Five reasons why Burnley should progress to Wembley

Reading/Burnley, 7.45pm, Sky Sports 1, Free Bets, Best Odds

1. Just one of the last ten Championship teams to have taken a first-leg lead in the play-offs have failed to reach the final (Ipswich against West Ham in 04).

2. If an aggregate score was taken from the two Reading/Burnley league clashes, the Royals would have won. However, in two of the last three seasons the side in the fourth-versus-fifth play-off that has had the worst of the league showdowns has triumphed.

3. Reading have won just six of their last 24 games and haven’t won any of their last eight at the Madejski - losing four of the last six.

4. Whereas Burnley are ending the season on good form having lost just one of their last 12. A draw is enough for them to progress.

5. The Clarets have lost just three of their last eight away games against Reading in league competition.

Posted: May 12th, 2009 by Michael Lintorn | 2 Comments

Birmingham, Sheff Utd and Reading fight for second

The battle for automatic promotion reaches a thrilling climax

The table above shows every possible scenario that can occur in the battle for second on Sunday and what team goes up in each eventuality.

Birmingham control their own destiny but after throwing away a 1-0 lead and losing at home to Preston last week, they must now win away at Reading. If they flop, Sheffield United will take second with a win away to former boss Neil Warnock’s Crystal Palace. If the Blades fail to win then Reading can win promotion by beating the Blues, having been six points behind a week ago.

Posted: May 1st, 2009 by Michael Lintorn | Add Comment

Sheff Utd are 3.1 on Betfair to maintain their great away run

Burnley/Sheff Utd, 7.45pm, Sky Sports 1, Free Bets, Best Odds

Since January 31, Sheffield United and Burnley have averaged more points per game than any other teams in the Championship, making this match a clash between the division’s two form sides. It’s a massively important one too as Burnley need three points to extend their advantage over Swansea and Preston while Sheffield United need at least a point to realistically maintain their chances of automatic promotion. Here are five stats about tonight’s huge Championship match:

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1. Sheffield United are unbeaten in fifteen away league games.

2. However, Burnley are yet to lose a home game against a fellow top six side, having held Birmingham and Cardiff and beaten Reading and Wolves.

3. The Blades have the best away defence in the league, having conceded just 16 goals in 21 games on the road. They have conceded two or more on just three occasions.

Posted: April 20th, 2009 by Michael Lintorn | Add Comment

Paul Hart’s good start, Boro’s strong home form and more

Five stats about this weekend’s football

1. Only Manchester United and Liverpool have taken more points at home than Tottenham since Harry Redknapp took over in October. Spurs have won seven, drew four and lost one of their twelve under the former Portsmouth boss.

2. Middlesbrough are now unbeaten in six league games at the Riverside and would be four points clear of the drop right now if only home results were taken into account.

Posted: April 14th, 2009 by Michael Lintorn | Add Comment

Will Reading get their season back on track at Doncaster?

Off-form promotion hopefuls travel to the league’s form team

Besides having a chairman who named their stadium after himself and not showing enough love to the FA Cup, there’s plenty to like about Reading. They have Steve Coppell as their manager, try to play good football and have consistently got up the nose of grudge-bearing sports journalist Oliver Holt.

However, their prospects of an immediate return to the Premier League have dwindled recently courtesy of a horror run of one win in eight league games. As a result they are now seven points behind second-placed Birmingham, albeit with two games in hand. Tonight they travel to Doncaster, who have been the best team in the Championship from Christmas onwards.

Posted: March 17th, 2009 by Michael Lintorn | Add Comment

The New Football Pools are giving away another £260,000 this weekend

Just predict the outcome of fifteen matches to win big

A fortnight ago chickendinner told you about The New Football Pools’ Footy 15 competition, whereby you could win a big cash jackpot by correctly identifying the winners of fifteen matches.

This week the jackpot is a massive £260,000 while prizes are available to everyone who gets eleven or more right. To help out those of you who would like to enter but don’t follow the Championship, here is a stat on each of the five games you have to pick a winner for in that league:

Bristol City v Barnsley
The away side haven’t won any of the last seven encounters between these teams. Bristol City have won their last two home games against Barnsley.

QPR v Reading

Posted: January 30th, 2009 by Michael Lintorn | Add Comment