Category: Other Sports

Six Nations Betting Preview: Scotland v England

As two hapless England coaches – one former, one current – come face to face for this weekend’s Calcutta Cup clash, Geoffrey Riddle urges punters to consider Betfair’s points and tries markets. “This match is only going to be of interest to gamblers and the tribalism of English and Scottish rugby fans. For everyone else, it is likely to be an extremely dull arm-wrestle of a match.” Sir Thomas Browne , the Restoration writer and physician, wrote in his Religio Medici that ‘obstinacy in a bad cause, is but constancy in a good.’ It is a mantra that hovers over both Andy Robinson and Martin Johnson, the stubborn coaches of Scotland and England, as they prepare their charges for this weekend’s Calcutta Cup match in Edinburgh

Mar 11, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post

Premier League Darts Betting: Week Five

Jaymes Monte believes he has found a bet to take advantage of a recurring chink in Phil Taylor’s armour… “Phil Taylor maintains a 100% record whilst Mervyn King has just one blot on his copybook after he came unstuck against an on fire ‘Rocket’ in week three. He has since returned to winning ways with a good victory over Terry Jenkins and now meets his old foe head on in a battle for top spot.” Although I doubt that the outcome of tonight’s game will have much effect on whether or not either player makes it to finals day, there’s genuine reason to get excited about this match-up between the league’s top two players. That is because it is the first game of this year’s Premier League in which both players have legitimate claims of being near top form ahead of the meeting. Phil Taylor maintains a 100% record in the league whilst Mervyn King has just one blot on his copybook after he came unstuck against an on-fire ‘Rocket’ in week three. He has since returned to winning ways with a good victory over Terry Jenkins last week and now meets his old foe head on in a battle for top spot

Mar 11, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post

General Election Betting: Fifty seats that will decide the electio – seats 41-45

You know the Tories are struggling when they’re targetting ex-mining communities. But will they fare any better against a potential future Labour leader and can they hold on to a by-election gain? Paul Krishnamurty continues his journey through the marginals. “In Bassetlaw, the Tories need to oust a popular sitting MP in John Mann, one of very few MPs to emerge from the MPs expenses scandal with their reputation enhanced.” Bassetlaw Conservative Target No

Mar 11, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post

The Betfair Contrarian:Why Michael Schumacher will win the 2010 Drivers’ Championship

With Michael Schumacher 7.0 to win the Drivers Championship on his return to Formula One, the Betfair Contrarian explains why the motor racing legend will reacquaint himself with the top step of the podium. “It’s been said that Schumacher is too old to be successful in F1, but age is of little significance and, if anything, the experience gained in 250 career races hands him an advantage.” He’s the greatest driver ever The German has enjoyed such a ridiculous level of success in Formula One that it would be easier to list the records that Schumacher hasn’t broken than highlight what he’s accomplished. In addition to having won seven Drivers’ Championships, and picking up as many in a row between 2000 and 2004 as anyone else has managed in their entire career, Schumacher sets the benchmark for most races won with 91 victories, he is 40 clear of any other driver in the sports history. His race-to-win ratio is 36.4%, dwarfing for example Lewis Hamiltons mark of 21.2% or Fernando Alonsos 15%. Age doesn’t matter A lot has been made of the fact that Schumacher, at 41, is too old to be successful in Formula One, but the reality is that age is of little significance, and, if anything, the experience gained in 250 career races hands him an advantage. The oldest driver on the grid last season was Rubens Barrichello at 37 and he won two races more than he managed in his last season with Ferrari when he was four years younger. Two drivers have won Drivers Championships while older than Schumacher is now and Nigel Mansell, who was a world champion at the age of 39 in 1992 and won at 41, said: “It doesnt matter what age you are as long as you are professional, committed and focused.” He was still competitive before retiring Schumacher might not have won the Drivers Championship in 2006, which wasn’t surprising given that Alonso’s Renault was a superior car, but the fact he went into the final race that season, where he suffered a puncture, with a shot at the title was an achievement in itself.

Mar 10, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post

Betfair Big Interview: Ashley Jackson

A World Cup semi-final against the Germans – no, not a dream about the summer in South Africa but a reality for England’s men’s hockey team tomorrow. Betfair got on the long-distance line to India to talk to our young goalscoring star Ashley Jackson. . . “Everyone in the world across all sports knows that playing the Germans in a semi-final of a major tournament will be a very tough game.

Mar 10, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post

Calcutta Cup Betting: All eyes on honorary Scot Robinson ahead of grudge match

Scotland have lost all three Six Nations games but they’re value to topple boring England on Saturday evening, says Ralph Ellis “Behind Scotland’s dismal run of Six Nations results lie some encouraging performances, not least against Wales until the disastrous last 17 minutes. An autumn win over Australia also underlined the Murrayfield factor where home passion can be worth half a dozen points.” When John Gorman was made Glenn Hoddle’s number two as England manager, there were plenty who wondered how a Scot could handle the job. He had so little trouble that he says he’s still criticised when he ventures north of Hadrian’s Wall for becoming “a turncoat bloody Englishman”! More recently Terry Butcher , the man whose bloodied shirt and headband remains an iconic image of patriotism, was every bit as passionate about his job as assistant to George Burley. So switching sports it should come as no surprise that archetypal Englishman Andy Robinson is burning with desire when he takes charge of a Scotland team against their “Auld Enemy” for the first time at Murrayfield on Saturday night. First of all he’s a top professional coach, and winning matters.

Mar 10, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post

NBA Betting: Talented Toronto can go deep in the playoffs

The Raptors boast a top quality performer in Chris Bosh but there’s more than just him to this under-rated outfit, says Nick Shiambouros “Many people think the NBA finals will be contested by Los Angeles and Cleveland. According to the current prices on offer most punters agree with that assessment but I think this year has been one of the most competitive seasons in a long time and no single team has managed to truly dominate in either Conference.” The Toronto Raptors are currently in sixth place in the Eastern Conference and have a great chance of making the playoffs. Team leader Chris Bosh has just returned to the team after missing seven games through injury. Bosh remains one of the elite players in basketball averaging over 24 points per game and 11 rebounds. He is a free agent at the end of the year and a good playoff run will increase his bargaining power enormously

Mar 09, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post

General Election Betting: Brown and Labour stand firm in Scotland

The ruling party have less to fear in Scotland than in other parts of the country, in fact, says Paul Krishnamurty, they can be backed to win a few key seats in the forthcoming general election “Despite their wider problems, Labour are still dominant in Scotland and in a much better place than their all-time low-point, when losing a 2008 by-election in Glasgow East to the SNP. It could, in fact, be the only part of Britain where Gordon Brown proves to be an asset as leader.” While the main election narrative is always driven by national opinion polls, it’s essential that anyone trying to predict the result understands the various regional dynamics and trends . The concept of a uniform national swing is becoming increasingly hard to justify, especially if the nation in question is ‘Britain’, rather than its constituent parts. Nowhere more so than Scotland , where a distinct and quite separate political culture has developed in recent decades. Since devolution, Scotland has an additional parliament which dominates news cycles; the consequence of which is a different political conversation. Even the opinion polls are quite complicated to interpret, as extra figures for Holyrood elections (which will next take place in 2011) are also recorded

Mar 09, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post

Boxing Betting: Manny Pacquiao v Joshua Clottey

Pac Man looks unstoppable for this Cowboys Stadium showdown with Ghanaian hope Clottey, says Alex Steedman “In all seriousness, Clottey should be 1,000,000-1 to win this . Yes he’s a big, strong, determined fighter at welterweight and he’s a genuine world class operator. But he’s been found wanting at Championship level and he’s not in Pacquiao’s stratosphere.” This weekend, boxing was supposed to showcase the fight everybody wanted to see, instead we have a contest involving the man nobody can afford to miss.

Mar 08, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post

Boxing Tips: Manny Pacquiao v Joshua Clottey

Pacquiao is a heavy odds-on shot to beat Clottey but even that 1.2 quote could represent value, says Alex Steedman. Nevertheless, there are bigger priced bets out there and our man points you in the direction of one “Manny Pacquiao is still attractively priced at his recently reduced mark of 1.2 to beat Joshua Clottey this weekend. Whoever mugged one layer of £15.5 at 1.4 ought to be reported for stealing, just a shame there weren’t a couple of zeros on the end of that stake.” Sometimes short prices and indeed odds-on shots can be value bets . Denman was a terrific take to beat three rivals at 1.31 in the 2008 Aon chase at Newbury (between winning the Hennessy and the Gold Cup) while still one of my favourite wagers was backing Mikkel Kessler at a similar price to beat Marcus Beyer in 2006. Rarely has watching less than ten minutes of sport been so pleasurable and rewarding. So it is that Manny Pacquiao is still attractively priced at his recently reduced mark of 1.2 to beat Joshua Clottey this weekend

Mar 08, 2010 | 0 comments | View Post
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