Cup Final Weekend

Coleraine v Linfield

Any domestic fixture listing with the characters 'Linfield' and 'v' contained therein is an easy call at present. They are the side no one wants to face; unbeaten since opening day, 17 scored against none conceded in their last six league outings - including last week's ruthless rout of Loughgall. Coleraine, while game, have had to suffer consecutive games against Glentoran, Crusaders and Cliftonville with no return. It's hard to see The Bannsiders improving on that run tonight.

6/1 Coleraine
13/5 Draw
4/9 Linfield


Donegal Celtic v Armagh City

The Eagles current ten point tally has been secured in the last five games; fine form indeed from Kinky's side, and they'll take the field at Suffolk Road confident of picking up three more precious points against the divisional newcomers. Paddy Kelly's side have blown hot and cold - if they're going to consolidate this season, these are the games they need to win. At home to the side three points above you constitutes a six pointer for DC, even at this early stage. Looks too tight to call.

11/8 Donegal Celtic
11/5 Draw
13/8 Armagh City


Glenavon v Crusaders

Stephen Baxter will be hoping that his side suffer no hangover from Tuesday's heavy defeat at Linfield in the County Antrim Shield. On league form, they should dispose of the Glenavon threat. The Lurgan Blues proved last week that you underestimate them at your peril; not the sort of error one would anticipate from the thorough Belfast outfit. Glenavon also have a bit of an injury catastrophe on their hands - the money's on the Crues.

10/3 Glenavon
9/4 Draw
8/11 Crusaders


Larne v Ballymena United

With Paul Curran taking over in the coldseat at Inver Park for this game, there may be an X factor for the home side; who continue without suspended topscorer, Colm Kearney. Conveniently, tonight's opposition are Ballymena United, one of the league's out of sorts sides. It's just not happening for The Braidmen at the minute with last week's narrow home loss to Lisburn Distillery pinning them closer to the bottom feeders. This game is there for the taking for the home side.

7/4 Larne
9/4 Draw
5/4 Ballymena Utd


Lisburn Distillery v Dungannon Swifts

Paul Kirk would dearly love to celebrate his new contract with 3 more points tonight . Ryan Catney is out for The Whites until the transfer window reopens, while the Blues may have to do without captain Gary Fitzpatrick at the back. Michael Ward is another doubt for Harry Fay's side, but Shane McCabe will be available after suspension. It's a crucial game for both sides, and the result will tell onlookers a lot about the forthcoming fortunes of their respective Setanta Cup aspirations. The Swifts can ill afford to lose more ground on the sides above them, and the Whites must win to claw themselves further in the right direction; thus building on last week's equally vital success at Ballymena. There's a great view from this fence.

7/4 Distillery
9/4 Draw
5/4 Dungannon


Loughgall v Portadown

Loughgall, the side that everyone wants to play now. Things look even bleaker for The Villagers this week on the back of their thrashing at Windsor Park last time out. The youngsters who are being drafted in to replace the players who've defected in the wake of Jim Gardiner's dismisal are raw and ill prepared for such formidable opposition. Three points here for the Reds will haul them into the thick of the battle for top spot; 19 points from their last 21 suggests they will do it.

13/2 Loughgall
11/4 Draw
2/5 Portadown


Cliftonville v Glentoran - CIS Cup Final

After last season, it's refreshing to encounter a Cup final which doesn't involve Linfield. Cliftonville will doubtless be eager to turn their good start into something tangible; Glentoran will want to send out the message that they are winners to their nearest challengers. This is a nicely balanced game; The Reds opening day success at Linfield has earned them respect from allcomers; Glentoran have individual class and strength in depth. The difference between the two could be on the respective benches. With five substitues to be nominated for this Final, Paul Millar will have the better options if he needs to turn the game in his side's favour. Meanwhile, Eddie Patterson can only look on from afar as he continues to serve his touchline ban. The Glens to take a hard fought win for me.

3/1 Cliftonville
9/4 Draw
4/5 Glentoran


Derry City v St. Patrick's Athletic - FAI Cup Final

The Candystripes attempt to send outgoing manager Stephen Kenny back to Parsland with a Cup medal and they face a St Pats side who have failed to beat them on three occasions this season. After an arduous run in at the end of a draining program, the Foylesiders should have recharged their batteries over the past fortnight and will be raring to go. Their opponents have been preparing for this game for 5 weeks now, as they were well out of the title chase when they won their semi-final. Derry will be without Ciaran Martyn through suspension, a blow to their goalscoring threat. Fortunately, Mark Farren finished the season in fine form, and will be a menace to a Saints defence missing Darragh Maguire, also through suspension. At the opposite end of the field, Trevor Molloy has been scoring for fun during The Saints' cup run and is always liable to snatch a goal.
There's a fairytale here whichever side lifts the cup - but the value bet is probably with Pats to bridge over four decades without a cup win.

4/5 Derry City
9/4 Draw
3/1 St Patrick's Ath

Armagh the bet of the week

Armagh City v Larne
Managerless Larne have now gone eight games without a win; their solitary success came on the opening day of the season. 'Sacked manager syndrome' didn't win them any points last week when they hosted in form Portadown. This Saturday they travel to Holm Park , where The Eagles are showing signs of flying high...while not underestimating their visitors, it's one Gary McKinstry's men must pick up maximum points from and El Punter has plenty of confidence they will do so.

10/11 Armagh
9/4 Draw
5/2 Larne


Ballymena United v Lisburn Distillery
As hard to call as a Christmas Eve taxi. Two of the league's underachievers square up; identical records; home advantage should swing it for the Sky Blues. But when either of this pair are good, 'they're really really good, and when they are bad, they are bad!' Draw could well be the outcome.

11/8 Ballymena
11/5 Draw
13/8 Lisburn


Cliftonville v Coleraine
Eddie Patterson's side need fear no one these days, and the visit of Coleraine shouldn't trouble them unduly. The Bannsiders have been unfortunate in meeting two of the top sides in the league since Marty Quinn's stutter. Performances have improved, results haven't...and they'll be up against it again here. As long as the Reds are focused on the task at hand, and not next week's CIS Cup Final, they should collect the points.

4/6 Cliftonville
12/5 Draw
7/2 Coleraine


Crusaders v Newry City
Fans of these sides won't easily forget the last meeting betwen the two; that was Crusaders 8-0 romp at Seaview in the CIS Cup quarter final. Roy Coyle's men were on the wrong end of a 4-0 scoreline, when Glentoran visited The Marshes last Saturday; 'though by all accounts once Gary Hamilton had finished the game off after 12 minutes; the Newrymen gave an excellent account of themselves. They'll be looking to bounce back this weekend, but Steven Baxter's side have yet to drop a point at the Crusaders Citadel this term.

4/6 Crusaders
12/5 Draw
7/2 Newry City


Glentoran v Glenavon
The Lurgan Blues have lost two on the trot after their recent four match unbeaten run, it's difficult to visualise them causing any serious problems for Paul Millar's freescoring side. Yes, they have the distraction of the impending CIS Cup final, but they have enough quality throughout the squad to allow key players to rest if necessary. Colin Malone's side will trouble some this year, but they have got to attain a level of consistency, hitherto lacking.

1/5 Glentoran
9/2 Draw
9/1 Glenavon


Limavady United v Dungannon Swifts
Whether or not they've merited 4 points from the last 6 on offer, the Roesiders will have harvested some confidence from those results. Neither side are scoring freely of late, nor have they been impressive at the back this term. However, Harry Fay's Swifts seem to be getting their rearguard into some sort of shape, with only one goal conceded in their last four outings. Such defensive thrift should be enough to see them collect an away win.

9/4 Limavady
9/4 Draw
EVS Dungannon


Linfield v Loughgall
On paper, a comfortable home win - but will the Villagers have the X Factor? DJ is in charge for today's game, as David Johnstone attempts to make a name for himself by getting a performance from the Loughgall men. Who knows how they'll react to their first game without Jim Gardiner at the helm for 6 years, coupled with the defection of the influential Keith Percy? Will the real DJ be worried about this, I think not? The Blues have hit 10 without reply in their last 3 league games, Loughgall have yet to win a match.

1/8 Linfield
5/1 Draw
14/1 Loughgall


Portadown v Donegal Celtic
After a tough start, thanks to the fixture compilers, Ports have been efficiently going about the business of gathering points; 16 from the last 18 available is top form. DC continue to be enigmatic; they refused to lie down versus Linfield last week, yet fail to inspire against the lesser lights. Their lone victory came against Limavady on the opening day, and they've failed to score against the big boys in their last three games. Looks like Ronnie McFall's side can only lose this one themselves.

1/2 Portadown
12/5 Draw
11/2 Donegal Celtic

Big Games North & South

Carnegie Premier League

Coleraine v Crusaders
Marty Quinn's squad repaid their manager's renewed loyalty, with an improved performance against table toppers Glentoran last week. The scoreline typified the Bannsiders season, with goals flying in at both ends of the park. Crusaders have made a flying return to the top flight, and bounced back from their CIS cup semi final defeat with victory against the Villagers last week. This could be a tight one.

2/1 Coleraine
2/1 Draw
5/4 Crusaders


Donegal Celtic v Linfield
All eyes will be on Donegal Celtic Park when the Blues come to town. DC have raised their game against the top sides thus far, but have disappointed ottherwise. Paul McAreavey may be missing from a Linfield side which rediscovered last season's fluency when he returned to the side against Larne. Can Paddy Kelly's men obstruct the gathering momentum of DJ's Blue menace at Suffolk Road?

13/2 Donegal Celtic
11/4 Draw
2/5 Linfield


Dungannon Swifts v Ballymena Utd
Two sides who have suffered disappointing starts to the season, meet at Stangmore Park, when Ballymena United are the visitors. The Swifts can ill afford to drop any points here if they want to stay in touch with the Top 4; Ballymena need a win even at this stage of the season, to pull themselves into some sort of contention. The Sky Blues will have their work cut out for them to take anything away from Harry Fay's side.

5/6 Dungannon
9/4 Draw
11/4 Ballymena Utd


Glenavon v Limavady Utd
Glenavon may give Aidan Harper a start against Limavady United at Mourneview, after his impressive cameo last weekend. Man-mountain centre half, David Atiba Charles, has been away on international duty; it remains to be seen if the long journey affects his performance. The Lurgan Blues ran headlong into the in- form Karl Bermingham of Newry City in their last outing, and he brought their run of 3 successive wins to an abrupt end. However, the Roesiders have little to be proud of; with only one league victory to this point- the infamous win over Coleraine which almost pushed Marty Quinn over the edge!

10/11 Glenavon
9/4 Draw
5/2 Limavady


Larne v Portadown
Marty Tabb takes charge of leaky Larne when they host Portadown at Inver Park. Ports will be without Gary Liggett for a while through injury, but Wes Boyle if picked will be a capable deputy. Sometimes managerial change can create a temporary improvement in a side's performance, this is about as much as the Inver Park faithful can hope for. Ronnie McFall's men have collected 13 points from their last five games, and will offer no mercy to the port side.

11/2 Larne
12/5 Draw
1/2 Portadown


Lisburn Distillery v Armagh City
The fixture list has been unkind to the Eagles who've faced all the top 5 sides in their opening games. Things have looked more promising since then for Gary McKinstry's side. The Whites have been predictably erratic. After a solid start, results have begun to slip, and the suspensions of Wayne Buchanan, Ryan Catney and Darren Armour make this fixture a potential googly for Paul Kirk's men.

4/7 Lisburn
12/5 Draw
9/2 Armagh


Loughgall v Cliftonville
After only eight games, the Villagers have tasted defeat on six occasions this season. That being said, the meagre points total which they've harvested has been gathered exclusively at their home venue. With Cliftonville providing the opposition at Lakeview Park, there seems to be only one possible outcome.

11/2 Loughall
12/5 Draw
1/2 Cliftonville


Newry City v Glentoran
This is a tasty tie for the neutral. Newry City are the only side to have inflicted defeat on the East Belfast side this term. Roy Coyle has picked up a gem in the shape of the aforementioned Karl Bermingham; and the improved Glentoran backline will need to be on high alert to prevent the Dubliner from adding to his 4 goals in 3 games. Darren Lockhart is out for Windy Millar's side, but they have plenty of class in reserve. Since THAT embarrassing CIS Cup defeat, the Newrymen are unbeaten, while the Glenmen have not been as dominant of late as they were earlier this term.

10/3 Newry City
9/4 Draw
8/11 Glentoran

Eircom League

Shelbourne v Bohemians
This end of season game and title decider is a real riddle. Bohs would love nothing better than to stop Shels from winning the league title, and they have been awkward opponents for the Reds each time they clashed this season. But the chief problem is Bohs just don't look to have the players at the moment to trouble Shels. It looks like they will be forced to play a centre back (Jason McGuinness) up front, and have 'kids' fill out half of the team.
The flipside is that new Bohs manager Sean Connor will be taking his first look at his new team in this clash, so several of the Bohs players are to some extent playing for their contracts. Shels have doubts over one or two players, but nothing their classy squad can't cope with.

There's no doubt Shels are worthy favourites for the game but there is an element of 'cup final' about the game with massive motivation from both sides. Any value in the prices is in opposing Shels.

4/11 Shelbourne
3/1 Draw
13/2 Bohemians


Derry City v Cork City
Stephen Kenny's last game at The Brandywell is sure to be an emotive one. Derry still have an outside chance of snatching the league title on the line, while Cork are looking to grab runners-up spot. It would be a big enough ask for Cork to take a win in front of a vociferous Candystripes crowd against the team with the best home form in the league - but the visitors are also looking very light in midfield as Joe Gamble and Colin O'Brien sit this one out on the sidelines. Derry to take the points and push the title race right to the wire.

EVS Derry City
2/1 Draw
5/2 Cork City