The League 2 season continues on Saturday with another full set of fixtures scheduled on what could be another day of twists and turns in the division. The big five in the league are currently occupying the top five places in the table and that presents a problem for the rest. At the minute they are in touching distance but the cream looks like rising to the top.
Saturday’s fixtures are as follows:
Blackpool v Doncaster
Colchester v Morecambe
Crawley v Accrington
Crewe v Yeovil
Exeter v Cambridge
Grimsby v Cheltenham
Hartlepool v Leyton Orient
Luton v Mansfield
Newport v Plymouth
Portsmouth v Notts County
Stevenage v Carlisle
Wycombe v Barnet
Big Matches
The big match comes from Wales as bottom placed Newport host the leaders Plymouth. Plymouth have the chance to open up a six point lead depending on other results. Second placed Doncaster head to Blackpool in a battle of two sides who were relegated last season while Carlisle in third go to Stevenage.
With the top three all being away from home it could be that the two sides in fourth and fifth have the chance to make a move. Luton in fourth host Mansfield while Portsmouth face improving Notts County.
Best of the Rest
Two sides on the fringes of the playoffs meet in Sussex as Crawley host Accrington while Grimsby who are in the playoffs welcome Cheltenham to Cleethorpes. At the other end of the table Exeter and Cambridge will be looking to move away from trouble when they meet in Devon while Wycombe host struggling Barnet.
Betting
Four matches interest me from a betting point of view here and I’m going to take a bet in each of them. We’ll begin with the bottom vs top match at Rodney Parade where if Plymouth have anything about them they will beat a poor Newport side regardless of the fact it is Graham Westley’s first game in charge of the home side.
Plymouth lost their first away match this season up at Carlisle but they have won every away game since to continue their fine away tradition having gone well on their travels last season. It might just be that Plymouth go on and dominate this division like Northampton did last year. If they’re that good they’ll see off Newport but with decent draw cover they look an even better bet.
Colchester haven’t really got going yet this season and they could do without Morecambe coming to town. On the face of it you would think Morecambe are there for the taking but they have a wonderful four wins from six on the road with their only defeat coming at Grimsby on the opening day of the season. Grimsby were on a real high then so there’s no shame in that.
Colchester only have one win in their last eight and that was against a stuttering Blackpool side so how anyone can back them at odds on I’ve no idea. I can’t back them but I can certainly oppose them at the price and that’s just what I’ll do here.
I saw Leyton Orient last week and they looked an ordinary side and I’m far from convinced I saw anything from them that suggests they are worthy favourites against Hartlepool especially when you factor in the long journey they have to make. After defeat to Luton, Orient now have one win in their last nine and I’m not surprised. They were ordinary in front of goal and not much better at the other end.
Hartlepool ended a run of six unbeaten with a defeat up at Carlisle last week but there is no shame in losing there and they actually had more of the game. If you were being critical you would say their unbeaten run contained too many draws but if we look at who they drew with – Plymouth, Luton, Crawley and Mansfield they are all in an around the top 10 unlike Orient so let’s not hold that against them. Pools are playing well right now and can get a result here.
Finally I’m going to take a Wycombe side who took an age to find themselves defensively this season but have done it at last. In season’s gone by Gareth Ainsworth’s men have based their success on their defence so it is encouraging that they have only conceded four goals in their last six matches. Equally encouraging is that they’ve only lost one of their last four and have won their last three home matches.
They face a Barnet side who haven’t really done anything this season. They have only won one of their last 10 matches and are now winless in six matches. What is worse is the amount of goals they are shipping having conceded 14 in their last five matches. That suggests to me Wycombe will have some joy in front of goal but recent evidence shows Barnet might not have it so easy. With enough draw cover on our side I like Wycombe here.
Tips
WON – Back Plymouth (-0.25AH) to beat Newport for a 4/10 stake at 1.89 with 188bet
WON – Back Morecambe (+0.75AH) to beat Colchester for a 4/10 stake at 1.95 with 188bet
Back Hartlepool (0AH) to beat Leyton Orient for a 4/10 stake at 2.13 with 188bet
Back Wycombe (-0.25AH) to beat Barnet for a 4/10 stake at 1.86 with 188bet
Back them all here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2016
