Non-Televised Match Previews / Mike Norman / 02 January 2009 /

"Mystical" Mike Norman has a tough choice to make in between looking into his crystal ball to predict the winners of the Arsenal v Plymouth, Hull v Newcastle, Middlesbrough v Barrow and Sunderland v Bolton FA Cup third round matches.

Just before Christmas my son begged me to buy some raffle tickets from his junior school as all the proceeds were to be put towards a female teachers' 2009 calendar. Believe me, they didn't have teachers this good looking when I was a kid so I bought my son's full allocation of tickets without any thought in the world as to what the prizes were.

It was only yesterday that I received a call from Miss Petch (or Miss February as I prefer to call her) to say that I'd won first prize, and that she hoped I wouldn't be too downhearted about what I'd won.

First prize was two tickets to go and watch any north-east team of my choice in this weekend's FA Cup third round - spare a thought for the runner-up though, his prize was four tickets!

My only problem was that a friend down south had already asked me to go and watch Arsenal v Plymouth with him, and that I'd already agreed. The only solution was to assess each match, which would have the most goals, the better entertainment etc, and take it from there. If I had to let a friend down then so be it - nothing comes before football, especially on FA Cup third round weekend.

Arsenal [1.25] v Plymouth [16.0]; The Draw [6.8]

If Arsenal's League Cup team can demolish decent Championship side Sheffield United at the Emirates then I have absolutely no fears about the Gunners strolling past the Pilgrims, regardless of the team that Arsene Wenger fields. Arsenal/Arsenal, even at [1.74], looks a decent bet in the Half Time/Full Time market and is preferred to just backing the home team outright.

Plymouth are in poor form, winning just one of their last eight games and have failed to score in each of their last four away matches. An Arsenal Clean Sheet should be secured and can be backed at [1.71] - the No option is [2.36].

The Over/Under 2.5 Goals market is a difficult one, as I can see Arsenal winning by either 2-0 ([6.6]) or 3-0 ([8.0]) here. If I had to stick my neck on the line I'd just go for Over 2.5 Goals at [1.74] as Arsenal are not usually a team that takes the foot off the pedal when they have a comfortable lead. Under 2.5 Goals can be backed at [2.3].

Hull [2.38] v Newcastle [3.3]; The Draw [3.55]

Newcastle are facing an injury crisis, but having selected them as a team to go quite far in this season's competition I have to select them to beat Hull on Saturday. It won't be easy, with the likes of Mark Viduka, Obafemi Martins and Joey Barton confirmed as being on the long-term injury list. But Hull manager Phil Brown will be content with losing in the cup if it means his side survive in the Premiership - and with some reserve players likely to figure, the nod goes to the Magpies....just.

Newcastle/Newcastle ([5.6]) and Draw/Newcastle ([8.8]) appeal in the Half Time/Full Time market, whilst Over 2.5 Goals ([2.04]) has to be the selection in the Over/Under's market. In fact, with both teams conceding at an alarming rate in recent weeks, I wouldn't put anyone off backing Over 3.5 Goals at [3.65].

Michael Owen is likely to be amongst the goalscorers should Newcastle hit the net a few times, so at odds of [8.0] to be First Goalscorer, and at [3.5] To Score at anytime, he will do for me. For a Correct Score, 2-1 to Hull ([10.5]) and 2-1 to Newcastle ([12.5]) will be popular choices, though at small stakes, 3-1 to the away team is my selection at odds of [34.0].

Middlesbrough [1.18] v Barrow [19.0]; The Draw [9.0]

I've heard that Barrow are a good team, a wheel good team... bum bum. Boro are 95 places above the non-league outfit and should secure a simply passage into round four. Middlesbrough/Middlesbrough is available to back at [1.61], but knowing Boro like I do, then backing Draw/Middlesbrough at [5.3] offers more promise.

Gareth Southgate's men have struggled for goals recently so don't expect this game to be a high-scoring, incident filled game. Afonso Alves' confidence is shattered, Mido is forever injured, Aliadiare scores one every ten games, and Tuncay plays out of position - other than that, Boro can boast an impressive front-line!

Under 2.5 Goals would be my speculative selection at [2.76], with a scoreline of 1-0 ([8.8]) and 2-0 ([7.2]) being my preferred Correct Score choices. As long as Boro progress, I'd love to see Barrow score as a reward for their away fans who will probably outnumber and out-sing the home support. A Middlesbrough Clean Sheet can be backed at [1.82], the No option is [2.18].

Sunderland [2.36] v Bolton [3.35]; The Draw [3.4]

This game has got dull written all over it, 0-0 ([11.5]) staring us right in the face, and Under 1.5 Goals just begging to be backed at [3.45] - so get ready for a classic!

The beauty of football is that if all the games went to plan we'd all be sat on a beach in the Caribbean - regrettably though, they don't all go to plan. Sunderland v Bolton then, on paper at least, looks about as dull as a game can get and I really can't see many goals being scored despite Bolton's 4-1 Premiership success in the same fixture just a few weeks ago. A Sunderland Clean Sheet can be backed at [3.25]; A Bolton Clean Sheet is available at [4.0].

Between them, Sunderland and Bolton have failed to score in four consecutive Premiership games (two each) and this is one of the reasons why I'm heavily in the Under 2.5 Goals camp ([1.85]) - Over 2.5 Goals is available to back at [2.14]. As mentioned above, 0-0 is my preferred scoreline, but 1-0 to either Sunderland ([9.5]) or Bolton ([11.5]), and the 1-1 draw ([7.0]) will be popular choices.

Regarding my preferred choice of game, I've decided to stay loyal to my friend and splash out over £100 to get to London to watch the Arsenal match - after all, my friend dug deep into his own pocket to purchase the tickets didn't he? Did he heck! On asking him how much he'd spent, his reply was a very casual, "Nothing, I won the booby prize in a school raffle". Don't you just love the FA Cup third round?

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