This season has not been easy for Harrogate Town, with the team currently languishing in 19th place in League Two with 30 points. Town are only four points ahead of Crawley Town in 24th place, and Crawley have two games in hand.
It’s been a tale of draws for Town in recent games, and there are some tough games ahead. So, given the team’s current form, what does the next stage of the season hold? Taking a closer look at recent results and examining the odds of a win for Town over the coming games gives some insight.
An analysis of recent matches
Despite an impressive debut by Kazeem Olaigbe, Town suffered a 1-3 loss at home to Stockport County. The loanee from Southampton scored on 63 minutes, but County were already two goals ahead by this point and went on to restore that advantage in the 73rd minute. This expansion of the lead happened despite a lively start to the second half by Town.
Following this disappointing result, the current run of draws began for Town. An equaliser from Matthew Lund denied the team a first league win over Salford City in the 81st minute. This result was followed by a 2-2 draw at home against Crewe. Town played well enough to deserve the three points but gave away a two-goal advantage late in the game.
The record of draws continued against Grimsby with a 0-0 scoreline. On this occasion, Town will be happy to have got a share of the points given that the side managed only one shot on target in the whole game compared with Grimsby’s eight.
Given this run of results, and patchy performances, Town could do with some wins. But will this happen, given the opposition the team faces?
What does Harrogate Town’s form mean for upcoming games?
The next three games for Town are Swindon away and Northampton and Gillingham at home. The Swindon clash is a difficult one, given that the Robins are in 11th place and will see themselves as still being in with a shout of a playoff position. If you look at the odds at some of these non gamstop betting sites, you’ll see odds of around 7/2 for a Harrogate win, with Swindon being odds-on favourites at 3/4. These odds reflect the fact that Town’s opponents have won their last seven consecutive games at home.
Town are also at slightly longer odds than their opponents for the game against Northampton, with odds of 2/1 and 13/10 for the win, respectively. Arguably, Town’s best chance of getting maximum points in the coming games is against Gillingham. The team from Kent is currently below Town in the league and but they have won in their last two outings. It’s too soon for the odds on this game to be available, but it will interesting to see where the sportsbooks think the value is. One thing is for certain; if Town do not start securing points, it’s going to be a nerve-wracking end to the season for the men from the EnviroVent Stadium.
