Fleetwood Town recorded back-to-back victories on the road this week, including an incredible 6-2 win at Walsall, to move themselves up to fifth place and their efforts see them awarded The Deck’s League Two Team of the Week award for the first time this season.
It is now three away wins on the spin for Charlie Adam’s team after a 2-0 win at Cheltenham before the Walsall victory. They overtake league leaders Gillingham, who were awarded the Team of the Week award after a 1-0 win over Barrow, but followed that result with a defeat by the same scoreline against Grimsby Town.
Former League of Ireland Duo Fire Fleetwood Town Into Fifth
It was a difficult season in 2023/24 for Ryan Graydon and Ronan Coughlan who moved from Derry City and Waterford respectively. Coughlan left the League of Ireland after scoring 36 goals in 35 matches to inspire Waterford to promotion via the play-offs from the First Division and scored a couple of goals playing from the left after joining in January 2024 but injury prevented him from playing a deciding role in League One as Fleetwood Town suffered relegation.
25-year-old Graydon dropped in and out of the team throughout the season but his return of three-goal involvements in 27 appearances was less than impressive and it appeared to be a tall order for the forwards to lead the line in the fourth tier. They have exceeded expectations with their blistering start and Graydon’s two assists against Walsall took him to two goals and four assists in six League Two matches, doubling his total of goal involvements from the previous campaign.
Coughlan has been a goalscorer throughout his career and his brace against Walsall made it four strikes from six outings and he has been one of the standout players in the division in the opening nine matchdays. Charlie Adam has an exciting strike partnership at his disposal with Coughlan very much a poacher in the box and averaging 3.5 shots per game, third of all forwards with more than three appearances in the division, and the forward ranks first with 2.7 shots per game inside the penalty area.
Graydon offers a different skillset and is an excellent ball carrier, ranking second for successful dribbles of all forwards with the same criteria. His creativity is proving to be an excellent foil for his partner in attack and his average of 1.7 key passes per game is a leading statistic for regular forwards in the fourth tier.
Upcoming Fixtures and Future Prospects
Based on the current form of the side, it appears likely that Fleetwood Town will be competing at the top end of the League Two table. They are outperforming in several metrics and appear to be settling under former Liverpool midfielder Adam, who took charge in December 2023 but was unable to guide them to safety in League One.
Their next two league outings are both at Highbury Stadium and Bromley are the visitors this weekend. The newly-promoted side started the campaign in promising form but have been on a poor run lately, failing to win in their last seven League Two fixtures since winning their opening two games.
The matchup does appear a big opportunity for Fleetwood Town to continue their recent run but they were held by struggling Morecambe in their last home game so they will need to guard against complacency when Bromley arrive. Colchester United will be the next visitor to Highbury and that fixture is followed by a tough trip to Port Vale. If they can pick up three points against Bromley, it will take the pressure off in the next two fixtures.
Danny Cowley’s Colchester slumped to 15th place but are a dangerous opposition and a return of anywhere between four and six points should be a realistic aim for Fleetwood Town in the next three matches.