George Elek: Searches For Value as the Daggers Travel to the Den

The last thing we all needed after Christmas was another assault on our weekly routine, but just as soon as we’ve all worked out when Monday is again the FA Cup has come along to send us spiralling back into perplexed bewilderment as to what day is what.

Thursday 7pm kick-offs? Or how about 6pm on Saturday?

By the time we get to the last FA Cup 3rd Round kick-off at 7:30pm on Monday night, which is another frankly absurd time for our Monday night dose of televised football to start, you’d be forgiven for assuming Tuesday is Saturday and there’s no need to get back to work.

Thankfully Monday night’s fare is a FA Cup clash genuinely worth tuning into. We were treated, in the loose sense of the word, to televised games between Sheffield United and Cardiff, as well as Aston Villa and West Ham on Thursday and Friday; two games that generally take place twice a season anyway given the teams involved normally share the same division.

Millwall v Dagenham & Redbridge, on the other hand, is a beautiful all London affair between two sides four leagues, but mere miles apart. They’ve only met twice before in this competition back in 2012, when Dagenham held Millwall to a 0-0 draw before being dispatched 5-0 at The Den.

Daggers were then a League Two club, but now find themselves 15th in the National League. They’ll fancy their chances to cause an upset here, having beaten relatively high-flying AFC Wimbledon on the road in the last round.

In terms of a betting angle, we have to look at the home side for pointers. Alex Neil has replaced Neil Harris as their boss but has gotten off to a rocky start, losing his first game at home to a side in Oxford who hadn’t won on the road to that point. They then drew 2-2 at Hillsborough but, even as Neil himself accepted after the game, were fortunate not to lose the game.

In short, this is a big game for Neil and far bigger than it would have been for his predecessor had he not decided to leave the club.

It would be mighty embarrassing for Millwall to be beaten by non-league opposition and the new boss will surely be absolutely desperate to ensure that does not happen, especially live on ITV.

We can expect Neil to name a strong side and the message will surely be to go and set a precedent for the new regime. Millwall should have more than enough to get past Dagenham, and the -2 on the Asian handicap @ 8/5  appeals, meaning we get our money back if the home side cover the -1, and cash in should they win by a bigger margin.

Millwall -2 Asian Handicap @ 8/5