With their home ground of Edgeley Park sat just under ten miles away from both Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium and Manchester United’s Old Trafford, it’s fair to say that Stockport County have largely been overshadowed by their big city neighbours throughout their history.
But now, sat six points clear at the top of League Two, County are preparing for a big Friday night game – at home – against fellow promotion contenders, Notts County.
By Nathan Evans
Since their formation all the way back in 1883, the club’s haul of trophies isn’t the biggest, but instead, they can boast one of English football’s most devoted and passionate fan bases, who have been with their side through thick and thin.
Their journey has seen the highs of their eighth placed finish in England’s second tier during the 1997/98 campaign, mixed in with the lows of their relegation to the National League North, and subsequent four year stay in the sixth tier division between 2015 and 2019.
Now, County find themselves firmly back in the Football League with a new owner at the helm, and after falling in the League Two play off final on penalties to Carlisle United last season, they look likely to go one better this time around.
Under manager Dave Challinor, Stockport currently sit at the very top of the standings in League Two. Through their opening 22 matches of the 2023/24 season, the Mancunion side have amassed 46 points, winning 14 of them to stay ahead of Barrow, Wrexham, and the rest of the chasing pack in England’s fourth tier.
Their recent second round replay loss to non-league Aldershot Town in the FA Cup may have slightly dented the feel good factor around the club, but instead now, they can fully focus on returning to the third level of the Football League for the first time since 2010.
Simply put, Stockport have performed strongly across the park this season. Heading into the 23rd matchday of the League Two season, they enter both as the highest scoring side in the division – thanks to their stunning 8-0 victory over Sutton last time out – while also possessing one of the meanest defences.
On the field, Challinor likes to set his side up in a 4-3-1-2 set up, a formation that is not so common in lower league football. That’s mainly due to its lack of traditional width, something that is usually favoured at this level, though for Stockport, the two central midfielders on either side are expected to act in a Mezzala-like role to cover the wider spaces when needed. They also possess the ability to seamlessly switch to a 3-4-1-2 system, when required, which has proved to be a huge advantage.
Upfront, Isaac Olaofe has been County’s main scorer, netting 13 times in League Two to date which sees him sitting fourth in the division’s Golden Boot race. He joined from Championship side Millwall last winter after impressing, on loan, at Sutton in the fourth tier, and his style and approach compliments his teammates well. A true fox-in-the-box forward, his elite finishing can be best explained by the fact that his 13 finishes have come from an xG tally of 9.94, with none of those coming from the penalty spot. He also struck a hat-trick in his side’s 5-0 home hammering of Wrexham in late September – his first treble in the Football League.
He had been backed up valiantly by 20-year-old Louie Barry who had found the net nine times himself before suffering a serious hamstring injury. The one-time Barcelona youth player, who is now on loan at the club from Premier League title chasers Aston Villa, has shown glimpses of real talent and looks set to finally start delivering on the potential that saw his prior move to the Catalan giants materialise. Across the division, he ranks in the top 10% of players for average successful crosses per match (0.54), whilst his 2.8 successful dribbles per 90 also comes as one of the highest tallies in the division.
But equally as important to Stockport’s success this campaign has been the three players who operate down the spine of the team; Will Collar, Ryan Croasdale, and Fraser Horsfall.
In midfield, Collar and Croasdale have created the perfect partnership that has helped to balance Challinor’s set up. Whilst Collar has contributed his team-high six assists, Croasdale has been sat at the base of the midfield, protecting his defence in an assured and consistent manner. His 33 successful tackles, 142 ball recoveries and 1287 total touches of the ball all rank highly amongst all players in the league, and highlight just how important he has been to his side.
And finally, there’s Horsfall, who during the 2023/24 season has arguably announced himself as the best defender in League Two. His 7.52 average FotMob rating is the second-highest amongst any centre-back but no player can beat his league-leading 167 aerial duels won. The 27-year-old also ranks in the top 5% of all defenders in the competition for overall duels won (210), successful passes (1267) and touches of the ball (1845) as he continues to marshall the County backline to great effect.
With plans to expand and improve upon their squad even further during the January transfer window, Stockport supporters should be confident that their side can go all the way this season. To date, manager Challinor has recorded the highest percentage of league wins (62.1%) of any manager across the club’s long and illustrious history, and if he can keep that pace going for the rest of the campaign, his side should capture their third league title in six seasons.
(Images from IMAGO)
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