Northern Ireland v Austria Match Preview

This is going to be the watershed for Northern Ireland. They are either going to sink or swim with this game. A win here would possibly kick start their campaign, but if they defend like they did against Poland at Windsor Park, they can kiss the whole thing goodbye. At Stan James we bet N.Ireland?.9/4, The Draw?.9/4, and Austria?.Evs.One plus point for the Northern Irish is the return of David Healy. They need to be more of a force in front of goals, and they are struggling up front. It is hard to see where the goals will come from sometimes. It's always been their Achilles Heel. But Sanchez will be pleased with how his defence has tightened it's belt after Poland, so if they can keep the Austrians at bay, they could get something out of the game. Austria will not be frightened by the trip though. They had started reasonably well, but the home defeat to Poland was a little bit of a shock, so they'll want to bounce back in style. They showed against England that they do have that little bit of quality that the Irish lack. At Evens the Austrians could be good value.A stalemate is a possibility. The 0-0 draw is 13/2, one a piece is 5/1. Only an optimist would back a lot of goals being scored though. It won't be pretty you suspect, but Northern Ireland don't have a lot to lose and should at least have a crack at them. We'll be betting In-Running up to the 80th minute. Log on to www.stanjames.com for all of the markets