Swindon – Barnsley, English Division 2
2004-03-27 16.00 CET
Pick: Swindon
Stake: 3%
Odds: 1,70
Final reason for bet
· Swindon is a very good home team managing eight straight wins.
· Swindon is at the top of the form table and Barnsley in the bottom.
· Barnsley is in very bad form.
· Barnsley has major injury concerns.
General comment about the game
Strong home team Swindon will be visited by out of shape Barnsley on Saturday. Swindon is still quite safe on a playoff spot with six points more than seventh placed Luton. Their recent two losses away against Wrexham and Plymouth have however widened the gap to the two top teams that earns direct promotion; they are currently seven points after Queens Park Rangers on second place. They can still manage to grab a direct promotion place if they continue their fine home form and if they do not perform as they did last against Wrexham. The Wrexham game was played under very bad weather condition with strong wind. Wrexham were 1-0 up in half time and we were many that thought Swindon would turn that around in the second half when they hade the wind in their back. Quite instantly they equalised through midfielder Sammy Igoe (25(2) apps, 4 goals) but after that they continued to underachieve and Wrexham could score twice before Swindon made a consolation goal and set the final result to 3-2. Manager Andy King was not happy about some of the player’s performances and thought that Wrexham battled much better and that earned them the victory. To be fair to the Swindon players we must bare in mind that the ball did not go there way and a draw would not have been unfair. At home they have impressed a lot lately with eight straight victories. Last home game was against Grimsby in a match ending in a well deserved victory for the hosts with 2-0. Both goals scored by in form striker Tommy Mooney (36(1) apps, 19 goals). A blow for Swindon is that skipper Andy Guerney will be missing on Saturday through suspension. However, they have a good replacement in fit again Stefani Miglioranzi (26(1) apps, 3 goals). On the positive side is that they have signed Portsmouth reserve defender Eddie Howe. No other worries are reported from the Swindon camp.
Eleventh placed Barnsley is struggling at the moment. They have not won for two months managing six draws and four defeats. This bad run may have ruined their playoff dreams. They are six points after sixth placed Hartlepool and also at least one match more played than the teams above. With only eight more games to be played their situation is not good, especially since no up trend is in sight. Their away form is even worse than their home form; since New Year they have only collected three points from seven matches played. Last game was at home against play off hopefuls Port Vale. Barnsley had more of the possession but since neither team could create any real danger the game ended goalless. One of the reasons for Barnsley declined performances lately is that they have had injuries on key players. Most important is playmaker Dean Gorre who has made only two appearances since November. One of them was in Barnsley’s latest victory against Blackpool in January. In the beginning of March Barnsley awarded Paul Hart as new manager since former boss Gudjon Thoradsson had to leave because of the bad results. However, after four matches in charge Hart still has to wait for his first victory. Hart has made two new signings since he joined; versatile midfielder Chris Shuker from Manchester City and striker Gary Birch from Walsall. Shuker has been on loan to Rochdale and Hartlepool during the season and Birch has been a regular in the Walsall team and scored four times. Birch is expected to go straight in to Barnsley’s starting eleven on Saturday. Barnsley still has to coupe without several players; midfielder Dean Gorre (15(3) apps, 7 goals), strikers Mark Stallard (10 apps, 1 goal) and Michael Boulding (5(1) apps, 0 goals) and defenders Tony Gallimore (20 apps), Gary Monk (14(1) apps) and Robbie Williams (2(1) apps, 1 goal) will definitely miss the trip to Swindon. Furthermore they have doubts over defenders Peter Handyside (27 apps), Lee Crooks (19(1) apps) and Brain O’Callaghan (24(4) apps).
This is a game that is very likely to end with a comfortable home victory. Swindon is one of the form teams in the league and Barnsley is the reverse. Even if Swindon has to do without their skipper, this concern pale in comparison with Barnsley’s. Medium stake 3% is suggested.
Recent games for home team
|
2004-03-20 |
Wrexham-Swindon |
3-2 |
|
2004-03-16 |
Swindon-Grimsby |
2-0 |
|
2004-03-13 |
Plymouth-Swindon |
2-1 |
|
2004-03-06 |
Swindon-Brentford |
2-1 |
|
2004-03-03 |
Swindon-Tranmere |
2-0 |
Recent games for away team
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2004-03-20 |
Barnsley-Port Vale |
0-0 |
|
2004-03-16 |
Oldham-Barnsley |
1-1 |
|
2004-03-13 |
Sheffield W-Barnsley |
2-1 |
|
2004-03-06 |
Barnsley-Luton |
0-0 |
|
2004-03-02 |
Barnsley-Peterborough |
0-1 |
Home table
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Swindon |
19 |
12 |
4 |
3 |
37-18 |
40 |
Away table
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Barnsley |
19 |
6 |
4 |
9 |
22-32 |
22 |
Links for this game
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Barnsley: |
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// SportsObserver 040326
