GW 11 – Ones to Watch

Ally: Well the less said about last week the better as far as I’m concerned! Not only did my run of every tip I’ve made this season scoring come to an abrupt end thanks to Clyde, I also managed to select Celtic and Manchester City…and we all know what happened there. But then that’s exactly the sort of thing that keeps us coming back to play The Ultimate Goals week after week.

Looking forward, this week sees a return of our old favourite the International weekend, when the lower leagues once again come into play. We’ve seen both highs and lows (usually the latter) from these weekends in the past, and upon first glance, this looks a pretty tough week too with few standout matches. First up for me though is the Scottish Challenge Cup game that pits League One side Raith Rovers against Northern Ireland Premier League outfit Glenavon. The beauty of this competition is that you have no idea of how the two sides really compare, but Raith have a superb home record having failed to score just twice in their previous 20 outings at Stark’s Park. Glenavon on the other hand are on a poor run domestically, having lost their previous 2 away league matches 7-0 and 6-0 and have shipped 24 goals in 7 away games so far this season, and while the sides have never met before I’m backing the Scottish hosts to come out on top here.

My second tip is another Challenge Cup fixture, this time Inverness CT‘s home game against fellow Championship side Alloa. Inverness head into the tie in good form, and although they did lose on their last home outing against bottom side Partick a fortnight ago they made up for it with a 2-0 win at second placed Ayr last weekend. Inverness have also scored in every home game this season, despite the setback against against Partick. That good home form extends back into last season too, and while Alloa’s form of late has improved they can only boast one away clean sheet in the previous 20 matches in all competitions, and I don’t see that run improving on Saturday either. Good luck with your selections!