BACK TO ARCHIVE INDEX © All written site content is copyright ComeOnBoro.com 2004-2007, unless otherwise stated, and is not to be used without prior permission.	BETTING ZONE CARLING CUP PREVIEW This time last year Manchester City were dumped out of the Carling Cup, suffering a humiliating defeat at Doncaster. The result that night pretty much summed up their dreary season but we're confident they'll be determined enough to make sure lightning doesn't strike twice when they face Chesterfield on Wednesday. City are, by all accounts, dreadful away from home and have lost all three of their games so far this season on their travels. The two goals they managed in Sunday's 4-2 derby defeat at Blackburn were not only their first away from Eastlands but also their first from open play - although one of those was an own goal. But at least they have that monkey off their back now and Stuart Pearce can at least look forward to the next target of earning some away points. Despite their poor start to the campaign, the blue half of Manchester have showed glimpses of promise and although they rode their luck to beat Arsenal at home, they were somewhat unfortunate to leave Reading last Monday with nothing having created some decent chances. It was a similar story at Ewood Park where they should have been out of sight by half-time after wasting a catalogue of chances. All too often some teams are affected by a mental block and City's was they couldn't score on the road. But now this should be out of their system ahead of their clash at Saltergate. Chesterfield are hardly a force to be reckoned with and after a poor start to the campaign has left them languishing in the lower half of the League One table, they should be easy pickings for the Premiership strugglers. But City can't afford to be complacent and Pearce has named a strong squad in the full knowledge that his position will come under serious scrutiny should they suffer another embarrassing exit. Apart from injured duo Andreas Isaksson and Hatem Trabelsi, along with the suspended Ousmane Dabo, City should field a decent side and we're expecting them to click into gear against their lower-league opponents, who lost 3-1 at the weekend to Bristol City. With this in mind we feel the 8/5 available with Bet365 about City winning at half-time and full-time is good value and is certainly worth a bet. Another game we fancy a punt on takes place at Belle Vue where last season's giant killers Doncaster host Championship side Derby. Although the League One side have looked pretty rusty so far this season and currently reside in the lower half of the table, evening cup ties at home seem to bring the best out of them. Having knocked out Manchester City and Aston Villa last season before taking Arsenal to the brink and a penalty shoot-out, they certainly proved they can raise their game for the big occasion. The Rams, meanwhile, have been far from convincing and were held to a disappointing 1-1 draw with Preston at the weekend. In the previous round they edged past Stockport 1-0 at Edgeley Park but this will be a much more difficult test. It's also worth noting that Championship clubs seem to attach little value to this competition, especially with promotion or relegation issues on the mind and 12 of them fell at the first hurdle against lower-league opposition, who are motivated to cause an upset. Therefore we're going to back Rovers to win inside the 90 minutes which is on offer at 7/4 with Bet365. By Bettingzone.co.uk Used with permission. SEND THIS TO A FRIEND COUNTY FANS WELCOME IN THE NEW HOLGATE MESSAGE BOARD BORO v NOTTS COUNTY MATCH PROGRAMME INDEX
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