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Championship betting: Watford visit Plymouth in key clash

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Andrew French talks us through the crucial matches in this weekend's Championship as the race for Premiership promotion hits boling point

What a great division the Championship is proving to be. Understandably the Premiership gets most of the attention, but one tier down there is an incredibly tight scrap developing for promotion, and an equally furious scramble to avoid relegation.

Only a dozen points cover the top 11 sides, all of whom could still at this late stage consider themselves promotion contenders. And although the bottom two are detached, a mere six points divide Cardiff in 14th and Sheffield Wednesday in 22nd.

Therefore, just about every fixture in the remaining few weeks will have a bearing on something.

The key match at the head of affairs on Saturday is the visit of third-placed Watford to Plymouth, who are sixth. The Hornets boast the best away record in the division, and are unbeaten in 11 league games. However, they have drawn all of their last six and goals are becoming a problem: just three in their last five outings.

Quite rightly, Watford will look at six draws and say they are incredibly difficult to beat, and that is probably the case, especially as during those six draws they have faced fellow promotion hopefuls Charlton, Bristol City and Stoke.

Plymouth are in the thick of it despite some inconsistent form of late: three victories and three defeats in their last six. They won at Bristol City last week though, a result that suggests the Pilgrims are capable of anything.

Watford will be without skipper John Eustace after his red card last weekend, but I think that may well galvanise the Hornets as it was a truly harsh decision. Therefore, I'll be backing Aidy Boothroyd's side at [2.96] to claim a narrow victory: 1-0 at [9.4] appeals to me.

Current leaders Stoke didn't show too much in the way of attacking desire when Watford were reduced to 10 men in last week's goalless draw, but a point probably suited the Potters more. However, they will have to ensure they make the most of what looks an inviting opportunity to cement their position at the top against mid-table Blackpool.

Tony Pulis' side ought to be able to claim the three points, so backing them at [1.93] is the way forward in the Match Odds arena. However, a slightly better price on [2.1] is available on the Over 2.5 goals market, and with Stoke's last six home games and Blackpool's last half-dozen away trips both averaging around the three-goal mark, I'll be taking some of that.

Both ends of the table will be affected as Sheffield Wednesday host Crystal Palace. The Owls have games in hand at the foot of the table, but that counts for little if you don't start winning - and Palace could move into the top six with the right result.

Wednesday are showing some backbone now the chips are down, and have lost only once in their last seven. However Palace have won three and drawn the other two of their last five, and significantly have conceded only two goals in the process.

Neil Warnock will love the fact he has Palace in a position to fight for promotion having arrived at Selhurst Park when they were down with the strugglers. Therefore, I think he'll make sure the Eagles take something away from Hillsborough, and so I'll be looking to lay Wednesday at around the [2.76] mark.

Having lost at home to Plymouth last week, Bristol City need to bounce back. They travel to Cardiff City, who will undoubtedly be buoyed by the news that their short-term financial worries seem to have been lifted in the High Court this week.

On the field, manager Dave Jones faces a similar problem to three other Championship bosses: juggling the need for points with preparing for an FA Cup semi-final.

Their date at Wembley may be a fortnight away, but Cardiff are bound to have one eye on it. They don't have the squad depth to rest players, and those selected between now and April 6th will need to balance wanting to do enough to keep their place with not risking being injured or sent off.

City can capitalise on that, I believe, and backing them appeals, particularly at a price around the [3.2] mark. They are second, after all, and unbeaten in four away games.