23rd June 2012

Welsh Dragons vs Gloucestershire Betting: Better batting and bowling strength can lead the Dragons to another win

The newly named Welsh Dragons are back in action in the Friends Life T20 on Saturday evening when they host the Gloucestershire Gladiators in what is now a crucial match in the Mid/Wales/West group. Both sides played on Friday night. Welsh Dragons lost a match they should have won at Taunton while the Gladiators won a match they should have lost at home to Northamptonshire. The home side will go into this match as the 4/6 favourites with Boylesports.

Welsh Dragons, who will host finals day at their Swalec Stadium in August, have begun the campaign with a win, a washout and a defeat in their first three matches but had it not been for a remarkable innings from James Hildreth on Friday night the Dragons would surely have been on two wins. They will hope there isn’t a James Hildreth like innings up against them in this match because with only the top two qualifying automatically they are already playing catch up.

Gloucestershire Gladiators now have the same record as the Welsh Dragons albeit with a much inferior net run rate. They will have Kane Williamson playing his final match in this stint as overseas player as he leaves to join up with New Zealand after the match. That will leave Muttiah Muralitharan as the sole overseas player and he is the man on whom the Gladiators bowling depends so much on.

I think the Dragons will win this match. To me they look a very strong side with the bat with Shaun Marsh in excellent form after his 80 odd on Friday night and with the ball the likes of Simon Jones and the spin twins of Cosker and Croft should be more than enough for the Gloucestershire side. They have a couple of decent batsmen and a couple of bowlers but nothing in the strength or depth of the Welsh side so I’ll take the Welsh outfit to win this one and propel themselves right back into the qualification mix.

Back Welsh Dragons to beat Gloucestershire for a 5/10 stake at 1.67 with Boylesports