The French Connection: Republic's trip to Cyprus can end with three points

The French Connection / Andrew French / 04 September 2009 / Leave a Comment

Ireland boss Giovanni Trapattoni will be hoping his trip to Cyprus won't be just a day out in the sun

Back Colchester @ 3.4; Back Port Vale @ 1.96; Back Republic of Ireland @ 1.97; The Treble pays approximately 13.1

Andrew French has been robbed of his Championship football this Saturday, so he has instead elected to look at the World Cup Qualifiers for the final leg of his weekend treble - and he's gone for one of the home nations.

Leg 1: Port Vale at [1.96] to beat Grimsby

There must be plenty of Port Vale fans thinking 'if only we could convert our Carling Cup form into league form' - and I'm prepared to give them the chance to do so this weekend. To be fair to the Valiants, their league form isn't that bad. They have lost just once so far, but have drawn three of their five league games. However, victories over both the Sheffield clubs in the cup have shown Vale may have the potential to start turning those wins into draws.

Visitors Grimsby present a perfect opportunity - they struggled last season and the early signs are they will be scrapping it out at the foot of the table again this term. Their defence has already shipped 10 goals and their away form was among the worst in League Two during the 2008/09 campaign. Therefore, at a price around [1.96], back Port Vale.

Leg 2: Colchester at [3.4] to beat Southampton

Don't let the fact that Southampton started the season with a points deduction fool you - they're not doing very well anyway, and would still be in the bottom three after their opening five games if they had started the season on zero. Let's be fair, you can't go through what the Saints have gone through in recent months and not expect to struggle a bit. And when you look at the list of names that have departed during the summer - Surman, Dyer, Wright-Phillips, Euell, Rasiak - you realise they have been shorn of players who would truly make a difference at this level. They have brought in Ricky Lambert to bolster their attack, but so far Saints have failed to score more than once in a league game.

Therefore, I'm suggesting backing Colchester to beat them at St Mary's - and my confidence is increased by the arrival of a new manager. It may be little more than one of football's great myths, but how often do teams greet a new gaffer with a win? The fact that the incoming boss is Aidy Boothroyd, who has proved at Watford he can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, is even more heartening. The U's have enjoyed a very solid start and their only two defeats have come against teams likely to be in the promotion battle. Therefore, include Colchester at [3.4].

Leg 3: Republic of Ireland at [1.97] to beat Cyprus

They may not pose quite the same threat as in the days of Jack Charlton, but the Republic of Ireland are still a team capable of beating anyone on their day. The fact we can back them at a shade shorter than Evens against a side ranked nearly 40 places lower than them in the FIFA list makes them the first part of this weekend's treble.

Ireland drew in Italy as well as Bulgaria in recent qualifiers, so a trip to Cyprus should make three points fall well within their radar. Cyprus are not the whipping boys they once were, but they don't win all that many games and are ranked lower than the likes of Bahrain and Uganda by FIFA. A win would put the Irish within touching distance of a guaranteed second place, and so at [1.97], I'm backing them.

*The Treble pays around 13.1