Preview: Stevenage vs. Barrow - prediction, team news, lineups

The hosts find themselves second in the table, while their visitors climbed to fourth spot and reduced the gap between the sides to six points with an important victory in their last league outing.

Match preview

After a 21st-placed finish in League Two last time around, Stevenage have enjoyed a far stronger campaign thus far, immediately establishing themselves in the fight for promotion with 12 victories and 40 points coming from their opening 19 outings.

Steve Evans's side dropped further behind league leaders Leyton Orient following a loss to Northampton Town in October, but they have since got back on track and have gone four games without a defeat in England's fourth tier.

Following a triumph over Doncaster Rovers and a draw with Colchester United, the Boro returned to winning ways with a 1-0 victory against Hartlepool United, thanks to Danny Rose's 80th-minute goal, and their latest league contest came away at Grimsby Town two weeks ago, in which Evans's men again looked set to win 1-0 though Jake Reeves, only to be pegged back and forced to share the points as Niall Maher levelled the scores in injury time.

Stevenage would then get past Arsenal Under-23s in the EFL Trophy, before most recently meeting Kings Lynn Town in an FA Cup clash on Saturday and booking a third-round tie away at Premier League side Aston Villa courtesy of a 3-0 triumph away at the sixth-tier outfit, as Luke Norris hit a brace soon after half time before Jamie Reed quickly added a third.

Now sitting five points off the summit of the division and with a six-point cushion over Friday's visitors, who are in pursuit of a top-three spot, Evans's side will be desperate to put another three-point haul on the board to further strengthen their position in the automatic promotion places.

They welcome a Barrow side who have enjoyed an impressive run of league form recently but find themselves with three defeats from their last four outings in all competitions.

Four consecutive defeats, followed by a draw against Gillingham, saw the Bluebirds quickly drop down the League Two table, but they managed to bounce back in style, putting three straight victories together in England's fourth tier against Grimsby Town, Crewe Alexandra and Colchester United.

Pete Wild's side would then drop out of the FA Cup at the hands of Mansfield Town and see their winning run in the league put to an end by Crawley Town in a 1-0 away loss, but they again returned to winning ways in their most recent fourth-tier outing at home to Hartlepool United, as Josh Gordon, Ben Whitfield and Billy Waters all hit early goals in a 3-1 home triumph.

They now head into Friday's trip relatively rested, having not been involved in FA Cup action over the weekend, with their latest outing coming the previous Tuesday, when the Bluebirds narrowly lost 3-2 away at League One outfit Bolton Wanderers in the EFL Trophy.

Now able to fully turn their attention back to their fight for promotion this season, having climbed up to fourth spot with four three-point hauls in their last five league matches, Wild's men will look to close the gap to the top three and Friday's opponents with what would be an eye-catching away triumph.

Stevenage League Two form:

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L

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Stevenage form (all competitions):

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Barrow League Two form:

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W

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Barrow form (all competitions):

W

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L

Team News

Stevenage's attack will be led by Danny Rose, who has netted eight goals in all competitions since his summer arrival from Northampton Town, including five in League Two.

Fellow attacker Luke Norris has also got on the scoresheet eight times thus far and will again play an important role going forward, with Jordan Roberts likely completing a front three.

Elsewhere, Charlton Athletic loanee Alex Gilbey offers plenty of quality in midfield and should be joined by Jake Reeves and Terence Vancooten in the engine room, while Carl Piergianni and Dan Sweeney will likely pair up at the heart of a back four.

Barrow have several attacking threats of their own, with Josh Gordon set to spearhead their front line having already notched up 10 league goals this season, while Billy Waters has netted seven in 16 fourth-tier games.

Ben Whitfield has been another star for Wild's side, acting as their creative hub with a league-high tally of nine assists so far alongside four goals.

Niall Canavan has been a mainstay in defence throughout the campaign and will again be joined by George Ray in the middle of the back four, while Sheffield United loanee Harrison Neal should again operate at the base of midfield in a 4-2-3-1 setup.

Stevenage possible starting lineup:

Ashby-Hammond; Wildin, Sweeney, Piergianni, Clark; Gilbey, Vancooten, Reeves; Roberts, Rose, Norris

Barrow possible starting lineup:

Farman; Warren, Ray, Canavan, Brough; Neal, White; Whitfield, Waters, Kay; Gordon

We say: Stevenage 2-1 Barrow

With two of the league's form sides and two of its strongest squads squaring off, we anticipate a high-quality encounter on Friday and just tip the balance in favour of the hosts.

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