Non-league / Gary Boswell / 27 March 2009 / 2 Comments

The Boz tells us how a mixture of correcting an injustice, a dangerous strikeforce and a poor keeper between the sticks for the opposition make Crawley an outstanding bet this weekend.

Any club whose supporters are prepared to wade through mindless FA bureaucracy in search of justice and an extra three points in the league kitty get my unqualified admiration whether they come from below the line drawn at the Watford gap, or not.

Steve Evans led the joust in true Faustian fashion and his Red Devils from Crawley Town have taken noticeable heart from the victorious reinstatement and managed to re-ignite their play-off push on the pitch.

They are formidable opponents for anybody in their current state of renewed momentum - picking back up the belief and rediscovering the class that had them as table toppers and several pundits' title tips before the Burton landslide began last Autumn. This week sees Thomas Pinault and Jake Wright back in a squad that boasts the experienced class of Conference workhorses Lewis Killeen and Simon Weatherstone and the new goal force that is the partnership of Jamie Cook and Isaiah Rankin.

Steve Evans is well known as a manager not to show a red handkerchief and seeing as he's up against the wily goader that is Graham Heathcote this weekend, there is always the possibility that Evans will implode. It's been his undoing many a time but there's no doubting that he knows his football and excels at man-management. He even has old Conference warhorse Robbie Matthews looking classy in the current Crawley line-up. The talent to make ordinary strikers into fearsome goalgetters is a Cloughian legacy inherited by Evans.

Altrincham host them at a bad time in their season. They are the latest Blue Square club to go into meltdown but sadly for them, their wilting is of the on-pitch variety with five defeats from the last six and only the win against the Weymouth babes in arms to warm them. It is a common Alty trait that they feel the call of relegation coming on them at this time of year. Many would have had them as certs for a creditable mid-table finish three weeks ago but the slide has now set in and the 2-5 mauling by Forest Green from a 2-0 half time lead was symptomatic of what can happen at Moss Lane. Very typical of Altrincham that, with a performance that revolved all around superstar striker Colin Little - who had put them two up - only for the other ten players to start the headless chicken impersonations..

I fear for Altrincham at the moment as there is still one relegation place to be decided (assuming that Weymouth are destined to fill the third) and all other teams are battling well against the drop. Alty are being dragged in from nowhere.

The price of [3.4] flatters Heathcote's flappers at the moment whilst the [2.38] on Crawley is a steal to my eyes. I'd be happy with anything better than levels, or evens if you prefer, on a Devils win on Saturday. It might even be another Moss Lane massacre with Crawley a ruthless scoring machine scenting play-off blood in the nostril and the Alty back four sheared of suspended James Smith and reliant on ex-Wanderers keeper Stuart Coburn who ranks bottom but one in The Boz's BSP goalkeeping table.

There is a case for playing on the high goals market in this one ([2.1] for over 2.5 goals) with Little always liable to get a goal for the Robins and the one Crawley Achilles being Simon Rayner between their sticks - the only keeper below Coburn on The Boz's table.

Most other fixtures this weekend are either too difficult to call at this volatile time of year or too short priced to contemplate. I'm keen on Gateshead and Southport to win their home games against Hinckley and Stafford in Blue Square North to keep the fascinating title triangle with Tamworth going all the way to the wire but the prices are not attractive.

Only other bet is a Lay on Burton Albion in Blue Square Premier as they play host to Grays and are priced at a barmy [1.46]. That for a team that has won just two of its last six (one of those against Weymouth) and lost at that price against Salisbury a fortnight ago. McFarland has steadied the wobbling ship a bit and the late winner at Eastbourne was a real Brewers Yeast and a much needed valium to the nerves of those standing to win big on a Burton title. Grays are no roll over though and come in feistiest of relegation fighting fashion as Torquay found out midweek.

No-one is actually sure who the Grays manager is any more but that is actually not unusual in recent history and certainly not reflecting in results that have the Essex boys pounding away with no little class and the chance of an upset win this weekend that may not be quite as unlikely as it may initially sound. The Betfair price of [8.6] is the sort of whopper I like to have a pop at every now and again but I'll opt instead to keep the draw on my side as a likely satisfactory outcome for both and lay the Burton shorty instead.

ADDED EXTRA THIS WEEK: ONE OF THOSE RARE BOZ QUIZ QUESTIONS:

What links the ex-Altrincham striker Phil Smith - who played in the celebrated FA Cup draw against Everton alongside current manager Graham Heathcote - with Betfair and the world of gambling?

Answers in the comment box and my respect and admiration to all those who get it right (especially if your answer is a guess!).