Nigel Clough hailed Mansfield’s attitude after a dominant 2-0 victory at managerless Sutton.

The Stags maintained the pace at the top of League Two with a first ever win at Gander Green Lane after goals from veteran duo Stephen Quinn and Lucas Akins.

It compounded a terrible week for the Football League’s bottom club Sutton, who sacked manager Matt Gray after last weekend’s 8-0 mauling at leaders Stockport – the worst defeat in their history.

And Stags boss Clough said: “The attitude from the first minute to the last was absolutely spot on.

“They made it tricky for us in many ways. They lost their manager in the week after the 8-0 and they were formidable opponents.

“We scored two good goals, we should have had another one I thought. We were very relieved when that second one went in.

“It was difficult. The pitch wasn’t as good as it has been in previous seasons and there’s a wind blowing right down the middle of the pitch.

“The conditions were tricky. It wasn’t going to be a great game of football and we handled it well.

“It was a very tight angle for Stephen’s goal. I don’t think people appreciate how tight it was. It was a brilliant finish, an excellent finish and it’s great to have him back.

“It was another great finish from Lucas. Sometimes on your wrong foot you just have to put your head down and hit it as hard as you can and it’s gone in off the bar.”

Injury-stricken Sutton had their chances, with Harry Smith denied by a fine Christy Pym save on the stroke of half-time.

And interim boss Jason Goodliffe, Gray’s former assistant, said: “I thought we were very slow to start the game. I thought we were very nervous.

“It took us a while to get going. We went 1-0 down, the response was good after going behind and we got stronger as the first half went on.

“We created a very good chance with Harry Smith and it’s a very good save from the goalkeeper.

“The atmosphere was pretty flat around the ground and it needed something to spark it into life and that would have certainly done that. It’s the sort of thing that’s not quite going for us at the minute.

“We made a couple of changes at half-time and looked really positive for 10 or 15 minutes in that second half with a couple of good chances in that spell.

“Unfortunately that second goal going in took the wind out of our sails and we never really recovered from that.

“The effort was certainly there and I can’t fault the players, but it wasn’t to be for us.”

Tranmere made it four League Two home wins on the bounce with a 2-1 comeback victory over Swindon at Prenton Park to move further away from the relegation zone.

Rovers dominated the early stages and looked more likely to break the deadlock with Connor Jennings and Rob Apter both coming close.

But it was the visitors who opened the scoring in the 23rd minute when Daniel Kemp fired the ball home from the tightest of angles with Swindon’s first attempt on goal.

Kemp could have added a second, 10 minutes later when his close-range effort was well blocked by Luke McGee in the Tranmere goal.

The home side pulled level 10 minutes after the break when Kieron Morris pounced after Swindon goalkeeper Murphy Mahoney could not hold a Harvey Saunders shot following a mix up in the Town defence.

And just moments after Mahoney was forced off the field with an injury, substitute goalkeeper Lewis Ward’s first job was to pick the ball out of the net as Tom Davies completed the comeback with 18 minutes remaining.

Accrington moved to within a point of the play-off places in Sky Bet League Two with a 2-1 win over Walsall.

The Saddlers had won their previous two league games but goals from Tommy Leigh and Joe Pritchard secured victory for Stanley.

The home side took the lead after nine minutes when Pritchard charged forward and Jackson Smith could only push his shot into the path of Leigh, who slotted home his sixth goal of the season.

The Reds created the better chances, with Josh Woods bursting through after 31 minutes with only Smith to beat but the Saddlers goalkeeper denied Accrington a second.

Walsall equalised in the fourth minute of added time when Joe Gubbins was adjudged to have fouled captain Donervon Daniels in the area and Freddie Draper drilled a penalty into the corner of the net.

Stanley regained the lead in the 57th minute when skipper Pritchard got the ball on the left and his cross evaded everyone and nestled into the far corner of the net.

Woods chipped an effort over for the home side late on as he looked to make the game safe.

Two goals from Max Dean gave MK Dons a valuable three points as they beat Morecambe 3-1 at the Mazuma Stadium and leapfrogged above their opponents in the process.

The in-form youngster gave Mike Williamson’s side the lead in the 31st minute through a well-worked goal as he ran on to a superb through-ball from Adam Gilbey to round Adam Smith and place the ball into the empty net.

Morecambe levelled five minutes into the second half when Adam Mayor produced a superb cross from the left that was headed home by JJ McKiernan at the near post.

MK Dons regained the lead on 69 minutes with a fine strike from Joe Tomlinson, who fired into the bottom left corner of Smith’s goal with a low shot from 20 yards out.

Dean added a second six minutes into added time when an attempted Morecambe clearance rebounded into his path and he made no mistake from close range.

The game saw Dons captain Dean Lewington make an EFL record-equalling 770th appearance for a single club, matching John Trollope’s total with Swindon between 1960 and 1980. Lewington is the one player remaining at the club from the original Wimbledon, who moved in 2004 and for whom he played before Saturday’s goalscorer Dean was even born.

Mansfield maintained the pressure at the top of League Two with a 2-0 victory over managerless Sutton.

Basement boys Sutton sacked boss Matt Gray following the worst defeat in club’s history, 8-0 to Stockport, last weekend and goals from veterans Stephen Quinn and Lucas Akins did the damage as Jason Goodliffe suffered defeat in his first game in interim charge.

Quinn opened the scoring in the 24th minute as he met Callum Johnson’s cross with a diving header at the back post.

Davis Keillor-Dunn came close to making it two mere minutes later when his 20-yard strike clipped the top of the crossbar.

On the stroke of half-time, Harry Smith saw his close-range header tipped over the bar by Christy Pym.

After the break, Keillor-Dunn had a well-struck free-kick punched away by Dean Bouzanis.

But there was nothing he could do with 15 minutes left as Akins thumped home the second to ensure Mansfield secured a first ever win at Gander Green Lane.

Joe Kizzi saw a late header saved by Pym as the hosts remained rooted to the foot of League Two.

Harrogate inflicted a first Sky Bet League Two defeat on Grimsby manager David Artell as they won 2-1 at Blundell Park.

Goals from Liam Gibson – against his former club – and Matty Daly did the damage before Kieran Green netted a late consolation.

Grimsby had the first noteworthy chance in the 15th minute when Danny Rose curled narrowly wide after cutting inside on his right foot.

At the other end, goalkeeper Harvey Cartwright was called into action with a fine double save from Harrogate winger Abraham Odoh.

His team-mate George Thomson went close twice in quick succession as Harrogate enjoyed a dominant spell before half-time, with Gibson heading in from a corner to put them 1-0 up.

Rose skied a header in the 47th minute after being picked out by Anthony Glennon as Grimsby pushed for a leveller.

Harrogate passed up two half-chances to put the game to bed before getting their second goal through Daly in the 72nd minute, while Green offered Grimsby hope with a low drive that came in time added on.

Wrexham claimed bragging rights with a 2-0 Welsh derby League Two victory over Newport.

In a first meeting for five years, second-half goals from James Jones and Elliot Lee secured victory as the Dragons maintained their automatic promotion chase.

Wrexham’s Arthur Okonkwo kept the game scoreless after 25 minutes by parrying Will Evans’ shot away, with Omar Bogle’s effort – from the resulting corner – deflected over.

Seb Palmer-Houlden’s header was tipped onto the crossbar by Okonkwo before the half-hour and Harry Charsley’s shot deflected wide off Ryan Delaney as Newport came close.

Lee’s fierce drive before the hour struck the post and went behind off Exiles goalkeeper Nick Townsend.

Sam Dalby turned and fired the ball inches wide, with the former later blasting across goal as Paul Mullin missed at the back post.

The Dragons’ pressure told when the Exiles failed to clear Ben Tozer’s throw-in and Jones stabbed home after 64 minutes.

Lee added the second in the closing stages to nod home Tozer’s throw-in which secured the victory, though Townsend denied Paul Mullin late on.

Graham Alexander believes the full force of Bradford’s brimming confidence carried them through to a fourth straight league triumph after battling back to beat Doncaster.

The Bantams shook off the blow of falling behind to Joe Ironside’s early strike to coast to a 3-1 win at the Eco-Power Stadium, with Andy Cook scoring twice and Tyler Smith also finding the net.

And Alexander was delighted with the manner in which City, who have now won six games in all competitions, were unfazed by conceding.

“It was a difficult game – a derby game – and I was intrigued to see how we responded to conceding the first goal early on because we’ve been on a good run of starting games really well,” he said.

“I knew, at some point, we’d get a test like that and it happened tonight.

“But, after their goal, nothing changed in our approach to the game. No heads went down and we just got back at it again and put Doncaster under pressure.

“We had two great chances before our equalisers and I’m delighted to win 3-1. There will be many different challenges and obstacles along the way this season and that was one.

“The players are in a really confident mood and it’s great to see.”

Bradford were backed by a travelling support numbering almost 3,000 on the night.

“We went a goal down and the crowd got even louder. It makes you feel the hairs on the back of your neck and I’m delighted that the players rewarded that noise with three points,” Alexander said.

Doncaster boss Grant McCann has ordered his players to take a long hard look at themselves over Christmas to find a way out of their current mini-slump.

Rovers followed up the 5-0 defeat to Morecambe with the 3-1 reverse to Bradford with McCann bitterly disappointed with both performances.

He said: “We said to the players after the game that they need to have a look at themselves because what they’re showing at the minute is nowhere near.

“All of us together need to take responsibility. I’ve never shirked that as a manager. I’ll always do that because I’m the one that picks the team.

“But when you’ve got a plan that’s working and experienced players going away from that. The first goal just gives Bradford the initiative and it’s disappointing.

“The last two games have been really disappointing because it’s felt like we’ve gone backwards in those two games. There’s no point in saying anything different because the fans can see it.

“You saw at the end – there were probably 100 people left in the stadium. I said to Joe Ironside as we walked around ‘look at this’. This is what we’re producing at the minute and the fans are just disappearing because we’re not giving them anywhere near enough.”

AFC Wimbledon assistant boss Terry Skiverton was critical of the match officials after his side maintained their play-off push with a 2-1 victory at local rivals Crawley.

First-half goals from Josh Davison and Ali Al-Hamadi put the Dons in charge, and they were left needing to hold on after defender Will Wright pulled a late goal back for Crawley.

Dons had manager Johnnie Jackson red carded just before the interval after a header by Al-Hamadi was ruled out for obstruction.

Jackson’s side also went on to finish with 10 men with defender Joe Lewis picking up his second yellow card midway through the second period.

Skiverton felt all the big calls went against Dons and said: “I’m very proud of the lads as it was a really frustrating night when you look at incidents within the game.

“The gaffer gets very frustrated (after Al-Hamadi’s disallowed goal) and we couldn’t get our heads around the decision.

“The manager gets a yellow card and with his frustration they couldn’t wait to give him the second one.”

Skiverton claimed that Dons keeper Alex Bass had a missile thrown at him late in the game, saying: “Our keeper has stuff thrown at him and yet they add on an extra minute. It’s terrible.”

Crawley boss Scott Lindsey, meanwhile, vented his ire at his side for their first-half display after Town went down to their second successive home defeat.

Lindsey felt his men did not do themselves justice in the local derby before a crowd of nearly 5,000.

He said: “You can’t play half a game in a local derby.

“We got what we deserved – nothing. At half-time I asked for more determination to get more from the game.

“Running hard for 45 minutes isn’t ever going to be enough. Wimbledon ran all over us in the first half.

“It’s the worst we’ve played. You cannot play for 45 minutes against anyone at this level.

“You must be prepared to work in football; it doesn’t reflect me. I know what they are like. I feel we let ourselves down tonight.”

Peter Wild saluted Barrow’s strength in depth as the Cumbrians picked up a seventh consecutive win with a 3-1 League Two victory at injury-hit Crewe.

The Bluebirds manager was able to make key changes to ram home the visitors’ advantage in the closing stages with substitute Robbie Gotts setting up Ben Whitfield for the striker’s second, which restored a two-goal cushion.

Crewe manager Lee Bell, in contrast, had limited options as injuries, suspension and illness left him naming an inexperienced bench.

Bell was also disappointed with a second-half penalty decision which allowed Ged Garner to add to Whitfield’s opener, accusing former Crewe defender George Ray of a theatrical dive in the box.

It allowed the Cumbrians to close out another win thanks to a gritty display at Gresty Road.

“It was a real test for us to play Swindon and Crewe away and to get six points from those two difficult away games is unbelievable. Crewe caused us different problems, but we coped with it well and I’m really pleased with how we’ve done away from home,” said the Barrow boss.

“We’ve got great strength in depth which helps us. There’s three players tonight who are sat at home and have not even travelled.

“They don’t deserve to be sitting at home. We can take players off the bench at the right times and recharge the team when it’s needed.

“The role the subs have played in the squad this season is outstanding. That is one of the reasons we are doing so well. It’s the difference between us being a good side and a top-10 side. And we got it right in the summer with our recruitment.

“I’m delighted for the travelling support as I wanted to give them something to cheer after we lost here last season and I got into a right argument with a fan. Hopefully our performance tonight will have given him something to cheer.

“But while I’m delighted to get another three points on the board, there’s still a long way to go.”

The Railwaymen are now without a win in four games and their showing was a disappointment for the large home following, swelling the gate of 7,646 after a cut-price ticket offer.

Alex manager Bell said: “The moment the game changed for them was the penalty. To have that given when he (Ray) was offside and then falls to the floor; the more I look at it the worse it looks. It changed the momentum of the game as it should have been 1-1 when we scored.

“I’m bitterly disappointed about that moment in the game.

“But the players have been brilliant as they are going above and beyond. We are really low on players with so many missing; one went off ill (Ryan Cooney) tonight.

“I’m proud of the club and the fans who came out in force tonight and stuck with the players. I hope they return and I appreciate the way they backed the players.

“I asked the players to come up with energy and certain things and I can’t fault them in those areas.”

Notts County head coach Luke Williams labelled Stockport the best League Two team that he has ever seen after his side lost 2-1 at Edgeley Park.

Goals from front Kyle Wootton and Paddy Madden put the Hatters in control, but a late David McGoldrick strike set up a nervy finish.

Stockport remain six points clear at the top of the table.

Williams said: “They are the best League Two team I’ve ever seen because even when you’re playing, dominating and putting the pressure on them, they don’t crumble.

“When you watch them when they get a foothold in the game like we saw them last week and many times before this season, they can just crush a team.

“In order to be a really top team, you have to be able to be consistent and you have to be able to play when you’re the second-best team on the pitch for a moment, and to weather the storm, not crumble and come back and be the best team on the pitch.

“Or you can take the scruff of the game by the scruff of the neck and run away with it. They can do everything like that.

“I think when a team win 12 league games back-to-back, it’s hard to imagine that they’re not an incredible team.”

After earning promotion from the National League last season – just as Stockport did in 2021/22 – Williams believes that his side can learn a lot from Friday night’s opponents.

He said: “There’s a lot of comparisons but we have to make our own path. They’re incredible at what they’ve done.

“Each coach and club is different but there will be things we can learn from them for sure and we can use them as an inspiration.”

Dave Challinor has been at the helm throughout and after guiding Stockport to the play-off final last term, he is hoping to go one better this time around.

After playing everyone in the league once up until this point, Challinor has made his mind up about which team are the strongest Stockport have faced so far.

The Hatters boss said: “It’s really nice of Luke to say that and I’d then flip it the other way.

“I think they’re the best team that we’ll play this season and I would love to play against their team with our full-strength team and their full-strength team. It would be a fantastic game.

“We’re efficient as a League Two team, we have different ways of doing things. We showed a different string to our bow. In the second half, we’ve had to accept that with us being aggressive, we were being played through.

“We had to play a different way to try and get a result and massive credit to the players for doing that.”

Despite being top at Christmas, Challinor has to ensure his side do not get carried away.

He added: “We won’t get complacent. For us tonight, that’s a brilliant three points and a brilliant learning experience in terms of where we are currently and where we aspire to be.

“I think we can improve, but we won 12 games on the bounce and from that point onwards we won one, drew two and lost one and it was the end of the world.

“Since that we’ve won two so we know how football works. We have a group that know where we’re at.”

Matty Etherington admits the win was all that mattered for his Colchester side as they beat Salford 2-1 to end a five-game losing streak.

Joe Taylor gave the Us a 42nd-minute lead with a scuffed shot from close range after Cameron McGeehan had helped on Mandela Egbo’s delivery into his path.

And Chay Cooper doubled Colchester’s advantage in the 89th minute when he latched onto fellow substitute John Akinde’s pass and slotted past Alex Cairns, after Salford had conceded possession inside their own half.

Conor McAleny gave Salford hope with a superb strike from the edge of the area in the first minute of stoppage time but Colchester held on for a vital victory.

Etherington said: “The main thing for us was the three points. The win was all that mattered and they managed to get that.

“That’s the pleasing aspect of the evening and that ultimately is all that mattered when we walked into the building.

“I’m emotionally drained right now because at 2-0, you think ‘that’s it done’ and then literally from kick-off, they go and get their goal and you’re back to square one again.

“It was a rollercoaster of emotions and I can’t explain it – until you live in it, you’ll never be able to feel it.

“I’m just so pleased for the players that we got the three points.

“We worked some good opportunities and being better in both boxes is probably a common theme over the last few weeks.

“We had chances and we can still do better but I keep saying it, the win is all that mattered.”

Salford were denied on several occasions by Colchester goalkeeper Owen Goodman, who made a crucial save from substitute Matt Smith deep into stoppage time.

Boss Neil Wood said: “The two goals we conceded were both dreadful goals to give away.

“There’s not really an excuse for them really; I’d love to find one but they were really poor goals and that’s the bottom line of it.

“It was a great strike (by McAleny) and he’s got the ability to do that. He had a chance in the first half too and I think we were the team on top for large periods of the first half.

“The thing with that is that you have to take your chances when they’re there and you have to capitalise on your momentum.

“It was disappointing to concede the first goal and it felt like it was their first real chance in the first half.

“We got momentum and were pushing for the equaliser but then we go and concede a really, really poor goal – there’s just no excuse for that goal.”

Early goals from Josh Davison and Ali Al-Hamadi gave 10-man Wimbledon their first League Two away win since early October as they recorded a 2-1 success at Crawley.

The Dons, who had manager Johnnie Jackson red carded just before the interval, also had defender Joe Lewis sent off but held off a late Crawley fight back after Will Wright’s strike for the Reds.

Crawley – going into the clash beaten only five times at home in the league since last Boxing Day – came close to taking the lead inside the first 50 seconds.

Nick Tsaroulla’s strong run took him into the area and top scorer Danilo Orsi just failed to connect as he stretched at the far post.

But the Dons broke the deadlock after 13 minutes when goalkeeper Luca Ashby Hammond allowed a header from Davison to slip through his hands after an assist by Huseyin Biler.

Leading marksman Al-Hamadi doubled the advantage for his 14th goal of the season five minutes later by finding the bottom corner with a low left-footed shot from just inside the area.

The Dons had the ball in the net again a minute before the interval when Al-Hamadi headed in, but referee Matt Corlett ruled that Davison had fouled Ashby Hammond and manager Jackson received a red card for protesting about the decision.

The visitors started the second half on the front foot and Al-Hamadi, fed by skipper Jake Reeves, put an angled shot over from a good position.

Crawley threatened when Dons goalkeeper Alex Bass parried a drive from substitute Klaidi Lolos and later denied Orsi from close range.

At the other end, the Red Devils had a let off when Ryan Johnson’s header came back off the post before Dons were reduced to 10 men when defender Lewis received a second yellow card.

Crawley set up a frantic finish when defender Wright reduced the deficit from inside the area – seven minutes from time – but Wimbledon withstood late pressure for maximum points.

New Forest Green boss Troy Deeney described his side’s goalless draw with Gillingham as “the first building block”.

Deeney’s first game in management yielded a point against a side with play-off ambitions, but the draw leaves struggling Rovers five points from safety.

The 35-year-old, who was appointed as David Horseman’s replacement on Wednesday, said: “Everyone could see the passion and want to change things and that’s the first building block. It’s about enjoying that togetherness and spirit tonight.

“It wasn’t a new manager bounce – it’s about putting players in positions they feel more comfortable. It would’ve worn off after 15 minutes if it was.

“We caused our problems more than anything, but it’s a good first day.”

On bringing in former Newcastle, Wolves and Sunderland forward David Kelly as his assistant, Deeney said: “The governor is in. I don’t know it all, so I needed some experience. He tells it as it is so there are no grey areas with him.”

Deeney’s side started at a frantic pace and Ryan Inniss headed over the crossbar from a deep corner in the first couple of minutes.

Callum Morton had Forest Green’s best chance of the half after Charlie McCann found the forward inside the area, but his effort was parried by Gills goalkeeper Jake Turner.

Rovers keeper Luke Daniels handled outside his penalty area, but Connor Mahoney lifted his free-kick over the crossbar.

Matty Stevens had a golden opportunity for the hosts from a well-worked short corner routine but missed the target.

Macauley Bonne headed straight at Daniels in Gillingham’s best effort before the break.

Robbie McKenzie’s speculative long-range effort had Daniels scrambling across goal, but the effort dropped wide of the mark.

Jonny Williams delivered an inch-perfect corner for Timothee Dieng, but his free header was smartly saved by Daniels.

Jayden Clarke’s curling effort just minutes later flew just past the far post as the Gills pressed for a winner after the break, but both sides had to settle for a point.

Gillingham manager Stephen Clemence admitted Deeney’s tactics shocked him.

He said: “The system surprised us a little and we had to make adjustments at half-time.

“They looked to catch us on the break and nearly did a couple of times, but the lads dealt with it.

“I was disappointed not to win the game, but it can be difficult when a team has a new manager.”

Kyle Wootton and Paddy Madden were on target as Stockport claimed a 2-1 League Two victory over Notts County to extend their lead to six points at the top of the table.

A late David McGoldrick strike set up a tense finish, but the Hatters held on.

It took just seven minutes for Stockport to take the lead following a set-piece off the training ground when Kyle Knoyle’s low corner was steered in by Wootton.

Notts County were vying for an equaliser. Jodi Jones drove an effort just wide and he swung in a free-kick which Macaulay Langstaff could not make clean contact with from point-blank range.

Magpies goalkeeper Aidan Stone prevented Wootton from doubling his tally at the start of the second half, making two fine stops one-on-one.

Aden Baldwin had a goal ruled out, McGoldrick had one cleared off the line by Stockport defender Neill Byrne and Ben Hinchliffe denied Langstaff as Notts County probed.

The hosts were awarded a penalty after Kyle Cameron fouled Jayden Richardson. Madden converted, sending Stone the wrong way.

McGoldrick pulled one back in stoppage time, but it only proved to be a consolation.