PON_News

Notts have met Bury 118 times in their history. Notts: 43 Draw: 28 Bury: 47 Bury won the reverse fixture 4-0 at Gigg Lane in a match they dominated from start to finish. It was a result that stopped Notts’ five game unbeaten run. It was this result that started the fall back down the table and eventually led to the sacking of Harry Kewell. Stats Notts have won 1 of their last 12 league games (a sequence which started with the 4-0 loss at Bury earlier in the season). One positive (a rare thing at the moment) is that Notts have scored in both home games Neal Ardley has took charge of. Whilst their home form has been brilliant with four successive wins at Gigg Lane, Bury have hit a bad patch away from home in which they are winless in three (2-2 vs Cambridge, 4-2 vs Oldham and 2-1 vs Mansfield). Danger man Danny Mayor has completed the most successful dribbles this season in League Two with 128. Seasons in each division First Division (or Prem): 22 Second Division (or Champ): 39 Third Division (or League 1): 29 Fourth Division (or League 2): 23 Notts vs Bury (head to head stats and where they rank) Goals scored: Notts – 26 (joined 17th with Yeovil and Morecambe), Bury – 45 (1st) Goals conceded: Notts – 51 (1st), Bury – 28 (joined 17th with Port Vale) Top Scorer: Notts – Kane Hemmings (7), Bury – Nicky Maynard (9) Most appearances this season: Notts – Ross Fitzsimons (24), Bury – Joe Murphy, Chris Stokes, Adam Thompson (24) Team News Enzio Boldewijn and Lewis Alessandra will not be returning until past the new year. Elliott Hewitt was subbed off with an injury early into Wednesday’s game with Macclesfield and may miss out here. Keston Davies will be suspended after his late red card against the Silkmen. Ben Hall is out long term and will probably not make another appearance for Notts this season. Bury made changes for their game against Mansfield and manager Ryan Lowe may want to change the team again. Top scorer Nicky Maynard and top assists leader in the league, Nicky Adams were two players who may return to the starting XI. Share your thoughts about the game on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Well, it's finally got to that stage - Notts County are bottom of League Two, bottom of the Football League, and bottom of the entire pyramid of professional English football. 92/92. Macclesfield Town, managed by one-time Magpie Sol Campbell, put in a display that overshadowed the hosts at Meadow Lane and claimed a 2-1 win which saw them leapfrog Notts off the foot of League Two. Frankly, it's the same old story. An overall turgid display, the odd good moment following the equaliser where County looked as though they would go into the lead, only for shoddy defending to prove our downfall. Scott Wilson rattled home the opener in the first hald, making the most of plenty of space to apply a good finish past Ross Fitzsimons. Against the run of play, the second half brought a leveller for Neal Ardley's side when good hustling from Jon Stead lead to Keston Davies squaring for Kane Hemmings to drive home. Nine minutes from time, however, Wilson once again had the freedom of the area to sweep the ball into the bottom corner of the net nine minutes from time. Although the Silkmen saw a man sent off late on, the numerical advantage was chalked off as Davies was then shown a straight red card for firing the ball into an opposition player's face while on the ground. Well... despite the performance and result, it was nonetheless good to see the Black & White Army present to show their support. Pride of Nottingham was on hand to take some photos - see if you can spot yourself in our festive Faces of PON! Share your thoughts about this gallery on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Well, it's finally got to that stage. Notts County are bottom of the Football League. Macclesfield Town, managed by one-time Magpie Sol Campbell, put in a display that overshadowed the hosts at Meadow Lane and claimed a 2-1 win which saw them leapfrog Notts off the foot of League Two. Frankly, it's the same old story. An overall turgid display, the odd good moment following the equaliser where County looked as though they would go into the lead, only for shoddy defending to prove our downfall. The Silkmen actually got the ball into the back of the net on 16 minutes, only for some deliberation by the officials to eventually chalk the goal off for offside. But there wouldn't be any disputes in the 36th minute when Scott Wilson rattled home the opener, making the most of plenty of space to apply a good finish past Ross Fitzsimons. Against the run of play, the second half did bring a leveller for Neal Ardley's side when good hustling from Jon Stead lead to Keston Davies squaring for Kane Hemmings to drive home. But it just wouldn't be the Notts class of 2018-19 if they weren't to shoot themselves in the foot, would it? Wilson, picked out by a teammate, once again had the freedom of the area to sweep the ball into the bottom corner of the net nine minutes from time. Although the Silkmen saw a man sent off late on, the numerical advantage was chalked off as Davies was then shown a straight red card for firing the ball into an opposition player's face while on the ground. Share your thoughts about the match on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Hello and welcome to this midweek PONcast Extra, which will preview Notts County's crucial League Two home meeting with fellow strugglers Macclesfield Town. The Magpies are 23rd in the table while the Silkmen are bottom of the league, hence the importance of Neal Ardley's side getting a result against one-time (literally) County man Sol Campbell's side. In addition to the matchday 24 preview, the PON boys also reflect upon the recent match against Grimsby Town - not that you need reminding but it didn't go very well (understatement through gritted teeth). Also, how could Ardley work with the squad to gain better results? This is another question we look into. We also speak about our score predictions how the game at the San Sirrel may pan out. All this and more only in the PONcast Extra: Macclesfield Town Preview. Share your thoughts about this PONcast Extra on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Notts have met Macclesfield 17 times in their history. Notts: 5 Draw: 8 Macclesfield: 4 Notts won the first game between the two this season at Moss Rose. Jon Stead scored a late penalty to give Notts a 1-0 win. This mean Notts took the lead in the head-to-head record between the sides. Since that game, both teams have changed managers. Stats Whilst Neal Ardley won his first home game in charge against Tranmere, he couldn’t provide back to back wins as Notts’ miserable away form continued last time out when Grimsby ran out 4-0 winners. Coincidentally, Macclesfield are the only team Notts have beaten away from home this season and that win has kept The Magpies above The Silkmen in the table. Macclesfield have won 3 of their last 5 games and have moved to within three points of safety. Sol Campbell has taken four points from a possible 9 in his first three games as manager. In those three games, they have only conceded once. Notts’ 4-1 win over Morecambe on Boxing Day last year was their first win in a Boxing Day fixture since 2008. Seasons in each division Division One (or Premier League): 0 Division Two (or Championship): 0 Division Three (or League 1): 1 Division Four (or League 2): 14 Non-League: 37 Notts vs Macclesfield team stats Goals scored: Notts – 25 (joined 17th with Yeovil and Morecambe), Macclesfield - 18 (24th) Goals conceded: Notts – 49 (1st), Macclesfield 38 (joint 2nd with Cambridge) Top scorer: Notts – Kane Hemmings and Jon Stead (6), Macclesfield - Harry Smith (3) Most appearances this season: Notts – Ross Fitzsimons (23), Macclesfield - David Fitzpatrick (23) Team News Enzio Boldewijn, Lewis Alessandra and Ben Hall will still be all out of action for a bit longer. Alessandra may be back at the turn of the year, whilst Boldewijn maybe back by early February. Matt Tootle may return to the Notts starting line-up. The Magpies have been playing without an out-and-out right-back for a month or so. Experienced midfielder Danny Whitaker will be assessed ahead of the Boxing Day game. Former Forest Green right-back Jared Hodgkiss may return to the starting line-up after recovering from injury. Winger Elliott Durrell, who scored an excellent goal in Campbell’s first home game in charge against Crawley, will also be assessed. Share your thoughts about this preview on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Well, Merry Christmas everybody. Following the drama that was 2017, the great escape, the promotion form of the following season, 2018 has crumbled like... well, our defence. Faltering form, failure in the playoffs, and this season, spending Christmas in the bottom two with a team that is frankly shambolic. Grimsby Town are hardly setting the division on fire, yet they ran out 4-0 winners over a Magpies side that, aside from being dreadful, offers no hope of actually putting things right, making the non-league a real possibility. The Mariners got off the mark after just over the three-minute mark, youngster Harry Clifton heading home on the rebound from Harry Cardwell's initial effort Notts then did enjoy a period of pressure but spurned their opportunities and before the break they fell further behind through Harry Davis, who rose highest to head home. Michael Jolley's side never looked back as Davis claimed his second and Grimsby's third, while Wes Thomas fired home on the volley to truly ruin the Black & White Army's Christmas. Share your thoughts about this news story on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Hello and welcome to this week's PONcast Extra. This week, we preview Notts County's game against Grimsby Town at Blundell Park, the Magpies' last League Two game before Christmas Day. How will Neal Ardley line up his charges? Who will he pick in his starting XI and bench? We look at such aspects from County's end. We also reflect on the opposition and how the game might unfold in terms of what they can do against us. In addition, how could Ardley kick on from the win against Tranmere Rovers to give Notts some Christmas cheer and build a good base upon which to tackle the rest of the festive period. We also speak about how the Notts gaffer could use his tactics to take on his second game away. All this and more only in the PONcast Extra: Grimsby Town Preview! Share your thoughts about this PONcast Extra on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Anyone who enjoys the traditional, historic side of football will have been dismayed at how Notts County, the world's oldest Football League club, has come so close to losing that status in recent years. The Magpies have found themselves dwelling dangerously close to falling into the non-league over the last few seasons, although their impressive campaign in 2017-18 would have surely meant that there was going to be some form of comeback on the cards. One thing that isn’t helping Notts however, is their managerial issues. As of 2016, County have been through a staggering SIX permanent managers, with the most notable of those being ex-Newcastle United player Kevin Nolan, who was appointed player manager in January 2017, before being sacked in August after a poor run of results. Ex Leeds man Harry Kewell also took charge for a small while, lasting two months before also being shown the door. It’s become all too common in football as of recent, as we’ve seen with Portsmouth, that teams can fall from grace, and things can turn sour, very very quickly. It’s easy to see why lower league clubs struggle, they need results but with the relatively minuscule budgets they have to try and succeed with, it’s no surprise that the board see the manager as the reason they are underperforming. On the other hand it is them paying them their wages and if they aren’t bringing results into the team, then to a certain extent I can understand the frequent chopping and changing that happens within the league. In all, it is clear to see that teams in a similar possession will struggle until the revenue and other forms of sustainable income increase for those ‘smaller’ teams, and then we may see teams such as County back in the big leagues. Share your thoughts about this feature article on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Notts have met Grimsby 83 times over the years. Notts wins: 27 Draw: 21 Grimsby wins: 35 Since the two started playing each other after both clubs’ return to League Two, Notts haven’t beat Grimsby with their record being PLD 4, W0, D2, L2. Notts have only won two of the last ten league meetings between the two sides. Grimsby have won the last two meetings at Blundell Park scoring twice in both games. Stats Notts ended their nine-game winless run last Saturday when they defeated Tranmere 3-2. There looks like there is some renewed optimism in the Notts squad, now Neal Ardley has taken over. Grimsby are unbeaten in their last six home games, winning five. In those six home games, Wes Thomas has scored five times, including a double last time out against Swindon. Despite only taking 5 points from their first 10 games, they have managed to turn it around and have taken 20 points from their last 12. Seasons in each division First Division (or Prem): 12 Second Division (or Champ): 52 Third Division (or League 1): 28 Fourth Division (or League 2): 16 Non-League: 6 History Liverpool legend Bill Shankly had a spell as Grimsby manager between 1951 and 1954. The Mariners are 39 times winners of the Lincolnshire Senior Cup. During the 1900’s Grimsby were one of only two teams to have permission to play on Christmas Day (along with Hull). Grimsby helped set the current record attendance at Old Trafford in an FA Cup match against Wolves. The attendance was 76,962. Team News Reece Hall-Johnson is back in training and Luton loanee Akin Famewo is close to being back to full fitness after both had spells on the side-lines with injuries. Grimsby will be without Danny Collins after he came off against Swindon. Elliott Whitehouse is still out long-term for the Mariners and Akheem Rose will be assessed ahead of the game. Lewis Alessandra and Enzio Boldewijn are still out injured but the former may return to training in a few weeks. Ben Hall is out long term for Notts. Matt Tootle will be in contention to return for Notts after coming back from an ankle injury. Share your thoughts about this preview on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Notts County manager Neal Ardley has issued an update on the estimated return times for Lewis Alessandra and Enzio Boldewijn. The two attacking players suffered knee injuries in November and are sidelined on a long-term basis, but their new boss is positive to see them back early next year. "It will probably be three weeks before Lewi is back into training, so he's edging ever closer," Ardley told the official Notts website. "Enzio could be back in and around training from the very end of January to mid-February. With the type of injury he's had you just have to play it by ear. "We'll push to get them back soon but we need to make sure they don't break down again." Up next for Notts is a trip to Grimsby Town in the first of five games between this weekend and the 5th of January. Share your thoughts about this news story on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Hello and welcome to Episode 51 of the Pride of Nottingham PONcast, brought to you as always by Chris and Sam. This week, we talk about Notts County's recent game against Tranmere Rovers at Meadow Lane, Neal Ardley's first on home soil, and which yielded a superb 3-2 win. We also discuss how the squad's passion lifted after the triumph over the Birkenhead outfit, as captured by Dan Westwell. In addition, we talk about the upcoming games which form the busy festive period and how they will impact County's form. Also, we share our thoughts on the latest stories about the EFL and English leagues. All this and more only in Episode 51 of the Pride of Nottingham PONcast! Share your thoughts about this PONcast on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Notts County have stopped the rot with their first League Two victory since October as they claimed a 3-2 win against Tranmere Rovers in Saturday's clash at a freezing Meadow Lane. Jon Stead gave Neal Ardley the perfect start in his maiden Magpies home game in charge as, on 33 minutes he was on hand to finish off great work from Kane Hemmings and Dan Jones, who rolled the ball across the face of goal for his veteran colleague to tap home at the back post. However, the Birkenheaders were level just five minutes later as Jonny Smith marauded down the right-hand side before drifting into the box to curl a low shot beyond Notts keeper Ross Fitzsimons. Just before the break, Stead was once again involved as he won the ball in Tranmere's penalty area to swing a cross into the path of Kane Hemmings for a first-time finish and the restoration of the lead. So it stood at half time but once again, the ugly head that is County's farcical defending popped up yet again as Rovers equalised for the second time in the match when Connor Jennings made his way into the area to nod home a cross from the right, the Notts defence bamboozled. Luckily, Stead provided yet another crucial moment as Nathan Thomas was felled by Mark Ellis' clumsy challenge and the veteran forward stepped up to take the penalty, making no mistake to hammer home from 12 yards. Here is what Pride of Nottingham vlogger ARLukomski had to say on the game: Share your thoughts about this video on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Notts County have successfully stopped the rot with their first League Two victory since October as they withstood being twice pegged back to win 3-2 against Tranmere Rovers in Saturday's clash at a freezing Meadow Lane. Jon Stead gave Neal Ardley the perfect start in his maiden Magpies home game in charge as, on 33 minutes he was on hand to finish off great work from Kane Hemmings and Dan Jones, who rolled the ball across the face of goal for his veteran colleague to tap home at the back post. However, the Birkenheaders were level just five minutes later as Jonny Smith marauded down the right-hand side before drifting into the box to curl a low shot beyond Notts keeper Ross Fitzsimons. Just before the break, Stead was once again involved as he won the ball in Tranmere's penalty area to swing a cross into the path of Kane Hemmings for a first-time finish and the restoration of the lead. So it stood at half time but once again, the ugly head that is County's farcical defending popped up yet again as Rovers equalised for the second time in the match when Connor Jennings made his way into the area to nod home a cross from the right, the Notts defence bamboozled. Luckily, Stead provided yet another crucial moment as Nathan Thomas was felled by Mark Ellis' clumsy challenge and the veteran forward stepped up to take the penalty, making no mistake to hammer home from 12 yards. Share your thoughts about the match on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

This afternoon, Notts County will be hoping to stop the rot as they welcome Birkenhead boys Tranmere Rovers to Meadow Lane in League Two. Neal Ardley, who takes the Magpies reins at the San Sirrel for the first time, will seek to end a run of nine games without a win and drag his side out of trouble. Tranmere will be a tricky proposition though, as they're currently seventh in the table. However, their recent away form is poor - they'lost three consecutive away League Two games conceding 11 goals in total. Could this prove a boon for Notts as they seek to condemn Rovers to a fourth successive away loss in the Football League since 2015? In this week's PONcast Extra, the lads preview the fixture - ahead of kickoff, give us a listen and let us know your thoughts on the episode and the game! Share your thoughts about this PONcast on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Notts have met Tranmere 43 times in their history. Notts wins: 17 Draw: 8 Tranmere wins: 18 Both sides last met in the 2013-14 season, with Notts winning 2-0 at Meadow Lane, with Tranmere winning 3-2 at Prenton Park. Since the 1990’s, this fixture has never had one dominant team, with neither team winning more than two in a row against the other. Stats Notts are winless in their last 9 league games but showed some signs of improvement in the first half against Mansfield last Saturday, before another second-half no show. Tranmere’s away form has been their achilles heel this season, with them winning only 2 of their 10 away games (drawing 4 and losing 4). They have lost their last two away games, conceding eight. Top scorer James Norwood has scored 7 in his last 6 games. Seasons in each division First Division (or Prem): 0 Second Division (or Champ): 11 Third Division (or League 1): 58 Fourth Division (or League 2): 18 Non-league: 3 History Tranmere have only had 26 managers in their history, which is less than what Notts have had since mid-1989 when Neil Warnock took charge. When Dave Russell became manager in 1962, he changed the kits from blue to white. Tranmere visited Wembley twice in the early 90’s for back-to-back Leyland DAF Trophy finals. They won the first against Bristol Rovers 2-1 in 1990 but lost the 1991 final 3-2 to Birmingham City. Famous Irish international and Tranmere legend, John Aldridge, is the only Rovers player to score at a World Cup. Team News Matt Tootle returned to training for Notts this week but is not yet match fit, so it is unlikely he will start. Jon Stead and Kane Hemmings made appearances last Saturday for Notts and will be in contention to start against Tranmere. Ben Hall and Enzio Boldewijn will be out long-term after both picked up injuries a few weeks ago. Tranmere will be without Ollie Banks, Sheffield United loanee Harvey Gilmour and Larnell Cole. Gilmour has 3 goals in 12 appearances whilst Banks has 3 assists from midfield. Winger Dylan Mottley-Henry has returned to Barnsley to undergo treatment on an injury and will miss Saturday’s game. Share your thoughts about this preview on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Hello and welcome to Episode 50 of the Pride of Nottingham PONcast! Yes, we've made it to a half-century! And not out either, not by a long stretch... In this week's episode, brought to you by Chris and Sam, we talk about Notts County's recent game against Mansfield Town away at Field Mill. We also discuss how David Vaughan and Nathan Thomas played in the last game. We talk about the speculation that Kevin Nolan was coming back as Notts County's manager before Neal Ardley was appointed. Also, we share our thoughts on the players wages, the appointment of academy manager Dave Regis and the lack of delegations amongst the coaching staff. All this and more only in Episode 50 not out of the Pride of Nottingham PONcast! Share your thoughts about this PONcast on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Kevin Nolan has suggested that he spoke to Alan Hardy about a potential return to Notts County in the past few weeks but "it never got to dotting the i's or crossing the t's". The former midfielder was sacked by the Magpies and replaced by Harry Kewell, who was himself let go after 14 games. Neal Ardley then came on board at Meadow Lane in November after he had parted ways with AFC Wimbledon by mutual consent. The Wombles have since hired Wally Downes, and Nolan says the job was not right for him after moving his family up to Nottingham in the summer while still in charge at Meadow Lane. Nolan told the Times: "I had to be honest with them. It would have been tough. I would have been a long, long time away from my family again and it would have taken a lot of hours to get it where it needed to be." He described the news of his sacking by Notts County owner and chairman Alan Hardy as a "slap in the face" but, after Kewell was sacked, Nolan said they "had a chat". "That was it," he said. "At no time in my eyes was it an interview and I didn't go and see him because I wanted the job back. "I don't think I needed to sell myself. People can probably read between the lines, but it never got to dotting the i's or crossing the t's." Share your thoughts about this news story on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Another weekend, another crushing disappointment in the long line of crushing disappointments. Notts County, already woefully trundling along in this season's League Two campaign, were tasked with going to big rivals Mansfield Town in the hope of getting some points. They did perform well enough in the first half, to be fair, but bad defending proved the Magpies' downfall as Mal Benning lofted the ball to the far post from the left and CJ Hamilton turned home. The goalscorer then rattled the Notts crossbar early after the restart as the Stags began the second half on the front foot. Eventually, Hamilton doubled the lead on 63 minutes, making a mockery of the visitors' defence - including a Cruyff turn in their box - to fire home low from 10 yards after Mellis had fed him from the right. Here is ARLukomski's take on the match in his latest vlog video: Share your thoughts about this video on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Sigh... Pretty much everything that could have gone wrong for Notts County in the first half of this season has gone wrong. You can add defeat in the Nottinghamshire derby to that as Mansfield Town ran out 2-0 winners against the Magpies at Field Mill in Neal Ardley's League Two debut for his new side. In all fairness, the stats do favour the Stags (58% possession, 17 shots, 7 on target) but aside from possession (42%), Notts didn't seem to have done too badly themselves on that front (10 shots, 5 on target, 4 corners). But once again it's that old chestnut of poor defending that saw Mansfield get themselves on the scoresheet and claim three points and bragging rights (once again). The first half was a fairly exciting affair, with both sides trading blows, but it was the hosts who drew first blood on 37 minutes as Mal Benning lofted the ball to the far post from the left and CJ Hamilton turned home. The goalscorer then rattled the Notts crossbar early after the restart as the Stags began the second half on the front foot. Eventually, Hamilton doubled the lead on 63 minutes, making a mockery of the visitors' defence - including a Cruyff turn in their box - to fire home low from 10 yards after Mellis had fed him from the right. Share your thoughts about the match on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.