Bet of the Day

Saturday Football Tips: Back FA Cup low-cards double at 7/2

Referee David Webb
David Webb: Tends to keep his cards in his pocket

Our football props column landed a 21/1 cards bet in round three of the FA Cup and is thinking along similar lines for Saturday's fourth-round ties.


Wigan v Fulham
Southampton v Burnley

Saturday 8 February, 15:00

I explained how referees tend to go a little easy on teams in the FA Cup, certainly in terms of dishing out cards, ahead of round three and the theory was rewarded with a 21/1 no-cards winner.

I fully expect the low card counts to continue at this last-32 stage and spent a while this week looking at the stats in a bid to nail down specific games.

I always start with the referees, looking for the most lenient, and then - ideally - matching them up with well-behaved teams.

Leg 1: Under 2.5 cards in Wigan v Fulham

We haven't got the perfect combination on Saturday but that isn't going to stop me getting involved in some way.

The Wigan v Fulham games appears to have plenty of potential and I was hoping for another chunky price for no cards.

However, for some reason there's no market on that outcome, so instead I'm going to back under 2.5 cards at 6/42.50.

While neither side is Referee's Pet, so to speak, this is a classic cup tie of lower league v top flight and that sort of match-up often sees the referees offer some leeway.

It's the official who really makes this bet.

David Webb was the man who helped us land that 21/122.00 shot last month.

He's averaging under three cards per game in the Championship this season and in all competitions has shown no cards in four games.

A look through his FA Cup history shows he's gone under this 2.5 mark in 17 of his last 22 ties, including nine of the last 11. Six of his last 29 have seen no cards.

Leg 2: Under 3.5 cards in Southampton v Burnley

In a slightly different approach to usual, I'm going to double that bet up with a similar one from another game, namely under 3.5 cards in Southampton v Burnley.

Some will be surprised given Southampton have been the Premier League's bad boys this season but again we have the division gap in-play, plus an excellent ref for low-card games.

Will Finnie is bang on three cards per game across all competitions this season, while two of his four domestic cup ties have seen no cards at all.

Saints' presence here is reflected in the odds but we're still able to get under 3.5 at 5/61.84.

That results in an under-cards double of around 7/24.50, which seems fair enough.


Check out our Saturday football cheat sheet!


Recommended bets

Column P/L 2024/25

Staked: 206pts
Returned: 237.89pts
2024/25 P/L: +31.89pts

2023/24 P/L: +16.78pts
2022/23 P/L: +68.69pts

New Customers can get £50 in free bets!

Available to new customers only. Place a £10 bet on the Betfair Sportsbook and you will receive £50 in free bets to use on Bet Builders and Accas! Opt-in here and T&cs apply.

Andy Schooler avatar

Andy Schooler

Andy Schooler has been writing about sport for more than 20 years.

Prices quoted in copy are correct at time of publication but liable to change.

Upcoming Fixtures Across All Leagues

Mexico vs South Africa
View predictions

Korea Rep vs Czechia
View predictions

Canada vs Bosnia
View predictions

United States vs Paraguay
View predictions

Qatar vs Switzerland
View predictions

Brazil vs Morocco
View predictions

Haiti vs Scotland
View predictions

Australia vs Türkiye
View predictions