The New Saints vs Airdrieonians
Scottish Challenge Cup, KO: 16:15 Mar 24, 2024, Falkirk Community Stadium
THE New Saints have the chance to make history in the SPFL Trust Trophy Final as they bid to topple Airdrieonians and become the first club outwith Scotland to get their hands on the silverware.
Since teams from Wales, Ireland and England were first admitted to the tournament in 2016, only Connah's Quay Nomads have made it as far at the showpiece and they ended up losing to Ross County in 2019.
Now another Welsh side has the chance to go one step further and The New Saints will fancy their chances after seeing off Hibs' B team, East Fife, Arbroath and Falkik on their road to the final.
An Airdrieonians team sitting fourth in the Championship represents a tougher challenge but TNS are on an incredible run that has seen them win 19 games in a row in all competitions.
They haven't tasted defeat since losing to Swift Hesperange of Luxembourg in Conference League qualifying back in August so hopes will be high heading into this final.
Airdrieonians are also in high spirits though, with Rhys McCabe's side unbeaten in their last five games in a hugely competitive Championship, winning three of those matches.
Having sealed promotion last term in the play-offs, the Diamonds have a chance to repeat that feat and get back to the promised land of the Premiership. Getting their hands on a trophy would boost belief heading down the final straight in the Championship and Airdrieonians will be desperate to turn a promising season into a hugely successful one.
How the bookies view it
This is a tough one to call with The New Saints on such a long unbeaten run but Airdrieonians playing in a better domestic league. The bookies just give the Welsh side the edge, with 888Sport pricing them at 11/8 while offering 13/8 on an Airdrie victory. The draw at 90 minutes pays 13/5 with Bet365.
Head to head
This is the first competitive meeting of the teams but The New Saints have plenty of Challenge Cup experience as this is their sixth attempt at winning the trophy. The Welsh side reached the semis in 2017 and 2018, losing to Dumbarton and St Mirren.
Players to watch
Brad Young scored the winner for TNS in the semi-final against Falkirk and has been in deadly form all season, with 27 goals from 30 outings. At 21, the former Aston Villa kid can still make it big and he's 6/5 with Bet365 for anytime scorer.
Airdrieonians have been spreading the goals around but Nikolay Todorov should lead the line and needs just one more goal to hit double figures for the season. The Bulgarian is 15/8 with Bet365 to strike in the final.
Anything else catch the eye?
Finals can often take a while to get going and the clash between The New Saints and Falkirk wasn't a thriller in the semis. That makes the half-time draw a good option at 7/5 with Betfred while under 2.5 goals looks good at 6/5 with Bet365.
It's hard finding bets as only a few markets are available at the moment but backing most goals to come in the second half could pay off at 20/21 with Bet365.
This Scottish Challenge Cup match between The New Saints and Airdrieonians will be played on Mar 24, 2024 and kick off at 16:15. Check below for our tipsters best The New Saints vs Airdrieonians prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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