Scottish Football Betting: Old Firm should get back to winning ways

Scottish Football / John Girvan / 24 October 2008 / Leave a Comment

The Old Firm have a lot to prove this weekend after Rangers lost in the league last week and Celtic got humbled at Old Trafford midweek. But John Girvan believes at the weekend they'll get back to doing what they do best - picking up three points in the SPL.

The Old Firm should get back to winning ways and there could be an emotional home win at Tannadice.

Rangers could get many weekend multiples off to a flyer with a lunch time victory over Hamilton at New Douglas Park on Saturday. At [1.38] in the match odds they look very much the bankers they were pre-match before the shock 1-0 defeat at St. Mirren in their last fixture. The loss will surely serve as extra motivation here and one would expect that the loyal Rangers following, or those at home watching on Setanta Sports, won't see a repeat of the wasteful opening 45 minutes at Love Street where there was no urgency to go and win the game.

Whilst the defeat in Paisley represents Rangers' first of the season it has been a while since Saturday's opponents recorded anything other than a loss. Four league defeats on the trot is a stat that doesn't bode well for the Accies, who are [10.5] in the match odds. Losing regularly can become a habit that is difficult to shake and stopping the rot against a wounded Rangers side looks a very tall order. Scoring would be a start but they have only netted twice in the league since a 2-1 win at Aberdeen in September and both of these were own goals.

The visitors are almost up to full strength again with Kevin Thomson and Kenny Miller both fit again and available for selection. The match comes too soon for skipper Barry Ferguson however, despite a mid-week run out for the reserves, his first outing in five months. Celtic put four past Hamilton before the international break, albeit at Celtic Park, but if Rangers get an early goal then a victory with a two or even a three goal margin could be on the cards. On this train of thought 'Any unquoted' in the Correct Score market looks tempting at [5.9] but with the hosts' inability to find the net recently, an Asian Handicap price of Rangers -1.0 & -1.5 at [1.88] looks more appealing.

Celtic can go a long way to putting Tuesday night's humbling at Old Trafford behind them by consolidating their position at the top of the SPL. Hibernian are the visitors to Celtic Park on Saturday and all eyes will surely be on Derek Riordan to see if he can prove he was worthy of more playing time whilst at Parkhead. The 25-year old endured a nightmare two season spell with the champions before returning to Easter Road on transfer deadline day. It has been reported the striker has tight calves from knocks sustained in last weekend's frantic Edinburgh derby but gaffer Mixu Patelainen is confident he will be ready for Saturday.

Domestically Celtic are performing well and Saturday could be their sixth consecutive league win. The home form is good also and the Rangers defeat aside they have scored 11 goals and conceded only twice in four victories. Goals might be harder to come by this weekend however as manager Gordon Strachan faces a bit of a striking crisis with both Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink and Georgios Samaras sidelined. Scott McDonald is capable of shouldering the responsibility however and there is enough creativity in the midfield through the likes of Maloney and McGeady to create enough opportunities in front of goal.

Hibs frontline are improving with each game, they will be a decent test to the Celtic defence and if the hosts show any after effects from Tuesday night then things could get interesting. It might not be as simple as the [1.34] in the match odds for a home win suggests but there could be money to be made elsewhere if, as I expect, a narrow home win for Celtic ensues. An away win at [11.0] and the draw at [5.6] can probably be ruled out but given the strike problems, Draw/Celtic in the HT/FT market might tempt some at [4.9] but the pick of the value bets appears to be Hibernian + 1.5 in the Asian Handicap at [1.89].

Dundee United and St. Mirren are level on points at the moment but United, like they have done recently, should show on Saturday that they deserve to be on a slightly higher standing. It's a clash between two teams in form with Saints looking for a third successive league win and the Arabs a fourth so something has to give. The hosts have slashed admission prices to a fiver so fans can pay homage to the late Eddie Thomson. Tannadice will be a sea of tangerine, the United fans will surely be in good voice on what will be an emotional day for everyone connected to the club, and although it's by no means a certainty [1.77] is good value for a home win.