It’s time for the Saints to see off the Bully Wee

Dec 26 2008 by Gordon Bannerman, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

AFTER suffering the agony of conceding a final minute equaliser at Airdrie, St Johnstone face what on paper looks like a straight-forward encounter against in-form Clyde.

Saints are now 10/11 (Victor Chandler) to take the First Division title, and the record books suggest this weekend’s duel will be no walkover for the league leaders.

Not only have Clyde won three of the last six meetings with the Saints, but only twice in the last 18 duels between the pair has the outcome been settled by more than one goal.

This latter statistic highlights the good value to be found in bet365’s odds of 2/1 for St Johnstone to win by a single goal.

Naturally enough, the Saints kick off as Canbet’s 4/6 favourites and temptingly priced at 13/8 (Blue Square) to be in front at the end of both halves. However, punters conscious of this fixture’s tendency to be close may find Partybets’ 3/1 for it to finish all square or Sportingbet’s 11/8 for the opening half to end level attractive enough to risk a modest wager.

In other markets, bet365 posts 12/5 against the home side holding a 1-0 half time lead, while Coral offer a seductive-looking 11/10 about the match yielding more than three goals as has been the case in the two previous meetings between the pair this term.

Punters unwilling to discount the likelihood of another close-run affair might fancy Betdirect’s 7/2 for the league leaders to emerge victorious following an inconclusive first period, while in the correct score markets, there is plenty of value for those thinking along similar lines.

For example, internet bookie Betdaq chalk 13/2 against a 1-0 home win and Betfred offer an attractive 7/1 about a 2-1 Saints’ victory.

However, if St Johnstone are to kick-on and head relentlessly towards the SPL’s promised land in the second half of the season, these are the type of fixtures from which they should be taking maximum points. Punters who concur may prefer the 15/2 available at Jaxx.com for the home side to win 2-0.

Odds supplied by Betrescue.com