1st – Portsmouth
Predicted points: 96
2nd – Bolton Wanderers
Predicted points: 95
3rd – Derby County
Predicted points: 90
4th – Barnsley
Predicted points: 84
5th – Peterborough United
Predicted points: 83
6th – Oxford United
Predicted points: 79
7th – Stevenage
Predicted points: 78
8th – Leyton Orient
Predicted points: 69
9th – Blackpool
Predicted points: 67
10th – Bristol Rovers
Predicted points: 61
11th – Lincoln City
Predicted points: 60
12th – Northampton Town
Predicted points: 60
13th – Wigan Athletic
Predicted points: 56
14th – Wycombe Wanderers
Predicted points: 54
15th – Reading
Predicted points: 54
16th – Exeter City
Predicted points: 54
17th – Cambridge United
Predicted points: 53
18th – Burton Albion
Predicted points: 51
19th – Shrewsbury Town
Predicted points: 50
20th – Port Vale
Predicted points: 49
21st – Charlton Athletic
Predicted points: 46
22nd – Cheltenham Town
Predicted points: 44
23rd – Fleetwood Town
Predicted points: 37
24th – Carlisle United
Predicted points: 29
Automatic Promotion
Current leaders Portsmouth will be joined in the top two by Bolton Wanderers, with the two teams being separated by just a single point. They will, however, be relatively comfortable when it comes to the chasing pack with a predicted five-point gap from third place.
The Playoffs
Despite currently sitting second, Derby County are predicted to drop into the end-of-season lottery and will be joined by Barnsley, Peterborough United and Oxford United. Oxford will have to work hard for their spot as seventh-placed Stevenage only miss out due to points being rounded down to the nearest whole point. Should it end this way, the playoffs will see Derby take on Oxford and Barnsley face Peterborough for a place in the Wembley showpiece.
Leyton Orient and Blackpool will be the best of the rest but will fall some way short of gate-crashing the top six.
Mid-table – 10th to 17th
Bristol Rovers, Lincoln City and Northampton Town will all finish comfortably on 60+ points while Wigan and Reading will also finish in the middle of the pack despite point deductions of eight and four respectively.
The Relegation Scrap
A dismal season for newly promoted Carlisle is predicted to end with just 29 points, a total that will see them as the joint-fourth worst team in League One over the past 20 years. The Cumbrians will be joined by two of the teams who currently occupy spots in the bottom four, Fleetwood and Cheltenham.
The Cod Army have had two former Scottish internationals in charge this season in the shape of Scott Brown and Charlie Adam with a short-lived Lee Johnson spell sandwiched between. This on-the-pitch turmoil has added to a very poor season for Fleetwood and they are predicted to finish with just 37 points.
In 22nd place, it is predicted we will see Darrell Clarke and his Cheltenham side. The former Port Vale manager took over in what seemed an impossible position but looked to have given the club a chance, but his current return of 1.4 points per game will be defeated by the dreadful start The Robins made.
With the bottom three places likely to finish as they stand, the real interesting position is that final relegation spot that is currently occupied by Port Vale. Vale are currently one point behind Charlton Athletic but have a potentially vital three games in hand. Based on the points per game calculations, The Addicks will be joining the likes of Bradford City and Swindon Town as former members of the Premier League plying their trade in League Two.
Those at The Valley will be hopeful new boss Nathan Jones can turn their dismal season around and rescue a club who would have been expecting to challenge at the right end of the table from an embarrassing relegation.
Seasons will be made or broken over the coming weeks, with games taking on even greater significance as the clubs chase their goals. This weekend sees the start of the final chapter of 2023-24, here are the standout games of the upcoming round of fixtures.
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