Value on hosts in League Two's Friday offering
Crawley Town host Hartlepool United on Friday evening in aiming to continue pulling away from the League Two relegation zone under Matthew Etherington.
Keith Curle’s Pools make the long trip to Sussex without a win in the league since the end of October, and currently sit rock bottom of the fourth tier of English football.
Hartlepool United have made a series of poor decisions off the pitch that have culminated in Curle needing to perform very well to save them from relegation this term.
The Pools should have sacked Graeme Lee in the summer after the former player showed plenty of promise in the dugout, they then made a very poor appointment in Paul Hartley and backed him with a number of players who have not been up to scratch at the level.
They are fortunate that there are a number of poor sides in the division, but as things stand, it does feel like Hartlepool, Gillingham and Colchester United are fairly comfortably the worst three teams in the division.
Background
Etherington’s Reds are on the up, with ambitious owners and a squad that should be looking at a top half finish as a minimum.
They are seven points off of the top half and above the relegation zone as things stand, and can continue their mini-revival against a poor side at Broadfield Stadium.
Crawley showed their quality in a 2-0 win over promotion-chasing Swindon Town last weekend, and there is no reason why they cannot replicate that result under the lights on Friday evening.
There is a chance to pick up some value at an odds against price, with the market yet to completely catch up with their improvement since the departure of Kevin Betsy from the dugout.
Season-long numbers still do not read favourably for the Reds, but there has been a clear defensive improvement since Lewis Young’s caretaker reign, and they have the attacking quality to hurt most teams in the division.
Goals?
There is enough value in an outright play to not get involved with a goals selection, Curle is a defence-first coach and would take a goalless draw if offered to him on arrival.
Crawley have scored in nine of ten.
Crawley have conceded in seven of ten but have kept three clean sheets in four.
Crawley have seen both teams score in seven of ten.
Crawley have seen over 2.5 goals in six of ten.
Hartlepool have scored in six of ten.
Hartlepool have conceded in all of their last 14, with their most recent clean sheet coming against goal-shy Gillingham.
Hartlepool have seen both teams score in six of ten.
Hartlepool have seen over 2.5 goals in seven of ten.
Post bet chat Marcus's Tips:
Hartlepool pick up a crucial 2-0 victory.