Scottish Football Tips: Kai Watson's Best Bets, May 12
It’s a huge midweek of Scottish football, with the play-offs underway and the Scottish Premiership season building towards a dramatic finale.
Our Free Bets Scottish football expert, Kai Watson, runs the rule over five matches north of the border.
Scottish Football Tips
Here are Kai's five top football betting tips for the midweek action, featuring the best odds from UK betting sites to help you get maximum value on your bets.
Dunfermline vs Partick Thistle - Both teams to score
It’s not very often that the team who finish fourth in the Scottish Championship progress beyond the first round never mind have a real chance at promotion to the Premiership. That’s where Dunfermline find themselves under Neil Lennon though after a 1-0 aggregate victory against Arbroath.
Keeping a clean sheet in both games is incredibly impressive and Ashton Oxborough’s penalty save, late in the second leg turned out to be decisive.
Partick haven’t played since May 1st and only won once in their last five games but who was that against? You guessed it, Dunfermline. That match ended 2-0 at Firhill after a quick-fire Alex Samuel double and they really deserved that win.
Dunfermline actually haven’t beaten Partick this season, the first meeting also ended 2-0 but was at East End then in November it was a 1-0 home win at Firhill before a 2-2 draw at East End in February thanks to an injury time Ngwenya equalizer.
The Pars have only conceded twice in the last five games of the season and both of them were against title winners St. Johnstone. Partick have goal threats from all over the pitch though and will be difficult to keep out.
There’s a lot riding on this one and Dunfermline will be looking to make the most of home advantage in the first-leg. Having seen Neil Lennon and Mark Wilson’s sides plenty this season, I think both will fancy their chances and will go for it.
I can’t wait to see how it plays out!
Aberdeen vs St Mirren - Aberdeen to win
Stephen Robinson has the chance to put a nail in the coffin of St. Mirren’s season on Tuesday night. In just his third game in charge he had to go back to the SMISA stadium and after losing 2-0, it looked like he may have made a poor decision in swapping Paisley for Aberdeen.
Since then though Aberdeen are unbeaten, they beat Hibs 2-0 at Pittodrie in the next game, then Killie 1-0, also at home, before throwing away the lead twice in a 2-2 in Livingstone. They were back to winning ways at the weekend however as a Toyosi Olusanya goal and assist helped them beat Dundee United 2-0.
St. Mirren haven’t won since the last time they played Aberdeen and even though they were impressive in a 1-0 loss at Celtic Park the following week, they’ve now lost four games in a row including being hammered at home by Killie at the weekend.
That defeat meant that Neil McCann’s side pulled four points clear having won their last two matches 3-0.
St. Mirren are in big trouble and really need to win this one to have a decent chance of avoiding the play-offs but I just don’t see that happening. Stephen Robinson will surely want redemption for that 2-0 defeat a month ago and his side found form at exactly the right time.
Kilmarnock vs Dundee - Both teams to score
A Killie win in this one would seal St. Mirren’s fate in 11th with Dundee already safe but chasing down Aberdeen and Dundee United. Killie’s aggregate over the last two is 6-0, having won both by three and conceding none, Dundee have also won their last two without conceding a goal with a 1-0 and 3-0 win respectively.
Killie being at home is a big advantage in this one for me and the form of Findlay Curtis and Joe Hugill they look a real threat going forward and have also looked better defensively. Dundee are in a similar boat with Joe Westley and Cameron Congreve looking sharp in recent weeks.
In the three previous league meetings this season, two have ended in draws, a 0-0 at Rugby Park at the beginning of the season and a 2-2 at the same venue last month. In between that there was a victory for Dundee in December at Dens before they went to Rugby Park in the Scottish Cup in January and won 2-1.
Motherwell vs Celtic - Motherwell or Draw
Motherwell hadn’t won in five going into the split and that changed at Ibrox when they caused the beginning of the downward spiral of Rangers season with a 3-2 victory. They were electric and more like their old selves in that game and thoroughly deserved that one.
They would have been disappointed with their performance at the Falkirk stadium the following week as they lost 1-0 and never really got going. Then came Hearts at Fir Park on Saturday evening and, again, they looked back to their usual self when playing one of the top three.
They pressed and put plenty of pleasure on Hearts and it told after 25 minutes when Stephen Kingley turned the ball into his own net. Sadly for Motherwell Lawrence Shankland equalised just before half-time which took a bit of their momentum.
Celtic will be flying after a comeback Old Firm victory on Sunday but will be trying to forget the last time they went to Fir Park. They were bossed everywhere around the pitch and Jens Berthal Askou’s side deservedly won 2-0.
It was one of the most dominant victories you’re likely to see and Motherwell need a positive result to keep Hibs at bay and ensure that they get that European spot.
Based on how the last fixture went I would expect more of the same from Motherwell, especially if Celtic are rumours of interest in JBA as the Dane could see this as an ‘audition’.
Celtic need to win and that will suit Motherwell’s style, they just have to take their chances to get a positive result.
Alloa vs Stenhousemuir - Both teams to score
Alloa shocked a lot of people by sending Airdrie down to League One but they absolutely deserved it. They beat the Championship side 1-0 and 1-2 and have goals all over the pitch/
Stenny drew both matches against Queen of the South and even though they beat Alloa at the end of April, I think they’ll be a different team this time around and gave them a much more fear.
Another one that, on paper, should be exiting, let’s hope the midweek card lives up to the hype!
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