Notts County boss Martin Allen has transformed his side around from a struggling club at the foot end of the table last season into a promotion chasing team this time around. They take on Hartlepool at Meadow Lane on Sunday and should be backed at Evs to continue their fine start to the season with three points.

Although they have lost their opening two games in October, Allen did pick up the manager of the month award in League One, as a reward for his side’s run in September. The curse of the award seems to have taken its toll on the opening results in the new month.

The two results won’t concern Allen too much, and he will see them as a mini blip as he challenges his players to go on winning run once again.

The Magpies were boosted with the news that Lee Hughes has signed an extension to his contract at the club. The former West Brom man has been critical to their rise from League Two strugglers in recent years. Take Hughes to score the first goal in the game at 9/2.

Hughes is one of the leading strikers in this division and always a handful for the opposition defence. He has been so successful at this level over the past couple of season that his goal celebration has become a big hit in these quarters.

Notts County have won four of their last five games in front of their home crowd, and that’s one of the key reasons to why they are currently ninth in the League One table, just one point outside the play-off zone.

It must be said that Hartlepool have had a solid start to their campaign and sit just one place above their opponents going into their game.

However, their recent run of fixtures have been kind to them, and they can expect things to become a lot tougher in the near future.

Coach Mick Wadsworth has refused to talk about promotion, and he is probably wise to do so because they are punching above their weight at the moment.

Their latest result was a 1-0 defeat at home to Sheffield Wednesday. The start of a tough run of fixtures.

Pools are without an obvious leading striker, like Hughes, who is capable of scoring 15 goals this season. They lacked quality in front of goal last weekend against the Owls.

Notts County are a high scoring side and the visitors will have to score at least twice if they are going to get something from the game on Sunday afternoon.

Take the 2-1 scoreline in favour of Notts County for your correct score selection at 8/1.

Three points on Sunday will keep the Magpies on track for a push for at least the play-offs this season. They struggled last season following promotion into the league, financial problems being their biggest Achilles heels. However, they now know what is required as they look for a return back into the second flight on English football.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.