Non-League Betting: Give the wife what she wants!

Non-league / Gary Boswell / 30 December 2009 / 1 Comments

Barrow could upset Darren Bent's Sunderland in the FA Cup this weekend

"Both non-league teams come in terrific recent nick with Barrow having just one defeat in their last eighteen and York currently having won their last seven on the bounce. Belief in themselves is all that is needed!"

Gary Boswell tells us why requests for multiples aren't always what they seem, how a new betting strategy for 2010 will work and why two huge FA Cup upsets may be on the cards.

When I was discussing with the wife what my New Year's Resolution might be, she suggested that I tried harder to land a multiple. Now I think on, I realise she probably wasn't talking about betting! One thing you learn after twenty five years of marriage however is always to do what the missus suggests! And it is a good idea. I put up only one in my Betfair columns of 2009 and it came in.

Limited to just the games in the Blue Square Premier does make it a narrow field but this time of year, the form there is as reliable as it is going to get and so I am resolved to try harder to satisfy the wife's wishes!

My shortlist for the New Year's Day fixtures totals five but I have eliminated Eastbourne who did me proud by securing Grandad's Boxing Day bet. I think they might beat Crawley in the return fixture. Their home form is good but their current form is not. No wins in the last eleven. Yet another draw is possible and this time I am looking for winners. Although I fancy Altrincham to see off Wrexham, I am eliminating them from the shortlist too. The Robins' red breast has a seasonal reason to be favoured over the Welsh Dragon and Graham Heathcote's traditional pantomime underdogs are also in the ascendancy this season and can be classed the better side. Home form is not reliable though. Better on the road and so I reluctantly also pass over them.

Leaving my big three as AFC WIMBLEDON to continue where they left off on Boxing Day and continue the mauling of Hayes & Yeading. The five goal thumping was an emphatic demonstration of the difference in class. Now that Terry Brown's troops are back in form (five wins in last six) and Garry Haylock's Hayes have dropped out (no wins in last three), the [2.0] price on the Wombles looks a strong cornerstone for the treble.

STEVENAGE have never been a lucky team for me as a tipster unless I'm opposing them. I do, however, rate their effort this season and was very impressed with how they came from behind to win away at Cambridge on Boxing Day. They remain unbeaten at Broadhall Way and whilst Cambridge have a good record of avoiding defeat on the road, they couldn't achieve it against Mansfield on Monday.Turning round their 1-3 defeat to Stevenage last weekend will be a much harder task. Odds of [1.7] on Graham Westley's Borough looks an equally strong second leg to the treble.

Which leads me to the speculative third leg to bump up the odds. I'm against Salisbury who did well to nick a point off Oxford at the Raymond McEnhill on Monday but are still struggling with several absences and must face a HISTON side who are busy sorting out off field wrangles and an acceptance that the dream money has flown. They do seem to be doing that however. Just one defeat in the last six and the nucleus of the play-off achieving squad still in place makes them a long [4.0] shot in my book. Salisbury would be a level team without their ten point deduction for administration but the signs are that meltdown is not yet over for them.

The treble weighs in at odds of [13.6] and as usual with Betfair, I'll expect to get offered a little on top of that. I'll be trying to land one of these each week from now on.

A final word on Barrow at [23.0] to win at Sunderland in the FA Cup on Saturday and York at [13.0] to win at Stoke. A non-league side has not knocked out a top flight team for over twenty years but Exeter, Burton Albion and Nuneaton have all come close in my time as a non-league correspondent. I lost the faith with Kettering who held Leeds (admittedly not a top flight side but a former one and two divisions above Kettering) over 90 minutes not once, but twice, and look where that got me! Back to supporting the boys again this weekend! Both non-league teams come in terrific recent nick with Barrow having just one defeat in their last eighteen and York currently having won their last seven on the bounce. Belief in themselves is all that is needed!

THE BOZ'S BEST BETS:

BACK BARROW at [23.0] or longer to beat SUNDERLAND in the FA CUP
BACK YORK at [13.0] or longer to beat STOKE CITY in the FA CUP
BACK AFC WIMBLEDON,HISTON & STEVENAGE in a NEW YEARS DAY MULTIPLE at odds of [13.6] or longer.

The Boz is currently running at a P/L figure of -2.97 to recommended stakes for the 09/10 season on match betting having closed his recommended BSP outrights portfolio satchel with a minimum +9 point profit on all teams.

Comments (1)

1. Hatter | 30 December 2009

   No mention of Luton who are in the third round too?

   Shame.