Rochdale v Southend

Rochdale host Southend in the National League play-off quarter-finals. The winner will play Forest Green Rovers next Wednesday..

Dale are very slight favourites for the game at 2.50, with Southend priced up at 2.60, so near enough ‘pick em’ prices.

The same can be said of the number of goals expected, as Paddy Power have under 2.5 goals priced at 1.75, while over 2.5 is 2.0.

Rochdale finished the season in 4th place, and have won four of their last six games. Southend finished 7th, but don’t carry much momentum, having only beaten two sides in the bottom five over their last six games.

⭐ Rochdale v Southend Predictions and Best Bets

Over 2.5 goals looks the best value here, given it has occurred in 65% of Rochdale’s home games this season. 

Devante Rodney looks to be the best bet from a goalscorer perspective, available to score anytime at 3.0. Rodney to score two or more is worth a look too at 10.0, he’s scored three braces this season and 17 goals in total.

🔵 Rochdale rested for the big game

Dale were able to take advantage of having their play-off spot by resting key players in the final day defeat to Braintree.

Jimmy McNulty’s side have won 13 of 23 matches at Spotland, the 4th-best record in the National League. They have scored almost two per game with 43 goals, and conceded less than a goal per game with 21.

Club legend Ian Henderson still leads the line at the age of 40, scoring nine goals this season with three assists.

Manager McNulty is a former player at the club, having played almost 200 games in Rochdale blue. They finished 11th last season in his first full season in charge.

⚪ Southend snuck into 7th

Southend have attempted to keep games tight on the road, with only two teams games featuring less goals than the Shrimpers, one of whom is Rochdale.

Kevin Maher’s Blues have been out of the EFL for four years after back-to-back relegations ended a 101-year stay in the top four tiers, in part due to financial issues off the pitch. He’s an icon at the club, after playing almost 400 games and managing the side for almost all of their recent non-league history. 

Southend have missed out on the play-offs narrowly for the last two seasons but now have a chance to make up for that. 

Full back Gus Scott-Morriss has scored 17 goals this season for The Shrimpers, but none in his last eight.

📊 Rochdale v Southend Head-to-Head Key Stats

The most recent game between the two sides ended 1-1, thanks to an 84th minute own goal from Rochdale defender Liam Hogan, after Devante Rodney had put the away side in front in the first half. Southend had 2.5 times as many shots as Dale, but they were behind from the 21st minute and so had to go hunting the game.

The reverse fixture was won by the away side, 1-0 to Southend back in October, with Josh Walker scoring the winning goal. Each side had eight shots during the match, with Southend edging the xG stats.

Football Predictions at Andy's Bet Club

Andy's Bet Club is packed full of Expert Football Tips, especially at this time of year. We also have an easy-to-use Bet Builder Stats tool to help you conduct your own research. Check out these Rochdale v Southend Betting Stats as well as our Gem Bets.

Across Thursday's footballing action, we'll be offering Charlton v Wycombe Betting Predictions and Charlton v Wycombe Bet Builder Tips, as well as a Goals Algorithm Acca.

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* I recommend waiting for confirmed team line-ups before placing any bets.

* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing.