Charlie McCann has scored seven goals in nine League Two games for Cheltenham Town this season, enough to lead the division’s scoring charts and to win Player of the Month for September. He has also been sent off, and Cheltenham have lost both games since.
The dismissal came at Accrington Stanley on 3rd October. McCann was shown two yellow cards, and Cheltenham conceded twice in the final 12 minutes to lose 2-0. The suspension meant he was unavailable for Saturday’s visit of league leaders Salford City, and Cheltenham lost 2-0 at home. Steve Cotterill had said after the Accrington defeat that “days like today make you stronger,” and the Salford result tested that.
The timing makes the manager’s verdict on McCann more pointed. Cotterill’s explanation for his midfielder’s form, published on Friday, is maturity. That came days after McCann had been sent off for two bookings, which is a reminder that the maturity in question applies to his finishing more than his discipline.
It is a story with a long back catalogue. McCann is 24, and joined Rangers from Manchester United in 2021, made eight first-team appearances and left for Forest Green in January 2023. He has since said he “should have just stuck it out” at Ibrox, a regret about a career that took him from Old Firm academy football to the National League. He scored 15 goals in 90 appearances for Forest Green, and left when Robbie Savage replaced Cotterill in the summer of 2025. After a spell at Barrow, he rejoined Cotterill at Cheltenham in June, for a nominal fee.
Forest Green, where he made his name, are now without a manager after Savage’s own departure to Peterborough. The man who left when Savage arrived, is the division’s best player.
The goals have attracted attention. Football Insider reports that Championship and League One clubs are watching McCann, and that his red card has not put scouts off. He has also represented Northern Ireland at under-21 level. The same report says Cheltenham are reluctant to sell and have no plans to lose him, although the length of his contract is unclear.
Cheltenham were fourth after the Accrington game, which was the high point of a start that had earned Cotterill a Manager of the Month nomination alongside McCann’s award. Two defeats later, the question is how much of Cheltenham’s early form rested on one midfielder, and what happens when he is missing.
Whether Cheltenham can hold on to him is a question the January window will start to answer.
