- 1 Boreham Wood vs Wigan Athletic: 12 points clear in the National League, one away point in League One
- 2 Boreham Wood: nine straight wins, and the league’s leading scorer expected to start
- 3 Wigan Athletic: one point on the road and Hogan a doubt
- 4 Free Football Prediction: Boreham Wood vs Wigan Athletic
- 5 About our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your responsibility
- 9 Responsible gambling
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About visuals
Boreham Wood vs Wigan Athletic: 12 points clear in the National League, one away point in League One 
Matt Rush came off the bench and scored in the 92nd minute last Saturday to give Boreham Wood a 4-3 win over Hartlepool United. They’d been 3-2 down late on, and that result kept alive a run of nine straight wins that Wigan Athletic now have to stop at Meadow Park on Saturday 7 November, kick-off 15:00 UK time.
This is an FA Cup first round tie between a fifth-tier side and a third-tier one, and I’m struggling to find many reasons to side with the higher division. Boreham Wood have won 14 and drawn two of their 16 league games, and they’re 12 points clear of Harrogate Town at the top of the National League.
Wigan are 21st in League One with three wins from 14 league games. They’ve taken one point from their first seven away games, the worst road record in the division, and they’ve scored 11 goals in those 14 matches.
The bookmakers agree. Boreham Wood are 1.73, the draw is 4.00 and Wigan are 3.80, so a non-league side is a clear favourite against League One opposition.
The clubs have no history in the competitions we track, so this is effectively a first meeting. Wigan won this trophy in 2013, and last season they beat Hemel Hempstead, Barrow and Preston before losing 4-0 at Arsenal in the fourth round.
Boreham Wood: nine straight wins, and the league’s leading scorer expected to start 
Luke Garrard’s side started their league season with a 3-3 draw with Tamworth and they haven’t lost since. Sixteen games unbeaten is one thing, but the nine-game winning streak across the league, the FA Cup qualifying rounds and the National League Cup is what makes this run hard to dismiss.
Against Hartlepool they had to score twice late on. D. Cashman, T. White, Zak Brunt and Rush all got on the scoresheet, with Brunt’s late goal and Rush’s winner coming after the visitors had gone 3-2 up.
Rush leads the National League scoring chart and is expected to start here in place of Jay Bird. He’d been used from the bench against Hartlepool, so Garrard has the option of going strong from the first whistle against a side with no away confidence.
They’ve averaged 2.4 goals a game over their recent cup and league matches, while conceding 1.4. That concession rate is the one thing I’d pick at: they gave up three to Hartlepool and two to Woking, 3-2 on 17 October, so Wigan should get chances.
Garrard’s team lost the 2025 National League play-off final to Rochdale at Wembley, so this group has played big games. They also know what a bad day looks like in this competition: Burton Albion won 5-0 at Meadow Park in January.
Curd should start in goal behind O’Connell and Bush, with Cashman, Brunt and Allarakhia supporting Rush.
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Wigan Athletic: one point on the road and Hogan a doubt 
Gary Caldwell’s side lost 2-1 at Oxford United, 2-1 at Huddersfield Town and 3-0 at Leicester City in their last three away league games. Their away record now reads one draw and six defeats.
A 3-2 home win over Bromley ended that slide on 31 October, only their third league win of the season, and Tuesday’s 0-0 at home to Mansfield Town followed it.
Goals are the main concern. Wigan have 11 in 14 league games, conceded 22, and failed to score against Mansfield. Scott Hogan was forced off in the first half of that game and is a doubt, and Dara Costelloe is out for up to four weeks with a groin problem.
If Hogan misses out, Christian Saydee should start up front. He’s still building his minutes after a calf injury and remains the club’s top scorer in the league, having scored at Oxford.
Fraser Murray is available again after his suspension and Akeel Higgins is back from a hamstring problem, though Luke Harris has been out since early September. Wigan concede 1.6 goals a game in the league, and the likely back three is Weir, Carragher and Burns.
Wigan’s first seven league trips brought one point, and their last two away defeats before Bromley were by a single goal, at Huddersfield and Oxford. Saturday is also their third game in eight days after Bromley on 31 October and Mansfield on 3 November, while Boreham Wood have had a full week since beating Hartlepool on the same 31 October.
Probable lineup Boreham Wood: Curd; Golden, O’Connell, Bush, Bainbridge; Booty, White; Cashman, Brunt, Allarakhia; Rush
Probable lineup Wigan Athletic: Whitworth; Weir, Carragher, Burns; Barrett, Power, Gray, Miller; Burrowes, Walsh; Saydee
Free Football Prediction: Boreham Wood vs Wigan Athletic
Our prediction: Boreham Wood to win @ 1.73
Boreham Wood have won nine in a row and are 12 points clear at the top of their division. Wigan have one point from seven away league games, 11 league goals all season and a doubt over Hogan, so the division gap doesn’t carry much weight here.
Wigan play two divisions higher and Boreham Wood’s defence let in three last weekend. I still think the hosts score at least twice, given Rush’s form and what Wigan have conceded on the road.
I’d back Boreham Wood at 1.73 to win inside 90 minutes. A 3.80 on the visitors isn’t long enough for a side with one away point this season.
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