Blackpool v Northampton Betting Tips: Stalemate by the seaside?

John Brady’s Northampton travel up to the Fylde Coast on Saturday to face a Blackpool side who are winless in 6 games and who’ve lost 4 of their last 5 League One fixtures.

The Seasiders are currently in 18th place, just 4 points above the relegation zone, and have conceded the most number of goals in League One so far. The Tangerines' defence has been breached 28 times in just 14 games, an average of 2 goals conceded per game.

Northampton, on the other hand, are just one place above the Seasiders by virtue of a better goal difference, with both teams seemingly struggling for form so far this term. Brady’s team will be buoyed, however, after an injury-time equaliser earned them a 1-1 draw away at Birmingham last time out.

Moreover, they have also secured draws at both Stockport and Barnsley, as well as a 3-1 victory at Huddersfield earlier in the campaign, so have shown they are more than capable of gaining results on the road.

Honeymoon over for Bruce?

It wasn’t long ago Steve Bruce became the first manager in Pool’s history to win his first 4 League One matches in charge when he took over in September. Since then he has struggled to arrest the downward turn in form which has seen the Seasiders take just 2 points from the last 18 available leaving them bottom of the current 6-match form table.

The recent run of results has seen Bruce’s men tumble down the table. The worrying slide has taken them from 4th in late September to now 18th in a matter of weeks. The Tangerines have conceded an alarming 14 goals in the last 5 fixtures, scoring just 4 times during this torrid run of results, and will be looking for a change in fortunes ahead of the visit from Brady’s Northampton.

Fragile defences a concern for both managers

Blackpool have the worst defence in League One, with an average of 2 goals per game conceded this term, and at home, they have shipped the joint 4th-highest number of goals.

The Cobblers don’t fare much better in terms of keeping the ball out of the net. They have conceded the joint 8th-highest number of goals and have the joint 8th-worst defence away from home in the league.

Both sides have struggled for clean sheets this campaign, with Pool keeping just 1 at home all season and The Cobblers are 1 of 4 sides to have conceded in every away game so far, with defensive frailties a real concern for both Bruce and Brady.

Stalemate by the seaside?

With both sides locked on the same number of points in the standings, it does look difficult to split them ahead of the game.

Despite Blackpool’s poor current run of form, Bruce’s team have only lost 1 of their last 6 games at home and that was a last-minute defeat to Barnsley.

Similarly, The Cobblers are unbeaten in 4 of their last 6 games on the road and fought back for late draws away at high-flying Birmingham and Stockport respectively in recent matches.

BTTS: YES at 4/5 with bet365

Looking into the range of markets available for this clash on the Lancashire coast, I am firstly drawn to both sides’ lack of clean sheets and the number of goals they’ve each conceded.

The Tangerines have only kept 1 clean sheet in their 7 matches at Bloomfield Road and Northampton have scored in 6 of their 7 fixtures away from home. This naturally leads me to expect that The Cobblers can breach the Seasiders’ backline in this one.

In equal measure, Brady’s men are yet to keep a clean sheet on the road and Blackpool have managed to score in 6 of their 7 home fixtures. Therefore the ‘Both Teams to Score’ best priced at 4/5 with bet365 does look very enticing and pretty much rates as a must-bet at the numbers.

71% of Pool’s home games have ended with both teams scoring and for The Cobblers this is even higher with 86% of their away matches having gone the same way.

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Draw at 16/5 with Unibet

In terms of the match result, there is a standout price that again feels like a must-bet on the numbers. Both sides have drawn 4 of their 14 games and 3 of these draws for Blackpool have come at home while 3 of Northampton’s draws have come on the road.

Add in the fact the two teams are both locked on 16 points in the table does sway me towards it being tough to separate the two sides come full-time.

The biggest odds of the three-match results are available on the draw and by my numbers this should be closer to 9/4 than 16/5 which is the top price out there, available with Unibet.

There will be a desire to not lose this match from both managers given the current runs they both find themselves on particularly away from home for the visitors. If this is tied late on (70+ minutes), I can’t see either team taking too many risks to win it.

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Blackpool vs Northampton Best Bet

• Market: Match Result/1x2
• Selection: Draw
• Odds: 16/5
• Stake: 0.5pt
• Bookie: Unibet

• Market: Both Teams To Score
• Selection: Yes
• Odds: 4/5
• Stake: 0.75pt
• Bookie: bet365

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