Paddy's the man for Yeovil this weekend

19Jan 2013

With the spell of bracing cold weather and further snow on the way this weekend, Alan Dudman is hoping Yeovil's game at Huish Park will provide some warmth - with in-form striker Paddy Madden flying at the moment for the Glovers. Elsewhere, Swindon Town and Coventry City feature in the best bets for Saturday.

Swindon Town 1.52 v Shrewsbury Town 7.80, the draw 4.50

No team in League One have kept more clean sheets than Swindon Town this season - 13 of them to be precise. Their home record is equally impressive with the best attack (scored 30) and the best defence (conceded just eight) in the division.

The Robins are currently 2.68 for promotion and showed their class, or more their ability to gain a result, on Saturday with a splendid 1-1 draw at high-flying Bournemouth. Admittedly the game was played in mud-wrestling conditions, but they got a point against one of the best teams at this level.

Manager Paolo Di Canio has them playing in a pass-and-move style, and can be extremely elegant on their day. Prior to the Bournemouth draw, they had won all three of their league matches at The County Ground 4-0, 5-0 and 5-0 - which makes daunting reading for their opponents.

One negative note, Swindon have been put up for sale, worryingly to avoid administration.

Shrewsbury are a fairly likeable side that are keeping clean sheets, in fact three from their last four games, but this looks a Herculean task. Salop have only scored 13 times in 14 games away from home, and Opta stats reveal 55 per cent of their goals (17 of 31) have come from midfield - no wonder manager Graham Turner is on the look out for a new striker.

Town beat Coventry at the Ricoh Arena on New Year's Day 1-0, but in truth, the Sky Blues should have netted at least a couple. They'll try and keep this tight for as long as possible, in the hope they can hit Swindon on the break.

The price for a home win is unsurprisingly tight, but the both teams to score market would offer slightly more juice by backing 'No' at 1.86.

Recommended bets:

Back Swindon 1-0 @ 8.0 and 2-0 7.50

Yeovil Town 2.50 v Preston North End 3.0, the draw 3.55

Opta stats reveal that no side in League One have committed more fouls than Preston (369 in total) - not the kind of stat that the North End faithful will like to hear. There is no doubt the pressure is on their manager Graham Westley, whose methods are not working at Deepdale. Granted, injuries have been cruel to key players.

The Whites are just one win from their last 10 games, an awful run. Worryingly for a Westley team, they have conceded 10 goals in their last five matches and the back four is looking vulnerable. Sunday's 1-3 home reverse against Walsall highlighted their lack of confidence, and the boos are out for Westley.

Right-back has been a massive problem for Preston, and their recent signing of Paul Connolly from Leeds might be able to plug that gap, but they need more penetration up front.

Yeovil are the complete opposite at the moment, with manager Gary Johnson fully backing his team with several praiseworthy pieces in the media. His young go-getters are playing for him, which no matter what level, is such a huge thing.

Key to Yeovil's recent surge to eighth place in the table has been the sensational scoring run of Paddy Madden. According to Opta, the 22-year-old has hit four braces this term, something no-one else in the league has managed. The young Irish forward is a gem of a signing, who never stops running, reinforcing their never-say-die attitude.

I particularly like the centre-back pairing of Byron Webster and Dan Burn, who have featured in two of their recent clean sheets. Yeovil have have lost just the one game from their last seven outings, and are just one point away from sixth place. It's a decent price for a side going well, I only hope the weather doesn't scupper the chance of a bet.

Recommended bets:

Back Yeovil to win @ 2.50

Coventry City 1.95 v Oldham Athletic 4.60, the draw 3.50

Coventry are missing David McGoldrick, and so am I. The forward was my 'go-to' striker in 'Football Manager' and he has gone to Ipswich. Can the Sky Blues cope without him? His 18 goals in 25 games will be nearly impossible to replace.

The Midlanders' last three games have all been under 2.5 goals, and they got lucky in beating Tranmere Rovers 1-0 last weekend. They got pinned back by Ronnie Moore's side, but Leon Clarke grabbed the all important goal to try and fill McGoldrick's boots. Coventry essentially use a passing game under Mark Robins, and they've just completed a deal for full-back Blair Adams - who has been superb at the back this season.

Oldham were recently described by Brentford manager Uwe Rosler as 'hot and cold', although I am still waiting for their hot spell (in the league anyway). At the end of the month the Latics face Liverpool in the FA Cup fourth round, and as exciting as it sounds, this can often lead to a distraction.

Manager Paul Dickov has a lightweight midfield, with Dean Furman on African Nations duty and James Wesolowski banned. Although Jose Baxter has been a revelation with his 11 goals this term, the visitors can't really be backed with any confidence at the moment.

Recommended bets:

Back under 2.5 goals @ 1.90

Back Coventry City to win @ 1.95