* 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.
15:00 Antrim v Wexford: Wexford (-7)
Davy Fitzgerald will be eager for his Wexford team to bounce back with a victory in Belfast after last weekend’s disappointing defeat away to Kilkenny. Fitzgerald is a manager that has high standards, and Wexford’s performance in the first half will not have been acceptable from his point of view. He will also be very keen for his team to replicate what they did in the second half at Nowlan Park in this match.
For their part, Antrim have had a two-week break ahead of this, and they probably needed that rest. The Saffrons looked at bit tried against Dublin after three weekends out on the trot, and they are probably using the majority of the players we will see them utilise in Championship. It’s been hard going on those lads, so the break should do Darren Gleeson’s side the world of good.
This week’s training for Wexford will have been a good thing for them though, as they are coming off the back of a Covid-19 outbreak in the camp. Corrigan Park is always a tough place to go to, as Clare found out in the opening National League fixture. However, I believe Wexford have enough about them to pick up the win, but it’s a toss of the coin on whether they can cover the seven-point handicap. I believe they can just about do it, and they could win by eight or nine points.
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17:15 Dublin v Clare: Dublin To Win
I covered the Dublin v Antrim match as a pundit and I watched Dublin v Kilkenny, so I’ve seen The Dubs in two of their three National League fixtures so far. They were extremely unlucky not to beat Kilkenny on the first day out. They had an awful lot of possession and just couldn’t turn it into scores on the board. They were very impressive in their next outing against Laois, and managed to get the job done against Antrim by eight points on their last outing.
On the flip side, Clare have had a very mixed League campaign to date. They were very disappointing in Antrim, and they squandered a big lead going into the last quarter when defeated at home by Wexford after that. But, they bounced back to run up a nice scoreline in a victory over Laois.
I just have a funny feeling about The Dubs winning here. They are really good at home in Parnell Park and I’ve really liked what I’ve seen of them to date. The Banner County could be missing their talisman Tony Kelly again, and they still have a couple of injured players to come back. Dublin are the more balanced side of the two at the moment, and they should scrape over the line on Saturday.
19:15 Limerick v Cork: Limerick To Win
These two sides will meet in the Munster Championship in under a month’s time, so we should be in for a good one here. It’s hard to believe Limerick – who were unbeaten all of last year – are yet to register a win so far this term. They’ve played three games to date, losing two and drawing one with Tipperary on the opening day.
The Treaty County will be without the services of Kyle Hayes, who is suspended after being sent off against Waterford last time out. Séamus Flanagan is also in the same boat after seeing red against The Déise.
But, I fancy John Kiely’s men to up the ante this weekend. I find it hard to figure out how Cork will approach this one given its proximity to the Championship, but I believe they’ll want to win too. They should want to keep their momentum going after an undefeated start to this season’s National League and The Rebels have been excellent so far, registering an awful lot of green flags along the way.
However, even without Hayes and Flanagan, I fancy Kiely to pick a strong Limerick team. He’ll be very anxious for his side to get a win on the board, especially at home. It wouldn’t be the be-all and end-all for Cork to win this, so I fancy a more eager Limerick for victory.
John Mullane tips summary:
15:00 Antrim v Wexford: Wexford (-7)
17:15 Dublin v Clare: Dublin To Win
19:15 Limerick v Cork: Limerick To Win
* A treble on these three best bets pays at approximately 5/1 with Paddy Power.
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