Preview:Barrow vs. Stockport County - prediction, team news, lineups

Barrow will be looking to make it three victories on the bounce when they entertain the challenge of Stockport County on Tuesday afternoon.

Meanwhile, the away side make the journey to Holker Street aiming to continue their recent upturn in form, which has seen them win back to back matches for the first time in over a month.

Match preview

AFC Barrow got the better of Crewe Alexandra as they ran out convincing 3-1 winners in Saturday's encounter between the sides at the Alexandra Stadium.

Two goals from Ben Whitfield either side of a Gerard Garner penalty got the job done for Pete Wild's men, rendering Elliott Nevitt's strike inconsequential.

As a result, the Bluebirds remain second in the League Two table, six points adrift of top spot heading into the midway point of the season.

Next up is the task of facing off against an opposing outfit with little to choose over the last four meetings, which have yielded two wins apiece.

Off the back of four straight wins on home turf, Tuesday's hosts will be confident of getting the job done in front of their fans once again.

Stockport County came away with maximum points from their clash against Notts County at Edgeley Park, which ended in a narrow 2-1 triumph.

Goals in either half from Kyle Wootton and Patrick Madden put Dave Challinor's men in cruise control before David McGoldrick halved the deficit late on.

With 49 points amassed from their 23 league outings so far, the Hatters currently lead the way in the standings, six points clear of Barrow and Wrexham.

Winless in their last four matches on the road, Tuesday's visitors will be keen to turn their away fortunes around as they look to pull away in the title race.

Team News

Ben Whitfield has scored four times in his last four matches for Barrow, and the midfielder will be seeking to deliver the goods once again.

Sean Etaluku remains out of contention for the home side, having not featured since the first week of November in an EFL Trophy clash against the Liverpool Under-21s.

Patrick Madden has been on a scoring spree of late with five goals in six matches leading up to Tuesday's clash, making the Irishman one to look out for.

Twenty-seven-year-old Macauley Southam is set to sit out a third straight game for the away side as he continues to nurse a muscle problem.

Barrow possible starting lineup:

Farman; Canavan, Ray, Chester; Newby, Foley, White, Spence, Worrall; Whitfield, Garner

Stockport County possible starting lineup:

Hinchliffe; Byrne, Horsfall, Pye; Knoyle, Croasdale, Bailey, Touray; Madden, Olaofe, Wootton

We say: Barrow 1-2 Stockport County

With the two best teams in the division go head-to-head, we are anticipating an open and end to end affair. That said, we fancy the visitors to emerge victorious in the end, albeit by only a narrow margin.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.