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Sweden Stag's Bury preview

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Sweden Stag's Bury preview

Postby Martin Shaw » Mon Dec 24, 2018 8:45 am

Boxing Day has over the years been a traditional day for watching League Football. Also traditionally been a day with big crowds watching the games. And for the Stags, it will be a very good test at headquarters as the opponents are another side in the playoff and promotion mix, a side previously managed by current Stags boss David Flitcroft, who managed Bury on their lastest FL visit to Mansfield three years ago.

Then, he steered the Shakers to promotion from League Two in 2015 with thirteen wins and three defeats in their last sixteen games then, just six goals conceded in those fixtures. Bury keeper then: Nick Pope, now at Burnley. One of those sixteen games was played at Mansfield in March 2015, when an early own goal sealed the tie in favour of Bury.

The Shakers lasted three seasons in League One and were rock-bottom last campaign with just eight wins in 46 attempts. And this season, they are inside the playoff zone having scored more goals than any other League Two side so far, 42 so far, having netted four goals on five occasions during this campaign. This will be a good test for the Stags defence. And earlier this season, the sides fought out a 2-2 draw at Gigg Lane with Bury equalizing deep into added time. Although the draw was fair enough, the timing of the Bury equalizer could have been better.

Bury are the only club that have scored over 1000 goals in each of the four UK professional divisions. The Shakers had before the 1957-58 season spent the whole of their league life in the top two divisions and even twice been FA cup winners, 1900 and three years later without conceding a goal. Their best league position is 5th in the old first division as far back as 1925-26, just five years before the Stags’ election to the League.

And in 1957-58, the Shakers found themselves in the third level for the very first time. This was in the last season of the old 3rd division set-up. And the first-ever league meetings between the teams were won by the Stags, 2-0 away on November 9, 1957, and 6-4 at Field Mill on April 19, 1958, the latter game being the one with most goals scored.

Both teams were to be founder members of the old third division at the end of the 1957-58 campaign with Bury finishing fourth and the Stags just two ranks below. The stats at One Call Stadium aka Field Mill show that one third of the games have been drawn and that the Shakers have won six of the last ten league fixtures at Mansfield, among them a 5-1 on October 28, 1995 when a certain Phil Stant, Stags top scorer with 26 goals in the 1991-92 promotion season, hit a brace for Bury. But it was not the only Bury 5-1 win in Stagsland, the first being played on January 16, 1960, and this was Sam Weaver’s last game as Stags manager.

The biggest Stags victory at home so far is a 5-0 mauling on October 2, 1976 in the division 3 Championship season. Two goals apiece from Kevin Randall and John Miller, one from Paul Matthews completed the rout in front of 6516. And that during a period of nearly 25 years when the teams faced each other very frequently in the old third and fourth divisions, being relegated together in 1979-80. And in two cases of Bury old division four promotions, the Stags have been promoted the following season. This happened in 1974-75 and 1985-86 for the Stags. Furthermore, in the Stags two last FL promotion seasons, Bury were relegated! That was the case in 1991-92 and also ten years later.

The teams have also faced each other twice in the FA Cup, and on both occasions the Stags reached the 5th round!

In 1969-70, the Stags won a 1st round replay 2-0 after the first game at Gigg Lane had been drawn 2-2, and in the 1974-75 Championship season, the Stags won a 4th round encounter at Bury 2-1 (attendance there, 16623!).

About one-third of all league games between the sides at Bury as well as at Mansfield have been drawn. But the Stags have not won at home against the Shakers in little more than a decade, the latest a 5-3 thriller on September 16, 2003, and that win is the only home victory out of the last nine on home soil. More on that 5-3 game in the match centre. And the Stags have only won two out of their latest eighteen home fixtures against the Shakers, but from the above-mentioned 5-0 rout in 1976 included, the Stags won four home games on the trot against Bury, scoring eleven goals without reply. About time to break that current Shakers hoodoo.

Six seasons ago, two divisions separated this weekend’s sides. While Bury endured a difficult campaign both on and off the pitch, eventually ending up in an inevitable relegation from League One, the Stags were crowned BSP champions on the final day of the 2012-13 campaign. Following relegation, Bury had to build a new side managed by Kevin Blackwell, who was axed as Bury boss before the goal-less home game against the Stags in October 2013. Blackwell was replaced by David Flitcroft following his departure from then Championship side Barnsley. A decade ago, Flitcroft was a Bury player for two seasons and played against the Stags in all four games in the 2004-05 and 2005-06 campaigns, respectively.

At Bury, the Stags have won just five times, four of those to 2-0 scorelines. Among them are the very first League game between the sides on November 9, 1957, when Chapman scored a brace, and the latest victory at all against the Shakers on February 19, 2005 with Murray and Rundle as Stags scorers. In 2005, Bury had a Marriott in goal, but his first name was Andy, who one year later was to face the Stags at Torquay in front of the previewer during a 2-0 Stags victory there.

Played for both sides: George Anderson, James Ball (early 1900’s!!!), Luther Blissett, Lee Bullock, Giles Coke, Laurent D’Jaffo, Stephen Dawson, Eddie Edmonds (1934-35 vintage Stags!), Ben Futcher, Dave Goodwin, Chris Hackett, Glynn Hurst, Brian Jensen, Mark Kearney, Keith Kennedy, Adrian Littlejohn, David Lyon, Jacob Mellis, Joe O’Neill, Keigan Parker, Thomas Peters, John Phillips, Kevin Randall, George Raynor (who later had much success as coach in Sweden, i.e. 1958 WC Finals!), Danny Reet, Danny Rose, John Ryan, Jake Speight, Phil Stant, Matthew Tipton, Alan Tyrer (no mention of him playing for Stags in the 1973-74 Rothmans Football Yearbook while on Workington’s books!), Hayden White, Chris Withe.

Played for Stags, later managing Bury: Sam Ellis (managed the Shakers between April 1, 1989 and December 11, 1990). And the Sunderland 1973 FA Cup winners' manager, the late Bob Stokoe, managed Bury in two spells. Ian Greaves, the longest-ever serving Stags manager, was later coach at Bury. And the late Billy Ayre, Stags player in 1982-83, coached Bury a few months before he passed away in April 2002. Daniel Tremelling was assistant trainer at Bury in the mid-thirties. More recently, Richie Barker managed the Shakers, while Peter Shirtliff did manage both sides during the last decade. David Flitcroft recently returned to Gigg Lane, but as a Stags boss for the first time.

Home stats: P 32, W 9, D 10, L 13, GF 42, GA 53
Away stats: P 33, W 5, D 12, L 16, GF 27, GA 47

Season Home Date Away Date

1957-58 6-4 1958-04-19 2-0 1957-11-09 Div 3 (N)
1958-59 0-2 1958-12-13 2-2 1959-04-28 Div 3 (old)
1959-60 1-5 1960-01-16 1-4 1959-09-05 Div 3 (old)
1967-68 1-1 1967-09-30 1-3 1968-02-10 Div 3 (old)
1969-70 3-1 1970-02-23 0-1 1969-09-30 Div 3 (old)
1970-71 1-0 1971-02-13 0-0 1971-01-23 Div 3 (old)
1972-73 1-1 1972-09-09 0-1 1973-01-27 Div 4 (old)
1973-74 1-2 1974-04-01 0-2 1974-01-27 Div 4 (old)
1975-76 1-1 1976-02-23 1-2 1975-09-23 Div 3 (old)
1976-77 5-0 1976-10-02 0-2 1977-03-12 Div 3 (old)
1978-79 3-0 1979-04-21 0-0 1978-12-30 Div 3 (old)
1979-80 1-0 1979-10-13 2-0 1980-02-23 Div 3 (old)
1980-81 2-0 1981-02-07 1-4 1980-09-13 Div 4 (old)
1981-82 1-1 1981-09-19 2-3 1982-01-30 Div 4 (old)
1982-83 1-4 1982-10-09 0-1 1983-02-19 Div 4 (old)
1983-84 1-1 1984-03-17 2-2 1983-10-08 Div 4 (old)
1984-85 0-2 1984-11-24 0-0 1985-04-20 Div 4 (old)
1986-87 1-3 1987-02-07 1-1 1986-09-16 Div 3 (old)
1987-88 0-0 1988-04-23 0-1 1987-11-03 Div 3 (old)
1988-89 1-1 1989-04-22 1-0 1988-09-24 Div 3 (old)
1989-90 1-0 1990-02-10 0-3 1989-09-16 Div 3 (old)
1990-91 0-1 1991-02-05 0-1 1990-09-22 Div 3 (old)
1993-94 2-2 1994-03-26 2-2 1993-10-02 Div 3
1994-95 0-2 1994-09-03 2-2 1995-03-25 Div 3
1995-96 1-5 1995-10-28 2-0 1996-04-06 Div 3
2003-04 5-3 2003-09-16 0-3 2004-03-16 Div 3
2004-05 0-0 2004-10-30 2-0 2005-02-19 League Two
2005-06 0-3 2005-11-11 0-0 2006-04-29 League Two
2006-07 0-2 2006-12-09 1-1 2007-05-05 League Two
2007-08 1-1 2008-02-26 0-2 2008-03-24 League Two
2013-14 1-4 2014-02-25 0-0 2013-10-22 League Two
2014-15 0-1 2015-03-14 0-2 2014-12-28 League Two
2018-19 (at Bury) 2-2 2018-10-06 League Two

Expect a stern test on Boxing Day. Come on Mansfield!
"Four points clear as Lincoln are McCaffreyised", CHAD headline, April 1975
Martin Shaw
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