We preview the home clash with Rotherham on Saturday.
Rotherham United FC
Sky Bet League One
Saturday 16th November 2013
Kick-off: 3pm
Referee: James Linington (Isle of Wight)
Weather forecast: Thick Cloud, 7 °c
Tickets:
This is a Category B game and remember it's cheaper to buy your ticket in advance. Simply visit Boro Tickets and select the Rotherham game or visit the club shop, open Tues-Fri 10am-5pm or Saturday 10am-midday.
You can also buy terrace tickets this week from our pop-up shop in the Westgate Shopping Centre in Stevenage, which is open from 9am-5pm.
Last time we met:
The two teams last met nearly a year ago when Rotherham dumped Boro out of the FA Cup at the first stage with a 3-2 win. Kari Arnason set up Mark Bradley to open the scoring for the Millers on the half hour. Lee Frecklington scored with a long-range effort in the second half after Ben Pringle's pass, before picking up a loose ball two minutes later and adding another. James Dunne's 30-yard strike gave Stevenage hope before Filipe Morais scored after Marcus Haber's shot was saved, but Rotherham held on.
Boro: Arnold, Gray (Lopez), Roberts, N’Gala, Charles, Morais, Grant, Dunne, Freeman (Agyemang), Akins (Rogers), Haber
Subs not used: Day, Hills, Iro, Risser
Team news:
Jon Ashton is a doub after a late knock during the warm-up of the Leyton Orient win meant he missed out on Tuesday night.
Mark Bradley missed out on Rotherham's win over Hartlepool with a groin injury and is 50/50 on whether he will make the game on Saturday. Michael O’Connor also missed out and may or may not be fit for the match.
View from the dressing room:
Betting:
Boro are a whopping 15/8 with Sky Bet to win on Saturday, a massive price considering they've won their last 5 at home. In each of the last 3 games Boro have been leading at half-time and you back that at 9/4. And as we're sure you well know, Francois Zoko added to his impressive goals-tally with Boro in each of the last two games and has been first to score in both. He's 11/2 to score first with Sky Bet. If you sign up to Sky Bet using the attached links, you can earn yourself a free £5 bet each week with the Free Bet Club and the Boro earn money for every sign up through the club.
The Rotherham Scout Report:
Recent form:
After finishing 2nd in League Two last year and winning automatic promotion, The Millers have made an impressive start to their return to the third flight. They made a lightning start which saw them go unbeaten for the first 7 games of the season, however league form has dropped off since and they are currently 10th in the league. 3 losses and 2 draws in their last 5 league games show that, although the Millers are going well in the cups, through to the 2nd round of the FA Cup after beating Bradford 3-0 and into the area semi-finals of the JPT after squeezing through against Hartlepool on Tuesday night.
Key man:
Kieran Agard currently leads the goal-scoring charts at the New York Stadium with eight goals in all competitions, two more than he managed in the whole of last season’s promotion-winning campaign. He has found the back of the net four times in his last five games for the Millers, including two in Saturday’s comfortable 3-0 win against Bradford in the FA Cup and one against Colchester in a 2-2 draw. He’s also found the back of the net against Crawley, Notts County, Sheffield United and York City this season. A pacey forward who is equally adept on the wing, Agard made his name whilst with Everton. A highly rated youngster, he made his debut for the Toffees as 19 year-old and played his only league game for the Liverpool-based club against Chelsea, coming on as a second-half substitute. Loan spells at Kilmarnock and Peterborough United followed before he spent the 2011/12 season at Yeovil Town.