Notts County issue that Luke Williams and Stuart Maynard have suffered from revealed by Opta: View | OneFootball

Stuart Maynard earned his second victory of his Notts County tenure with an emphatic display away to Bradford City on Tuesday evening.

The Magpies returned to winning ways, for the first time in more than a month, in dazzling style as goals from Macaulay Langstaff and a brace from Alassana Jatta secured a much-needed three points.

Ahead of their encounter with the Bantams, Maynard made four changes to the side that drew with Accrington Stanley over the weekend, two of which were enforced which Luca Ashby-Hammond and Jaden Warner replacing the injured Sam Slocombe, and the banned Aden Baldwin.

An early criticism of the new Notts head coach during his early tenure at the club has been his use of substitutions, often approaching fixtures with a more cautious, defensive approach.

The likes of Jodi Jones and Dan Crowley have been withdrawn early in recent weeks, but the victory at the University of Bradford Stadium saw just one change with two minutes to play, with Jim O'Brien replacing Jones for the final moments.

In previous seasons, Notts have been able to rely on impact from the bench, but that has yet to transpire this term, with the Magpies ranked among the lowest in terms of goal contributions from their substitutes, according to Opta.

Notts County are among the lowest ranked for goal involvements by substitutes

It's not often a statistic over analysed when looking at the modern game, but it is quite alarming when you look at the impact of players from the bench for the Magpies this season.

Substitutes are proving to be more important than ever before. With matches lasting longer and managers able to make five subs in league matches, players coming off the bench have made an incredible impact this term.

In England’s top four tiers, 642 goals have been scored by substitutes in league action this season, surpassing last seasons total of 617 in the whole of the English Football League with two months of the season remaining.

But for Notts, this has proved difficult to achieve. Based on this seasons statistics, Maynard's side are currently ranked the ninth lowest out of the 92 teams in the English football pyramid with just seven goal involvements from substitutes.

You would only have to go back to last month for their last goal from a substitute, with Jim O'Brien striking a late consolation in a 3-1 defeat to Crewe Alexandra in February, with Sam Austin providing an assist for David McGoldrick in their epic 5-5 showdown against Grimsby Town a month prior.

When compared to other sides in League Two, five sides feature inside the top 20 for goal involvements by substitutes this year, with East Midlands rivals, Mansfield Town, sitting in seventh place with 10 goals and 10 assists from players coming off the bench.

Stockport County, Wrexham and Barrow also feature among the top teams in England, which is perhaps no surprise given their current position in the standings. The one anomaly is Colchester United, who are just a point above the relegation zone.

Notts County problem is something Stuart Maynard and Luke Williams have struggled with

It's fair to say that Maynard has endured a difficult start to life at Notts, with this problem yet another issue he and the club can work on and improve during the summer transfer window.

But this has been a pre-existing issue, something which Luke Williams found difficult during his time at Meadow Lane this season, but it comes down to one thing.

The Magpies have not been helped by injuries throughout the entirety of their first campaign back in the Football League after four years in the National League, with three players who played a crucial role in their success last term missing for most, if not all, of this season.

Matty Palmer and Geraldo Bajrami were both ruled out for the season following injuries picked up in the early parts of the campaign, while Cedwyn Scott has not played a part so far this term, but Maynard is hopeful that the play-off final hero will feature for the Magpies at some point in their final eight league games.

Junior Morias is another player who has struggled for fitness not only this season, but since his move to Meadow Lane, having made just 16 appearances since signing last March, with Maynard confirming the forward is struggling with family issues which has resulted in him not featuring of late.

Notts did strengthen in the January window with the signings of Scott Robertson and Jatta, and while having 28 players in their squad, a lot has been down to the injuries to their forward players, something that ultimately can't be helped in the world of football.