Phil Parkinson’s side are aiming to continue their unbeaten run when they take on bottom-of-the-league Sutton United at the STōK Cae Ras this evening.
On Saturday, they recorded a 1-1 at the University of Bradford Stadium, with Paul Mullin’s header being cancelled out by Adam Wilson’s strike five minutes from time.
Tonight’s match falls in between two away trips, with a visit to Notts County in the pipeline at the weekend.
The busy fixture schedule places even more importance on squad depth, and Parkinson hinted there could be changes to the squad for this evening’s match.
He said: “It’s going to be absolutely key, and we are looking to possibly freshen the team up in a couple of areas.
“We’ve assessed everyone this morning [speaking on Monday] and they’ve had a light session which you can imagine the day before a game.
“From a Saturday to a Tuesday it’s about that organisation but making sure the lads get as much rest as possible so we can be firing on all cylinders.”
The Red Dragons are on a six-game unbeaten run in all competitions comprising of three wins and three draws.
The standout results came in the shape of a 1-0 victory against Crawley Town with ten men, and a hard-earned point at both Bradford and Mansfield Town.
Tonight provides a different kind of test, with the visitors desperate to claim just a second win in thirteen matches.
Despite a change in challenge, Parkinson believes that it is important for the lads to continue rising to the tests.
He said: “It’s going to be a great challenge for us and it’s important that we keep our run going.
“We have spoken to the lads about progression in terms of our home performances and what we need to do to get the points tomorrow night [speaking Monday].
“The lads are in a good place and there is a nice spirit in the camp. There is always an element of disappointment when you concede late to drop points.
“I think they have to take a lot of belief from going into an atmosphere like that and standing strong as a team.”
The U’s sit 24th in the table and last time out fell to a narrow 3-2 defeat against Morecambe at the weekend.
A 91st-minute winner from Joel Senior sunk United, but Matt Gray’s side will take the positives from their performance into tonight’s game.
Gray led Sutton to the 2020/21 National League title and the EFL Trophy final the following year, and Parkinson believes it will be a similar test to one they’ve faced before.
He said: “I’ve watched their game on Saturday, and they were unlucky to lose it in the last couple of minutes.
“They are a big strong team with a real physicality about them which is going to be important for us to deal with.
“It will be like facing a team like Bromley who came here last year and were strong and physical. We have players that are more than equipped to deal with that.”