Week 1
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With the season only a few hours away there are still very few prices available due to bookmakers being cautious as a result of all the off-field problems in recent seasons. On top of that there is the usual merry-go-round of players and the challenge of assessing the strengths of various squads proves to be quite difficult, particularly for those companies who don’t have a League of Ireland fan compiling their odds.
Looking forward to the new season it is hard to see past one of the “Big 2” from last season – Bohs and Rovers. Although Bohs have trimmed down their squad they still have great quality and perhaps crucially they have the experience. Gary Deegan was one of the players of the season last year but he spent as much time suspended as he did on the pitch so his loss could be overstated and if Mark Quigley can find the form of the season before last they could even improve on last term.
Rovers similarly have trimmed down the squad and although Tadgh Purcell is finding form in League 2 with Darlington he won’t be missed at Rovers. The general consensus last season was that Rovers over-performed and were lucky to be so close to Bohs over the course of the season. They were heavily reliant on Gary Twigg’s goals and should he get injured it’s hard to see where their goals will come from.
With last season’s 3rd and 4th placed finishers no longer in the Premier Division it’s difficult to see how anyone else could possibly challenge. Dundalk finished a full 29 points behind Rovers in 5th place and it’s Sporting Fingal who have been chalked up as 3rd favourites.
Fingal only managed 3rd in the First Division last season and although their first team has a lot of quality it’s difficult to see them lasting the pace for the season, so the pick has to be Bohs to make it 3 in a row at 13/10.
The market without Bohs and Rovers looks a much more open market but it might be worth waiting how teams settle down before having a bet. Pat’s and Dundalk both have lots of new faces and with Sean Connor’s experience in the league maybe Galway United at 20/1 could be worth a pop – or maybe that’s me being an extremely over optimistic fan!
Similarly ‘To Finish Bottom’ is a competitive market and Bray at 7/4 are worthy favourites and could well be worth a bet seeing as they’re likely to struggle at the start of the season having been preparing for a 1st Division campaign.
My picks of the week: Bohemians to win Premier Division @ 13/10 (PP & Boyles) – Stake: 3/10
Bray Wanderers to finish Bottom of Premier Division @ 7/4 (PP) – Stake: 2/10
Mark Quigley to be Top Scorer in the Premier Division @ 7/1 (Ladbrokes) – Stake: 2/10
Looking forward to the new season it is hard to see past one of the “Big 2” from last season – Bohs and Rovers. Although Bohs have trimmed down their squad they still have great quality and perhaps crucially they have the experience. Gary Deegan was one of the players of the season last year but he spent as much time suspended as he did on the pitch so his loss could be overstated and if Mark Quigley can find the form of the season before last they could even improve on last term.
Rovers similarly have trimmed down the squad and although Tadgh Purcell is finding form in League 2 with Darlington he won’t be missed at Rovers. The general consensus last season was that Rovers over-performed and were lucky to be so close to Bohs over the course of the season. They were heavily reliant on Gary Twigg’s goals and should he get injured it’s hard to see where their goals will come from.
With last season’s 3rd and 4th placed finishers no longer in the Premier Division it’s difficult to see how anyone else could possibly challenge. Dundalk finished a full 29 points behind Rovers in 5th place and it’s Sporting Fingal who have been chalked up as 3rd favourites.
Fingal only managed 3rd in the First Division last season and although their first team has a lot of quality it’s difficult to see them lasting the pace for the season, so the pick has to be Bohs to make it 3 in a row at 13/10.
The market without Bohs and Rovers looks a much more open market but it might be worth waiting how teams settle down before having a bet. Pat’s and Dundalk both have lots of new faces and with Sean Connor’s experience in the league maybe Galway United at 20/1 could be worth a pop – or maybe that’s me being an extremely over optimistic fan!
Similarly ‘To Finish Bottom’ is a competitive market and Bray at 7/4 are worthy favourites and could well be worth a bet seeing as they’re likely to struggle at the start of the season having been preparing for a 1st Division campaign.
My picks of the week: Bohemians to win Premier Division @ 13/10 (PP & Boyles) – Stake: 3/10
Bray Wanderers to finish Bottom of Premier Division @ 7/4 (PP) – Stake: 2/10
Mark Quigley to be Top Scorer in the Premier Division @ 7/1 (Ladbrokes) – Stake: 2/10
About Julian Canny
is extratime.ie betting correspondent. Based at Paddy Power HQ, Canny gives you the best tips each Thursday throughout the season View Full Profile