The second leg of the EFL League Two play-off semifinal between Cheltenham Town and Northampton Town will take place on Monday at the Jonny Rocks Stadium.
The story behind the first leg
Although Cheltenham came away with the victory, Northampton had a chance to take the lead on 16 minutes through Michael Harriman, who won a penalty after being tripped by Ryan Broom. In a bit of bad luck for the Cobblers, their usual penalty taker Sam Hoskins was suspended, leaving it to Ryan Watson, who had his effort saved by Owen Evans.
Vadaine Oliver would miss a glorious chance to level the match three minutes after Raglan had given Cheltenham the lead. They never got another chance as good as that one and Thomas put the match to bed in the 87th minute to put Michael Duff's side squarely on the front foot.
'This tie isn't over yet'
Despite having it all to do, Northampton are confident they can stage a sensational comeback.
“2-0 can be a difficult lead to defend," said manager Keith Curle. "If we can get that first goal on Monday night then it really sets things up. There are more goals to be had in this tie and I think you will see that on Monday night. There is still all to play for and the tie is far from over."
Harriman echoed his boss' sentiments.
”Thursday wasn't a great night but we are still in this game. We had plenty of opportunities on Thursday. We didn't take ours and they took theirs, fair play to them. There are 90 minutes to go and as we all know, 2-0 is a horrible scoreline to defend. If we can get the first goal on the night then everything changes."
Cheltenham look to continue positive trends
Michael Duff's side have won four of their previous five matches against Northampton and have not lost to the Cobblers at home since the 2012/13 League Two playoffs when Luke Guttridge scored the only goal of the match. Another bit of history that favors Cheltenham is that the previous five teams to win the first leg of the fourth tier play-offs have gone on to win the tie.
The Robins will be seeking their fourth play-off final in League Two which would put them joint top with Blackpool and Torquay United. Their defense has been stellar of late, conceding just 16 goals in their last 24 matches. Further aiding their cause is Northampton's recent slump, as Thursday's defeat marked the seventh in the last nine matches for Keith Curle's men.
Team news
For Cheltenham, goalkeeper Scott Flinders remains unavailable, so Owen Evans, on loan from Wigan Athletic, is expected to continue in goal.
As for Northampton, top scorer Hoskins is back from suspension to give the manager plenty of options to choose from.
Where to watch
The game will be available to watch live on Sky Sports for those who are subscribed.
if you are unable to watch the action, you can follow it with live minute by minute updates here on VAVEL.