | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | Joshua Luke Gordon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Samuel Connor Hornby | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Charlie Lakin | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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