Exeter City face Lincoln City on Good Friday in one of the standout ties in League Two as both teams are battling at the top end of the table.
Lincoln City sit just one place and two points outside the play-off places, while City are fifth and just four points of the automatic promotion spots with a game in hand on the two teams immediately above them.
Grecians boss Paul Tisdale is pleased to be going into the final eight games of the campaign with so much to play for.
“We have worked all year to be in a position where we have a real positive purpose to the end of the season,” he said. “I’d like to be a few points better off and a position or two better off but I am pretty happy where we are and the type of form that we are in and with eight games to go there are plenty of points to play for. There are lots of teams playing each other so teams will drop points and if we win most of our games we are going to be in a good position.”
Tis admits it is about taking it one game at a time though and is looking forward to visiting Sincil Bank, where the away allocation has sold-out ahead of Good Friday’s kick-off.
“It is a very atmospheric ground,” said Tis. “We played there eight or nine years ago and enjoyed the game that day. They (Lincoln) are in a really good period of progress under a fresh young manager and his brother who have really galvanized and formed a really effective environment and unit and the result have come.
“They got promotion last season as well as a good FA Cup run and they have proved themselves this year. They are in a good position. They will be thinking of play-offs just like we are and it will be a really competitive exciting game, I’m sure, as it is bank holiday weekend and both sides have got everything to play for.”
City go into the match on the back of a good win and performance against Swindon Town last time out. However, Tis admits it’s about results not performances at this stage of the campaign.
“It is about points on the table however you play,” he said. “We played very well against Yeovil and didn’t get a win and we have scraped through elsewhere but it is about getting the points with eight games to go.
“Beating Swindon Town was great, but it means nothing if you lose the next two games. It is all about accumulating points now over this remaining five weeks of the season. We have got eight games to play and a big six points at stake this weekend.”
Lee Holmes and Ryan Harley will face late fitness tests to see if they can make the game at Sincil Bank, while Jordan Moore-Taylor and Troy Brown will be both be ruled out through injury. Other than that City have a fully fit squad to choose from.