Preview:Accrington Stanley vs Newport County - prediction, team news, lineups

Desperate to escape the League Two relegation zone, Newport County will travel to Wham Stadium to face Accrington Stanley on Saturday.

Stanley are hoping to bounce back from three straight defeats, while the Exiles are looking to build on their win last time out.

Match preview

John Doolan's Accrington failed to win any of their first six league games in 2025-26, but after back-to-back successes against Colchester United and MK Dons last month, they thought they had turned a corner.

Unfortunately for Stanley, they have since been beaten three times in a row leading up to this weekend's clash, conceding seven and scoring just once in the process.

Most recently, Doolan's side followed up their 2-0 League Two defeat at the hands of Barnet with another 2-0 loss against League One's Port Vale, who eliminated them from the EFL Trophy without a response.

Accrington's current dismal run of form has them 20th in the table with only nine points so far, but they remain three points above the drop zone despite already being eight points short of the top half.

The hosts began their season with two wins and two draws from their opening four fixtures at Wham Stadium, but they will need to defy their disappointing record of three losses and one victory from their last four home matches if they are to get back to winning ways on Saturday.

Meanwhile, David Hughes's Newport kicked off their fourth-tier campaign by taking four points from their first two games, but they followed those results with a dire six-match losing streak.

One single draw against Tranmere Rovers on September 13 gave the Exiles momentary respite before another four consecutive defeats across all competitions, extending their winless run to 11 fixtures.

That horrendous form has left Hughes's men 24th in the table, though their meagre tally of five points from 11 games sees them only two behind 22nd-placed Cheltenham Town, the first team safe from the drop.

However, Newport's agony came to an end this past Tuesday when a first-half strike from Thomas Davies proved enough to beat Cardiff City 1-0 in the EFL Trophy.

The Exiles may remain at the foot of the League Two standings, but they will draw confidence and hope from their victory earlier this week - which was their first on the road since August 9's 2-1 win over Crawley Town - as well as the fact that they have scored in all but one of their last seven matches.

Accrington Stanley League Two form:

Accrington Stanley form (all competitions):

Newport County League Two form:

Newport County form (all competitions):

Team News

Accrington have a number of defensive absentees to deal with, including centre-back Devon Matthews, who is suspended after accumulating yellow cards, and fellow centre-half Farrend Rawson, who is an injury doubt having last played against Grimsby Town in late August.

Forced to change his usual backline, Doolan is likely to set up with Logan Pye alongside Joshua Smith and Benn Ward in a trio on Saturday, while Charlie Brown and Isaac Heath start at wing back.

At the opposite end of the pitch, Stanley's 2024-25 player of the season, winger Shaun Whalley, is sidelined once again and has yet to feature this season, and with striker Tyler Walton also a doubt, expect to see Charlie Caton and Josh Woods start up top, supported by Isaac Sinclair from an attacking midfield role.

As for Newport, they have a lengthy injury list to contend with this weekend, and Hughes will need to select an XI without the likes of striker Gerard Garner, who has been out for the best part of a month, as well as midfielders Keenan Patten and Matthew Smith, who have not made a matchday squad since July and August respectively.

With that in mind, Bobby Kamwa and Michael Reindorf could line up either side of centre-forward Nathan Opoku given that left-winger Michael Spellman is also a doubt, while Sammy Braybrooke, Kai Whitmore and Cameron Antwi are likely to patrol the centre of the park.

Elsewhere, the visitors are light on the right side of defence, with Liam Shephard out due to a hamstring injury and Habeeb Ogunneye being forced off last time out, so the manager could opt for Joe Thomas on the right of a back four alongside Lee Jenkins, Matthew Baker and Thomas Davies.

Accrington Stanley possible starting lineup:

Wright; Smith, Ward, Pye; Brown, Conneely, Bauress, Heath; Sinclair; Caton, Woods

Newport County possible starting lineup:

Tzanev; Thomas, Jenkins, Baker, Davies; Whitmore, Braybrooke, Antwi; Reindorf, Opoku, Kamwa

We say: Accrington Stanley 0-1 Newport County

Accrington have lost three on the bounce ahead of this weekend, and their lack of attacking output in recent games could see them stifled once again.

In contrast, while Newport have been shockingly poor overall this season, they have scored in six of their last seven matches, and if they can find the back of the net once, then they could escape with all three points on Saturday.

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