Cheltenham Town were soundly defeated by Oldham Athletic at their home ground. The loss leaves Steve Cotterill's team in the middle of the League Two standings, sitting 8th on 15 points from a record of four wins, three draws, and four losses after 11 games.
Oldham began with energy and scored first. Calum Kavanagh converted a chance created by Favour Fawunmi. Shortly after, defender Jamie Robson scored with his head from another Fawunmi pass to make it two.
Fawunmi then scored himself before halftime, finishing a pass from Kavanagh. Cheltenham reduced the deficit just before the interval when Freddy Willcox scored from a set piece.
Late fourth seals it
Any chance of a recovery ended in the latter stages. Robson advanced and scored with a low shot to secure his second goal and confirm the victory. Cheltenham's most notable opportunity after halftime came from Charlie McCann, whose shot was saved by the keeper.
Cotterill altered his lineup with several new players following a prior loss. The visitors found it hard to handle Oldham's offense, with the home side creating more attempts. Cheltenham had few shots that tested the goalkeeper.
Manager Steve Cotterill stated the defensive work was below standard and mistakes were costly. He recognized a challenging spell for the team but emphasized working to improve results. The team's recent form of one win, one draw, and three losses in the last five league games shows the difficulty, with the 4-1 defeat at Oldham on Saturday 17 October preceded by a 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur U21 and a 2-0 loss to Salford City.
The outcome continues a tough spell for Cheltenham, who have won only once in their last several league outings. Their goals conceded tally is among the highest in the league, having let in 20 goals while scoring 17 this season for a minus three goal difference. They now trail league leaders Salford City by seven points.
Focus now shifts to the next home game against Fleetwood Town on Tuesday 20 October. Fleetwood Town currently sit 12th in the table. The team aims to recover swiftly from this loss, though they will have to do so without their top scorer this season, I. Hutchinson, who has netted 16 goals in 42 appearances.
