'Best Bet Special' - 2nd Leg Play-Off Betting Tips with Betfair

Hello and welcome to the second leg of my 'special' edition guest blog. I am going to be previewing this week's 2nd leg play-off fixtures, and in particular those games involving Championship sides.
Drama, nerves and excitement are guaranteed, but hopefully I can also try and win you some cash with my best bet tips.
 
I told you last Wednesday predicting the play-off was hard, and as if to prove the point a narrow victory for Burnley was the only game I got right! Here’s hoping for better luck this week:


Sheff United v Preston - 2nd leg

Mon 11th May KO 19.45 LIVE ON SKY SPORTS

It is still all to play for at Bramall Lane after the two sides couldn’t be separated in the first game at Deepdale. Sean St Ledger gave Preston the lead only to be pegged by back Brian Howard minutes into the second half. With no away goals rule this one could go all the way to penalty kicks.

Current Match odds:

Sheff U 11/10 Preston 3/1 Draw 12/5

Scorecast:
Sheff U 1-0 7/1 2-0 17/2 2-1 8/1 3-0 17/1

Preston 0-1 17/2 0-2 20/1 1-2 13/1 0-3 69/1

Draw 0-0 17/2 1-1 6/1 2-2 15/1

My 'best bet' prediction:

It is almost too close to call but I am going to stick my neck out and tips United to go through - but only after extra time or penalties. I think it will be level after the 90 minutes.
1-1 draw @ 15/2


Reading v Burnley - 2nd leg

Tuesday 12th May KO 19.45 LIVE ON SKY SPORTS

Despite having an array of attacking talent on show, Saturday’s first leg failed to live up to expectations. The game looked to be heading for a bore draw until a moment of madness by Andre Bikey. The Reading defender inexplicably pulled back Stephen Thompson in the area with only six minutes of the match remaining. Referee Martin Atkinson pointed to the spot, and Graham Alexander duly converted the penalty to give the Clarets a vital first-leg lead.

Current Match odds:

Reading Evens Burnley 16/5 Draw 5/2

Scorecast:
Reading 1-0 7/1 2-0 9/1 2-1 8/1 3-0 20/1

Burnley 0-1 12/1 0-2 25/1 1-2 14/1 0-3 79/1

Draw 0-0 10/1 1-1 6/1 2-2 16/1

My 'best bet' prediction:

Steve Coppell's Reading team are in poor form of late, and they will have to produce a much improved performance on Tuesday night if they want to progress any further.
Meanwhile Owen Coyle's Burnley have been going great guns of late, and I fancy them to grind out a draw at the Madejski Stadium, and book themselves a place at Wembley on May 25th.
O-O draw @ 10/1


The Best Of The Rest:
Eight other teams face off this week in the race to earn promotion from Leagues One and Two.

Here are my predictions:

Home wins:
Sunday 10th May KO 18.30 Gillingham v Rochdale
Thursday 14th May KO 19.45 Leeds v Millwall

Draws:
Sunday 10th May KO Noon Bury v Shrewsbury
Friday 15th May KO 19.45 MK Dons v Scunthorpe

'Best Bet Special' - 1st Leg Play-Off Betting Tips with Betfair

Hello and welcome to a 'special' edition of my guest blog, previewing this weekend's 1st leg play-off fixtures, and in particular looking at The Championship as four teams fight it out for that lucrative final promotion place, that will ultimately take them to the 'promise land' - The Premier League.

Drama, nerves and excitement are guaranteed but hopefully I can also try and win you some cash with my 'best bet' tips.

Last time out I correctly predicted two home wins and two draws in my sections list so here’s hoping for more correct football predictions this week.

Preston North End v Sheff United

Friday 8th May KO 19.45 LIVE ON SKY SPORTS

Going into the final 45 minutes of the season Alan Irvine’s Preston were still outside the play-off places. But a Sean St-Ledger header against QPR coupled with Sheffield Wednesday’s defeat of Cardiff saw the Lilywhites sneak through in dramatic style, at the expense of The Bluebirds. Kevin Blackwell’s Blades still held hopes of automatic promotion on the last day, but with Birmingham ending the campaign with a win they had to be content with a play-off spot.

Current Match odds:

Preston 13/8   Sheff Utd 2/1 Draw 12/5

Scorecast:
Preston 1-0 15/2 2-0 13/1 2-1 11/1 3-0 37/1

Sheff U 0-1  8/1 0-2 16/1 1-2 12/1 0-3 47/1

Draw 0-0 9/1 1-1 6/1 2-2 18/1

My ‘best bet’ prediction:

Tight, passionate and tense – all the attributes we expect from the play-offs. Preston know they need to take some sort of result over the Pennines' for the 2nd leg, and they have been in good form at Deepdale recently. Because of that I am going for a narrow home win.
Preston 1-0 win @ 15/2 

Burnley v Reading

Saturday 9th May KO 17.20 LIVE ON SKY SPORTS

Burnley’s mammoth season continues – this will be their 59th game of a campaign, which has also included a journey to the FA Cup fifth round and the semi-final of the Carling Cup. Standing in their way is Steve Coppell’s Reading. Pre-season favourites for automatic promotion the Royals will be disappointed to have finished 4th, as they now face the lottery of the play-offs. However with last year’s final day relegation still fresh in the memory, they will be hungry and determined to make a return to the Premier League at the first attempt.     

Current Match odds:

Burnley 6/4 Reading 2/1 Draw 5/2      

Scorecast:
Burnley 1-0 15/2 2-0 13/1 2-1 10/1 3-0 33/1

Reading 0-1  17/2 0-2 17/1 1-2 12/1 0-3 45/1

Draw 0-0 9/1 1-1 6/1 2-2 17/1

My ‘best bet’ prediction:

Burnley are a tough proposition at Turf Moor, and despite their long season they are showing no apparent signs of fatigue. I think they will take a valuable lead to the Madejski Stadium for the 2nd leg.
Burnley 2-1 win @ 10/1


The Best Of The Rest:
Eight other teams face off this week in the race to earn promotion from Leagues One and Two. 

Here are my predictions:

Home win:
Thursday 7th May KO 19.45 Rochdale v Gillingham

Away win:
Friday 8th Mat KO 19.45 Scunthorpe v MK Dons

Draws:
Saturday 9th May KO 12.45 Millwall v Leeds
Thursday 7th May KO 19.45 Shrewsbury v Bury

'Best Bet' - Championship Betting Tips with Betfair

Hello, I'm Tom Mallows and welcome to my latest fortnightly football betting preview on behalf of this site.

I shall be looking at this weekend's Coca-Cola Championship fixtures, along with some of the LIVE TV games in more detail.
Hopefully I can try and win you some cash with my 'best bet' football tips.

Last time out I correctly predicted a 1-0 Sheffield United win at Reading at 11/1, as well as correctly picking two home wins and a draw from my sections list. Here’s hoping for more success this week.

Here’s my pick of the action this weekend:

Birmingham v Preston

Saturday 25th April April KO 17:30 LIVE ON SKY SPORTS

It’s a day of destiny for Alex McLeish’s Birmingham. With Sheffield United losing to play-off hopefuls Burnley in midweek, the Blues know a win can seal a return to the Premier League at the first attempt. Preston’s play-off hopes are fading fast and they know they have to win both their remaining games, and hope the likes of Burnley and Cardiff immediately above them lose theirs - if they are going to crash the party.

Current Match odds:

Birmingham 4/5 Preston 4/1 Draw 13/5

Scorecast:
Birmingham 1-0 6/1 2-0 8/1 2-1 17/2 3-0 18/1

Preston 0-1 13/1 0-2 31/1 1-2 18/1 0-3 109/1

Draw 0-0 10/1 1-1 13/2 2-2 21/1

My ‘best bet’ prediction:

There is no margin for error for either side, but with the carrot of the Premier League dangling tantalisingly in front of Birmingham I think they will do enough to win and secure automatic promotion.
Birmingham 2-0 win @ 8/1


Norwich v Reading
Monday 27th April KO 19.45 LIVE ON SKY SPORTS

Two sides at either end of the table who need the points for very different reasons. Reading would have fancied automatic promotion at the start of the year, so will be disappointed that the play-offs is the best they can do. Norwich are staring relegation in the face following a disappointing derby defeat against Ipswich last Sunday. They remain third bottom, two points adrift of safety with two to play.

Current Match odds:

Norwich 8/4 Reading 2/1 Draw 12/5

Scorecast:
Norwich 1-0 17/2 2-0 14/1 2-1 9/1 3-0 35/1

Reading 0-1 9/1 0-2 16/1 1-2 10/1 0-3 43/1

Draw 0-0 10/1 1-1 6/1 2-2 14/1

My ‘best bet’ prediction:

Reading may be riding high in the table, but they only have one win in their last six matches. Norwich are scrapping for their lives, but I don’t think they have enough quality to take all three points, so I predict a share of the spoils.
Draw 1-1 @ 6/1

The Best Of The Rest:

Fancy a sections list this weekend? A multiple bet can win you some 'serious' cash.

Here are my tips for this weekend's matches:

Home wins:

Bristol City v Sheff Wed
Doncaster v Crystal Palace
Sheff Utd v Swansea

Away wins:

Barnsley v Wolverhampton
Southampton v Burnley

Draws:

QPR v Plymouth
Coventry v Watford
Derby v Charlton
Blackpool v Nottm Forest

My Tip Of The Weekend:

Cardiff City v Ipswich Town

It's sure to be an emotional day in South Wales as Cardiff bid farewell to Ninian Park, their home for 99 years, and also look for the point they need to seal a play-off spot. It will be a significant day for Ipswich too, as Roy Keane takes charge of the Tractor Boys for his first game at the helm. The Bluebirds have more to play for though and I think they will be smiling come the final whistle. Sorry Roy!
Cardiff 2-1 win @ 15/2

'Best Bet' - Championship Betting Tips with Betfair

Hello and welcome to my latest guest blog previewing this weekend’s Coca-Cola Championship fixtures as well as looking at some of the LIVE TV games in more detail. Hopefully I can try and win you some cash with my best bet football tips.

Last time out I got my prediction for the Bristol City v Preston game spot on as well as correctly picking three draws in my sections list. Here's hoping for more success this week.

Here’s my pick of the action this Easter weekend:

Reading v Sheff Utd
Friday 10th April KO 17:30 LIVE ON SKY SPORTS

It's third versus fourth in this Good Friday clash, live in front of the Sky cameras. Kevin Blackwell's Blades have won four in a row, a run of form which has seen them overtake Reading into third and are now just three points behind Birmingham in the race for automatic promotion. Reading meanwhile have had just one win in six so will look to stop that slide against the Blades.

Current Match odds:

Reading 5/4 The Draw 13/5 Sheff Utd 5/2

Scorecast:
Reading 1-0 8/1 2-0 12/1 2-1 9/1 3-0 26/1

Sheff Utd 0-1 11/1 0-2 20/1 1-2 13/1 0-3 54/1

Draw 0-0 10/1 1-1 13/2 2-2 17/1

My 'best bet' prediction:

Two talented sides who would not look out of place in the Premier League. The Blades are coming up on the rails of Reading at the moment, they have the momentum and I fancy them to come away from the Madejski Stadium with a narrow victory.
Sheff Utd 1-0 win @ 11/1


Wolves v Southampton
Friday 10th April KO 15.15 LIVE ON SKY SPORTS

It’s not been a good few weeks for Southampton. Their parent company has gone into administration, with the prospect of a potential ten point penalty as a result, added to their precarious league position as they face the threat of relegation to the third tier of league football (even without a points deduction) - it would be safe to say that things down on the South Coast right now are looking bleak! They left Watford on Tuesday night with a point when three would have seen them jump out of the relegation zone. They now have only five more league games to save their Championship status, beginning with a tricky trip to the Black Country on Good Friday.
Wolves remain top of the tree, although their lead was cut following a disappointing derby defeat at Birmingham on Monday night. Mick McCarthy's side will look to secure automatic promotion as soon as possible, starting with a victory against the Saints.

Current Match odds:

Wolves 4/7 The Draw 3/1 Southampton 13/2

Scorecast:
Wolves 1-0 6/1 2-0 7/1 2-1 10/1 3-0 12/1

Southampton 0-1 20/1 0-2 49/1 1-2 23/1 0-3 189/1

Draw 0-0 13/1 1-1 8/1 2-2 17/1

My ‘best bet’ prediction:

Southampton look doomed in my opinion. Wolves may have lost their last game but I think they will have enough quality to get the win and hammer another nail in the Saints coffin.
Wolves 2-0 win @ 7/1

The Best of the rest:

Fancy a sections list this weekend? A multiple bet can win you some 'serious' cash.

Here are my tips for this weekend's matches:

Home wins:

Burnley v QPR
Preston v Blackpool
Sheff Wed v Derby
Swansea v Norwich

Away wins:

Charlton v Birmingham
Nottm Forest v Bristol City

Draws:

Ipswich v Doncaster
Plymouth v Coventry
Watford v Barnsley

My Tip Of The Weekend:

Crystal Palace v Cardiff City

Dave Jones' Cardiff are bang in form at the moment as they look to seal a play-off spot. Palace, rooted in mid-table, don’t have much to play for so I fancy the Bluebirds to come away from Selhurst Park with all three points.
Cardiff to win 2-1 @ 11/1