Football Tips

Sutton’s Acca: 61/1 EFL Bet – Saturday 3rd December

Gab Sutton has five EFL picks for his massive 61/1 acca on Saturday


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Gab Sutton's EFL Acca

Sutton's 61/1 EFL Acca

Gab is back with his five EFL picks on Saturday

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At 61/1 a £10 bet would return £620

December 03, 2022

3:00 pm GMT+1

Forest Green to beat Cambridge – 6/4

One of the factors behind Forest Green’s struggles this season has been the injury to Harry Boyes.

The left wing-back, loaned from Sheffield United, had big, Nicky Cadden-shaped boots to fill as the Green Devils had to replace key personnel, but the 20-year-old couldn’t start the season.

Given how important wing-backs were to the Nailsworth club’s League Two title win, which earnt them football at their highest level in the club’s history, this was a sizeable blow.

There were times when so much of the play went through right wing-back Corey O’Keeffe, poached from Birmingham to replace Kane Wilson, but because there wasn’t a similar threat on the left, opponents could congest the space on one side of the pitch.

Now, Ian Burchnall has at least the luxury of playing O’Keeffe and Boyes simultaneously, with the latter looking sharp and creative in the 2-1 FA Cup victory over Alvechurch.

Of course, The Church are seventh-tier opposition that FGR should be beating, but still, Boyes’ contributions should be taken as a positive nonetheless.

With Dylan McGeouch coming in to improve the midfield, Forest Green might be able to secure a first league win in seven.

Victory would take them three points off safety because Cambridge lie just above the relegation zone in 20th, having failed to find the net in seven of their last nine league games – not to mention across 180 minutes of their FA Cup 1st Round penalty shootout win over National League North Curzon Ashton.

The U’s crashed out of that competition in the 2nd Round, conceding two soft goals to Grimsby: Mark Bonner’s side aren’t looking themselves at the moment, and Forest Green will feel they can take advantage.

Oxford to win at Accrington Stanley – 6/5

Oxford are unbeaten in eight in all competitions and haven’t failed to score in nine: progress for Karl Robinson’s side.

The U’s hurt their Play-Off chances this season by starting slowly and even found themselves outside the drop zone only on goal difference by mid-October before they picked up form.

More recently, the Yellows have started to look more like the enterprising side that recorded successive Play-Off finishes before missing out on the top six last season with 75 points.

With Elliott Moore and Stuart Findlay looking solid at the back, Marcus McGuane dictating proceedings in midfield flanked by dynamo Cameron Brannagan and advanced creator James Henry, there has been a steady volume of chances for Matty Taylor.

The back-post poacher started the season with a paltry two goals in 15 appearances, but with three in his last four in all forms, the 32-year-old is threatening to show why he bagged 17, 19 and 22 in the last three campaigns.

Salford to win at Gillingham – 5/4

Salford fell three points off the Play-Off places after a 4-1 home defeat to promotion rivals Carlisle.

The result will be a frustration for Neil Wood because his side created a plethora of openings in the first hour by getting crosses in for Florent Tolaj and especially target man Matt Smith, who turned home the first goal after a delivery from left-back Ibou Touray, who looked bright and busy along with Ryan Watson, Odin Bailey and Callum Hendry.

However, all that good work was undone because they were weak defending balls into the box themselves and looked frail on turnovers.

Part of the problem they have is that Elliot Watt is their deepest midfielder because he does an incredible job of collecting the ball off the defence and conducting or switching the play, but he’s not instinctively destructive – if he was, he’d be playing in one of the top two divisions.

As a result, once opposing teams get into the final third, there isn’t a midfielder instantly pouncing on them like Darren Pratley does for Orient, Liam Kinsella for Walsall or Lee O’Connor for Tranmere.

That could be part of what holds Salford back in their quest for a top-seven berth, but they might be able to get away with that shortcoming against a Gillingham side that have, scored a paltry six – SIX! – goals all season.

For context, Rochdale are League Two’s second-lowest scorers and even they’ve scored more than twice as many as Neil Harris’ side.

So, Salford have strengths going forward and some weaknesses at the back that may not be magnified by forthcoming opposition.

Swindon to win at Crawley - Evens

The Play-Off scramble looks incredibly tight in League Two: around 15 teams would consider themselves to have a good chance of finishing somewhere in the top seven, and the maths are that over half of them will miss out.

The bad news for Swindon, current incumbents of seventh spot, is that the depth of competition for their place is that strong, but the good news is that very depth means every other week, their rivals will be taking points off each other.

Town reached the Play-Offs last season, losing in the Play-Off Semi-Final to Port Vale and are hoping that a handful of proven League Two players, combined with another handful who have developed quickly under Scott Lindsey’s guidance, can amalgamate for a concoction capable of challenging for promotion.

Angus MacDonald, when fit, Louis Reed, Ben Gladwin and Jonny Williams, when available following World Cup duties with Wales, are the Wiltshire club’s go-to big-hitters, but Sol Brynn, Remeao Hutton, Ronan Darcy and Jacob Wakeling have come on leaps and bounds.

Athletic right-back Hutton and speedy forward Wakeling weren’t expected to be among the league’s star performers based on their form at Barrow last season but are benefiting from a different environment, while Brynn on loan from Middlesbrough and Darcy, poached from Bolton, have made a real impression.

Swindon have dropped points, however, at home to Tranmere and Crewe, taking just one point from those encounters despite having enjoyed the better of the play in both, so there’s extra pressure on this easterly jaunt to Crawley.

Former West Ham and Stoke winger Matthew Etherington has his first game in charge of The Red Devils, following Lewis Young’s stint in interim charge, hoping to go right where Kevin Betsy went wrong in adjusting to League Two following life in the Under-23s scene.

It’s a tough opening assignment, though – Crawley’s crypto-owners may not like it, but right now, they’re in a different bracket to their visitors.

Northampton to beat Tranmere – 6/4

Northampton delivered perhaps the biggest statement yet of their promotion ambitions by winning 3-1 at fellow candidates Bradford.

The performance and result was even more significant because the Cobblers achieved it in the absence of League Two top scorer Sam Hoskins, who some would have perceived them to have relied heavily on in their bid for a top-three berth.

For many, midfielder Marc Leonard is one of their most important players, too, and the Brighton loanee only came off the bench for 18 minutes!

The first two goals showed their ruthlessness in exploiting opposition errors in transition: Mitch Pinnock took three touches to tuck away a stray pass before the cleverly angled Ben Fox chest set up a Shaun McWilliams drive that allowed him to tap home after a one-two in the box with Kieron Bowie.

On loan from Fulham, Bowie has become something of a star man for the Teyn - the Scotland Under-21s international has really made the grade at Sixfields with his selfless running and neat link-up play… this hard worker has struck for fame!

Jon Brady can recall Hoskins from suspension, too, for Saturday’s hosting of Tranmere, who had won five games to nil in the league when they hit three past Crewe but have since gone six winless.

Micky Mellon’s side still have a solid defence, with two of the best full-backs in the league in Josh Cogley and Ethan Bristow, and they are still creating chances, but neither Kane Hemmings nor Elliott Nevitt are bringing their A-games right now and thus, Rovers miss a clinical goalscoring presence.

That could be the difference between these sides, and who wouldn’t envy Brady? He can either play the team that produced the most impressive display of the season so far or recall his team’s best player – either is an appealing prospect.

Betfair Acca

Forest Green to beat Cambridge – 6/4

Oxford to win at Accrington Stanley – 6/5

Salford to win at Gillingham – 5/4

Swindon to win at Crawley – Evens

Northampton to beat Tranmere – 6/4

£10 bet returns £618.75!

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Gab Sutton's EFL Acca

Sutton's 61/1 EFL Acca

Gab is back with his five EFL picks on Saturday

fire

At 61/1 a £10 bet would return £620

December 03, 2022

3:00 pm GMT+1


* Betting odds correct at the time of publication. All odds are subject to changes.


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Gab Sutton

Gab Sutton

EFL expert Gab Sutton brings you Sutton's Acca every Friday for Freebets