League One
Saturday 31st December 2011 – Kickoff: 1300hrs
Second placed Sheffield United will be aiming for a sixth straight win when they host Hartlepool United at Bramall Lane in one of the early kick-offs in League One on Saturday.
Danny Wilson’s Sheffield United side have won their last five straight with notable wins over play-off chasing Carlisle United and more recently, Notts County on Tuesday, to maintain their bid for automatic promotion back up to the Championship where they surely belong.
Interestingly though, when they’ve gone head-to-head with the other major clubs in the top six they haven’t fared so well with losses against Stevenage, Charlton Athletic and Huddersfield Town, so any fixture at home against a side outside the top six will definitely represent ‘must-win’ status for them.
The Blades’ home record stands at 8-2-2 26/15, and they are unbeaten in their last six at Bramall Lane, and have kept five clean sheets overall. Up front, strikers Ched Evans (7 goals, 4 assists) and Richard Cresswell (5 goals, 6 assists) are dangerous both in scoring and creating, along with forward Chris Porter and defender Matthew Lowton (3 goals apiece) chipping in. They’ve also taken back former striker James Beattie on loan and he’ll provide them extra depth off the bench.
Visitors Hartlepool United halted a fifth straight league defeat at Oldham Athletic on Boxing Day when Pools ran out 1-0 winners and gave them a much needed three point haul. Strangely, their away form is much better than their home record and are in fact behind only Charlton Athletic (9) and MK Dons (7) in terms of away wins.
In fact, Pools have lost just once in their last five road trips which was at Brentford who are in 7th place. Wins at Chesterfield, Scnthorpe United and Oldham Athletic are all well and good but these are against teams that occupy the lower half of League One.
Hartlepool’s away record stands at 6-3-2 19/15, and will nevertheless provide a stern test for Wilson’s boys. Forwards James Poole (6 goals) and Adam Boyd (5 goals) will need to be watched closely, along with midfielder Paul Murray (1 goal, 4 assists) who is their creative source.
Despite Hartlepool’s recent run of form away from home I feel that The Blades should still be too strong for them on their own patch, and I reckon it’ll be a close home win here – Sheffield United to win 2-1.
Main Pick: Sheffield United straight win @ 1.60 Pinnacle
Value Pick: Sheffield United AH-1 @ 2.02 Pinnacle
