tadley

In their opener, Central Districts ripped through the Wellington line-up, bowling them out for 142. Spinner Ajaz Patel was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4 for 21 from his four overs. Six Otago players failed to make double figures in their opener, so I see them struggling against Central Districts' bowling attack.

Failing to defend 257 against the Heat was a poor effort by the Scorchers. They followed that defeat up with another loss when going down to the Hurricanes. They weren't outclassed in those games, though, and they do have a good top order if Mitch Marsh can get going. Inglis might be available for this one, which would strengthen the side. The Thunder look a thoroughly unreliable bunch with the bat and are looking very beatable.

Torreense promotion push has ground to a halt with five straight defeats. Of those games, they failed to score. Lusitânia won three straight before being upset by Oliveirense. A sending off in the 26th minute was probably the reason for the loss. Of the two, they have the better form.

Palace aren't a big squad, and the run of fixtures seems to be catching up to them. They have looked a little lackluster of late. At home they have won just twice but have drawn four. Fulham are playing well, winning their last three matches and their last three away games, so they look capable of getting a draw out of this.

Although Liverpool have won three straight, they have been less than convincing, hanging on against Wolves last time for a 2-1 win. Leeds are clearly a team on the up, as they are unbeaten in five, beating Palace 4-1, Chelsea 3-1, and drawing with Liverpool. They are impressive going forward and can get a draw out of this.

Brentford have an impressive home record of W6 D2 L1. Those 6 home wins include the scalps of Liverpool, Man United, Aston Villa, and Newcastle. Spurs have done better on the road, but they are looking a fairly ordinary side with 7 losses so far. Brentford look worthy favourites.

Sunderland are unbeaten on their own patch with 5 wins and a draw. Man City are obviously quality, but they have lost on the road to Brighton, Aston Villa, and Newcastle. They may find Sunderland a tough nut to crack.

Bunting has had a great season and recently reached the final of the European Tour event and followed that up by winning the Players Event. At 29.00, he looks well worth a punt.

Algeria have a soft group, so they should have few problems reaching the knockout stages. They stormed through qualification, topping the group with ease, scoring 24 goals and conceding just 8 from their 10 games. In my opinion, this looks a fairly open tournament, so Algeria are in with a solid shout.