LOMAS ON STAGS: Four huge games ahead for depleted Stags to get through

Always a rollercoaster watching the Stags, the season took another huge, dramatic dip from the heights of the previous week on Saturday when they were hammered 5-2 at home by rivals Salford City.

The result and the sparkling performance of Salford came as much as a surprise to the Ammies as it did to the Stags.

They were three without a win and Mansfield had just won three in eight days without conceding.

But form books often matter little in the beautiful game and City simply found top form on the day, dominated midfield, defended superbly, took their chances, and utilised the pace and skill of their two whippet wingers.

Now, w ith between eight and 11 players either out or a doubt for Saturday’s trip to AFC Wimbledon, whoever is fit simply has to go out there and keep the promotion dream alive.

Looking at the current table with 14 games to go Mansfield still have to see the top three automatic promotion spots as a realistic goal.

But with three out the next four games away from home and three of those matches against top seven rivals Leyton Orient, Stockport County and Northampton Town, it’s completely the wrong time to have so many players missing.

However, if Stags can dig in and get enough points to stay in touch with the top three – they were only five points adrift ahead of last night’s fixtures – over that period, then the return of high quality stars like Louis Reed, Stephen McLaughlin and Rhys Oates for the last 10 games could help see them over the line.

First and foremost they need to bounce back from the Salford thrashing with a determined display at the Cherry Red Records Stadium on Saturday against a Dons side floundering in mid-table.

With Will Swan now out for up to six weeks, that sees Danny Johnson moving up the striker pecking order.

And, while he had no real service and barely got a kick on Saturday after coming on as a substitute, you still get the feeling that with so much being written about him and his goalscoring exploits on loan at Walsall, Johnson could potentially still become a key figure in Mansfield’s fate this season.