Stags boss Paul Cox to give his players a second chance against Cambridge

Stags had won four on the bounce and four successive away games, bagging 13 goals in two games, before Tuesday’s 2-0 surrender in the Newport mud, and Cox said: “I thought we let ourselves down the other night.

“But I don’t want to be too hard on the lads. Our form over the last eight games has been quite good. It is the old cliché that I now want to see a response from them on Saturday.

“I am more concerned about how we bounce back and how it affects our mindset.

“So the lads will probably have the chance to rectify things on Saturday. If you fall off the horse, you have just got to get back on it.

“I will be watching them all very closely in training and unless I see tired legs, tired minds or for tactical reasons, I won’t be changing things for the sake of one defeat. I don’t want to rush into stupid decisions.

“But I do have good players champing at the bit to come back in. I left Lindon Meikle out for a rest and he is now a little firecracker waiting to be let loose.”

Cambridge, who beat Stags 4-1 at home earlier this season, arrive looking to bounce back themselves after a 3-0 home loss to Alfreton in midweek, and have won just once in five games to sit 10th.