The leading lights might be having the weekend off for the latest international break but Sky Bet League 1 stops for no man and there is another busy day in the third tier on Saturday with 10 matches taking place up and down the country.
The beauty of the international break is that the division gets the TV treatment and while the offering in front of the cameras has me out of the door at a stupid hour it should be an entertaining match. There is plenty of other games to get stuck into as well.
Saturday’s fixtures are as follows (3pm unless stated):
Barnsley v Luton Town (12.00)
Accrington Stanley v Bradford City
AFC Wimbledon v Portsmouth
Burton Albion v Bristol Rovers
Coventry City v Wycombe Wanderers
Fleetwood Town v Shrewsbury Town
Gillingham v Southend United
Oxford United v Plymouth Argyle
Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers
Scunthorpe United v Peterborough United
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Big Matches
That TV clash comes from Oakwell where two form sides meet when Barnsley play host to myself and the Luton Town side I support. Sunderland aren’t in action this weekend so the remainder of the profile will be hogged by the top two who are both on the road on Saturday. Portsmouth take their lead in the division to AFC Wimbledon while Peterborough make the long trip to Scunthorpe for what looks like an entertaining match.
Best of the Rest
There is a real chance for those outside the play-off places to make a case for getting into them on Saturday as fifth placed Walsall are not in action either. That means Doncaster in sixth will go up at least two places if they can win at Rochdale. Accrington will also be back in the play-offs if they send Bradford City packing. At the other end of the table the bottom two collide when Oxford United take on Plymouth Argyle in a match where you get the feeling losing will have dramatic effects on whoever suffers the fate.
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TV Match Betting
It isn’t very often Luton are on the TV so our matches don’t have the profile to get stuck into all the markets very often so I’ll take advantage of it with a few bets on Saturday. The main one is for over 2.5 goals which I can’t believe the price it is given the way these two sides play. Both like to get on the front foot and send the full-backs bombing on in support of their attacks and look to win matches. With that in mind it is probably no surprise only two sides have outscored Barnsley this season. Luton never lack for goals either though so I’m comfortable with over 2.5 goals in this one.
Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu is yet to find the back of the net for Luton this season but only he will know how because he has hit the woodwork a couple of times and forced saves from keepers on a regular basis. I would expect Luton to set out to be devastating on the counter attack which will mean his drive, his power and his pace will be vital to their attacking play. A goal is definitely coming from the midfielder who is on top of his game and at 17/2 I’ll pay to see if it is on Saturday.
We also get the chance to build a decent bet which we don’t often have the opportunity for so it would be rude not to get stuck in. I’ve already highlighted the likelihood of goals in the game while Luton matches tend to have a huge number of corners in them. Glen Rea is always a yellow card candidate at the base of the diamond for the Hatters too so throw them in one bet and that pays a shade over 20/1. Those who really want to push the boat out can throw Luton to win on top to get almost 75/1.
3pm Betting
I like two other bets on the card too. Portsmouth lost to Gillingham last week but they have been almost flawless on the road and I think they can bounce back against an AFC Wimbledon side who are struggling at the minute. The Wombles have lost seven of their last nine and wins over Oxford and Gillingham don’t really say much for their form. The defeat last week was Portsmouth’s first of the season but good sides bounce back straight away. Their only dropped points away from home came at Doncaster and that is not a disaster. I’m with the leaders here.
I’m also expecting to see goals at Glanford Park where Scunthorpe United, fresh from scoring seven in their last two matches take on the top scorers in the division in Peterborough United. Scunthorpe have scored five in a game and conceded five in one this term and have had a 3-3 and a 3-2 around them as well. Peterborough have scored five on the road and four away from home and shipped four last week. Six of the last seven Peterborough matches have had three goals or more in them. The one that didn’t was against Doncaster which was probably more of a derby game given that it saw Grant McCann returning. This won’t be. Expect the net to bulge a few times here.
Tips
WON – Back Blackpool vs Luton – Over 2.5 goals for a 5/10 stake at 1.83 with BetVictor
WON – Back Portsmouth (-0.25AH) to beat AFC Wimbledon for a 4/10 stake at 2.05 with BetVictor
Back them here:
Back Barnsley vs Luton: Over 3.5 goals, Over 9.5 corners & G.Rea to be booked for a 1/10 stake at 21.36 with Betfair (Build your Bet tab)
Back Barnsley vs Luton: Luton win, Over 3.5 goals, Over 9.5 corners & G.Rea to be booked for a 0.5/10 stake at 75.60 with Betfair (Build your Bet tab)
Back them here:
Back Scunthorpe United vs Peterborough United – Over 3 goals for a 4/10 stake at 1.91 with LeoVegas
Back it here:
Back P-R.Mpanzu to score anytime for a 1/10 stake at 8.50 with Betfred
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