Cue Card can Out-Boxing Day Rivals in King George

Boxing Day is always a big day for sport with a full schedule of football & high quality horse racing, we're taking a look at one Premier League game plus a couple of Grade One races from Kempton as we look for some festive cheer.

Christmas Hurdle - 2.35 Kempton

This year's renewal of the Christmas Hurdle looks to be one where last year's novices try to make their mark as fully fledged Champion Hurdle contenders & we think it'll certainly be one of the upstarts to win this time. Punjabi is a previous Champion Hurdler but that was in 2009 & Henderson's charge has been off the track for two & a half years & we can't see him showing up well & Raya Star & Get Me Out Of Here are top handicappers but probably not quite at this level whilst Moose Moran is a no hoper.

(Countrywide Flame is tough & classy & deserves favouritism in the Christmas Hurdle)

After eliminating horses 5-8 from consideration we're left with the 4 & 5 year olds, Dodging Bullets has shown good form this season to win twice after competing at a very high level & running well in its first 3 hurdle starts at the beginning of 2012 but opposition here might just have the edge as he's twice finished behind Countrywide Flame already. Cinders And Ashes & Darlan finished 1st & 2nd respectively in the Supreme Novices at Cheltenham & Darlan then went & won very easily at Aintree in a Grade Two but it does have to overcome this being its first start of the season. Donald McCain's Cinders And Ashes one fair & square at Cheltenham but Darlan may just have a little more scope in the long run & either way it seems hard to imagine that Cinders And Ashes can turn around form with Countrywide Flame as John Quinn's 4 year old slammed it by 12 lengths in the Fighting Fifth at Newcastle. Countrywide Flame had been kept busy over the summer by running on the flat but gave the impression that he'd grown up a bit in that Newcastle race & he'd already shown great from last year when winning the Triumph & coming close to following up at Aintree, we're certain if Countrywide Flame was with a more fashionable trainer it'd be a shorter price than 2/1 for this so take advantage & get on.

King George VI Chase - 3.10 Kempton

The 2nd most prestigious 3 mile chase of the season nearly always throws up classy winners & is the key trial for the Gold Cup, we won't have 5 time winner Kauto Star competing this time but 2010 winner & 2011 runner up Long Run heads the betting at 2/1.

(Cue Card looks a strong King George Chase contender)

Long Run is the obvious starting point as the highest rated horse & we felt he'd regain the Gold Cup last March but it might be that the 2010 race took a lot of the horse as he did that as just a 6 year old, many ex-French horses show great form as younger horses over here but then fail to improve like more patiently trained runners. Long Run has only won once in his last 5 runs & that was all out holding off Burton Port, the form is all high class but the odds today are a little short especially as owner & amateur rider Sam Waley-Cohen continues to take the reins - he of course can do as he pleases but stable jockey Barry Geraghty would surely do a better job.

Long Run's stablemate Riverside Theatre looks to hold a great chance even though it's know as a two & a half miler as it looked like a real staying performance when winning the Ryanair at Cheltenham & he's repeatedly shone after a break. Kauto Stone however looks to be too short a price based on overall form although the win at Down Royal in November was the best it had been & may have indicated a step up, we still can't be backing the Nicholls horse in this one. The Giant Bolster is one that definitely has improved, finishing 2nd in the Gold Cup & then 3rd in the Betfair Chase but nthat still isn;t winning form & while it could run well is another we'll disregard. Grands Crus is the horse we fear most as he'd looked a true 3 mile star as a novice up until disappointing at Cheltenham, he flopped on comeback when red hot favourite for the Paddy Power but the money has started to come for David Pipe's grey in recent days & this track should be perfect for him if on his game.

We're instead siding with Cue Card as the youngest horse in the race looks to take it's classy form over a shorter distance & become a serious Gold Cup contender. Colin Tizzard's 6 year old unseated when taking on Grands Crus on its 2nd chase start but other than that has either won or when losing has only done so to the very best novices around in Bob's Worth & the spectacular Sprinter Sacre. Cue Card tore up trees when storming to victory in the Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter & we're unsure this will be a truly run race as many of the contenders are speed horses, if the race is run to suit we feel Cue Card will be the quickest come the end & can claim a brilliant success at odds of 11/2.

Fulham vs Southampton

Martin Jol's Fulham have won just once in their last 10 league games & come up against Southampton who are in relatively good form winning half their last 6 & their defence has improved massively to only concede just 5 in 7 after looking completely hopeless until the end of October, this promises to be an intriguing match up.

(Damien Duff is one of Fulham's old guard who can celebrate a win v Southampton)

Everybody knows that Fulham's away form is less than adequate but they're pretty solid at home usually & although they've lost 3 at home from 8 two of those came against top opposition in the form of Spurs & Man City. Fulham seem to have adopted a very attacking attitude with Jol now really molding the side to his style & the signing of Dimitar Berbatov looks an inspired piece of business, he's known to bully weaker teams & Southampton have conceded 20 in 7 away games even with their recent improvement. At the back Fulham look a bit of an ageing side & Schwarzer has been on the slide for a while & all 4 first choice defenders 30 or older & they're the 2nd highest conceders along with Southampton & Wigan. They were awful against Liverpool at the weekend, offering very little resistance but the Saints could be the right opponents for them to be facing here.

Southampton may be improved recently but that has mainly been at St Marys as they've won only once on the road & lost their other 6 games, their recent defensive improvement has also come at a cost to their attacking threat & star striker Rickie Lambert has scored just twice in 12. Of great concern to Southampton will be the injury to their captain & playmaker Adam Lallana who looks likely to sit this one out, he's very important to them but at least Gaston Ramirez has got fit & started to contribute, he adds a touch of class when on form. Southampton went down 1-0 at home to Sunderland on Saturday & only managed 2 shots on target in the game, Rickie Lambert will find defences more to his liking than Fulham's, they're a physical bunch, & he's struggled to get good service in recent games anyway. We're unconvinced Southampton can keep up their good defensive work & Fulham can take advantage in a game they need to win to get their season back on track, back them at a shades of odds on to win the game.

Selections:
2.35 Kempton - Countrywide Flame to win at 2/1 (General)
3.10 Kempton - Cue Card to win at 11/2
Fulham to beat Southampton at 10/11 (Betfred & Totesport)

NFL Week 16 - Colts can show Chiefs who's the Boss

Just two weeks of regular season games before the NFL playoffs & it looks like the cream has risen to the top in most divisions, we're looking at a couple of games where we think the odds make a wager worthwhile as we try to follow up the two odds against winners last Sunday.

Indianapolis Colts @ Kansas City Chiefs

Kansas City are on course to end up with the worst record in the league - thus ending up with the first pick in the draft whilst Indianapolis can seal a playoff spot with a win here & that should tell you all you need to know about the teams' motivation & the most likely winners here.

(T.Y. Hilton looks overpriced to score the first touchdown in the Colts v Chiefs game)

The Colts finished last in 2011, with star passer Peyton Manning injured, & that allowed them to pick up incredible rookie passer Andrew Luck who has helped guide them to a 9&5 record & the brink of the playoffs, they couldn't have asked for a better game to clinch a post season berth than this one as the Chiefs have taken beatings week in & week out. The Colts' defense is pretty ordinary ranking 21st against the pass & 23rd against the run but Kansas have the lowest average points scored per game in the league at just 13.9 & they're a one dimensional outfit that rely heavily on tailback Jamaal Charles as their quarterback play is so weak. With the knowledge that Kansas are unlikely to score too often the Colts offense will feel pretty confident & the combination of Luck passing to Reggie Wayne will be seen often as they've struck up a great partnership. The other success story for the Colts has been the play of rookie wide receiver T.Y. Hilton & he's bagged himself 6 touchdowns on the year, Hilton looks too big at 10/1 to get the first TD - he's also on kick & punt returns giving us extra scoring chances. Indy have a few injury niggles but all their key players look set to start & we think they'll be tough to stop

 The Chiefs didn't even get a single point against the pretty bad themselves Raiders last week as they went down 15-0 to 5 Janikowski field goals, it was embarrassing stuff & their defense will feel deflated after not allowing Oakland to score a TD & still losing badly. There's no let up with the dire quarterback play with Brady Quinn only having thrown two scores on the season & they were against a porous Carolina defense. Offensively everything rests on Jamaal Charles for the Chiefs & he's been great with 1,230 rushing yards but even he struggled last week getting just 10 yards total on 9 carries & he must be tiring, it looks a tough ask for them to even put up a bold display in their last home game of the year & even their fans mightn't want to see them win if it means they're deprived of the first draft pick!

The Colts will be desperate to get the job done this week as in their final regular season game they host the Texans & that looks a very tough one indeed unless they've already got the number one spot. With the Chiefs having lost 10 of their 14 games by more than 7 points the handicap of -6.5 points for Indianapolis looks a great bet & should be snapped up without hesitation.

Buffalo Bills @ Miami Dolphins

Miami are technically still in the hunt for a wildcard playoff place with the potential to get to an even 8&8 record with two wins but it seems highly unlikely they'll make it & the Bills are already eliminated with a 5&9 losing record. With pretty ordinary quarterback play for both teams this looks like it might be tight & trappy encounter with lots of rushing plays, it might not be the most important game of all time but we think there's money to be made as a gambling event.

(Mario Williams is starting to prove his worth at defensive end for the Bills)

Buffalo took a humiliating beating last week to Seattle but the Seahawks seem to have turned on the afterburners in their last few outings (becoming Super Bowl dark horses in the process) & that may not have been quite as dreadful a result as it looked for the Bills. The Buffalo defense had started to perform closer to the level it should be at with the individuals in it & the upgrades made before the season started, before the Seahawks game they'd restricted opponents to 20 or less points for 4 games in a row. On offense they rank up in 6th for rushing yards & C.J. Spiller continues to pick up the yards in his breakout season but he won't find it easy against the Dolphins' defense that rank 6th in points given up & 8th against the run.

Miami have struggled for points all season & we don't see it improving here even though Buffalo have been bad against the run over the year, Reggie Bush is not a dependable running back & he'll be getting a heavy workload with Daniel Thomas now out for the remainder of the season. Rookie quarterback Ryan Tannehill did well against Jacksonville but they're not a good side & his passer rating of 75.9 is not very good at all. Brian Hartline & Davone Bess are targeted way more than his other receivers & that's problematic as Bess is out & Hartline still questionable for the game, without them it 'll be tough for them to move the ball easily down the field. They're pretty hot defensively & Karlos Dansby continues to be monstrous at the linebacker position & Reshad Jones has been pretty nifty at safety too, that tough defense always gives them a chance as they look to shut down the opposition & gain good field position. With decent defenses, rushing games meaning the clock will tick & overall questionable quarterbacks we can see this being a low scoring affair so back under 41.5 total points at Evens with Coral.

Selections:
Indianapolis Colts to beat Kansas City Chiefs with -6.5 point handicap at 10/11 (Ladbrokes, Coral & William Hill)
T.Y. Hilton to score first touchdown at 10/1 (Skybet & William Hill)
Under 41.5 points in Buffalo Bills @ Miami Dolphins at Evens (Coral)

Sky Blues & Arsenal to deliver a double volley to the bookies

There's plenty of sporting action over this Christmas period & we'll be trying to find the best bets right throughout - the football wasn't great for us last Saturday with two lower league losers but other than that it's been winners all the way for followers with Arsenal winning with ease on Monday preceded by our NFL picks coming up trumps too. We'll have the American football bets up as usual for Sunday's full schedule of games & with a bit of luck we may even get a King George blog up as well for Boxing Day's racing. Make sure to follow us on Twitter @LikeBuyingMoney if you aren't doing so already by finding us on there or clicking the Follow button up above.

Wigan Athletic vs Arsenal

Sometimes you can see bets that look too simple to be true but you can't let that put you off a great punting opportunity & Arsenal look overpriced again against Wigan just as they were when thrashing Reading on Monday night.

(Ho Ho Ho! What will Santi deliver this Christmas?)

Arsene Wenger has done a super bit of business with tying down a quintet of key young English players to long term deals in the week & there appears to be a bit of a feel good factor at the club after hearing nothing but grumbles by many fans & some super intelligent ex-players (cough Ian Wright cough). Arsenal are one of the top three sides in Europe in terms of possession along with Bayern Munich & Barcelona who sit way out in front, that passing style & superior players should ensure that they best Wigan who also try to play football the supposed 'right' way.

Wigan have lost the joint most games in the league, 10 along with Reading & too often seem to have a soft centre & that paired along with a lack of a consistent scorer has meant they've slipped into the relegation zone. Wigan's ex-Hamilton James's McCarthy & McArthur are decent players but Arsenal's central midfielders should be able to outmaneuver them especially now that Santi Cazorla looks to back to form with an almighty bang. Odds of 3/4 about an Arsenal win look too big - the Latics are 3rd worst on their home form with the Gunners 4th best in the league on the road.

Coventry City vs Preston North End

Down in League One, Coventry City entertain Preston North End at Ricoh Arena. There is only one point & two places between them with Coventry 13th & Preston 15th.

(Striker David McGoldrick (front) is the main man for Coventry & worth his weight in goals)

Coventry are in fine form & two weeks ago they brought home the money for us & you as they easily dispatched Walsall 5-1 with a brace from both David McGoldrick & Carl Baker. They followed it up with an excellent 4-1 away victory at 4th place Doncaster Rovers to make it six wins in their last eight league games. McGoldrick is League One top goalscorer now with 15 goals of which ten coming his last nine league games & manager Mark Robins will be desperate to extend his loan deal past the 1st January.

Preston have been inconsistent all season with seven wins, eight draws & seven defeats in their 22 league games so far, they have only won one of their last eight league games & a they earnt a point in a 0-0 draw last weekend against Portsmouth after two defeats to Leyton Orient & Crewe Alexander. They have failed to score in three of their last four & the side haven't been effective since the long term injuries to full backs Keith Keane & Scott Laird.

We expect a Coventry side brimming with confidence & goals to be too strong for an inconsistent Preston team at the best price of 6/5 with bet365 & BetVictor.

Selections:
Arsenal to beat Wigan Athletic at 3/4 (Various)
Coventry City to beat Preston North End at 6/5 (bet365/BetVictor)

Monday Night Football - Royals facing the Firing Squad

We haven't been making picks for every Monday night but we like the look of the Premier League game this week as there may have been a slight overreaction by the layers to Arsenal's recent poor form - Kevin Pullein recently stated again, in his excellent Racing Post column, how poor runs of form tend to be worse indicators of the quality of a team than good runs (it's easier to lose than win!) & this may well be the case with the Gunners.

Reading vs Arsenal

All the talk in recent weeks has been of how terrible Arsenal are & that it may be time for the side to part ways with their French managerial maestro Arsene Wenger yet if they beat bottom placed Reading this Monday night they'll go to 5th place in the Premier League & be set to be challenging for one of those lucrative Champions League spots.

(Arsene Wenger is under intense media pressure & has demanded his players improve)

It's quite correct for Arsenal to have been derided for going out of the League Cup to League Two Bradford last week, they can't claim to have not been taking it seriously because we all saw the 11 players who lined up & proceeded to play so poorly with a listless display. The criticism will however have genuinely hurt Wenger & the vast majority of his players (Three-O Walcott may not care so much though....) & this game against the porous Reading defence could be just the tonic for the Gunners. The League Cup game here earlier in the season was maybe the most remarkable in the competition ever with the scoreline ending up 7-5 after Reading led by 4 just before half time with Walcott (a slight doubt here with injury) inspiring the Arsenal comeback.

(Not everyone's favourite but Per Mertesacker has helped organise the Arsenal defence)

That 7-5 game will mean that both sides will want to be tighter at the back here but Reading don't have the players to do that, they've kept just one clean sheet in the league & Arsenal are much more resilient in general, they've had 6 clean sheets (over 1/3 of their games) & have only conceded 16 in total. Some Reading defenders really aren't up to this level & that includes mediocre keeper Adam Federici & Shaun Cummings & Adrian Mariappa have struggled with the step up to the top league. Arsenal still need to strengthen at the keeper position but their back 4 are actually developing into a coherent group & although Per Mertesacker is always vulnerable to balls in behind he's well complemented by pacy fullbacks Gibbs & Jenkinson. Arsenal's big problem in recent weeks has been that record signing Santi Cazorla's form has dropped off, he had become their most important attacking player by far & the talented but unarguably overrated Jack Wilshere has not stepped up on his return from injury.

Reading have won just once this year, they've lost their last 5 & they conceded 3 to toothless Sunderland last week, as lacklustre as Arsenal have been we think the value lies with them to win & do it comfortably too - back them at 4/6 to pick up the win. Arsenal should be really fired up & will be aiming to salvage a bit of respect from their short journey to the suburbs, their attack should be much improved when Gervinho drops to the bench so have samll bets on scorelines of 2-0 & 3-0 at 9/1 & 16/1 for potential big pickups.

Selections:
Arsenal to beat Reading at 4/6 (General)
Arsenal to win 2-0 at 9/1 (BetVictor, Stan James & Coral)
Arsenal to win 3-0 at 16/1 (BetVictor & Stan James)

NFL Week 15 - Cowboys & Redskins? Welcome to the good old US of American Football!

The NFL keeps on rolling & we're really into the home stretch now with just 3 weeks of regular season games left before the playoffs, we're looking at two games between AFC North & NFC East teams that have big playoff implications with all 4 teams' chances in precarious positions.

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Dallas Cowboys

This game between the two best supported teams in the NFL has plenty of subtext to it & it's no surprise to see it's the televised evening game here in the UK, regardless of all the things surrounding this game we're struggling to see how the Steelers have been made favourites for the clash.

(DeMarcus Ware sacks Ben Roethlisberger - we could see plenty of this on Sunday)

There was tragedy before the Cowboys' game last week as practice squad member Jerry Brown Jr was killed in a car crash with team mate Josh Brent at the wheel, Brent was subsequently charged with manslaughter yet the Cowboys came up with a win over the Bengals with a last minute field goal. Dallas have hit a rich vein of form, winning 4 of their last 5 just when it looked like their season was a lost one with a 3&6 start & although they've not beaten good sides, the Bengals aside, it's been altogether better than Pittsburgh's recent run. The Steelers' recent poor run of one win in 4 has coincided with injury to their starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger & even though he returned last week they fell to the San Diego Chargers who have been laughably poor for most of their season. Big Ben is clearly playing whilst still injured (he's wearing a Kevlar body protector) & whilst he is exceptional on the big occasions he may just be pushing it too much this time, it also doesn't help that their rushing attack really isn't good enough (ranks 25th in yards per game).

Pittsburgh's offensive line has been a weak point for several years & that impacts on their running offense & also their pass protection of Roethlisberger & it's no surprise that he has been getting injured, that pass protection will be sorely tested by the Cowboy's star player & sack monster linebacker DeMarcus Ware who will be in the passer's face at every opportunity. Pittsburgh are still a force on defense, ranking 1st in yards given up & they'll be relying on that holding up here against Dallas's potent passing offense - it won't be easy even with the Cowboys' top receiver Dez Bryant having a fractured finger. Bryant's injury should mean that Tony Romo targets his good buddy Jason Witten even more & Miles Austin should see plenty of action too, the short passes to tight end Witten may do just the trick against the aggressive Steeler defense. Dallas are renowned for being chokers when it gets to December & the playoffs loom but it's worth siding with them against the Steelers who have lost to some much poorer sides than the Cowboys, take the 11/10 on offer for a home win.

Washington Redskins @ Cleveland Browns

In another game between sides from the AFC North & NFC East we see Washington travel to Cleveland to take on the Browns, the sides have won 7 in a row between them to improve from poor starts & this could be a good one.

(Redskin rookies Kirk Cousins & Alfred Morris will hope to lead them to victory)

The Redskins have one big injury problem with their impressive rookie passer Robert Griffin III getting a knee injury last week & he is either out or going to play on the injured knee which will severely limit his mobility which is such a key facet of his game. the positive for the Redskins is that their backup quarterback, another rookie, Kirk Cousins did a great job when stepping into the game last week & they have the league's number one ranked rushing attack anyway. That run offense of course is helped by Griffin's ability to take off but their running back (another rookie!) Alfred Morris has been outstanding running for over 100 yards in 6 games this year including in his last 3 games. There should be points available whoever starts for Washington against the Browns' defense that is merely ordinary at best but they do need to improve on defense themselves, it's an area where they don't really have any stars & they are too reliant on 37 year old veteran London Fletcher at times.

This game really is rookie central as the Browns' quarterback Brandon Weeden & starting tailback Trent Richardson are both first year players too, Richardson has undoubtedly been a success with 10 touchdowns although his yrads per carry is only average whilst Weeden has had his troubles at times. Weeden is actually the oldest player ever drafted in the first round of the NFL draft (he was 28 at the time but 29 now) & he previously played pro baseball, he's thrown 15 interceptions to 13 touchdowns but we think he should have done better with a nice set of receivers to aim for. Josh Gordon has been the Cleveland receiver to really step up to the mark in recent weeks & he'll like his chances of more receiving yards against the weak Redskin secondary. The Browns also have one of the league's best cornerbacks in Joe Haden who is basically a shutdown corenerback meaning he can completely nullify an opposing receiver - it may however not be overly useful in this one as we see Washington going very run heavy here.

Even though both sides are on winning runs we can't be too impressed with Cleveland's wins that have come against Pittsburgh without Roethlisberger & then the hapless Raiders & Chiefs, they'll have a good go at it but Washington can pick up the win & keep themselves in playoff contention.

Selections:
Dallas Cowboys to beat Pittsburgh Steelers at 11/10 (General)
Washington Redskins to beat Cleveland Browns at 5/6 (General)

Lower league & International winners all rolled into one!

We're back & after a pretty mediocre weekend last time ended our lovely run of winning weekend after running weekends we're trying to get back on track & we've got our usual football picks plus a horse racing one too! It's been a while since we turned to the horses on the blog as the flat season was a little disappointing in our opinion with pretty much just Frankel out in front & then the rest an awful long way back, the jumps are back though & we do occasionally hear things as we're situated right in premier jumps trainer country here in Somerset so we'll try to share when we can.

Stanjames.com International Hurdle

(Zarkandar & connections could be celebrating another win on Saturday)

This race looks like being the best it's been in many a year with three strong contenders for Champion Hurdle glory at the Cheltenham festival in March facing off against each other. We've a real belief in Paul Nicholls' classily bred Zarkandar, the half brother to Arc heroine Zarkava & think that he can win this before going on to win the big one at the festival.

Zarkandar could only manage 5th in the championship race last season whilst Rock On Ruby won the big one - there had however been health problems with various horses at Nicholls' Ditcheat yard in the buildup to Cheltenham & although Rock On Ruby was nominally his horse it was actually trained many miles away by Harry Fry who now holds his own licence & trains the horse in his own right. Zarkandar holds an advantage over Rock On Ruby anyway this time after winning on seasonal debut at Wincanton giving weight away all round & always holding the runner up, stablemate Prospect Wells. Rock On Ruby hasn't raced yet this season & it's a tough ask to win first time out in this company. The chief threat may instead come from last year's winner Grandouet who's already lost twice when taking on Zarkandar, coming 3rd in the Triumph in 2011 & then when getting brought down 2 fences out at Aintree when looking to be going just as well as the selection - we however weren't convinced Grandouet would necessarily have found enough to get past the battling favourite. Nicky Henderson's gelding hasn't however raced since last year's renewal & we think Zarkandar is the best of these anyway even without the fitness advantage so back him at odds of 5/4 for a nice win on the horses.

Leyton Orient vs Scunthorpe United

Down in League One, Leyton Orient entertain Scunthorpe United at the Matchroom Stadium. Leyton Orient are on 31 points & in 11th place whilst Scunthorpe are struggling in a lowly 23rd.

(Star Man Kevin Lisbie scored both goals in the 2-0 away victory at Bury)

The O's are in fanatstic form currently with five straight league wins & Russell Slade's side are brimming with confidence. The catalyst seems to be a change in formation to 4-4-2 which has allowed the team to get more crosses into the box for striking duo Kevin Lisbie & David Mooney to thrive & put away the goals. They have a combined 13 goals in all competitions & between them they have scored one or more in each of their last eight games including FA Cup matches. They have kept two consecutive clean sheets & have only conceded nine goals in ten home matches so look a good at both ends of the pitch.

Opposition Scunthorpe have suffered 12 defeats in their 21 league games & have only recorded four victories against sides in positions of 15th & lower. They have lost their last three league games against Bury, Doncaster Rovers & AFC Bournemouth with a disappointing 8 goals conceded. They have conceded 39 goals at & average of 1.86 per game & they won't be looking forward to the prospect of facing Kevin Lisbie & co. We expect Leyton Orient to be too strong for a poor Scunthorpe outfit at the best price of 23/20 at BetVictor.

Gillingham vs Fleetwood Town

This game in League Two sees the two teams that have conceded the least & 2nd least goals in the division as leaders Gillingham host Fleetwood Town who are sitting high in the table in 8th place but have only won one of their last 7 league games.

(Gillingham need to get skipper Danny Kedwell scoring again)

Gillingham have basically been the classiest operators in the league this season & they've lost only 3 times so far, being absolutely formidable on the road & not at all bad at home either although they're looking to bounce back after a shock reverse to Exeter last time they were at the Priestfield Stadium. The Gills started the season absolutely flying with 7 wins & a draw in their first 8 games & it was always going to be unlikely they could keep that pace going but they've still done well although they could do with captain Danny Kedwell getting back on the goal trail again although veteran striker Deon Burton has got 3 in the last 4.

The fast start  subsequent slowdown is a similar story for Fleetwood but their pace has really dropped off in recent games where they haven't been scoring enough to turn draws into wins (they've had 8 ties in 21 games, 2nd most in League Two). The fact that their left back Junior Brown is their top scorer shows where Fleetwood's troubles lie as they are pretty good at defending their own goal, you need a high powered attack to breakdown Gillingham usually & it looks a very difficult assignment. Back Gillingham at odds of 10/11 to beat Fleetwood & show why they are 5 points clear at the top of the table.

Selections:
Zarkandar to win the International Hurdle at Cheltenham 3.05 - odds of 5/4 currently
Leyton Orient to beat Scunthorpe United at 23/20 (BetVictor)
Gillingham to beat Fleetwood Town at 10/11 (Boylesports & Coral)