We preview gameweek 22 of the Irish Premier Division.
With our regular scribe on leave, I have the unenviable task of trying to match his sensational Irish Premier Division tipping form. It’s a hard job but someone has got to do it I suppose.
Anyway, that’s enough procrastinating let’s move on to the nitty gritty and this week throws up a rather light fixtures list with only four games set to take place over the coming weekend. Most of this weekend’s fixtures are David versus Goliath affairs with the most competitive match of the gameweek likely to be the tie between 11th-placed Drogheda Rovers and ninth-placed Finn Harps.
Friday 7 July
Galway 17/10 | Draw 23/10 | Limerick 29/20 (20:45)
We get things underway with a tie between cellar-dwellers Galway and mid-table Limerick. The hosts come into this one off the back of a 1-1 draw with fellow strugglers St Patrick’s Athletic while the visitors beat Drogheda United 0-2 last Friday.
Limerick have struggled for consistency this season which makes the straight win market a bit of a gamble. Instead, I’m going to back the visitors to score two goals or more at 21/20. They are averaging a goal and a half per game while the hosts are conceding at an almost identical rate.
Drogheda United 15/10 | Draw 21/10 | Finn Harps (20:45)
Next up we have Drogheda United taking on Finn Harps in what can only be described as the battle of the strugglers. The hosts currently lie a point off the foot of the table while the hosts are only a point better off. This game could have a massive bearing on who drops to the second tier, so I’m expecting a rather cagey 90-minutes here.
The hosts are currently on a three-game losing streak while the visitors have lost two on the trot. Both teams have struggled for goals this term with Drogheda only managing to score 14 goals in their 20 fixtures and the ‘Harps doing only slightly better with 20 from 19. With stats like that staring me in the face, I can’t help but back the Totals – Under 2.5 Goals – market at 13/20.
Sunday 9 July
Cork 1/4 | Draw 9/2 | St Patrick’s Athletic 19/2 (15:00)
Sunday’s double-bill gets underway with a game between league leaders Cork and 10th-placed St Patrick’s Athletic. The hosts are unbeaten this term and come into this one off the back of a week off after their game against Bohemians was postponed due to their partition in European qualifiers.
I can’t see anything but a Cork win here. They are a class above everyone in the league, let alone lowly St Patrick’s. I’m so confident here, that I’d advise leaving the straight win and getting on -1 handicap at 13/20.
Derry City FC 13/20 | Draw 26/10 | Sligo Rovers 38/10
Our final fixture of the gameweek pits mid-table sides, Derry FC and Sligo Rovers, up against each other. The hosts, like Cork, weren’t in action last week as they had a European tie, while the visitors scraped their way to a 1-0 against Shamrock Rovers.
Derry City have been struggling for results of late and while Sligo have been far from sensational themselves, I think they’ve got enough about them to see off what looks to be a rather jaded Derry outfit. Get on the away win at 38/10!
Written by Darry Worthington for @Hollywoodbets.net
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