Nothing says, ‘Welcome back club football’ more than a Thursday night League One clash between two sides hundreds of miles apart with no discernable rivalry. Gather round one and all because Shrewsbury v Exeter is coming to a TV screen somewhere vaguely near you.
Our tipster Colin Harvey is in good form and he’s cast a beady eye over Paddy’s markets for this game – the undisputed biggest men’s match on the planet on Thursday evening. Here’s your three best bets for this Box Office battle.
Shrewsbury v Exeter Tips
Short-priced play: Under 2.5 Goals
Value bet: Exeter to Win to Nil
Long shot: Tristan Crama to score first
WHEN: Thursday 17th of October, 8pm
WHERE: New Mewdow, Shrewsbury
TV: Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football
Short-priced play: Under 2.5 Goals
Exeter have been going great guns in the English third tier this term and sit 7th after nine games with five wins, a draw and three defeats. Shrewsbury had been poor until they suddenly kicked their season into life at the weekend with a stonking 5-3 win over fellow strugglers Crawley to lift them to 21st.
Salop have played two games more than City but have won two, drawn two and lost seven. Before Saturday they had scored just eight goals in 10 games, conceding 17 in the process. Gary Caldwell’s Grecians like to keep it tight and have scored 10 and conceded six so far.
City head into this on the back of four straight League One clean sheets and five in a row in all competitions. Despite Salop’s goal fest last time out, you fancy Exeter to keep this tight and for under 2.5 goals to click for a sixth time in their last seven games.
Exeter to Win to Nil
Shrewsbury have won just twice this season and Exeter have a good away record so they’ll have no fears heading to New Meadow on Thursday night. We’ve touched on their excellent defensive record and we can make advantage of that with our value play.
I fancy Exeter to win to nil here and Exeter to win 1-0 might be a good long shot play. The draw might be a concern but the away side have scored in 11 of their 12 competitive games this season. Shrewsbury, for their part, could score and they have found their shooting boots of late, but if anyone can keep them out it’s Exeter and their rock-solid defence.
Tristan Crama to score first
We’ll finish with a long shot and we’re getting big odds on Tristan Crama to score first in this match. The on-loan Frenchman is a towering presence for the Grecians in the heart of their three-man defence and he’ll start here, assuming he’s fully recovered from the illness that kept him out of their last game almost two weeks ago.
He’s already got one for the season and he’s a big target for City from corners, with set pieces being the foundation of their attacking success so far this season. In what we’re expecting to be a low-scoring match, it could come down to a set piece and no-one is better placed to head one home than Crama.
Shrewsbury v Exeter Betting Tips
Short-priced play: Under 2.5 Goals
Value bet: Exeter to Win to Nil
Long shot: Tristan Crama to score
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
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