Pre-season friendlies

[Primevil]

Re: Pre-season friendlies That was easy enough for Arsenal,,plenty of chances..should have scored 6..However with only 3 weeks to go..until the season starts..You would have to think the old wounds is still there,,being caught square, and crossed balls...from a weak side..Prem will find them out..;)

[Shipsupstreets]

Re: Pre-season friendlies "Sheffield United manager David Weir has confirmed that he will be bringing the majority of his first team squad and a mixture of youth players and trialists for this fixture," says the official Alfreton Town website. But over on the official Sheff U website it says: "The Blades are expected to field a squad consisting of U21s together with some senior professionals," describing it as a "Blades XI". Although Sheff U are clear favourites there's a bit more in the Alfreton price - drifting to 9/2 and beyond - than there should be. There is a second Sheff U XI out tonight: at Stocksbridge Park Steels. SPS haven't kicked a ball in anger yet this pre-season, so will be pretty rusty but they are up against Sheffield United's U18, who are using the match to gain experience against physically stronger opposition. Bet365 are taking a risk with the 21/10 about the home side.

[Shipsupstreets]

Re: Pre-season friendlies Bet365 appear to have pulled the Park Steels/Sheff U U18s game tonight from their list. SPS were decent value but not that decent.

[Shep65]

Re: Pre-season friendlies Burton Albion v DERBY Weds 23rd First time poster here and a Derby fan, so assume a tad of bias in my following submission:.... Derby having been chipping away for several seasons now under the stewardship of Nigel Clough with steady though unspectacular progression season on season. I feel this season we could finally be nudging towards a promotion push. Why different this season you may well ask? We have two exceptional young midfielders in Jeff Hendrick and Will Hughes ( 21 and 18 respectively) the former who is a newcomer to the Republic of Ireland team (Trappatoni has been waxing lyrical that him and Sammon should be playing in the Premiership- jury's out for me about Sammon but definitely Hendrick) and the latter, a blond Ed Sheeran looky-likey and Paul Scholes play-a-likey with a price tag, if you believe the hype, of anything between 5 and 15 million, who, barring injuries were mainstays of last season. Hendrick is marginally the better player at the moment but Hughes has the higher potential. Whilst they were fabulous for us last season, we didn't quite have the strength in depth and they played a huge amount of games for their age, carrying on occaisions seasoned professionals. We've managed to stave off interest for them from so far from premiership clubs as well as an exceptional right back in John Brayford and a tricky winger/forward in Jamie Ward. Despite having an England U21 keeper in Frank Fielding we've been ruthless in replacing him with Lee Grant. We're also looking to add John Eustace, who, whilst isn't sexy or spectacular is the defensive midfielder we need to stop us repeatedly throwing away "2 goal leads and coasting" positions that we previously excelled at. Bored? Rambling? I hope not. What we've always been missing is a decent striker for an end product for a midfield that could be the envy of the Championship. We've got decent support strikers in Martin and Sammon who can put a decent shift in and chip in with a modest tally, but recently somebody entered the frame very left of field from an unusual source..... brace yourself... Scotland! Oh, that place of underachieving south-strayers that never deliver? No! Enter stage left, a striker that has managed to make me almost moist. I must confess I'd never heard of him until recently, but, mark my words this man is destined for greatness. His name? Johnny Russell, 23, I think- we managed to poach him from Dundee United for under a million as he was in the last year of his contract and Dundee U were cash-strapped. Many Celtic fans were flabbergasted that they weren't beating a path to D U's door to sign him. In pre-season Derby are a transformed side with this missing link. He's scored 4 in 3 games I think and all of a sudden everything is starting to gel at Derby. Trust me, I've followed them through thin and thinner for forty odd years and something is afoot. Anyway, back to the game tomorrow. We've played our near neighbours Burton for the past few years pre-season. Mostly we win but they're tight affairs, mostly due to us not having a really decent side for some years. This years pre-season is different. We're actually showing some class! Admittedly the pre-season opposition hasn't been the strongest but the manner of performance has been markedly superior to our previous pre-season fumblings. Whilst our price isn't massive tomorrow- 4/5 at bet365, I feel for once the gap in class between us and our neighbours is for once quite considerable. And just as an addendum. Derby each way at 33/1 in several places and Johnny Russell each way at 33/1 at Skybet I must say through my sheep-tinted glasses does represent value.

[Shep65]

Re: Pre-season friendlies Oops, just noticed I've posted in non-league pre-season friendlies, rather than pre-season friendlies in general. If somebody would be so kind as to move to the relevant section, thank you. Btw. the game is Today the 23rd, not Weds 23rd as I originally posted.

[Shipsupstreets]

Re: Pre-season friendlies No joy with a well-beaten Alfreton and SPS on Monday though Farsley won easily enough.

[Shipsupstreets]

Re: Pre-season friendlies Spennymoor Town - VASE winners and strong players in the Northern League this season - are away at Whitby Town tonight, and there's a touch of value in Bet365's 7/2 about them. Darren Williams is doing good things at Whitby and they should go moderately well this season, but both sides have been okay in pre-season and I think the sides are much more closely matched than the prices suggest. Spennymoor's side is packed with experience, and includes winger Wayne Phillips, who rose up the leagues with Gateshead, and much-travelled forward Liam Henderson, who in April was scoring for Gateshead in the Conference Prem. I'd make Whitby very slight favourites and Spenny nothing like 7/2.

[Shipsupstreets]

Re: Pre-season friendlies 3-2 Spenny (with Liam Henderson notching the third). Happiness is landing a 7/2 shot that should have been going off at more like 6/4.

[Shipsupstreets]

Re: Pre-season friendlies Looks like a young Cambridge United XI that's making the trip to AFC Sudbury tonight. Sudbury at Evs with Bet365 is a fair play, I think. Sudbury have been a bit in and out pre-season but I have them as favourites for the section. Cambridge U have been doing well but the first team squad is heading to Boreham Wood tomorrow, and both times they've sent out XIs this pre-season they've been beaten (3-1 by King's Lynn and 3-1 by St Ives). There's a case also for Gateshead tonight, 15/8 with Bet365, up against Newcastle United's development squad but I'll wait until I see the team Newcastle put out - there appears to be some first-team fringe players in the squad.

[Shipsupstreets]

Re: Pre-season friendlies Sudbury failed at home to Cambridge tonight.