The feeling of urging a horse to fall at the final fence when your selection is a clear second is somewhat frowned upon.
After all, horses have feelings and would probably not appreciate a stranger wishing ill-health upon them. I am now wondering whether my significant punt to see Crystal Palace relegated falls into the same appalling behaviour category.
Having backed the Eagles to succumb to relegation at 5.0, every Palace defeat is greeted with a wry smile. Crystal Palace are in fact a fantastic club with magnificent fans – and when the inevitable (oozing confidence) happens I will not know whether to laugh or feel a tad guilty for wishing bad things upon the south-London club.
Tonight’s stand out game in the Championship takes place at the Liberty Stadium as West Bromwich Albion ‘boing’ into south-Wales to take on resolute Swansea City.
It’s the battle of the top scorers against the best defence in the Championship – something has to give.
The home side has only conceded nine goals at home this season – but problems lie in the forward department as they have only scored 15 goals in 18 games. Saying that, in the closest Championship in many years, Swansea’s ability to pick up points on a regular basis has put them in a prime position for a playoff spot.
The visiting Baggies are firing on all cylinders at the moment; they have won seven of the last 10 matches and look nailed on for an instant return to the Premier League. But tonight they have three key attacking players missing, Jerome Thomas, Roman Bednar and Ishmael Miller all looks set to miss the game through injury, which swings the tie in Swansea’s favour.
The Swans’ are not the most reliable side when it comes to scoring goals due to their abysmal goals for record , and with the quality that West Brom are missing, a stalemate looks good value at 9.0. I just can’t see the Baggies breaking down the best defence in the football league without their three stars, so 3.0 on a Swansea clean sheet may also boost the flagging bank balance.
Six weeks ago, Reading v QPR had the look of a relegation six pointer. However, 42 days can be a long time in football. The two clubs have endured turbulent seasons, mostly owing to managerial failings or in QPR’s case boardroom mishaps. But their upturn in fortunes, which have turned relegation nightmares into playoff dreams, is largely down to the two respective managers. Brian McDermott at the Royals and Neil Warnock at Rangers.
Tonight’s encounter will no doubt be an open affair with both sides looking to risk the defeat in order to continue their unexpected push for the playoffs. Back over 2.5 goals at 1.8, and if you’re feeling really brave have a punt at the over 4.5 goal market at a mouth-watering 8.0.
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