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Saturday 20^th February

English Premier League

West Ham United v Hull City

It’s yet another battle between two sides at the bottom of the table desperate for points as Phil Brown leads his Hull side to London set to take on improving West Ham.

The Hammers have finally begun to pick up points regularly for really the first time this season. Gianfranco Zola’s side have lost just one of their last 5 but at the same time, they’ve only won one of those. It may not be pretty reading compared to the form of the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United and Everton but when you put it alongside teams in and around them, there’s not too many who can rival it in terms of not losing games – which is fundamental at this stage of the season. Their last match saw a very convincing 2-0 win over high-flying Birmingham at home. It was a win that owed much to the influence of Carlton Cole. The England striker scored his first goal since returning from injury and he led the line exceptionally well. He can be the catalyst between now and the end of the season for the East London club and it’s imperative he remains fit and healthy. He was partnered upfront by one of the club’s new singings in the January window – Mido. The former Middlesborough, Wigan and Tottenham player has been a regular fixture in the Premier League so it was no real surprise to see him return to these shores last month. He could prove to be an astute signing between now and the end of the season and along with Benni McCarthy and Ilan, West Ham have certainly strengthened what had been a problematic area in the earlier part of the campaign.

Hull will again have to make do without the talismanic figure of Jimmy Bullard. The midfielder is still recovering from injury but could be given a place on the bench to boost team morale if nothing else, as the former Fulham man is without doubt the best and most important player at the football club. City will be looking for their first away win of the season on Saturday which is a damning statistic when you think that only they and Burnley remain winless on the road. They have scored a measly 7 goals as well on their travels, conceding 31, the 3^rd worst record in the division. Phil Brown is tasked with sorting this out but it remains to be seen whether he has the players and quality at his disposal to do so. Many feel that Hull were extremely lucky to survive their maiden season last year, with a horrendous run of form after Christmas meaning they relied upon other teams keeping them up whilst sending Newcastle down. This season they have performed at a decent enough level at home with 5 wins and 5 draws from 13 games but have let themselves down with some horrific away results. Their most recent away defeat came against Blackburn where the 1-0 reverse flattered them. It was a game which only ever looked like having the home side triumphant at the end, but poor finishing allied with some great saves from Boaz Myhill meant they were always in the game without ever really looking like scoring.

West Ham have won 2 and drawn 1 of their last 3 games and they’ve kept 3 clean sheets in the process. They have class all over the field from their keeper Rob Green, to Matthew Upson, Scott Parker, Valon Behrami through to Cole up top. It’s a very strong spine they have in their team and is arguably why they have by far the best goal difference of the 7 teams involved in the relegation battle. Their squad is packed full of international players, several of whom will be playing in South Africa this summer so they will be motivated even more so to go there on a high by helping their club out of this predicament.

Hull do not look the same team without Bullard in the midfield so the sooner they get him back the better they’ll be. Until he is fit enough to return, a lot of expectation will be heaped upon Stephen Hunt. The Irish wide player is the club’s top scorer this season with 6 and he’s been the subject of much interest despite only moving to the KC Stadium last summer. He’s the infectious player a club like Hull needs and he’s done will thus far. He can only do so much though and it’s upfront where they tend to fall down.

West Ham won this match pretty easily last season, winning 2-0. It was a performance which merited an even bigger margin of victory but I’m positive if you offered Zola any sort of win on Saturday, he wouldn’t care one bit about how they achieved it. Hull do not have enough upfront to worry a stronger West Ham defence whilst Cole looks to be getting back to his best and is likely to prove too much for a porous Tigers backline.

My selection: West Ham to beat Hull

Best odds available: Best priced 5/6 available with Boylesports

English Championship

Newcastle United v Preston North End

Newcastle will be looking to extend their unbeaten home record this season when Preston come calling on Saturday.

The home side returned to the top of the Championship on Wednesday with a 4-1 success of crisis club Crystal Palace. They had to come back from a goal down in the first half but their superior class and quality of player prevailed as they made chalked up their 12^th home win of the campaign. Despite being top for much of the season, Chris Houghton refused to rest on his laurels and strengthened his side during the transfer window. He brought in a total of 5 players on a mixture of loans and permanent deals and all 5 have played some part in the fixtures since. Arguably the most effective, certainly in an attacking sense, has been Wayne Routledge. The little winger joined from QPR and has made an immediate impact in the North East. He’s provided balance in a position which has seen many a player tried in it. He scored in the 4-1 win over his old club and he’s created several goals with his sharp wing play and accurate crossing. He’s a dream provider for the likes of Andy Carroll and Shola Ameobi, as well as fellow new signing, Leon Best. Newcastle have the best home defensive record in the league, and joint best overall. It’s been added to by the capture of Mike Williamson from Portsmouth. The former Watford stopper has slotted in seamlessly and looks to be the solid, no nonsense centre back that the club have been looking for in their attempts to go straight back up.

Preston are on to their 2^nd manager of the season with Darren Ferguson taking the reigns after the sacking of Alan Irvine. Ferguson has found it hard thus far with only 1 win in 5 league games. They suffered an embarrassing 5-2 thrashing on Tuesday away to Derby in a match which could easily have been even worse for North End had it not been for some woeful finishing from the Derby players. Everytime Derby attacked they looked threatening and their key players were afforded too much space, especially Rob Hulse who simply bullied the Preston centre halves whenever they did decided to get close to him. It’s worrying times for Ferguson as he’s unable to call upon a massive squad anyway, but when his key players such as Sean St Ledger and Ross Wallace are off the boil, it’s very difficult to bring anyone else in to freshen things up. They won’t find things any easier on Saturday when they travel north, especially when you consider they have lost 9 away games already this season, including 6 of the last 7.

Newcastle have been like a juggernaut at St James’ this year and they know it must continue to roll along with the league being so tight and also because their away form is not nearly as good as their home. It’s these type of games which will determine where they finish come May as everyone will drop points, but it’s dropping silly points such as a home game against a side out of form which will severely dent their promotion aspirations. Preston look far too weak at the back to hold out for anything other than damage limitation – comfortable home win.

My selection: Newcastle to beat Preston

Best odds available: Best priced 4/7 available with Stan James and Coral

Scottish Premier League

Motherwell v Hibernian

Motherwell are not quite out of the running for 3^rd place but they know that anything other than 3 points against the team currently in that position, Hibs, will all but end their hopes.

Craig Brown has done a fantastic job since taking over from Jim Gannon on a temporary basis until the end of the season. The former Scotland manager has led his new side to 7 matches unbeaten in the league, including 4 wins. What’s been most impressive about this is the fact he’s used exactly the same players as his predecessor but far more effectively. It’s a very young squad he’s working with so inconsistency could have been a problem – it’s been anything but. They’ve brushed aside Aberdeen and Kilmarnock away from home whilst winning against St Mirren and Hamilton at Fir Park of late, but there best performance was 10 days ago at home to Rangers. They dominated the match from start to finish and if not for a shocking offside call, would have been 2-0 up with 20 minutes to player. As it was, Rangers leveled the match late on but the home side earned many plaudits for their way of playing.

Hibs have had a good season up till now but there are signs there that they have ran out of good performances and that little bit of luck. They are now 3 games without a win and have conceded 10 goals in the process, taking only a solitary point which they had to rely on a last minute penalty against Aberdeen to earn. They have stuttered of late and it’s probably down to the fact they’ve overachieved in the first half of the season thanks to a load of Anthony Stokes’ goals and some excellent support from Liam Miller in the middle of the park. These two have failed to perform in the last couple of weeks which has had a serious effect on results. They can’t keep pulling them out the bag all season and it looks as though they are tired from their early season exertions, especially when you consider that both have played little football in the last couple of seasons.

‘Well currently sit 8 points behind Saturday’s visitors so a win is a must to narrow the gap and put the pressure on between now and the split. Hibs were thumped 5-1 in midweek away to St Johnstone and it will be interesting to see how the players react on Saturday. I thought they looked out of ideas against Rangers last Sunday whilst their defence looked more vulnerable than it has done for much of the season. Motherwell are on a roll at the minute and the value certainly lies with a home win on Saturday.

My selection: Motherwell to beat Hibs

Best odds available: Best priced 6/4 available with several bookmakers including Skybet

Saturday 6^th February

English Premier League

Liverpool v Everton

The second Merseyside derby of the season takes place at Anfield as the home side look to move into 4^th place in the table when they take on an in form Everton.

Rafa Benitez knows how important it is for his Liverpool side to finish in the Champions League places this season so anything other than a win here would be a catastrophic blow to their chances. As a result, this derby game takes on even more significance than it normally would. Liverpool are currently unbeaten in 6 league games, a run of games in which they have won 4 and drawn 2. The pick of their wins was against Tottenham last month where they played a more controlled game and always looked like winning. They are beginning to keep clean sheets as well with more regularity, conceding only 1 goal in those 6 matches, a last minute equalizer against Stoke. Benitez has finally stuck with a team selection and formation which has brought more consistent and better results and performances. They are still nowhere near the level they were last season but much better than earlier on in the season. Captain Steven Gerrard is back fit but he must start producing more often this season as he’s been disappointing in the first half of the campaign.

Everton are beginning to play like everyone expected them to from the start of the season. David Moyes’ side have had no luck whatsoever with injuries but now that the treatment room is beginning to empty, performances and results have improved dramatically. The blue half of Merseyside are unbeaten in 10 league matches, by far their best run of the season. They have won 5 of the 10, including their last 3. There have been several reasons for their resurgence in form, one of them is the loan signing of Landon Donovan on loan from the MLS. Donovan has provided a goalscoring threat from wide for the Toffees which they were missing in the early part of the season so it has given opposition defences more to think about. This has meant there has been more freedom for the likes of Tim Cahill and Steven Pienaar to play centrally and behind the striker, allowing them to play their natural game has inevitably brought more goals and in turn, points. Cahill notched the winner last weekend away at Wigan as well as at home against Sunderland whilst Pienaar has 3 in his last 5 games.

Liverpool will have to do without their main man upfront again as Fernando Torres is still absent. Glen Johnson is also still out so Jamie Carragher will fill the right back slot once again which will mean Soti Kyriagkos keeps his place at the heart of defence. He has been in good form of late but I remain very unconvinced that he’s good enough for a club like Liverpool. He was extremely error prone when at Rangers a few years ago and even against Stoke his concentration was lacking at times. He’ll be up against it tomorrow with all the attacking threat on show for Everton from all over the park. The away side are also brilliant at set-pieces so concentration is a must.  Everton will have Yakubu and Joseph Yobo back from international duty but both may have to settle for a place on the bench as the side are in such good form at the moment.

I expect their will be goals tomorrow afternoon despite both sides defences playing well of late. This will be the hardest match both sides have faced on their good runs in my opinion, simply because it is a derby game and the pace of the match will be even greater than it normally is in the Premier League. I’m not convinced Liverpool are good enough to beat Everton tomorrow despite being in decent form results wise. They were woeful against Wolves a fortnight ago whilst they were lucky not to concede last week at home to Bolton. Everton are playing far better than their city neighbours but they’ve not won at Anfield in the last decade so they know how hard it will be to take all 3 points back to Goodison. With all this considered I feel the wise money is on a scoring draw. However there may also be value in Everton draw no bet. The blue’s are in terrific form and records are there to be broken. I’m not convinced of the Liverpool defence and with Everton so strong at set pieces, they stand a good chance of breaking their Anfield hoodoo.

My selections: Liverpool and Everton to draw at a best priced 5/2 available with Skybet

                            Everton to beat Liverpool ‘draw no bet’ at a best priced 11/4 with Boylesports

Providing Liverpool do not win, you’ll be in profit should you back both of these bets at level stakes. Should the game end in a draw you will also receive your stake back on the DNB wager.

English Championship

Sheffield United v Derby County

Kevin Blackwell will be glad to get his side back to home comforts after two successive away defeats as Sheffield United take on Derby County at Bramall Lane.

The blades have got themselves back into the promotion picture after a run of good from since the end of December. They’ve won their last 4 home matches and unbeaten in the last 5, conceding zero goals in the process, so it doesn’t take a genius to work out where their strengths currently lie. They have, however, conceded 6 in the last two away games, against West Brom and Watford. Blackwell was left seething after both performances so will be demanding a much improved display tomorrow. With the 4^th best home record in the division, it is not inconceivable that they can put their poor away form behind them and get back to winning ways.

Derby put in a massive performance last weekend in their local derby against Nottingham Forest. Forest had been unbeaten in 16 league matches and had not lost away from home all season before their visit to Pride Park. 90 minutes and a Rob Hulse goal later, both records were away and Derby received a massive morale boost in their bid to stay in the Championship. Their away from, however, is not great at all with only 2 wins from 14 games on the road. Nigel Clough would no doubt be happy with a point and his side will be in buoyant mood after their heroics last Saturday.

Michael Tonge is no stranger to playing at Bramall lane after playing there for 8 years. This time, however, the midfielder will be lining up for the away side after his loan move from Stoke at the start of the week. He’ll likely go straight into the side as he’ll be match fit after a similar spell at Preston North End. Chris Morgan is out injured for the home side as is Andrew Taylor and Marcel Seip, so it will be a defensive reshuffle for Blackwell. The Blades have won their last two home games against tomorrow’s opponents and know that another victory is vital in their quest for a play-off place.

Derby will have put in a massive amount of energy last weekend, both physically and mentally. It will be interesting to see how they react to that expenditure tomorrow but I have a sneaky feeling that they will fail to maintain those levels this time around. There is a reason they are where they are and it is inconsistency.

My selection: Sheffield United to beat Derby County at a best priced 5/6 available with Coral

Time for FA Cup Betting coming up, with the festive Premier League schedule coming to an end. The first weekend of the new year sees the return of the FA Cup. It’s always an exciting time when the 3rd round arrives on the scene, and while there may not be as many mouth watering giant killing chances involving Premier League teams, there are still some good chances for teams from the lower leagues to progress to the fourth round, where there will be more chances to meet a team from the top flight. Here were lay out the FA Cup Betting by status of teams, to make life easier to spot potential windfalls for the punter.

NON-LEAGUE TEAMS (fixed odds match prices in brackets)
Stoke (1/4) v York (11/1) at Bet365
Sunderland (1/7) v Barrow (18/1) at SkyBet
Notts County (4/11) v Forest Green (13/2) at Totesport
Southampton (4/9) v Luton (13/2) at Boylesports

There are two Premier League v Non League FA Cup ties, with Stoke playing York, and Sunderland taking on Barrow. While these are potentially the stuff dreams are made of when it comes to the FA Cup, they Blue Square teams are both away, making an upset even more unlikely. Southampton who are mid-table from League 1 should be confident enough of progressing, while Notts County are the ones from League 2 who may be sweating a bit at the risk of an upset.

ALL PREMIER LEAGUE TIES
Aston Villa (8/15) v Blackburn (9/2) at BetFred
West Ham (15/4) v Arsenal (13/20) at SportingBet
Wigan (5/6) v Hull (10/3) at Victor Chandler

Just three top flight clashes in the Third Round this year, but none from the top half of the table playing each other. Arsenal, third in the Premier League face West Ham who are in a relegation battle, while other high flyers Aston Villa will have a somewhat tricky tie against 13th placed Blackburn. There is only one point separating Wigan and Hull, but that equates to four places, with Hull second from bottom in the league. On paper, this looks to be the tightest game of the all Premier League FA Cup Third Round clashes.

PREMIER LEAGUE v CHAMPIONSHIP
Portsmouth (4/7) v Coventry (5/1) at Blue Square
Chelsea (17/1) v Watford (16/1) at Paddy Power
Middlesbrough (4/1) v Man City (4/6) at Stan James
Nottm Forest (8/5) v Birmingham (6/4) at 888Sport
Reading (13/2) v Liverpool (5/11) at Expekt
Tottenham (1/7) v Peterborough (11) at Ladbrokes

This is where FA Cup betting can get a little interesting. The teams struggling towards the bottom of the Premier League will be approaching the FA Cup Third Round ties with a little apprehension. Premier League v Championship is a great place to look for some upsets. Portsmouth is a good target for being taken down, as they play Coventry from the Championship. The Sky Blues are just below mid table, but could pose a threat. Third placed Nottingham Forest will give Birmingham a good game, simply because Alex McLeish’s Blues are not heavy scorers, and Forest have been scoring plenty at home. Tottenham should not have too many troubles against bottom team Peterborough, but Reading, who are just above the drop zone, may fancy their chances at home against Liverpool.

PREMIER LEAGUE v LEAGUE ONE
Everton (1/4) v Carlisle (7/1) at Coral
Fulham (1/4) v Swindon (10/1) at Bet365
Tranmere (4/1) v Wolverhampton (8/11) at SkyBet
Man Utd (1/5) v Leeds United(9/1) at Totesport

The big name clash here is clearly between Manchester United and Leeds United, as the two old rivals come together. Leeds are flying at the top of League One, having suffered only one defeat all season. Depending on what side Alex Ferguson puts out, this could be a fierce contest, but the difference in class should probably win out in the end. Tranmere, languishing down near the bottom of League one, should be welcome opponents for Wolves who could do with a bit of cheer. Fulham have a tie against Swindon who chasing promotion from League One. Last year’s beaten finalists Everton, a team a lot of people lean towards when looking for an upset to happen against in the FA Cup, will be happy to be at home against Carlisle, who are in the bottom half of the league.

PREMIER LEAGUE v LEAGUE TWO
Bolton (2/9) v Lincoln City (11/1) at Boylesports

Just the one, and two teams are wide apart in the league system. Lincoln are third from bottom in League Two, just one place above the zone where they would drop out of the League system, down into the conference.

CHAMPIONSHIP v CHAMPIONSHIP
Blackpool (6/5) v Ipswich (15/8) at BetFred
Bristol City (7/5) v Cardiff (17/10) at SportingBet
Leicester (6/5) v Swansea (9/4) at Victor Chandler
Plymouth (7/2) v Newcastle (8/11) at Blue Square
Sheff Wed (6/4) v Crystal Palace (17/10) at Paddy Power
Scunthorpe (6/5) v Barnsley (8/5) at Stan James
Sheff Utd (11/10) v QPR (9/4) at 888Sport

One stand out tie here is the clash between Leicester and Swansea, who are 5th and 6th respectively in the league, and should produce a great game. League leaders Newcastle could be a great outside bet for the FA Cup, at least to get to the Quarter Finals. Sheffield United and QPR should be entertaining too, and these are the games where you really can pick up a deal. The FA Cup provides a welcome break from the stresses of the league, and where lower placed teams can turn over higher ones.

CHAMPIONSHIP v LOWER
Brentford (9/5) v Doncaster (7/5) at Expekt
Millwall (11/8) v Derby (8/5) at Ladbrokes
Preston (8/11) v Colchester (3/1) at Coral

These are interesting bets to have a look at, but not many of them. The Championship is hard to gauge sometimes in terms of quality. Often it is proved that there is big gulf in class between the teams who get promoted to the Premier League, but the teams who get relegated from the Championship, often find it hard to get back up. So, when a Championship team takes on a lower one, these are the FA Cup matches which may get overlooked, but check them out, as there could be a good  upset, especially Derby who are struggling in the bottom half.

REST OF THE REST
Accrington Stanley (7/5) v Gillingham (6/4) at William Hill
Huddersfield (21/10) v West Brom (Evens) at William Hill
MK Dons (5/2)  v Burnley (11/10) at Bet365
Torquay (7/4) v Brighton (6/4) at SkyBet

These may need a bit of studying, but do not discard lower teams playing against lower teams. You can always find decent prices floating around for these types of ties. While it is nice dreaming that a League 2 team is going to dump out a Premier League team, these are the realistic games where teams are playing others on equal levels, and becomes their best chance to progress.

Favourites to take the cup are the Big Four from the Premier League naturally…
Chelsea – 4/1 at Coral
Man Utd – 9/2 at Coral
Liverpool – 13/2 at Sporting Bet
Arsenal – 8/1 at Coral
Manchester City – 11/1 at BetFred
Tottenham – 12/1 at Bet365
Aston Villa – 22/1 at BetFred

Saturday 28^th November

English Premier League

Fulham v Bolton Wanderers

Fulham play their 3^rd match in 7 days when they come up against Gary Megson’s Bolton Wanderers who will be determined to halt their recent run of bad form having lost their last 3 matches in the league.

Roy Hodgson’s charges have had a hectic season to date having already played 22 games in all competitions thanks to their involvement in the Europa League. They have also had to contend with key personnel being injured with the likes of Danny Murphy, Andy Johnson and Diomansay Kamara missing large chunks of the season to date. All that considered, they are in decent enough shape in the league at the moment as they currently sit in 10^th position, 4 points off of 5^th place. They have gathered most of their points at Craven Cottage, amassing 4 wins from 6 matches. They have defeated the likes of Liverpool, Everton and most recently triumphed over Blackburn in midweek. Their only two defeats at the Cottage this term have been against Arsenal and Chelsea which is no disgrace at all. Hodgson has turned their home ground into something of a fortress and any visitor knows they’ll have to be at the top of their game to come away with anything.

Bolton, after a decent run of form at the end of September and beginning of October have started to slide down the table. Currently in 18^th position, they have conceded 11 in their last 3 matches, scoring just once and gaining zero points. Their latest match against Blackburn was arguably the poorest of their season thus far as they never looked capable of getting much from the game from the first few minutes. Rovers, who were searching for their first away win of the season, dominated large parts of the game and as soon as they opened the scoring they never looked in any real danger. One of Bolton’s problems is the main striker position. They have tried several players in the position but no-one has made it their own and this results in a lack of fluency going forward. Unfortunately for Megson and his side, the other main problem is that they give the opposition too many chances throughout the 90 minutes making them more likely to concede. It’s not often a trait you associate with Gary Megson’s side’s, they are normally hard to beat and stubborn but this season they have shipped 26 goals in 12 games, which equates to more than two goals a game.

Despite key injuries in the last 3^rd of the part for the Cottagers, they still have a lot of options available for Saturday and good ones at that. Erik Nevland and Clint Dempsey both got on the scoresheet on Wednesday night against Rovers so they have staked their claim ahead of Saturday’s match. Hodgson also has the likes of Damien Duff, Jonathan Greening and Zoltan Gera whilst Johnson should be fit enough for the bench on his comeback from injury. Duff and Dempsey especially will cause immense problems for most teams in the league so Bolton’s porous defence will be under pressure from the off. Their movement and ability to make telling contributions at vital stages of the game is crucial to Fulham’s style of play and with a predator like Nevland lurking, they are liable to score goals from the first minute to the last.

Bolton have actually won more games on the road this season than they have at home which is surprising considering the amount of teams which used to struggle at the Reebok. Their wins, however, have come against Birmingham and Portsmouth who, no disrespect, are not as potent at home as Fulham are.

Fulham have had the better of this fixture in recent years having won 3 of the last 4 meetings at the Cottage in the league. Bolton just give too many chances away for my liking and I think the home side’s attacking players will be too much for the visitors.

My selection: Fulham to beat Bolton Wanderers

Best price available: 10/11 available with several bookmakers including Coral

English Championship

Newcastle v Swansea

First versus fourth at St James’ Park on Saturday as Paulo Sousa and his Swansea side travel north to take on league leaders Newcastle who are still unbeaten at home this season.

Newcastle have dusted themselves down and got on with the job at hand after their relegation at the end of last season. They have managed to retain most of their squad with a couple of exceptions but look all the better for it. Chris Houghton has been appointed as manager until the end of the season and this has had a massive, positive effect on the club and its players. One of the most noticeable things about Newcastle this season is they don’t have that one superstar in their team this season that they have had in the last decade or so. It used to be Alan Shearer for so long and he passed the torch to the injury ravaged Michael Owen. Nowadays, they are much more of a team and unit.

Swansea City, after a pretty slow start under their new manager, have rejuvenated their season with a run of 11 games unbeaten in the league which has propelled them right up the table. Sousa has built from the back and made them stuffy, resilient and hard to score against. They currently have the 2^nd best defensive record (Newcastle have the best) conceding just 12 goals. Their defence on the road is the best, losing just 5 goals in 8 games. Scoring goals has proved problematic however as they are the lowest scorers in the division with Craig Beattie their top scorer on a measly 3 strikes.

Watching Newcastle on Monday night away to Preston was interesting due to the fact that it was almost inevitable that they were going to win the game no matter how much North End threw at them, you always felt United would nick a goal and take all 3 points. It of course did happen and proves yet again that the better teams in the division win games despite not playing all that well. They will create chances at home and have proven even harder to beat at St James’ with 6 wins and 2 draws from 8 games.

I can’t see the game being pretty or having a plethora of goals (cue a 3-3 draw) with such good defences on show. I can, however, see the home side creating a couple of really good opportunities and taking at least one of them such is the form they’re on at the moment. Swansea, I feel, will have to score to get something from the match, at least once, which I think is debatable given their poor scoring record. As a result I think Newcastle will take all 3 points and strengthen their position at the top of the league.

My selection: Newcastle to beat Swansea

Best price available: 5/6 available with Bet365

English Championship

Sheffield Wednesday v West Brom

Sheffield Wednesday, searching for their first win in 6, look to have it all to do against 2^nd placed West Bromwich Albion at Hillsborough.

I tipped against Wednesday last week when opting to go for Ipswich, and but for a masterclass in goalkeeping by Lee Grant, I would have been right. As it was, the keeper had a day out and saved his side, earning a good point in the process. Their home record is better than their form on the road so their fans will be expecting them to be more threatening and adventurous on Saturday. They have already defeated Coventry, Cardiff and Scunthorpe on their own patch this season but they’ll be up against one of, if not the best, side in the Championship when West Brom come calling.

Roberto Di Matteo has fitted in really well with WBA’s footballing philosophy since joining as Manager from MK Dons in July. His side play the best football in the division and have proved too much for so many teams already this season. They are currently the highest scorers in the division, averaging more than two goals a game. They have lost the one game in their last 7, a run which has included thumping wins against Watford and Bristol City and an excellent away victory over Leicester City.

Simon Cox has taken a while to get fully fit after an injury at the start of the season but the £2m signing from Swindon is beginning to find his feet leading the line for the Baggies. Cox has scored twice in his last 3 matches and will fancy of notching against Wednesday who have shipped 4 goals in their last two home games. Cox doesn’t just bring goals to the team, his overall play has made a big difference to West Brom who at times lacked a potent attacking threat up top.

West Brom have brushed aside better teams than Sheffield Wednesday already this season and I for one can’t see Brian Laws’ men getting anything from Saturday’s match. This one is easy enough for me anyway, away win.

My selection: West Brom to beat Sheffield Wednesday

Best odds available: 23/20 available with 888Sport

Good luck and happy punting

Apologies for the brief analysis of my tips today and for the length of time it’s taken to get them up. I’ve had a few problems with my connection this week so I’m just getting on for a short period of time thanks to a friend. Let’s hope they are more successful than the last couple of week’s efforts.

Saturday 31^st October

Bristol City v Sheffield Wednesday

Bristol City have an excellent home record with 5 wins from 7 matches, drawing the other two. Their strength lies mainly in their defence as they have only conceded 4 goals in this run of matches. Sheffield Wednesday have a poor away record with 4 defeats from 7 matches, winning only once. They were soundly beaten in their last away match against Watford. The Hornets had far too much quality going forward for Wednesday’s defence and with Nicky Maynard in good form for Bristol City, the Owls can affect another rough ride tomorrow.

City have defeated the likes of Middlesbrough, Blackpool and QPR at Ashton Gate this term so the visit of a poor unorganised and dispirited Wednesday side should not pose too many problems at all tomorrow.

My selection: Bristol City to beat Sheffield Wednesday

Best odds available: 10/11 available with several bookies including Bet365

English Premier League

Portsmouth v Wigan

I tipped Portsmouth last weekend as I have seen quite a bit of them already this season but was foiled by Hull goalkeeper Boaz Myhill. Pompey followed up last week’s draw with Hull by easily brushing aside Stoke City in the Carling cup in midweek. Paul Hart’s side were excellent against Stoke and finally converted some chances.

Wigan had a good win away at Burnley last week but they are pretty inconsistent at the moment as they have won twice and lost 3 on the road. Roberto Martinez will know that Pompey are performing much better now than they were at the start of the season so will be wary of tomorrow’s match.

Portsmouth are in desperate need of a win in the league and I doubt they’ll get many better chances than tomorrow. The crowd will be up for it, the players have been playing well and if they continue to make chances, I see no reason as to why they cannot record their 2^nd league win of the season.

My selection: Portsmouth to beat Wigan

Best odds available: 6/4 with Boylesports

English Premier League

Manchester United v Blackburn Rovers

The home side will be hurting after their defeat to arch rivals Liverpool last Sunday so it may not be an ideal game for the swine flu ridden squad of Sam Allardyce’s Blackburn Rovers.

Sir Alex Ferguson has fought back against the criticism levelled at his defenders this week after some recent dismal displays in the league. He has defended with his proven stoppers and fully expects them to get back to keeping clean sheets sooner rather than later. However, it may be the case that Ferguson will have to do without the services of Vidic and Ferdinand tonight. This may not be a bad thing as Wes Brown and Johnny Evans have proven to be more than adequate and are both no-nonsense centre halves.

Rovers have been hit with several call off’s in the last week due to an outbreak of swine flu in the dressing room. David Dunn, Christopher Samba and Jason Roberts have all contracted the bug and look very unlikely to play any part tonight with the latter definitely out of the match. Blackburn have already visited the Emirates and Stamford Bridge, losing heavily on both occasions.

United will be like a wounded animal after last week’s defeat and the media’s criticism of the team. The normal result is a resounding win next time out. I don’t see the status quo changing much and fully expect the Red Devils to get back on track today. They’ll start keeping clean sheets sooner rather than later and I don’t think they’ll have a better opportunity than today. Rovers have lost all 4 of their away matches this term, scoring in just two of those games.

PaddyPower go 5/6 for United to win to hill whilst others are as low as 4/9 so there is obvious value to be had.

My selection: Manchester United to beat Blackburn Rovers to nil

Best odds available: 5/6 with PaddyPower

Saturday 14^th September

English Championship

Preston North End v Swansea

The home side have started where they left off last season whilst Saturday’s visitors are still coming to terms with the loss of former manager Roberto Martinez who left for Wigan during the summer.

Preston remain unbeaten after 5 games accumulating a total of 9 points in the process. They find themselves just inside the ridiculously early play-off picture in 6^th position, 4 points of current leaders Newcastle United. As mentioned in a previous article, North End had the most amount of home wins in the division last season and have started in a similar vein. From their 4 home games this term, 2 of which were in the League cup, they have won 3 and drawn 1.

Swansea were a somewhat surprise package when promoted to the Championship a year ago. They were in and around the promotion picture for much of last season only to lose out in the final few weeks of the season. They played an open and expansive style of football under Martinez with the likes of Ferrie Bodde, Jordi Gomez and Jason Scotland flourishing. Gomez and Scotland have since followed Martinez to JJB Stadium whilst Bodde is just coming back from a long term injury.

Preston should be able to welcome back influential defender Youl Mawene from injury whilst manager Alan Irvine will be hoping Sean St Ledger will return from international duty ready to take his place alongside Mawene. Swansea will be hoping to give debut’s to Craig Beattie and Abu Bakr whilst prodigal son Lee Trundle will be looking to start his first game of his 2^nd spell at the Swans after a deadline day move from Bristol City.

As ever with Preston, their strengths will lie upfront with a powerful duo of strikers in Neil Mellor and Jon Parkin. Swansea’s task will be made doubly difficulty with the absence of Gary Monk and Rangel who are both suspended for Saturday’s match. North End will be looking for their creative players such as Ross Wallace and Richard Chaplow to provide a bit of spark and take the game to the visitors. I really fancy Preston to have a good season this term and their home form will be key to that. Paulo Sousa, Swans manager, is still to prove himself adept at this level and I can see him and his side on the wrong end of a defeat on Saturday.

My selection: Preston North End to beat Swansea

Best odds available: 5/6 with several bookmakers including StanJames

English League 1

Charlton v Southampton

Four years ago this match was taking place in the Premier League, as it is, Charlton will be entertaining Southampton in the 3^rd tier of English football.

Charlton can boast a 100% record in League 1 so far with 6 wins from their initial half dozen games. They have adapted well to their new league and have been very impressive, especially going forward. They have brushed aside the likes of Walsall, Tranmere and most recently, Brentford. In these last 3 matches they have amassed a total of 8 goals and managed to keep a clean sheet in the same run of games. Phil Parkinson, manager of Charlton, has rejuvenated an ailing club by bringing in experienced faces to mentor and support their prodigious young talent. Deon Burton, Christian Dailly and Miguel Llera have been brought in over the summer. Add their experience to bright, exciting youngsters such as Jay Shelvey, Lloyd Sam and Nick Bailey and you have a more than decent chance of challenging for promotion.

Southampton were relegated along with Saturday’s hosts last season. Their start to this one, however, has been far different to that of Charlton’s. By going into administration they triggered an automatic 10 point deduction meaning they needed 10 points just to be on level par for the season. As yet, they have only managed 4 points, all coming from draws. They still retain several quality players in the shape of Kelvin Davis, Adam Lallana and Marius Saganowski. They have also signed Ricky Lambert from Bristol Rovers who is a prolific goal scorer at this level.   

I watched Charlton’s last match against Brentford and was very impressed with not only their style of play but their control of the football match. Their midfield was particularly good and their wide players, Sam and Bailey, were threats throughout the match – they’ll always create chances. Southampton have proven to be stubborn opponents already this term losing only two of their 6 matches. Both these defeats however have come on the road and they have looked more vulnerable on their travels.

Charlton just look to be on a roll and I can’t see their progress being halted this weekend. I can’t see Southampton edging closer to the level par mark by picking up a point or 3 on Saturday and fully expect Phil Parkinson and his troops to be chalking up another victory and making it a magnificent 7.

My selection: Charlton to beat Southampton.

Best odds available: 8/11 with Coral

Saturday 22^nd August

English Championship

Preston v Peterborough

Peterborough have found things tough in the Championship thus far, and it does not look like it will get any easier when they head to Deepdale to take on unbeaten Preston North End on Saturday.

‘Posh’ earned their right to play in the Championship with back to back promotions and received many plaudits for playing an expansive brand of football. Aaron McLean, Craig Mackail-Smith and Adam Boyd have scored over 120 goals between them during their time at the club and have been constantly linked with moves way. Manager Darren Ferguson has made it clear that they do not want, nor need, to sell their star trio. Things have been slightly different for them this season however. In their first 3 matches, they have lost to both Derby and West Brom with their solitary point thus far, coming at home against Sheffield Wednesday. They continue to score and make chances, but it’s at the opposite end of the park where they have struggled, conceding 6 goals in 3 matches.

Preston were very close to achieving their goal of promotion last season, narrowly missing out in the play-off semi final to Sheffield United. They accumulated the most home wins in the Championship which was the foundation of their success. Manager Alan Irvine has built a strong and disciplined side who can also knock the ball about. The skill and ability of players such as Ross Wallace, Richard Chaplow and Paul Parry very much compliments the strength and impact of strikers Neil Mellor and Steve Parkin.  North End have been impressive so far, with 1 win and 2 draws. Their two draws were in fixtures, Bristol City at home and away to Doncaster, which will prove troublesome for most so when added to their excellent 3-0 victory at Oakwell against Barnsley on Tuesday, Preston can be well pleased with their start to the new season.

The result, as ever, will depend on numerous things. However, one key point will be whether or not the Posh defenders will be able to cope with the brute strength of Mellor and Parkin. Barnsley couldn’t cope midweek when both were on the scoresheet, Morecambe never managed it either when they went down 5-1 in the Carling cup and Bristol City also succumbed to the physical onslaught with Parkin netting on the opening day of the season. Craig Morgan and Gabriel Zakuani have the unenviable task of stopping the big bruisers tomorrow afternoon. Both are big and experienced lads and will need every bit of both attributes to come out on top.

At the other end, Preston will have to cope with Peterborough’s quality in attack. All three of Boro’s prized assets are off the mark already and will be determined to get their teams first win of the season as soon as possible. Their case is helped somewhat with the absence of influential defender, Youl Mawene, for the home side.

Ferguson is under no illusions as to the task facing his side this year. He knows that the Championship is a big step up from League 1 and his difficult start to the season is only going to get harder as he takes his troops to a club who won more games than anyone at home last a season. With that in mind, added to the impressive start to the season, I fancy the home side to take all three points in what promises to be a very entertaining game at Deepdale.

My selection: Preston to beat Peterborough

Best odds available: 10/11 with several bookmakers including Bet365

Other bets: I expect a few goals in tomorrow’s games as both sides have strikers in form who will be looking to add to their season’s totals.

More than 2 goals in Preston v Peterborough – Best odds available: 10/11 with StanJames

I have looked through the other matches on Saturday and I do not feel confident at any reasonable price to advise another bet. I have a fancy that I will be playing myself and have posted it below with a little explanation as to why. I would stress again that this is a fancy as opposed to a tip.

Reading v Sheffield United

Reading have lost a lot of their attacking options with the departures of Lita and Doyle as well as the loan return of Dave Kitson to Stoke City. They have also lost the services of attacking midfielder, Stephen Hunt, who moved to Hull last week.

Sheffield United are unbeaten in the league this season and look as resolute as ever. They’ve conceded 1 goals and scored 3 so it doesn’t take Stephen Hawking to determine where their strengths lie.

With Reading’s lack of firepower weighted with United’s mean defence, I cannot have a home win. It then comes down to whether or not the away side are capable of scoring and winning at what is usually a difficult place. At the prices, they are value to succeed and I will be having a play on the away win which is a best price 2/1 with Boylesports

Reliable Homes.
 
Outstanding in this field is the Norway Div 1. Here the Home win percentage is over 57%. They also tend to have plenty of goals in their games. With three out of five going OVER 2.5 goals. The average goals per game is 2.7.
These figures would suggest teams with a good home record, especially those that tend to score for fun, should be part of  any HOMES strategy.
Aways are slightly better than draws @ 23.5%. The 19.3% of drawn games include just NINE goal-less draws. That’s little better than 7% of the games played. Ideal for those who like to LAY 0 – 0 scores. 
 
Next in line is the Croatia 1. HNL.
Here the Home advantage is 53.3%. goals are also plentiful here, too. An Average of 2.65 per game with 50.3 games going OVERS.
 
Followed by Romania Liga 1. Here 53.1 of games are home wins. However defences would appear to have the upper hand. Goals per games are only 2.31 and 61.6% of games go UNDER.       
 
Czech Gambrinus is the next in the list of Good Homes.
Their winning percentage is a tick short of 53%. Given that their draw returns is almost 27% those of you who have a liking for DOUBLE CHANCE bets are looking at an overall figure just a couple of ticks short of 80%. A good base to work from.
Here again defences appear to hold the upper hand. 57.5% of games ending UNDER 2.5 goals. Average goals per game being 2.42. 
 
 
ICELAND DIV 1. This seems to be a league were goals are there for the taking.  However just  52.2% percent of games go to the home side but the draw average is well below par. Form seems to work out pretty well. Where home teams are quoted at less than 2.00, they have a winning percentage of 67%. (19/28). Away figures are almost identical at 66.7% (6/9).
It’s the goals figures that are interesting. Four and five goals a game are plentiful. With the odd six or seven and even an eight.
It does appear that a home team that can score goals regularly are a good bet. The down side will be, of course, that the price on offer may well be a little cramped.     
Drawn games are few and far between and GOAL-LESS draws are much more of a rarity. Under 4.5% ending goal-less. Laying the draw would seem to be a choice here, if you can find some IN-PLAY games. 
 
 
Amongst the "Big Leagues" Italy’s Serie "A" comes out best on the HOMES front. At 50.5% they are almost 2% better than their Spanish counterparts.
As we have come to expect, goals can be scarce in many Italian games.
However there are quite a few games that go the other way, as the goals per game average of 2.6 shows us.
With a draw percentage of 25% away sides are just about able to claim one win in four games.      
As expected, UNDERS is king here, with 54.2% of games ending that way.
4.2 % of games ended GOAL-LESS. In fact, 101 games featured less than TWO goals. That’s a little over 26.5%.
 
SERIE "B" is even tighter. 44.2% homes and 31.6% draws. Aways don’t quite make 25%..Unders are more "popular" as can be expected, at 57.6%. Average goals-per-games is fairly low too, at 2.39.
 
THE PREMIERSHIP, is as we can all testify, a very tight affair.
Homes and Aways totalling almost 75%. That leaves Draws at the long-ago expeced figure of 25%.
Goals per-game are fairly low at 2.48 so as expected UNDERS is on the high side at 52.1%.
Goal scoring seems to be the main problem, especially for away sides. In a touch over 70% of games, they failed to score more than ONE goal.
Home sides weren’t very much better. They managed to score THREE or more goals on only sixty three occasions. there were forty-two goal-less draws out of ninety-seven draws.
What conclusions can be drawn from these stats is hard to say.
Caution must be the watchword.  
 
THE CHAMPIONSHIP is said to be the hardest English league to gain promotion from. The stats actually bear this out.
Homes 43.3% Aways 27.4% and Draws 29.3%. There’s nothing n these figures to give any kind of indication for building a strategy around.
Approximately 70% of HOME wins are 1 – 0, 2 – 0 or 2 – 1. May be something here for Correct Score enthusiasts. However be aware. From what I’ve seen, any set of scores may tend to "bunch". This bunching effect
could work against you just as easily as for you.
UNDERS are 54.7% and average goals per game, 2.45.  
 
LEAGUE 1. has a pretty dismal HOME WIN record. Just 42.8%. However the AWAY figure is quite high 32.4%. Average goals per game is high too, 2.75.
Overs is good as well at 51.6%.
For me, this is a league to leave alone.
 
LEAGUE 2. Has an even worse HOME record than it’s " big brother". Just 41.3% Home wins. However it does have a better DRAW return @ 29.5 It is in the Top Twelve in the Table. Two "ticks" about The Championship in thirteenth place.
Here again, I’d be more than happy to sit back and check the results, rather than try and forecast them.  
 
All stats are for last season, except where Summer Leagues (Scandinavian, South American etc, which are "as is") are concerned.

International games only came into being because of a gimmick.

The game seemd to be rather slow to catch on in Scotland so it was decided to send a team of players over the border to play the Scots and try to get the spectators more interested in the game. Played at Hamilton Crescent in November 1872 the game ended 0 – 0 but appeared to have had the desired effect as a return was arranged for March the following year. This ended in a 4 – 2 win for England.  It was then decided to hold these games annually with the playing venue being "home and away" in successive years. Scotland quickly established themselves as "Top Dogs", winning four and drawing one of the next five games.

Wales were the next national team to appear on the horizon playing England at the Kennington Oval and losing 2 – 1 (1879).

The Irish F.A. was founded in 1880. Their first International match being two years later when they were heavily defeated, 13 – 0 at Bloomfield Road, Belfast. At this point in history players for the Irish team were drawn from those born and based on the island. "Foreign" based players were not considered for selection for around ten years. It was 1920 before thoughts of division, in a football and a political sense, came to the fore. The Republic played their first ever International match  in the 1924 Olympic Games beating Bulgaria 1 – 0.

In 1883 the Home Championship was inaugurated. Scotland were the first champions wiininng thier three games with record of 10 goals for and just 1 against.

In 1884, the Scottish F.A. complained that James Forrest, included in the English team was a professional. He was being paid ONE POUND A WEEK by Blackburn Rovers. He was eventually allowed to play but had to wear a jersey to distinguish him from the other players.

In 1890, Blackburn born Jack Reynolds played for Ireland. The following year he scored Irelands only goal against England in a 1 – 9 defeat. The following year he made his debut for England. (E.E.Evans also had the distinction of playing for two of the home countries.) Reynolds is also in the history books as the only player to score both for and against England, barring own goals, of course. There were many outstanding players in this era. Especially, G.O.Smith of Corinthians and Steve Bloomer, of Derby County. Both were prolific scorers for both club and country. Smith scored 11 goals in 20 games for England whilst Bloomer notched 28 goals in 23 games. Also, at that time, he was the only player to score 4 goals on two occasions for his country.

England and Scotland virtually annexed the home Championship between them. There was a a three-way tie in 1902/3 and Wales won their first Championship in 06/07 and Ireland won their second in 1913/14. The Welsh Championship winning side was captained by Leigh Roose and included "Welsh Wizard" Billy Meredith. This was quite an accomplishment for Wales as they were never certain which of their chosen squad would turn-up. Teams were loathe to let their players turn-out for the National Side, (Things haven’t changed down the ages, then).

1904 saw the formation of Federation Internationale de Football Association or as we know it, F.I.F.A. It was founded in Paris and it’s first President was Robert Guerin. He made quite a mess of it’s first international competition in 1906. Taking this and other factors into consideration, he was replaced by an Englishman, Daniel Burley Woolfall. The association was formed by seven countries. France, Belgium, Denmark, Holland, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. The three home nations were early "sign-ups" to the association.

Football in general was making strides through the 1900’s until the  Great War took centre stage.

Over/Under 2.5 Goals predictions – 25th April

Doncaster v Crystal Palace – Under 2.5 goals (odds at Bet365: 1.61)
Rovers have been hit by injuries to some key players; Coppinger(5gls,5assts),Wilson(1gl,1asst) & top scorer Heffernan(10gls,4assts) are all out. Mills(2assts) is doubtful.

QPR v Plymouth – Under 2.5 goals (odds at Bet365: 1.66)
Angyemang is back for Plymouth, otherwise they will be unchanged.
Plymouth have no new inhuries,