The League Two play-offs are ahead of us, after a final day in which two of the participants had their eye on the automatic promotion places.
So, will Notts County and Salford City pick themselves up for the post-season and bounce back to celebrate under the arch? Or will Chesterfield and Grimsby Town find themselves better prepared?
Let's discuss in my 2025/26 League Two play-offs preview.
Salford City
Why they will do it
The defence. Salford have conceded just five goals in their last 12 league games, and those zeros and ones will certainly come in handy in the play-off format.
The Ammies boast an extremely talented goalkeeper in Matty Young, on loan from Sunderland, and one of League Two’s most dominant centre halves in Ade Oluwo.
Karl Robinson’s side would have had a better chance of automatic promotion had they kept their best XI fit for longer, but they do go into the play-offs with Haji Mnoga, Kallum Cesay and Kelly N’Mai available.
Why they might not
Robinson is an excellent motivator when it comes to hyping everything up, and engaging people.
On the other hand, because his team talks are so intense, as the club’s documentary YouTube series show, it remains to be seen whether he can cool things down when he needs to as well.
Sometimes, the gravity of the occasion does enough motivating on its own, and on the big days some of the players might actually need someone who can relax them, rather than gee them up.
What the odds say
There’s worse bets to place than Salford at 11/4, but the best value selection is still to come…
Notts County
Why they will do it
Firepower. The Magpies have won by a margin of three or more goals five times this season, boasting a plethora of dangerous attacking options in Alassana Jatta, Matthew Dennis and Lee Ndlovu.
With Jodi Jones and Tyrese Hall also among the goals, midfielder Tom Iorpenda enjoying a stunning campaign on loan from Huddersfield, and wing-back Nick Tsaroulla bringing flair aplenty, County have multiple ways in which they can hurt their opponents.
Why they might not
Managerial inexperience. Karl Robinson has won promotion with MK Dons. David Artell has won promotion with Crewe. Paul Cook has done it four times in his career.
All three of these managers have faced the pressure cooker of big games in a promotion race. Ok, technically Artell did it in the COVID-aborted season but you get my point – they all got over the line.
Martin Paterson, on the other hand, hasn’t done it as a manager before, even if he’s been a respected part of Michael Duff’s coaching staff at Barnsley.
Plus, they’re missing Matty Platt quite sorely, and have lost four of their last eight.
What the odds say
It's difficult to side with them at 11/4 based on the form.
They might be able to steamroller teams on their day, but the number of defeats suggests they won’t prosper in tight games, which is important in the play-off format.
Chesterfield
Why they will do it
Form. Having taken a whopping 20 points from their last eight games, Chesterfield come into the play-offs as very much the form team, which is why they’re priced as 9/4 favourites, and the other three teams are 11/4 apiece.
The Spireites have been as good as anyone in League Two on their day, with a spritely goalscorer in Lee Bonis who has enjoyed an excellent second half of the season.
With a rock solid midfield of Tom Naylor and Ryan Stirk giving Leicester loanee Sammy Braybrooke the freedom to play, Paul Cook’s side have flair in the shape of Dilan Markanday – formerly of Tottenham youth.
Meanwhile, Sil Swinkels and Kyle McFadzean represent the perfect defensive blend of youth and experience.
Why they might not
Inconsistency. The Derbyshire outfit’s ceiling is as high as anyone’s, but their floor is that of a midtable side. All season, supporters have gone to ground not knowing which Chesterfield team was going to turn up.
Outside the first and last full month of the campaign, Cook’s side strung more than one win together in succession just once across a seven-month period.
They lost 6-2 at Colchester, but then won at Salford. They won at Grimsby, then didn’t win in three. They lost at strugglers Newport in January, but then beat Salford again, then won two in six, dropping points against Harrogate and Crawley. They lost at home to Shrewsbury, but then won at Notts County, then lost 3-0 at Oldham, but then finished the season in tremendous form.
You can call it bouncebackability, I’ll call it unreliable.
What the odds say
Not a chance am I backing Chesterfield at a price as short as 9/4, especially after how inconsistent they’ve been all season.
Grimsby Town
Why they will do it
David Artell. Since he took charge of Grimsby in November 2023, and kept them up in his first season, they’ve progressed significantly in both his full seasons in charge.
9th to 7th, and 68 points to 78, doesn’t feel like as big a jump as 21st to 9th and 49 points to 68, but the Mariners had a nine-game winless streak across November and December, having been the better team in five of those games, and with the extra points they’d be in the top three.
In contrast with Robinson, as aforementioned, Artell is very good at adapting to the needs of individual players, something he spoke about in an extended interview with Mariners TV.
That management style might translate well to the big occasion, and they have two goalscorers in top marksman Jaze Kabia, and the experienced Andy Cook. Kieran Green and Charles Vernam have had fabulous seasons too, in terms of productivity.
Why they might not
We’re nitpicking slightly, because they are the joint-top goalscorers in the competition, so the fact they could have scored a lot more this season speaks volumes for their rate of chance creation.
But, Grimsby do have the propensity to have a series of games where they carve the opposition open time and again, and nothing seems to drop for them.
Sometimes that can happen in the play-offs, when the stakes are so high.
What the odds say
Having created the most chances in League Two this season, Grimsby are clearly the most inventive side of the four and represent fantastic value at 11/4. They also have marginally the best defensive xG of the teams involved, too.
All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
