Loan search continues as Stags prepare for big game with Bury

Mansfield Town’s search for a loan striker continues, but boss Paul Cox said it was unlikely to happen before tomorrow night’s important six-pointer with Bury at One Call Stadium (7.45pm).
Mansfield Manager Paul Cox by Tina Jenner Chesterfield  v Mansfield TownMansfield Manager Paul Cox by Tina Jenner Chesterfield  v Mansfield Town
Mansfield Manager Paul Cox by Tina Jenner Chesterfield v Mansfield Town

Stags go into the game on a high after recording their first home win in 12 outings in Saturday’s 2-0 win over in-form Southend United.

That pushed Mansfield to 17th in the table, three points ahead of 20th-placed Bury, but the Shakers have two games in hand, underlining the importance of this game.

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“I don’t think anything will happen with a loan player by tomorrow night but, saying that, anything can happen within 24 hours in this game,” said Cox.

“We are still talking to a number of clubs and representatives and we are going to watch a number of games this week. Ultimately we want to try to bring someone in that will improve us. But we also have to make sure it is the right player.”

Victory tomorrow would be a massive boost for Mansfield in their fight to push free of the relegation dogfight, but Cox said: “Victory tomorrow won’t decide any outcome for us or for Bury, though both teams want to win it for the same reasons.

“We have watched Bury and we know it will be a tough one. They have had a lot of finance pushed in to enable their manager to bring in his own players and it’s been a bit of a revolving door with players going out. He has brought some good ones in.

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“But we are in a positive mindset. The boys enjoyed their weekend and I enjoyed my weekend.

“It was nice to get a well-deserved win at home, but it is just one one game. We now have to build into tomorrow and put in the same kind of performance while maybe showing a bit more ruthlessness.

“We had a few more chances we could have done a bit better with and probably made the game a bit easier for ourselves rather than going into five minutes of injury time feeling a bit anxious.”

Stags will send a young side to Rotherham for today’s reserve fixture, though three or four first team squad players will get 30-45 minutes to keep the rust away, including Lee Beevers, whose scan on his problem shoulder has revealed he can continue for the time being.

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