Our prediction for this League 2 match:
All eyes will be on Brunton Park when Carlisle and Northampton face each other in the League Two derby on Saturday afternoon. The Cumbrians aim to return to winning ways after dropping two points in a goalless draw with Walsall, with the team eyeing their 12th home win of the process. Jack Ellis limped off with injury in Monday’s clash, with Jordan Gibson likely to step up.
The Cobblers, on the other hand, aim to build on a 2-1 over Gillingham, but beating Carlisle on the road is easier said than done. The two teams seem to be evenly matched at the moment, and we believe that there is a big value in betting on draw. There are no fresh injury worries in the visiting team, but forward Jack Sowerby could sneak into the starting XI after coming as a substitute in the last league match.
Highlighted Player (Tomas Holy):
Born in the town of Rychnov nad Kneznou, Czechoslovakia, Tomas Holy is a Czech professional footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper for Ipswich Town in League One. The 27-year-old was born on the 10th of December, 1991, and joined FC Hradec Kralove's youth academy in 2006. After spending four years with them, he signed for Sparta Prague and started playing for its B team.
His first professional appearance for AC Sparta Prague B came on the 11th of June, 2011, in a 1-2 home loss against FK Varnsdorf. He went on to ply his trade-in Czech football for the next six years before moving to Gillingham in England on the 20th of January, 2017, on a two and a half year contract. Gillingham's manager praised the 2.06m tall goalkeeper's "large presence" and "ball-kicking ability," stating them as reasons behind his recruitment. In his time at Gillingham, Holy made 107 appearances and kept 25 clean sheets in all competitions.
On the 24th of May, 2019, Holy joined Ipswich on a free transfer and made an immediate impact. He kept six clean sheets in his first ten league games for Ipswich, including a run of five consecutive clean sheets, a club record. Internationally, Holy has capped at the under-16, under-17, and under-18 level for his country but is yet to receive a call up for the first team.
Highlighted Team (Northampton):
Northampton are a professional football club that compete in the League Two, the English fourth tier. The Cobblers play their home matches at Sixfields Stadium, the venue that has a capacity of 7,798. Northampton Town are well known for their claret and white home kit, while black is the dominant colour of their away jersey.
Northampton did well to make it to the Charity Shield final in 1909, with the team suffering a 2-0 loss to Newcastle United in the title game. The Cobblers are holding the record for the shortest time taken to secure promotion from the bottom tier to the top flight and relegated back down to the bottom again. Northampton Town managed to do so in only nine years.
Peterborough united are regarded as the club’s main rivals, with other significant rivalries including the likes of Oxford United, Milton Keynes Dons, Cambridge United, Coventry City, and Rushden & Diamonds.