Pools tips and best bets for weekend of April 10-11

Ten draws: Burnley v Newcastle, West Ham v Leicester, Preston v Brentford, Crewe v Oxford, Gillingham v Shrewsbury, Lincoln v Blackpool, Northampton v Bristol Rovers, Barrow v Carlisle, Port Vale v Morecambe, St Johnstone v Aberdeen.

Best draws: Burnley v Newcastle, West Ham v Leicester, Lincoln v Blackpool, Northampton v Bristol Rovers, Barrow v Carlisle.

Weekend's best bets: Six aways: Chelsea, Arsenal, Norwich, Hull, Peterborough, Tranmere.

Weekend's best bets: Ten homes: Liverpool, Manchester City, Bournemouth, Wycombe, Accrington, Portsmouth, Sunderland, Bolton, Southend, Dundee.

Pick of the draws: Newcastle's battling 2-2 home draw against Tottenham last Sunday will have boosted their confidence as they try to avoid relegation from the Premier League. They can bring a point back from Burnley, who on the same day lost 3-2 at Southampton after leading 2-0. West Ham's fourth place in the table is merited and makes them London's top team. The reason Leicester are above them is down to their fine away record and I can see this one ending all square. Lincoln's promotion challenge in League One has been hindered by the coronavirus but they return to action this weekend. Blackpool, their opponents, have climbed into the play-off positions after convincing home wins over Peterborough (3-1) and Gillingham (4-1) and I think they'll gain a point here. There's a relegation clash between Northampton and Bristol Rovers in the same division, which will probably end in stalemate. Barrow, pulling away from trouble in League Two, face Carlisle, who have arrested their slump.

Away days: Chelsea's heavy home defeat by lowly West Bromwich Albion last Saturday was one of the shocks of the Premier League season but I believe they'll recover sufficiently to get the better of Crystal Palace. Arsenal's appalling display when losing 3-0 at home to Liverpool last Saturday is still fresh in the memory. They have an excellent chance to make amends against doomed Sheffield United on Sunday. If other results go their way, runaway Championship leaders Norwich can clinch promotion to the top flight on Saturday. Having thrashed Huddersfield 7-0 at home in midweek, the Canaries will fancy their chances at Derby. League One leaders Hull will go one step nearer promotion with victory at Plymouth while second-placed Peterborough will expect to return from struggling Swindon with three points. Tranmere, third in League Two and seeking to make a quick return to League One, will travel to Scunthorpe with confidence.

Homes sweet homes: Consecutive victories over Blackburn (1-0, home) and Rotherham (3-0, away) suggest that bottom club Wycombe have not given up hope of staying in the Championship. They are well worth a punt against Luton, who have nothing to play for except pride. Sunderland, stronger since Lee Johnson became manager, now have automatic promotion from League One in their sights and should have too much for Charlton. Southend, second from last in League Two, have raised their game lately and they are worth backing against Crawley, who are out of sorts.

Pools info: Hearts v Alloa (No.47 on coupon) has been brought forward to Friday and is therefore void.

Pools tips and best bets for weekend of April 3-5

 Ten draws: Aston Villa v Fulham, Leicester v Manchester City, Coventry v Bristol City, Stoke v Millwall, Burton v Swindon, MK Dons v Crewe, Shrewsbury v Plymouth, Colchester v Barrow, Newport v Bolton, Stevenage v Bradford City.

Best draws: Leicester v Manchester City, Coventry v Bristol City, Stoke v Millwall, Shrewsbury v Plymouth, Newport v Bolton.

Weekend's best bets: Six aways: Tottenham, Brentford, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Portsmouth, Cheltenham.

Weekend's best bets: Ten homes: Chelsea, Leeds, Manchester United, Reading, Rotherham, Swansea, Hull, Oxford, Peterborough, Leyton Orient.

Pick of the draws: If any team can temporarily halt Manchester City's surge to the Premier League title, it's Leicester, who are in great form themselves and battling for a place in next season's Champions League. Remember also that Leicester won't go into this fixture with an inferiority complex as they won 5-2 at City earlier in the campaign. Goal-shy Coventry take on inconsistent Bristol City in the Championship. Neither inspire much confidence at the moment and a point apiece is the most likely outcome. Stoke v Millwall is a mid-table clash between two draw specialists and it's hard to separate them. Plymouth, of League One, deserved their 2-2 draw at fast-improving Blackpool last Saturday and can take another point at Shrewsbury, who are one place below them. Bolton are the form team of League Two and chasing automatic promotion. They won't fear a trip to Newport, who have fallen away.

Away days: Tottenham stopped their mini-slump with a 2-0 win at Aston Villa and are highly recommended at Newcastle, who are in desperate straits in their struggle to stay in the Premier League. Championship high-flyers Brentford travel to mediocre Huddersfield with confidence while their fellow play-off contenders Bournemouth will be anxious to make up for lost ground by beating Blackburn. Cardiff, who are also in the play-off mix, will surely triumph at second-from-bottom Sheffield Wednesday. League One Portsmouth should justify favouritism at relegation-haunted Wigan. Cheltenham, second in League Two, will fancy themselves at bottom club Grimsby.

Homes sweet homes: Rotherham are in the Championship drop zone but have games in hand and will be optimistic about escaping relegation. I think they'll follow up their fine 2-0 away victory at Bristol City by defeating Wycombe, who are bottom. Peterborough v Sunderland is Easter Monday's match of the day in League One. Sunderland are on a roll but Peterborough's 7-0 home thrashing of Accrington last weekend was hugely impressive and I believe they'll edge this one in the three-way fight to gain automatic promotion. Consecutive wins against Newport (1-0 away), Carlisle (1-0 away) and Oldham (2-1 home) have lightened the mood at Leyton Orient and I'm tipping them to make it four in a row against lowly Walsall. 

Pools info: please note that 38 of the 49 matches on the coupon are being played on Easter Monday.

Pools tips and best bets for weekend of March 27-28

 Ten draws: MK Dons v Doncaster, Carlisle v Cambridge, Colchester v Bradford City, Leyton Orient v Oldham, Morecambe v Cheltenham, Dundee v Dunfermline, Belarus v Estonia, Czech Republic v Belgium, Israel v Scotland, Norway v Turkey.

Best draws: MK Dons v Doncaster, Colchester v Bradford City, Leyton Orient v Oldham, Morecambe v Cheltenham, Czech Republic v Belgium.

Weekend's best bets: Six aways: Sunderland, Portsmouth, Ipswich, Ayr, Falkirk, Torquay.

Weekend's best bets: Ten homes: Blackpool, Hull, Grimsby, Harrogate, Stevenage, Hearts, Chesterfield, Austria, Croatia, Denmark.

Pick of the draws: MK Dons, who have won their past three matches in League One, face promotion contenders Doncaster, who came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 at Gillingham last Saturday. This looks one of the best three-pointers on the coupon. Bradford City's revival in League Two has stalled and they may have to settle for a share of the spoils at Colchester, who badly need to arrest their slump. Successive away wins at Newport and Carlisle, both by 1-0, have put a spring in Leyton Orient's step but Oldham's 2-1 midweek victory over Exeter should not be overlooked and they can gain a point at Brisbane Road. Leaders Cheltenham cannot afford to be complacent at Morecambe, who thoroughly merit their play-off place. The World Cup qualifying fixtures take place this weekend and I'm backing the Czechs to raise their game and hold Belgium at home.

Away days: Sunderland, who are right in the League One promotion mix, will start firm favourites at Bristol Rovers, who are just above the relegation zone and have lost their past three matches. I'm believe Danny Cowley's appointment as manager will spark a Portsmouth revival. They played well in beating Ipswich 2-1 at home last weekend and I think they'll have the measure of Shrewsbury. Paul Cook's appointment as manager should also benefit Ipswich, who will probably have too much for lowly Wigan. Ayr look a sound proposition at bottom club Alloa in the Scottish Championship, as do leaders Falkirk at Forfar in Scottish League One. Promotion-seeking Torquay seem to be over their stumble in the National League, having won their past two fixtures, and I fancy them at Dagenham & Redbridge.

Homes sweet homes: Grimsby, bottom of League Two, grabbed a lifeline by winning 1-0 at Barrow in midweek. That should put them in a better frame of mind against Walsall, who are on a downward spiral, and the Mariners are well worth a punt. The steady rise of Stevenage has banished thoughts of relegation to the National League. Having seen off Carlisle 3-1 at home last Saturday, I believe they will do something similar to Barrow. Fast improving Chesterfield have won back-to-back away games at Barnet (2-0) and Aldershot (1-0) in the National League and look a good bet against ailing Weymouth.

Pools info: Burton v Fleetwood (No.4 on coupon), Charlton v Crewe (5), Rochdale v Swindon (9) and Newport v Scunthorpe (19) have been postponed because of international calls and will be assessed by the pools panel.

Pools tips and best bets for weekend of March 20-21

Ten draws: Aston Villa v Tottenham, West Ham v Arsenal, Preston v Luton, Swansea v Cardiff, Plymouth v Bristol Rovers, Portsmouth v Ipswich, Barrow v Crawley, Cheltenham v Salford, Harrogate v Morecambe, Hamilton v St Mirren.

Best draws: Aston Villa v Tottenham, West Ham v Arsenal, Plymouth v Bristol Rovers, Portsmouth v Ipswich, Cheltenham v Salford.

Weekend's best bets: Six aways: Manchester City, Middlesbrough, Charlton, MK Dons, Hull, Hearts.

Weekend's best bets: Ten homes: Bournemouth, Chelsea, Leicester, Brighton, Barnsley, Norwich, Watford, Fleetwood, Bolton, Newport.

Pick of the draws: Tottenham let themselves down when losing at Arsenal in the north London derby last Sunday. They are capable of better and should at least gain a draw against Aston Villa, who are less effective without the injured Jack Grealish. West Ham, who lie fifth, are the surprise package in this season's Premier League but as Arsenal recently won 3-1 at third-placed Leicester they'll be disappointed to go away with nothing. Bristol Rovers, close to the League One relegation zone, shouldn't fear a journey to Plymouth, who have suffered five straight defeats. One-time promotion favourites Portsmouth have dropped to 10th and face Ipswich, who have climbed above them. Pompey's failings in front of goal led to the departure of manager Kenny Jackett last weekend and they again drew a blank in midweek, this time at Peterborough. Cheltenham's 2-0 home defeat by relegation-threatened Barrow was one of the midweek upsets. On Saturday the League Two leaders play Salford, who don't concede many goals.

Away days: The quadruple is still on for Manchester City, who are tipped to beat an out-of-sorts Everton in 90 minutes on Saturday and reach the FA Cup semi-finals. It's been a better week for Neil Warnock's Middlesbrough, who have won home matches against Stoke (3-0) and Preston (2-0). I've a hunch they'll make it three victories in a row at Millwall and improve their chances of a Championship play-off place. I don't believe the resignation of manager Lee Bowyer will hamper Charlton's League One promotion push too much and I'm backing them at Wimbledon, who are at the other end of the table. The future is looking brighter at MK Dons after consecutive home wins against Accrington and Plymouth. They are worth a punt at Burton, despite the wonderful  job that Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink is doing there. Leaders Hull are strongly fancied to prevail at Shrewsbury and Hearts, the clear leaders of the Scottish Championship, are expected to come away from Arbroath with maximum points.

Homes sweet homes: Bournemouth's convincing 3-0 midweek triumph over Championship rivals Swansea has put them in the right mood to face Southampton in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Saturday. Southampton's Premier League form has dipped alarmingly and I'm taking the underdogs to go through. Leicester have never won the FA Cup but they won't have a better chance than this season. Although they entertain formidable opponents in Manchester United on Sunday, I believe they'll be equal to the task. Brighton may have only one point more than Newcastle in the battle to avoid relegation from the Premier League but Graham Potter's side are in far better shape and should record a rare home win. 

Pools tips and best bets for weekend of March 13-14

 Ten draws: Manchester United v West Ham, Birmingham v Bristol City, Derby v Millwall, Nottingham Forest v Reading, Blackpool v Fleetwood, MK Dons v Accrington, Crawley v Mansfield, Forest Green v Harrogate, Morecambe v Newport, Yeovil v Woking.

Best draws: Derby v Millwall, Nottingham Forest v Reading, Blackpool v Fleetwood, Crawley v Mansfield, Morecambe v Newport.

Weekend's best bets: Six aways: Tottenham, Manchester City, Norwich, Preston, Cambridge, Bolton.

Weekend's best bets: Ten homes: Leicester, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Charlton, Ipswich, Lincoln, Exeter, Bromley, Hartlepool, Wrexham.

Pick of the draws: Wayne Rooney's Derby are making hard work of climbing the Championship table and they could have chosen easier opponents than Millwall, who seldom accept defeat easily. Consecutive defeats to Luton (home) and Watford (away) have dampened Nottingham Forest's optimism and they will probably be grateful for a point against Reading, whose sights are on the Premier League. Fleetwood, in League One, make the short trip to Blackpool on the back of three successive victories but Blackpool, three places above them, are also playing well. Crawley's lean spell in League Two looks to be over after wins against Tranmere (away) and Salford (home) but Mansfield, their opponents, beat leaders Cheltenham 3-1 at home in midweek and can gain a point. I've a feeling that Morecambe and Newport, two of the division's high-flyers, will cancel each other out.

Away days: Tottenham's Gareth Bale and Harry Kane are running into form at just the wrong time for Arsenal, who host the north London derby on Sunday. Spurs won the reverse fixture at their ground 2-0 last December and they must be quietly confident of completing the double over their fierce rivals. Fulham have recently defeated Everton (2-0) and Liverpool (1-0) away in their spirited fight to avoid relegation. They won't roll over against Manchester City but I still fancy the prospective Premier League champions. Norwich, the runaway Championship leaders, seem an away banker at Sheffield Wednesday, who are staring relegation in the face. Mid-table Preston are recommended at Wycombe, who are rooted to the bottom. Cambridge wasted the opportunity to top League Two when they were beaten 2-1 at Bolton in midweek but I think they'll make amends at Oldham. Bolton are one of the most improved sides in the Football League and will approach their visit to struggling Port Vale with confidence.

Homes sweet homes: Barnsley's seven-match winning run was ended in midweek when Derby held them to a goalless draw at Oakwell. The Yorkshire side may face another setback at Bournemouth, who host them on Saturday. The Cherries lost ground in the race for the play-offs when they were held to a 1-1 draw at Preston last weekend but I'm tipping them to bounce straight back. Second-placed Watford provide formidable opposition for hosts Cardiff but the Welsh side are going so well that it would be a brave man who bets against them. Exeter, eighth in League Two, are scoring freely again and they are worth backing against leaders Cheltenham, who surprisingly lost at Mansfield in midweek and have conceded five goals in their past two games.