Three teams, two fixtures; two will go down, one will stay up - the fight for Football League status is well and truly on.
Tranmere Rovers, Cheltenham Town and Hartlepool United are the clubs involved, and it’s the latter who currently sit 22nd, the position that will guarantee Sky Bet League 2 football again next term.Hartlepool spent five months glued to the bottom of the table, but four wins in March lifted them up and out of the relegation zone. Since then, they have picked up two points from five outings, but they remain with their heads narrowly above water.
Pools welcome Exeter City to Victoria Park on Saturday, knowing that three points could guarantee survival, and goalkeeper Scott Flinders insists his side must stop relying on the teams below slipping up.
“It’s come down to a two-game season now and I think it will be more about mentality than ability, as it has been since we got out of the bottom two really,” said Flinders, speaking to the club’s official website.
“We need to get back to the basics of working hard now because we’re running out of favours and we need to do our own work.
“It’s still in our own hands and we’d rather that than the other way.”
Cheltenham are a place below on 40 points, and have the unenviable task of facing second-placed Shrewsbury this weekend.
The Robins have won one and lost four of Gary Johnson’s five games in charge, and the former Yeovil Town boss now needs his players to give their all if they are to escape relegation.
"When I first came in I asked all the lads to sign a sheet of paper to say they promise to give everything to keep Cheltenham Town in The Football League,” Johnson told the club’s official website.
"They all signed it and some signed it and meant it, but some didn’t. At this stage of the season you need everyone to give everything for the cause.”
Tranmere sit bottom of the pile but are only a point behind Cheltenham, and their goal difference is superior to the two sides they are trying to chase.
Rovers have a new management team in place for their trip to Plymouth Argyle, and Alan Rogers is looking forward to the challenge that he and Shaun Garnett face over the next two games.
Click here to read Rogers’ thoughts ahead of Tranmere’s match against the Pilgrims
All three know they have a huge fight on their hands, and you can follow the goal action on our Sky Bet League 2 Twitter feed via @SkyBetLeague2.