The Iron return to action for the first time in ten days on Friday as they host Crawley Town looking to make it five games unbeaten.
The Iron signed off a tough run of fixtures last midweek with a 2-0 home win over Bradford City which followed three consecutive 1-1 draws, and will be looking to get their latest run of fixtures off to a winning start against the side they faced in the reverse fixture back in September.
SCENE-SETTER
First Team Manager Neil Cox has had opportunity to get some work into the players on the training ground in the last week after a month of back-to-back Saturday-Tuesday fixtures. This month follows in a similar ilk, with eight games to be played in April.
They will be buoyed by that victory last time out though, with Abo Eisa and Devarn Green both netting against the Bantams, while the previous two games saw United equalise late on. This is the fourth of four consecutive home games.
The Iron didn't have a game last weekend as the scheduled trip to Newport County was called off due to international call-ups in the Exiles team.
THE OPPOSITION
Crawley Town come into the game off the back of two disappointing defeats, losing 3-1 at home to Port Vale last weekend, while they were edged out 3-2 at Barrow in the game prior.
Before that they were four games unbeaten, including three 1-0 wins in a row against Tranmere Rovers, Salford City and Mansfield Town, respectively.
Currently in 11th place on 51 points, the side sit six points adrift of the play-offs following their two defeats, which has dented their hopes of pushing into the mix at the top end of the table. Nevertheless, with 10 games to go, they'll still believe they have a real chance of entering the fray.
Manager John Yems is 62 games into his tenure at the club having joined them in December 2019, winning 28 and drawing 18. Prior to that, he was in a scouting role with other clubs, including Newcastle United, and has assumed a number of coaching roles throughout.
Amongst the Reds' ranks is former Iron midfielder Josh Wright and his brother, Mark, who is most known as a TV personality and original cast member in The Only Way is Essex. Josh, meanwhile, made a total of 81 appearances for Scunthorpe in all competitions during a two-year stay, with his one goal coming in the League Cup tie against Manchester United.
TEAM NEWS
Left-back Junior Brown has been ruled out for five-to-six weeks with the hamstring injury that forced him off against Bradford City, while forward Kevin van Veen has undergone an injection on his knee and will miss this game. He'll be assessed ahead of Tuesday's trip to take on Carlisle United.
Central defender Emmanuel Onariase returns to the squad following a month out with a groin problem, while fellow centre-back George Taft is ahead of schedule with his recovery from an ankle injury but probably won't be available for a couple of weeks.
Their fellow defender Harrison McGahey (thigh) is back running on the training ground and should return to full training at the end of next week, while attacker Jordan Hallam has undergone an injection on the hamstring injury he suffered against Oldham Athletic and will be assessed again in a couple of weeks.
Striker Aaron Jarvis (hamstring) is set to miss the rest of the season, while midfielder George Hornshaw and goalkeeper Adam Kelsey are both expected to be out for the remainder of the campaign too following ankle surgery.
PAST MEETINGS…
The reverse fixture was the Iron's first away game of the league season, with Tom Nichols' 15th minute strike earning the home side all three points.
United are yet to win a fixture against the Red Devils since April 2015, and haven't won at the People's Pension Stadium in their history - only taking a point in three league visits.
The last league meeting, however, was the first time Scunthorpe had failed to score since the first meeting in 2012, with the Iron getting more favourable results on home soil against them. Indeed, they've not lost, with two wins and a draw in the three games at the Sands Venue Stadium in the past.
| SEASON - DATE | COMPETITION | RESULT | IRON SCORERS |
| 2020-21 - Sat Sep 19 | LG 2 | Crawley 1-0 Iron | |
| 2019-20 - Sat Feb 1 | LG 2 | Crawley 3-1 Iron | Van Veen |
| 2019-20 - Sat Nov 9 | FAC R1 | Crawley 4-1 Iron | Colclough |
| 2019-20 - Sat Aug 17 | LG 2 | Iron 2-2 Crawley | McArdle, Lund |
| 2014-15 - Sat Apr 11 | LG 1 | Iron 2-1 Crawley | Dickson (og), Madden |
| 2014-15 - Sat Nov 22 | LG 1 | Crawley 2-2 Iron | Madden, Taylor |
| 2012-13 - Sat Feb 9 | LG 1 | Iron 2-1 Crawley | Ryan, Canavan |
| 2012-13 - Sat Aug 18 | LG 1 | Crawley 3-0 Iron |
| SCUNTHORPE WINS | DRAW | CRAWLEY WINS | |
| LEAGUE | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| FA CUP | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| TOTAL | 2 | 2 | 3 |
ELSEWHERE IN SKY BET LEAGUE TWO
Friday, April 2nd
Bolton Wanderers v Colchester United (1pm)
Barrow v Newport County (3pm)
Bradford City v Forest Green Rovers (3pm)
Cambridge United v Morecambe (3pm)
Cheltenham Town v Tranmere Rovers (3pm)
Mansfield Town v Leyton Orient (3pm)
Oldham Athletic v Stevenage (3pm)
Port Vale v Exeter City (3pm)
Salford City v Grimsby Town (3pm)
Walsall v Harrogate Town (3pm)
Saturday, April 3rd
Southend United v Carlisle United (1pm)