Sports Blog 13/08/2015: Match Preview – Championship, Saturday 15th & Sunday 16th August 2015

It’s the second Championship weekend of 2015/16, and you can watch all 3 of last season’s Premier League rejects in action!

Saturday’s first match sees Burnley host Birmingham at 12.30pm on Sky Sports 1. Burnley didn’t get off to the best start last Saturday, scraping a draw against Leeds after an 86th minute goal from Sam Vokes cancelled out the 83rd minute opener from the Whites’ Mirco Antenucci. This draw hasn’t radically effected Burnley’s Season Points spread, at a respectable 68-70, but wasn’t the emphatic start the Clarets would have been after.



Birmingham, on the other hand, got an expected victory over Reading, as goals either side of half time helped the Blues hold off Reading for the final 30 minutes after Nick Blackman had pulled one back for the Royals just before the hour mark. It’s a good start for Birmingham, who were part of the mid-table pile-up last year; a finish, however, that their Season Points spread of 56-58 doesn’t exactly point to them escaping. They are also expected to struggle at Turf Moor on Saturday, with our Spreadex traders fancying the Clarets at a Burnley/Birmingham Goal Supremacy spread of 0.55-0.75 with a Total Goals spread of 2.4-2.6.

Saturday afternoon then sees QPR take on Cardiff at 5.15pm on Sky Sports 5. If Burnley’s opening game was a disappointment, then QPR’s return to the Championship was a disaster. Second half goals from Tony Watt and Morgan Fox gave Charlton an opening weekend win over last season’s worst Premier League side. The loss merely confirmed the fact that QPR rightly have the worst Season Points spread out of the relegated Premier League sides, at 63-65, and puts some unneeded extra pressure on Hoops’ manager Chris Ramsey.



Cardiff’s second season back in the Championship only got off to a marginally better start against their fellow 2013/14 Premier League rejects Fulham. The Bluebirds managed to clinch a point with a stellar 86th minute strike from Craig Noone, after a Matt Smith header had given the Cottagers the lead at the start of the second half. The game did nothing to suggest Cardiff can escape mid-table obscurity, leaving them with a Season Points spread of 58-60. Despite their dismal showing last weekend, QPR should be looking at their first points of the season when they host the Welsh side, with Spreadex offering a QPR/Cardiff Goal Supremacy spread betting quote of 0.3-0.5 alongside a Total Goals spread of 2.35-2.55.

Finally Sunday brings with it possible the toughest to call game of the weekend, as Wolves host Hull at 12pm on Sky Sports 5. A flurry of goals in the final 15 minutes of the first half gave Wolves their victory over Blackburn, with an opener from Benik Afobe cancelled out by the Rovers’ Craig Conway, before an arguably handled ball ended up in the back of the net at the behest of Dave Edwards just before the half time whistle. Despite being lucky not to concede an equaliser in injury time it was a decent showing from Wolves, who are one of the favourites for promotion with a Season Points spread of 70-72 alongside 9/1 fixed odds to win the league.



They face Hull who, after Middlesbrough and Derby, have the third best Season Points spread, at 72.5-74.5, alongside 13/2 odds to win the league. The Tigers had an unfussy start to the season, beating Huddersfield 2-0 after goals from Sam Clucas and Arsenal loanee Chuka Akpom. They should have a tougher time of it at the weekend, however, and our Spreadex traders are narrowly favouring the home side, at a Wolves/Hull Goal Supremacy spread of 0-0.2 with a Total Goals spread of 2.3-2.5.