With the season drawing rapidly to a close, and with the players only having pride and contracts to play for, Notts County are the latest visitors to visit the KasStad to test United’s resolve in the face of no real challenge. It is a sign of United’s failure, especially this season but also over the past few seasons, that a top-half finish would now be the club’s main indicator of success. The only way that this poor run can be halted, and the club can eventually climb out of this cesspit of a division, is with some stability at both management and playing level.

United’s immediate concern, however, is doing the double over tomorrow’s visitors. Lee Bradbury scored the only goal of the game at Meadow Lane back in August, and the team captain must feel that his place is in doubt following his substitution after a sub-standard performance against Macclesfield on Wednesday. Juan Pablo Raponi came on and gave his best display so far in a United shirt, although whether Horacio Rodriguez feels that Raponi is ready to start is doubtful. Craig Davies will be hoping that his call up to the full Wales squad for close-season training will be rewarded with a starting place, and if Steve Basham hasn’t recovered from the injury that saw him hobble off against Macc then that might well be the case. With Leo Roget and Jon Ashton both still out injured, Paul Wanless and Mateo Corbo are the likely centre-back pairing. Odds are offered on how long into the game Corbo will receive his obligatory booking. We are hoping that Amine Karam will feature at some stage, instead of Ramon Diaz’s offspring.

The Magpies are 13 points above the relegation zone, and so effectively safe. They’ve won their last two games, including an impressive 3-1 win at Yeovil, although they had lost the four matches prior to that. With United also displaying an annoying inconsistency, 1-1 seems the likeliest result. Not that it matters, like.