Last season's League Two champions currently sit in seventeenth place in England’s third tier after five games. The robins have so far claimed a memorable win over Ipswich, draws at Burton and Crewe, and lost two.
It’s sure to be a tense and challenging season for Gloucestershire’s highest placed club and we’re hoping to cast a minimal amount of light on what could be expected heading into the rest of the campaign.
We’ve looked at the past encounters between Cheltenham and our remaining opposition to create a potentially unrealistic and not quite fact based points total and where that could see us finish. So for the sake of interest, here’s what will happen based on previous games since our inaugural football league season.
You’ll have to excuse the better head to head earning all six points or never having played each other resulting in two draws but it will be interesting to know just what we’re up against!
THE RULES
Mostly wins: 6 points
Mostly defeats: 0 points
All draws or no games: 2 points
Mostly draws but more wins: 4 points
Mostly draws but more defeats: 1 points
Sunderland: 0 points - The only previous meeting came in the EFL Cup back in 2005 when a ninety second minute (in extra time) goal from Anthony Le Tallec was enough for the then Premier League side to win at the Stadium of Light.
Sheffield Wednesday: 2 points - Cheltenham and Sheffield Wednesday are yet to meet in professional action, but the robins have faced their cross city rivals United in a 4-0 FA Cup loss, but that doesn’t mean anything here. With current form, however, another meeting could be on the cards next season.
Oxford United: 2 points - What’s likely to be our only ‘local derby’ of the season, the visit of slightly near neighbours Oxford United is sure to be an exciting one. The two club shave met twenty five times since 2001 with just the sixty one goals scored. The record stands at eight wins for Cheltenham, eight wins for Oxford, and nine draws.
Wigan Athletic: 0 points - The two sides met in league action back in the 2002/03 season with one draw and one win for the latics. The clubs have had very different trajectories since, with Cheltenham hovering around the League Two and League One level whilst Wigan climbed up to the Premier League, won the FA Cup, and had a brief soiree in Europe.
Portsmouth: 1 point - It took four years for one of Cheltenham and Portsmouth to claim a win over the other as a run of five draws was ended by Pompey’s 6-1 title grasper back in 2017.
Wycombe Wanderers: 1 point - Since 2000, the sides have met twenty three times with ten games ending all square, including those two 3-3 draws under Gary Johnson. Wycome have come out on top eight times, including winning already this season.
Burton Albion: 0 points - This has fallen apart quite quickly. Burton's six wins over Cheltenham would see them claim all six points this season, however Friday night’s 1-1 draw at the Pirelli Stadium saw the robins earn one point. The point earned will be added to our points total.
Rotherham United: 0 points - the two first met back in 1999 in Cheltenham’s first season in the then called Division 3 which saw Rotherham win home and away. Since then the two have met ten times with Rotherham claiming five wins overall to Cheltenham’s four.
Accrington Stanley: 2 points - Five wins each, six draws. From the head to head it looks like all points will be shared between the two this season, although Cheltenham have lost the past two meetings.
Cambridge United: 2 points - Six wins each, four draws. League Two’s top two last season have always been closely matched and Sean Long’s winner in February has salvaged a hypothetical point in our League Table.
MK Dons: 0 points - December 2018’s 3-1 home win was the only victory for Cheltenham against our next league opponents. Five wins in five preceded Chris Clements’ floss which sees MK Dons take the hypothetical points.
Plymouth Argyle: 0 points - No points for us again in what will be the twenty fourth meeting between the two. Reuben Reid and Ryan Broom helped to even out the score but four straight wins between 2002 and 2010 see Argyle beat Cheltenham by thirteen wins to eight.
Bolton Wanderers: 2 points - It’s been an aesthetically pleasing one win, one draw, one loss, between the clubs who first met in the Checkatrade Trophy 2016 when a late Amari Morgan Smith penalty saw Cheltenham come out on top. The two have since met in League Two last season which saw one draw and one win for Bolton.
Morecambe: 6 points - A league double at last, ten wins over last season’s surprise package see Cheltenham hopefully claim a league double. Despite losing both games in 2019/20, the robins have still come out on top three more times than the shrimps.
AFC Wimbledon: 4 points - In a somewhat short EFL existence, AFC Wimbledon have managed to face the robins eight times since 2011. Cheltenham have claimed three wins to the dons two, with three ending all square.
Gillingham: 0 points - The two sides met for the first time in eight years last week as Alfie May forced the cup game into extra time, the penalty shoot out oes little to catch Gillingham’s six wins over the robins.
Cheltenham: That’s us!
Fleetwood Town: 1 point - If not for some suspect defending last week, Cheltenham would have doubled their points tally against Fleetwood in our hypothetical table. The two have only met five times with Cheltenham winning one and two ending in a draw.
Charlton Athletic: 6 points - 2016’s EFL Cup meeting was the only game between the two sides and Harry Pell’s second half strike was enough to send the robins through and sea six vital points in League One.
Lincoln City: 6 points - Finally the points are racking up as eleven wins for the robins see us overcome Lincoln City who have only won five since 1999. There have been some memorable moments between the two sides as Cheltenham lifted the Vanarama National League trophy after their meeting on the final day of the 2015/16 season and the imps clinched promotion from league two against the robins.
Ipswich Town: 6 points - despite many Southern League meetings, the two have only played each other once professionally as goals from Callum Wright and Will Boyle sealed an historic win over the UEFA winners this season. It’s Cheltenham’s only win so far this season but sure to live long in the memory either way.
Shrewsbury Town: 0 points - The heartbreak of relegation and ecstasy of promotion collided in 2015 when a 1-0 win for the shrews saw Cheltenham fall to the National League and Shrewsbury climb up to League One. It was one of eleven wins for the Shropshire side and the most recent meeting between the two.
Crewe Alexandra: 0 points - Crewe and Cheltenham have often found themselves in similar positions and the rise of each club seems to have gone hand in hand recently. Eleven wins for the Cheshire outfit sees them claim the head to head crown over the robins. The first game of the season ended with a 1-1 draw, so one point will be added to the table.
Doncaster: 0 points - Finishing off the league table, and coming at a surprise to a fair few, is Doncaster. The robins are somewhat responsible for the Yorkshire side’s failure to win the league two title but apparently they will be getting their revenge as six wins to Cheltenham’s two sees them claim the points.
So what does this leave us with?
Starting off with the five we already have, add in the doubles over Ipswich and Charlton and our five already in the bank and we have….
46 points.
It’s not enough to have kept us up in League One last season, but it would have seen a respectable thirteenth place finish the season before. We’re likely to need at least five or so more to stay up, and ten more to be comfortable with the fifty point mark being the average for safety in the third tier.
Of course all of this means nothing really, just some insight into what we may expect. But no matter what, we’re in for a very exciting season.
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