The FA Cup has lost some of its magic over the last decade but that doesn’t stop a profit being made on the famous competition and there may be two minor upsets on Saturday.
Matches featuring sides performing well in League One up against teams struggling in The Championship are the theme and firstly I’ll be opposing Millwall at home to Bradford City.
The New Den welcomes the Yorkshire club and the current fortunes of both could not be more contrasting.
While Millwall have won just twice since August, remarkably, to slip inside the bottom three of the second tier, Bradford are riding high.
It is now nine matches unbeaten for Bantams manager Phil Parkinson and his players and they will have nothing to fear from the trip to London.
A feature of that excellent run has been four consecutive wins on the road and you have to go back to a 2-0 defeat at MK Dons in September to find the last time Bradford failed to net on their travels.
If Bradford can overcome some injury concerns, Millwall are there for the taking and why Ian Holloway’s team are just 5/4 in the Match Odds market I am not too sure. The popular manager will choose from a squad whose top scorer, Lee Gregroy, has just four league goals to his name and also one that has managed only three home wins all season.
While Bradford are tipped to get the job done on their travels, Rochdale just might give their home fans something to cheer at Spotland when they play Nottingham Forest.
Rochdale do not boast quite the same excellent recent form as their fellow League One promotion hopefuls but Forest are short on confidence under Stuart Pearce and it is now no win in six matches.
Forest have scored only three goals in that time and, after such a strong start to the season, are heading in the wrong direction.
I expect Pearce to treat Saturday’s hosts with respect but Rochdale certainly know how to find the net, they are League Two’s fourth top scorers, and it would be no shock to me should they advance to the fourth round.
Forest have won away just once, a 3-0 triumph at Wolves, since the end of August.
2pts Lay Millwall (vs. Bradford) @ 2.30 (Betfair)
2pts Lay Nottingham Forest (vs. Rochdale) @ 2.20 (Betfair)