SPL Betting Preview: Butcher builds from the back

Scottish Football / John Girvan / 20 February 2009 / Leave a Comment

Despite last weekend's bore draw, John Girvan is convinced that the SPL is heading for a thrilling climax... What will this weekend's fixtures add to the mix?

The SPL and The Old Firm in particular are taking a bit of a hammering this week in the wake of last Sunday's 'bore draw' at Celtic Park. It wasn't pretty but what was to be expected when Gordon Strachan told us it was a game he was "scared" to lose? With Rangers counterpart Smith stating beforehand he would also settle for a point did we really expect anything else?

There is life in The Old Firm yet and, with just two points separating Rangers ([2.38]) from Celtic ([1.71]), there promises to be an exciting run-in.

Celtic travel to Motherwell on Sunday but beforehand Rangers have the opportunity to go top with a home win over Kilmarnock. Walter Smith's side have kept a clean sheet in four of their last five SPL fixtures - not bad considering they have been to both Celtic Park and Pittodrie. They have Celtic in their sights and won't even need to be at their best to take care of Jim Jeffries' men - they almost always manage to score at least two or more goals against Kilmarnock.

Killie haven't won any of their six league ties since the turn of the year so it's no surprise to see them as big as [17.5] to get a result at Ibrox. Even the draw is a massive [7.0] so that prices Rangers up heavily odds on at [1.24]. Rangers in the Match Odds is one for the multiple and the value lies in bets such as Rangers Half Time/Full Time at [1.76] and Rangers -1.5&-2.0 at [2.03] in the Asian Handicap.

Mark McGhee's Motherwell are level on points with sixth place Hibernian and should be considered favourites for what looks like the last remaining top six slot. The Steelmen crashed out of the Scottish Cup at St Mirren on Thursday night - a defeat which also brought to an end a run of nine games unbeaten.

However, they have picked up in the league with some eye catching wins, especially the 4-0 win at Dundee United, and Celtic are in for a tough afternoon.

In the five matches since they won at Ibrox in December, Celtic have drawn three and lost one. It definitely isn't championship winning form and they have one or two problems at present. Samaras looks to have gone off the boil and with Hesselink last scoring in September it's asking a lot of Scott McDonald. The defence hasn't been at its best either so improvements are being sought after all over the pitch.

The Fir Park surface is a major factor in Sunday's live Setanta clash. It won't look good for the SPL as the pitch is nothing short of diabolical with hardly one single blade of grass to be seen. It's definitely a leveller but Celtic are still relatively short at [1.67] in the Match Odds.

The hosts look big at [6.4] but if Motherwell are to get anything out of this it will most likely be through a draw at [4]. Celtic's form and the pitch both make for a tough call so I don't see any value in backing Gordon Strachan's men. Instead I'm going to go for some value by covering the 0-0 and 1-1 correct scores at [14] and [8.2] respectively.

There is a battle on at the foot of the table also and with Hamilton travelling to Falkirk this weekend Inverness have the chance to make up some ground on one of them with a home win over Hibernian.

Terry Butcher has installed a fresh impetus to Inverness Caledonian Thistle. His tenure got off to flyer by holding Celtic to a goalless draw and the side kicked on with a home win over Kilmarnock in the Scottish Cup. Last weekend's point at Tannadice is a good indication of just how far they have come and its clear The Englishman, a fine centre-back in his day, is basing Caley's revival on a sound defensive footing.

Hibernian are starting to look as though they will struggle to finish in the top six. Mixu Paatelainen's side have only won one of their last seven and I can't imagine they will be relishing at trip to a resurgent Inverness. The Hibees impressed in a 4-1 win at Motherwell in November but have managed just three goals in five away matches since. The home sides' motivation is clear and you cannot say the same about Hibs right now.

The hosts, [1.81] for the drop, are only four points adrift of Falkirk [5.8] and the new management team has everyone at The Tulloch Stadium right up for the fight. They will take great confidence from their recent displays and I think the Match Odds price of [2.68] for a home win is fantastic value.