With Dallas mounting a serious challenge in the West, Nick Shiambouros believes Los Angeles could come unstuck against free-scoring Denver this weekend. “The bad news for New Orleans is that the Mavericks are playing at a very high level and should have too many weapons for them.” The Cleveland Cavaliers staged a spirited comeback to beat the Boston Celtics 108-88 on Thursday evening.
Five reasons why Martin O’Neill’s merry band of underdogs will get the glory in the Carling Cup final this Sunday “If the pitch invasion after the semi-final win over Blackburn didn’t give it away, Villa are absolutely desperate to win the Carling Cup this season. United, on the other hand, only really got interested in the semi-finals because local pride meant that they wouldn’t allow Manchester City to progress at their expense.” It’s been a cracking decade so far for the Contrarian: the New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl , Team GB defied all expectations by winning a rare gold medal at the Winter Olympics and, though you may not yet be convinced, England are on course to win the Six Nations . This week’s hot tip is to back Aston Villa to conquer Manchester United and win the Carling Cup at 3.0 and if there’s one thing more foolish than ignoring the Contrarian right now, it’s going against Martin O’Neill in that competition… No team ever retains Twenty years have passed since Brian Clough and Nottingham Forest became the last manager and team to retain the Carling Cup.
After last week’s Super Bowl bet went awry, Jack finds himself in the red.
Orlando Magic go to Ohio for a mouth-watering top of the conference clash while Denver fans look forward to a high-scoring affair. Nick Shiambouros selects the best bets. “This is a huge game for Orlando as victory would give them a psychological advantage if they meet Cleveland in the play-offs later on this year.” The injury hit Los Angeles Lakers beat the San Antonio Spurs 101-89 with a gritty effort on Monday night at the Staples Center.
Super Bowl 44 has makings of a classic but, while the neutrals will be supporting them, do New Orleans possess the power and versatility to deny the Colts a second title in four years?
Andy Richmond selects the individuals who could turn Superbowl XLIV in favour of the Colts or Saints “The Saints’ Ball-hawking safety, 13-year veteran Darren Sharper has had a relatively quiet post-season. He’s a gambler and it will be fascinating to see him go for broke against Manning – that could be one of the match ups of the day – will he be able to use his skills to pick him off or will he get burnt on a big play?” Superbowl XLIV will feature some of the most prominent and recognisable names in the NFL today especially at quarterback where many will bill the game as a Peyton Manning-Drew Brees shoot-out
Two high scoring teams guided by stellar quarter-backs meet at the Superdome on Sunday in what should be a thrilling contest. Andy Richmond selects the best bets. “This is a game that features two hot quarterbacks, two teams that can run and pass the ball, and defences that played really well last week.” Drew Brees helped the New Orleans Saints score the most points in the NFL before leading his team to a convincing 31-point win in the play-offs
Odds point towards Indianapolis meeting New Orleans at Dolphin Stadium on February 7 Looking at the odds for Sunday’s pair of NFL conference championship games Superbowl XLIV will pitch Indianapolis against New Orleans . Peyton Manning’s Colts are 1.31 favourites to oust the New York Jets ( 4.1 ), surprise winners at San Diego on Sunday, to go forward as the AFC representatives at the big one
