Notts midfielder Stanley Aborah returns to the reckoning for his side as they prepare to host neighbours Mansfield Town in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy.

The 28-year-old missed the 4-1 League Two loss at Morecambe on Saturday as he served a one-match suspension, having received five yellow cards already this season.

Fellow centre men Liam Noble, who will complete his three-game ban against the Stags, Curtis Thompson and Rob Milsom remain unavailable.

Ricardo Moniz is looking to sign another striker before the transfer window closes on Tuesday night and any new addition may be included in the squad for the first-round tie.

Mansfield goalkeeper Scott Shearer is not expected to be available.

The 34-year-old Scot has been laid low with an infection in his ankle after being "bitten by something" earlier this month and, even though he was discharged from hospital a week ago, the short trip may have come too soon for him.

Without Shearer, Stags boss Adam Murray is left with just one goalkeeper in 40-year-old Brian Jensen.

Summer signing Matt Green, in his second stint at Field Mill, will hope to continue his goalscoring streak after bagging a brace during Saturday's 2-1 victory at York City, while winger Matty Blair remains sidelined with a long-term knee injury.

The match marks a second visit of Mansfield to Meadow Lane in the space of a few weeks after their league meeting on Friday August 14, a 2-0 win for the visitors.

To voice your thoughts and opinions on this fixture, come on to Pride of Nottingham's dedicated match forum and join the conversation.

Notts and Morecambe have only met six times in their history, with the first ever clashi taking place all the way back in... September 2007. It's perfectly even between both sides - two wins, two draws and two defeats.

The last two fixtures between the two are both notable - the first of the two, on 19 September 2009, is Sol Campbell's only game in a Magpies shirt, while the latter, on 17 April 2010, is when Notts secured promotion to League One.

Football in the town dates back to the turn of the 20th century; however, it was not until 7 May 1920 that Morecambe FC was formed. The club then took its place in the Lancashire Combination League for the 1920–21 season.

The fourteen years from 1960 could be said to be Morecambe's golden era. This included an FA Cup third round appearance in 1961–62, a 1–0 defeat to Weymouth; a Lancashire Senior Cup Final victory in 1968, a 2–1 win over Burnley; and an FA Trophy success at Wembley in 1974, a 2–1 win over Dartford in the final.

Morecambe, a non-league side for most of their history, were promoted to the Football League for the first time in 2007 after winning the Conference Playoff Final, beating Exeter City 2–1 at Wembley in front of over 40,000 fans.

Morecambe was a thriving seaside resort in the mid-20th century. While the resort of Blackpool attracted holiday-makers predominantly from the Lancashire mill towns, Morecambe had more visitors from Yorkshire, due to its railway connection, and Scotland.

Between 1956 and 1989 Morecambe was the home of the Miss Great Britain beauty contest.

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Morecambe defender Alan Goodall faces a late fitness test after limping out early in the second half of last week's 3-3 draw at Portsmouth.

Defender Ryan Edwards and midfielder Kevin Ellison are both still ruled out through suspension.

Stanley Aborah is the latest player who must serve a suspension for Notts County, who have had three red cards in their first six league and cup games.

Aborah's absence, however, is a consequence of collecting his fifth yellow card of the season during the Capital One Cup defeat to Aston Villa - he will serve a one-match ban.

With Liam Noble also banned after his dismissal against Accrington and Curtis Thompson and Rob Milsom injured, it leaves Ricardo Moniz with problems in midfield.

Notts County and Aston Villa have met a total of 83 times over the years, with the first fixture coming on 12 Feb 1881, a FA Cup clash which Villa won 3-1. Notts have won 21 times and lost 42, with 20 draws.

Meetings used to be incredibly regular in the olden days, but have tailed off considerably after the mid-1920s. 63 of the meetings were before 1927, and a gap of 44 years followed until the next fixture.

The last meeting between Notts and Villa was on 22 Jan 1997, an FA Cup replay which ended 3-0 to the Premier League side.

The last league fixture was all the way back on 10 Mar 1992 – three years before Jack Grealish was even born!

Aston Villa were formed in March 1874 by members of the Villa Cross Wesleyan Chapel in Handsworth, now part of Birmingham. The four founders were Jack Hughes, Frederick Matthews, Walter Price and William Scattergood.

Their first match was against the local Aston Brook St Mary's Rugby team. As a condition of the match, the Villa side had to agree to play the first half under rugby rules and the second half under football rules.

The club won their first FA Cup in 1887, with captain Archie Hunter scoring in every single round of the competition and becoming one of the game's first household names.

Aston Villa, alongside Notts, were one of the dozen teams that competed in the inaugural Football League in 1888 with one of the club's directors, William McGregor, being the league's founder.

Villa are among the most successful football clubs in the history of English football. They won the 1981–82 European Cup, beating Bayern Munich 1-0 and making them one of only five English clubs to win the main European trophy.

They also have the fifth highest total of major honours won by an English club, having won the top tier of the English league seven times, the FA Cup seven times, the Football League Cup five times and the UEFA Super Cup in 1982.

In addition the club has produced a record 73 England national team players, equalled only by Tottenham Hotspur.

Villa is one of an elite group of seven clubs that has played in every Premiership season. Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton, Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur are the other six.

They currently hold the record number of league goals scored by any team in the English top flight - 128 goals were scored in the 1930-31 season.

Villa were the first British club to give up a shirt sponsorship fee - in order to promote the Axorns Children’s Hospice charity beween 2008 and 2010.

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Villa may call up summer signing Adama Traore after he impressed off the bench in Saturday's 2-1 league defeat at Crystal Palace.

Ex-Notts loanee Jack Grealish is expected to take part in the game after returning from a hamstring injury, but Jores Okore and Jose Angel Crespo remain out.

Notts, meanwhile, are without Liam Noble after he was red-carded in Saturday's 1-1 home draw with Accrington Stanley.

Notts County have only played Accrington Stanley 13 times in their history. The first fixtures were in August and December 1958, when both sides played in Division Three. The Magpies drew 1-1 in the first match, before losing 3-0 in the second.

A hiatus of 48 years followed before the teams met again in the fourth tier, now called League Two, on 9 September 2006. The result was a 3-2 win to Notts.

The last time the two met was on 18 November 2014, an FA Cup first round replay which ended 2-1 to Stanley.

The original town's team, Accrington, were amongst the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888, before resigning from the league after just five years.

A team called Stanley Villa already existed at the time, named as such because they were based at the Stanley Arms on Stanley Street in Accrington. With the demise of Accrington, Stanley Villa took the town name to become Accrington Stanley.

The club re-formed after World War I and entered the League in 1921 with the formation of the old Third Division North, along with the other top northern non-League clubs.

This original incarnation was dissolved in 1966, before re-emerging two years later. In 2005–06, Stanley won the Football Conference and were promoted to League Two.

Ironically, Oxford United, the team they switched places with, was the team that had been elected to replace the former Accrington Stanley as members of the Football League in 1962 when they were struggling with debt.

Accrington Stanley is perhaps most well known for being discussed in a late 1980s advert by the Milk Marketing Board (for all you younger readers, Ian Rush was one of the greatest strikers of his day, and Liverpool's all-time leading goalscorer).

Famous people from Accrington include Vicky Entwhistle and Julie Hesmondhalgh from Coronation Street, Yes singer Jon Anderson, cricketer Mike Atherton, Diana Vickers from The X Factor, and Mystic Meg.

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Jimmy Spencer's leg fracture has added to Notts County's injury woes ahead of the visit of Accrington.

Spencer suffered a small crack to the tibia during the defeat to Mansfield last weekend and the striker, who subsequently missed the loss at Oxford on Tuesday night, is expected to be out for around a month.

He joins defender Civard Sprockel and midfielder Curtis Thompson in the treatment room while Ronan Murray and Taylor McKenzie remain long-term absentees.

However, Ricardo Moniz is boosted by the return of defender Mawouna Amevor from a three-match suspension.

Accrington have a fully fit squad going into the clash, with forward Shay McCartan back from a broken wrist.

McCartan, who has been selected for the Under 21's Northern Ireland squad, sustained the injury in a freak training ground incident and has missed the opening fortnight of the season.

Terry Gornell will be pushing for a start after he was restricted to the bench in Tuesday's 1-0 win over Mansfield after an ankle problem.

League Two is starting to form shape, with teams eager to maintain a level of consistency. Right now, anyone can beat anyone and Tuesday night should make for an interesting encounter throughout the games scheduled to take place.

The prize for Notts is not just the ability to take home 3 points but to ensure the County faithful, that last Friday was just a small blip.

This game is likely to go down to whomever scores first and I feel that Oxford will have to keep tidy at the back, in order to prevent Notts from scoring. A lively striker who can gain support will be required if the Magpies are to win this game.

Key Fixtures

Tuesday 18^th August 2015

Crawley v Portsmouth
Luton v Bristol Rovers
Plymouth v Carlisle

Prediction

For me, Oxford appears to be a team for the taking. I have to admit they go forward very well and look comfortable on the ball. Yet they do not seem organised at the back, with Luton and Crawley seeing their defence pretty shaken when attacked. I predict a narrow 1-0 win to the Magpies, hopefully all 3 points will come back to Nottingham.

Match Odds

Oxford United to win 23/20 – Draw 23/10 – Notts County to win 12/5

Head to Head

Oxford United – United currently have 2 points after back-to-back draws. Another would put them in or around the same area, whereas a loss could see them dip towards the bottom of League Two. If they managed to grab themselves a home win, they could go as far as 9^th themselves.

Notts County – A win would place Notts County quite comfortably back within a play-off place, with a draw seeing them potentially drop to somewhere roughly around 12^th. A defeat would see the club fall towards mid table if teams beneath pick up points, so Notts must ensure themselves at least a point, 3 preferably.

Key Man

Oxford United; Danny Rose – He will be vital within their procession and attacking play, I feel he will offer the most outlet for Oxford and Notts must keep him quiet throughout the game.

Notts County; Curtis Thompson – I genuinely believe Notts missed him after he was replaced for Jimmy Spencer against Mansfield Town. We need someone who can mix play, by both defending and offering assistance with advanced play. For me, an eager Curtis Thompson is exactly what we need.

League Table

The teams to watch are the current five undefeated teams within League Two, I feel 2 of the 5 may end up drawing or even losing.

It’s at this stage we will start to see some form of idea on who is to be taken seriously, however form is a funny thing and until the 7^th game nobody will know for sure. Yet, this is the perfect time for Notts to strike back before the weekends game against Accrington Stanley.

I believe Portsmouth may go top of the division, with Hartlepool and Wycombe in places right behind them.

As I mentioned previously it’s a slow transition and all teams will still be learning about the true depth of their squads. The table should in truth be quite different compared to how it will be featured here, with teams trading positions and others establishing themselves as front-runners for promotion. It leaves me wondering how many of the favourites within this league will fall victim to teams currently being dismissed as capable of gaining promotion candidates.

Notts have met Oxford United just 26 times in their history, the first meeting coming on 17 October 1964 when a goalless draw at Meadow Lane was the result.

The U's have the upper edge - but only just, with nine wins, nine draws and eight defeats

The last meeting between the two was on 18 March 2006, again a goalless draw at Meadow Lane.

Oxford United were formed as Headington in 1893, adding the suffix United in 1911 after merging with Headington Quarry.

In 1950, Headington United became the first professional club in Britain to install floodlights, and used them on 18 December against Banbury Spencer.

They initially played in orange and blue shirts, but changed to yellow home shirts for the 1957–58 season. The reason for the change is unknown.

In 1960, Headington United was renamed Oxford United, to give the club a higher profile.

Oxford won the League Cup in 1986 - then known as the Milk Cup - after beating Queens Park Rangers 3-0 in the final at Wembley.

In 2001, Bishop of Oxford Richard Harries conducted an exorcism after the feeling of a malicious force and the team's loss of thirteen of their first seventeen games at the new stadium was blamed on a gypsy curse placed on the club by a Roma man who had been evicted from the site during construction.

The city is known worldwide as the home of the University of Oxford, the oldest university in the English-speaking world.

University College (in full The Master and Fellows of the College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford) dates back to 1249. To put it into context, the Magna Carta had only been signed 34 years prior.

Buildings in Oxford are said to demonstrate examples of every English architectural period since the arrival of the Saxons.

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Oxford manager Michael Appleton may rest Liam Sercombe and Ryan Taylor, as they started Saturday's 2-2 draw at Luton despite nursing pre-season knocks prior to the game.

Patrick Hoban could start after coming off the bench and scoring an injury-time equaliser on the weekend.

New signing John Lundstram is pushing to make his full league debut despite lacking match fitness.

Notts will check on Civard Sprockel after the Dutch defender came off injured for the second time this season against Mansfield last Friday.

Gill Swerts comes back into the reckoning after missing the defeat through suspension but Mawouna Amevor is still banned - he will complete his three-match absence on Tuesday night.

Ricardo Moniz may make changes following the Stags loss and with a squad of some 30 players to choose from he will not be short of options.

Rob Milsom continues to nurse a knee problem while Ronan Murray and Taylor McKenzie are not yet ready to be considered either.

Credit to Dan Westwell for the image.

All is to play for today with the local derby being moved forward from its original schedule due to our neighbours game against Rotherham United. The game is likely to start off lively, with both teams having the chance to sit top of the League Two table.

Mansfield come into the game with a draw and a loss in the League Cup against Championship side Sheffield Wednesday.

On the other hand Notts have started very brightly after the end to their pre-season, on paper the Magpies will also be the favourites.

Key Fixtures

Friday 14^th August 2015

Notts County v Mansfield

Saturday 15^th August 2015

Barnet v Wycombe
Plymouth v Portsmouth

Prediction

Mansfield Town cannot be written off for their start so far within the 2015/16 campaign, it’s early in the season and teams are still finding their feet after assembling their new looking squad. The Stags have made some decent signings for the League Two level and will be fired up for the local derby game between us. I see the game ending 3-1 in our favour! C’mon You Pies!!!

Match Odds

Notts County to win 21/20 – Draw 12/5 – Mansfield Town to win 5/2

Head to Head

Notts County – If Notts manage to pick up their second win of the season, it would see them move top of the League Two table temporarily. A draw would also have the same temporary effect, with the potential of ending up anywhere from 5^th to 12^th in my opinion. A loss would see us drop to around the upper half/mid table.

Mansfield Town – A win for the Stags would see them move top of the division temporarily, allowing them to safely secure a upper half place. A draw would see them remain around the mid table and perhaps even drop towards the lower half, as will losing.

Key Man

Notts County; Stanley Aborah – He’s been a breath of fresh air since arriving and his presence allows Notts to play in a way which allows our advancing players more space to go forward themselves. He offers a mix of creativity, which watching his passing ability and trickery will be key to breaking down Mansfield.

Mansfield Town; Craig Westcarr – The thorn in any side he features for against Notts, his ability to read the game and elude defenders will make him the Stags main threat with doubts hanging over Matt Green.

League Table

The current table shows 9 sides starting off quite healthy, with Portsmouth, Notts County and Plymouth Argyle all being tipped for promotion by the majority of bookies.

After today’s results, the league won’t look too much different until the games set to face off on Saturday take place. It’s there I imagine the table will look quite different, with perhaps sides like Luton Town picking up maximum points and advancing up the table.

Notts could go top as already mentioned, the same applies for Mansfield and this is another reason why the game between the two is paramount to both sides.

There’s not a great deal in which I can mention right now, I don’t expect the leading pack to form until at least 7-9 games into the season. Yet, I do feel Notts have started brightly enough to warrant their odds for promotion and after making 18 signings so far, it shows just how much work has been made behind the scenes to start the season off so brightly. I think after Saturday, if my prediction is correct, Notts will find themselves around 2nd or 3rd which would be a fantastic position to push on from.

Notts County and Mansfield Town have met 44 times over the years, the first fixture coming in October 1937, a 2-0 win for the Magpies in Division Three (South).

Out of the 44 games, Notts have the upper hand with 17 wins, 14 defeats, and 13 draws.

Between 1989 and 2001, the two sides met six times – and Notts won each time.

It’s not been quite so good for Notts in recent years though – we’ve won just twice in our last 10 meetings, with four defeats and four draws.

Our last meeting was a win though, the Stags beaten 2-0 at Meadow Lane in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy just under a year ago.

The Stags were formed in 1897 as Mansfield Wesleyans, changing their name to Mansfield Wesley in 1906 before settling on Mansfield Town in 1910.

Mansfield won the Football League Trophy in 1987, in their first game at Wembley Stadium. After a 1–1 draw with Bristol City, they won the cup 5–4 in the deciding penalty shootout, thanks to Kevin Hitchcock saving two penalties.

That remains the only cup win in their history, though they did win the Division Four title in 1974-75, Division Three two seasons later, and the Conference in 2012-13.

Famous people from Mansfield include Olympic swimmer Rebecca Adlington, media presenter Richard Bacon, FA Cup-winning goalkeeper Steve Ogrizovic and award-winning fashion designer Elspeth Gibson.

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Mawouna Amevor will be serving the second of a three-match suspension after being sent off on the opening day at Stevenage. Gill Swerts is also out after being red carded in the League Cup game at Huddersfield.

There is a slight doubt over striker Jon Stead, who came off against the Terriers after hurting his back in a fall, and Liam Noble is also rumoured to be nursing an injury.

Mansfield, meanwhile, will be without Lee Collins due to a foot injury, the defender currently wearing a protective boot.

Striker Matt Green missed out the Stags’ League Cup defeat at Sheffield Wednesday through injury and is expected to be out at Meadow Lane.

Midfielder Matty Blair, out of contract at Field Mill, is reportedly making good progress from a serious knee injury and could sign a new deal.

Notts County have played Huddersfield Town 33 times in their history, the first fixture coming in December 1913, when the Magpies coasted to a 3-0 victory.

Out of all the games, Notts have won 11 and lost 15, with seven draws.

Our last game against the Terriers was in January 2012, a League One game which ended in a 2-2 draw.

Notts haven’t beaten Huddersfield since March 2003, a 3-2 win in the old Second Division. Three defeats and the 2012 draw followed.

Huddersfield entered the Football League for the first time in 1910, just three years after their formation.

In 1926, it became the first English team to win three successive league titles – a feat that only three other clubs have been able to match.

Huddersfield Town also won the FA Cup in 1922 and have been runners-up on four other occasions.

During the club's heyday, on 27 February 1932 the club achieved a record attendance of 67,037 during their FA Cup 6th round tie against Arsenal at Leeds Road – this attendance has been bettered by only 13 other clubs in the history of the Football League.

The town of Huddersfield is known for its role in the Industrial Revolution and for being the birthplaces of rugby league, British Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson, and the international film star James Mason.

Huddersfield railway station is a Grade I listed building described by venerable poet and writer John Betjeman as 'the most splendid station façade in England' second only to St Pancras, London.

Iron Maiden immortalised the name of the town with a song called “Sheriff of Huddersfield”.

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Notts County defender Mawouna Amevor is suspended after being sent off in the 2-0 win over Stevenage.

Amevor's fellow defender Civard Sprockel came off injured at half-time so is a doubt, but Blair Adams is expected to be fit.

Huddersfield will be without Sean Scannell, Joe Lolley and James Vaughan as they are out with hamstring & shin injuries and concussion respectively.

Notts County and Stevenage have only ever met seven times, the first meeting coming on 17 September 2011 at Broadhall Way (known as the Lamex Stadium). The result on that day was 2-0 to the Magpies.

Our head-to-head record is pretty simple: three wins for Notts, four wins for Stevenage. We have never in our history drawn against Stevenage.

Stevenage have only been in existence since 1976 - manager Teddy Sheringham is a whole ten years older than the club itself.

Much like Doctor Who, there have been numerous incarnations of the club that stretch back over a century. A club called Stevenage FC was formed in 1894, but they soon adopted the name Stevenage Town.

In 1951 the club were founder members of the Delphian League. In 1956 they merged with Stevenage Rangers to form Stevenage FC, before reverting to Stevenage Town four years later.

They had some success in the Southern League but folded in 1967, after which Stevenage Athletic were created in their place a year later. This incarnation again knocked about in the Southern League but went bankrupt in 1976.

This brings us to Stevenage Borough, formed shortly after Athletic's demise, and this time they managed to prosper and work their way up the leagues until finally reaching the Football League in 2010, at which point they took the whole thing full circle by dropping the Borough from their name and becoming Stevenage FC.

Despite their relatively short history, Stevenage have won a number of trophies and competitions, including two FA Trophy cups in 2007 and 2009.

The Lamex Stadium holds 6722 people, 3142 of which can be seated. To put it into perspective, three full houses at Stevenage could fit into the Meadow Lane stands with 45 seats to spare.

The highest attendance recorded at the stadium was 8040 for a match against Newcastle United in the FA Cup fourth round on 25 January 1998. A temporary stand was erected behind the away end to increase the stadium capacity to 8100, enough to satisfy FA requirements.

Two films were set in and around Stevenage, Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush and Boston Kickout. Spy Game was partly filmed in Stevenage but set in Washington DC.

A number of famous sporting figures were born in Stevenage, the most notable of which are Lewis Hamilton, Jack Wilshere, Ashley Young, Ian Poulter, Kevin Phillips and Jason Shackell.

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Teddy Sheringham takes charge of Stevenage for the first time in competitive action against Notts County with few injury concerns.

Striker Brett Williams, defenders Mark Hughes and Fraser Franks, plus midfielder Steven Schumacher could all make their competitive debuts.

Striker Ben Kennedy, however, is a long-term absentee following an operation on a hip problem, while midfielder Chris Whelpdale is also out for a lengthy period with a groin injury.

Notts, meanwhile, travel to Hertfordshire without several first-team players.

Midfielder Rob Milsom, one of 18 summer signings, is nursing a knee problem while striker Ronan Murray and defender Taylor McKenzie are also sidelined through injury.

Transfer-listed duo Nicky Wroe and Will Hayhurst are not expected to be involved.

Left-back Blair Adams is striving to be fit after missing the final pre-season friendly fixture against Scunthorpe United.

Notts County's head-to-head record against Gillingham is historically pretty poor, winning 10 games, drawing seven and losing 15 since our first fixture on 25th October 1930. Fixtures between the two tend to come thick and fast for a certain period of time before ceasing to be for years on end.

Between 1985 and 1989 we played each other nine times, then no meeting for seven years, squaring up again in October 1996.

Since that league meeting (lost 1-0), another five games took place until March 2000, and then, nothing for eight years!

For over 50 years, the record for the fastest hat-trick in the Football League belonged to Jimmy Scarth, who scored three goals in two minutes and 30 seconds against Leyton Orient, on the 1st November 1952.

Sadly in 2004, James Hayter of Bournemouth dispossessed Scarth of said record; he came on as an 84th minute substitute in their game against Wrexham, and scored three times in two minutes and 20 seconds!

Gillingham do however retain one record; having conceded the fewest goals in a 46-match season, when the team conceded only 20 goals during 1995–96.

The Gills could have radically changed the face of English football had they not lost against Manchester City in the 1998/99 Second Division play-off final.

Had they won, City may have never recovered from a second year on the bounce in the third tier, by their own admission. And let's not forget Gillingham were leading 2-0 will less than two minutes left on the clock!

Instead, as things went, City were back up in the top tier within a few years, just in time to catch the eyes of some very wealthy people casually window shopping in the Premiership.

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There are no new injury or suspension problems for Gillingham but Mahlon Romeo will not be involved after he left the club by mutual consent earlier this week.

Notts will once again check on Paddy McCourt as they look for the win to guarantee their League One survival.

McCourt hobbled off injured during the defeat at relegation rivals Crawley on April 18 and the problem has seen the Northern Ireland international winger miss the last two matches.

Defender Mustapha Dumbuya is the other injury doubt for Ricardo Moniz's charges, who go into the final game of the season outside the drop zone on goal difference.

Notts County have met Doncaster Rovers 53 times over the years, with the first fixture coming on the 13th December 1930. On that occasion, an FA Cup tie, the Magpies triumphed 1-0. Rovers have the upper edge head-to-head, but only just. They have 23 wins against Notts and 22 defeats, with eight draws.

We've played them twice this season already - we beat them in a JPT tie in December, before a goalless draw in the league the following month.

The club was founded in 1879 and turned professional in 1885. They have spent the majority of their playing history between the third and fourth tiers of the English football league system and are one of four clubs to win the Division 3/League Two title three times, the last being in 2004. Football League rules state that any team who wins a trophy three times can keep it.

However, when Rovers tried to retain ownership of the actual Third Division trophy, the Football League claimed that Rovers could not keep the trophy because the league names had changed from Fourth to Third Division, and so they had not won that particular league three times.

The team's mascot is a brown dog known as Donny Dog, who wears the red and white Rovers jersey.

Before a scheduled appearance during the game against Huddersfield Town at the Galpharm Stadium on 4 March 2006, police prevented Andrew Liney from entering the stadium in costume, citing unspecified "police intelligence", and refused him permission to wear any part of the costume within 50 metres of the stadium.

Mr Liney later received a full written apology for these unfounded allegations from the head of West Yorkshire Police.

The mascot was next portrayed by Tracy Chandler and in June 2011, she was relieved from the position after she posed in her underwear for a Sunday newspaper. Later in the same week she was reinstated back as the clubs mascot.

Arguably the club's most famous fan is One Direction singer Louis Tomlinson. The 23-year-old had agreed to play in a charity game at the Keepmoat to raise money for the Bluebell Wood Charity and was offered a deal by Donny to join the club on non-contract terms after impressing in the game.

Tomlinson also put himself forward to take over the club alongside John Ryan, but the deal fell through in July last year.

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Paddy McCourt is a major doubt after limping off in the defeat by Crawley, while Jamal Campbell-Ryce is not expected to feature.

Doncaster boss Paul Dickov has no new injury or suspension concerns.

Rovers' season is effectively over as they have nothing to play for - they are unable to reach the League One play-offs.

Notts, meanwhile, are two points adrift of safety and without a win in 11 games.

Notts County and Preston North End are two of the oldest football clubs in the country (and by extension, the world), whose history goes back over 125 years. The first fixture between the two took place in November 1888, when North End defeated the Magpies 7-0 in the first ever season of the Football League.

The 1888-89 season saw Preston remain unbeaten throughout, and would go on to become English football's first "Invincibles".

This feat which remained unbroken until 2003-04 when Arsenal also went a whole top-flight season without losing - so really, Notts being thumped so heartily wasn't quite as bad a result as it seems!

Aside from Preston going the whole season unbeaten, they were also the first EVER winners of the Football League. Oh, and they won the FA Cup that year too!

The two clubs have met a total of 89 times, and sadly (for us Notts fans) the Lilywhites have the upper hand by quite a significant margin. They're won 42 times, while the Magpies have won 23 games. 24 draws have taken place.

The two teams that have played the most games overall in the Football League are, in fact, Notts County and Preston North End!

Meanwhile, Preston are ranked as the fourth most-successful English football club of all time domestically.

Over the years, there have been some varied scorelines. We've talked about the 7-0 back in 1888, but we've also had 6-2, 6-1, 6-0, 4-3 and 4-2.

Recently, meetings have been tamer (from a goal-scoring perspective). Since the turn of the millennium, only ten goals have been scored in the ten games we’ve played.

We've played them twice this season, first in the league, a 1-1 draw away in August, and then a 1-0 defeat at Meadow Lane in the JPT.

The National Football Museum was originally situated in Deepdale, Preston, but was moved to Manchester in 2012.

Deepdale was used as the venue for the England U21s when they played Iceland in March 2011. Deepdale was used again at the end of the 2011-2012 season to host three U19s Elite Round matches with England, Slovenia and Switzerland all taking to the famous pitch. The three games were held at the end of May over six days.

Preston have made the play-offs in a record eight seasons, spanning all three league divisions, but have not yet been promoted via this route.

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Paddy McCourt is an injury concern for Notts as he hobbled off after 33 minutes of the 2-0 defeat at Crawley on Saturday.

Midfielder Liam Noble trained on Sunday and he could come back into the Magpies' squad after missing the last three games, while winger Jamal Campbell-Ryce will miss the remaining three matches with a knee injury.

For Preston, Scott Laird, Jermaine Beckford and Paul Huntington all overcame problems to start at Port Vale last Friday as North End stretched their unbeaten run to 16 League One games, but three successive draws have seen MK Dons breathing down their necks in the bid for automatic promotion.

Notts County have only ever played Crawley Town five times in their history. The first ever fixture between the two was two and a half years ago, on November 10th 2012. This milestone first meeting between the two, played at Meadow Lane, finished 1-1.

Meanwhile the return fixture, played away on the 9th March 2013, ended as a goalless draw.The last meeting was an exhilarating 5-3 win for the Magpies back in November, as Garry Thompson's hat-trick helped his side up into the playoffs.

Crawley Town have been a non-league side for the majority of their history – 11 years ago, while Notts were struggling to survive in the old Second Division, Crawley had just been promoted from the Southern Football League!

Crawley have won plenty of silverware in their history, though the majority of it is amateur-based. This changed when they won the Conference National title in 2011 and the League Two title just a year later.

2010-11 was a record-breaking season not just for Crawley, but also for the Conference. The West Sussex club broke the points total in one season (105) and tie with other teams for most wins in one season (31), fewest defeats (3), and highest goal difference (+63).

Because of this season, alongside the funds they had to buy players and an unlikable manager (Steve Evans), they were known as “the Manchester United of non-league football”.

Crawley have the smallest stadium in League One; the Broadfield Stadium holds a meagre 5,996 people. You could fit just over three and a half Broadfields inside Meadow Lane!

The town of Crawley is known for being close - just three miles in fact - to Gatwick Airport, the world's busiest single-runway international airport.

Famous people who have links to Crawley include Australian footballer Kevin Muscat (born in Crawley), Gareth Southgate (attended the town's Hazelwick School), English rock band The Cure (formed in Crawley, several of its members attended St Wilfrid's RC School) and Gorillaz lead singer 2D (a fictional character, his back story claims he grew up in the town).

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Crawley defender Darren Ward is back fit after a heel injury, while midfielder Josh Simpson could feature for the first time since November.

Marvin Elliott will be assessed after an infection, but Dean Leacock and Conor Henderson are ruled out.

Notts County midfielder Curtis Thompson is fit again and Balint Bajner's late equaliser against Barnsley has him pushing for a starting place.

Both sides are in the relegation places with 47 points each. Leyton Orient, who are one place above the League One drop zone, are also on 47 points, but Crawley have played one more game than Notts and Orient.

Notts County have faced Barnsley a total of 65 times in their history, with the first meeting going back over a hundred years, on November 29, 1913. The result? A 3-1 win for the Magpies.

Prior to this season, the two sides hadn't faced off for a decade, what with different leagues separating them both. The last game before this season, a Division 2 league match at Meadow Lane on January 21, 2004, ended in a 1-1 draw.Earlier in the season Notts beat Barnsley 3-2 away, thanks in part to Michael Petrasso's brace. That win saw us climb to fifth in the league...

Barnsley FC was established in 1887 by a clergyman, Tiverton Preedy, under the name Barnsley St Peter’s, and played in the Sheffield and District League from 1890 and then in the Midland League from 1895.

They joined the Football League in 1898, and struggled in Division Two for the first ten years, due in part to ongoing financial difficulties.

In 1910 the club reached the FA Cup final, where they lost out to Newcastle United in a replay match. However, they would then reach the 1912 FA Cup Final where they would defeat West Bromwich Albion 1–0 in a replay to win the trophy for the first and only time in their history.

Their sole season in the top flight came in 1997-98, where they were there for one year before going straight back down.

The Tykes have played at Oakwell, a 29,003-seater stadium, since 1888.

Also, they’ve spend more time in the second tier of English football than any other club in Football League history.

Barnsley were one of a quartet of teams that made the 2007-08 FA Cup so special, as they beat Liverpool and Chelsea to join West Brom, Cardiff City and Portsmouth in the semi-finals.

The following season, the Tykes fielded the youngest ever player in the history of the Football League at Ipswich Town when Reuben Noble-Lazarus came on aged 15 years and 45 days.

Famous Barnsley fans include cricket umpire Dickie Bird, cricketer Darren Gough, and legendary chat show host Michael Parkinson.

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Jamal Campbell-Ryce is unlikely to feature on Tuesday night as he is nursing a knee injury sustained against Yeovil Town at the weekend. Notts are awaiting the results of a scan.

Lee Johnson will assess his Barnsley squad after a couple of unnamed players missed training on Monday.

The Tykes boss admitted that some of his players had picked up niggles during Saturday's 1-1 draw with Chesterfield and they will be checked before the trip down the M1.

Jean Yves Mvoto remains doubtful with a groin injury, so Peter Ramage looks set to keep his place in defence.

Saturday is just the 11th time that Notts County have faced Yeovil Town. The first meeting between the two came back in 1961, with the Magpies winning this FA Cup tie 4-2, but a whole 43 years passed until the second meeting, which came in 2004!

Back in November the Glovers beat Notts 2-1 at Meadow Lane, thanks to two goals in the last six minutes by Jordan Clarke. Yeovil Football Club was founded in 1890, and shared their ground with the local rugby club for many years.

Five years later they were renamed Yeovil Casuals and started playing home games at the Pen Mill Athletic Ground.

In 1907 the name Yeovil Town was adopted, which on amalgamation with Petters United became Yeovil and Petters United. The name reverted to Yeovil Town prior to the 1946–47 season.

The Somerset outfit have spent most of their existence in the lower leagues, though they briefly made a name for themselves in the 1948-49 season when they beat Sunderland 2-1 in the FA Cup fourth round.

In the 1980s, Yeovil were founder members of the Football Conference, where they remained for the next two decades, save for a few relegations to the Isthmian League which usually resulted in an instant return to the above tier.

Yeovil Town earned promotion to the Football League in the 2002-03 season, by winning the Football Conference by a record 17 points margin, accumulating 95 points and scoring 100 goals, remaining unbeaten at Huish Park.

In their second ever season in the Football League, the Glovers went one better by achieving promotion to the third tier as champions of League Two, and in the following years even reached the League One playoffs, beating Nottingham Forest in the semi-finals in 2006-07 before losing to Blackpool in the final at Wembley.

Six years later, however, Yeovil achieved what had been deemed unthinkable a decade earlier - they reached the second tier of English football after beating Brentford in the 2013 League One play-off final.

Their stay in the Championship was brief, however, and after being relegated at the end of the season, they've found themselves struggling back in the third tier, currently sitting at the foot of the table.

Yeovil is a pretty small town, home to just 40,000 people - two Meadow Lanes could comfortably take in the entire population!

In the 21st century, Yeovil became the first town in Britain to institute a system of biometric fingerprint scanning in nightclubs, and the first English council to ban the children's craze Heelys (those trainers with wheels that popped out from the heels)

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Saturday's game will see both sides with new managers in charge, somewhat of a rarity this late on in the season.

Paul Sturrock, appointed as the Glovers' new boss on Thursday, will most likely miss captain Joe Edwards as he continues to struggle with an ankle problem.

The likes of Nathan Smith, James Berrett and Kieffer Moore will all hope to feature at Huish Park.

Six defeats in a row have left Yeovil 13 points adrift at the bottom of League One and defeat to County would see them relegated to the fourth tier.

Meanwhile, Ricardo Moniz will also take charge of Notts County for the first time.

Ronan Murray, Curtis Thompson and Taylor McKenzie remain unavailable to the Dutchman through injury.

Blair Adams and Jordan Williams are defensive options for Moniz should he wish to make any changes to the starting line-up, while midfielder Liam Noble and forwards Leroy Lita and Balint Bajner provide alternatives in attack.

There haven’t been many fixtures between Notts County and Coventry City, in all fairness: just 37 in the last 95 years. The first took place on the 6th November 1920, the Meadow Lane match ending in a 1-1 draw.

There have plenty of high-scoring games between the two, with several 5-1s, 3-0s and 4-2s over the years. Notts County have the upper hand in the head-to-heads – 19 victories over the Sky Blues, 11 defeats and 7 draws.In 2001, Coventry were relegated from the Premier League after 34 years in the first tier. At the time, only Liverpool, Everton and Arsenal could boast longer tenures in the top flight.

In 2012, Coventry were relegated to the third tier in English Football for the first time in 48 years.

Coventry’s new stadium, the 32,609-capacity Ricoh Arena, was opened in August 2005, but following a rent dispute with the ground's owners the club opted to play their home games at Northampton Town's Sixfields Stadium starting in the 2013–14 season, a move which didn’t prove popular with Sky Blues fans.

On 21 August 2014, it was announced an agreement had been reached allowing the club to return to the Ricoh Arena for the next two years with the option of another two years.

The club’s proudest moment was undoubtedly the 1987 FA Cup final at Wembley, which was won by the Sky Blues thanks to an enthralling 3-2 win after two hours of football.

Following Tottenham Hotspur player Gary Mabbutt’s own goal in extra time, which set Coventry on the way to their win, a fanzine was created called GMK – Gary Mabbutt’s Knee!

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Notts County have no new injury problems for Monday's game.

Ronan Murray, Curtis Thompson and Taylor McKenzie all remain sidelined for the hosts while Alan Smith and Liam Noble could be in line for a recall.

Nick Proschwitz may return for Coventry with Dominic Samuel returning to parent club Reading and Marcus Tudgay injured.

Reda Johnson is unlikely to be risked but James Maddison may be on the bench after three months out.

Notts and Walsall’s fixture history dates back to the 1890s, but there haven’t been that many fixtures despite over a century of head-to-heads. The first game took place on the 20th January 1894 and resulted in a 2-0 win for the Magpies.

In total, there have been 63 fixtures between the two sides, and this time, Notts hold the upper edge with 26 wins. The Saddlers have won 21 times, and 16 draws have taken place, with the last game back in November 2014 being won by them 2-1 at Meadow Lane.

Walsall were formed as Walsall Town Swifts in 1888 when two local teams, Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. merged. The newly formed team’s first match was against Aston Villa, and resulted in a draw

Two players from this early era received England caps while at the club: Alf Jones and Albert Aldridge. They remain the only Walsall players to be so honoured.

In 1896, the Swifts changed their name to Walsall FC, the name that lives on today. The club's nickname, The Saddlers, reflects Walsall's status as a traditional centre for saddle manufacture.

Walsall had Arsenal and England legend Paul Merson on their books a decade ago, as player and player-manager.

Sky Sports' Soccer AM have given Walsall the nickname "Warsaw" due to the similarity when pronouncing Walsall and Warsaw. The presenters of Soccer AM often refer to Walsall as "our friends from Poland".

In the film Fever Pitch, the day Arsenal were beaten by Walsall in the League Cup Fourth Round in 1984 is mentioned by Mark Strong as Steve during a game of pool with Colin Firth as Paul.

Rob Halford from Judas Priest grew in in Walsall, while drum and bass musician and actor Goldie was born in the city.

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Tom Bradshaw is out as he is struggling with a hamstring problem.

Romaine Sawyers is back, though, after being on international duty with St Kitts and Nevis last week.

Rico Henry has returned to full training after a dislocated shoulder which had left him sidelined since February.

Roy Carroll and Paddy McCourt return to the Notts squad following international duty with Northern Ireland.

Paul Hart and Mick Halsall drew their first game in charge against Scunthorpe last weekend and may keep an unchanged side.

Ronan Murray, Curtis Thompson and Taylor McKenzie are all set to miss out with injury for relegation-threatened Notts.

Notts County against Scunthorpe United is a relatively new fixture in English football - the first time these two faced off was on the 4th January 1969 in the old Division Four.

On that day, goals by George Kerr and Nigel Cassidy gave the Iron a 2-1 victory (Richie Barker netted the consolation for the Magpies).

Since then, the two sides have played 26 games, Notts winning 18, losing five and drawing three.

The last meeting was on October 25 last year, where Zeli Ismail's last-minute goal gave the Magpies a 1-0 win at Glanford Park.

Scunthorpe United was formed in 1899. In 1910 they merged with local rivals Lindsey United to become Scunthorpe & Lindsey United, and joined the Midland Football League in 1912.

In 1950 was accepted into the Football League, ahead of Workington and Wigan Athletic when the league structure was expanded, with the "Lindsey" part of the name being dropped shortly after.

Ever since the club entered the league their nickname has been ‘The Iron’, a metal which has long played a role in the team’s nomenclature. Before 1950s Scunthorpe United were known as the Knuts.

The origin is uncertain but it is generally accepted as being when they won one of the local charity cups. The vicar of Frodingham, the Rev Cryspant Rust, said “that indeed Scunthorpe and Lindsey United were a tough (k)nut to beat”.

For a small club, the Iron have an impressive roll call of former players and managers. The most notable is Kevin Keegan, one of England's greatest ever footballers, who played for Scunny between 1966 and 1971.

Other alumni, either in a playing or managing capacity, include Ray Clemence, cricketer Ian Botham, Ian Storey-Moore, Neil Warnock, Jermaine Beckford, Billy Sharp, Andy Keogh, and current Leicester City manager Nigel Adkins, who used to be the club's physiotherapist.

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Caretaker boss Paul Hart has Liam Noble available for his first game in charge - the midfielder has missed the last three games through suspension.

County's 4-1 defeat at MK Dons last time out signalled the end of Shaun Derry's reign as boss with the club only outside the relegation zone on goal difference.

New loan signings Graham Burke and Jordan Williams are set to be thrown straight into the starting line-up.

Meanwhile Scunthorpe's new loan signing Theo Robinson could make his debut for the club after arriving from Doncaster Rovers on Thursday.

The Iron will be without defender Miguel Llera, who sits out a one-game ban following his dismissal for two yellow cards in the midweek defeat at Sheffield United.

On-loan Everton midfielder John Lundstram made his debut in midweek as boss Mark Robins made five changes.

Forward Gary McSheffrey, midfielder Liam O'Neil and winger Hakeeb Adelakun will also be hoping to retain their places.

If we take into account that the Milton Keynes Dons began their history in 2004, then Notts County have faced the club just 13 times.

The first fixture took place in 2006, which was won by the Dons 3-2.

Its predecessor, Wimbledon, was around for over 110 years, but nonetheless, Notts have only played six games against them.A depressing statistic: out of 19 games between the Magpies and both Dons incarnations, we’ve only won once. The last game, on Boxing Day 2014, was a 1-0 defeat at Meadow Lane.

The Buckinghamshire-based outfit has been the subject of much controversy since its former incarnation, Wimbledon, moved from London to Milton Keynes, discarded its previous history and became the Milton Keynes Dons. Many feel aggrieved that such a move was allowed to take place.

A new club was then created called AFC Wimbledon that, in the space of less than a decade, rose through the leagues to reach League Two. Fate has drawn the two teams together on the pitch three times in two years, with MK winning twice and losing once.

The first fixture between the two sides took place in the second round of the 2012–13 FA Cup, where they were drawn to play each other at stadium:MK.

MK Dons won that match 2-1, with a winner scored in injury time by Jon Otsemobor and dubbed by the fans as "The Heel of God”.

In the second game when Kyle McFadzean scored the opening goal with his heel it was immediately dubbed "The Heel of God II".

The town of Milton Keynes, about 56 miles (90 km) north of London in Buckinghamshire, was established as a new town in 1967.

It is known for its statues of concrete cows and many, many roundabouts (300, or if you count painted bumps, over a thousand).

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MK Dons forward Dean Bowditch may be rested after struggling with a groin problem.

Midfielder Dele Alli is not ready for a return from an ankle injury, and Darren Potter serves the final game of a two-match ban.

Notts have Jamal Campbell-Ryce back from a leg injury and he is likely to replace Elliott Whitehouse.

Midfielder Liam Noble remains unavailable as he serves the final game of a three-match suspension.

Notts and Rochdale have only met a total of 39 times over the years, with the first meeting coming on the 10th December 1949. During this FA Cup clash at Spotland, the Magpies triumphed 2-1. The last meeting between the two was in December 2014, a 2-2 draw at Spotland.

Rochdale AFC was formed in 1907, and in their entire history, they have only ever switched divisions six times.

They have had three promotions and three relegations, with promotion coming in 1969, 2010 and 2014, while relegation came in 1959, 1974 and 2012.

The club reached the League Cup final in 1962 – the first time a club from the bottom league division has reached the final of a major competition – where they lost to Norwich City.

Rochdale played 36 consecutive seasons in the Football League's bottom division from 1974 to 2010, the longest time any team has been in the bottom division of the League, with some even derisively renaming it "the Rochdale Division".

The club have the lowest average position of all the clubs which have existed continuously in the Football League since its expansion to four divisions in 1921–22 (76th), and since its expansion to 92 clubs in 1950–51 (79th).

Additionally, they share with Hartlepool United the distinction of having played the most seasons in the Football League without ever reaching the top two tiers (82 seasons through 2009–10).

Rochdale play their home matches at Spotland, which has a capacity of 10,249. The stadium was built exclusively for the Dale in 1920, but since 1988 the ground has been jointly owned by the football club, Rochdale Council and Rochdale Hornets.

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Notts will check on Jamal Campbell-Ryce after he missed the home draw with Bradford on Saturday because of a leg injury.

Midfielder Liam Noble remains unavailable as he serves the second game of a three-match suspension.

Rochdale midfielder Stephen Dawson and defender Olly Lancashire are pushing for recalls to the starting line-up.

Meanwhile, defender Joe Rafferty remains doubtful due to a hamstring problem and Calvin Andrew is recovering from minor knee surgery.

Notts have faced Bradford 66 times in their history - the first clash came in 1908, when the First Division fixture at Meadow Lane finished 1-1. Over the years, the Magpies have the edge, with 28 wins over the Bantams, 23 defeats, and 15 draws. The last game between the two was on December 28 year, a 1-0 win for Bradford at Valley Parade.

Bradford City was founded in 1903. It was immediately elected into Division Two of the Football League despite not having played a previous game.

Promotion to the top tier followed in 1908 and the club won the FA Cup in 1911, its only major honour.

After relegation in 1922 from Division One, the club spent 77 years outside the top flight until promotion to the Premier League in 1999.

City stayed up - with a then record low of 36 points - in the first season in the Premier League, but were relegated the following season.

In the 2012–13 season, Bradford sent shockwaves through the world of football by becoming the first ever team from the bottom tier of English football to reach a major domestic Wembley cup final, the League Cup, but sadly the fairytale couldn't be completed as they lost 5–0 to Swansea City.

The Bantams have never had a manager from outside Great Britain and Ireland.

A number of recent ex-Notts players now ply their trade for the club, including Alan Sheehan, Gary Liddle and Francois Zoko.

Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, Bradford rose to prominence during the 19th century as an international centre of textile manufacture, particularly wool. It was a boomtown of the Industrial Revolution, and amongst the earliest industrialised settlements, rapidly becoming the "wool capital of the world".

Sadly, the textile sector in Bradford fell into decline from the mid-20th century. Since this time, however, Bradford has emerged as a tourist destination, becoming the first UNESCO City of Film with attractions such as the National Media Museum, Bradford City Park, the Alhambra theatre and Cartwright Hall.

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Liam Noble starts a three-match ban following his dismissal in the 3-0 loss to Swindon.

Garry Thompson, Alan Smith, Nicky Wroe and Will Hayhurst are all in contention to fill the gap in Shaun Derry's starting line-up.

Bradford City could give a debut to Jak Alnwick after the goalkeeper joined from Newcastle on Friday.

Midfielder Mark Yeates came off the bench to score in Tuesday's 1-1 draw against Coventry and could start.